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[
"explain how worker bees are prevented from mating with drones",
"explain how worker bees hatch and nurture the queen's young",
"demonstrate the universality of natural selection",
"show that worker bees are capable of thwarting each other's attempts to reproduce"
] | The author refers to the experiment described in lines 16-19 in order to | Typically the queen honeybee is mother to all the bees in a hive;after mating with several male drones from other colonies,she lays fertilized eggs that develop into all female worker bees and lays unfertilized eggs that become all-male drones. When a queen dies, workers often lay unfertilized eggs that hatch into drones. Yet workers rarely reproduce while a queen reigns.
According to natural selection theory, a worker would enhance her fitness-or ability to propagate her genes-by hatching her own eggs in addition to or in place of the queen's. But a typical worker's fitness would be diminished if other workers' sons, who have less genetic material in common with the worker, supplanted the queen's sons (the worker's brothers). Researchers, testing the hypothesis that workers usually somehow block each other's attempts to reproduce, put unfertilized eggs laid by workers and by the queen into a hive. Other workers quickly devoured the workers' eggs while leaving the queen's eggs alone. | 1883.txt | 3 |
[
"A totalitarian society in which citizens' \"policing\" of each other's actions helps to maintain the status quo.",
"A pacifist state in which the individuals are strongly opposed to the use of violence or aggression to settle disputes",
"A democratic society in which the voice of the majority rules.",
"A parliamentary society in which a few members, organized as a cabinet wield executive power."
] | The inner workings in a honeybee hive that regulate reproduction, as they are described in the passage, are most similar to which of the following types of human societies? | Typically the queen honeybee is mother to all the bees in a hive;after mating with several male drones from other colonies,she lays fertilized eggs that develop into all female worker bees and lays unfertilized eggs that become all-male drones. When a queen dies, workers often lay unfertilized eggs that hatch into drones. Yet workers rarely reproduce while a queen reigns.
According to natural selection theory, a worker would enhance her fitness-or ability to propagate her genes-by hatching her own eggs in addition to or in place of the queen's. But a typical worker's fitness would be diminished if other workers' sons, who have less genetic material in common with the worker, supplanted the queen's sons (the worker's brothers). Researchers, testing the hypothesis that workers usually somehow block each other's attempts to reproduce, put unfertilized eggs laid by workers and by the queen into a hive. Other workers quickly devoured the workers' eggs while leaving the queen's eggs alone. | 1883.txt | 0 |
[
"Reproduction diminishes any individual honeybee's fitness.",
"An individual worker's fitness can be maintained without the individual herself reproducing.",
"A hierarchy of stronger and weaker individuals among the worker bees determines which individuals will reproduce when a queen dies.",
"While a queen reigns, the fitness of the worker bees is increased and that of the drones is diminished."
] | The passage best supports which of the following inferences about the fitness of honeybees? | Typically the queen honeybee is mother to all the bees in a hive;after mating with several male drones from other colonies,she lays fertilized eggs that develop into all female worker bees and lays unfertilized eggs that become all-male drones. When a queen dies, workers often lay unfertilized eggs that hatch into drones. Yet workers rarely reproduce while a queen reigns.
According to natural selection theory, a worker would enhance her fitness-or ability to propagate her genes-by hatching her own eggs in addition to or in place of the queen's. But a typical worker's fitness would be diminished if other workers' sons, who have less genetic material in common with the worker, supplanted the queen's sons (the worker's brothers). Researchers, testing the hypothesis that workers usually somehow block each other's attempts to reproduce, put unfertilized eggs laid by workers and by the queen into a hive. Other workers quickly devoured the workers' eggs while leaving the queen's eggs alone. | 1883.txt | 1 |
[
"One of the eggs hatches into the next queen.",
"The eggs are invariably destroyed by other worker bees.",
"Each worker tries to hide her eggs from the other worker bees.",
"The eggs are less likely to be harmed by other workers if the queen is dead."
] | The passage suggests which of the following about the eggs laid by worker bees? | Typically the queen honeybee is mother to all the bees in a hive;after mating with several male drones from other colonies,she lays fertilized eggs that develop into all female worker bees and lays unfertilized eggs that become all-male drones. When a queen dies, workers often lay unfertilized eggs that hatch into drones. Yet workers rarely reproduce while a queen reigns.
According to natural selection theory, a worker would enhance her fitness-or ability to propagate her genes-by hatching her own eggs in addition to or in place of the queen's. But a typical worker's fitness would be diminished if other workers' sons, who have less genetic material in common with the worker, supplanted the queen's sons (the worker's brothers). Researchers, testing the hypothesis that workers usually somehow block each other's attempts to reproduce, put unfertilized eggs laid by workers and by the queen into a hive. Other workers quickly devoured the workers' eggs while leaving the queen's eggs alone. | 1883.txt | 3 |
[
"stabilizing",
"changing",
"falling",
"rising"
] | The word "plummeting" (Line 3, Para. 2) is closest in meaning to ________. | While fossil fuels-coal, oil, gas-still generate roughly 85 percent of the world's energy supply, it's cleaner than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar. The move to renewables is picking up momentum around the world：They now account for more than half of new power sources going on line.
Some growth stems from a commitment by governments and farsighted businesses to fund cleaner energy sources. But increasingly the story is about the plummeting prices of renewables, especially wind and solar. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80 percent and the cost of wind turbines by close to one-third in the past eight years.
In many parts of the world renewable energy is already a principal energy source. In Scotland, for example, wind turbines provide enough electricity to power 95 percent of homes. While the rest of the world takes the lead, notably China and Europe, the United States is also seeing a remarkable shift. In March, for the first time, wind and solar power accounted for more than 10 percent of the power generated in the US, reported the US Energy Information Administration.
President Trump has underlined fossil fuels - especially coal - as the path to economic growth. In a recent speech in Iowa, he dismissed wind power as an unreliable energy source. But that message did not play well with many in Iowa, where wind turbines dot the fields and provide 36 percent of the state's electricity generation-and where tech giants such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Google are being attracted by the availability of clean energy to power their data centers.
The question "what happens when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine?" has provided a quick put-down for skeptics. But a boost in the storage capacity of batteries is making their ability to keep power flowing around the clock more likely.
The advance is driven in part by vehicle manufacturers, who are placing big bets on battery-powered electric vehicles. Although electric cars are still a rarity on roads now, this massive investment could change the picture rapidly in coming years.
While there's a long way to go, the train lines for renewables are spiking. The pace of change in energy sources appears to be speeding up-perhaps just in time to have a meaningful effect in slowing climate change , what Washington does, or doesn't do-to promote alternative energy may mean less and less at a time of a global shift in thought. | 483.txt | 2 |
[
"is progressing notably",
"is as extensive as in Europe",
"faces many challenges",
"has proved to be impractical"
] | According to Paragraph 3, the use of renewable energy in America ________. | While fossil fuels-coal, oil, gas-still generate roughly 85 percent of the world's energy supply, it's cleaner than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar. The move to renewables is picking up momentum around the world：They now account for more than half of new power sources going on line.
Some growth stems from a commitment by governments and farsighted businesses to fund cleaner energy sources. But increasingly the story is about the plummeting prices of renewables, especially wind and solar. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80 percent and the cost of wind turbines by close to one-third in the past eight years.
In many parts of the world renewable energy is already a principal energy source. In Scotland, for example, wind turbines provide enough electricity to power 95 percent of homes. While the rest of the world takes the lead, notably China and Europe, the United States is also seeing a remarkable shift. In March, for the first time, wind and solar power accounted for more than 10 percent of the power generated in the US, reported the US Energy Information Administration.
President Trump has underlined fossil fuels - especially coal - as the path to economic growth. In a recent speech in Iowa, he dismissed wind power as an unreliable energy source. But that message did not play well with many in Iowa, where wind turbines dot the fields and provide 36 percent of the state's electricity generation-and where tech giants such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Google are being attracted by the availability of clean energy to power their data centers.
The question "what happens when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine?" has provided a quick put-down for skeptics. But a boost in the storage capacity of batteries is making their ability to keep power flowing around the clock more likely.
The advance is driven in part by vehicle manufacturers, who are placing big bets on battery-powered electric vehicles. Although electric cars are still a rarity on roads now, this massive investment could change the picture rapidly in coming years.
While there's a long way to go, the train lines for renewables are spiking. The pace of change in energy sources appears to be speeding up-perhaps just in time to have a meaningful effect in slowing climate change , what Washington does, or doesn't do-to promote alternative energy may mean less and less at a time of a global shift in thought. | 483.txt | 0 |
[
"wind is a widely used energy source",
"wind energy has replaced fossil fuels",
"tech giants are investing in clean energy",
"there is a shortage of clean energy supply"
] | It can be learned that in Iowa, ________. | While fossil fuels-coal, oil, gas-still generate roughly 85 percent of the world's energy supply, it's cleaner than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar. The move to renewables is picking up momentum around the world：They now account for more than half of new power sources going on line.
Some growth stems from a commitment by governments and farsighted businesses to fund cleaner energy sources. But increasingly the story is about the plummeting prices of renewables, especially wind and solar. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80 percent and the cost of wind turbines by close to one-third in the past eight years.
In many parts of the world renewable energy is already a principal energy source. In Scotland, for example, wind turbines provide enough electricity to power 95 percent of homes. While the rest of the world takes the lead, notably China and Europe, the United States is also seeing a remarkable shift. In March, for the first time, wind and solar power accounted for more than 10 percent of the power generated in the US, reported the US Energy Information Administration.
President Trump has underlined fossil fuels - especially coal - as the path to economic growth. In a recent speech in Iowa, he dismissed wind power as an unreliable energy source. But that message did not play well with many in Iowa, where wind turbines dot the fields and provide 36 percent of the state's electricity generation-and where tech giants such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Google are being attracted by the availability of clean energy to power their data centers.
The question "what happens when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine?" has provided a quick put-down for skeptics. But a boost in the storage capacity of batteries is making their ability to keep power flowing around the clock more likely.
The advance is driven in part by vehicle manufacturers, who are placing big bets on battery-powered electric vehicles. Although electric cars are still a rarity on roads now, this massive investment could change the picture rapidly in coming years.
While there's a long way to go, the train lines for renewables are spiking. The pace of change in energy sources appears to be speeding up-perhaps just in time to have a meaningful effect in slowing climate change , what Washington does, or doesn't do-to promote alternative energy may mean less and less at a time of a global shift in thought. | 483.txt | 0 |
[
"Its application has boosted battery storage.",
"It is commonly used in car manufacturing.",
"Its continuous supply is becoming a reality.",
"Its sustainable exploitation will remain difficult."
] | Which of the following is true about clean energy according to paragraphs 5＆6? | While fossil fuels-coal, oil, gas-still generate roughly 85 percent of the world's energy supply, it's cleaner than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar. The move to renewables is picking up momentum around the world：They now account for more than half of new power sources going on line.
Some growth stems from a commitment by governments and farsighted businesses to fund cleaner energy sources. But increasingly the story is about the plummeting prices of renewables, especially wind and solar. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80 percent and the cost of wind turbines by close to one-third in the past eight years.
In many parts of the world renewable energy is already a principal energy source. In Scotland, for example, wind turbines provide enough electricity to power 95 percent of homes. While the rest of the world takes the lead, notably China and Europe, the United States is also seeing a remarkable shift. In March, for the first time, wind and solar power accounted for more than 10 percent of the power generated in the US, reported the US Energy Information Administration.
President Trump has underlined fossil fuels - especially coal - as the path to economic growth. In a recent speech in Iowa, he dismissed wind power as an unreliable energy source. But that message did not play well with many in Iowa, where wind turbines dot the fields and provide 36 percent of the state's electricity generation-and where tech giants such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Google are being attracted by the availability of clean energy to power their data centers.
The question "what happens when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine?" has provided a quick put-down for skeptics. But a boost in the storage capacity of batteries is making their ability to keep power flowing around the clock more likely.
The advance is driven in part by vehicle manufacturers, who are placing big bets on battery-powered electric vehicles. Although electric cars are still a rarity on roads now, this massive investment could change the picture rapidly in coming years.
While there's a long way to go, the train lines for renewables are spiking. The pace of change in energy sources appears to be speeding up-perhaps just in time to have a meaningful effect in slowing climate change , what Washington does, or doesn't do-to promote alternative energy may mean less and less at a time of a global shift in thought. | 483.txt | 2 |
[
"will bring the US closer to other countries.",
"will accelerate global environmental change.",
"is not really encouraged by the US government.",
"is not competitive enough with regard to its cost."
] | It can be inferred from the last paragraph that renewable energy ________. | While fossil fuels-coal, oil, gas-still generate roughly 85 percent of the world's energy supply, it's cleaner than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar. The move to renewables is picking up momentum around the world：They now account for more than half of new power sources going on line.
Some growth stems from a commitment by governments and farsighted businesses to fund cleaner energy sources. But increasingly the story is about the plummeting prices of renewables, especially wind and solar. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80 percent and the cost of wind turbines by close to one-third in the past eight years.
In many parts of the world renewable energy is already a principal energy source. In Scotland, for example, wind turbines provide enough electricity to power 95 percent of homes. While the rest of the world takes the lead, notably China and Europe, the United States is also seeing a remarkable shift. In March, for the first time, wind and solar power accounted for more than 10 percent of the power generated in the US, reported the US Energy Information Administration.
President Trump has underlined fossil fuels - especially coal - as the path to economic growth. In a recent speech in Iowa, he dismissed wind power as an unreliable energy source. But that message did not play well with many in Iowa, where wind turbines dot the fields and provide 36 percent of the state's electricity generation-and where tech giants such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Google are being attracted by the availability of clean energy to power their data centers.
The question "what happens when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine?" has provided a quick put-down for skeptics. But a boost in the storage capacity of batteries is making their ability to keep power flowing around the clock more likely.
The advance is driven in part by vehicle manufacturers, who are placing big bets on battery-powered electric vehicles. Although electric cars are still a rarity on roads now, this massive investment could change the picture rapidly in coming years.
While there's a long way to go, the train lines for renewables are spiking. The pace of change in energy sources appears to be speeding up-perhaps just in time to have a meaningful effect in slowing climate change , what Washington does, or doesn't do-to promote alternative energy may mean less and less at a time of a global shift in thought. | 483.txt | 2 |
[
"America is now the only developed country without the policy.",
"It has now become a hot topic in the United States.",
"It came as a surprise when Australia adopted the policy.",
"Its meaning was clarified when it was established in Australia."
] | What do we learn about paid family leave from the first paragraph? | Only two countries in the advanced world provide no guarantee for paid leave from work to care for a newborn child. Last spring one of the two, Australia, gave up the dubious distinction by establishing paid family leave starting in 2011. I wasn't surprised when this didn't make the news here in the United States-we're now the only wealthy country without such a policy.
The United States does have one explicit family policy, the Family and Medical Leave Act, passed in 1993. It entitles workers to as much as 12 weeks' unpaid leave for care of a newborn or dealing with a family medical problem. Despite the modesty of the benefit, the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups fought it bitterly, describing it as "government-run personnel management" and a "dangerous precedent". In fact, every step of the way, as (usually) Democratic leaders have tried to introduce work-family balance measures into the law, business groups have been strongly opposed.
As Yale law professor Anne Alstott argues, justifying parental support depends on defining the family as a social good that, in some sense, society must pay for. In her book No Exit: What Parents Owe Their Children and What Society Owes Parents, she argues that parents are burdened in many ways in their lives: there is "no exit" when it comes to children. "Society expects-and needs-parents to provide their children with continuity of care, meaning the intensive, intimate care that human beings need to develop their intellectual, emotional and moral capabilities. And society expects-and needs-parents to persist in their roles for 18 years, or longer if needed."
While most parents do this out of love, there are public penalties for not providing care. What parents do, in other words, is of deep concern to the state, for the obvious reason that caring for children is not only morally urgent but essential for the future of society. The state recognizes this in the large body of family laws that govern children' welfare, yet parents receive little help in meeting the life-changing obligations society imposes. To classify parenting as a personal choice for which there is no collective responsibility is not merely to ignore the social benefits of good parenting; really, it is to steal those benefits because they accrue to the whole of society as today's children become tomorrow's productive citizenry . In fact, by some estimates, the value of parental investments in children, investments of time and money (including lost wages), is equal to 20-30% of gross domestic product. If these investments generate huge social benefits-as they clearly do-the benefits of providing more social support for the family should be that much clearer. | 1029.txt | 0 |
[
"The incompetence of the Democrats.",
"The existing Family and Medical Leave Act.",
"The lack of a precedent in American history.",
"The opposition from business circles."
] | What has prevented the passing of work-family balance laws in the United States? | Only two countries in the advanced world provide no guarantee for paid leave from work to care for a newborn child. Last spring one of the two, Australia, gave up the dubious distinction by establishing paid family leave starting in 2011. I wasn't surprised when this didn't make the news here in the United States-we're now the only wealthy country without such a policy.
The United States does have one explicit family policy, the Family and Medical Leave Act, passed in 1993. It entitles workers to as much as 12 weeks' unpaid leave for care of a newborn or dealing with a family medical problem. Despite the modesty of the benefit, the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups fought it bitterly, describing it as "government-run personnel management" and a "dangerous precedent". In fact, every step of the way, as (usually) Democratic leaders have tried to introduce work-family balance measures into the law, business groups have been strongly opposed.
As Yale law professor Anne Alstott argues, justifying parental support depends on defining the family as a social good that, in some sense, society must pay for. In her book No Exit: What Parents Owe Their Children and What Society Owes Parents, she argues that parents are burdened in many ways in their lives: there is "no exit" when it comes to children. "Society expects-and needs-parents to provide their children with continuity of care, meaning the intensive, intimate care that human beings need to develop their intellectual, emotional and moral capabilities. And society expects-and needs-parents to persist in their roles for 18 years, or longer if needed."
While most parents do this out of love, there are public penalties for not providing care. What parents do, in other words, is of deep concern to the state, for the obvious reason that caring for children is not only morally urgent but essential for the future of society. The state recognizes this in the large body of family laws that govern children' welfare, yet parents receive little help in meeting the life-changing obligations society imposes. To classify parenting as a personal choice for which there is no collective responsibility is not merely to ignore the social benefits of good parenting; really, it is to steal those benefits because they accrue to the whole of society as today's children become tomorrow's productive citizenry . In fact, by some estimates, the value of parental investments in children, investments of time and money (including lost wages), is equal to 20-30% of gross domestic product. If these investments generate huge social benefits-as they clearly do-the benefits of providing more social support for the family should be that much clearer. | 1029.txt | 3 |
[
"The cost of raising children in the U. S. has been growing.",
"Good parenting benefits society.",
"The U. S. should keep up with other developed countries.",
"Children need continuous care."
