Question:
Read the text and answer the questions.
The Sahara (Arabic: , as-sahra al-kubra, 'the Greatest Desert') is the largest hot desert in the world. It is the third largest desert after Antarctica and the Arctic. Its surface area of 9,400,000 square kilometres (3,600,000 sq mi)[citation needed]including the Libyan Desertis comparable to the respective land areas of China or the United States. The desert comprises much of the land found within North Africa, excluding the fertile coastal region situated against the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlas Mountains of the Maghreb, and the Nile Valley of Egypt and Sudan. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea in the east and the Mediterranean in the north, to the Atlantic Ocean in the west, where the landscape gradually transitions to a coastal plain. To the south, it is delimited by the Sahel, a belt of semi-arid tropical savanna around the Niger River valley and Sudan Region of Sub-Saharan Africa. The Sahara can be divided into several regions, including the western Sahara, the central Ahaggar Mountains, the Tibesti Mountains, the Air Mountains, the Tenere desert, and the Libyan Desert. Its name is derived from the plural Arabic language word for desert ( sahara [sr]).
1. What is the passage about?
2. Is it a Gaelic word?
3. What is it known for being?
4. How many areas can it be classifieded into?
5. Does it include any fertile ground?
6. Is it 10,000,000 sq km?
7. How large is it?
8. What is it's ranking among all the world's deserts?
9. What are the other 2?
10. Are they considered hot?
11. What mass is the hot one considered comparable to?
12. How far east does it reach?
13. Are there any other notable borders?

Numbered answers:
1. The Sahara
2. unknown
3. the largest hot desert in the world
4. several regions
5. No
6. No
7. 9,400,000 square kilometres
8. third largest
9. Antarctica and the Arctic
10. No
11. the respective land area of China
12. from the Red Sea
13. Yes

Question:
Read the text and answer the questions.
Defying warnings from the international community, North Korea launched a long-range rocket on Friday, but it broke apart before escaping the earth's atmosphere and fell into the sea, officials said.

"It flew about a minute, and it flew into the ocean," said Noriyuki Shikata, a spokesman for Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda.

He added that Japanese authorities "have not identified any negative impacts, so far," though he said the international ramifications could be significant. "This is something that we think is a regrettable development," he said.

Joseph Cirincione, president of the global security foundation The Ploughshares Fund, told CNN that the launch's apparent failure "shows the weakness of the North Korea missile program" and suggests that the threat from North Korea has been "exaggerated."

"It's a humiliation," he told CNN. "I wouldn't want to be a North Korean rocket scientist today."

In an unusual admission of failure, the North Korean state media announced that the rocket had not managed to put an observation satellite into orbit, which Pyongyang had insisted was the purpose of the launch.

In the past, North Korea has insisted that failed launches have been successful.

"Scientists, technicians and experts are now looking into the cause of the failure," the official Korean Central News Agency said in a report, which was also read out in a news broadcast on state-run television.

The United States, South Korea and other countries see the launch as a cover for a ballistic missile test.

"Our government strongly criticizes their action," said South Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Sung Hwan. "They have ignored the starvation of their people and spent money on missiles. It is very unfortunate."
1. did something happen on the day that follows Thursday?
2. did it hit anything?
3. what happened to it?

Numbered answers:
1. North Korea launched a long-range rocket
2. no
3. fell into the sea

Question:
Read the text and answer the questions.
In less than two months, Junior 3 students around the country will take the senior high school entrance exam. They are studying hard for this big challenge. Do they have time to do something in memory of their middle school years? Many do. Leng Jingze, 15, from Tianjin said that in her class students are already writing goodbye messages for each other. "Even the head teacher has a plan," said Leng. "She plans to put all our class photos and the Chinese compositions we have written onto a CD and give each student one," said Leng. "She will also write something for each student." Wang Zeyu, 16, in Changchun, Jilin said his classmates are making "lucky stars" as graduation gifts. They are making the cheerful stars from colored paper. "Before making a lucky star, you write some words for the person on the paper," said Wang. "He or she can read the words later." Who does Wang want to make a lucky star for? He said he wanted to make one for his head teacher. "I'll write: Dear teacher, you always look so serious," said Wang. "But we know you have a warm heart. Smile more!" In Xiao Xia's school in Beijing, each Junior 3 student will get a yearbook , in which the graduating classes will put their photos and self-introductions. "Most classes have written an article as the self-introduction," said Xiao, 15. "We have written a poem in the ancient style!" The poem records the big events of the class's history and is in the shape of the number 9. "Nine is our class number," said Xiao, who felt very proud of the idea. "Our class may be not the one with the best school grade but it must be the most creative one," said Xiao. "I feel lucky to study in such a class!"
1. What exam is coming up?
2. What are they doing to create memories?
3. What is the lead instructor doing?
4. Anything else she's doing?
5. What are the students making?
6. What type of gift are those?
7. What do they put on the stars?
8. How old is Wang Zeyu?
9. What does Wang thing the instructor needs to do more?
10. How old is Xiao?
11. What is the class best at?
12. What grade are they in?
Numbered answers:
1. senior high school entrance exam
2. writing goodbye messages
3. put all our class photos and the Chinese compositions we have written onto a CD
4. write something for each studen
5. lucky stars
6. graduation gifts
7. words
8. 16
9. Smile
10. 15
11. creative
12. Nine