Read the article and select the best answer. Article: Different countries and cultures celebrate New Year in different ways. Many countries still follow the lunar calendar, meaning that their new year often starts in late January or in February. New Year celebrations for some countries (like China, Vietnam and Korea) last not one day, but up to two weeks! In the U.S., many people attend New Year parties. They drink champagne, dance, and cheer at the stroke of midnight. Fireworks, which in olden times scared away evil spirits, are very popular throughout the U. S. . U.S. residents often make one or more New Year's _ such as promising to quit smoking, lose weight, stop drinking. Most of these resolutions last little longer than a month. In the southern U.S. , many people eat black-eyed peas for good luck in the new year. In Mexico and Venezuela, many people wear red or yellow underwear for good luck. In Brazil, residents wear red white clothes for good luck, and in China, they wear red clothes and give children red envelops with money in them. In Iran, people wear brand new clothes on the first day of the new year. In Scotland, homeowners open the front door at midnight to let in the new year, and open the back door to let out the old year. In Switzerland, people kiss each other three times at midnight. In Spain, people eat 12 grapes-----one per chime----as the clock chimes midnight. In Japan, they ring a bell 108 times to get rid of the108 bad desires that people have. In Korea, they ring a bell 33 times in honor of 33 ancient soldiers. Question: How do Americans celebrate their New Year? Options: A: They kiss each three times at the stroke after midnight. B: They use fireworks to scare away evil spirits. C: Men and women make New Year's plants together. D: Many people attend New Year parties.
D

Read the article and select the best answer. Article: The Internet began in the 1960s as a small network of academic and government computers primarily involved in research for the prefix = st1 /U.S.army. Originally limited to researchers at a handful of universities and government departments, the Internet has quickly become a worldwide network providing users with information on a range of subjects and allowing them to purchase goods directly from companies via computer. By 1999, 84 millionU.S.citizens had access to the Internet at home or work. More and more Americans arc paying bills, shopping, ordering airline tickets, and purchasing stocks via computer over the Internet. Internet banking is also becoming increasingly popular. With lower overhead costs in terms of staffing and office space, Internet banks are able to offer higher interest rates on deposits and charge lower rates on loans than traditional banks. "Brick and mortar" banks are increasingly offering online banking services via some special websites to enlarge their traditional services. At present, 14 percent of Internet households conduct their banking by means of the Internet, and the figure is expected to double during the next two or three years. Increasing commercial use of the Internet has heightened security and privacy concerns. With a credit card, an Internet user can order almost anything from an Internet site and have it delivered to their home or office. Companies doing business over the Internet need many security measures to protect credit card, bank account, and social security numbers from unauthorized access as they pass across the Internet. Any organization that connects its networks to the global Internet must carefully control the access point to ensure that out-siders cannot disturb the organization's internal networks or gain unauthorized access to the organization's computer systems and data. Question: Which commercial usage of the Internet does the author NOT refer to? Options: A: Buying airline tickets. B: Trading stocks. C: Applying for a credit card. D: Internet shopping
C

Read the article and select the best answer. Article: Doris Lessing was born in 1919 in Persia, moving as a child with her family to southern Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, where she stayed in school only to the age of 14. A year after moving to London, she published her first novel in 1950.The Grass is Singingexamines unbridgeable racial conflict in colonial Africa through the eyes of a white farmer's wife and her black servant. Her literary breakthrough came in 1962 with publication ofThe Golden Notebook, seen by many, though not necessarily Lessing, as a pioneering work of modern feminism . A separated study of the mind of the main character, Amma Wulf, the novel explores her thoughts about Africa, politics and relationships with men and sex. Lessing's themes changed to psychology in her works from the 1960s, and by the 1970s the was extremely interested in the Islamic mystic tradition of Sufism . Her turn toward science fiction with theCanopusseries in the early 1980s was not warmly received by traditionalist critics, but she has continued to win new readers and numerous literary awards, including the David Cohen British Literary Prize and the Companion of Honour from the Royal Society of Literature, both in 2001. Following the announcement, the Horace Engdahl told VOA why he was personally so pleased with Lessing's selection. "She is one of the truly great writers-of novels, short stories, fiction and non-fiction," Engdahl said. "She is one of the few writers who have had the courage to uphold the principle of equality between the male and female experience, and she has given the impulse to numbers of other women writers. And she is really the mother of a school that is one of the most important in our contemporary literature." At 87, Doris Lessing is the oldest Nobel Literature winner sine the first prizes were awarded in 1901. Question: According to the Horace Engdahl, Lessing wins Nobel Prize mainly because _ . Options: A: she has rich experience in living in Africa B: she is a head master of an important school C: she encourages women writers to struggle against men D: she makes great contributions to equal rights for women
D

Read the article and select the best answer. Article: Yasuda is 95 years old. Looking for easier ways to search the Web and send email, he bought Apple's iPad. The company has sold 3.27 million iPads since they entered the market in April. Although it's impossible to know with certainty how many seniors are buying them, evidence suggests that it's a hit with seniors. The iPad's intuitive interface makes it attractive to seniors around the world, says Takahiro Miura, a researcher at the University of Tokyou. "The iPad is a good tool for seniors because it's very easy to use," he says. "Unlike the PC, it doesn't require former knowledge." James Cordwell, a researcher in London, says the iPad's popularity with seniors is helping Apple reach beyond its traditional base of young customers. "The world's population, especially in developed markets, is getting older. It's probably a market where Apple has least entered, " Cordwell says. Senior users are "a key source of growth for them in the future." Seniors make up about 22 percent of the population in Japan. They may prove that seniors are willing to accept the iPad. Besides the customer group under 30, they spend more than any other group in the country, according to a report. Motoo Kitamura, 78, a former gas salesman, bought an iPad to help him communicate with his 2-year-old grandson and prevent him from experiencing some of the mental problems that sometimes come with getting older. "Trying new things like that is good mental exercise," he says. Question: Which of the following is NOT an advantage of the iPad? Options: A: It has intuitive interface. B: It is easy to operate. C: Beginners can use it without similar experiences. D: People can use it as a way to do mental exercise.
D