Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: The earth is not the only body that travels around the sun. With it are eight other planets, fellow members of the sun's family. Two of them, Mercury and Venus, are nearer while the other six, namely Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, also in their given order from the sun, are farther from the sun than the earth is. The farther they are, the longer trips they make around the sun. People noticed long ago that these traveling bodies moved around in the sky in definite paths. It is a force called gravity that holds them in their paths. We know that every little bit of matter in the universe pulls upon every other bit of matter. The pull between two bodies is proportional to the product of their masses. Because the sun is so large the pull between the sun and the planets are thus great. If it were not for this pull, the planets would fly off into space. In the same way there exists a pull between the earth and the moon, which keeps the moon traveling in its orbit around our planet, the earth. Gravity holds you to its surface, and pulls back to it the ball which you throw into the air. Of course the ball also pulls on the larger earth but the earth is so much larger that the pull is not noticed. Now remember that large bodies exert a greater pull than smaller ones which contain less material. But each object in the universe, no matter how small, pulls on all other objects to some degree. Question: Which two planets make the longest trips around the sun among all the planets in the solar system? - Mercury and Venus. - Neptune and Pluto. - Saturn and Uranus. - Mars and Jupiter.
Neptune and Pluto.

Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Tom Sawyer is known as one of the most beloved characters in American literature , but new research found that Mark Twain based this character on his friend named Tom Sawyer. He admired his firefighting friend so much that he gave the character his name. Mark Twain and Tom Sawyer had many adventures together, gambling in Nevada and drinking in pubs. Tom Sawyer once worked as a volunteer firefighter, policeman and customs officer. Before making his way out West, Tom Sawyer used his strength to save 90 people from a burning ship. Mark Twain was particularly moved by this story because his own brother died in a fire while working on a similar steamboat. The two men became friends immediately after meeting in 1863, with Tom Sawyer traveling to Virginia City, while Mark Twain was working as a reporter there. After one night they returned to San Francisco, Mark Twain told his friend that he would base a character in his yet-unwritten book on him. Tom Sawyer said, "One day he said to me, 'I'm going to put you between the covers of a book, Tom.' 'Go ahead, Sam,' I Said, 'but don't disgrace my name.'" Besides their fondness of drinking, the two men also shared a hobby for storytelling. Tom sawyer believed that it was his anecdotes about his own childhood that inspired Mark Twain to create a book on him. Finally Mark Twain said that the character of Tom sawyer was based on a mix of three real people---John B. Briggs, William Bowen and himself. In spite of this, the historical evidence shows that there might be a fourth, more prominent influencer. Question: The text mainly tells us that _ . - Tom Sawyer is a popular character in Mark Twain's work - Mark Twain based Tom Sawyer on his friend's name - Mark Twain and Tom Sawyer are childhood friends - Tom Sawyer helped Mark Twain write a popular book
Mark Twain based Tom Sawyer on his friend's name

Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: When I was a kid, my siblings and I used to have ice cream for dessert.Every day, we would choose which ice cream flavor to have, whether to eat it in a cone or a bowl. Then we would happily wolf down our treat as fast as we could. Once, though, when I was probably about 10 0r 11, our grandpa came to visit. Grandpa always had a unique view on things. On this particular occasion, my sister and I were making bets as to who could finish their ice cream first. With a smile, Grandpa said, "Why would you want to finish first? If you eat slowly, it will last longer. You should have acompetition to see who can finish last." Even now, I always try to taste my ice cream, but of course this is about more than just dessert. Too often, kids want to scramble for more, whether it's more ice cream, more toys, or more friends. This habit persists into our adult years, and we end up constantly scrambling for more. We never develop the skill of appreciating what we have. If we learn to recognize this pattern and change it, we can raise our kids a little differently, giving them the tool of tasting their proverbial dessert, which could lead to a happier life for them. What my grandpa taught me that day was really that if you take the opportunity to enjoy what's in front of you, the pleasure will last longer and be more rewarding than if you rush through life always trying to get the next treat. It's a lesson that, I think, has made my adult life happier, as well. These days, when I want something, I wait as long as I can before I allow myself to have it. Then, when I finally get it, I make sure to treasure it as long as possible, because I know that, no matter what it is, it will be gone all too soon. Question: Which of the following best describes the author's grandfather? - Wise. - Humorous. - Strict. - Careful.
A: Wise.

Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Stepping into a pool of water is common enough ,but who could ever imagine ; stopping into a pool of fish? In February of 1974, Bill Tapp ,an Australian farmer,saw a rain of fish that covered his farm .How surprised he must have been when he heard many fish hitting against his roof! What caused this strange occurrence ?This is a question that had long puzzled people who study fish .The answer turned out to be a combination of wind and storm. When it is spring in the northern part of the world ,it is fall in Australia, Throughout the autumn season ,terrible storms arise and rains flood the land .The strong winds sweep over Australia like huge vacuum cleaners, collecting seaweed ,pieces of wood ,and even schools of fish .Strong winds may carry these bits of nature for many miles before vacuum dropping them on fields, houses ,and stonishedpeople. Although they seem unusual ,fish-falls occur quite frequently in Australia.When Bill Tapp was asked to describe the scene of fish ,he remarked, "They look like millions of dead birds falling down." His statement is not surprising .The wonders of the natural world are as common as rain .Nature ,with its infinite wonders ,can create waterfalls that flow upward and fish that fall out of the sky. Question: What is this passage about? - A sad story. - The damage done by floods. - Australia's northern part . - A rain of fish.
A rain of fish.