XI'AN---Seven people died in a fire early on Wednesday morning in Xi'an, capital of Shanxi Province. A restaurant with a karaoke hall in the southern suburbs caught fire around 2 a. m. and seven waitresses who were sleeping on the second floor of the restaurant were killed. The restaurant was completely destroyed and the waitresses, the local police said, were killed by _ smoke from burning decorations. MANILA---Four people were killed yesterday in the central Philippine island of Tacloban when a bomb they had dug up exploded, local police were quoted as saying. The four people were digging to set up a septic(poisonous)tank in their house when they dug up the bomb. It went off, killing all four people, local police were quoted by radio station DZBB as saying. The police did not say where the bomb came from. Unexploded bombs from World War II are still discovered around the Philippines once in a while. TEL AVIV---An Israeli couple kissed for 30 hours and 45 minutes which, a spokeswoman said yesterday, was a world record. The couple, both in their twenties, started kissing on Monday at 8:30 p.m. along with 250 other couples in a contest. "For nearly 31 hours they didn't eat, drink, talk or even go to the bathroom. And the whole time, they were standing up", said Arielle Goldman, who handled public relations for the event. She said a representative of the Guinness Book of World Records was on hang to witness the event, recorded on video. The previous record was 29 hour and 37 minutes, Goldman said. The winning couple received two round-the-world plane tickets and $ _ . (277 words) Why did so many couples take part in the contest? A) Because it was a good chance to enjoy themselves. B) Because they were poor and wanted to gain the 2,500 dollars. C) Because they wanted to attract people's attention. D) Because they aimed at the honor and prize.
D
We are much happier in our new house because it has a large garden, and you know how enthusiastic we both are about gardening. When we moved in a month ago, Mary wanted to get a dog to keep out burglars. However, we finally decided that it would be cheaper to put an iron grille in front of the door and get a burglar alarm. Last week, I went to a shop and bought an alarm for just over PS200. It consists of a control unit with three smaller units. I put the control unit in the lounge and put the other units in place by the front door, back door and lounge windows. That night I soon fell asleep because I was confident that no one could get into our house undetected. At about 1:50 a.m. I woke up suddenly and heard the siren. It was like an ambulance driving right through our bedroom. I couldn't leave the siren on all night. I went downstairs in the dark. When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I switched on the light and looked around. Oh my gosh. The back door was unlocked. I rushed to lock it and it was just at that exact moment that the 'burglar' disappeared behind a curtain. Guess what? It was an ordinary house lizard .Apparently the alarm system had been made for American or European homes in which lizards are never seen. I switched the alarm off and sat down to watch. A few moments later, a lizard ran across a wall, right in front of one of the alarm units. I won't bother to finish this story but if you'd like a burglar alarm system free of charge, just let us know. How does the author sound when telling the story? A) Curious. B) Anxious. C) Cautious. D) Humorous.
D
Q: I am truly saddened about what is going on in my school district, especially in the school where I am currently working. Why are so many students not doing well? Why is there such a huge achievement gap between urban and suburban students? Just this week, in my school the seventh grade team leader called a meeting to discuss academic detention . The purpose of the detention is to allow students who are doing poorly a second chance to redo the work. Now if a st udent did not understand an assignment, I have no trouble allowing that student to redo a test or give some extra credit work, but if a student did poorly because he/she opted not to do the work out of sheer laziness, that student should not be given a second chance. And parents should be responsible for their children. That is another reason why there is such a huge achievement gap. All children should be monitored at home in order to achieve great success in school. Perhaps it might be a great idea for urban school districts to offer free classes to parents on how to help their students at home. Of course this idea is far-fetched(,), after all we do not want to offend the parents. What we will do instead is to spend a large amount of money on teacher training because if the kids are not doing well it must be the fault of the teacher. That kind of mindset, if allowed to continue will be a perfect recipe for greater achievement gaps. I started working at my current school in August and I have been in the teaching field for 25 years. What I believe is that you can lead a horse to water but you can't make that horse drink. You can't force kids to change bad habits overnight, nor can we afford to lower standards just so a kid can pass a class. The seventh grade team leader in the author's school called a meeting to _ . A) analyse the reason for the huge achievement gap between students B) find out who is to blame for the huge achievement gap between students C) talk about giving students who are doing poorly a second chance to redo the work D) discuss how to narrow the huge achievement gap between students
A: C
Q: Many years ago I lived in a western country. My very first job was in the city and I was excited to go to work by public transport! I had never been employed before and my chances of travelling on a bus by myself had always been very slim. So, I was very happy with my new lifestyle! I left home each morning in time to catch the 8.05 bus from the main road. One autumn morning I could see the bus approaching. I could also see an elderly lady walking with a lovely dog beside her. There were some youngsters behind her. The bus arrived and we got on. Only eight passengers were permitted to travel standing. I was inside the bus when the conductor called, "Only eight standing passengers! Could the last one to get on please get off?" I saw those youngsters inside, right in front of me, and it occurred that they had jumped the queue! I turned and saw the elderly lady with her dog about to get off. I moved quickly to get in front of her. I encouraged her to stay, knowing very well I would be late that morning, but it didn't bother me. It was only as I moved past her to get off the bus that I realized -- she was blind! Her dog was her guide dog! Well, I eventually got to the office. After the day's work I went to the bus stand in front of my office to make the return journey. What a pleasant surprise! The lady and her dog were there! I was really pleased because I would get a better chance to speak with her. I started the conversation and she recognized my Asian accent! She asked if I was the same person who helped her that morning. Amazing! From there onwards it was one long happy conversation. These beautiful memories are still fresh in my mind. By helping others, I feel content! Which of the following statements best shows the theme of the passage? A) There is no place like home. B) There is kindness to be found everywhere C) The early bird catches the worm D) Nothing is difficult to the man who will try.
A: B