Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: My father had returned from his business visit to prefix = st1 /Londonwhen I came in, rather late for supper. I could tell at once that he and my mother had been discussing something. In that half-playful, half-serious way I knew so well, he said,"How would you like to go to Eton?" "You bet. " I cried quickly catching the joke. Everyone knew it was the most expensive, the most famous of schools. You should be entered at birth, if not before. I understood my father. He disliked any form of showing off. He always knew his proper station in life, which was in the middle of the middle class; our house was medium-sized; he had avoided joining Royal Liverpool Golf Club and went to a smaller one instead; though once he had got a second-hand Rolls-Royce at a remarkably low price, he felt embarrassed driving it, and quickly changed it for an Austin 1100. This could only be his delightful way of telling me that the whole boarding school idea was to be dropped. Alas! I should also have remembered that he had a liking for being different from everyone else, if it did not conflict with his fear of drawing attention to himself. It seemed that he had happened to be talking to Graham Brown of the London office, a very nice fellow, and Graham had a friend who had just entered his boy at the school, and while he was in that part of the world , my father thought he might just as well phone them. I remember my eyes stinging and my hands shaking with the puzzlement of my feelings. There was excitement, at the heart of great sadness. "Oh, he doesn't want to go away. " said my mother. "You shouldn't go on like this. " "It's up to him. " said my father. "He can make up his own mind." Question: What was the writer's reaction to the idea of going to Eton? - He was very unhappy. - He didn't believe it. - He was delighted. - He had mixed feelings.
A: He had mixed feelings.

Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: When I was 11, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings . Week by week her list grew: I was very thin, I wasn't a good student, I talked too much, I was too proud, and so on. I tried to hear all this as long as I could. In the end, I became so angry that I ran to my father with tears in my eyes. He listened to me quietly, then he asked. "Are the things she says true or not? Janet, didn't you ever wonder what you're really like? Well, you now have that girl's opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said." I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn't change (like being very thin), but a good number I could--and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I go to fairly clear picture of myself. I brought the list back to Dad. He refused to take it." That's just for you," he said. "You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just close your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something said about you is true, you'll find it will be of help to you. Our world is full of people who think they know your duty. Don't shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do." Daddy's advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I'veneverhadabetterpieceofadvice. Question: What did the father do after he had heard his daughter's complaint? - He told her not to pay any attention to what her" enemy" had said. - He criticized her and told her to overcome her shortcomings. - He told her to write down all that her" enemy" had said about her and payattention only to the things that were true. - He refused to take the list and have a look at it.
A: He told her to write down all that her" enemy" had said about her and payattention only to the things that were true.

Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Celia was shocked. She had always been in good shape during high school, but now, in her first year of college, she was suddenly ten pounds heavier. "My friends and I often had pizza or ice cream when we studied late at night," she said, "and I was always drinking Coke to stay awake." Celia's experience is common. Many students enter college and find it so different that they cannot deal with changes properly. They're away from their parents and in a new stressful environment. Pressures together with freedom to sleep and eat however they please cause many students to experience the "Freshman 15": gaining weight suddenly in their freshman year of college. Most students do not realize that the "Freshman 15" can cause some serious health problems. Of course, college-age adults are still developing bone mass, so gaining some weight is normal. Sudden weight gain, however, puts too much strain on the heart and lungs, resulting in little energy and some difficulty thinking and remembering. In later life, it can lead to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and possibly cancer. The solution to the "Freshman 15" is simple--pay attention to developing good habits! In general: * Eat normal-sized meals at regular times. Eat slowly and enjoy it, so you don't need to go back for more. * Keep only healthy snacks in your room--and don't snack too often! * Control drinking and smoking. Alcohol has a lot of calories, and smoking too much makes exercise difficult. * Exercise regularly! Even just 30 minutes a day--such as walking quickly to class from your dorm--will make a big difference! Question: What do many students think of their freshman year of college? - They find it quite different. - They find it not quite difficult. - They find it very free. - They find it simple.
A: They find it quite different.

Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Chinese students have tended to come to the UK at a younger age in recent years, which means they come to Britain not only for higher education, but also for high school or even primary school. Asian investors have followed this trend, and started to buy independent schools to serve this demand. An article carried by theTimes of London on October 17 reported that last year Chinese-owned company Achieve Education bought Chase Grammar, a boarding and day school in Cannock, Staffordshire. Chase Grammar includes a program that offers extra support for pupils from China. "This trend is very good and I am not at all surprised," Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the Independent Schools Council, told theGlobal Times, adding that Chinese people like the English education system. "We welcome Chinese investors in British private education." "Chase Grammar School is small, and the classes are small. It gives the school a family atmosphere," Jackie Medhurst, principal of Chase Grammar School, said in a welcome note on the school's website. Small class sizes, personal care, good exam result, and entry to world famous universities are features that are most attractive to Chinese students. But many parents are also worried that foreign investors might expand the proportion of international students, and that might _ the British tradition. It seems that Chase Grammar does not intend to hide their attempts to attract Chinese families. It has set up a China office in Shanghai to facilitate Chinese parents' communication with the school. Tong Zhou, a director of Chase Grammar, told the media that the school does not intent to change the ratio of local students and international students. Some international branches of British boarding schools are very popular in Asia. In recent years, the Chinese passion for the British boarding school system has led some of the best-known schools such as Harrow and Wellington to set up satellite schools in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong. And the trend continues. It seems that the rising wealthy... Question: Chinese parents are buying houses in order to _ . - invest more money - support their children's education - show off their ability - compete with other parents
A: support their children's education