Article: Family traditions were important in our house, and none was more appreciated than the perfect Christmas tree "Dad, can we watch when you trim the tree?" My eldest son. Dan, nine, and his seven -year-old brother John, asked "I won't be cutting this year," my husband Bob said. "Dan, you and John are old enough to measure things. Do it all by yourselves. Think you boys can handle it? Dan and John seemed to _ in their chairs at the thought of such an amazing responsibility. "We can handle it." Dan promised. "We won't let you down." . A few days before Christmas. Dan and John rushed in after school. They gathered the tools they'd need and brought them out to the yard .where the tree waited. I was cooking when I heard the happy sounds as the boys carried the tree into the lying room. Then I heard the sound that every mother knows is trouble: dead silence I hurried out to them. The tree was cut too short. John crossed his arms tight across his chest. His eyes filled with angry tears. I felt worried The tree was central to our holiday. I didn't want the boys to feel ashamed every tune they looked at it. I couldn't lower the ceiling, and I couldn't raise the floor either. There was no way to undo the damage done. Suddenly, a thought came to my mind, which turned the problem into the solution. www..com "We can't make the tree taller." I said. "But we can put it on a higher position" Dan nodded his head sideways. "We could put it on the coffee table. It just might work! Let's try it!" When Bob got home and looked at the big tree on top of the coffee table, Dan and John held their breath. "What a good idea!" he declared "Why didn't I ever think of such a thing?" John broke into a grin Dan's chest swelled with pride. Question: Who trimmed the Christmas tree this year? Yes or no, is the answer "Dan and John"?
No

Article: Father upset by Manchester school's 'Victorian' wall of shame Josie Robinson, who appeared on a so-called wall of shame at her school in south Manchester, was in tears. Her father has hit out at the "Victorian" methods. Chorlton High School put up pictures of year 10 pupils who teachers believed had behaved badly. Children singled out for praise were placed on the wall of fame. Its head teacher said the scheme was designed to motivate pupils. Carlo Robinson, whose daughter Josie was put on the wall after missing lessons, wants to make a complaint. The teenager had been missing school and turning up late because she was upset that her mother was ill. She said: " I thought it was embarrassing." Mr Robinson added: "She was in tears. She couldn't tell me at first - it took her about an hour- because she wasn't sure what I would think of it. When she told me I was really shocked. I contacted at least 20 friends and they all agreed it was wrong - it's like Victorian times." Head teacher Andy Park said: "We've successfully used a similar scheme in the past with Year 11 students to _ pupils and it really did make a difference - pupils took it in the right spirit and were motivated by it to improve their performance. Obviously this latest scheme wasn't intended to cause offence to pupils. It was actually developed to praise the students moving forwards successfully and to support pupils who needed to make improvements. No parents have complained directly to the school and I'd be very happy to meet with any parents to discuss further." Mr Robinson told the reporter he had contacted the school to schedule a meeting with the head teacher. Question: What can we learn from the passage? Yes or no, is the answer "The scheme proved successful before."?
No

Q: Article: Americans like to visit the national parks. In 1996, over 250,000,000 people visited areas which are managed by the National Park Service. Experts say that by 2012, 500,000,000 people per year will visit the parks. As a result, people are trying to think of ways to protect the parks from the crowds. The crowding of the parks has caused several problems. One is that there is not enough space for all of the people who want to use the parks. To deal with this problem, you may have to book your tickets a few months ahead of time. The Park Service may also raise entrance fees . Another problem caused by increased park use is pollution. Some garbage and waste can be cleaned up, and the cleanup can be paid for by increased entrance fees. To cut down on noise pollution and air pollution, the number of cars allowed in parks may be limited. If this happens, people may use buses to travel around the parks. Officials may also limit the use of jet-skis, snow-mobiles, motor-boats, and sightseeing helicopters and planes. The parks may also be in danger because of development that is going on around them. For example, around Yellow Stone Park, many hotels, golf courses, resorts, and other tourist attractions have been built. Some of these developments have effect on areas that are used by animals. People will have to learn to agree about ways to protect the parks. If they do not, there will soon be no reason to visit these national treasures. Question: Which of the following is true according to the text? Yes or no, is the answer "The parks are not big enough to hold all visitors."?
A: No

(Question)
Article: Many people will remember the flight of the space shuttle Challenger, in June, 1983. The achievement of Sally Ride, America's first woman astronaut to fly into space, made this flight especially memorable. Students from two Camden, New Jersey, high schools, however, are probably to remember Norma rather than Sally whenever they think about the flight. Norma didn't travel alone. She brought about 100 companions along with her. Norma was an ant, a queen ant who, with her subject, made up the first ant colony to travel into space. The ants were part of a science experiment designed by students to test the effects of weightlessness on insects. The equipment designed by the students for their colony functioned perfectly throughout the long space trip. The young scientists and their teachers were very sad to find that their insect astronauts had all died at some point before the container was returned to the school and opened. The problem didn't occur in space, but on the ground after challenger had landed. The container remained in the desert for nearly a week before the ant colony was moved. The hot, dry desert air dried out the colony's container and the ants died from lack of moisture . The project was tested success because it did provide useful information. Students will continue their efforts to pinpoint what went wrong. They will try to prevent the same difficulties from recurring on future missions. They don't want to be discouraged either by the demise of the ants or by the $10,000 shuttle fare they will have to pay to send the next colony of ants into space. Ks5u Question: The ants were not able to live because _ . Yes or no, is the answer "they dried out in the desert"?
(Answer)
No