From Monday 5 October shoppers in England will face a charge of at least 5 pounds for some of the carrier bags they use to take home their purchases. The move follows the introduction of similar charges in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The charge applies to"single-use"bags -- the thin plastic ones you typically get in the supermarket. The legislation says that for the charge to apply the bag must be unused, plastic, have handles and be 70 microns thick or less. Bags for life are thicker and larger, so retailers do not have to charge for them. However, whether you get charged also depends on what gets put in the bag. Shops don't have to charge for bags used for unwrapped food, raw meat and fish, prescription medicines, uncovered knives, seeds, bulbs and flowers, or live fish. However, if other items are put in the same bag, the charge kicks in. The government is hoping to persuade shoppers to reuse bags rather than take new single-use plastic bags home from each shopping trip. In 2014, more than 7.6 billion bags were given out by the major supermarkets in England -- the equivalent of around 140 bags per person. The bags take a long time to degrade , cause litter and are dangerous to wildlife. By introducing a charge, the government hopes to reduce the number of these bags used in supermarkets by up to 80%. Will all shops charge? They do not have to. The legislation applies to all types of shop -- from clothes shops to grocers, but only to retailers with 250 or more employees. However, some smaller shops have indicated that they will introduce a charge at the same time. Shops in airports and retailers selling on trains, aeroplanes or ships also do not have to charge. Retailers have been told to charge at least 5 pounds for single-use bags. It looks like the major grocers will go for 5 pounds on the nose. The charge of self-service machines will still apply. You will be asked how many bags you have used, and charged accordingly. What will happen to the money? Retailers are expected to give the money... Which of the following shops will charge for plastic bags? A) Shops with 100 employees or less. B) Shops with self-service machines. C) Shops selling goods in airports. D) Shops selling items on ships.
B
(Question)
As we all know, nature has supplied every animal except man with some covering for his body such as fur, feathers, hair, and shells as a thick hide. But man has nothing but a thin skin. If someone were to ask you, "Why did human beings start to cover their bodies with clothes?" most would answer, "To keep themselves warm, of course." It is only when we begin to think about it a little that we realize that clothes are worn for a great many reasons that have nothing to do with our need for warmth at all. For example, we wear clothes to some degree in order to decorate ourselves -- to make ourselves, if possible, look more dignified or nicer. Clothes of a special kind are often worn to show that the wearer has authority or power. The individual wearing them is treated with respect because he occupies a certain office. The judge on the Bench, for example, might look a very ordinary and unimpressive figure without his wig and gown. Clothes are an important part of ceremony, whether it is connected with belief, the law, parliament, and royalty, the fighting forces or the state. How very different the Queen's Coronation ceremony would have looked without the robes, coronets and the cloth of gold. Sometimes, even in some modern countries people wear some article of clothing, or some jewel, because they believe that it will bring them luck or protect them from evil or illness, or because it is connected with their beliefs. None of these reasons for wearing clothes -- to decorate ourselves, to show our position in the world, for ceremonial purposes, for "luck", to give ourselves dignity and authority -- have anything to do with our need for warmth. The author's purpose in writing this article is to tell us that clothes are worn _ . A) for ceremonial occasions B) for many other reasons besides warmth C) to keep people impressive and nicer D) to show people's authority or power
(Answer)
B
Ques: Everywhere I go, people are speaking on their cell telephones regardless of their surroundings . This happens when people are walking around a lake or through town, or even driving. I have even seen a person attempting to speak on her cell phone while ordering ice cream at Dairy Queen, thus speaking to two people at once. As the over-spending of technology increases, people begin to take less joy in the simple pleasures of life--joys that don't cost money--from observing clouds, playing with children to thinking or reading. And it is not just telephones that take the responsibility; too much value is placed on items from computers to cars. Many things are purchased merely to show off. Do you really need a cell phone that plays games, shows movies and takes pictures? No, cell phones should be purchased to use in urgent situations.You do not need to use your telephone when you are at someone else's house or in a restaurant. Technology and possessions do not bring joy. While some technology is necessary, it can get ridiculous . Each possession just makes us want more, while simple pleasures can be enjoyed now and then. Instead of spending our time buying a third television or looking into the newest cell phone models, we should be acting more productively to improve the world by volunteering, for example. Or, we should reconsider playing computer games or taking pictures on our cell phones and read a book or imagine what shapes the clouds are in the sky instead. People have less joy of simple life nowadays mainly because they _ . A) focus on technology and their belongings. B) use cell phones in less urgent situations. C) buy private cars just to show off. D) place too much value on computers.
Ans: A
Ques: Twenty-first century humanity has mapped oceans and mountains, visited the moon, and surveyed the planets. But for all the progress, people still don't know one another very well. That brings about Theodore Zeldin's "feast of conversation"-events where individuals pair with persons they don't know for three hours of guided talk designed to get the past "Where are you from?" Mr. Zeldin, an Oxford University professor, heads Oxford Muse, a 10-year-old foundation based on the idea that what people need is not more information, but more inspiration and encouragement. The "feast" in London looks not at politics or events, but at how people have felt about work, relations among the sexes, hopes and fears, enemies and authority, the shape of their lives. The "menu of conversation" includes topics like "How have your priorities changed over the years?" Or, "What have you rebelled against the past?" As participants gathered, Zeldin opened with a speech: that despite instant communications in a globalized age, issues of human heart remain. Many people are lonely, or in routines that discourage knowing the depth of one another. "We are trapped in shallow conversations and the whole point now is to think, which is sometimes painful," he says. "But thinking interaction is what separates us from other species, except maybe dogs...who do have generations of human interactions." The main rules of the "feast": Don't pair with someone you know or ask questions you would not answer. The only awkward moment came when the multi-racial crowd of young adults to seniors, in sun hats, ties and dresses, looked to see whom they would be 'intimate' with for hours. But 15 minutes later, everyone was seated and talking, continuing full force until organizers interrupted them 180 minutes later. "It's encouraging to see the world is not just a place of oppression and distance from each other," Zeldin summed up. "What we did is not ordinary, but it can't be madder than the world already is." Some said they felt "liberated" to talk on... From the passage, we can conclude that what Zeldin does is _ . A) an attempt to promote thinking interaction B) one of the maddest activities ever conducted C) a try to liberate people from old-fashioned ideas D) an effort to give people a chance of talking freely
Ans:
A