] | What is Professor Anne Alstott's argument for parental support? | Only two countries in the advanced world provide no guarantee for paid leave from work to care for a newborn child. Last spring one of the two, Australia, gave up the dubious distinction by establishing paid family leave starting in 2011. I wasn't surprised when this didn't make the news here in the United States-we're now the only wealthy country without such a policy.
The United States does have one explicit family policy, the Family and Medical Leave Act, passed in 1993. It entitles workers to as much as 12 weeks' unpaid leave for care of a newborn or dealing with a family medical problem. Despite the modesty of the benefit, the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups fought it bitterly, describing it as "government-run personnel management" and a "dangerous precedent". In fact, every step of the way, as (usually) Democratic leaders have tried to introduce work-family balance measures into the law, business groups have been strongly opposed.
As Yale law professor Anne Alstott argues, justifying parental support depends on defining the family as a social good that, in some sense, society must pay for. In her book No Exit: What Parents Owe Their Children and What Society Owes Parents, she argues that parents are burdened in many ways in their lives: there is "no exit" when it comes to children. "Society expects-and needs-parents to provide their children with continuity of care, meaning the intensive, intimate care that human beings need to develop their intellectual, emotional and moral capabilities. And society expects-and needs-parents to persist in their roles for 18 years, or longer if needed."
While most parents do this out of love, there are public penalties for not providing care. What parents do, in other words, is of deep concern to the state, for the obvious reason that caring for children is not only morally urgent but essential for the future of society. The state recognizes this in the large body of family laws that govern children' welfare, yet parents receive little help in meeting the life-changing obligations society imposes. To classify parenting as a personal choice for which there is no collective responsibility is not merely to ignore the social benefits of good parenting; really, it is to steal those benefits because they accrue to the whole of society as today's children become tomorrow's productive citizenry . In fact, by some estimates, the value of parental investments in children, investments of time and money (including lost wages), is equal to 20-30% of gross domestic product. If these investments generate huge social benefits-as they clearly do-the benefits of providing more social support for the family should be that much clearer. | 1029.txt | 1 |
[
"They fail to ensure children's healthy growth",
"The fail to provide enough support for parents",
"They emphasize parents' legal responsibilities.",
"They impose the care of children on parents."
] | What does the author think of America's large body of family laws governing children's welfare? | Only two countries in the advanced world provide no guarantee for paid leave from work to care for a newborn child. Last spring one of the two, Australia, gave up the dubious distinction by establishing paid family leave starting in 2011. I wasn't surprised when this didn't make the news here in the United States-we're now the only wealthy country without such a policy.
The United States does have one explicit family policy, the Family and Medical Leave Act, passed in 1993. It entitles workers to as much as 12 weeks' unpaid leave for care of a newborn or dealing with a family medical problem. Despite the modesty of the benefit, the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups fought it bitterly, describing it as "government-run personnel management" and a "dangerous precedent". In fact, every step of the way, as (usually) Democratic leaders have tried to introduce work-family balance measures into the law, business groups have been strongly opposed.
As Yale law professor Anne Alstott argues, justifying parental support depends on defining the family as a social good that, in some sense, society must pay for. In her book No Exit: What Parents Owe Their Children and What Society Owes Parents, she argues that parents are burdened in many ways in their lives: there is "no exit" when it comes to children. "Society expects-and needs-parents to provide their children with continuity of care, meaning the intensive, intimate care that human beings need to develop their intellectual, emotional and moral capabilities. And society expects-and needs-parents to persist in their roles for 18 years, or longer if needed."
While most parents do this out of love, there are public penalties for not providing care. What parents do, in other words, is of deep concern to the state, for the obvious reason that caring for children is not only morally urgent but essential for the future of society. The state recognizes this in the large body of family laws that govern children' welfare, yet parents receive little help in meeting the life-changing obligations society imposes. To classify parenting as a personal choice for which there is no collective responsibility is not merely to ignore the social benefits of good parenting; really, it is to steal those benefits because they accrue to the whole of society as today's children become tomorrow's productive citizenry . In fact, by some estimates, the value of parental investments in children, investments of time and money (including lost wages), is equal to 20-30% of gross domestic product. If these investments generate huge social benefits-as they clearly do-the benefits of providing more social support for the family should be that much clearer. | 1029.txt | 1 |
[
"It is regarded as a legal obligation.",
"It relies largely on social support.",
"It generates huge social benefits.",
"It is basically a social undertaking."
] | Why does the author object to classifying parenting as a personal choice? | Only two countries in the advanced world provide no guarantee for paid leave from work to care for a newborn child. Last spring one of the two, Australia, gave up the dubious distinction by establishing paid family leave starting in 2011. I wasn't surprised when this didn't make the news here in the United States-we're now the only wealthy country without such a policy.
The United States does have one explicit family policy, the Family and Medical Leave Act, passed in 1993. It entitles workers to as much as 12 weeks' unpaid leave for care of a newborn or dealing with a family medical problem. Despite the modesty of the benefit, the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups fought it bitterly, describing it as "government-run personnel management" and a "dangerous precedent". In fact, every step of the way, as (usually) Democratic leaders have tried to introduce work-family balance measures into the law, business groups have been strongly opposed.
As Yale law professor Anne Alstott argues, justifying parental support depends on defining the family as a social good that, in some sense, society must pay for. In her book No Exit: What Parents Owe Their Children and What Society Owes Parents, she argues that parents are burdened in many ways in their lives: there is "no exit" when it comes to children. "Society expects-and needs-parents to provide their children with continuity of care, meaning the intensive, intimate care that human beings need to develop their intellectual, emotional and moral capabilities. And society expects-and needs-parents to persist in their roles for 18 years, or longer if needed."
While most parents do this out of love, there are public penalties for not providing care. What parents do, in other words, is of deep concern to the state, for the obvious reason that caring for children is not only morally urgent but essential for the future of society. The state recognizes this in the large body of family laws that govern children' welfare, yet parents receive little help in meeting the life-changing obligations society imposes. To classify parenting as a personal choice for which there is no collective responsibility is not merely to ignore the social benefits of good parenting; really, it is to steal those benefits because they accrue to the whole of society as today's children become tomorrow's productive citizenry . In fact, by some estimates, the value of parental investments in children, investments of time and money (including lost wages), is equal to 20-30% of gross domestic product. If these investments generate huge social benefits-as they clearly do-the benefits of providing more social support for the family should be that much clearer. | 1029.txt | 3 |
[
"challenging.",
"promising.",
"complicated.",
"alluring."
] | The word "intriguing" (Line 3, Paragraph 1) most probably means _ | For its supporters, the idea of growing single-celled algae on exhaust gas piped from power stations is the ultimate in recycling. For its detractors, it is a mere pipe dream. Whoever turns out to be right, though, it is an intriguing idea: instead of releasing the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels into the atmosphere, why not recapture it by photosynthesis? The result could then be turned into biodiesel (since many species of algae store their food reserves as oil), or even simply dried and fed back into the power station. Of course, if it were really that easy, someone would have done it already. But although no one has yet commercialised the technology, several groups are trying.
One of them is GS CleanTech, which has developed a bioreactor based on a patent held by a group of scientists at the Ohio Coal Research Centre, at the University of Ohio. The GS CleanTech bioreactor uses a parabolic mirror to funnel sunlight into fibre-optic cables that carry the light to acrylic "glow plates" inside the reactor. These diffuse the light over vertical sheets of polyester that form the platform on which the algae grow. Eventually the polyester is unable to support the weight of the algae, and they fall off into a collection duct positioned underneath.
GreenFuel Technologies, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a different approach. Its reactor is composed of a series of clear tubes, each with a second, opaque tube nested inside. This arrangement makes it possible to bubble the exhaust gas down through the outer compartment and then bubble it back up through the opaque middle. The bubbling gas causes turbulence and circulates the algae around the reactor. The constant shift between light and darkness as the algal cells circulate increases the amount of carbon that they fix, probably by promoting chemical reactions that occur naturally only at night.
A preliminary test of GreenFuel's reactor design, which was performed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's campus power plant, suggested that it can remove 75% of the carbon dioxide from a power station's exhaust. A more serious test is now being carried out by Arizona Public Service, that state's power utility, at its Redhawk plant. Another test is planned in Louisiana.
GreenFuel claims that over the course of a year, a hectare (2.5 acres) of its reactors should be able to produce 30,000 litres (8,000 American gallons) of oil, which could be used as biodiesel, and enough carbohydrates to be fermented into 9,000 litres of ethanol, which can be used as a substitute for petrol.
There is, of course, no free lunch. As Rob Carlson of the University of Washington points out, if money is to be made selling products made from exhaust gas, then that gas goes from being waste matter to being a valuable resource. Far from giving it away, power companies might even start charging for it. That would, indeed, be a reversal of fortune. | 3475.txt | 3 |
[
"No exhaust gas is used in this bioreactor.",
"The \"glow plates\" are used to conduct the sunlight.",
"Sunlight comes into the fibre-optic cables through holes in the parabolic mirror.",
"Photosynthesis is carried out by the algae in the collection duct."
] | Which one of the following statements is TRUE of the bioreactor developed by GS CleanTech? | For its supporters, the idea of growing single-celled algae on exhaust gas piped from power stations is the ultimate in recycling. For its detractors, it is a mere pipe dream. Whoever turns out to be right, though, it is an intriguing idea: instead of releasing the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels into the atmosphere, why not recapture it by photosynthesis? The result could then be turned into biodiesel (since many species of algae store their food reserves as oil), or even simply dried and fed back into the power station. Of course, if it were really that easy, someone would have done it already. But although no one has yet commercialised the technology, several groups are trying.
One of them is GS CleanTech, which has developed a bioreactor based on a patent held by a group of scientists at the Ohio Coal Research Centre, at the University of Ohio. The GS CleanTech bioreactor uses a parabolic mirror to funnel sunlight into fibre-optic cables that carry the light to acrylic "glow plates" inside the reactor. These diffuse the light over vertical sheets of polyester that form the platform on which the algae grow. Eventually the polyester is unable to support the weight of the algae, and they fall off into a collection duct positioned underneath.
GreenFuel Technologies, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a different approach. Its reactor is composed of a series of clear tubes, each with a second, opaque tube nested inside. This arrangement makes it possible to bubble the exhaust gas down through the outer compartment and then bubble it back up through the opaque middle. The bubbling gas causes turbulence and circulates the algae around the reactor. The constant shift between light and darkness as the algal cells circulate increases the amount of carbon that they fix, probably by promoting chemical reactions that occur naturally only at night.
A preliminary test of GreenFuel's reactor design, which was performed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's campus power plant, suggested that it can remove 75% of the carbon dioxide from a power station's exhaust. A more serious test is now being carried out by Arizona Public Service, that state's power utility, at its Redhawk plant. Another test is planned in Louisiana.
GreenFuel claims that over the course of a year, a hectare (2.5 acres) of its reactors should be able to produce 30,000 litres (8,000 American gallons) of oil, which could be used as biodiesel, and enough carbohydrates to be fermented into 9,000 litres of ethanol, which can be used as a substitute for petrol.
There is, of course, no free lunch. As Rob Carlson of the University of Washington points out, if money is to be made selling products made from exhaust gas, then that gas goes from being waste matter to being a valuable resource. Far from giving it away, power companies might even start charging for it. That would, indeed, be a reversal of fortune. | 3475.txt | 1 |
[
"hold the vertical sheets of polyester that fall off.",
"substitute the platform on which the algae grows.",
"obtain the overweight algae.",
"take the place of polyester after light is diffused on it."
] | The collection duct positioned underneath is used to _ | For its supporters, the idea of growing single-celled algae on exhaust gas piped from power stations is the ultimate in recycling. For its detractors, it is a mere pipe dream. Whoever turns out to be right, though, it is an intriguing idea: instead of releasing the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels into the atmosphere, why not recapture it by photosynthesis? The result could then be turned into biodiesel (since many species of algae store their food reserves as oil), or even simply dried and fed back into the power station. Of course, if it were really that easy, someone would have done it already. But although no one has yet commercialised the technology, several groups are trying.
One of them is GS CleanTech, which has developed a bioreactor based on a patent held by a group of scientists at the Ohio Coal Research Centre, at the University of Ohio. The GS CleanTech bioreactor uses a parabolic mirror to funnel sunlight into fibre-optic cables that carry the light to acrylic "glow plates" inside the reactor. These diffuse the light over vertical sheets of polyester that form the platform on which the algae grow. Eventually the polyester is unable to support the weight of the algae, and they fall off into a collection duct positioned underneath.
GreenFuel Technologies, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a different approach. Its reactor is composed of a series of clear tubes, each with a second, opaque tube nested inside. This arrangement makes it possible to bubble the exhaust gas down through the outer compartment and then bubble it back up through the opaque middle. The bubbling gas causes turbulence and circulates the algae around the reactor. The constant shift between light and darkness as the algal cells circulate increases the amount of carbon that they fix, probably by promoting chemical reactions that occur naturally only at night.
A preliminary test of GreenFuel's reactor design, which was performed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's campus power plant, suggested that it can remove 75% of the carbon dioxide from a power station's exhaust. A more serious test is now being carried out by Arizona Public Service, that state's power utility, at its Redhawk plant. Another test is planned in Louisiana.
GreenFuel claims that over the course of a year, a hectare (2.5 acres) of its reactors should be able to produce 30,000 litres (8,000 American gallons) of oil, which could be used as biodiesel, and enough carbohydrates to be fermented into 9,000 litres of ethanol, which can be used as a substitute for petrol.
There is, of course, no free lunch. As Rob Carlson of the University of Washington points out, if money is to be made selling products made from exhaust gas, then that gas goes from being waste matter to being a valuable resource. Far from giving it away, power companies might even start charging for it. That would, indeed, be a reversal of fortune. | 3475.txt | 2 |
[
"there is no photosynthesis in the reactor of GreenFuel Technologies.",
"the light used for photosynthesis is produced by the reactor itself.",
"the algal cells fix carbon in the process.",
"the exhaust gas acts as the motive force."
] | The approach developed by the GreenFuel Technologies is different from that by GS CleanTech in that _ | For its supporters, the idea of growing single-celled algae on exhaust gas piped from power stations is the ultimate in recycling. For its detractors, it is a mere pipe dream. Whoever turns out to be right, though, it is an intriguing idea: instead of releasing the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels into the atmosphere, why not recapture it by photosynthesis? The result could then be turned into biodiesel (since many species of algae store their food reserves as oil), or even simply dried and fed back into the power station. Of course, if it were really that easy, someone would have done it already. But although no one has yet commercialised the technology, several groups are trying.
One of them is GS CleanTech, which has developed a bioreactor based on a patent held by a group of scientists at the Ohio Coal Research Centre, at the University of Ohio. The GS CleanTech bioreactor uses a parabolic mirror to funnel sunlight into fibre-optic cables that carry the light to acrylic "glow plates" inside the reactor. These diffuse the light over vertical sheets of polyester that form the platform on which the algae grow. Eventually the polyester is unable to support the weight of the algae, and they fall off into a collection duct positioned underneath.
GreenFuel Technologies, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a different approach. Its reactor is composed of a series of clear tubes, each with a second, opaque tube nested inside. This arrangement makes it possible to bubble the exhaust gas down through the outer compartment and then bubble it back up through the opaque middle. The bubbling gas causes turbulence and circulates the algae around the reactor. The constant shift between light and darkness as the algal cells circulate increases the amount of carbon that they fix, probably by promoting chemical reactions that occur naturally only at night.
A preliminary test of GreenFuel's reactor design, which was performed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's campus power plant, suggested that it can remove 75% of the carbon dioxide from a power station's exhaust. A more serious test is now being carried out by Arizona Public Service, that state's power utility, at its Redhawk plant. Another test is planned in Louisiana.
GreenFuel claims that over the course of a year, a hectare (2.5 acres) of its reactors should be able to produce 30,000 litres (8,000 American gallons) of oil, which could be used as biodiesel, and enough carbohydrates to be fermented into 9,000 litres of ethanol, which can be used as a substitute for petrol.
There is, of course, no free lunch. As Rob Carlson of the University of Washington points out, if money is to be made selling products made from exhaust gas, then that gas goes from being waste matter to being a valuable resource. Far from giving it away, power companies might even start charging for it. That would, indeed, be a reversal of fortune. | 3475.txt | 3 |
[
"biodiesel.",
"ethanol.",
"alcohol.",
"fossil fuel."
] | The reactors of GreenFuel could produce the following fuels except _ | For its supporters, the idea of growing single-celled algae on exhaust gas piped from power stations is the ultimate in recycling. For its detractors, it is a mere pipe dream. Whoever turns out to be right, though, it is an intriguing idea: instead of releasing the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels into the atmosphere, why not recapture it by photosynthesis? The result could then be turned into biodiesel (since many species of algae store their food reserves as oil), or even simply dried and fed back into the power station. Of course, if it were really that easy, someone would have done it already. But although no one has yet commercialised the technology, several groups are trying.
One of them is GS CleanTech, which has developed a bioreactor based on a patent held by a group of scientists at the Ohio Coal Research Centre, at the University of Ohio. The GS CleanTech bioreactor uses a parabolic mirror to funnel sunlight into fibre-optic cables that carry the light to acrylic "glow plates" inside the reactor. These diffuse the light over vertical sheets of polyester that form the platform on which the algae grow. Eventually the polyester is unable to support the weight of the algae, and they fall off into a collection duct positioned underneath.
GreenFuel Technologies, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a different approach. Its reactor is composed of a series of clear tubes, each with a second, opaque tube nested inside. This arrangement makes it possible to bubble the exhaust gas down through the outer compartment and then bubble it back up through the opaque middle. The bubbling gas causes turbulence and circulates the algae around the reactor. The constant shift between light and darkness as the algal cells circulate increases the amount of carbon that they fix, probably by promoting chemical reactions that occur naturally only at night.
A preliminary test of GreenFuel's reactor design, which was performed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's campus power plant, suggested that it can remove 75% of the carbon dioxide from a power station's exhaust. A more serious test is now being carried out by Arizona Public Service, that state's power utility, at its Redhawk plant. Another test is planned in Louisiana.
GreenFuel claims that over the course of a year, a hectare (2.5 acres) of its reactors should be able to produce 30,000 litres (8,000 American gallons) of oil, which could be used as biodiesel, and enough carbohydrates to be fermented into 9,000 litres of ethanol, which can be used as a substitute for petrol.
