*Question*
Is there a magic cutoff period when children become responsible for their own actions? Is there a wonderful moment when parents can become lookers-on in the lives of their children and shrug , "It's their life," and feel nothing? When I was in my twenties, I stood in a hospital passage waiting for doctors to put a few stitches in my son's head. I asked, "When do you stop worry?" The nurse said, "When they get out of the accident stage. " My mother just smiled gently and said nothing. When I was in my thirties, I sat on a little chair in a classroom and heard how one of my children talked continually and disturbed the class. As if to read my mind, a teacher said. "Don't worry, they all go through this stage and then you can sit back, relax and enjoy them" My mother just smiled gently and said nothing. When I was in my forties, I spent a lifetime waiting for the phone to ring, the cars to come home, the front door to open. A friend said, " They're trying to find themselves, Don't worry, in a few years, you can stop worrying. They'll be adults. " My mother just smiled gently and said nothing. By the time I was 50, I was sick and tired of being weak. I was still worrying over my children, but there was a new wrinkle, there was nothing I could do about it. My mother just smiled gently and said nothing. I continued to suffer from their failures, and be absorbed in their disappointments. My friends said that when my kids got married I could stop worrying and lead my own life. I wanted to believe that, but I was haunted by my mother's warm smile and her occasional "You look pale. Are you all right?" Call me minute you get home. Are you depressed about something ?" Can it be that parents are sentenced to a lifetime of worry? One of my children became quite anxious about me recently, saying, "Where were you ? I've been calling for three days, and no one answered. I was worried. " I smiled a warm smile . The torch has been passed. The author mentioned her ages of twenties, thirties, forties and fifty in order to show _ . A) the hard times she experiences in her life B) the different stages of her children C) the support she received from her mother D) she had been worrying about her children in her life
**Answer**
D

*Question*
Bad news travels fast--when you watch the evening news or read the morning papers, it seems that things that get the most coverage are all tragedies like wars, earthquakes, floods, fires and murders. This is the classic rule for mass media. "They want your eyeballs and don't care how you're feeling," Jonah Berger, a psychologist at University of Pennsylvania told The New York Times. But with social media getting increasingly popular, information is now being spread in different ways, and researchers are discovering new rules--good news can actually spread faster and farther than disasters and other sad stories. Berger and his colleague Katherine Milkman looked at thousands of articles on The New York Times' website and analyzed the "most e-mailed" list for six months. One of his findings was that articles in the science section were much more likely to make the list. Those stories aroused feelings of awe and made the readers want to share this positive emotion with others. Besides science stories, readers were also found to be likely to share articles that were exciting or funny. "The more positive an article was, the more likely it was to be shared," Berger wrote in his new book. "For example, stories about newcomers falling in love with New York City," he writes, "tended to be shared more than the death of a popular zookeeper." But does all this good news actually make the audience feel better? Not necessarily. According to a study by researchers at Harvard University, people tend to say more positive things about themselves when they're talking to a bigger audience, rather than just one person, which helps explain all the perfect vacations that keep showing up on microblogs. This, researchers found, makes people think that life is unfair and that they're less happy than their friends. But no worries. There's a quick and easy way to relieve the depression you get from viewing other people's seemingly perfect lives--turn on the television and watch the news. There is always someone doing worse than you are. Which of the following might be e-mailed most according to Berger? A) The perfect vacation of your friend B) The story of a determined inventor C) The death of a popular zookeeper D) The flood hitting a small town
**Answer**
B

*Question*
Dear friend, For the past 17 years, you have been my best friend. I remember that you told me you were called Cigarette because of your features. You have seen me through difficult times, happy times and just about every stage of my life. You have always been here when I need you. Some of my family and friends didn't like you so much, but I've always been on your side. I thought you were a great friend, and I _ you at all times, especially when I was not very happy. It's hard for me to tell you this, but in the past few months, I have been seriously thinking about ending our relationship. I think that I've just been too dependent on you, and I feel that at the age of 35 I should start being more independent. I thought about just maybe seeing you once in a while, but I don't think that would work. Eventually, I'd start relying on you all the time again. I feel the only way to end our relationship is to end it forever. I've always included you in everything I've done. But next week, I'm going on a trip, and I've decided not to take you along. I feel this would be a good time to break up. I will be gone for a whole week without you and if I can make it on my own for that week, I know I can make it forever. It is a little sad for me knowing that I won't be able to rely on you any more, but I think I will be a better person in the end. The author decided to take a trip to _ . A) get away from his best friend B) relax himself for a while C) reduce his sorrow for the break D) show that he is independent
**Answer**
D