Do you know the open-air art gallery in London's Blackall Street? Probably -not. Not many Londoners know it either, but Henri does and he is willing to show it to you. Henri used to sleep in parks until he met a charity that helps homeless people get back on their feet by becoming tour guides. Rather than show traditional London sights, "Unseen Tours" t _ Henri has been teaching tourists about the history and architecture of Shoreditch, where he slept on public benches for three years. When he felt separated from the society, contact with the volunteer network "The Sock Mob" gave Henri hope. "Not everyone just looked down on me," he said. The tours aren't the only actions trying to help those who have suffered a misfortune to stand tall again. An innovative college for homeless people in London, the first of its kind in the country, is attracting hundreds of students. The Recovery College, set up by St Mungo's charity, is providing courses designed to improve technical skills and life skills. According to Andy Williams, who helps to organize the college, the most popular courses have proved to be about raising self-confidence and developing self-pride. Steve, now in his 50s, told a reporter how much of a difference it makes to "have a bit of confidence". He had difficulty learning to read and had to leave school when he was 12. Because Steve's problem was not recognized at the time, he was "seen to be unable to read or write", and suffered with depression and alcohol addiction. He says the status of "student" is itself important for people who are used to being treated as outcasts Some charities aim not only to help the homeless become independent but also to make them popular. The Homeless World Cup started ten years ago. Today the tournament draws teams from 48 countries made up of players-men and women-who are, or have been, living in the streets. It gives them a chance to become football heroes. The purpose of the Homeless World Cup is to help the homeless people _ . A) become football stars B) improve life skills C) gain self-confidence D) find proper jobs
C
One of the requirements of every graduation ceremony speaker is that they offer some advice. Well, get ready, here it comes. Soon you will be leaving the company of those who think they have all the answers -your professors, instructors and counselors-and going out into what we like to call the real world. In time you will meet up with other people who think they have all the answers. These people are called bosses. My advice is: humor them. A little later you'll meet additional people who think they have all the answers. These are called spouses . My advice is: humor them, too. And of all goes well, in a few years you will meet still another group of people who think they have all the answers. These are called children. Humor them. Life will go on, your children will grow up, go to school and someday they could be taking part in a graduation ceremony just like this one. And who knows, the speakers responsible for handing out good advice might be you. Halfway through your speech, the graduate sitting next to your daughter will lean over and ask, "Who is that woman up there who thinks she has all the answers?" Well, thanks to the reasonable advice you are hearing today and that I hope you will all pass on, she will be able to say, "That is my mother. Humor her." What is the best title for the passage? A) The Requirement Of Speakers B) How to Offer Advice C) Humour them! D) To Hell with them!
C
Q: Americans: Restless? Illiterate ? Americans are _ people; they can't rest. They have more time, more leisure, shorter work hours, more holidays, and more vacations than any other people in the world. But they can't rest. They rush up and down across their continent as tourists; they move about in great herds to conventions ; they search the wilderness; they flood the mountains; they keep the hotels full. But they can't rest. The scenery rushes past them. They learn it, but they don't see it. Battles and monuments are announced to them on a tour bus. They hear them, but they don't get them. They never stop moving; they rush up and down as Shriners, Masons, Old Graduates, Bankers--they are a new thing each day, always rushing to a reunion or something. So they go on rushing about till eventually the undertaker gather them to a last convention. Americans are queer people; they can't read. They have more schools, and better schools and spend more money on schools and colleges than all Europe. But they can't read. They print more books in a year than the French print in ten. But they can't read. They cover their country with one hundred thousand tons of Sunday newspapers every week. But they don't read them. They're too busy. They use them for fires and to make more paper with. They buy eagerly thousands of new novels at two dollars each. But they read only page one. Their streets are full of huge signs. They won't look at them. Their streetcars are filled with advertising;they turn their eyes away. Transparent color1s, cart wheels, and mechanical flares whirl and flicker in the crowded streets at night. No one sees them. Tons of letters pour into the mail boxes, through the houses, and down the garbage cans. No one reads them. According to the text, when do the Americans stop rushing about? A) When they are not allowed to. B) When they feel tired and sleepy. C) When they stop breathing eventually. D) When they are seriously ill in bed.
A: C
Q: Late last summer, I was introduced to a new special someone. We met at an Apple product announcement. She was helpful, smart, and even funny, talking of jokes and making me laugh. What more could a man ask for? Since then, we have had some major communication issues. She frequently misunderstands what I'm saying. Sometimes she is just unavailable. Often, she responds with the same repetitive statement. Her name is Siri. At first, Siri, the voice-activated digital assistant on Apple Iphones, seemed a little too good to be true. Siri cheated me into a relationship promising to help me set up appointments, to gently wake me in the morning for work, and to give me the ability to text someone while I was driving. It didn't work out that way. "There's something wrong, and I can't answer your questions right now. Please try again in a little while," Siri will say when I ask something, or: "I'm really sorry about this, but I can't take any requests right now. Please try again in a little while." She is always polite. But I'm starting to suspect that "I'm really sorry" is just something Siri says to shut me up. Apple introduced Siri as a beta test, meaning it was still a work in progress. That was unusual for Apple. It wanted a head start. But it doesn't seem ready to change anything yet. Many people I have spoken to have switched Siri off and turned to the iPhone's voice dictation service, which is more reliable because it doesn't use Siri's artificial intelligence software. Over time, things have really gone bad between Siri and me. We hardly speak anymore. Although she doesn't know this, I've started seeing someone else. Her name is Google Voice Search (GVS). GVS, available in the latest operating software, is a much better listener. It's ly smarter. If I ask GVS a question, like, "Who is Tim Cook?", it responds with an answer " He's the chief executive of Apple". If I ask Siri the same question, the response is: "I don't see Tim Cook in your contacts." How did the author feel when he first met Siri? A) He felt quite satisfied with her functions. B) He didn't care what functions she had at all. C) He felt unsatisfied with her limited functions. D) He felt she was smart but very boring.
A: A