The iPhone, the iPad, each of Apple's products sounds cool and has become a fad . Apple has cleverly taken advantage of the power of the letter "i" - and many other brands are following suit. The BBC's iPlayer - which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet -adopted the title in 2008. A lovely bear - popular in the US and UK - that plays music and video is called "iTeddy". A slimmed-down version of London's Independent newspaper was launched last week under the name "i". In general, single-letter prefixes have been popular since the 1990s, when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use. Most "i" products are targeted at young people and considering the major readers of Independent's "i", it's no surprise that they've selected this fashionable name. But it's hard to see what's so special about the letter "i". Why not use "a", "b", or "c" instead? According to Tony Thorne, head of the Language Center at King's College, London, "i" works because its meaning has become _ When Apple uses "i", no one knows whether it means Internet, information, individual or interactive, Thorne told BBC Magazines. "Even when Apple created the iPod, it seems it didn't have one clear definition," he says. "However, thanks to Apple, the term is now associated with portability ."adds Thorne. Clearly the letter "i" also agrees with the idea that the Western World is centered on the individual. Each person believes they have their own needs, and we love personalized products for this reason. Along with "Google" and "blog", readers of BBC Magazines voted "i" as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade. But as history shows, people grow tired of fads. From the 1900s to 1990s, products with "2000" in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern. However, as we entered the new century, the trend inevitably disappeared. Nowadays, the "i" term often reminds people of the products which are _ . A) portable B) environmentally friendly C) advanced D) recyclable
A
(Question)
London is the capital of the United Kingdom. It has about seven million people. The river Thames runs through London. People from all over the world visit London to see Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London. There are many museums, theatres and parks in London, as well as offices and factories. London began as a Roman settlement called Londinium. The plague came to London in the 1600s, followed by the Great Fire of 1666. The city was badly bombed in World War II. London is very slowly sinking into its foundations and the level of the river Thames is slowly rising. As a result, extra-high tides could flood a large part of London. To prevent this happening, a great barrier has been built across the Thames at Woolwich. If very high tides happen, the barrier can be raised and London will be safe. According to the passage, from 1600 to now, _ great disasters have happened in London. A) one B) two C) three D) four
(Answer)
C
Ques: When the Apollo astronauts landed on the Moon in 1969, millions of people were rather sad. The person to blame for this was an artist named Chesley Bonestell. For many years, Bonestell had been creating beautifully detailed paintings of the Moon and planets. Viewers of his artwork were unhappy because the real Moon did not look like Bonestell's pictures of it. As a space artist, Bonestell tried to make his drawings look exciting and as true as the Moon is. He worked closely with astronomers and scientists to get the most up-to-date scientific information available. But in the 1940s and 1950s, no one had ever seen another planet up close. Yet Bonestell's paintings looked so real that some people thought they were photographs. Even though Bonestell was interested in astronomy, he did not start out as a space artist. As a young man he studied architecture -- the art and science of designing and making buildings. In 1938 Bonestell became a special effects artist in Hollywood. It was here that he learned he could improve his paintings by following the methods used in the movies. In 1944, a popular magazine published a series of Bonestell's paintings of the planet Saturn. He drew Saturn as if it were seen by someone standing on each of the planet's moons. The results were _ . Within a few years, Bonestell's artwork was appearing regularly in magazines and books on astronomy and space flight. Many of Bonestell's artworks had been right all along. But the biggest surprise was the Moon. Someone asked Bonestell what he was thinking when he saw the first pictures from the Moon. "I thought how wrong I was!" he said. "My mountains were sharp , and they aren't on the Moon." But he shouldn't have felt bad. No space artist had ever before taken so many people to so many faraway worlds. In the years just before the first manned space flights, Bonestell's artwork prepared people for the amazing space adventure to come. Bonestell made his space drawings _ . A) from a very early age B) by copying photographs C) with the help of scientists D) in order to make a living
Ans: C
Ques: Three high students become heroes after their act of saving a baby's life. Andrew Willis, 15, his brother Chris, 13, and friend Reece Galea, 14, were walking along Swallow Drive on their way to school on May 23, when Nicholle Price ran out of her house, shouting for help. Her six-month-old son Corey had swallowed an earring and the young mother couldn't ring for help because something was wrong with her phone. The three teenagers rushed to the aid of Ms Price, called an ambulance , calmed her down and waited with her until the ambulance arrived before heading to school. Ms Price, Corey and his grandmother Joyce Finnie visited the school last Thursday to thank the boys for their kind action. "It's good to know that there are still some good people who will stop and help," Ms Price said. "While I was shouting for help, a woman walking her dog went straight past, without stopping. I don't know what would have happened if these boys had not stopped." The teenagers were shocked at the attention they received at school for their heroic act but admitted that the incident was nerve-racking . "We heard her shouting so we knew something wasn't right," Andrew said. "We thought someone had died. It was scary but we just did what we had to do." Just as proud as the boys' parents is their principal, Tim McCallum. After two days in hospital, Corey has now fully recovered. "He's got two new teeth to show," Ms Price said. "I have to keep a closer eye on him. He's into everything now and grabs whatever he finds to put it straight into his mouth." Which would be the best title for this passage? A) How a baby was saved after swallowing an earring B) Why the mother shouted for help C) Baby life saved: teenage heroes earn high praise D) A mother came to school to thank 3 teenagers
Ans:
C