There is, of course, no free lunch. As Rob Carlson of the University of Washington points out, if money is to be made selling products made from exhaust gas, then that gas goes from being waste matter to being a valuable resource. Far from giving it away, power companies might even start charging for it. That would, indeed, be a reversal of fortune. | 3475.txt | 3 |
[
"not very high.",
"high.",
"contemptuous.",
"critical."
] | It can be inferred from the passage that the author's opinion of nowaday human being is _ . | Vicious and Dangerrous Sports Should Be Banned By Law
When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made, it' s amazing how little we have developed in other respects. We may speak contemptuously of the poor old Romans because they relished the orgies of slaughter that went on in their arenas. We may despise them because they mistook these goings on for entertainment. We may forgive them condescendingly because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better. But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any
less blood-thirsty? Why do boxing matches, for instance, attract such universal interest? Don' t the spectators who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remains as bloodthirsty as ever they were. The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungey lions tearing people apart and eating them alive, we find all sorts of sophisticated arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long age; sports which are quite as barbarous as, say, public hangings or bearbaiting.
It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bull-fighting, that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men batter each other to pulp in a boxing ring, that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. Let us not deceive ourselves. Any talk of ithe sporting spirit' is sheer hypocrisy. People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring. Spectators are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence. A world heavyweight championship match, for instance, is front page news.
Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen. They feel disappointment because they have been deprived of the exquisite pleasure of witnessing prolonged torture and violence.
Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask. The answer is simple: they are uncivilized. For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally - admittedly with little success. But at least we no longer tolerate the sight madmen cooped up in cages, or public floggings of any of the countless other barbaric practices which were common in the past. Prisons are no longer the grim forbidding places they used to be. Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world. Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly. These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly and unaccountably improved, but because positive steps were taken to change the law. The law is the biggest instrument ofsocial change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence. If we banned dangerous and violent sports, we would be moving one step further to improving mankind. We would recognize that violence is degrading and unworthy of human beings. | 250.txt | 0 |
[
"vicious and dangerous sports should be banned by law.",
"people are willing to pay vast sums money to see violence.",
"to compare two different attitudes towards dangerous sports.",
"people are bloodthirsty in sports."
] | the main idea of this passage is _ . | Vicious and Dangerrous Sports Should Be Banned By Law
When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made, it' s amazing how little we have developed in other respects. We may speak contemptuously of the poor old Romans because they relished the orgies of slaughter that went on in their arenas. We may despise them because they mistook these goings on for entertainment. We may forgive them condescendingly because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better. But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any
less blood-thirsty? Why do boxing matches, for instance, attract such universal interest? Don' t the spectators who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remains as bloodthirsty as ever they were. The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungey lions tearing people apart and eating them alive, we find all sorts of sophisticated arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long age; sports which are quite as barbarous as, say, public hangings or bearbaiting.
It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bull-fighting, that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men batter each other to pulp in a boxing ring, that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. Let us not deceive ourselves. Any talk of ithe sporting spirit' is sheer hypocrisy. People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring. Spectators are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence. A world heavyweight championship match, for instance, is front page news.
Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen. They feel disappointment because they have been deprived of the exquisite pleasure of witnessing prolonged torture and violence.
Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask. The answer is simple: they are uncivilized. For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally - admittedly with little success. But at least we no longer tolerate the sight madmen cooped up in cages, or public floggings of any of the countless other barbaric practices which were common in the past. Prisons are no longer the grim forbidding places they used to be. Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world. Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly. These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly and unaccountably improved, but because positive steps were taken to change the law. The law is the biggest instrument ofsocial change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence. If we banned dangerous and violent sports, we would be moving one step further to improving mankind. We would recognize that violence is degrading and unworthy of human beings. | 250.txt | 0 |
[
"To compare the old Romans with today' s people.",
"to give an example.",
"to show human beings in the past know nothing better.",
"to indicate human beings are used to bloodthirsty."
] | That the author mention the old roman is _ . | Vicious and Dangerrous Sports Should Be Banned By Law
When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made, it' s amazing how little we have developed in other respects. We may speak contemptuously of the poor old Romans because they relished the orgies of slaughter that went on in their arenas. We may despise them because they mistook these goings on for entertainment. We may forgive them condescendingly because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better. But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any
less blood-thirsty? Why do boxing matches, for instance, attract such universal interest? Don' t the spectators who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remains as bloodthirsty as ever they were. The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungey lions tearing people apart and eating them alive, we find all sorts of sophisticated arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long age; sports which are quite as barbarous as, say, public hangings or bearbaiting.
It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bull-fighting, that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men batter each other to pulp in a boxing ring, that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. Let us not deceive ourselves. Any talk of ithe sporting spirit' is sheer hypocrisy. People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring. Spectators are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence. A world heavyweight championship match, for instance, is front page news.
Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen. They feel disappointment because they have been deprived of the exquisite pleasure of witnessing prolonged torture and violence.
Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask. The answer is simple: they are uncivilized. For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally - admittedly with little success. But at least we no longer tolerate the sight madmen cooped up in cages, or public floggings of any of the countless other barbaric practices which were common in the past. Prisons are no longer the grim forbidding places they used to be. Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world. Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly. These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly and unaccountably improved, but because positive steps were taken to change the law. The law is the biggest instrument ofsocial change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence. If we banned dangerous and violent sports, we would be moving one step further to improving mankind. We would recognize that violence is degrading and unworthy of human beings. | 250.txt | 3 |
[
"Three.",
"Five.",
"Six.",
"Seven."
] | How many dangerous sports does the author mention in this passage | Vicious and Dangerrous Sports Should Be Banned By Law
When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made, it' s amazing how little we have developed in other respects. We may speak contemptuously of the poor old Romans because they relished the orgies of slaughter that went on in their arenas. We may despise them because they mistook these goings on for entertainment. We may forgive them condescendingly because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better. But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any
less blood-thirsty? Why do boxing matches, for instance, attract such universal interest? Don' t the spectators who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remains as bloodthirsty as ever they were. The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungey lions tearing people apart and eating them alive, we find all sorts of sophisticated arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long age; sports which are quite as barbarous as, say, public hangings or bearbaiting.
It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bull-fighting, that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men batter each other to pulp in a boxing ring, that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. Let us not deceive ourselves. Any talk of ithe sporting spirit' is sheer hypocrisy. People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring. Spectators are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence. A world heavyweight championship match, for instance, is front page news.
Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen. They feel disappointment because they have been deprived of the exquisite pleasure of witnessing prolonged torture and violence.
Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask. The answer is simple: they are uncivilized. For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally - admittedly with little success. But at least we no longer tolerate the sight madmen cooped up in cages, or public floggings of any of the countless other barbaric practices which were common in the past. Prisons are no longer the grim forbidding places they used to be. Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world. Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly. These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly and unaccountably improved, but because positive steps were taken to change the law. The law is the biggest instrument ofsocial change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence. If we banned dangerous and violent sports, we would be moving one step further to improving mankind. We would recognize that violence is degrading and unworthy of human beings. | 250.txt | 1 |
[
"that, by banning the violent sports, we human beings can improve our selves.",
"that, by banning the dangerous sports, we can improve the law.",
"that we must take positive steps to improve social welfare system.",
"to show law is the main instrument of social change."
] | The purpose of the author in writing this passage is _ . | Vicious and Dangerrous Sports Should Be Banned By Law
When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made, it' s amazing how little we have developed in other respects. We may speak contemptuously of the poor old Romans because they relished the orgies of slaughter that went on in their arenas. We may despise them because they mistook these goings on for entertainment. We may forgive them condescendingly because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better. But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any
less blood-thirsty? Why do boxing matches, for instance, attract such universal interest? Don' t the spectators who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remains as bloodthirsty as ever they were. The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungey lions tearing people apart and eating them alive, we find all sorts of sophisticated arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long age; sports which are quite as barbarous as, say, public hangings or bearbaiting.
It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bull-fighting, that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men batter each other to pulp in a boxing ring, that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. Let us not deceive ourselves. Any talk of ithe sporting spirit' is sheer hypocrisy. People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring. Spectators are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence. A world heavyweight championship match, for instance, is front page news.
Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen. They feel disappointment because they have been deprived of the exquisite pleasure of witnessing prolonged torture and violence.
Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask. The answer is simple: they are uncivilized. For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally - admittedly with little success. But at least we no longer tolerate the sight madmen cooped up in cages, or public floggings of any of the countless other barbaric practices which were common in the past. Prisons are no longer the grim forbidding places they used to be. Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world. Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly. These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly and unaccountably improved, but because positive steps were taken to change the law. The law is the biggest instrument ofsocial change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence. If we banned dangerous and violent sports, we would be moving one step further to improving mankind. We would recognize that violence is degrading and unworthy of human beings. | 250.txt | 0 |
[
"containing",
"surrounding",
"resembling",
"providing"
] | The word "approximating" in the passage is closest in meaning to | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 2 |
[
"Fires are accidentally started by loggers.",
"Pieces of flammable wood are left behind in the forest.",
"There is a dense growth of new plants that act as fuel for fire.",
"The most fire-resistant trees are removed by the loggers."
] | All of the following are mentioned in paragraph 1 as consequences of logging that can promote forest fires EXCEPT: | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 0 |
[
"It was more effective than afterward because there were fewer fires to suppress in most regions.",
"There was no official program of forest-fire suppression in the United States.",
"Forest-fire suppression was practiced more for the purpose of protecting homes than for protecting forests.",
"The Forest Service had rules to control forest fires, but the rules were ignored."
] | What can be inferred from paragraph 2 about forest-fire suppression before 1900? | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 1 |
[
"To suggest that the Forest Service's goals were unrealistic and ultimately unattainable.",
"To demonstrate how seriously the Forest Service took their responsibility of fire suppression.",
"To support the idea that fire-suppression techniques are most effective early in the day.",
"To provide an example of the new methods that resulted in successful firefighting after 1945."
] | Why does the author include the quotation "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported"? | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 1 |
[
"recent records of fire-suppression efforts in the region",
"historical documents",
"examination of tree rings on burned trees",
"the dating of scars on remaining stumps of fire-damaged trees"
] | According to paragraph 3, all of the following have been used to determine the frequency of forest fires under natural conditions in Montana's ponderosa pine forests EXCEPT | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 0 |
[
"Afterward",
"Therefore",
"Certainly",
"In particular"
] | The word "Hence" in the passage is closest in meaning to | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 1 |
[
"To emphasize the importance of replanting seedlings after a forest fire.",
"To argue for increasing the effectiveness of laws to suppress forest fires.",
"To describe how fire affects a typical ponderosa pine forest in the absence of human intervention.",
"To explain the long-lasting damage that once occurred in the ponderosa pine forests of Montana before fires were controlled."
] | In paragraph 3, what is the author's purpose in describing the natural cycle of fires in ponderosa pine forests? | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 2 |
[
"The presence of many sapling trees makes it more difficult for firefighters to reach the source of a forest fire.",
"Douglas fir saplings are expensive to maintain, leaving little government money for forest-fire suppression.",
"Saplings compete for space with the larger and more valuable fire-resistant trees.",
"Dense areas of tall sapling trees can spread fire to the crowns of larger, fire- resistant trees."
] | According to paragraph 4, why is the human preservation of Douglas fir sapling trees a threat to the ponderosa pine forest? | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 3 |
[
"unfortunately",
"surprisingly",
"probably",
"extremely"
] | The word "regrettably" in the passage is closest in meaning to | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 0 |
[
"The careful management of forests to reduce the buildup of fuel loads.",
"The preservation of a dense understory.",
"The occasional flooding of western forests to make them as wet as those in the East.",
"A return to the effective methods of fire suppression of the previous half century."
] | What does paragraph 5 describe as a solution to the fires in Western forests? | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 0 |
[
"think that the use of small, controlled fires may be too dangerous.",
"do not want to spend money on the expensive process of managing forest understory.",
"distrust the Forest Service due to the harmful fire-suppression techniques of the past.",
"do not want politicians involved in forest management."
] | According to paragraph 5, people in the United States would probably not support the described forest-management and restoration techniques because they | Forest fires have recently increased in intensity and extent in some forest types throughout the western United States. This recent increase in fires has resulted partly from climate change (the recent trend toward hot, dry summers) and partly from human activities, for complicated reasons that foresters came increasingly to understand about 30 years ago but whose relative importance is still debated. One factor is the direct effect of logging, which often turns a forest into something approximating a huge pile of kindling (wood for burning): the ground in a logged forest may remain covered with branches and treetops, left behind when the valuable trunks are carted away; a dense growth of new vegetation springs up, further increasing the forest's fuel loads; and the trees logged and removed are of course the biggest and most fire-resistant individuals, leaving behind smaller and more flammable trees.
Another factor is that the United States Forest Service in the first decade of the 1900s adopted the policy of fire suppression (attempting to put out forest fires) for the obvious reason that it did not want valuable timber to go up in smoke, or people's homes and lives to be threatened. The Forest Service's announced goal became "Put out every forest fire by 10:00 A.M on the morning after the day when it is first reported." Firefighters became much more successful at achieving that goal after 1945, thanks to improved firefighting technology. For a few decades the amount of land burnt annually decreased by 80 percent. That happy situation began to change in the 1980s, due to the increasing frequency of large forest fires that were essentially impossible to extinguish unless rain and low winds combined to help. People began to realize that the United States federal government's fire-suppression policy was contributing to those big fires and that natural fires caused by lighting had previously played an important role in maintaining forest structure.
The natural role of fire varies with altitude, tree species, and forest type. To make Montana's low-altitude ponderosa pine forest as an example, historical records, plus counts of annual tree rings and datable fire scars on tree stumps, demonstrated that a ponderosa pine forest experiences a lightning-lit fire about once a decade under natural conditions (i.e.., before fire suppression began around 1910 and became effective after 1945). The mature ponderosa trees have bark two inches thick and are relatively resistant to fire, which instead burns out the understory-the lower layer-of fire-sensitive Douglas fir seedlings that have grown up since the previous fire. But after only a decade's growth until the next fire, those young seedling plants are still too low for fire to spread from them into the crowns of the ponderosa pine trees. Hence the fire remains confined to ground and understory. As a result, many natural ponderosa pine forests have a parklike appearance, with low fuel loads, big trees spaced apart, and a relatively clear understory.
However, loggers concentrated on removing those big, old, valuable, fire-resistant ponderosa pines, while fire suppression for decades let the understory fill up with Douglas fir saplings that would in turn become valuable when full-grown. Tree densities increased from 30 to 200 trees per acre, the forest's fuel load increased by a factor of 6, and the government repeatedly failed to appropriate money to thin out the saplings. When a fire finally does start in a sapling-choked forest, whether due to lightning or human carelessness or (regrettably often) intentional arson, the dense, tall saplings young trees may become a ladder that allows the fire to jump into the crowns of the trees. The outcome is sometimes an unstoppable inferno.
Foresters now identify the biggest problem in managing Western forests as what to do with those increased fuel loads that built up during the previous half century of effective fire suppression. In the wetter eastern United States, dead trees rot away more quickly than in the drier West, where more dead trees persist like giant matchsticks. In an ideal world, the Forest Service would manage and restore the forests, thin them out, and remove the dense understory by cutting or by controlled small fires. But no politician or voter wants to spend what it would cost to do that. | 3213.txt | 1 |
[
"to read in the morning",
"to pay attention to ways of studying",
"the importance of reading",
"to have patience in study in"
] | The article tells us _ . | The aim of students who come to school is to study. But to study needs a right way, or we would waste the time or the money. The following are ways of studying.
The best time for reading is morning. Because in the morning, the air is fresh and our minds are clear, so we can remember what we have learned easily. For that reason, we can get good results.
In studying we must be patient. If we don't understand a text well, we must read it again. We should not read the next one until we have learned the first one well.
When we are studying, we must put our hearts into the book. We can not read absent-mindedly or we can get nothing from the book while we are reading.
We must always ask "why". If it is not well understood, write it down and ask our teachers or parents, brothers or friends in any possible way. We must know it completely and then our knowledge can be use well.
Though there are many ways of studying, however, the above mentioned will be quite enough if we can keep them in heart and do so. | 717.txt | 1 |
[
"many",
"five",
"three",
"four"
] | This article has taught us _ ways of studying. | The aim of students who come to school is to study. But to study needs a right way, or we would waste the time or the money. The following are ways of studying.
The best time for reading is morning. Because in the morning, the air is fresh and our minds are clear, so we can remember what we have learned easily. For that reason, we can get good results.
In studying we must be patient. If we don't understand a text well, we must read it again. We should not read the next one until we have learned the first one well.
When we are studying, we must put our hearts into the book. We can not read absent-mindedly or we can get nothing from the book while we are reading.
We must always ask "why". If it is not well understood, write it down and ask our teachers or parents, brothers or friends in any possible way. We must know it completely and then our knowledge can be use well.
Though there are many ways of studying, however, the above mentioned will be quite enough if we can keep them in heart and do so. | 717.txt | 3 |
[
"it is difficult to get good results",
"the air is fresh and minds are clear",
"it is easy to remember what we have learned",
"both A and B"
] | We'd better read in the morning because _ . | The aim of students who come to school is to study. But to study needs a right way, or we would waste the time or the money. The following are ways of studying.
The best time for reading is morning. Because in the morning, the air is fresh and our minds are clear, so we can remember what we have learned easily. For that reason, we can get good results.
In studying we must be patient. If we don't understand a text well, we must read it again. We should not read the next one until we have learned the first one well.
When we are studying, we must put our hearts into the book. We can not read absent-mindedly or we can get nothing from the book while we are reading.
We must always ask "why". If it is not well understood, write it down and ask our teachers or parents, brothers or friends in any possible way. We must know it completely and then our knowledge can be use well.
Though there are many ways of studying, however, the above mentioned will be quite enough if we can keep them in heart and do so. | 717.txt | 2 |
[
"possible to learn something from it",
"easy to understand it well",
"impossible for us to get something from it",
"not hard to get something from it"
] | If we can't put our heart into the book when we read, it is _ . | The aim of students who come to school is to study. But to study needs a right way, or we would waste the time or the money. The following are ways of studying.
The best time for reading is morning. Because in the morning, the air is fresh and our minds are clear, so we can remember what we have learned easily. For that reason, we can get good results.
In studying we must be patient. If we don't understand a text well, we must read it again. We should not read the next one until we have learned the first one well.
When we are studying, we must put our hearts into the book. We can not read absent-mindedly or we can get nothing from the book while we are reading.
We must always ask "why". If it is not well understood, write it down and ask our teachers or parents, brothers or friends in any possible way. We must know it completely and then our knowledge can be use well.
