Question: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: "Any time! Any where! Decades ago there was no such thing" - "Communication". Then, September 7th 1987, the global system for mobile communication or GSM was born. And international agreements that laid out the standards, regulations and practices gave rise to a global mobile phone industry. To be honest, the world's first mobiles were not so attractive and the range of effectiveness wasn't very good. But they became a must-have among those wealthy people who could afford that. However, by advantage of GSM which has many different elements to it, we can all enjoy the ability to go around the world in 217 countries, land in that country and know that a phone would work. There are other cell phone systems using different technology in the world. The majority of the United States and parts of South America have been using something called CDMA which is very rare in Europe. In some Asian countries like China, GSM and CDMA both exist at the same time. But the GSM Association claims 85% of the global mobile phone market. They estimated there are now about 2.5 billion different users who make more than 7 trillion minutes of calls everyday, and that's not all. 20 years later, the mobile phone is so much more than just a phone. You can use it to send text messages, take pictures, show video, even surf the internet. "The phone itself is involved from just being a communication tool, to be a tool for round-the-clock connectivity, you can not live without it even in a minute." Mobile consultant Nick Lane also points out with so many customized styles and features, your mobile phone will become a symbol of you. Where will the global mobile phone industry be in another 20 years? Certainly, there will be more connections than better coverage. As for where else technology will take us, one can only imagine. Question: What does the writer feel about the GSM development in the following 20 years? - Satisfied. - Worried. - Confident. - Confused.
Answer: Confident.

Question: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Dear Editor, I have just returned home after studying for a year in Germany. But it seems that my parents don't understand me now. They expect me to be the same person I was before I went abroad, but I'm not! Why can't they let me be myself? Jimmy Hi, Jimmy, As far as I know, people who have lived abroad often find that the adjustment to returning home is more difficult than their adjustment to living in a foreign culture. Why? We expect to have some problems when we go to a new place, speak a different language and learn the rules of a different culture ... But home? ... we know that place! Your parents expect that the same person who boarded the airplane one year ago will be returning. Especially if they have never been abroad themselves, your parents probably won't understand the changes that living abroad can cause in a person. On the other hand, you may have maintained an ideal mental image of your loved ones while abroad, an image that is broken into pieces when you return. Remember you have been living a different lifestyle in your host country, and you have probably become very independent while staying there alone. Now that you're home, you will be expected to conform again to the lifestyle of your family. As a result, you may be upset about your parents' involvement in your life. Communication is the key to overcoming this problem. Tell your parents how you are feeling. Share with them information about cultural re-entry , and ask them to be patient. This does not mean that you have to forget your experience and give up everything you've learned! Learn to find a balance between the old and new, just as you did when first adjusting to your host country's culture. Question: The author suggests that _ would help solve Jimmy's problem. - patience and trust - patience and politeness - better communication between family members - a deeper understanding of the host country's culture
Answer: better communication between family members

Question: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: The young man arrived on the Massachusetts beach early carrying a radio, a shovel , and a strange set of tools: a brick layer's trowel, a palette knife, spatulas, spoons, and a spray bottle. He walked down near the water -- the tide was out -- and switched on the radio to listen to soft rock. Then he shoveled wet sand into a pile nearly four feet high and as many feet across. Then he created a square shape. After that, he set to work with palette knife, spatulas, and spoons. He shaped a splendid tower, topped walls, fashioned beautiful bay windows, and carved out a big front gate. The man knew his sand. He smoothly finished some surfaces and carved artistic designs on others. As the shapes began to dry, he gently kept them slightly wet with water from the spray bottle, in case they might break in the wind. All this took hours. People gathered. At last he stood back, obviously satisfied with a castle worthy of the Austrian countryside or Disneyland. Then he gathered his tools and radio and moved them up to drier sand. He had known for a while what many in the crowd still ignored: the tide was coming in. Not only had he practiced his art with confidence and style, he also had done so against a powerful, irresistible deadline. As the crowd looked on, water came at the base of the castle. In minutes it was surrounded. Then the rising flood began to eat into the base, walls fell, the tower fell, and finally the gate fell. More minutes passed, and small waves erased bay windows -- soon no more than a small part was left. Many in the crowd looked terribly sad; some voiced fear and discouragement. But the man remained calm. He had, after all, had a wonderful day, making beauty out of nothing, and watching it return to nothing as time and tide moved on. Question: In this passage, why did the young man start early in the day? - He needed the sun to help dry the sand. - It gave plenty of time for the crowd to gather. - He knew the tide was out on this particular morning. - It was easier to begin his work with only a few people around.
Answer:
He knew the tide was out on this particular morning.