Playing with toy blocks may lead to improved language development in young children, a new study reported. Early childhood is an important period in the development of young minds. The newborn brain grows three times in size between birth and age 2. Scientists have said that certain activities during this important period may promote healthy development while others may hold it back, and development of memory and language may especially be helped by imaginative play. After six months, language scores among half of the 175 children aged 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 who were sent plastic blocks were 15 percent higher than a matched group that did not receive the free blocks, according to the study by researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle. Parents were given ideas about how to help their children play with the blocks, then were told to keep diaries of their children's activities over four days. Finally, all the parents filled out questionnaires that judged their children's vocabulary, grammar, and other language abilities. Study author Dimitri Christakis said unstructured play with blocks motivated children's thinking, memory and physical skills at a time when a child's brain is growing rapidly. "They are the foundation of thought and language," he wrote of the skills learned from building blocks. "Older children begin to make up stories for these objects ." Such play may also take the place of less helpful activities such as watching TV, he said, adding parents ought to have doubts about some toy-makers' words. "An increasing number of media-based products are making ungrounded claims that they can make children smarter, more literate, and more musical," Christakis said. Building blocks helps kids gain language skills because _ . A) young children always talk to themselves while building blocks B) their parents can teach them when they are playing with blocks C) their parents are given ideas on how to develop their brains D) it can help them improve thinking, memory and physical skills
D
(Question)
The concept of culture has been defined many times, and although no definition has achieved universal acceptance, most of the definitions include three central ideas: that culture is passed on from generation to generation, that a culture represents a ready-made principle for living and for making day-to-day decisions, and, finally, that the components of a culture are accepted by those in the culture as good, and true, and not to be questioned. The eminent anthropologist George Murdock has listed seventy-three items that characterize every known culture, past and present. The list begins with Age-grading and Athletic sports, runs to Weaning and Weather Control, and includes on the way such items as Calendar, Fire making, Property Rights, and Tool making. I would submit that even the most extreme advocate of a culture of poverty viewpoint would readily acknowledge that, with respect to almost all of these items, every American, beyond the first generation immigrant, regardless of race or class, is a member of a common culture. We all share pretty much the same sports. Maybe poor kids don't know how to play polo, and rich kids don't spend time with stickball, but we all know baseball, football, and basketball. Despite some misguided efforts to raise minor dialects to the status of separate tongues, we all, in fact, share the same language. There may be differences in diction and usage, but it would be ridiculous to say that all Americans don't speak English. We have the calendar, the law, and large numbers of other cultural items in common. It may well be true that on a few of the seventy-three items there are minor variations between classes, but these kinds of things are really slight variations on a common theme. There are other items that show variability, not in relation to class, but in relation to religion and ethnic background -- funeral customs and cooking, for example. But if there is one place in America where the melting pot is a reality, it is on the kitchen stove; in the course of one month,... According to the author's definition of culture, _ . A) a culture should be accepted and maintained universally B) a culture should be free from falsehood and evils C) the items of a culture should be taken for granted by people D) the items of a culture should be accepted by well-educated people
(Answer)
C
Ques: Visiting Joshua Tree National Park, California Joshua Tree National Park is nearly 800,000 acres large and surrounds parts of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts in South-central California. Although deserted at first sight, the park is full of wildlife and provides a variety of entertainment activities from hiking to climbing. Within a three-hour drive, Joshua Tree National Park takes at least a full day to visit. Things to do Hiking opportunities within the park include several choices, from 12 self-guided nature routines to all-day back-country hikes. Joshua Tree NP has nine camping grounds, and back-country camping is also allowed. Rock climbing is a popular activity in the park, which has 10 mountains greater than 5, 000 feet in height. When to visit Joshua Tree NP is open 365 days a year, although the best time to visit is October through April, when temperature is milder. The peak season is when the wild flowers bloom, and the summer months are the least crowded. What to bring In addition to your camera and telescope, be sure to carry lots of water. Park and guiding maps can be picked up at any of the three visitor centers. Fees Parking fees: You can buy a seven-day vehicle permit for $ 15, a single entry permit for $ 5, or Joshua Tree National Park annual pass for $ 60. Camping fees: They vary by camping ground If one goes to Joshua Tree NP by car and stays there for 9 days, how much at least one should pay for the parking fees? A) $60 B) $25 C) $15 D) $30
Ans: B
About 6,000doctors in theprefix = st1 /Philippinesare studying to become nurses so they can find higher-paying jobs abroad, Health Secretary Francisco Duque says. This was up from 2,000 doctors who studied to become nurses last year, Duque said. The exodus of doctors and nurses had created a "threatening situation for our health care system" and a task force had been established to examine the potential impact, he said. The team was working on a bill which would require doctors to practice in thePhilippinesfor at least three to four years before they were able to work abroad. "I think the problem really is the migration of doctors. We have so many nurses now, more than enough to fill up(vacancies). But our doctors are leaving," Duque said. A study by the University of thePhilippineshad found that between 2000to 2003 more than 50,000 Filipino nurses went abroad to work. A doctor working in a government hospital in thePhilippinesearns only about 25,000 pesos(446 dollars) a month. A doctor could earn around 8,000dollars a month while working as a nurse overseas. Even lawyers, accountants and engineers are enrolling to brain as nurses. Filipino nurses are in demand in Europe, the United States, the Middle East and even closer to home, such as in Singapore and Japan. However, Health officials have warned the country faces a "medical apocalypse" if it continues to lose its health professionals to jobs abroad. According to the passage, why do so many doctors leave to work abroad as nurses? A) Because they don't like the working surroundings at home. B) Because they like to be nurses and live abroad. C) Because they can make much more money abroad. D) Because the government hospitals at home never value them.
C