Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: When I put a foot in the school for the first time, the thing that I will never forget is a big smile coming from the people of the reception. This is the kind of things that means a lot to you when you are feeling like a strange person in a country that you have never been, as it was in my case. In the classes, I don't know if I'm a lucky person, but the teachers that I have had, in my opinion, are excellent, very professional in their jobs, and they just seem to enjoy teaching, and make the lessons useful and classes amusing. Another fact that I've really enjoyed is that the school is not only aimed at the English language knowledge. You can also find every kind of activity intended to entertain the students in their free time, with things like going to museums and galleries, visiting special places in the city or going to the very famous pub night to have a few beers with your friends. So here you have the opportunity to enjoy the stay in London, to meet new friends, and also to learn everything about the city and the British culture. Personally, there are some facts that have not been easy for me since I arrived, like being so far away from my family, the differences between English food and the food I used to eat, and the high prices for everything. However, I am impressed about a very developed and multicultural city, with people aware of the sense of living in community, with a public transport amazingly thorough, with outstanding tourist places, with opportunities for work and with food from every part of the world that you can imagine. I've experienced something priceless with my friends in London. Every time I made contact with my friends from another country, I learn about their culture. I was lucky to have such good friends. I think that time was a present for me. Question: What did the author do besides his studies while in London? - He learned the differences between languages. - He got to know the city with different cultures. - He served at many outstanding tourists places. - He made contact with friends from his home.
He got to know the city with different cultures.
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Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: For a 400-year-old art form, opera had a bad fame: overweight actresses singing the words which were hard to understand in one of those romance languages you were supposed to learn in high school. And with tickets costing as much as $145 a performance, opera goers also had a certain appearance in people's mind: rich, well-dressed and old.[:] But now opera companies around the country are loosening their ties and kicking off their shoes in an attempt to keep opera alive and take it to a younger and not so wealthy audience. Opera producers have found that to attract this crowd, they need to make the opera closer to common people. Because young people don't or won't come to the opera, companies are bringing the opera to them, giving performances in such unusual places as parks, libraries and public schools. The Houston Grand Opera's choice is the public library, where it performs "mobile operas" shortened versions of child-friendly operas. This summer's production is Hansel & Gretel. By performing smaller versions of large productions, producers are able to make people interested while keeping costs at a reasonable level. The San Francisco Opera, which will be celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, is staging Cinderella free of charge, keeping costs down by employing students from its Young Artists' Training Program. Question: Which is the main idea of this passage? - Opera is famous for its long history. - Opera is only performed for rich people. - Opera companies are trying to keep opera alive. - Young people are not interested in opera.
Opera companies are trying to keep opera alive.
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Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Do you have bright ideas? Ideas or inventions that change society or, at least, make life easier for somebody? Perhaps we all do sometimes, but we don't often make the idea a reality. Recently, in Britain, there was a competition called British Designers for Tomorrow. The competition encourages young people to carry out their bright ideas. There were two groups in the contest: Group One was for schoolchildren under 16; Group Two was for schoolchildren over 16, and there were eleven prize-winners altogether. Neil Hunt, one of the prize-winners, was called "Sunshine Superman". It's important when people study the weather to be able to record sunshine accurately. We need to know how many hours of sunshine we have and how strong it is. Most sunshine recorders only record direct sunlight. Neil's is more accurate and this is very important for research into the way of using solar power. You can do so much with animated cartoon. Look at Simon West's idea for animated road signs. He uses pictures which appear to move as you go nearer to or farther from them. This isn't a new idea. But it is new to use these pictures on road signs. "We found that people were more likely to see moving signs," said Simon. So now, you can really see rocks falling, trains moving, horses running or a car falling over the edge of a cliff. Quite a warning! The ideas in the competition were so inventive that we are surprised that British industry doesn't ask more schoolchildren for suggestions. Perhaps this will be the start of "pupil power!" Question: Neil Hunt's design would finally lead to the improvement of the way of_. - recording direct sunshine - knowing how strong sunlight is - using the energy of the sun - recording the hours of sunshine
using the energy of the sun
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Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: A moment later I heard my uncle calling me, and found the two men on the road together. The captain then addressed me as if I was his equal, which was very pleasing to a young fellow like me. "Sir," said he, "Mr. Balfour tells me great things of you, and I like your looks. I wish I was staying here longer so that we might become friends. But we'll make the most of the short time that we have. You must come on board my brig for half an hour and have a drink with me." Now, I cannot describe how eager I was to see the inside of a ship. But I was not going to put myself in danger, and I told him my uncle and I had an appointment with a lawyer. "Yes," said he, "he told me of that. But, you see, the boat will set you on shore farther along, near Rankeillor's house." And here he suddenly leaned down and whispered in my ear: "Take care; the old devil has evil plans. Come on board till I can have a word with you." Then, passing his arm through mine, he continued aloud, as he set off towards his boat: "Now what can I bring you from Carolina? Any friend of Mr. Balfour can ask for what he likes. A roll of tobacco? Indian feather work? A wild beast's skin? A stone pipe? A mocking-bird that cries just like a cat? Make your choice and give your order." By this time we were beside his boat and he was helping me in. I did not dream of refusing. I thought (like a fool) that I had found a friend and helper, and I was looking forward to seeing the ship. As soon as we were all in our places the boat was pushed off and began to move over the water. I was so delighted with this new experience that I hardly understood what the captain said, and must have answered him without thinking. As soon as we were alongside, Hoseason ordered a rope and chair to be sent down, declaring that he and I must be the first to go on board. I was lifted into the air and set down again on the deck , where the captain stood waiting for me and immediately slipped his arm under mine. I stood there, rather confused and perhaps a little afraid, but... Question: We can infer from the passage that _ . - the uncle had an ugly face - the author got killed in the end - the uncle seemed to know everything ahead of time - the author was so frightened that he fell unconscious
the uncle seemed to know everything ahead of time
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