Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: Everyone wants some degree of success. Many people believe that they deserve success simply because they believe that they deserve success. But there is a widespread belief that people who get on in life may be successful not because they deserve it, but because of influential friends or the right background. Sometimes it may just be a comforting and harmless belief, while at the other extreme it can be very destructive. I once met a brilliant young engineer who worked in a chemical plant. Because of her knowledge and experience, she should have been promoted to Production Manager. Instead, the job went to a man who was totally unsuited for the post. Everyone knew that he only got it because he was politically acceptable to his superiors . This injustice discouraged the young engineer and many of her colleagues. It also meant that the factory was much less efficient than it could have been. At the same time, we should not be pessimistic . More and more the modern world depends on having people who are in the job because they are good enough, not just because their faces fit. There is a story of a factory owner who sent for an engineer to see to a machine which would not go. He examined it, then took out a hammer and tapped, once. The machine started up immediately. When he presented his bill, the owner protested, "This can't be right! $ 100 just for tapping a machine with a hammer?" The engineer wrote out a new bill: "For tapping a machine, $1; for knowing where to tap. $99." Question: According to the text, which of the following is NOT true? Answer: | OPTIONS:
- Having influential friends or right background seems helpful sometimes.
- The engineer had good reason to overcharge the factory owner.
- Not all those who are good in their jobs have the chance to be promoted.
- Those who are good in their jobs are still largely needed by the modern society.
A: The engineer had good reason to overcharge the factory owner.

Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: Neddine Parker is up by 7 in the morning. After her morning exercises and some housework, she drives to the local hospital, where she volunteers once a week. What makes Parker's routine so extraordinary is that she is 104 years old. "I don't know why I'm still here," she said. Dr. Thomas Perls of the Boston University Medical Center is trying to figure that out. As the director of the New England Centenarian Study, he studies there "super humans", those age 100 years and older. "It's like winning the lottery", he said. "You've got to choose the right numbers and the right combination." Researchers believe about 30 percent of aging is genetic. For those who get to extremely old ages, family history may play an even more important role. Reuben Landau's mother lived to 100, and three of his brothers and sisters into their 90s. Landau is nearly 102, and he still practices law a few hours every day. Both Landau and Parker are remarkably healthy. They take few medications and have no major illness. Perls has found that many centenarians lack a type of gene -- E4 -- that is associated with an increased risk of heart disease. One study found the gene is in 29 percent of young men, but only 15 percent of centenarians. Perls also believes they may have a "protective gene", one that helps them survive what might kill others. Parker, for example, smoked until she was 100 and had a stroke at 89. However, living into your 100s isn't just genetics. Aging successfully has much to do with environment and behavior. Landau watches what he eats and exercises his body and mind every day. He's convinced it's why he's still in good health. "People still have to do the right things to get to very old age," said Perls. So it's not just the cards you're dealt, but how you play the hand. Question: By saying "It's like winning the lottery", Dr. Thomas Perls means _ . Answer: | OPTIONS:
- it is quite unusual to be a centenarian
- it is very difficult to find "super humans"
- it is a tough job investigating the aging process
- it takes a long time to win a lottery
A: it is quite unusual to be a centenarian

Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: Count Me Out Call me old-fashioned. Call me old. Call me what you want, but I refuse to become part of this new Internet world. I do not possess a computer at home or at the office. Actually, I stopped going to an office 35 years ago, when all communications were done with a pen, a typewriter, or, if the matter was of world-shaking importance, over the telephone. Likewise, if you like something advertised in a newspaper or magazine, you visited the shop selling it at the given address, or you phoned the number shown. Then you spoke to the fellow and asked for further details. Tell me what you think of the following ad that appeared the other day in the newspaper. It was for a cure for cancer and this is what it said: "Awareness is the key. Visit com at the awareness site." There was no address or telephone number for the site. So what do unfortunate people without a computer do if they are seeking a cure for their illness? There are, I am told, certain advantages in having access to the Internet. You can, for example, send love messages across the world or even get married to someone that you meet online. This bit doesn't interest me; I have been happily married for 60 years. There are, of course, other activities for Internet users besides finding love. They can pay bills, order groceries, or discuss with their doctors. And this is by no means all. More amazing things are yet to come in the near future. I read a newspaper report recently that quoted Stephen Hawking, an important British scientist. "The complexity of a computer as it exists today is probably less than the brain of an earthworm," he said. "But, as technology advances, computers will become more complex, and a time may come when the Internet may develop 'consciousness.' In other words, the Internet will be able to think, have feelings, and may well be able to act on its own." If Professor Hawking is right, I may change my attitude to computers. As I grow older each day, I would like one of those that not only thinks for me but also accepts... Question: According to Paragraph 2, the author thinks computers are _ . Answer: | OPTIONS:
- unnecessary
- convenient
- expensive
- advanced
A: unnecessary