Though there are many ways of studying, however, the above mentioned will be quite enough if we can keep them in heart and do so. | 717.txt | 2 |
[
"understand the book well",
"get some questions to ask our teachers",
"do with the new words",
"write down the questions"
] | In studying, we must always ask "why" in order to _ . | The aim of students who come to school is to study. But to study needs a right way, or we would waste the time or the money. The following are ways of studying.
The best time for reading is morning. Because in the morning, the air is fresh and our minds are clear, so we can remember what we have learned easily. For that reason, we can get good results.
In studying we must be patient. If we don't understand a text well, we must read it again. We should not read the next one until we have learned the first one well.
When we are studying, we must put our hearts into the book. We can not read absent-mindedly or we can get nothing from the book while we are reading.
We must always ask "why". If it is not well understood, write it down and ask our teachers or parents, brothers or friends in any possible way. We must know it completely and then our knowledge can be use well.
Though there are many ways of studying, however, the above mentioned will be quite enough if we can keep them in heart and do so. | 717.txt | 0 |
[
"Themes commonly found in folk music",
"Elements that define folk music",
"Influences of folk music on popular music",
"The standards of the International Folk Music Council"
] | What does the passage mainly discuss? | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 1 |
[
"It has been used for several centuries.",
"The International Folk Music Council invented it.",
"It is considered to be out-of-date.",
"There is disagreement about its meaning."
] | Which of the following statements about the term "folk song" is supported by the passage ? | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 3 |
[
"community",
"song",
"acceptance",
"memory"
] | The word "it" in line 8 refers to | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 1 |
[
"It is constantly changing over time.",
"It is passed on to other people by being performed.",
"It contains complex musical structures.",
"It appeals to many people."
] | Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage as a characteristic of the typical folk song? | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 2 |
[
"reduced",
"modified",
"exposed",
"imitated"
] | The word "subjected" in line 9 is closest in meaning to | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 2 |
[
"Explain how a folk song evolves over time",
"Illustrate the importance of music to rural workers",
"Show how subject matter is selected for a folk song",
"Demonstrate how a community, chooses a folk song"
] | The author mentions the farm laborer and his friends (lines 10-14) in order to do which of the following? | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 0 |
[
"Audiences prefer songs composed by professional musicians.",
"Singers dislike the decorative touches in folk song tunes.",
"Numerous variations of folk songs come to exist at the same time.",
"Folk songs are not considered an important form of music."
] | According to the passage , why would the original composers of folk songs be forgotten? | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 2 |
[
"basic nature",
"growing importance",
"full extent",
"first phase"
] | The word "essence" in line 16 is closest in meaning to | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 0 |
[
"the original composer can be easily identified",
"the songs attract only the young people in a community",
"the songs are generally performed by professional singers",
"the composers write the music in rural communities"
] | The author mentions that published music is not considered to be folk music because | The term "folk song" has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people, which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).
When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a-couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic, might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song's original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modem popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs' origins cannot be disguised and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.
The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung. | 4273.txt | 0 |
[
"Indicate the dangers inherent in relying to a great extent on machines",
"Illustrate his views about the approach of mathematicians to problem solving",
"Compare the work of mathematicians with that of computer programmers",
"Provide one definition of intelligence"
] | The author discusses computing machines in the first paragraph primarily in order to do which of the following? | Computer programmers often remark that computing machines, with a perfect lack of discrimination, will do any foolish thing they are told to do.The reason for this lies, of course, in the narrow fixation of the computing machine's "intelligence" on the details of its own perceptions-its inability to be guided by any large context. In a psychological description of the computer intelligence, three related adjectives come to mind: single-minded, literal-minded, and simpleminded. Recognizing this, we should at the same time recognize that this single-mindedness, literal-mindedness, and simplemindedness also characterizes theoretical mathematics, though to a lesser extent.
Since science tries to deal with reality, even the most precise sciences normally work with more or less imperfectly understood approximations toward which scientists must maintain an appropriate skepticism. Thus, for instance, it may come as a shock to mathematicians to learn that the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom is not a literally correct description of this atom, but only an approximation to a somewhat more correct equation taking account of spin, magnetic dipole, and relativistic effects; and that this corrected equation is itself only an imperfect approximation to an infinite set of quantum field-theoretical equations. Physicists, looking at the original Schrodinger equation, learn to sense in it the presence of many invisible terms in addition to the differential terms visible, and this sense inspires an entirely appropriate disregard for the purely technical features of the equation. This very healthy skepticism is foreign to the mathematical approach.
Mathematics must deal with well-defined situations. Thus,mathematicians depend on an intellectual effort outside of mathematics for the crucial specification of the approximation that mathematics is to take literally. Give mathematicians a situation that is the least bit ill-defined, and they will make it well-defined, perhaps appropriately, but perhaps inappropriately. In some cases, the mathematicians' literal-mindedness may have unfortunate consequences. The mathematicians turn the scientists' theoretical assumptions, that is, their convenient points of analytical emphasis, into axioms, and then take these axioms literally. This brings the danger that they may also persuade the scientists to take these axioms literally. The question, central to the scientific investigation but intensely disturbing in the mathematical context-what happens if the axioms are relaxed?-is thereby ignored.
The physicist rightly dreads precise argument, since an argument that is convincing only if it is precise loses all its force if the assumptions on which it is based are slightly changed, whereas an argument that is convincing though imprecise may well be stable under small perturbations of its underlying assumptions. | 2013.txt | 1 |
[
"work to explain real, rather than theoretical or simplified, situations",
"know that well-defined problems are often the most difficult to solve",
"are unable to express their data in terms of multiple variables",
"are unwilling to relax the axioms they have developed"
] | According to the passage, scientists are skeptical toward their equations because scientists | Computer programmers often remark that computing machines, with a perfect lack of discrimination, will do any foolish thing they are told to do.The reason for this lies, of course, in the narrow fixation of the computing machine's "intelligence" on the details of its own perceptions-its inability to be guided by any large context. In a psychological description of the computer intelligence, three related adjectives come to mind: single-minded, literal-minded, and simpleminded. Recognizing this, we should at the same time recognize that this single-mindedness, literal-mindedness, and simplemindedness also characterizes theoretical mathematics, though to a lesser extent.
Since science tries to deal with reality, even the most precise sciences normally work with more or less imperfectly understood approximations toward which scientists must maintain an appropriate skepticism. Thus, for instance, it may come as a shock to mathematicians to learn that the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom is not a literally correct description of this atom, but only an approximation to a somewhat more correct equation taking account of spin, magnetic dipole, and relativistic effects; and that this corrected equation is itself only an imperfect approximation to an infinite set of quantum field-theoretical equations. Physicists, looking at the original Schrodinger equation, learn to sense in it the presence of many invisible terms in addition to the differential terms visible, and this sense inspires an entirely appropriate disregard for the purely technical features of the equation. This very healthy skepticism is foreign to the mathematical approach.
Mathematics must deal with well-defined situations. Thus,mathematicians depend on an intellectual effort outside of mathematics for the crucial specification of the approximation that mathematics is to take literally. Give mathematicians a situation that is the least bit ill-defined, and they will make it well-defined, perhaps appropriately, but perhaps inappropriately. In some cases, the mathematicians' literal-mindedness may have unfortunate consequences. The mathematicians turn the scientists' theoretical assumptions, that is, their convenient points of analytical emphasis, into axioms, and then take these axioms literally. This brings the danger that they may also persuade the scientists to take these axioms literally. The question, central to the scientific investigation but intensely disturbing in the mathematical context-what happens if the axioms are relaxed?-is thereby ignored.
The physicist rightly dreads precise argument, since an argument that is convincing only if it is precise loses all its force if the assumptions on which it is based are slightly changed, whereas an argument that is convincing though imprecise may well be stable under small perturbations of its underlying assumptions. | 2013.txt | 0 |
[
"The literal truth of the arguments can be made clear only in a mathematical context.",
"The arguments necessarily ignore the central question of scientific investigation.",
"The arguments probably will be convincing only to other scientists.",
"The premises on which the arguments are based may change."
] | It can be inferred from the passage that scientists make which of the following assumptions about scientific arguments? | Computer programmers often remark that computing machines, with a perfect lack of discrimination, will do any foolish thing they are told to do.The reason for this lies, of course, in the narrow fixation of the computing machine's "intelligence" on the details of its own perceptions-its inability to be guided by any large context. In a psychological description of the computer intelligence, three related adjectives come to mind: single-minded, literal-minded, and simpleminded. Recognizing this, we should at the same time recognize that this single-mindedness, literal-mindedness, and simplemindedness also characterizes theoretical mathematics, though to a lesser extent.
Since science tries to deal with reality, even the most precise sciences normally work with more or less imperfectly understood approximations toward which scientists must maintain an appropriate skepticism. Thus, for instance, it may come as a shock to mathematicians to learn that the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom is not a literally correct description of this atom, but only an approximation to a somewhat more correct equation taking account of spin, magnetic dipole, and relativistic effects; and that this corrected equation is itself only an imperfect approximation to an infinite set of quantum field-theoretical equations. Physicists, looking at the original Schrodinger equation, learn to sense in it the presence of many invisible terms in addition to the differential terms visible, and this sense inspires an entirely appropriate disregard for the purely technical features of the equation. This very healthy skepticism is foreign to the mathematical approach.
Mathematics must deal with well-defined situations. Thus,mathematicians depend on an intellectual effort outside of mathematics for the crucial specification of the approximation that mathematics is to take literally. Give mathematicians a situation that is the least bit ill-defined, and they will make it well-defined, perhaps appropriately, but perhaps inappropriately. In some cases, the mathematicians' literal-mindedness may have unfortunate consequences. The mathematicians turn the scientists' theoretical assumptions, that is, their convenient points of analytical emphasis, into axioms, and then take these axioms literally. This brings the danger that they may also persuade the scientists to take these axioms literally. The question, central to the scientific investigation but intensely disturbing in the mathematical context-what happens if the axioms are relaxed?-is thereby ignored.
The physicist rightly dreads precise argument, since an argument that is convincing only if it is precise loses all its force if the assumptions on which it is based are slightly changed, whereas an argument that is convincing though imprecise may well be stable under small perturbations of its underlying assumptions. | 2013.txt | 3 |
[
"Mathematicians may provide theories that are incompatible with those already developed by scientists.",
"Mathematicians may define situation in a way that is incomprehensible to scientists.",
"Mathematicians may convince scientists that theoretical assumptions are facts.",
"Scientists may come to believe that axiomatic statements are untrue."
] | According to the passage, mathematicians present a danger to scientists for which of the following reasons? | Computer programmers often remark that computing machines, with a perfect lack of discrimination, will do any foolish thing they are told to do.The reason for this lies, of course, in the narrow fixation of the computing machine's "intelligence" on the details of its own perceptions-its inability to be guided by any large context. In a psychological description of the computer intelligence, three related adjectives come to mind: single-minded, literal-minded, and simpleminded. Recognizing this, we should at the same time recognize that this single-mindedness, literal-mindedness, and simplemindedness also characterizes theoretical mathematics, though to a lesser extent.
Since science tries to deal with reality, even the most precise sciences normally work with more or less imperfectly understood approximations toward which scientists must maintain an appropriate skepticism. Thus, for instance, it may come as a shock to mathematicians to learn that the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom is not a literally correct description of this atom, but only an approximation to a somewhat more correct equation taking account of spin, magnetic dipole, and relativistic effects; and that this corrected equation is itself only an imperfect approximation to an infinite set of quantum field-theoretical equations. Physicists, looking at the original Schrodinger equation, learn to sense in it the presence of many invisible terms in addition to the differential terms visible, and this sense inspires an entirely appropriate disregard for the purely technical features of the equation. This very healthy skepticism is foreign to the mathematical approach.
Mathematics must deal with well-defined situations. Thus,mathematicians depend on an intellectual effort outside of mathematics for the crucial specification of the approximation that mathematics is to take literally. Give mathematicians a situation that is the least bit ill-defined, and they will make it well-defined, perhaps appropriately, but perhaps inappropriately. In some cases, the mathematicians' literal-mindedness may have unfortunate consequences. The mathematicians turn the scientists' theoretical assumptions, that is, their convenient points of analytical emphasis, into axioms, and then take these axioms literally. This brings the danger that they may also persuade the scientists to take these axioms literally. The question, central to the scientific investigation but intensely disturbing in the mathematical context-what happens if the axioms are relaxed?-is thereby ignored.
The physicist rightly dreads precise argument, since an argument that is convincing only if it is precise loses all its force if the assumptions on which it is based are slightly changed, whereas an argument that is convincing though imprecise may well be stable under small perturbations of its underlying assumptions. | 2013.txt | 2 |
[
"Practical for scientific purposes",
"Detrimental to scientific progress",
"Unimportant in most situations",
"Expedient, but of little long-term value"
] | The author suggests that the approach of physicists to solving scientific problems is which of the following? | Computer programmers often remark that computing machines, with a perfect lack of discrimination, will do any foolish thing they are told to do.The reason for this lies, of course, in the narrow fixation of the computing machine's "intelligence" on the details of its own perceptions-its inability to be guided by any large context. In a psychological description of the computer intelligence, three related adjectives come to mind: single-minded, literal-minded, and simpleminded. Recognizing this, we should at the same time recognize that this single-mindedness, literal-mindedness, and simplemindedness also characterizes theoretical mathematics, though to a lesser extent.
Since science tries to deal with reality, even the most precise sciences normally work with more or less imperfectly understood approximations toward which scientists must maintain an appropriate skepticism. Thus, for instance, it may come as a shock to mathematicians to learn that the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom is not a literally correct description of this atom, but only an approximation to a somewhat more correct equation taking account of spin, magnetic dipole, and relativistic effects; and that this corrected equation is itself only an imperfect approximation to an infinite set of quantum field-theoretical equations. Physicists, looking at the original Schrodinger equation, learn to sense in it the presence of many invisible terms in addition to the differential terms visible, and this sense inspires an entirely appropriate disregard for the purely technical features of the equation. This very healthy skepticism is foreign to the mathematical approach.
Mathematics must deal with well-defined situations. Thus,mathematicians depend on an intellectual effort outside of mathematics for the crucial specification of the approximation that mathematics is to take literally. Give mathematicians a situation that is the least bit ill-defined, and they will make it well-defined, perhaps appropriately, but perhaps inappropriately. In some cases, the mathematicians' literal-mindedness may have unfortunate consequences. The mathematicians turn the scientists' theoretical assumptions, that is, their convenient points of analytical emphasis, into axioms, and then take these axioms literally. This brings the danger that they may also persuade the scientists to take these axioms literally. The question, central to the scientific investigation but intensely disturbing in the mathematical context-what happens if the axioms are relaxed?-is thereby ignored.
The physicist rightly dreads precise argument, since an argument that is convincing only if it is precise loses all its force if the assumptions on which it is based are slightly changed, whereas an argument that is convincing though imprecise may well be stable under small perturbations of its underlying assumptions. | 2013.txt | 0 |
[
"Identify an analogous situation",
"Simplify and define the situation",
"Vary the underlying assumptions of a description of the situation",
"Determine what use would be made of the solution provided"
] | The author suggests that a mathematician asked to solve a problem in an ill-defined situation would first attempt to do which of the following? | Computer programmers often remark that computing machines, with a perfect lack of discrimination, will do any foolish thing they are told to do.The reason for this lies, of course, in the narrow fixation of the computing machine's "intelligence" on the details of its own perceptions-its inability to be guided by any large context. In a psychological description of the computer intelligence, three related adjectives come to mind: single-minded, literal-minded, and simpleminded. Recognizing this, we should at the same time recognize that this single-mindedness, literal-mindedness, and simplemindedness also characterizes theoretical mathematics, though to a lesser extent.
Since science tries to deal with reality, even the most precise sciences normally work with more or less imperfectly understood approximations toward which scientists must maintain an appropriate skepticism. Thus, for instance, it may come as a shock to mathematicians to learn that the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom is not a literally correct description of this atom, but only an approximation to a somewhat more correct equation taking account of spin, magnetic dipole, and relativistic effects; and that this corrected equation is itself only an imperfect approximation to an infinite set of quantum field-theoretical equations. Physicists, looking at the original Schrodinger equation, learn to sense in it the presence of many invisible terms in addition to the differential terms visible, and this sense inspires an entirely appropriate disregard for the purely technical features of the equation. This very healthy skepticism is foreign to the mathematical approach.
Mathematics must deal with well-defined situations. Thus,mathematicians depend on an intellectual effort outside of mathematics for the crucial specification of the approximation that mathematics is to take literally. Give mathematicians a situation that is the least bit ill-defined, and they will make it well-defined, perhaps appropriately, but perhaps inappropriately. In some cases, the mathematicians' literal-mindedness may have unfortunate consequences. The mathematicians turn the scientists' theoretical assumptions, that is, their convenient points of analytical emphasis, into axioms, and then take these axioms literally. This brings the danger that they may also persuade the scientists to take these axioms literally. The question, central to the scientific investigation but intensely disturbing in the mathematical context-what happens if the axioms are relaxed?-is thereby ignored.
The physicist rightly dreads precise argument, since an argument that is convincing only if it is precise loses all its force if the assumptions on which it is based are slightly changed, whereas an argument that is convincing though imprecise may well be stable under small perturbations of its underlying assumptions. | 2013.txt | 1 |
[
"mathematicians are better able to solve problems than are scientists",
"changes in axiomatic propositions will inevitably undermine scientific arguments",
"well-defined situations are necessary for the design of reliable experiments",
"some factors in most situations must remain unknown"
] | The author implies that scientists develop a healthy skepticism because they are aware that | Computer programmers often remark that computing machines, with a perfect lack of discrimination, will do any foolish thing they are told to do.The reason for this lies, of course, in the narrow fixation of the computing machine's "intelligence" on the details of its own perceptions-its inability to be guided by any large context. In a psychological description of the computer intelligence, three related adjectives come to mind: single-minded, literal-minded, and simpleminded. Recognizing this, we should at the same time recognize that this single-mindedness, literal-mindedness, and simplemindedness also characterizes theoretical mathematics, though to a lesser extent.
Since science tries to deal with reality, even the most precise sciences normally work with more or less imperfectly understood approximations toward which scientists must maintain an appropriate skepticism. Thus, for instance, it may come as a shock to mathematicians to learn that the Schrodinger equation for the hydrogen atom is not a literally correct description of this atom, but only an approximation to a somewhat more correct equation taking account of spin, magnetic dipole, and relativistic effects; and that this corrected equation is itself only an imperfect approximation to an infinite set of quantum field-theoretical equations. Physicists, looking at the original Schrodinger equation, learn to sense in it the presence of many invisible terms in addition to the differential terms visible, and this sense inspires an entirely appropriate disregard for the purely technical features of the equation. This very healthy skepticism is foreign to the mathematical approach.
