It's not often a tomato that is described as so sweet "whenever people see it they just want to hug"-but this was no ordinary piece of fruit. The heart-shaped tomato was grown by the retired worker, Rod Matless, who said he was surprised when he noticed it in his field. Mr. Matless, 69, who had a heart attack a few years ago, was so _ the fruit that he decided to sell it and donate the money to the British Heart Foundation. The 64 g tomato was bought for$16 on eBay by woman from Wales - who said she planned to give it to someone special. Mr. Matless, of Wymondham, near Norwich, said:"I spent a couple of days thinking about what to do with it and I wasn't really sure, but this seems like a good use. I hope it will do someone somewhere a bit of good." He added:"It's very sweet - whenever people see it they just want to hug it." But with the tomato's freshness a key factor, Mr. Matless was up against the clock to send it to its new owner before it went bad. He said:"I didn't want to send someone something horrible. I probably could have raised a bit more money with more time but I was worried about it." "It will certainly make a nice present for a loved one. I hope that they like it and I'm glad I got to help. It's all been very good fun and I've really enjoyed growing this very special tomato." We can learn from the text that the tomato grown by Rod Matless _ . A) is very big B) is very tough C) is very special D) is good for health
C
It's 5:00 in the morning when the alarm rings in my ears. I roll out of bed and walk blindly through the dark into the bathroom. I turn on the light and put on my glasses. The house is still as I walk downstairs while my husband and three kids sleep peacefully. Usually I go for a long run, but today I choose my favorite exercise DVD, Insanity. Sweat pours down my face and into my eyes. My heart races as I face my body to finish each movement. As I near the end of the exercise ,I feel extremely tired, but a smile is of my face. It's a smile because the DVD is over , but a smile of success from pushing my body to its extreme limit. Some people enjoy shopping, smoking , food, work, or even chocolate. But I need exercise to get through each day. Some shake heads when they see me run through the town. Others get hurt when I refuse to try just one bite of their grandmother's chocolate cake. They raise their eyebrows, surprised by my "no thank you," or by my choice to have a salad. Over the years , I have learned it's okay to just say "no." I shouldn't feel sorry for refusing food that I don't want to eat. So what drives me to roll out of bed at 5:00 a.m.? What gives me the reason to just say no to ice cream? _ t. A commitment to change my life with a way that reduces daily anxiety, increases self -confidence and energy, extends life and above all improves my body shape. This is the point where a smile appears on my face as I look at myself in the mirror or try on my favorite pair of jeans that now fit just right. It's through commitment and sweat that I can make a difference within myself inside and out. Why is there a smile on the author's face in the morning? A) Because she sees her family sleeping peacefully. B) Because she finishes her favorite exercise C) Because she enjoys the interesting DVD D) Because she feels a sense of achievement
D
Q: Perfectionists believe that not only is perfection achievable, but that it should be achieved whenever possible. They always try to make their work better, and often get pleasure from investing time and effort in their projects. They enjoy paying attention to detail and are often hard to please. After all, perfectionists almost always have nearlyimpossible standards for themselves, much higher than what outside parties would generally hope for. Most perfectionists are also highlyorganized. They've perfected their work process along with everything else in their life. They have processes and patterns for handling almost anything that comes their way, from email to new projects and clients to bookkeeping. It can definitely add up to a more effective workday with less wasted time and effort. Perfectionists can be thought of as overbearing by those who don't share their attitude. It can also be upsetting to clients who aren't interested in "perfect" and simply want their project done yesterday. When you strive for perfection, everything takes just a bit longer to get right. Even if you have a more efficient design and development process than many other designers, it is likely that you spend more time on each step than a lot of others do. While most people who call themselves "perfectionists" do so in a lighthearted or positive manner, there are those out there to whom perfection becomes an obsession . They consider anything less than perfect completely unacceptable. This can lead to obsessive behavior and can have damaging effects on their overall quality of life. Just feeling good about a job done to the best of your ability is entirely normal for a perfectionists and isn't something to worry about. But it becomes particularly dangerous when perfectionists feel they are never quite able to attain perfection, and so drive themselves crazy trying to always reach this unattainable goal. These perfectionists often place their entire selfworth on their accomplishments and ability to reach perfection, and since... To perfectionists, their obsession with perfection is an act of _ . A) showing psychological sickness B) realizing their own value C) wasting time and energy D) improving their selfimage
A: B
Where do dogs come from? Gray wolves are their ancestors. Scientists are pretty consistent about that. And researchers have suggested that dogs' origins can date back to Europe, the Near East, Siberia and South China. Central Asia is the newest and best candidate, according to a large study of dogs from around the world. Laura M. Shannon and Adam R. Boyko at Cornell University, and an international group of other scientists, studied not only purebred dogs, but also street or village dogs. Dr. Shannon analyzed three different kinds of DNA, Dr. Boyko said, the first time this has been done for such a large and diverse group of dogs from 38 countries. And that led them to Central Asia as the place of origin for dogs in much the same way that genetic studies have located the origin of modern humans in East Africa. The analysis, Dr. Boyko said, pointed to Central Asia, as the place where "all the dogs alive today" come from. The data did not allow precise dating of the origin, he said, but showed it occurred at least 15,000 years ago. Greger Larson of Oxford University, who is leading a large international effort to analyze ancient DNA from fossilized bones, said he was impressed by the study. "It's really great to see not just the number of street dogs, but also the geographic breadth and the number of remote locations where the dogs were sampled," he said in an email. He also praised the sampling of different kinds of DNA and the analytic methods. Dr. Larson, who was not involved with the study, said he thought the Central Asia finding required further testing. He said he suspected that the origins of modern dogs were "extremely messy" and that no amount of sampling of living populations will be definitive. He said a combination of studies of modern and ancient DNA is necessary. What can we infer from what Dr. Boyko said? A) There are three different kinds of DNA in dogs. B) This is the second time they have done so many dogs. C) They only do research on village dogs from many countries. D) Modern humans are from East Africa while dogs come from Central Asia.
D