*Question*
My grandfather is eighty years old.He always complains about how fast things have changed,and he often says that life used to be better. "Families aren't families the way they used to be."A 1ot of families have broken up.If husband and wife have problems with their _ ,they no longer stay together.And mothers used to stay at home and take care of their children,but now everyone is busy working.No one has time to 1ook after children at home. And the cars! No one walks any more;more and more people drive.We used to walk five miles to school on schooldays,even in winter.But now we don't.And in school children don't have to think any more.In math class.for example,we used to add,subtract, multiply and divide in our heads.Kids don't use their heads any more;instead,they use calculators . Most families have computers now.In the past we didn't have computers.We didn't even have lights.My mother used to spend all day cooking in the kitchen.But now we don't often eat homecooked food. And people don't talk to each other any more.They are too busy to talk,too busy to eat,to busy to think... Life used to be simple,but it isn't any more. Which is TRUE according to the passage? A) Life now is much simpler. B) People have much time to talk with each other now. C) The grandfather only complains and pays no attention to the better life now. D) Lots of mothers stay at home and look after their children.
**Answer**
C

*Question*
When I was growing up in America, I was ashamed of my mother's Chinese English. Because of her Chinese English, she was often treated unfairly. People in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her. My mother realized that she was poor at English. When I was fifteen, she used to have me call people on phone to pretend I was she. I was made to ask for information or even to shout at people who had been rude to her. One time I had to call her stockbroker . I said in an adolescent voice that was not very certain, "This is Mrs. Tan." My mother was standing beside me saying, "Why he doesn't send me check, already two weeks late." And then, in perfect English I said: "I'm getting rather worried. You agreed to send the check two weeks ago, but it hasn't arrived." My mother then talked more loudly. "What he want? I come to New York to tell him in front of his boss." And so I turned to the stockbroker again, "I can't accept any more excuse. If I don't receive the check immediately, I am going to have to speak to your manager when I am in New York next week." The next week we ended up in New York. While I was sitting there red-faced, my mother, the real Mrs. Tan, was shouting to his boss in her broken English. When I was a teenager, my mother's broken English embarrassed me. But now, I see it differently. To me, my mother's English is perfectly clear, perfectly natural. It is my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, and full of observation and wisdom. It was the language that helped me see things, express ideas, and _ the world. Why was the writer's mother poorly served? A) She was unable to speak good English. B) She was often treated unfairly. C) She was not clearly heard. D) She was not very polite.
**Answer**
A

*Question*
We can not live a modern life without traveling. The fastest way of traveling is by air. With a plane one can travel in one day to places which it took a month or more to get to a hundred years ago. Traveling by train is slower than by plane, but one can see the country he is traveling through. Modern trains have comfortable seats and dinning-cars. They make even the longest journey enjo yable. Some people prefer to travel by sea when possible. There are large luxury liners or river boats .They are not as fast as trains or planes, but traveling by sea is a very pleasant way to spend a holi day. Many people like to travel by car. They can make their own timetable. They can travel hundred s of miles a day, just as their wish. They can stop wherever they want to see something interestin g or to enjoy a good meal at a good restaurant, or to spend the night at a hotel. That is why peopl _ have comfortable seats and dinning-cars. A) Cars B) Moderntrains C) Planes D) Buses
**Answer**
B

*Question*
Penguins live together, but each pair has a little piece of ground of their own. When a penguin wants to walk through its neighbor's ground, it must ask for permission . If it does not, it will have to fight. Penguins come and go all day. They fight for fish and look after their children. All penguins are good parents--the male penguins are perhaps the best parents in the world. They choose their wives in the dark They can only hear them--not see them. Then the female penguins lay their eggs and go away for about two months. The males look after the eggs. If the eggs get cold, there will be no chicks. There is no food. The snow falls and the wind blows--sometimes at 150 kilometers an hour. The penguins do not move. When the females return from the sea, they will not remember their husbands. It doesn't matter. Only one thing-- their eggs. Male penguins never fight--unless a penguin leaves a chick for a minute. Then they fight because they all want it. They are strange and wonderful birds. It is _ that take care of the eggs. A) the male penguins B) the female penguins C) both the husbands and the wives D) the penguins that lost in the fight
**Answer**
A