In any family with more than one child, chidren seem to naturally compete for their parents' love and attention. Parents say they love every child equally. But is that true? Susan, founder of a consulting firm in Chicago, interviewed 216 women and found that even though none of her questions asked directly about a parent favoring one child over another, about two-thirds of the women said there was a favored child. And they also remembered their experience when they were young. One of the women said, "My mother always liked my brother better, and he got to go to summer camp in 1968 and I didn't." Plumez, who interviewed parents with both biological children and adoptive children for an adoption book in 2008, found that what matters most is whether your temperaments are pleasing. "In some cases, parents would say they felt closer to their adopted children," she says, "Some parents like the children with characters similar to theirs. Two people who are shy and withdrawn might get along well, unless the shy parent doesn't like that aspect of themselves and they try to push the naturally withdrawn child to be more ." It could be a result of gender, birth order or how easy or difficult a child's temperament may be, but a parent's different treatment has far-reaching effects. Students have found that less-favored children may suffer emotionally, with decreased self-esteem and behavioral problems in childhood. Favoritism is a reason for the next generation not to like each other. Experts say it is not realistic to say everyone should be treated equally, because no two people are the same and they relate differently to others. "It does not mean that parent loves or likes one child more. It has to do with which one of them is independent," says psychologist Laurie Kramer of the University of Illinois. What can we infer from the passage? A) Favoritism is not beneficial to the development of children B) Parents' favoritism to a certain child can't be avoided in families C) Parents may be favoring one of their children and don't realize it D) People are very much shaped by how they were treated by their parents
D
An earthquake is literally an earth-shattering experience! There you are enjoying an afternoon nap, having a cup of coffee in the morning, or even sleeping on a cold winter night when -- WHAM! -- the entire crockery shelf _ , and all the plates and cups break into pieces. A painting on the wall nearly knocks you down as it falls. What should one do in an earthquake? The prime-time news gives no warning, nor is there a time of year, like the monsoon season, when an earthquake always occurs. Unlike a tornado or hurricane, there is no known way of predicting an earthquake. Though about 500, 000 earthquakes occur each year, only 100 of them cause damage! However, an earthquake can strike any time of the day or night, so it needs to be prepared for when you have the misfortune of being caught in the middle of one. If you're indoors, stay indoors, unless you're on the ground floor, where you can easily run outside. The best thing to do if you're indoors is to hide under a strong piece of furniture like a bed or desk. Do not head for the stairway if you're living on an upper storey, because stairways can collapse. If you're driving, get out of traffic and stop on a wide and open road. Do not stop on a bridge, or in another case, under one. Stay inside your car until the shaking stops. Before you restart driving, look out for fissures , breaks in the road, and bumps or cracks. Inside your home, be careful not to turn on the gas until you' re sure the cylinder is safe, and there is no leak. Avoid using your telephone unless there's an emergency. You could be occupying lines that are needed by other people. Lastly, if you're not trapped or seriously hurt, do not expect fire fighters, army or police to help you. They may be busy rescuing people in greater need than you! What should you do if you're driving on a bridge during an earthquake? A) Stop where you are and get out of the car. B) Leave the car and run away. C) Keep on driving until you're off it. D) Stop under the bridge and stay inside your car.
C
The robot moved into the fighting ring with confidence.Then it turned around quickly and knocked itself over. The team of Scouts that built the 8-inch -tall machine immediately realized one arm was too long.They would have to work fast---practice time was over , and the real robot matches were about to begin . "We tried to fix it , but by that time , the other teams had more advanced technology ," says Eagle Scout Matthew Patchen , 16. "They were a couple of steps ahead of us ." In the end , Matthew's team didn't win the robot competition . But they had a great time working on their Robotics merit badges at the 2011 Advance Camp in Antioch , Calif . Advance Camp is held the last Saturday in September at the Contra Costa County Fairgrounds in Antioch, Calif.Nearly 1,500 Scouts attended in 2011 and worked on different merit badges .Scouts choose from more than 50 merit -badge classes taught by counselors .They can earn merit badges from Fingerprinting to Nuclear Science to Swimming .Robotics is the most popular class . First , one of the counselors talked to Matthew and the other Scouts in his Robotic class about the many different uses for robots . "I learned how advanced it really is ," Matthew says . "Robots are used in medicine and industry ." After the talk , the Scouts were divided into five-person teams . Each team was required to build a basic robot . The next step was programming the tiny computer in the robot so it would make the right moves once it was in the ring . "We programmed our robot so its arm was moving all the time ," Matthew says . "That way , it would knock the other robot over." . That's when they discovered the arm on their robot was too long . As a result , their robot knocked itself over before it could fight with any other robots . "It was a learning experience ," Matthew says . "You have to think ahead." In the Robotics class, _ . A) Scouts learned about different uses for robots B) every Scout had to build a robot by themselves C) the robots Scouts built will be used in industry D) the robots Scouts built were of the same height
A