Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: For years and years people have been saying that the rail ways are dead. "We can do without railways", people say as if motorcars and planes have made the railways unnecessary. We all keep hearing that trains are slow, that they lose money, and that they're dying. But this is far from the truth. In these days of expensive oil, the railways have become highly competitive with motorcars and planes. If you want to carry people or goods from place to place, they are cheaper than planes. And they have much in common with planes. A plane goes in a straight line and so does a railway. What is more, it takes you from the heart of a city into the heart of another. It doesn't leave you as a plane does, miles and miles from the city center. It doesn't hold you up as a car does, in endless traffic jams. And a single train can carry goods which no plane or motorcar could ever do. Far from being dead, the railways are very much alive. Modern railway lines give you a smooth, untroubled journey. Where else can you eat well, sleep in comfort, feel safe and enjoy the scene while you are traveling at speed at the same time? And we are only at the beginning,for we have just entered the age of _ . Trains are traveling at 150 miles an hour and more. Soon we will be wondering why we spent so much on motorways we can't use because we have not enough money to buy the oil and planes we can't fly in for the same reason. Question: The writer thinks that the railways, far from being dead, are very much alive because _ . - we can have a smooth and untroubled journey - we'll not have enough money to fly in planes - we can now travel in super-fast trains - all the above
all the above
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Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Brazil has become one of the developing world's great successes in reducing population growth--but more by accident than design.While countries such as India have made joint efforts to reduce birth rates,Brazil has had better result without really trying,says George Martine at Harvard. Brazil's population growth rate has dropped from 2.99% a year between 1951 and 1960 to 1.93% a year between 1981 and 1990,and Brazilian women now have only 2.7 children on average.Martine says this figure may have fallen still further since 1990,an achievement that makes it the envy of many other Third World countries. Martine _ ,among other things,soap operas and installment plans introduced in the 1970s.Both played an important,although indirect,role in lowering the birth rate.Brazil is one of the world's biggest producers of soap operas.Globo,Brazil's most popular television network,shows three hours of soaps six nights a week,while three others show at least one hour a night.Most soaps are based on wealthy characters living the high life in big cities. "Although they have never really tried to work in a message towards the problems of reproduction ,they describe middle and upper class values--not many children,different attitudes towards sex,women working,"says Martine."They sent this message to all parts of Brazil and made people realise other patterns of family life and other values,which were put into a very attractive package." Meanwhile,the installment plans tried to encourage the poor to become consumers."This led to change in consumption patterns and consumption did not get along well with unlimited reproduction,"says Martine. Question: What is Martine's conclusion about Brazil's population growth? - The increase in birth rate will increase consumption. - The desire for consumption helps to reduce birth rate. - Consumption patterns and reproduction patterns are contradictory. - A country's production is limited by its population growth.
The desire for consumption helps to reduce birth rate.
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Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: "I like your smile, but unlike you put your shoes on my face". A charming way of saying "Keep off the grass". But could you figure it out? Or this: "Wash Clothing Store" for laundry. They are both typical Chinglish, a combination of English vocabulary and Chinese grammar. Expressions such as "people mountain people sea", means extremely crowded, and "give you some color to see", meaning a punishment, are widely known and recognized. Chinglish has been attracting global attention in recent years as China grows rapidly in status on the world stage, attracting both fans and detractors . The Beijing Speaks Foreign Languages Programme and English First China Company, a language trainer known as EF Education, jointly launched a campaign to root out poor grammar and misused vocabulary in downtown Beijing. They argue Chinglish is an embarrassment that we should let it die out at all costs. "It is meaningful to allow the capital to show its most beautiful historical and cultural heritage to the world." Michael Lu, vice-president of EF Education said, "since the launching of the campaign, foreign teachers and students had been very keen to volunteer participation."He believed signs were very important in public services. "The signs in some old buildings confused foreign visitors. Chinglish, although the target of much criticism, has also won supporters who regard it as an interesting way for foreigners to learn how Chinese people think and express themselves. "Many Chinglish logos carry Chinese elements and they will enrich the English language," 32-year-old Oliver Radtke said. He had even published a book "Chinglish: Found in Translation," on the subject. About 50,000 copies of the book have been sold since it was published in 2007. Some Chinese university experts also side with Chinglish. "English has absorbed elements from other languages such as French and Spanish in its growth, and the emergence of Chinglish again testifies to the language's vitality and inclusiveness," said Shi Anbin, an associate professor of... Question: According to Oliver Radtke, Chinglish _ . - shows how Chinese people think - does damage to the English language - shows the great humor of Chinese people - should be sold to all over the world
shows how Chinese people think
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Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: This is a talk by a London taxi driver. "I've been a taxi driver for nearly ten years. Most London taxi drivers have their own taxis." "It's a nice job most of time. You meet a lot of people. I always work at night, because there is too much traffic during the day. I live twenty miles outside London and I go to work at 5:30 in the afternoon." "I usually go home between 2 and 3 in the morning." "Some very strange things happened late at night .The other day I was taking a woman home from a party .She had her little dog with her. When we got to her house, she found that she had lost her key. So I waited in the car with the dog while she climbed in through the windows." "I waited and waited. After half an hour of ringing the bell I decided to find out what was going on .I tied the dog to a tree and started to climb in through the window. The next thing I knew was that the police came. They thought I was a thief. Luckily the woman came downstairs.She must have gone to sleep and forgotten about me and the dog!" Question: The woman climbed in through the window because _ . - she wanted to have a sleep - her husband didn't open the door for her - she didn't want to pay the driver - she couldn't find her key
she couldn't find her key
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