Does your older brother think he's cleverer than you ? Well, he's probably right. According to a new research published in the journal Intelligence, the oldest children in families are likely to have the highest IQs and the youngest the lowest. A number of studies have suggested that IQ scores decline with birth order. In the most recent study, at Vrije University, Amsterdam, researchers looked at men and women whose IQ had been tested at the ages of 5,12 ,and 18. The results , which show a trend for the oldest to score better than the youngest in each test, involved about 200,000 people. That showed that first-borns had a three-point IQ advantage over the second-born, who was a point ahead of the next in line. The order of birth can also affect personality, achievement, and career, with first-borns being more academically successful and more likely to win Nobel prizes. However, eldest children are less likely to be radical and pioneering. Charles Darwin, for example, was the fifth child of six. Exactly why there should be such differences is not clear, and there are a number of theories on environmental influences on the child. The so-called dilution theory suggests that as family resources, both emotional and physical, as well as economic, are limited, it follows that, as a result , as more children come along, the levels of parental attention and encouragement will drop. Another theory is that the intellectual environment in the family favors the first-born who has, at least for some time, the benefit of individual care and help. The theory which enjoys the most support is that the extra time and patience that the earlier-borns get from their parents, compared with those arriving later, gives them an advantage. By using Charles Darwin as an example, the author wants to prove that _ . A) eldest children are the smartest in a family B) youngest children will usually become experts C) first-borns are more likely to win Nobel prizes D) eldest children are less likely to try something new
D
(Question)
Right in front of the Minneapolis Central Library,a row of green bikes sits parked in a special stand.Each bike is designed with the logo"Nice Ride"--the name of the city's bike-share program. Nice Ride bikes are a lot like the library books that people come here to borrow.To rent a bike,you simply use your membership card at a Nice Ride bike station.Members can rent one of 1,200 bikes from 138 stations throughout Minnesota's largest city.People use the Nice Ride bikes to go to work,to go out on business,or just to enjoy the city's many bike paths. The rise of bike-share programs like Nice Ride is encouraging more people than ever to choose biking over driving.Rising gas prices and concerns about the environment have also gotten people to dust off their bike helmets, pump air into flat tires,and hit the road. Why ride? Not only is biking good exercise,but switching from a car to a bike also reduces the amount of pollution in the air.Carbon dioxide,a greenhouse gas linked to climate change,is one of the many polluting substances that come out of a car's tallpipe. Bike-share systems are found around the world in cities like London,Paris,Barcelona,and Melbourne,Australia.The largest program-with 70,000 bikes-is in Wuhan,China. To make roads friendlier to non-motorists,the U.S.Department of Transportation has invested more than a billion dollars in cycling and pedestrian projects in recent years.The money went toward building thousands of miles of on-street bike lanes and bike-and pedestrian-only passages called green ways. If one wants to use the bike,it's a must to _ . A) give away a bicycle B) know Nice Ride well C) pay the cost in advance D) get a membership card
(Answer)
D
Ques: The interview had been going on for about 20 minutes and everything seems to be going well.Then, suddenly, the interviewer asks an unexpected question, "Which is more important, law or love?" Job applicants in the west increasingly find themselves asked strange questions like this.And the signs are that this is beginning to happen in China. Employers want people skilled, enthusiastic and devoted.So these are the qualities that any reasonably intelligent job applicants will try to show no matter what his or her actual feelings are.In response, employers are increasingly using questions which try and show the applicant's true personality. The question in the first paragraph comes from a test called Kiersey Personality Sorter.It is an attempt to discover how people solve problems, rather than what they know.This is often called aptitude testing. According to Mark Baldwin of Alliance many job applicants in China are finding this type of questions difficult. When a Chinese person fills out an aptitude test he or she will think there is a right answer and they may fail because they try to guess what the examiner wants to see. This is sometimes called the prisoner's dilemma .Applicants are trying to act cleverly in their own interest.But they fail because they don't understand what the interviewer is looking for.Remember that in an aptitude test, the correct answer is always the honest answer. The writer wrote the passage to _ . A) give you a piece of advice on a job interview. B) tell you how to meet a job interviewer C) describe the aptitude test. D) advice you how to find a job
Ans: A
If you want to make friends and form strong, lasting friendships, consider these suggestions. To make friends, you first need to put yourself out there somehow. Friends seldom come knocking on your door while you sit at home watching TV. Join a club with people who have common interests. You don't necessarily have to have a lot of common interests with people in order to make friends with them. In fact, some of the most rewarding friendships are between two people who don't have much in common at all, but if you have something in common with people, it can make it a lot easier to start a conversation and plan activities together. Use the web and get out! Websites like Meetup.com are aiming to bring people together with common interest. You can join any group or just start your own. If you don't know of a specific topic, try searching for just a location. It's a great way to meet new local people! Join a sports team. A common misconception about this is that you have to be really good at playing a particular sport in order to make friends with others on the team, but not all teams are so competitive. As long as you enjoy the sport and support your teammates, joining a local team with a laid-back attitude could be a great way to make new friends. Volunteer. Volunteering is a great way for people of all ages to meet others. By working together you build bonds with people, and you might meet others who have a passion for doing things the way you do. To make friends, besides spending more time around people, you also need to talk to people. Which of the following ways to make friends is NOT mentioned in this passage? A) Joining a club with people with common hobbies. B) Joining a sports team. C) Using the web and getting out. D) Being ready to help others.
D