Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Although man has known asbestos for hundreds of years, it was not until 160 years ago that it was mined for the first time on the North American continent. H.W.Johns, owner of a New York City Supply Shop for roofers,was responsible for the opening of that first mine. Mr. Johns was given a piece of asbestos which had been found in Italy. He experimented with the material and then showed its surprising powers to his customers. After putting on a pair of asbestos gloves,which looked much like ordinary work gloves,he took red-hot coals from the fireplace and played with them in his hands. How astonished the customers were to discover that he was not burned at all. You can well imagine that he had increased business in asbestos roofing materials. However,because it was very expensive to transport them from Italy to the United States, Mr. Johns sent out a young scientist to seek a source nearer home. This young man found great vein, in the province of Quebec in Canada. Ever since 1881 Quebec has led the world in the production of this unusual mineral,which is made up of magnesium, silicon, iron, and oxygen. When it is mined, the asbestos is heavy, just as you would expect a mineral to be. When it is separated,a strange thing happens; the rock breaks down into fine, soft, soapy fibers. Scientists do not know why the rock can be separated easily into threads ,but they have found thousands of uses of this fireproof material, of the so- called "cloth of stone." Question: Which title best expresses the main idea of this passage? - Asbestos mined in Canada - Fireproof material - A "wonder" material - A new roofing material

Ans:A "wonder" material
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Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Space is a dangerous place, not only because of meteors but also because of rays from the sun and other stars. The atmosphere again acts as our protective blanket on earth. Light gets through, and this is necessary for plants to make the food that we eat. Heat, too, makes our environment endurable. Various kinds of rays come through the air from outer space, but enormous quantities of radiation from the sun are screened off. As soon as men leave the atmosphere they are exposed to this radiation but their spacesuits or the walls of their spacecraft, if they are inside, do prevent a lot of radiation damage. Radiation is the greatest known danger to explorers in space, The unit of radiation is called "rem" Scientists have reason to think that a man can put up with far more radiation than 0.1rem without being damaged; the figure of 60 rems has been agreed on. The trouble is that it is extremely difficult to be sure about radiation damage. A person may feel perfectly well, but the cells of his or her sex organs may be damaged, and this will not be discovered until the birth of _ children or even grandchildren. Missions of the Apollo flights have had to cross belts of high radiation and , during the outward and return journeys, the Apollo crew accumulated a large amount of rems. So far, no dangerous amounts of radiation have been reported, but the Apollo missions have been quite short. We simply do not know yet how men are going to get on when they spend weeks and months outside the protection of the atmosphere, working in a space laboratory. Drugs might help to decrease the damage done by radiation, but no really effective ones have been found so far. Question: It can be inferred from the passage that _ . - the Apollo mission was very successful - astronauts will have deformed children or grandchildren - protection from space radiation is no easy job - radiation is not a threat to well-protected space explorers

Ans:protection from space radiation is no easy job
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Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: For the first time in Hong Kong's history,an entertainer has been written into middle school textbooks. He is considered one of the best actors in Hong Kong. Yes,he is Chow Yun fat. The example of his long hard struggle for success has been used in a chapter in a Hong Kong middle school textbook.Using his experience,students can learn to make the most of their time and to grab every opportunity to succeed. On hearing about this,Chow said happily,"I really hope that my experiences can make young people understand that one should not be afraid of difficulties and setbacks ,for they are the only way to success." Indeed,Chow has travelled a long and difficult path to reach his success.In 1955,he was born into a poor family in Hong Kong. When he was 17,he had to leave school.He worked in a number of jobs--as a postman,camera salesman and taxi driver. These experiences paved the way for him to play all kinds of roles later in life. Chow broke into the film industry in the late 1970s. He was one of the hardest working actors and starred in a number of popular TV dramas and films including "Shanghai Bund"(<<>> ) and "A Better Tomorrow". Since 1985, he has won many awards including Taiwan's Golden Horse Awards and Hong Kong Film Awards . In 1995, he went to Hollywood. Although he was already in his 40s, he had to learn English.He even put chopsticks in his mouth to practise pronouncing certain sounds. His film, "Crouching Tiger,Hidden Dragon",began to gain him more fame and recognition around the world.In 1998,the mayor of Chicago set aside January 12 as "Chow Yun fat Day." Question: Chow Yun fat has been written into middle school textbooks mainly because _ . - he plays best in Hong Kong - he keeps on struggling for success - his experiences are very special - he is well thought of

Ans:he keeps on struggling for success
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Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: The fact that blind people can see things using parts of their bodies apart from their eyes may help us to understand our feelings about color.If they can sense color differences, then perhaps we, too, are affected by color without knowing it.Salesmen have discovered by experience over a long period of time that sugar sells badly in green wrappings, that blue foods are considered not agreeable to the taste, and that cosmetics should never be packed in brown.These discoveries have grown into a whole subject of color psychology. Some of our preferences are clearly psychological.Dark blue is the color of the night sky and therefore connected with calm, while yellow is a day color connected with energy and encouragement.Experiments have shown that colors, partly because they are connected with psychology, also have a direct effect on people's mind.People in bright red surroundings show an increase in breathing speed, heartbeat and blood pressure.Red is exciting.Pure blue has exactly the opposite effect; it is a calming color.Being exciting, red was chosen as the signal for danger, but a closer study shows that a bright yellow can produce a more basic state of alarm, so fire engines in some advanced areas are now rushing around in bright yellow colors that stop buses, trucks and cars. Question: The most effective color in the passage for warning people is _ . - red - dark blue - green - bright yellow

Ans:
bright yellow
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