Informal conversation is an important part of any business relationship.Before you start a discussion,however,make sure you understand which topics are suitable and which are considered taboo in a particular culture. Latin Americans enjoy sharing information about their local history, art and customs.You may expect questions about your family,and be sure to show pictures of your children.You may feel free to ask similar questions of your Latin American friends.The French think of conversation as an art form,and they enjoy the value of lively discussions as well as disagreements. For them,arguments can be interesting and they can cover pretty much or any topic ---- as long as they occur in are respectful and intelligent manner. In the United States,business people like to discuss a wide range of topics,including opinions about work,family,hobbies,and politics. In Japan,China,and Korea,however,people are much more private.They do not share much about their thoughts,feelings,or emotions because they feel that doing so might take away from the harmonious business relationship they're trying to build.Middle Easterners are also private about their personal lives and family matters.It is considered rude,for example,to ask a businessman from Saudi Arabia about his wife or children. As a general rule,it's best not to talk about politics or religion with your business friends.This can get you into trouble,even in the United States,where people hold different religious views.In addition,discussing one's salary is usually considered unsuitable.Sports is typically a friendly subject in most parts of the world,although be careful not to criticize national sport.Instead,be friendly and praise your host's team. Why are people from Asia more private in their conversation with others? A) They don't want to talk much with others. B) They don't want to have their good relationship with others harmed by informal conversation. C) They are afraid to argue with their colleagues. D) They want to keep their feelings to themselves.
B
Health and climate scientists have mapped how climate change affects different parts of the world in different ways. The scientists point to the fact that changes in the past thirty years may, have been affecting human health. Possible effects include more deaths from extreme heat or cold, more storms and more crop failures in dry periods. The health and climate scientists recently estimated that climate changes caused by human activity lead to more than one hundred and fifty thousand deaths each year. Cases of sickness are estimated at five million. And the W.H.O. says the numbers could rise quickly by the year of 2003. Jonathan Patz of an environmental institute led the study. Professor Patz points out that climate scientists connected global warming with the heat that killed thousands in Europe in August, 2003. But he says poor countries least responsible(......) for the warming are most in danger from the health effects of higher temperatures. Professor Patz says areas in greatest danger include southern and eastern Africa and coastlines along the Pacific and Indian oceans. Also, large cities experience what scientists call a "heat island"effect that can make conditions worse. Representatives from about two hundred countries hold a meeting in Canada, to discuss climate change. The ten-day meeting ends on December 9th. It is the first such United Nations meeting since the Kyoto Protocol took effect earlier this year. The agreement aims to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases sent off into the air. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage? A) Climate changes affect different parts of the world in the same way. B) The ten-day meeting is the first United Nations meeting on climate change. C) The Kyoto Protocol aims to make smaller the amount of heat-trapping gases into the air. D) Poor countries are responsible for the global warming.
C
(Q).
The government of prefix = st1 /Norwayis planning to build an unusual storage center on an island in the Arctic Ocean. The place would be large enough to hold about two million seeds. The goal is to present all crops known to scientists. The British magazine New Scientist published details of the plan last month. The structure will be designed to protect the world's food supply against nuclear war, climate change and other possible threats. It will be built in a mountain on the NorwegianislandofSpitsbergen. The mountain is less than one thousand kilometers from the North Pole, the northernmost position on earth. An international group called the Global Crop Diversity Trust is working on the project. The director of the group, Cary Fowler, spoke to New Scientist. He said the project would let the world rebuild agriculture if, in his word, "the worst came to the worst". Norwayis expected to start work next year. The project is expected to cost three million dollars. Workers will drill deep in the side of a sandstone mountain. Temperatures in the area never rise above 0oC. The seeds will be protected behind concrete walls a meter thick and high-security door. The magazine report says the collection will represent the products of ten thousand years of farming. Most of the seeds at first will come from collections at seed banks in Africa, Asia and Latin America. To last a long time, seeds need to be kept in very low temperatures. Workers will not be present all the time. But they plan to replace the air inside the storage space each winter. Winter temperatures on the island are about eighteen degrees below 0oC. The cold weather would protect the seeds even if the air could not be replaced. Mr. Fowler says the proposed structure will be the world's most secure gene bank. He says the plant seeds would only be used when all other seeds are gone for some reason. Norwayfirst proposed the idea in the 1980s. But security concerns delayed the plan. At that time, the Soviet Union was meeting inRomeof the Food and... What is probably the best title of the passage? A) The Best Place to Store Seeds B) Noah's Ark of Plant Seeds in Plan C) Concerns of World Food Supply D) A New Way to Feed the World
(A).
B