Mathematics must deal with well-defined situations. Thus,mathematicians depend on an intellectual effort outside of mathematics for the crucial specification of the approximation that mathematics is to take literally. Give mathematicians a situation that is the least bit ill-defined, and they will make it well-defined, perhaps appropriately, but perhaps inappropriately. In some cases, the mathematicians' literal-mindedness may have unfortunate consequences. The mathematicians turn the scientists' theoretical assumptions, that is, their convenient points of analytical emphasis, into axioms, and then take these axioms literally. This brings the danger that they may also persuade the scientists to take these axioms literally. The question, central to the scientific investigation but intensely disturbing in the mathematical context-what happens if the axioms are relaxed?-is thereby ignored.
The physicist rightly dreads precise argument, since an argument that is convincing only if it is precise loses all its force if the assumptions on which it is based are slightly changed, whereas an argument that is convincing though imprecise may well be stable under small perturbations of its underlying assumptions. | 2013.txt | 3 |
[
"explaining a phenomenon",
"justifying an assumption",
"posing a contrast",
"making a comparison"
] | In the opening paragraph, the author introduces his topic by _ . | The best public higher education in the world is to be found at the University of California（UC）. This claim is backed up by Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China, which provides an authoritative ranking of research universities. The UC's campus at Berkeley ranks third behind two private universities, Harvard and Stanford. Several of the other ten UC sites, such as Los Angeles and San Diego, are not far behind. Californians are justifiably proud. It is therefore no small matter that this glory may be about to end. " We are in irreversible decline," says Sandra Faber, a professor of astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz who has inadvertently become a mouthpiece for a fed-up faculty. University excellence, she says, " took decades to build. It takes a year to destroy it."
California has been suffering serial budget crises, the latest of which was resolved last month in a rather desperate deal between the governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the legislature. It contained huge cuts, including $2 billion lopped from higher education. The UC alone has lost a cumulative $813m of state funding in the last fiscal year and the current one, a cut of 20%. The second-tier California State University（Cal State）, with 23 campuses the largest in the country, and the third-tier community colleges have also been clobbered.
The cuts threaten the legacy of two visionaries, Edmund" Pat" Brown, governor from 1959 to 1967, and Clark Kerr, who was in charge of the UC during those years. Kerr envisioned the state's public universities as" bait to be dangled in front of industry, with drawing power greater than low taxes or cheap labour." In a 1960 master-plan he created the three-tiered system.
His ambition was simple. First, to educate as many young Californians as affordably as possible. The best students would go to the UC, the next lot to Cal State and the rest to community colleges with the possibility of trading up. Second, to attract academic superstars. Kerr went about this like a talent scout, and his successors have continued the practice. The UC campuses have collectively produced more Nobel laureates than any other university.
But the master-plan has been under strain for years. State spending per student in the UC system, adjusted for inflation, has fallen by 40% since 1990, says Mark Yudof, the current UC president. The Public Policy Institute of California, a non-partisan think-tank, projects that California's economy will face a shortfall of 1m college graduates by 2025, depressing the prosperity of the entire state. Public universities, which award 75% of all the state's bachelor degrees, will be largely responsible.
Academic excellence is likely to be the first victim. Both the UC and Cal State are planning to send professors and staff on leave, cram more students into classrooms and offer fewer courses. Attracting and keeping academic stars, and the research dollars that usually follow them, will become much harder. It is already happening, says Ms Faber. She recently hired three world-class assistant professors whose salaries are now at risk. Other universities have begun to get in touch with them, she says, and they will probably leave. Their best students may go with them. " We are eating our seed corn," the professor laments. | 562.txt | 2 |
[
"it usually takes one year to destroy university excellence",
"university excellence is much harder to build than to destroy",
"it takes a short time to destroy university excellence",
"to build university excellence is more time-consuming than to destroy it"
] | The statement" It takes a year to destroy it." （Line 8, Paragraph 1）implies that _ . | The best public higher education in the world is to be found at the University of California（UC）. This claim is backed up by Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China, which provides an authoritative ranking of research universities. The UC's campus at Berkeley ranks third behind two private universities, Harvard and Stanford. Several of the other ten UC sites, such as Los Angeles and San Diego, are not far behind. Californians are justifiably proud. It is therefore no small matter that this glory may be about to end. " We are in irreversible decline," says Sandra Faber, a professor of astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz who has inadvertently become a mouthpiece for a fed-up faculty. University excellence, she says, " took decades to build. It takes a year to destroy it."
California has been suffering serial budget crises, the latest of which was resolved last month in a rather desperate deal between the governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the legislature. It contained huge cuts, including $2 billion lopped from higher education. The UC alone has lost a cumulative $813m of state funding in the last fiscal year and the current one, a cut of 20%. The second-tier California State University（Cal State）, with 23 campuses the largest in the country, and the third-tier community colleges have also been clobbered.
The cuts threaten the legacy of two visionaries, Edmund" Pat" Brown, governor from 1959 to 1967, and Clark Kerr, who was in charge of the UC during those years. Kerr envisioned the state's public universities as" bait to be dangled in front of industry, with drawing power greater than low taxes or cheap labour." In a 1960 master-plan he created the three-tiered system.
His ambition was simple. First, to educate as many young Californians as affordably as possible. The best students would go to the UC, the next lot to Cal State and the rest to community colleges with the possibility of trading up. Second, to attract academic superstars. Kerr went about this like a talent scout, and his successors have continued the practice. The UC campuses have collectively produced more Nobel laureates than any other university.
But the master-plan has been under strain for years. State spending per student in the UC system, adjusted for inflation, has fallen by 40% since 1990, says Mark Yudof, the current UC president. The Public Policy Institute of California, a non-partisan think-tank, projects that California's economy will face a shortfall of 1m college graduates by 2025, depressing the prosperity of the entire state. Public universities, which award 75% of all the state's bachelor degrees, will be largely responsible.
Academic excellence is likely to be the first victim. Both the UC and Cal State are planning to send professors and staff on leave, cram more students into classrooms and offer fewer courses. Attracting and keeping academic stars, and the research dollars that usually follow them, will become much harder. It is already happening, says Ms Faber. She recently hired three world-class assistant professors whose salaries are now at risk. Other universities have begun to get in touch with them, she says, and they will probably leave. Their best students may go with them. " We are eating our seed corn," the professor laments. | 562.txt | 1 |
[
"make public higher education more available and recruit more talents",
"fulfill his job as the head of UC when Edmund\" Pat\" Brown was the governor",
"make public higher education more attractive than low taxes and cheap labour",
"produce as many Nobel laureates as possible"
] | Clark Kerr designed the three-tiered system for California in order to _ . | The best public higher education in the world is to be found at the University of California（UC）. This claim is backed up by Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China, which provides an authoritative ranking of research universities. The UC's campus at Berkeley ranks third behind two private universities, Harvard and Stanford. Several of the other ten UC sites, such as Los Angeles and San Diego, are not far behind. Californians are justifiably proud. It is therefore no small matter that this glory may be about to end. " We are in irreversible decline," says Sandra Faber, a professor of astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz who has inadvertently become a mouthpiece for a fed-up faculty. University excellence, she says, " took decades to build. It takes a year to destroy it."
California has been suffering serial budget crises, the latest of which was resolved last month in a rather desperate deal between the governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the legislature. It contained huge cuts, including $2 billion lopped from higher education. The UC alone has lost a cumulative $813m of state funding in the last fiscal year and the current one, a cut of 20%. The second-tier California State University（Cal State）, with 23 campuses the largest in the country, and the third-tier community colleges have also been clobbered.
The cuts threaten the legacy of two visionaries, Edmund" Pat" Brown, governor from 1959 to 1967, and Clark Kerr, who was in charge of the UC during those years. Kerr envisioned the state's public universities as" bait to be dangled in front of industry, with drawing power greater than low taxes or cheap labour." In a 1960 master-plan he created the three-tiered system.
His ambition was simple. First, to educate as many young Californians as affordably as possible. The best students would go to the UC, the next lot to Cal State and the rest to community colleges with the possibility of trading up. Second, to attract academic superstars. Kerr went about this like a talent scout, and his successors have continued the practice. The UC campuses have collectively produced more Nobel laureates than any other university.
But the master-plan has been under strain for years. State spending per student in the UC system, adjusted for inflation, has fallen by 40% since 1990, says Mark Yudof, the current UC president. The Public Policy Institute of California, a non-partisan think-tank, projects that California's economy will face a shortfall of 1m college graduates by 2025, depressing the prosperity of the entire state. Public universities, which award 75% of all the state's bachelor degrees, will be largely responsible.
Academic excellence is likely to be the first victim. Both the UC and Cal State are planning to send professors and staff on leave, cram more students into classrooms and offer fewer courses. Attracting and keeping academic stars, and the research dollars that usually follow them, will become much harder. It is already happening, says Ms Faber. She recently hired three world-class assistant professors whose salaries are now at risk. Other universities have begun to get in touch with them, she says, and they will probably leave. Their best students may go with them. " We are eating our seed corn," the professor laments. | 562.txt | 0 |
[
"the Californian public universities are suffering from financial crises",
"California will soon face the embarrassing situation of talent shortage",
"due to lacking fund, the Californian public universities will have fewer graduates",
"California is going to sink in a long-term economic recession"
] | The statistics in Paragraph 5 help us draw a conclusion that _ . | The best public higher education in the world is to be found at the University of California（UC）. This claim is backed up by Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China, which provides an authoritative ranking of research universities. The UC's campus at Berkeley ranks third behind two private universities, Harvard and Stanford. Several of the other ten UC sites, such as Los Angeles and San Diego, are not far behind. Californians are justifiably proud. It is therefore no small matter that this glory may be about to end. " We are in irreversible decline," says Sandra Faber, a professor of astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz who has inadvertently become a mouthpiece for a fed-up faculty. University excellence, she says, " took decades to build. It takes a year to destroy it."
California has been suffering serial budget crises, the latest of which was resolved last month in a rather desperate deal between the governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the legislature. It contained huge cuts, including $2 billion lopped from higher education. The UC alone has lost a cumulative $813m of state funding in the last fiscal year and the current one, a cut of 20%. The second-tier California State University（Cal State）, with 23 campuses the largest in the country, and the third-tier community colleges have also been clobbered.
The cuts threaten the legacy of two visionaries, Edmund" Pat" Brown, governor from 1959 to 1967, and Clark Kerr, who was in charge of the UC during those years. Kerr envisioned the state's public universities as" bait to be dangled in front of industry, with drawing power greater than low taxes or cheap labour." In a 1960 master-plan he created the three-tiered system.
His ambition was simple. First, to educate as many young Californians as affordably as possible. The best students would go to the UC, the next lot to Cal State and the rest to community colleges with the possibility of trading up. Second, to attract academic superstars. Kerr went about this like a talent scout, and his successors have continued the practice. The UC campuses have collectively produced more Nobel laureates than any other university.
But the master-plan has been under strain for years. State spending per student in the UC system, adjusted for inflation, has fallen by 40% since 1990, says Mark Yudof, the current UC president. The Public Policy Institute of California, a non-partisan think-tank, projects that California's economy will face a shortfall of 1m college graduates by 2025, depressing the prosperity of the entire state. Public universities, which award 75% of all the state's bachelor degrees, will be largely responsible.
Academic excellence is likely to be the first victim. Both the UC and Cal State are planning to send professors and staff on leave, cram more students into classrooms and offer fewer courses. Attracting and keeping academic stars, and the research dollars that usually follow them, will become much harder. It is already happening, says Ms Faber. She recently hired three world-class assistant professors whose salaries are now at risk. Other universities have begun to get in touch with them, she says, and they will probably leave. Their best students may go with them. " We are eating our seed corn," the professor laments. | 562.txt | 2 |
[
"The UC and Cal State are forced to fire some faulty and staff.",
"The Californian higher education may lose its core competitiveness.",
"The UC and Cal State are actively fighting against the financial constraint.",
"The Californian higher education will lose all its best professors and students."
] | What can we infer from the last paragraph? | The best public higher education in the world is to be found at the University of California（UC）. This claim is backed up by Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China, which provides an authoritative ranking of research universities. The UC's campus at Berkeley ranks third behind two private universities, Harvard and Stanford. Several of the other ten UC sites, such as Los Angeles and San Diego, are not far behind. Californians are justifiably proud. It is therefore no small matter that this glory may be about to end. " We are in irreversible decline," says Sandra Faber, a professor of astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz who has inadvertently become a mouthpiece for a fed-up faculty. University excellence, she says, " took decades to build. It takes a year to destroy it."
California has been suffering serial budget crises, the latest of which was resolved last month in a rather desperate deal between the governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the legislature. It contained huge cuts, including $2 billion lopped from higher education. The UC alone has lost a cumulative $813m of state funding in the last fiscal year and the current one, a cut of 20%. The second-tier California State University（Cal State）, with 23 campuses the largest in the country, and the third-tier community colleges have also been clobbered.
The cuts threaten the legacy of two visionaries, Edmund" Pat" Brown, governor from 1959 to 1967, and Clark Kerr, who was in charge of the UC during those years. Kerr envisioned the state's public universities as" bait to be dangled in front of industry, with drawing power greater than low taxes or cheap labour." In a 1960 master-plan he created the three-tiered system.
His ambition was simple. First, to educate as many young Californians as affordably as possible. The best students would go to the UC, the next lot to Cal State and the rest to community colleges with the possibility of trading up. Second, to attract academic superstars. Kerr went about this like a talent scout, and his successors have continued the practice. The UC campuses have collectively produced more Nobel laureates than any other university.
But the master-plan has been under strain for years. State spending per student in the UC system, adjusted for inflation, has fallen by 40% since 1990, says Mark Yudof, the current UC president. The Public Policy Institute of California, a non-partisan think-tank, projects that California's economy will face a shortfall of 1m college graduates by 2025, depressing the prosperity of the entire state. Public universities, which award 75% of all the state's bachelor degrees, will be largely responsible.
Academic excellence is likely to be the first victim. Both the UC and Cal State are planning to send professors and staff on leave, cram more students into classrooms and offer fewer courses. Attracting and keeping academic stars, and the research dollars that usually follow them, will become much harder. It is already happening, says Ms Faber. She recently hired three world-class assistant professors whose salaries are now at risk. Other universities have begun to get in touch with them, she says, and they will probably leave. Their best students may go with them. " We are eating our seed corn," the professor laments. | 562.txt | 1 |
[
"Weakness of human nature.",
"Concern about climate change.",
"Importance of practical thinking.",
"Optimism about human progress."
] | What is the theme of Ridley's most recent book？ | Feeling blue about the world？ "Cheer up." says science writer Matt Ridley. "The world has never been a better place to live in， and it will keep on getting better both for humans and for nature."
Ridley calls himself a rational optimist-rational， because he‘s carefully weighed the evidence; optimistic， because that evidence shows human progress to be both unavoidable and good. And this is what he's set out to prove from a unique point of view in his most recent book， The Rational Optimist. He views mankind as a grand enterprise that， on the whole， has done little but progress for 100，000 years. He backs his findings with hard facts gathered through years of research.
Here‘s how he explains his views.
1) Shopping fuels invention
It is reported that there are more than ten billion different products for sale in London alone. Even allowing for the many people who still live in poverty， our own generation has access to more nutritious food， more convenient transport， bigger houses， better cars， and， of course， more pounds and dollars than any who lived before us. This will continue as long as we use these things to make other things. The more we specialize and exchange， the better off we'll be.
2) Brilliant advances
One reason we are richer， healthier， taller， cleverer， longer？？lived and freer than ever before is that the four most basic human needs-food， clothing， fuel and shelter-have grown a lot cheaper. Take one example. In 1800 a candle providing one hour‘s light cost six hours' work. In the 1880s the same light from an oil lamp took 15 minutes‘ work to pay for. In 1950 it was eight seconds. Today it's half second.
3) Let‘s not kill ourselves for climate change
Mitigating （） climate change could prove just as damaging to human welfare as climate change itself. A child that dies from indoor smoke in a village， where the use of fossil？？fuel （） electricity is forbidden by well？？meaning members of green political movements trying to save the world， is just as great a tragedy as a child that dies in a flood caused by climate change. If climate change proves to be mild， but cutting carbon causes real pain， we may well find that we have stopped a nose？？bleed by putting a tourniquet （） around our necks. | 1034.txt | 3 |
[
"It encourages the creation of things.",
"It results in shortage of goods.",
"It demands more fossil fuels.",
"It causes a poverty problem."
] | How does Ridley look at shopping？ | Feeling blue about the world？ "Cheer up." says science writer Matt Ridley. "The world has never been a better place to live in， and it will keep on getting better both for humans and for nature."
Ridley calls himself a rational optimist-rational， because he‘s carefully weighed the evidence; optimistic， because that evidence shows human progress to be both unavoidable and good. And this is what he's set out to prove from a unique point of view in his most recent book， The Rational Optimist. He views mankind as a grand enterprise that， on the whole， has done little but progress for 100，000 years. He backs his findings with hard facts gathered through years of research.
Here‘s how he explains his views.
1) Shopping fuels invention
It is reported that there are more than ten billion different products for sale in London alone. Even allowing for the many people who still live in poverty， our own generation has access to more nutritious food， more convenient transport， bigger houses， better cars， and， of course， more pounds and dollars than any who lived before us. This will continue as long as we use these things to make other things. The more we specialize and exchange， the better off we'll be.
2) Brilliant advances
One reason we are richer， healthier， taller， cleverer， longer？？lived and freer than ever before is that the four most basic human needs-food， clothing， fuel and shelter-have grown a lot cheaper. Take one example. In 1800 a candle providing one hour‘s light cost six hours' work. In the 1880s the same light from an oil lamp took 15 minutes‘ work to pay for. In 1950 it was eight seconds. Today it's half second.
3) Let‘s not kill ourselves for climate change
Mitigating （） climate change could prove just as damaging to human welfare as climate change itself. A child that dies from indoor smoke in a village， where the use of fossil？？fuel （） electricity is forbidden by well？？meaning members of green political movements trying to save the world， is just as great a tragedy as a child that dies in a flood caused by climate change. If climate change proves to be mild， but cutting carbon causes real pain， we may well find that we have stopped a nose？？bleed by putting a tourniquet （） around our necks. | 1034.txt | 0 |
[
"oil lamps give off more light than candles",
"shortening working time brings about a happier life",
"advanced technology helps to produce better candles",
"increased production rate leads to lower cost of goods"
] | The candle and lamp example is used to show that _ . | Feeling blue about the world？ "Cheer up." says science writer Matt Ridley. "The world has never been a better place to live in， and it will keep on getting better both for humans and for nature."
