The producers of instant coffee found their product strongly resisted in the market places despite their product's obvious advantages. Furthermore,the advertising expense for instant coffee was far greater than that for regular coffee. Efforts were made to find the cause of the users' seemingly unreasonable resistance to the product. The reason given by most people was dislike for the taste. The producers doubt that there might be deeper reasons,however. This was supported by one of motivation research's classic studies,one often cited in the trade. Mason Haire of the University of California constructed two shopping lists that were the same except for one item. There were six items common to both lists: hamburger,carrots,bread,baking powder,canned peaches,and potatoes,with the brands or amounts specified. The seventh item,in fifth place on both lists,read"lib. Maxwell House coffee"on one list and"Nescafe instant coffee"on the other. One list was given to each one in a group of fifty women,and the other list to those in another group of the same size. The women were asked to study their lists and then to describe,as far as they could,the kind of woman(personality and character)who would draw up that shopping list. Nearly half of those who had received the list including instant coffee described a housewife who was lazy and a poor planner. On the other hand,only one woman in the other group described the housewife,who had included regular coffee on,her list was lazy; only six of that group suggested that she was a poor planner. Eight women felt that the instant-coffee user was probably not a good wife!No one in the other group drew such a conclusion about the housewife who intended to buy regular coffee. Judging by the result of the study many women were not interested in instant coffee because _ . A) they didn't trust advertisements B) instant coffee was not suited to their taste C) they wanted to show that they were intelligent D) they had a sense of shame about using instant coffee
D
(Question)
We continue our Foreign Student Series on higher education in the United States. Now we move on to college life once you are admitted to a school. The first thing you need to value is a place to live. Housing policies differ from school to school. Students might have to live in a dormitory, at least for the first year there. Dorms come in all sizes. Some have suites. Six or more students may line in one suite. Other dorms have many rooms along a common hallway, usually with two students in each room . Many students say dormitories provide the best chance to get to know other students. Also, dorms generally cost less than apartments or other housing not owned by the school. Most colleges and universities offer singe-sex dorms, but usually males and females live in the same building. They might live on the same floors and share the same common bathrooms. They may live in the same room only if they are married. Edward Spencer is the associate vice president for student affairs at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. He says it is important to understand the rules of the building in which you will live. He advises students to ask questions before they decide about their housing. For example, if a student requires a special diet, will the school provide it ?How much privacy can a student expect ? Will the school provide a single room if a student requests one ? And what about any other special needs that a student might have? Virginia Tech, for example, had a ban against candles in dorms . But it changed that policy to let students light up candles for religious purposes. The university also has several dorms open all year so foreign students have a place to stay during vacation time. What is the passage mainly about ? A) Places to live in U.S. colleges B) housing polices in the U.S. C) Advantages of dormitories D) Rules of single-sex dorms
(Answer)
B
Ques: Many people go to school for a good education. They learn languages, history, maths and other lessons. School education is very important and useful. Yet no one can learn everything from school. No matter how much a teacher knows, he cannot teach his students everything they want to know. His work is to show his students how to learn. He teaches them how to read and how to think. So, much more is to be learned outside school by the students themselves. It is always more important to know how to study by oneself. It is quite easy to learn something in a language or a formula in maths,but it is difficult to use a formula in finding the answer to a maths problem . Great inventors do not get everything from school but they can invent many things and change the world a lot. Though Thomas Edison invented many things he didn't have much school education. How do they do all these? Because they know how to study. A lot of things are not taught in the classroom. They get knowledge from books outside school. They work hard all their lives, and the most important thing is that they know how to use their head. What is the main idea of this passage? A) School education is important for a person. B) A student should learn how to remember a formula. C) A student can not learn everything from school. D) Inventors can invent things and change the world a lot.
Ans: C
The West is full of fast food and large amounts of food which contribute to many women's being fat. While many are fat, thin women are admired and seen as healthier. This has led to a culture of gym-going, strange dieting methods and, frequently, eating disorders. In the East, women tend to be smaller and many women take pills to keep their slim figures as they get older. However, you're mistaken if you think thinness is the beauty standard all over the world. The BBC reports that in Mauritania, Africa, the opposite is true. In Mauritania, mothers force their daughters to eat a lot of food so that they get as fat as possible. The fatter they are, the more likely they are to marry well. Fat is also considered healthy, because in a country where HIV/AIDS is a very real problem, thin people are often sick and dying. However, "healthy" fat women are suffering from some problems of their own and many are dying in their 40s of weight-related diseases. The Mauritanian government is trying to warn its people of the dangers of being overweight but it's not easy to change cultural views. Many women worry that if they lose weight, their husbands will leave them for fatter, more attractive women. It seems that while education about the dangers of being too thin and too fat is very important, what the world really needs is to become less pre-occupied with the size, shape and weight of women's bodies. The promotion of healthy practices is easy but changing cultural beauty standards takes more time, imagination and effort. Why are girls forced to eat a lot of food in Mauritania? A) They believe that fat people won't get HIV/AIDS. B) They believe that they can lead healthier lives. C) They believe if they grow fat, they may possibly marry good husbands. D) They believe that they won't get sick very often.
C