For Robert Valderzak of Washington D.C.,Tuesday's earthquake was a miracle . Ever since he fell and got his skull broken on Father's Day,75-year-old Valderzak had suffered severe hearing loss. But after the 5.8 quake, he could hear everything. Valderzak was chatting with his daughter and three sons when the quake hit D.C.'s Veterans Affairs Hospital,where he is batting cancer. "It shook m terrible--right out of the bed," said Valderzak."But after that it stopped.And my son talked to me, and I could hear his voice." Tests confirmed Valdezak's significant hearing improvement.But his doctors think they have a medical explanation for the "miracle". "He.had conductive hearing loss,caused by a liquid in his middle ear, as well as loss due to nerve damage,"said Dr.Ross Fletcher,chief of staff at the VA Hospital. "A combustion of a drag he was taking and the earthquake event itself likely led to him losing the liquid and listening back his hearing." Dr.Jennifer Smullen of the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary said the shaking itself might not have been enough to clear the fluid from Valderzak's inner ear. "But if somebody was suddenly surprised, and shouted out,sometimes that's enough to clear some fluid out from the ear drum."she Bald. Valderzak had adjusted to his hearing loss with the help of a special microphone and some training in _ .But the situation was far from satisfactory. "The devices helped,but by the time I got them all connected up,everyone had left and I was talking to myself,"he said,adding that lip reading meant he could only talk to one person at a time. But now he can talk to all four of his kids again. What caused Valderzak to gain back his hearing according to Dr.Smullen? A) A drug he was taking. B) The powerful earthquake. C) A drug and the earthquake. D) The shaking and his own shouting.
D
(Question)
Here's a movie--a sharp, sugar-rush of fun that's guaranteed to entertain the entire family. With some terrific computer-generated effects, a great cast and a fun-packed storyline, Robots is the best animated film since The Incredibles. Yep, it really is that good. Set in a world populated by robots, Ewan McGregor plays Rodney Copperbottom, a young robot who leaves his small-town home to pursue his dream of becoming an inventor. But after arriving in Robot City, his hopes of getting a job at Bigweld Industries are destroyed when he learns the firm has been taken over by the evil Ratchet (Greg Kinnear). Egged on by his controlling mum, Madame Gasket (Jim Broadbent), Ratchet plans to reduce half of Robot City's citizens to scrap metal by refusing to sell the spare parts they need to survive. Instead, he wants to make a fortune selling expensive upgrades that few can afford. As he says, "Why be you when you can be new?" Aided by a few misfit robots known as the Rustles--including Robin Williams as the cowardly' Fender ("I'm made of a metal called Afraidium")--Rodney must track down the firm's founder, Bigweld (Mel Brooks), and convince him to save the city from Ratchet's plans. The first thing that'll strike you about the movie is the thought that's gone into creating Robot City. It's a wondrous world full of mechanical marvels including wind-up cars and walking streetlamps. Also terrific are the special effects. This might be an animated movie but at times you'll catch yourself thinking it's really a live-action film. Of course, there have been plenty of animated movies that looked the part but were let down by a weak storyline (see Shark Tale, for example). But Robots grips right from the start thanks to a heart-warming and thoroughly engaging plot that never bores. My only complaints are with Williams who, as usual,has a one-in-10 success rate with his jokes. Also a letdown is a romantic subplot between Rodney and a shapely robot called Cappy (Halle Berry) that doesn't go anywhere. Complains aside, this... The cast of Robots is made up of all the following actors or actresses EXCEPT _ . A) Ewan McGregor B) Robin Williams C) Britney Spears D) Halle Berry
(Answer)
C
If I see one more article about how wonderful alternative energy is compared to oil, I will flip . Alternative energy sources can be good---- very good in fact. And it's pretty obvious that we're going to need them, and that our dependence on oil is a Bad Thing. But accepting that does not mean accepting that any kind of alternative energy is a good thing. To be a good thing, it has to have three properties: 1) It has to help reduce our dependence on oil, 2) It has to be no worse for the environment, and 3) It has to be economically practical. Many of the things praised meet one or even two of those properties. Solar panels, for example. They can reduce our need for oil, at least in certain regions, and they're certainly not bad for the environment. But they're expensive. If you spend the money to make your home solar-powered, you probably won't get back your costs for at least 15 years, which approaches the lifespan of the panels. Certainly we need to clean up our act big time and find workable sources of alternative energy. But we also have to keep in mind that every one of these alternative-energy sources comes at a cost, which is something people seem to forget. They hear the phrase "alternative energy" and automatically assume it's got to be good. But green isn't always good, and oil isn't always bad. One seemingly "green" technology that pops up again and again is electric cars. It is praised by well-meaning people as good for the environment and a way to reduce our oil dependence, especially as oil prices continue to rise. Electric cars are dirty. In fact, not only are they dirty, they might even be more dirty than their gasoline-powered cousins. People in California love to talk about " zero-emissions vehicles", but people in California seem to be clueless about where electricity comes from. Power plants mostly use fire to make it. Aside from the new folks who have their roofs covered with solar cells, we get our electricity from generators. Generators are fueled by something---- usually coal, oil,... Which of the following statements will the writer support? A) Any kind of alternative energy is a good thing. B) Alternative energy is bound to take the place of oil. C) People should have an objective view towards alternative energy. D) Solar panel is a good example of alternative energy that meets three properties.
C