Ridley calls himself a rational optimist-rational， because he‘s carefully weighed the evidence; optimistic， because that evidence shows human progress to be both unavoidable and good. And this is what he's set out to prove from a unique point of view in his most recent book， The Rational Optimist. He views mankind as a grand enterprise that， on the whole， has done little but progress for 100，000 years. He backs his findings with hard facts gathered through years of research.
Here‘s how he explains his views.
1) Shopping fuels invention
It is reported that there are more than ten billion different products for sale in London alone. Even allowing for the many people who still live in poverty， our own generation has access to more nutritious food， more convenient transport， bigger houses， better cars， and， of course， more pounds and dollars than any who lived before us. This will continue as long as we use these things to make other things. The more we specialize and exchange， the better off we'll be.
2) Brilliant advances
One reason we are richer， healthier， taller， cleverer， longer？？lived and freer than ever before is that the four most basic human needs-food， clothing， fuel and shelter-have grown a lot cheaper. Take one example. In 1800 a candle providing one hour‘s light cost six hours' work. In the 1880s the same light from an oil lamp took 15 minutes‘ work to pay for. In 1950 it was eight seconds. Today it's half second.
3) Let‘s not kill ourselves for climate change
Mitigating （） climate change could prove just as damaging to human welfare as climate change itself. A child that dies from indoor smoke in a village， where the use of fossil？？fuel （） electricity is forbidden by well？？meaning members of green political movements trying to save the world， is just as great a tragedy as a child that dies in a flood caused by climate change. If climate change proves to be mild， but cutting carbon causes real pain， we may well find that we have stopped a nose？？bleed by putting a tourniquet （） around our necks. | 1034.txt | 3 |
[
"Cutting carbon is necessary in spite of the huge cost.",
"Overreaction to climate change may be dangerous.",
"People‘s health is closely related to climate change.",
"Careless medical treatment may cause great pain."
] | What does the last sentence of the passage imply？ | Feeling blue about the world？ "Cheer up." says science writer Matt Ridley. "The world has never been a better place to live in， and it will keep on getting better both for humans and for nature."
Ridley calls himself a rational optimist-rational， because he‘s carefully weighed the evidence; optimistic， because that evidence shows human progress to be both unavoidable and good. And this is what he's set out to prove from a unique point of view in his most recent book， The Rational Optimist. He views mankind as a grand enterprise that， on the whole， has done little but progress for 100，000 years. He backs his findings with hard facts gathered through years of research.
Here‘s how he explains his views.
1) Shopping fuels invention
It is reported that there are more than ten billion different products for sale in London alone. Even allowing for the many people who still live in poverty， our own generation has access to more nutritious food， more convenient transport， bigger houses， better cars， and， of course， more pounds and dollars than any who lived before us. This will continue as long as we use these things to make other things. The more we specialize and exchange， the better off we'll be.
2) Brilliant advances
One reason we are richer， healthier， taller， cleverer， longer？？lived and freer than ever before is that the four most basic human needs-food， clothing， fuel and shelter-have grown a lot cheaper. Take one example. In 1800 a candle providing one hour‘s light cost six hours' work. In the 1880s the same light from an oil lamp took 15 minutes‘ work to pay for. In 1950 it was eight seconds. Today it's half second.
3) Let‘s not kill ourselves for climate change
Mitigating （） climate change could prove just as damaging to human welfare as climate change itself. A child that dies from indoor smoke in a village， where the use of fossil？？fuel （） electricity is forbidden by well？？meaning members of green political movements trying to save the world， is just as great a tragedy as a child that dies in a flood caused by climate change. If climate change proves to be mild， but cutting carbon causes real pain， we may well find that we have stopped a nose？？bleed by putting a tourniquet （） around our necks. | 1034.txt | 1 |
[
"Posing a contrast.",
"Justifying an assumption.",
"Explaining a phenomenon.",
"Making a comparison."
] | How does the author introduce his topic? | DOTCOMS may be moribund, but inside companies, the Internet is still finding cost-saving new uses. " B2E-business-to-employee-didn't have a crash," says Bipin Patel, in charge of developing the potential of the corporate intranet at the Ford Motor Company. " It's still growing."
Ford has gone further than most companies to get its employees online: it offered its American employees personal computers, and 90% of them accepted. Ford hopes that the free PCs will save its own and its employees' time by moving services online. General Motors, Ford's great rival, considered a similar scheme but found that most employees willing to use PCs already had them. It is helping staff to pay for high-bandwidth connections instead.
At Ford, the human-resources department has pioneered a scheme to provide up-to-the-minute information to employees about pay and benefits. In the past, employees sometimes found that it took weeks to get a copy of the pay information they needed to do their tax returns, and the department's staff spent mind-numbing hours answering the same questions from hundreds of different employees. Now employees can look at a password-protected site that displays their payslips over the previous 18 months. They can see all deductions, and the hours they worked. All this information was on the human-resources database: displaying it to employees has saved staff time.
" People want more and more of this self-service information, which they can manage themselves," observes Mr Patel. " There is no such thing as information overload here, because it's their information." Even training seems to work better online: Ford employees can now download a range of courses, including one on" Listening and Handling Tough Situations" , all designed for digestion in 10- or 15-minute gobbets. The company claims to have cut training costs by $2m during the past six months, as fewer people leave their desks to learn.
The company also uses its intranet to communicate with its staff around the world. Jacques Nasser, Ford's boss, sends out" Let's chat" notes once a week. In fact, Mr Nasser does most of the chatting. He gets hundreds of e-mails in reply, but the communication is basically a one-way flow. The company also runs chatrooms, in which employees can question various inhouse experts and outside analysts live on the corporate intranet.
In time, thinks Mr Patel, communications technology will reshape corporate behaviour. It will encourage collaboration and team-working. Already, the Internet is causing disintermediation within companies, he argues, just as it did in e-commerce: the human-resources department does much less administration once the benefits system is more self-service, but rather more advising and consulting. One day, working in human resources might even be fun. | 493.txt | 2 |
[
"PCs can help them save a lot.",
"B2E is a growing thing.",
"The employees prefer to use PCs.",
"Proving PCs is a way of competition."
] | Why did Ford and GM intend to provide their employees with PCs? | DOTCOMS may be moribund, but inside companies, the Internet is still finding cost-saving new uses. " B2E-business-to-employee-didn't have a crash," says Bipin Patel, in charge of developing the potential of the corporate intranet at the Ford Motor Company. " It's still growing."
Ford has gone further than most companies to get its employees online: it offered its American employees personal computers, and 90% of them accepted. Ford hopes that the free PCs will save its own and its employees' time by moving services online. General Motors, Ford's great rival, considered a similar scheme but found that most employees willing to use PCs already had them. It is helping staff to pay for high-bandwidth connections instead.
At Ford, the human-resources department has pioneered a scheme to provide up-to-the-minute information to employees about pay and benefits. In the past, employees sometimes found that it took weeks to get a copy of the pay information they needed to do their tax returns, and the department's staff spent mind-numbing hours answering the same questions from hundreds of different employees. Now employees can look at a password-protected site that displays their payslips over the previous 18 months. They can see all deductions, and the hours they worked. All this information was on the human-resources database: displaying it to employees has saved staff time.
" People want more and more of this self-service information, which they can manage themselves," observes Mr Patel. " There is no such thing as information overload here, because it's their information." Even training seems to work better online: Ford employees can now download a range of courses, including one on" Listening and Handling Tough Situations" , all designed for digestion in 10- or 15-minute gobbets. The company claims to have cut training costs by $2m during the past six months, as fewer people leave their desks to learn.
The company also uses its intranet to communicate with its staff around the world. Jacques Nasser, Ford's boss, sends out" Let's chat" notes once a week. In fact, Mr Nasser does most of the chatting. He gets hundreds of e-mails in reply, but the communication is basically a one-way flow. The company also runs chatrooms, in which employees can question various inhouse experts and outside analysts live on the corporate intranet.
In time, thinks Mr Patel, communications technology will reshape corporate behaviour. It will encourage collaboration and team-working. Already, the Internet is causing disintermediation within companies, he argues, just as it did in e-commerce: the human-resources department does much less administration once the benefits system is more self-service, but rather more advising and consulting. One day, working in human resources might even be fun. | 493.txt | 0 |
[
"It can save time.",
"It can save cost.",
"It encourages collaboration and team-working.",
"It makes human-resources department an easy job."
] | Which of the following is NOT the advantage of Internet? | DOTCOMS may be moribund, but inside companies, the Internet is still finding cost-saving new uses. " B2E-business-to-employee-didn't have a crash," says Bipin Patel, in charge of developing the potential of the corporate intranet at the Ford Motor Company. " It's still growing."
Ford has gone further than most companies to get its employees online: it offered its American employees personal computers, and 90% of them accepted. Ford hopes that the free PCs will save its own and its employees' time by moving services online. General Motors, Ford's great rival, considered a similar scheme but found that most employees willing to use PCs already had them. It is helping staff to pay for high-bandwidth connections instead.
At Ford, the human-resources department has pioneered a scheme to provide up-to-the-minute information to employees about pay and benefits. In the past, employees sometimes found that it took weeks to get a copy of the pay information they needed to do their tax returns, and the department's staff spent mind-numbing hours answering the same questions from hundreds of different employees. Now employees can look at a password-protected site that displays their payslips over the previous 18 months. They can see all deductions, and the hours they worked. All this information was on the human-resources database: displaying it to employees has saved staff time.
" People want more and more of this self-service information, which they can manage themselves," observes Mr Patel. " There is no such thing as information overload here, because it's their information." Even training seems to work better online: Ford employees can now download a range of courses, including one on" Listening and Handling Tough Situations" , all designed for digestion in 10- or 15-minute gobbets. The company claims to have cut training costs by $2m during the past six months, as fewer people leave their desks to learn.
The company also uses its intranet to communicate with its staff around the world. Jacques Nasser, Ford's boss, sends out" Let's chat" notes once a week. In fact, Mr Nasser does most of the chatting. He gets hundreds of e-mails in reply, but the communication is basically a one-way flow. The company also runs chatrooms, in which employees can question various inhouse experts and outside analysts live on the corporate intranet.
In time, thinks Mr Patel, communications technology will reshape corporate behaviour. It will encourage collaboration and team-working. Already, the Internet is causing disintermediation within companies, he argues, just as it did in e-commerce: the human-resources department does much less administration once the benefits system is more self-service, but rather more advising and consulting. One day, working in human resources might even be fun. | 493.txt | 3 |
[
"not encouraging open answers",
"only one side asking questions",
"only yes or no questions",
"the topics lacking variety"
] | The expression" a one-way flow" （Line 3, Paragraph 5）most probably means _ . | DOTCOMS may be moribund, but inside companies, the Internet is still finding cost-saving new uses. " B2E-business-to-employee-didn't have a crash," says Bipin Patel, in charge of developing the potential of the corporate intranet at the Ford Motor Company. " It's still growing."
Ford has gone further than most companies to get its employees online: it offered its American employees personal computers, and 90% of them accepted. Ford hopes that the free PCs will save its own and its employees' time by moving services online. General Motors, Ford's great rival, considered a similar scheme but found that most employees willing to use PCs already had them. It is helping staff to pay for high-bandwidth connections instead.
At Ford, the human-resources department has pioneered a scheme to provide up-to-the-minute information to employees about pay and benefits. In the past, employees sometimes found that it took weeks to get a copy of the pay information they needed to do their tax returns, and the department's staff spent mind-numbing hours answering the same questions from hundreds of different employees. Now employees can look at a password-protected site that displays their payslips over the previous 18 months. They can see all deductions, and the hours they worked. All this information was on the human-resources database: displaying it to employees has saved staff time.
" People want more and more of this self-service information, which they can manage themselves," observes Mr Patel. " There is no such thing as information overload here, because it's their information." Even training seems to work better online: Ford employees can now download a range of courses, including one on" Listening and Handling Tough Situations" , all designed for digestion in 10- or 15-minute gobbets. The company claims to have cut training costs by $2m during the past six months, as fewer people leave their desks to learn.
The company also uses its intranet to communicate with its staff around the world. Jacques Nasser, Ford's boss, sends out" Let's chat" notes once a week. In fact, Mr Nasser does most of the chatting. He gets hundreds of e-mails in reply, but the communication is basically a one-way flow. The company also runs chatrooms, in which employees can question various inhouse experts and outside analysts live on the corporate intranet.
In time, thinks Mr Patel, communications technology will reshape corporate behaviour. It will encourage collaboration and team-working. Already, the Internet is causing disintermediation within companies, he argues, just as it did in e-commerce: the human-resources department does much less administration once the benefits system is more self-service, but rather more advising and consulting. One day, working in human resources might even be fun. | 493.txt | 1 |
[
"The Internet can help DOTCOMS come back to life.",
"The courses downloaded are practical, but time-consuming.",
"The Internet makes the work of human-resources department more direct and interesting.",
"The employees can manage all the information by themselves."
] | Which of the following is TRUE according to the text? | DOTCOMS may be moribund, but inside companies, the Internet is still finding cost-saving new uses. " B2E-business-to-employee-didn't have a crash," says Bipin Patel, in charge of developing the potential of the corporate intranet at the Ford Motor Company. " It's still growing."
Ford has gone further than most companies to get its employees online: it offered its American employees personal computers, and 90% of them accepted. Ford hopes that the free PCs will save its own and its employees' time by moving services online. General Motors, Ford's great rival, considered a similar scheme but found that most employees willing to use PCs already had them. It is helping staff to pay for high-bandwidth connections instead.
At Ford, the human-resources department has pioneered a scheme to provide up-to-the-minute information to employees about pay and benefits. In the past, employees sometimes found that it took weeks to get a copy of the pay information they needed to do their tax returns, and the department's staff spent mind-numbing hours answering the same questions from hundreds of different employees. Now employees can look at a password-protected site that displays their payslips over the previous 18 months. They can see all deductions, and the hours they worked. All this information was on the human-resources database: displaying it to employees has saved staff time.
" People want more and more of this self-service information, which they can manage themselves," observes Mr Patel. " There is no such thing as information overload here, because it's their information." Even training seems to work better online: Ford employees can now download a range of courses, including one on" Listening and Handling Tough Situations" , all designed for digestion in 10- or 15-minute gobbets. The company claims to have cut training costs by $2m during the past six months, as fewer people leave their desks to learn.
The company also uses its intranet to communicate with its staff around the world. Jacques Nasser, Ford's boss, sends out" Let's chat" notes once a week. In fact, Mr Nasser does most of the chatting. He gets hundreds of e-mails in reply, but the communication is basically a one-way flow. The company also runs chatrooms, in which employees can question various inhouse experts and outside analysts live on the corporate intranet.
In time, thinks Mr Patel, communications technology will reshape corporate behaviour. It will encourage collaboration and team-working. Already, the Internet is causing disintermediation within companies, he argues, just as it did in e-commerce: the human-resources department does much less administration once the benefits system is more self-service, but rather more advising and consulting. One day, working in human resources might even be fun. | 493.txt | 2 |
[
"He thought that corporations should be able to fulfill CSR for their own interests.",
"He insisted that CSR meant all employees should be treated equally.",
"He believed that the fulfillment of CSR must rely on government.",
"He suspected that CSR would violate corporations' own benefit."
] | What was Theodore Roosevelt's view on corporate social responsibility（CSR）? | The idea that corporations bear a responsibility that stretches beyond their shareholders is not new. Many companies in the 19th century built special housing for their employees in the belief that a well-housed employee was more productive than one living in a dump. In the early years of the 20th century, Theodore Roosevelt, then president of the United States, said, " Corporations are indispensable instruments of our modern civilization; but I believe that they should be so supervised and so regulated that they shall act for the interests of the community as a whole." He introduced antitrust legislation and rules on health and safety, and on working hours.
In 1987, Adrian Cadbury, head of the Eponymous chocolate firm, wrote in Harvard Business Review: the possibility that ethical and commercial considerations will conflict has always faced those who run companies. It is not a new problem. The difference now is that a more widespread and critical interest is being taken in our decisions and in the ethical judgments which lie behind them.
The debate then focused on how much of Roosevelt's supervision and regulation was needed to make sure that corporations act sufficiently in the interests of the wider community. Extreme free-marketers say all that is required to ensure the responsible behavior of corporations is transparency about their affairs. Corporations will then behave responsibly towards the wider community without any coercion because it is in their own best interests. " Being good" , said Anita Roddick, founder of an" ethical" cosmetics firm, The Body Shop, " is good business." In the United States, the Better Business Bureau goes further and argues that unethical business is bad for business as a whole, not just for individual firms.
The recent debate about corporate social responsibility（CSR）has focused on three main areas:
● The environment. This has stretched way beyond the simple demand that companies stop belching smoke out of factory chimneys to a demand that they control their appetite for natural resources-for bits of Brazilian rain forest, for example, or for the skins of rare animals. The organized hostility to such behavior has forced companies to change. For example, suppliers frightened by the venom of the anti-fur lobby felt compelled to boast:" Make no mistake; all our furs are fake."
● Exploitation. The second strand is the exploitation of workers, especially of women in the developed world and of children in the developing world. There is a feeling that globalization has increased the power of multinationals to exploit the poor and underpaid, at the same time as it has weakened the influence of trade unions and other organizations designed to protect them.
● Bribery and corruption. The third strand focuses on corruption, in particular on the question of what constitutes a bribe（when does generous corporate hospitality step over the line?）, and what protections should be given to whistleblowers（employees or other insiders who report corporate misdeeds）. Here there is a strong cultural element to confuse the issue. What constitutes bribery in western countries, for example, may not be considered such in regions such as the Middle East. | 470.txt | 2 |
[
"Governmental regulation.",
"Ethics.",
"Transparency.",
"Community responsibility."
] | Which of the following is NOT an aspect relevant to CSR? | The idea that corporations bear a responsibility that stretches beyond their shareholders is not new. Many companies in the 19th century built special housing for their employees in the belief that a well-housed employee was more productive than one living in a dump. In the early years of the 20th century, Theodore Roosevelt, then president of the United States, said, " Corporations are indispensable instruments of our modern civilization; but I believe that they should be so supervised and so regulated that they shall act for the interests of the community as a whole." He introduced antitrust legislation and rules on health and safety, and on working hours.
In 1987, Adrian Cadbury, head of the Eponymous chocolate firm, wrote in Harvard Business Review: the possibility that ethical and commercial considerations will conflict has always faced those who run companies. It is not a new problem. The difference now is that a more widespread and critical interest is being taken in our decisions and in the ethical judgments which lie behind them.
