Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: Since I started working part-time at a grocery store, I have learned that a customer is more than someone who buys things. To me, a customer is a person whose memory fails entirely once he or she starts to push a shopping cart. One of the first things customers forget is how to count. There is no other way to explain how so many people get in their express line, which is clearly marked 15 items or less, with 20, 25 or even a cart load of items. Customers also forget why they came to the store in the first place. Just as I finish ringing up an order, a customer will say, "Oops, I forgot to pick up a fresh loaf of bread. I hope you don't mind waiting, while I go to get it."Five minutes later, he's back with the bread, a bottle of milk, and three rolls of paper towels. What is strange is that customers also seem to forget that they have to pay for their groceries. Instead of writing a check or looking for a credit card while I am ringing up the groceries, a customer will wait until I announce the total. Then, in surprise, she says, " Oh no, what did I do with my check book?" After 5 minutes of digging through her purse, she borrows my pen because she has forgotten hers. But I have to tolerate customers because they pay my salary, and that's something I can't afford to forget. Question: What does the author say about his customers? Options: A: They cannot count numbers. B: They sometimes jump the queue. C: They don't know how to express themselves. D: They behave as if their memories had totally failed.
A: D

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: BEIJING - Alarmed by the overreaching ambitions of many Chinese provinces to grow at all cost, China's top economic chief is calling on officials to calm down and spare a thought for the environment. Zhang Ping, who heads China's National Development and Reform Commission, the central economic planning agency, said only five or six of China's 30 provinces are targeting annual economic growth of 8 percent or 9 percent. The remaining provinces are aiming for growth rates of more than 10 percent this year, with some wanting to double economic output in the coming five years. "China has a planned energy supply of about 4 billion cubic tons of coal equivalent for the next five years, and this is not enough to meet demands for economic growth to double," he was quoted as saying on the news portal Sina. com. Beijing is increasingly concerned with the ambitions of Chinese provinces across the country to chase high growth despite the central government's urgent request for a more moderate and sustainable pace of expansion. Years of rapid economic growth have _ China's environment, with Beijing trying to remove some of the damage now. It has an annual growth target of 7 percent for the next five years, well down from last year's 10 percent. Zhang said Beijing has asked local governments to take into account the supply of "energy, environment, water and land" to set more reasonable growth target. Question: The general idea of the whole passage can be that _ . Options: A: China's economy is increasing at a fast speed. B: China's top chief lays more emphasis on the environment C: economic high growth should go hand in hand with environment concern. D: all Chinese provinces should slow down their economic growth rates
A: C

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: STEVE EMBER: And I'm Steve Ember with People In America in VOA Special English. Today we remember the singer and actress Lena Horne. During her sixty-year career performing, Lena Horne entertained people with her beauty and rich, emotional voice. She used her fame to fight social injustices toward African-Americans. Lena Horne was born in New York. At sixteen, Lena became a dancer at the famous club in New York City in 1933. After taking voice lessons, she soon became a singer. In 1940, Lena Horne became the first African-American to perform with an all-white jazz hand. After performing at a club in Hollywood, California, she caught the attention of filmmakers. She soon began making movies. Her films became very popular. In the 1940s, Lena Horne was the first African-American in Hollywood to sing a long -term contract with a major movie studio. Her deal with MGM stated that she would never play the role of a servant. She refused to play roles that represented African-Americans disrespectfully. Lena Horne once said that World War II helped make her a star. She was popular with both black and white soldiers. She sang on army radio programs and traveled to perform for the troops. These experiences led to Lena Horne's work in the civil rights movement. Lena Horne sang at rights gatherings. She took part in the march on Washington protest in 1963. It was during this event that Martin Luther King gave his "I have a dream" speech. She protested racial separation at the hotels where she performed. She took action so that she and her musicians would be allowed to stay in those hotels. B1ack musicians at the time generally stayed in black neighborhoods. At the age of eighty, she said she did not have to act like a white woman that Hollywood hoped she would become. She said: "I'm me, and I'm like nobody else." Lena Horne died in New York in 2010. Question: Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage? Options: A: Lena Home became the first African-American in Hollywood in her forties. B: Dena Horne was a friend of Martin Luther King. C: Lena Horne was involved in civil rights activities in the 1960s. D: Lena Horne took an active part in sports activities.
A: C

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: The United States Capitol Dome in Washington, DC, is recognized around the world as a symbol of the U.S. Government. Since last November, the dome has been surrounded by metal poles and heavy cloth as part of a repair project. The last major repair work on the U.S. Capitol took place in 1960. Since then, the dome has become weathered and worn. The Architect of the Capitol group reports that the dome has more than 1,000 narrow breaks on its surface and other damage. The dome was completed around 1863. U. S. Senate Historian Don Ritchie says the dome's cast iron frame is at special risk of weathering. "The capitol dome, being cast iron, has been hit by lightning countless times. And so the current construction is to repair the leaks, to fill the cracks, to take off extra layers of paint." Some recent visitors to the Capitol were unhappy about its current appearance. They had hoped to get a picture of the usually shining dome. Joyce said, "It was impressive, and very fantastic, and all white, but when I come here today, it is under construction so my family cannot see it clearly, it is kind of a disappointment." Others were more understanding of the repairs. Rick Jones, another visitor, said, "It's a little inconvenient for us not to see the dome but you have to think about the future and the people will be coming to this place for centuries...and you know ,there just needs to be preventive maintenance . I am not upset with that at all." The project is expected to take more than two years to complete. The dome should be ready for a new president in January 2017. Question: What do we learn about the recent visitors to the Capitol ? Options: A: They could get a clear look at the dome. B: They were all disappointed at the sight of the Capitol's building. C: They were impressed by the white dome's fantastic beauty. D: They held different views on the Capitol's current appearance.
A: D