Eight-year-old Jesse Abrogate was playing in the sea late one evening in July 2001 when a 7-foot bull shark attacked him and tore off his arm. Jesse's uncle jumped into the sea and dragged the boy to the store. The boy was not breathing. His aunt gave him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation while his uncle rang the emergency services. Pretty soon, a helicopter arrived and flew the boy to hospital. It was a much quicker journey than the journey by road. Jesse's uncle, Vance Folsenzier, ran back into the sea and found the shark that had attacked his nephew. He picked the shark up and threw it onto the beach. A coastguard shot the fish four times and although this didn't kill it, the shark's jaws relaxed so that they could open them, and reach down onto its stomach, and pull out the boy's arm. At the Baptist hospital in Pensacola, Dr Lan Rogers spent eleven hours reattaching Jesse's arm. "It was a complicated operation," he said, "but we were lucky. If the arm hadn't been recovered in time, we wouldn't have been able to do the operation at all. What I means is that if they hadn't found the shark, well then we wouldn't have had a chance." According to local park ranger Jack Tomosvic, shark attacks are not that common. "Jesse was just unlucky" he says, "Evening is the shark's feeding time. And Jesse was in the area without lifeguards. This would never have happened if he had been in the area where swimming is allowed." When reporters asked Jesse's uncle how he had had the courage to fight a shark , he replied, "I was mad and you do some strange things when you're mad." In which way did the boy's uncle help with the operation? A) By finding his lost arm B) By shooting the fish C) By flying him to hospital D) By offering his blood
A
Because of the stress and strains of modern life folks today would rather watch television than get together with neighbors. Their behavior doesn't mirror TV soaps like Coronation Street and East Enders. The Street's Ashley Peacock and Toyah Battersby know all their neighbors. But the Royal Mail survey shows that real-life under35s wouldn't dream of popping next door for a chat or to borrow a cup of sugar. Three out of ten say they wouldn't know their neighbors if they saw them in the street. The same proportion would only offer to help neighbors if absolutely necessary, while thirty-onepercent don't want to get to know them better. Twenty-six percent rarely or never speak to the person next door. Thirty-five percent only talk to neighbors occasionally, and six percent actively dislike them. The older generation are still sociable, with seventy percent of over55s taking time to chat to people next door. The report says: "In the past, the British tradition of village green gossip between neighbors was celebrated worldwide. But there's been a clear shift away from local links by the young generation." Londoners are least likely to be neighbors, with a third rarely or never chatting over the garden fence. People in the Midlands--where 65 percent often speak to their neighbors are most friendly. Sociologist Jane Blakeman said: "People are working longer hours than ever before, and are traveling further to work. It leaves them far less time at home." Almost a third of young people _ . A) know their neighbours quite well B) have no idea who lives next door to them C) talk to their neighbours when they want to borrow something D) spend time chatting with neighbours like their parents
B
Q: My grandmother was from a town in Michigan. Summer after summer, I enjoyed staying with my grandparents as a young child. I was from the city and loved the small town they lived in. People knew everyone, their kids, their pets, their ancestors. The bond with them continued to grow as I grew and they got older. Grandma was always using her hands for something exciting. She would make little sandwiches and we'd have tea parties. She'd make beautiful quilts for each one. I remember the small thimble she would use while doing her needle work. A few years ago, when Grandma left this earth, I bid farewell to a loving grandmother. How quickly our lives can change. We had just had tea together a couple of months earlier, on her 91st birthday. I missed her very much. On one particular birthday, when I was feeling a little low, something happened to make me feel like she was sharing that special day with me. I was arranging some colorful pillows that she had made, and suddenly I felt something inside one pillow. It was small and hard. I moved the object to a seam that I carefully opened, and to my delight out came a tiny silver thimble! How happy I was to find something that had been a part of her. Not realizing it had fallen off her finger, I pictured her sewing it in that little pillow that I just happened to place on my bedspread that day. I carefully laid the thimble alongside the others I've collected over the years, where I could continue to see the gift God chose to reveal to me. What a precious memory of a very special lady who somehow, I knew, was laughing in delight at sewing her thimble inside my pillow. I made some tea, using my best china, as Grandma always did, and enjoyed my tea and Grandma's thimble. What a wonderful birthday that was! What is the best title for the passage? A) A little pillow B) Grandma's silver thimble C) My grandparents D) My childhood
A: B
(Question)
People who show confidence really seem to have it made. They seize more rewarding careers, keep good relationships, and just seem to do everything with more styles than the rest of us. So what is the secret? There isn't one. Self-confidence is a skill and habit that anyone can learn to develop. And although people who are raised in an encouraging environment with confident role models have a hard start in self-confidence development, we all can learn to become more confident at any age. Try these simple tips for practising and increasing your self-confidence levels: Dare to fail. Anybody who's out there bravely performing is going to fail repeatedly. If you are not failing, you are not trying. So don't take failure too hard or too personally. Just learn to deal with it and use its lessons to keep improving. When in doubt, pretend you know what you are doing. Because, if you are confident of your abilities, by the time you have done it, you will be experienced. Dress for success. You don't have to be beautiful to be confident. Make the most of your own unique physical characters and weaken your disadvantages. Listen to yourself. You are the only person who knows what's right for you. Don't put others' opinions above your own inner voice. Build a confident vocabulary. Stop putting yourself down and give up continually blaming your tiny weaknesses. Learn to show up your strong points and the world will learn to see and celebrate them with you. Pass on the praise. Praise others for their virtues and strengths. This practice will not decrease your confidence, but help increase it. All the following are tips to increase your self-confidence level EXCEPT _ . A) not to be afraid of failure B) dress yourself properly C) pretend to know everything D) make your advantages more obvious
(Answer)
C