The debate then focused on how much of Roosevelt's supervision and regulation was needed to make sure that corporations act sufficiently in the interests of the wider community. Extreme free-marketers say all that is required to ensure the responsible behavior of corporations is transparency about their affairs. Corporations will then behave responsibly towards the wider community without any coercion because it is in their own best interests. " Being good" , said Anita Roddick, founder of an" ethical" cosmetics firm, The Body Shop, " is good business." In the United States, the Better Business Bureau goes further and argues that unethical business is bad for business as a whole, not just for individual firms.
The recent debate about corporate social responsibility（CSR）has focused on three main areas:
● The environment. This has stretched way beyond the simple demand that companies stop belching smoke out of factory chimneys to a demand that they control their appetite for natural resources-for bits of Brazilian rain forest, for example, or for the skins of rare animals. The organized hostility to such behavior has forced companies to change. For example, suppliers frightened by the venom of the anti-fur lobby felt compelled to boast:" Make no mistake; all our furs are fake."
● Exploitation. The second strand is the exploitation of workers, especially of women in the developed world and of children in the developing world. There is a feeling that globalization has increased the power of multinationals to exploit the poor and underpaid, at the same time as it has weakened the influence of trade unions and other organizations designed to protect them.
● Bribery and corruption. The third strand focuses on corruption, in particular on the question of what constitutes a bribe（when does generous corporate hospitality step over the line?）, and what protections should be given to whistleblowers（employees or other insiders who report corporate misdeeds）. Here there is a strong cultural element to confuse the issue. What constitutes bribery in western countries, for example, may not be considered such in regions such as the Middle East. | 470.txt | 0 |
[
"producing quality products",
"maintaining profitable business",
"being conscious of community",
"being socially accountable"
] | The expression" Being good" （Line 5, Paragraph 3）most probably means _ . | The idea that corporations bear a responsibility that stretches beyond their shareholders is not new. Many companies in the 19th century built special housing for their employees in the belief that a well-housed employee was more productive than one living in a dump. In the early years of the 20th century, Theodore Roosevelt, then president of the United States, said, " Corporations are indispensable instruments of our modern civilization; but I believe that they should be so supervised and so regulated that they shall act for the interests of the community as a whole." He introduced antitrust legislation and rules on health and safety, and on working hours.
In 1987, Adrian Cadbury, head of the Eponymous chocolate firm, wrote in Harvard Business Review: the possibility that ethical and commercial considerations will conflict has always faced those who run companies. It is not a new problem. The difference now is that a more widespread and critical interest is being taken in our decisions and in the ethical judgments which lie behind them.
The debate then focused on how much of Roosevelt's supervision and regulation was needed to make sure that corporations act sufficiently in the interests of the wider community. Extreme free-marketers say all that is required to ensure the responsible behavior of corporations is transparency about their affairs. Corporations will then behave responsibly towards the wider community without any coercion because it is in their own best interests. " Being good" , said Anita Roddick, founder of an" ethical" cosmetics firm, The Body Shop, " is good business." In the United States, the Better Business Bureau goes further and argues that unethical business is bad for business as a whole, not just for individual firms.
The recent debate about corporate social responsibility（CSR）has focused on three main areas:
● The environment. This has stretched way beyond the simple demand that companies stop belching smoke out of factory chimneys to a demand that they control their appetite for natural resources-for bits of Brazilian rain forest, for example, or for the skins of rare animals. The organized hostility to such behavior has forced companies to change. For example, suppliers frightened by the venom of the anti-fur lobby felt compelled to boast:" Make no mistake; all our furs are fake."
● Exploitation. The second strand is the exploitation of workers, especially of women in the developed world and of children in the developing world. There is a feeling that globalization has increased the power of multinationals to exploit the poor and underpaid, at the same time as it has weakened the influence of trade unions and other organizations designed to protect them.
● Bribery and corruption. The third strand focuses on corruption, in particular on the question of what constitutes a bribe（when does generous corporate hospitality step over the line?）, and what protections should be given to whistleblowers（employees or other insiders who report corporate misdeeds）. Here there is a strong cultural element to confuse the issue. What constitutes bribery in western countries, for example, may not be considered such in regions such as the Middle East. | 470.txt | 3 |
[
"companies' environmental protection measures should focus on factory chimneys",
"a better understanding of the best CSR practices requires a thorough comprehension of various cultures",
"globalization is by nature against the promotion of CSR",
"CSR makes it more difficult to bribe in a decent way"
] | The debate about CSR in the three main areas reveals that _ . | The idea that corporations bear a responsibility that stretches beyond their shareholders is not new. Many companies in the 19th century built special housing for their employees in the belief that a well-housed employee was more productive than one living in a dump. In the early years of the 20th century, Theodore Roosevelt, then president of the United States, said, " Corporations are indispensable instruments of our modern civilization; but I believe that they should be so supervised and so regulated that they shall act for the interests of the community as a whole." He introduced antitrust legislation and rules on health and safety, and on working hours.
In 1987, Adrian Cadbury, head of the Eponymous chocolate firm, wrote in Harvard Business Review: the possibility that ethical and commercial considerations will conflict has always faced those who run companies. It is not a new problem. The difference now is that a more widespread and critical interest is being taken in our decisions and in the ethical judgments which lie behind them.
The debate then focused on how much of Roosevelt's supervision and regulation was needed to make sure that corporations act sufficiently in the interests of the wider community. Extreme free-marketers say all that is required to ensure the responsible behavior of corporations is transparency about their affairs. Corporations will then behave responsibly towards the wider community without any coercion because it is in their own best interests. " Being good" , said Anita Roddick, founder of an" ethical" cosmetics firm, The Body Shop, " is good business." In the United States, the Better Business Bureau goes further and argues that unethical business is bad for business as a whole, not just for individual firms.
The recent debate about corporate social responsibility（CSR）has focused on three main areas:
● The environment. This has stretched way beyond the simple demand that companies stop belching smoke out of factory chimneys to a demand that they control their appetite for natural resources-for bits of Brazilian rain forest, for example, or for the skins of rare animals. The organized hostility to such behavior has forced companies to change. For example, suppliers frightened by the venom of the anti-fur lobby felt compelled to boast:" Make no mistake; all our furs are fake."
● Exploitation. The second strand is the exploitation of workers, especially of women in the developed world and of children in the developing world. There is a feeling that globalization has increased the power of multinationals to exploit the poor and underpaid, at the same time as it has weakened the influence of trade unions and other organizations designed to protect them.
● Bribery and corruption. The third strand focuses on corruption, in particular on the question of what constitutes a bribe（when does generous corporate hospitality step over the line?）, and what protections should be given to whistleblowers（employees or other insiders who report corporate misdeeds）. Here there is a strong cultural element to confuse the issue. What constitutes bribery in western countries, for example, may not be considered such in regions such as the Middle East. | 470.txt | 1 |
[
"CSR is a recent concept, emerging from the 20th century.",
"Theodore Roosevelt was the first US president who was concerned with CSR.",
"CSR is not only beneficial to individual companies, but the entire business sphere.",
"Trade unions are equally powerful in developed and developing countries."
] | What can we infer from the text? | The idea that corporations bear a responsibility that stretches beyond their shareholders is not new. Many companies in the 19th century built special housing for their employees in the belief that a well-housed employee was more productive than one living in a dump. In the early years of the 20th century, Theodore Roosevelt, then president of the United States, said, " Corporations are indispensable instruments of our modern civilization; but I believe that they should be so supervised and so regulated that they shall act for the interests of the community as a whole." He introduced antitrust legislation and rules on health and safety, and on working hours.
In 1987, Adrian Cadbury, head of the Eponymous chocolate firm, wrote in Harvard Business Review: the possibility that ethical and commercial considerations will conflict has always faced those who run companies. It is not a new problem. The difference now is that a more widespread and critical interest is being taken in our decisions and in the ethical judgments which lie behind them.
The debate then focused on how much of Roosevelt's supervision and regulation was needed to make sure that corporations act sufficiently in the interests of the wider community. Extreme free-marketers say all that is required to ensure the responsible behavior of corporations is transparency about their affairs. Corporations will then behave responsibly towards the wider community without any coercion because it is in their own best interests. " Being good" , said Anita Roddick, founder of an" ethical" cosmetics firm, The Body Shop, " is good business." In the United States, the Better Business Bureau goes further and argues that unethical business is bad for business as a whole, not just for individual firms.
The recent debate about corporate social responsibility（CSR）has focused on three main areas:
● The environment. This has stretched way beyond the simple demand that companies stop belching smoke out of factory chimneys to a demand that they control their appetite for natural resources-for bits of Brazilian rain forest, for example, or for the skins of rare animals. The organized hostility to such behavior has forced companies to change. For example, suppliers frightened by the venom of the anti-fur lobby felt compelled to boast:" Make no mistake; all our furs are fake."
● Exploitation. The second strand is the exploitation of workers, especially of women in the developed world and of children in the developing world. There is a feeling that globalization has increased the power of multinationals to exploit the poor and underpaid, at the same time as it has weakened the influence of trade unions and other organizations designed to protect them.
● Bribery and corruption. The third strand focuses on corruption, in particular on the question of what constitutes a bribe（when does generous corporate hospitality step over the line?）, and what protections should be given to whistleblowers（employees or other insiders who report corporate misdeeds）. Here there is a strong cultural element to confuse the issue. What constitutes bribery in western countries, for example, may not be considered such in regions such as the Middle East. | 470.txt | 2 |
[
"Good habits",
"Bad habits",
"Both good habits and bad habits",
"Either good habits or bad habits"
] | _ are formed little by little. | Habits, whether good or bad, are gradually formed. When a person does a certain thing again, he is driven by some unseen force to do the same thing repeatedly, then a habit is formed. Once a habit is formed, it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get rid of. It is therefore very important that we should pay great attention to the formation of habits. Children often form bad habits, some of which remain with them as long as they live. Older persons also form bad habits lasting as long as they live, and sometimes become ruined by them.
There are other habits which, when formed in early life, are of great help. Many successful men say that much of their success has something to do with certain habits in early life, such as early rising, honesty and so on.
Among the habits which children should not form are laziness, lying, stealing and so on. These are all easily formed habits. Unfortunately older persons often form habits which could have been avoided.
We should keep away from all these bad habits, and try to form such habits as will be good for ourselves and others. | 740.txt | 2 |
[
"to form bad habits; to form good habits",
"to form good habits; to form bad habits",
"to form such habits as will be good; to get rid of bad habits",
"to get rid of bad habits; to form good habits"
] | Generally speaking, it's difficult for one _ and easy for them _ which should be avoided. | Habits, whether good or bad, are gradually formed. When a person does a certain thing again, he is driven by some unseen force to do the same thing repeatedly, then a habit is formed. Once a habit is formed, it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get rid of. It is therefore very important that we should pay great attention to the formation of habits. Children often form bad habits, some of which remain with them as long as they live. Older persons also form bad habits lasting as long as they live, and sometimes become ruined by them.
There are other habits which, when formed in early life, are of great help. Many successful men say that much of their success has something to do with certain habits in early life, such as early rising, honesty and so on.
Among the habits which children should not form are laziness, lying, stealing and so on. These are all easily formed habits. Unfortunately older persons often form habits which could have been avoided.
We should keep away from all these bad habits, and try to form such habits as will be good for ourselves and others. | 740.txt | 1 |
[
"Because habits are of great help to every one of us.",
"Because a man can never get rid of a habit.",
"Because it's hard and sometimes even impossible to throw away bad habits.",
"Because we are forced to do them again and again."
] | Why should we pay much attention to the formation of habits? | Habits, whether good or bad, are gradually formed. When a person does a certain thing again, he is driven by some unseen force to do the same thing repeatedly, then a habit is formed. Once a habit is formed, it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get rid of. It is therefore very important that we should pay great attention to the formation of habits. Children often form bad habits, some of which remain with them as long as they live. Older persons also form bad habits lasting as long as they live, and sometimes become ruined by them.
There are other habits which, when formed in early life, are of great help. Many successful men say that much of their success has something to do with certain habits in early life, such as early rising, honesty and so on.
Among the habits which children should not form are laziness, lying, stealing and so on. These are all easily formed habits. Unfortunately older persons often form habits which could have been avoided.
We should keep away from all these bad habits, and try to form such habits as will be good for ourselves and others. | 740.txt | 2 |
[
"has something to do with success",
"is an easily formed habit",
"is such a habit as should have been avoided",
"is such a habit as will be kept"
] | According to the passage, early rising _ . | Habits, whether good or bad, are gradually formed. When a person does a certain thing again, he is driven by some unseen force to do the same thing repeatedly, then a habit is formed. Once a habit is formed, it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get rid of. It is therefore very important that we should pay great attention to the formation of habits. Children often form bad habits, some of which remain with them as long as they live. Older persons also form bad habits lasting as long as they live, and sometimes become ruined by them.
There are other habits which, when formed in early life, are of great help. Many successful men say that much of their success has something to do with certain habits in early life, such as early rising, honesty and so on.
Among the habits which children should not form are laziness, lying, stealing and so on. These are all easily formed habits. Unfortunately older persons often form habits which could have been avoided.
We should keep away from all these bad habits, and try to form such habits as will be good for ourselves and others. | 740.txt | 3 |
[
"shedding tears gives unpleasant feelings to American",
"crying may often imitate people or even result in tragedy",
"crying usually wins sympathy from other people",
"one who sheds tears in public will be blamed"
] | It is known from the first paragraph that ________. | Crying is hardly an activity encouraged by society. Tears, be they of sorrow, anger, or joy, typically make Americans feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. The shedder of tears is likely to apologize, even when a devastating tragedy was the provocation. The observer of tears is likely to do everything possible to put an end to the emotional outpouring. But judging from recent studies of crying behavior, links between illness and crying and the chemical composition of tears, both those responses to tears are often inappropriate and may even be counterproductive.
Humans are the only animals definitely known to shed emotional tears. Since evolution has given rise to few, if any, purposeless physiological responses, it is logical to assume that crying has one or more functions that enhance survival.
Although some observers have suggested that crying is a way to elicit assistance from others (as a crying baby might from its mother), the shedding of tears is hardly necessary to get help. Vocal cries would have been quite enough, more likely than tears to gain attention. So, it appears, there must be something special about tears themselves.
Indeed, the new studies suggest that emotional tears may play a direct role in alleviating stress. University of Minnesota researchers who are studying the chemical composition of tears have recently isolated two important chemicals from emotional tears. Both chemicals are found only in tears that are shed in response to emotion. Tears shed because of exposure to cut onion would contain no such substance.
Researchers at several other institutions are investigating the usefulness of tears as a means of diagnosing human ills and monitoring drugs.
At Tulane University's Teat Analysis Laboratory Dr. Peter Kastl and his colleagues report that they can use tears to detect drug abuse and exposure to medication , to determine whether a contact lens fits properly of why it may be uncomfortable, to study the causes of "dry eye" syndrome and the effects of eye surgery, and perhaps even to measure exposure to environmental pollutants.
At Columbia University Dr. Liasy Faris and colleagues are studying tears for clues to the diagnosis of diseases away from the eyes. Tears can be obtained painlessly without invading the body and only tiny amounts are needed to perform highly refined analyses. | 4229.txt | 0 |
[
"Crying out of sorrow and shedding tears for happiness.",
"The embarrassment and unpleasant sensation of the observers.",
"The tear shedder's apology and the observer's effort to stop the crying.",
"Linking illness with crying and finding the chemical composition of tears."
] | What does "both those responses to tears" (Line 5, Para, 1) refer to? | Crying is hardly an activity encouraged by society. Tears, be they of sorrow, anger, or joy, typically make Americans feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. The shedder of tears is likely to apologize, even when a devastating tragedy was the provocation. The observer of tears is likely to do everything possible to put an end to the emotional outpouring. But judging from recent studies of crying behavior, links between illness and crying and the chemical composition of tears, both those responses to tears are often inappropriate and may even be counterproductive.
Humans are the only animals definitely known to shed emotional tears. Since evolution has given rise to few, if any, purposeless physiological responses, it is logical to assume that crying has one or more functions that enhance survival.
Although some observers have suggested that crying is a way to elicit assistance from others (as a crying baby might from its mother), the shedding of tears is hardly necessary to get help. Vocal cries would have been quite enough, more likely than tears to gain attention. So, it appears, there must be something special about tears themselves.
Indeed, the new studies suggest that emotional tears may play a direct role in alleviating stress. University of Minnesota researchers who are studying the chemical composition of tears have recently isolated two important chemicals from emotional tears. Both chemicals are found only in tears that are shed in response to emotion. Tears shed because of exposure to cut onion would contain no such substance.
Researchers at several other institutions are investigating the usefulness of tears as a means of diagnosing human ills and monitoring drugs.
At Tulane University's Teat Analysis Laboratory Dr. Peter Kastl and his colleagues report that they can use tears to detect drug abuse and exposure to medication , to determine whether a contact lens fits properly of why it may be uncomfortable, to study the causes of "dry eye" syndrome and the effects of eye surgery, and perhaps even to measure exposure to environmental pollutants.
At Columbia University Dr. Liasy Faris and colleagues are studying tears for clues to the diagnosis of diseases away from the eyes. Tears can be obtained painlessly without invading the body and only tiny amounts are needed to perform highly refined analyses. | 4229.txt | 2 |
[
"having no effect at all",
"leading to tension",
"producing disastrous impact",
"harmful to health"
] | "Counterproductive" (Lines 5, Para, 1) very probably means "________". | Crying is hardly an activity encouraged by society. Tears, be they of sorrow, anger, or joy, typically make Americans feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. The shedder of tears is likely to apologize, even when a devastating tragedy was the provocation. The observer of tears is likely to do everything possible to put an end to the emotional outpouring. But judging from recent studies of crying behavior, links between illness and crying and the chemical composition of tears, both those responses to tears are often inappropriate and may even be counterproductive.
Humans are the only animals definitely known to shed emotional tears. Since evolution has given rise to few, if any, purposeless physiological responses, it is logical to assume that crying has one or more functions that enhance survival.
Although some observers have suggested that crying is a way to elicit assistance from others (as a crying baby might from its mother), the shedding of tears is hardly necessary to get help. Vocal cries would have been quite enough, more likely than tears to gain attention. So, it appears, there must be something special about tears themselves.
Indeed, the new studies suggest that emotional tears may play a direct role in alleviating stress. University of Minnesota researchers who are studying the chemical composition of tears have recently isolated two important chemicals from emotional tears. Both chemicals are found only in tears that are shed in response to emotion. Tears shed because of exposure to cut onion would contain no such substance.
Researchers at several other institutions are investigating the usefulness of tears as a means of diagnosing human ills and monitoring drugs.
