Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: I climbed the ladder, heard my dive announced, and began the moves that would push me into the air. Pushing off the diving board with my legs, I lifted my arms and shoulders back, and knew immediately I would be close to the board and might hit my hands. I tried to correct myself as I turned, spreading my hands wide apart. Then I heard a strange sound and my body lost control. Moments later I realized I had hit my head on the board. At the beginning, I felt embarrassed. I wanted to hide, to get out of the pool without anyone seeing me. Next I felt intense fear. Had I cut my head? Was I bleeding? Was there blood in the pool? Swimming to the side, I noticed many shocked faces. People were worried about my head; I was worried about something far more threatening. An official examined my head. In a hurry, I pushed him away, and everyone else who approached me. "Don't touch me!" I felt like screaming. "Get away from me!" These were the trials for the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, Korea. Until this dive, I had been ahead. But now, something else was more significant than winning. I might have endangered other divers' lives if I had spilled blood in the pool. For what I knew--- that few others knew - was that I was HIV-positive. According to my mother, my natural parents were Samoan and only teenagers when I was born, so they gave me up for adoption. When I was only eighteen months old, I started gym classes. At ten, I explored doing gym exercises off the diving board at the pool. Because of my dark skin, kids at school called me names. My diving made me feel good about myself when my peers made me feel stupid. At sixteen, I knew I had a shot at the 1976 Olympics. Everyone was alarmed when I hit my head on the board in Seoul. Regardless, I made it to the finals. During my last dive in the finals, I enjoyed for the last time the quietness underwater and then swam to the side of the pool. The crowd cheered, and I knew I'd won --- two gold medals. AIDS forced me to stop diving; I had to give up diving professionally... Question: The writer's natural parents put him up for adoption because _ . Answer:

OPTIONS:
- they were too young to raise him
- they were too poor to raise him
- they didn't love him
- they were Samoan

A: they were too young to raise him

Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland By Lewis Carroll Walker (first published in 1865). Reading level: ages 6-15 In stock. Originally created by Lewis to amuse three young girls on a boat trip, it tells of a curious child named Alice who follows a white rabbit down a rabbit hole, only to find a door opening to a world of strange creatures. A Cheshire cat, a tea party, a Queen and a Duchess all add to the adventure. Animal Farm By George Orwell (first published in 1945) Reading level: ages 5-12 In stock. Old Major inspires the animals of the Manor Farm to live together with no human to control them. When he dies, three younger pigs--Snowball, Napoleon and Squealer manage to drive the farmer Mr Jones away from the farm, renaming it "Animal Farm". But soon Napoleon becomes the leader of the farm and the animals have even less freedom than before. Treasure Island By Robert Louis Stevenson (first published in 1883) Reading level: ages 8 and up In stock. Robert Louis Stevenson created a rich story of the adventures of Jim Hawkins and his search for the buried treasure of the pirate Captain in Flint. The story is told in the first person of Jim Hawkins and begins at his family's inn. The influence of Treasure Island on popular views of pirates is impressive, including treasure maps marked with an "X", the Black Spot, tropical islands and one-legged seamen carrying parrots on their shoulders Charlotte's Web By EB White (first published in 1952) Reading level: ages 7 and up In stock. Only 4 left in stock--order soon. Charlotte is a spider living in a barn where one day, a short pig called Wilbur comes to live. When she discovers that Wilbur will be killed, the spider manages to save him by writing special messages in her web. The pair become famous and is celebrated at the county fair , but sadly a spider's life is not a long one. This book explores some difficult issues in a magical story. Question: The expression "In stock" in the text probably means " _ ". Answer:

OPTIONS:
- convenient
- famous
- available
- secure

A: available

Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: It seems that there is no middle ground when it comes to cats. People either love them or hate them. These feelings are not new either. All through history, cats have been worshiped or hated. A study of ancient writings and evidence found in tombs indicates that for the past 5,000 years, cats have been kept as pets in China, Arabia, Egypt, and India. However, this isn't very long compared to dogs, which have been domesticated for 50,000 years. Still, while the period in which cats have been domesticated may be quite short, it has definitely had its high and low points. Cats were at their highest position of domesticated life in ancient Egypt. There were more cats living in Egypt during the time of the pharaohs than in any other place in the world since that time. This high number of cats was probably due to the laws protecting them. Cats were associated with the moon goddess, Bast, so the Egyptians worshiped them as holy animals. If anyone was caught killing a cat, the person could be put to death. Families in Egypt also mourned the death of a cat and had the body of the dead cat wrapped in cloth before it was finally laid to rest. This respect for cats carried over to the Roman Empire where cats were the only animals allowed into temples. This fact was probably due to the ability of cats to keep the temples free of mice and rats. With the coming of the Dark Ages in Europe, the place of cats in society took a turn for the Empire, Christians began to associate cats with pegan beliefs. Cats had a reputation as helpers of witches. When a person was accused of being a witch, a cat would often be put on trial with the person. The cat would be tortured to try and make the person tell the truth, and usually the cat and the person would end up being burned in a bonfire or drowned. Bonfires of collected cats were not uncommon during this time. The days of hunting witches have ended, but other myths about cats still hold out. For a while, people in some places used to bury live cats under new buildings for good... Question: How were cats treated in Europe during the Dark Ages? Answer:

OPTIONS:
- as farm animals
- as food
- as magical creatures
- as honored guests

A:
as magical creatures