It's 10:30 p.m. and 11-year-old Brandon Blanco is sound asleep at home. Suddenly, a loud noise wakes him up. Naturally, Brandon reaches for his cell phone. He blinks twice, and the message on the screen becomes clear: " R U awake?" But the late-night text does not annoy Brandon. He gets frequent messages and calls, even after bedtime. And he can't imagine life without them. " If I didn't have a cell phone, I wouldn't be able to talk to my friends or family as often," he told TFK. Brandon's use of technology doesn't stop there. He also has a computer, a TV and three video-game consoles in his room. With so many choices, it is no surprise that when he is not at school, he spends nearly every waking minute using one or more of these devices. Brandon is hardly alone. According to a recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, kids aged 8 to 18 are spending more time than ever before using electronic devices. How much time? More than seven and a half hours a day on average, the study found. That's about an hour more than just five years ago. The jump is the result of a huge explosion in mobile devices, says Victoria Rideout, the lead author of the study. Today, nearly seven out of ten kids have cell phones. Just five years ago, it was four out of ten. " These devices have opened up many more opportunities for young people to use media, whether it's on the bus, on the way to school or waiting in line at the pizza parlor," says Rideout. Often, kids multitask, or use more than one device at a time. " If you've got a chance to do something on your computer and take a phone call and have the TV on in the background, why not?" Media expert Cheryl Olson says. Most experts agree technology has much to offer kids. But some worry the kids could be missing out on other activities like playing outside or hanging out with friends. " It's a matter of balance," says Olson. " You've got to work on it." Multitasking while doing homework is another concern. Some kids listen to music, watch TV or use the phone while doing their... According to the text, Victoria Rideout would probably agree that kids should _ . A) do homework while watching TV B) do homework in a place without disturbance C) spend more time on homework D) have less homework
B
Feel tired lately? Has a doctor said he can't find anything wrong with you? Perhaps he sent you to a hospital, but all the advanced equipment there shows that there is nothing wrong with you. Then , consider this: you might be in a state of sub - health . Sub - health, also called the third state or gray state, is explained as a borderline state between health and disease. According to the survey by the National Health Organization, Over 45 percent of sub - healthy people are middle-aged or elderly. The percentage is even higher among people who work in management positions as well as students around exam week. Symptoms include a shortage of energy, depression, slow reactions, insomnia and poor memory , Other symptoms include shortness of breath, sweating and aching in the waist and legs. The key to preventing and recovering from sub - health, according to some medical experts, is to form good living habits, ale mate work and rest, exercise regularly, and take part in open air activities. As for meals, people are advised to eat less salt and sugar . They should also eat more fresh vegetables, fruits, fish because they are rich in nutritional elements - vitamins and trace elements - that are important to the body. Nutrition experts point out that it is not good to eat too much at one meal because it may cause unhealthy changes in the digestive tract . They also say that a balanced diet is very helpful in avoiding sub - health. The key to preventing you from falling into a state of sub health is to _ . A) keep on working regularly B) go to sleep a bit earlier C) form good living habits D) take medicine if necessary
C
Q: Psychologists tell us that there are four basic stages that human beings pass through when they enter and live in a new culture.This process begins with the "honeymoon stage".This is the period of time when we first arrive in which everything about the new culture is strange and exciting.We may be suffering from "jet lag" but we are thrilled to be in the new environment, seeing new sights, hearing new sounds and language, eating new kinds of food.This stage can last for quite a long time because we feel we are involved in some kind of great adventure. Unfortunately, the second stage can be more difficult.After we have settled down into our new life, we can become very tired and begin to miss our homeland and our family, friends, pets.All the little problems in life seem to be much bigger and more disturbing when you face them in a foreign culture.This period of cultural adjustment can be very difficult and lead to rejecting or pulling away from the new culture. The third stage is called the "adjustment stage".This is when you begin to realize that things are not so bad in the host culture.Your sense of humour usually becomes stronger and you realize that you are becoming stronger by learning to take care of yourself in the new place.Things are still difficult, but you are now a survivor! The fourth stage can be called "at ease at last".Now you feel quite comfortable in your new surroundings.You can cope(deal) with most problems that occur.You may still have problems with the language, but you know you are strong enough to deal with them. It can be concluded from the passage that _ . A) people feel better in their own culture B) it is not easy to adapt to a new culture C) culture shock doesn't occur at the beginning D) it is human nature to long for adventures
A: B
(Q).
Nails in the Fence There once was a little boy who had a bad temper . His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day he had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually _ . He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into fence. Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said," You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say thing in anger, they have a scar just like these holes. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say 'I am sorry ', the wound is still there. A verbal wound is as bad as physical one." The little boy then understood how powerful his words were. He looked at his father and said " I hope you can forgive me ,father, for the holes I put in you." "of course I can," said the father. When you say something with anger, they will leave a scar just as you put a nail in and then draw it out. It means _ . A) you shouldn't put a nail in the fence B) if you put a nail into the fence, you shouldn't draw it out C) it will leave a scar when you draw a nail out D) you will hurt somebody when you lose your temper.
(A).
D