The Barbie doll first appeared at the toy fair in New York in 1959. Its creator was Ruth Handler, an American businesswoman. She and her husband Elliott along with Harold Matt Matson started the toy company Mattel. She based the design of the new doll on a German doll named Bild Lilli and named her after their daughter Barbara. The first Barbie wore a black and white swimsuit and had her hair in a ponytail . She looked very grown-up. But any concerns that parents would not want to buy it for little girls were soon proved wrong. Mattel sold 300,000 Barbie dolls in the first year at a price of three dollars. Today, a fifty-year-old Barbie in good condition might cost more than 27,000 dollars. Barbie dolls have represented 50 different nationalities and are sold in 150 countries. Mattel says 90% of girls in the United States between the ages of three and ten own at least one Barbie doll. It says girls between the ages of three and six own an average of about 12. Barbie also faced her share of critics. A well-known example was when women's education groups objected to a talking Barbie doll that declared, among other things, "Math class is tough!" Mattel agreed to change it. Saudi Arabia has banned Barbie dolls. And a lawmaker in the American state of West Virginia would like to do the same. Last month, he proposed banning sales of Barbie and other dolls that influence girls to put too much importance on physical beauty. Some people say Barbie is an unhealthy role model for young girls. Robin Gerber disagrees. She wrote a book about Barbie. She points out dolls like scientist Barbie and race car driver Barbie. She says people who criticize Barbie should tell girls the story of the businesswoman who created her. She says Ruth Handler wanted the dolls to help girls think about what they wanted to do with their lives. From the passage we know that Mattel _ . A) is one of the world's largest toy companies B) is the director of an American toy company C) was the woman who originally created Barbie D) was a salesman who was good at selling Barbie dolls
A
WASHINGTON--Laura Straub is a very worried woman. Her job is to find families for French teenagers who expect to live with American families in the summer. It is not easy, even hopeless. "We have many children left to place--40 out of 75," said Straub, who works for a Paris-based foreigner-exchange program started 50 years ago. Family life was more than accommodating . For one thing, more mothers stayed at home. But now, increasing numbers of women work outside the home. Exchange-student programs have struggled in recent years to sign up host families for the 30 000 teenagers who every year come from abroad to spend a school year in the United States, as well as the thousands more who take part in summer programs. School systems in many parts of the U.S., unhappy about accepting non-taxpaying students, have also strictly limited the number of exchange students they accepted. At the same time, the idea of hosting foreign students is becoming less _ . In search for host families, who usually receive no pay, exchange programs are increasingly broadening their requests to include everyone from young couples to retirees. "We are open to many different types of families," said Vickie Weiner, eastern area director for ASSE, a 25-year-old program that sends about 30 000 teenagers on school-year exchange programs worldwide. For elderly people, exchange students "keep us young--they really do", said Jen Foster, who is hosting 16-year-old Nina Post from Denmark. According to the text, why was it easier for Laura Straub to find American families for foreign students? A) More mothers wasn't working outside and was able to afford to look after children . B) American school systems were better than now. C) Foreign students paid hosting families a lot of money. D) The government was happy because it could gain tax.
A
Q: BEIJING, July 21-More and more parents in Shanghai have found that their children are forgetting how to use Shanghai dialect to express themselves, according to a report in the city's Jiefang Daily on July 11, and some have begun forcing them to speak it at home. Language experts say that the promotion of Putonghua, and the large number of non-Shanghainese setting down in the city have meant that the local dialect has lost its previous high social status, according to the report. They have urged that the dialect be protected alongside Putonghua (also known as Mandarin), the nation's common tongue that has been systematically promoted since new China was founded in 1949. In their opinion, dialects carry and preserve local culture . They say that a dialect is not only a linguistic tool. But is also like a person's "birthmark" and part of their local identity and feeling of belonging. They recommended that TV and radio stations set up channels and programs using dialects , and that schools offer selective courses in which the dialects are taught. The experts also suggested that dialect be protected while maintaining high standards of Putonghua and a multicultural environment in the city. Shanghai dialect has lost its previous high social status, Which of the following is NOT cause ? A) Many people from other places come to live in Shanghai B) Putonhua is widely used. C) Few TV channels or schools use local dialects. D) Parents forget to force their children to speak Shanghai dialect.
A: D
(Q).
Noise pollution in cities is causing out health to suffer, according to the World Health Organization. Recently, researchers at the Free University of Brussels in Beigium have developed an applocation: NoiseTube. It allows everyone who downloads it the ability to measure the amount of noise they are exposed to by transforming their smart phone into a sound level meter. NoiseTube works by recording sound levels and GPS locations. Once launched the app shows decibel levels of green or red depending on the level of noise. That information is then sent to the NoiseTube server via the Internet where a "noise map" is produced and then made available to the user. Since its launch, the app has been popular with community groups who want to monitor their own noise levels. According to D'hondt of the Noise Tube project, these groups don't think that city produced noise maps give an adequate interpretation of the level of noise they're experiencing. City produced noise maps are based on statistical models involving very few actual measurements. NoiseTube on the other hand gives a detailed account of the level of noise experienced at a specific time and location. "Ten people walking the same area from 9 to 10 am every day for one week can make a valid and detailed map for an area of a couple of blocks," D'Hondt said. "It's reasonable effort by the community groups to produce these maps, and with it they can go to the authorities and have real evidence about what they're experiencing." So far these sorts of noise maps have been produced for a number of European cities. The app has been downloaded by 10,000 people with 2,700 people registered on the NoiseTube website. Why are community groups producing noise maps? A) To make more people use noise maps B) To prove they are useful tools to control noise pollution C) To make the authorities aware they are experiecing noise pollution D) To collect valid information for the researchers
(A).
C