Article: My grandmother Adele loved culture and was generous with its gifts. When I was a child, she took me to museums, restaurants, dances. She showered me with gifts from her travels around the world. But I can only remember her giving me one book--a book that, to this day, I have not read. She presented me with her own favorite childhood book: Hans Brinker. My grandmother was happy to share this book with me. She even decorated the title page with her proud writing. I tried to read it. I adored reading, and would dive into a new pile of books from the library all at once. But something about Hans Brinker just wouldn't let me in. The story was set in Holland, a long time ago. It felt dull and unfamiliar--even though I was a fan of classics of other times and places. I simply read the first pages over and over. I could not progress. Standing on a bookshelf in our living room, the book was like something I avoided. It scolded me for not being interested, for not trying hard enough, for disappointing my grandmother. The book started to fit in, almost forgotten, until Adele asked. Had I read it? Did I like it? Always determined, she wanted to know the answer. I would make some kind of excuse, feel bad, and open it again, hoping for a new reaction. _ . Years passed and finally Adele and I both accepted that I would never read Hans Brinker. Eventually I cleared the book from the shelf. The Hans Brinker experience led me to set a rule that I've lived by ever since: Do not ask about a book given as a gift. Don't ask, despite your desire to discuss it to grow closer. The desire for such connection is what gives book-giving with special meaning--and increases the owner's possibility to be a letdown. Guilt is basically the same as for all gifts, though. If the giver doesn't have the pleasure of seeing or hearing about the gift being enjoyed, and asks whether it is, then the owner--unless she can truthfully say "yes"--either has to admit to not liking the present, or else lie on the spot. Neither is pleasant. So, don't ask. Question: What does the author think about the book his grandmother gave him? Yes or no, is the answer "Boring."?
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Article: Barack Obama, Lady Gaga and Steve Jobs--what do they have in common? They are, of course, all Americans. And according to a survey by social networking site badoo. com, they all best illustrate the word "cool". But just what does it mean to say someone is "cool"? Most would answer that it is something to do with being independent-minded and not following the crowd. Yale University art professor Robert Farris Thompson says that the term "cool" goes back to 15th century West African philosophy . "Cool" relates to ideas of grace under pressure. "In Africa, " he writes, "coolness is a positive quality which combines calmness, silence, and life. " The modern idea of "cool" developed largely in the US in the period after World War II. "Post-war 'cool' was in part an expression of war-weariness . . . it went against the strict social rules of the time, " write sociologists Dick Pountain and David Robins in Cool Rules: Anatomy of an Attitude. But it was the American actor James Dean who became the symbol for "cool" in the hugely successful 1955 movie Rebel without a Cause. Dean plays a tough guy who disobeys his parents and the authorities . He always gets the girl, smokes cigarettes, wears a leather jacket and beats up bullies . In the movie, Dean showed what "cool" would mean to American young people for the next 60 years. Today the focus of "cool" has changed to athletics stars. Often in movies about schools, students gain popularity on the athletics field more than in the classroom. This can be seen quite clearly in movies like Varsity Blues and John Tucker Must Die. But many teenagers also think being smart is cool. Chess and other thinking games have been becoming more popular in schools. "Call it the Harry Potterization of America --a time when being smart is the new cool, " writes journalist Joe Sunnen. Question: If you were considered "cool" in Africa in the 15th century, you _ . Yes or no, is the answer "had a calm and quiet attitude towards life"?
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Q: Article: Early risers are most likely to be healthy, wealthy and wise, according to the old saying. But those who are early to bed and early to rise do not always have advantages, researchers say. They have found that night owls are generally brighter and wealthier than those who are able to get up early in the morning. Experts from the University of Madrid carried out tests on around 1,000 teenagers and found that those who preferred to stay up late showed the kind of intelligence to find good jobs and earn much money. Larks or "morning people", however, often get better exam results, possibly because lessons are held at the wrong time of day for night owls. The researchers examined the habits and body clocks of the young people to determine whether they liked to stay up late and sleep later in the morning, or preferred to go to bed early and were at their best state in the morning. School performance and problem solving ability, were judged and test grades in the major subjects were also taken into consideration. Jim Horne, professor of psychophysiology at Loughborough University, said: "Evening types tend to be the more creative types, the poets, artists and inventors, while the morning types are considered to be civil servants and accountants . " Question: In Jim Horne' opinion, Larks may choose to be _ in the future. Yes or no, is the answer "civil servants"?
A: Yes

Article: How "Kangaroo" Became an Animal's Name Early in the 18th century, Captain Cook, a famous explorer of Australia, unexpectedly saw an unusual animal during his first visit to Australia. The animal had a large mouth-like head and jumped along on its large legs. To his surprise, the unusual animal carried its baby in a special pocket of flesh. Captain Cook pointed to the animal which was eating grass in the distance and asked his local guide what that animal was. The guide seemed not to know what he was pointing at and finally said Kang-a-roo. Cook carefully wrote down Kang-a-roo as the animal's name in his word book. The Europeans who later got to Australia were anxious to see the unusual animal "Kang-a-roo", but their requests met with puzzled looks of the local people. Before long they got to discover that the local guide who made the answer to Cook's question really meant, "I don't know what you are pointing at." Funny enough, the name "Kang-a-roo" stuck and it is still in use today. Question: The main use for the animal's flesh pocket is to _ . Yes or no, is the answer "carry its babies"?
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