After 20 years as a full-time wife and mother, I decided to be a school bus driver for I loved kids. After hard practice, by the time school started that year I'd gotten the hang of it. I was happy in my new work. I became a combination of chauffeur, nurse and friend. And if the kids needed it, I'd put on my "Tough Big Sister" act. It was a lot like my previous job---being a mom. When I think about my years of bus driving, many things crowded in, but mostly, I remember Charlie. Charlie, eight years old, with blond hair and crystalline gray eyes, began riding my bus in September of my fourth year driving. They all had stories to tell me about their summers. Charlie, though, ignored me. He didn't even answer when I asked his name. From that day on, Charlie was a trial. If a fight broke out I didn't have to turn my head to know who had started it. If someone was throwing spitballs I could guess the culprit's name. If a girl was crying, chances were Charlie had pulled her hair. No matter how I spoke to him, gently or firmly, he wouldn't say a word. He'd just stare at me with those big gray eyes of his. I asked around some, and found out Charlie's father was dead and he didn't live with his mother. He deserves my patience, I thought. So I practiced every bit of patience I could muster. To my cheery "Good Morning", he was silent. When I wished him a happy Halloween, he sneered. Many, many times I asked God how I could reach Charlie. "I'm at my wit's end." I'd say. Still I was sure that this child needed to feel some warmth from me. So, when he'd pass by, I'd ruffle his hair or pat him on the arm. Toward the end of that year, the kids on my bus gave me a small trophy inscribed "To the Best Bus Driver Ever". I propped it up on the dashboard. On top I hung a small tin heart that a little girl had given me. In red paint she had written, "I love Polly and Polly loves me." On the next-to-last day of school I was delayed a few minutes talking to the principal. When I got on the bus I realized that the tin heart was gone.... From the passage, we learn that Charlie was _ . A) gentle and smart B) cold and firm C) naughty and lazy D) tough and lonely
D
(Question)
On "Super Bowl Sunday", millions of Americans are glued to their TVs. They are eating pizza, chicken wings and chips and cheering every move. They're watching the Super Bowl. Why are Americans so crazy about American football? Well, it is more exciting than other sports. One team can lose possession of the ball in a minute, which may allow their opponents to make a touchdown . Then that team may win the game unexpectedly. The Super Bowl also entertains its audience with a great halftime show. The football field is turned into a stage. Then an impressive performance of dancing and singing with special effects occurs. Since the Super Bowl is the most-watched TV program in America, commercial airtime is also very expensive. Big money is also spent on commercials. They draw the viewers' attention and advertise their image or products during the commercial break. After football season, the "March Madness" begins. The NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) competitions begin with 68 men's college basketball teams. They play until the field is reduced to the "Final Four". The winning team becomes the national champion. The NBA (National Basketball Association) All-Star game is also held in February. The best players from all the teams play in this game. Baseball is no doubt American's national sport. From grandpas to young kids, whole families go to ball games together. They wear their favorite team's caps or even carry their mascot . Our family went to watch Wang Chien-Ming play in D.C. once. We ate hot dogs, waved flags and sang during the 7th inning stretch. If you are not a sports fan yet, come and pick a sport or a team. Go to a ball game with your family, and cheer your team on. Sports are definitely a part of American culture one should not miss. Which of the following may be one of the reasons for the popularity of the Super Bowl? A) Its results are too exciting to meet viewers' expectations. B) People can eat pizza, chicken wings and chips when watching it. C) Its commercials are expensive enough to draw viewers' attention. D) The performances during its halftime show are appealing to viewers.
(Answer)
D
Ques: Young people frequently say that they want to exercise, but they just can't find the time. The solution just might be in-office interval training. Recent studies show that very short but intense exercise rapidly builds and maintains fitness and health, even when the workout is only a few minutes long. Work the stairs You can complete an excellent, effective -- and very brief -- workout in an office stairwell, says Martin Gibala, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Canada and an expert on interval training. For a study that he and his colleagues presented earlier this year, they asked 12 out-of-shape women in their 20s to warm up for two minutes by slowly walking up and down stairs in a campus office building. They completed three of these abbreviated stair workouts per week for six weeks. By the end, their aerobic fitness had improved substantially, the researchers reported, by about as much as if they had been running or cycling each week for hours. Fidget your way to fitness. Parents and teachers may once have urged you to sit still, but wiggling, tapping your toes, standing briefly, and otherwise fidgeting as much as possible at your desk is in fact good for your body. In one recent study, college students showed healthier blood flow in their lower legs if they fidgeted than if they did not. Even better, a 2008 study found that among office workers, those who frequently fidgeted burned as many as 300 calories more each day than those who resolutely stayed still. How many studies are shown in the passage? A) One B) Two C) Three D) Four
Ans: C
Have you ever been to a wedding and simply loved the bride's bouquet ? More than likely some part of it was the Hawaiian Wedding Plant. This foreign houseplant can be enjoyed by anyone,not just brides. With a little proper attention and careful planning on location,this foreign houseplant, native to Madagascar, can be brought into the home where it can become an interesting focus. Caring for the Hawaiian Wedding Plant is not much different than that of any other houseplants that may already be in your home. The only difference between this type of houseplant and others is the amount of the basic requirements that this foreign houseplant needs to survive and perform beautifully. During the growing season,this plant requires its wet soil,but when winter rolls around, this plant needs its soil to be kept drier. Hawaiian Wedding Plants should also be put in well-drained soil and placed in a location that receives full sun. That the soil must be kept wet does not mean that it should sit in water, so the soil must drain easily or this plant will not survive. Water the plant daily and feed this plant every two to three weeks with a little fertilizer for acid -loving plants. Prune in early spring,even as early as February. If these needs are met,this plant will stay beautiful. The most special feature of this foreign houseplant is its long lasting blooms combined with its unbelievable sweet smell. The Hawaiian Wedding Plant blooms the heaviest in the spring months,but has been known to bloom in any warm months,so do not be surprised to find blooms most time of the year except maybe _ The Hawaiian Wedding Plant comes from _ . A) Hawaii B) China C) Madagascar D) Alaska
C