At Tulane University's Teat Analysis Laboratory Dr. Peter Kastl and his colleagues report that they can use tears to detect drug abuse and exposure to medication , to determine whether a contact lens fits properly of why it may be uncomfortable, to study the causes of "dry eye" syndrome and the effects of eye surgery, and perhaps even to measure exposure to environmental pollutants.
At Columbia University Dr. Liasy Faris and colleagues are studying tears for clues to the diagnosis of diseases away from the eyes. Tears can be obtained painlessly without invading the body and only tiny amounts are needed to perform highly refined analyses. | 4229.txt | 3 |
[
"It is a pointless physiological response to the environment.",
"It must have a role to play in man's survival.",
"It is meant to get attention and assistance.",
"It usually produces the desired effect."
] | What does the author say about crying? | Crying is hardly an activity encouraged by society. Tears, be they of sorrow, anger, or joy, typically make Americans feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. The shedder of tears is likely to apologize, even when a devastating tragedy was the provocation. The observer of tears is likely to do everything possible to put an end to the emotional outpouring. But judging from recent studies of crying behavior, links between illness and crying and the chemical composition of tears, both those responses to tears are often inappropriate and may even be counterproductive.
Humans are the only animals definitely known to shed emotional tears. Since evolution has given rise to few, if any, purposeless physiological responses, it is logical to assume that crying has one or more functions that enhance survival.
Although some observers have suggested that crying is a way to elicit assistance from others (as a crying baby might from its mother), the shedding of tears is hardly necessary to get help. Vocal cries would have been quite enough, more likely than tears to gain attention. So, it appears, there must be something special about tears themselves.
Indeed, the new studies suggest that emotional tears may play a direct role in alleviating stress. University of Minnesota researchers who are studying the chemical composition of tears have recently isolated two important chemicals from emotional tears. Both chemicals are found only in tears that are shed in response to emotion. Tears shed because of exposure to cut onion would contain no such substance.
Researchers at several other institutions are investigating the usefulness of tears as a means of diagnosing human ills and monitoring drugs.
At Tulane University's Teat Analysis Laboratory Dr. Peter Kastl and his colleagues report that they can use tears to detect drug abuse and exposure to medication , to determine whether a contact lens fits properly of why it may be uncomfortable, to study the causes of "dry eye" syndrome and the effects of eye surgery, and perhaps even to measure exposure to environmental pollutants.
At Columbia University Dr. Liasy Faris and colleagues are studying tears for clues to the diagnosis of diseases away from the eyes. Tears can be obtained painlessly without invading the body and only tiny amounts are needed to perform highly refined analyses. | 4229.txt | 1 |
[
"Emotional tears have the function of reducing stress.",
"Exposure to excessive medication may increase emotional tears.",
"Emotional tears can give rise to \"dry eye\" syndrome in some cases.",
"Environmental pollutants can induce the shedding of emotional tears."
] | What can be inferred from the new studies of tears? | Crying is hardly an activity encouraged by society. Tears, be they of sorrow, anger, or joy, typically make Americans feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. The shedder of tears is likely to apologize, even when a devastating tragedy was the provocation. The observer of tears is likely to do everything possible to put an end to the emotional outpouring. But judging from recent studies of crying behavior, links between illness and crying and the chemical composition of tears, both those responses to tears are often inappropriate and may even be counterproductive.
Humans are the only animals definitely known to shed emotional tears. Since evolution has given rise to few, if any, purposeless physiological responses, it is logical to assume that crying has one or more functions that enhance survival.
Although some observers have suggested that crying is a way to elicit assistance from others (as a crying baby might from its mother), the shedding of tears is hardly necessary to get help. Vocal cries would have been quite enough, more likely than tears to gain attention. So, it appears, there must be something special about tears themselves.
Indeed, the new studies suggest that emotional tears may play a direct role in alleviating stress. University of Minnesota researchers who are studying the chemical composition of tears have recently isolated two important chemicals from emotional tears. Both chemicals are found only in tears that are shed in response to emotion. Tears shed because of exposure to cut onion would contain no such substance.
Researchers at several other institutions are investigating the usefulness of tears as a means of diagnosing human ills and monitoring drugs.
At Tulane University's Teat Analysis Laboratory Dr. Peter Kastl and his colleagues report that they can use tears to detect drug abuse and exposure to medication , to determine whether a contact lens fits properly of why it may be uncomfortable, to study the causes of "dry eye" syndrome and the effects of eye surgery, and perhaps even to measure exposure to environmental pollutants.
At Columbia University Dr. Liasy Faris and colleagues are studying tears for clues to the diagnosis of diseases away from the eyes. Tears can be obtained painlessly without invading the body and only tiny amounts are needed to perform highly refined analyses. | 4229.txt | 0 |
[
"when young children are denied admittance to grade schools",
"when vocational subjects are taught in schools",
"when children are entitled to adult education",
"when children are permitted to act of their own free will"
] | By "permissive period of education" the author means an age _ . | "It hurts me more than you," and "This is for your own good." These are the statements my mother used to make years age when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework.
That was before we entered the permissive period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school.
The schools and the educators made it easy on us. They taught that it was all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy. We stopped making our children do homework. We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation.
Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we've made a terrible mistake. One such teacher is Sharon Klompus who says of her students ----- "so passive" ----- and wonders what happened. Nothing was demanded of them, she believes. Television, says Klompus, contributes to children's passivity; "We're not training kids to work any more." says Klompus. "We're talking about a generation of kids who've never been hurt or hungry. They have learned somebody will always do it for them. Instead of saying go look it up, you tell them the answer. It takes greater energy to say no to a kid."
Yes, it does. It takes energy and it takes work. It's time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work. It's time to take the car away, to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it's for their own good, It's time start telling them no again. | 2744.txt | 3 |
[
"discipline",
"creativity",
"school education",
"individual work"
] | We learn from the passage that the author's mother used to attach importance to _ | "It hurts me more than you," and "This is for your own good." These are the statements my mother used to make years age when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework.
That was before we entered the permissive period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school.
The schools and the educators made it easy on us. They taught that it was all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy. We stopped making our children do homework. We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation.
Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we've made a terrible mistake. One such teacher is Sharon Klompus who says of her students ----- "so passive" ----- and wonders what happened. Nothing was demanded of them, she believes. Television, says Klompus, contributes to children's passivity; "We're not training kids to work any more." says Klompus. "We're talking about a generation of kids who've never been hurt or hungry. They have learned somebody will always do it for them. Instead of saying go look it up, you tell them the answer. It takes greater energy to say no to a kid."
Yes, it does. It takes energy and it takes work. It's time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work. It's time to take the car away, to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it's for their own good, It's time start telling them no again. | 2744.txt | 0 |
[
"it is easier to give a negative reply than to give a positive reply",
"it is easier to give a positive reply than to give a negative reply",
"neither is easy ------ to say yes or to say no",
"neither is no easy job -------- to say yes or to say no"
] | To today's kids as described in this passage, _ . | "It hurts me more than you," and "This is for your own good." These are the statements my mother used to make years age when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework.
That was before we entered the permissive period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school.
The schools and the educators made it easy on us. They taught that it was all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy. We stopped making our children do homework. We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation.
Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we've made a terrible mistake. One such teacher is Sharon Klompus who says of her students ----- "so passive" ----- and wonders what happened. Nothing was demanded of them, she believes. Television, says Klompus, contributes to children's passivity; "We're not training kids to work any more." says Klompus. "We're talking about a generation of kids who've never been hurt or hungry. They have learned somebody will always do it for them. Instead of saying go look it up, you tell them the answer. It takes greater energy to say no to a kid."
Yes, it does. It takes energy and it takes work. It's time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work. It's time to take the car away, to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it's for their own good, It's time start telling them no again. | 2744.txt | 1 |
[
"parents should set a good example for their kids",
"kids should have more activities outside campus",
"educators should not he so permissive",
"it is time to be strict with our children"
] | The main idea of this passage is that _ . | "It hurts me more than you," and "This is for your own good." These are the statements my mother used to make years age when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework.
That was before we entered the permissive period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school.
The schools and the educators made it easy on us. They taught that it was all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy. We stopped making our children do homework. We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation.
Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we've made a terrible mistake. One such teacher is Sharon Klompus who says of her students ----- "so passive" ----- and wonders what happened. Nothing was demanded of them, she believes. Television, says Klompus, contributes to children's passivity; "We're not training kids to work any more." says Klompus. "We're talking about a generation of kids who've never been hurt or hungry. They have learned somebody will always do it for them. Instead of saying go look it up, you tell them the answer. It takes greater energy to say no to a kid."
Yes, it does. It takes energy and it takes work. It's time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work. It's time to take the car away, to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it's for their own good, It's time start telling them no again. | 2744.txt | 3 |
[
"communicate with others by high-tech methods continually",
"prefer to live a virtual life than a real one",
"are equipped with more modem digital techniques",
"know more on technology than their elders"
] | Compared with their Millennial elders, the iGeneration kids | They're still kids, and although there's a lot that the experts don't yet know about them, one thing they do agree on is that what kids use and expect from their world has changed rapidly. And it's all because of technology.
To the psychologists, sociologists, and generational and media experts who study them, their digital gear sets this new group apart, even from their tech-savvy Millennial elders. They want to be constantly connected and available in a way even their older siblings don't quite get. These differences may appear slight, but they signal an all-encompassing sensibility that some say marks the dawning of a new generation.
The contrast between Millennials and this younger group was so evident to psychologist Larry Rosen of California State University that he has declared the birth of a new generation in a new book, Rewired: Understanding the ingeneration and the Way They Learn, out next month. Rosen says the tech-dominated life experience of those born since the early 1990s is so different from the Millennials he wrote about in his 2007 book, Me, MySpace and I: Parenting the Net Generation, that they warrant the distinction of a new generation, which he has dubbed the "ingeneration".
"The technology is the easiest way to see it, but it's also a mind-set, and the mind-set goes with the little ‘i', which I'm talking to stand for 'individualized'," Rosen says. "Everything is defined and individualized to ‘me'. My music choices are defined to ' me'. What I watch on TV any instant is defined to ‘me'. " He says the iGeneration includes today's teens and middle-school ers, but it's too soon to tell about elementary-school ages and younger.
Rosen says the iGeneration believes anything is possible. "If they can think of it, somebody probably has or will invent it," he says. "They expect innovation."
They have high expectations that whatever they want or can use "will be able to be tailored to their own needs and wishes and desires."
Rosen says portability is key. They are inseparable from their wireless devices, which allow them to text as well as talk, so they can be constantly connected-even in class, where cell phones are supposedly banned.
Many researchers are trying t6 determine whether technology somehow causes the brains of young people to be wired differently. "They should be distracted and should perform more poorly than they do," Rosen says. "But findings show teens survive distractions much better than we would predict by their age and their brain development. "
Because these kids are more immersed and at younger ages, Rosen says, the educational system has to change significantly.
"The growth curve on the use of technology with children is exponential, and we run the risk of being out of step with this generation as far as how they learn and how they think," Rosen says.
"We have to give them options because they want their world individualized. " | 882.txt | 0 |
[
"Because this generation is featured by the use of personal high-tech devices.",
"Because this generation stresses on an individualized style of life.",
"Because it is the author himself who has discovered the new generation.",
"Because it's a mind-set generation instead of an age-set one."
] | Why did Larry Rosen name the new generation as iGeneration? | They're still kids, and although there's a lot that the experts don't yet know about them, one thing they do agree on is that what kids use and expect from their world has changed rapidly. And it's all because of technology.
To the psychologists, sociologists, and generational and media experts who study them, their digital gear sets this new group apart, even from their tech-savvy Millennial elders. They want to be constantly connected and available in a way even their older siblings don't quite get. These differences may appear slight, but they signal an all-encompassing sensibility that some say marks the dawning of a new generation.
The contrast between Millennials and this younger group was so evident to psychologist Larry Rosen of California State University that he has declared the birth of a new generation in a new book, Rewired: Understanding the ingeneration and the Way They Learn, out next month. Rosen says the tech-dominated life experience of those born since the early 1990s is so different from the Millennials he wrote about in his 2007 book, Me, MySpace and I: Parenting the Net Generation, that they warrant the distinction of a new generation, which he has dubbed the "ingeneration".
"The technology is the easiest way to see it, but it's also a mind-set, and the mind-set goes with the little ‘i', which I'm talking to stand for 'individualized'," Rosen says. "Everything is defined and individualized to ‘me'. My music choices are defined to ' me'. What I watch on TV any instant is defined to ‘me'. " He says the iGeneration includes today's teens and middle-school ers, but it's too soon to tell about elementary-school ages and younger.
Rosen says the iGeneration believes anything is possible. "If they can think of it, somebody probably has or will invent it," he says. "They expect innovation."
They have high expectations that whatever they want or can use "will be able to be tailored to their own needs and wishes and desires."
Rosen says portability is key. They are inseparable from their wireless devices, which allow them to text as well as talk, so they can be constantly connected-even in class, where cell phones are supposedly banned.
Many researchers are trying t6 determine whether technology somehow causes the brains of young people to be wired differently. "They should be distracted and should perform more poorly than they do," Rosen says. "But findings show teens survive distractions much better than we would predict by their age and their brain development. "
Because these kids are more immersed and at younger ages, Rosen says, the educational system has to change significantly.
"The growth curve on the use of technology with children is exponential, and we run the risk of being out of step with this generation as far as how they learn and how they think," Rosen says.
"We have to give them options because they want their world individualized. " | 882.txt | 1 |
[
"This generation is crazy about inventing and creating new things.",
"Everything must be adapted to the peculiar need of the generation.",
"This generation catches up with the development of technology.",
"High-tech such as wireless devices goes with the generation."
] | Which of the following is true about the iGeneration according to Rosen? | They're still kids, and although there's a lot that the experts don't yet know about them, one thing they do agree on is that what kids use and expect from their world has changed rapidly. And it's all because of technology.
To the psychologists, sociologists, and generational and media experts who study them, their digital gear sets this new group apart, even from their tech-savvy Millennial elders. They want to be constantly connected and available in a way even their older siblings don't quite get. These differences may appear slight, but they signal an all-encompassing sensibility that some say marks the dawning of a new generation.
The contrast between Millennials and this younger group was so evident to psychologist Larry Rosen of California State University that he has declared the birth of a new generation in a new book, Rewired: Understanding the ingeneration and the Way They Learn, out next month. Rosen says the tech-dominated life experience of those born since the early 1990s is so different from the Millennials he wrote about in his 2007 book, Me, MySpace and I: Parenting the Net Generation, that they warrant the distinction of a new generation, which he has dubbed the "ingeneration".
"The technology is the easiest way to see it, but it's also a mind-set, and the mind-set goes with the little ‘i', which I'm talking to stand for 'individualized'," Rosen says. "Everything is defined and individualized to ‘me'. My music choices are defined to ' me'. What I watch on TV any instant is defined to ‘me'. " He says the iGeneration includes today's teens and middle-school ers, but it's too soon to tell about elementary-school ages and younger.
Rosen says the iGeneration believes anything is possible. "If they can think of it, somebody probably has or will invent it," he says. "They expect innovation."
They have high expectations that whatever they want or can use "will be able to be tailored to their own needs and wishes and desires."
Rosen says portability is key. They are inseparable from their wireless devices, which allow them to text as well as talk, so they can be constantly connected-even in class, where cell phones are supposedly banned.
Many researchers are trying t6 determine whether technology somehow causes the brains of young people to be wired differently. "They should be distracted and should perform more poorly than they do," Rosen says. "But findings show teens survive distractions much better than we would predict by their age and their brain development. "
Because these kids are more immersed and at younger ages, Rosen says, the educational system has to change significantly.
"The growth curve on the use of technology with children is exponential, and we run the risk of being out of step with this generation as far as how they learn and how they think," Rosen says.
"We have to give them options because they want their world individualized. " | 882.txt | 3 |
[
"has an obvious effect on the function of iGeneration's brain development",
"has greatly affected the iGeneration's behaviors and academic performance",
"has no significantly negative effect on iGeneration's mental and intellectual development",
"has caused distraction problems on iGeneration which affect their daily performance"
] | Rosen's findings suggest that technology | They're still kids, and although there's a lot that the experts don't yet know about them, one thing they do agree on is that what kids use and expect from their world has changed rapidly. And it's all because of technology.
To the psychologists, sociologists, and generational and media experts who study them, their digital gear sets this new group apart, even from their tech-savvy Millennial elders. They want to be constantly connected and available in a way even their older siblings don't quite get. These differences may appear slight, but they signal an all-encompassing sensibility that some say marks the dawning of a new generation.
The contrast between Millennials and this younger group was so evident to psychologist Larry Rosen of California State University that he has declared the birth of a new generation in a new book, Rewired: Understanding the ingeneration and the Way They Learn, out next month. Rosen says the tech-dominated life experience of those born since the early 1990s is so different from the Millennials he wrote about in his 2007 book, Me, MySpace and I: Parenting the Net Generation, that they warrant the distinction of a new generation, which he has dubbed the "ingeneration".
"The technology is the easiest way to see it, but it's also a mind-set, and the mind-set goes with the little ‘i', which I'm talking to stand for 'individualized'," Rosen says. "Everything is defined and individualized to ‘me'. My music choices are defined to ' me'. What I watch on TV any instant is defined to ‘me'. " He says the iGeneration includes today's teens and middle-school ers, but it's too soon to tell about elementary-school ages and younger.
Rosen says the iGeneration believes anything is possible. "If they can think of it, somebody probably has or will invent it," he says. "They expect innovation."
They have high expectations that whatever they want or can use "will be able to be tailored to their own needs and wishes and desires."
Rosen says portability is key. They are inseparable from their wireless devices, which allow them to text as well as talk, so they can be constantly connected-even in class, where cell phones are supposedly banned.
Many researchers are trying t6 determine whether technology somehow causes the brains of young people to be wired differently. "They should be distracted and should perform more poorly than they do," Rosen says. "But findings show teens survive distractions much better than we would predict by their age and their brain development. "
Because these kids are more immersed and at younger ages, Rosen says, the educational system has to change significantly.
"The growth curve on the use of technology with children is exponential, and we run the risk of being out of step with this generation as far as how they learn and how they think," Rosen says.
"We have to give them options because they want their world individualized. " | 882.txt | 2 |
[
"adapt its system to the need of the new generation",
"use more technologies to cater for the iGeneration",
"risk its system to certain extent for the iGeneration",
"be conducted online for iGeneration's individualized need"
] | According to the passage, education has to _ | They're still kids, and although there's a lot that the experts don't yet know about them, one thing they do agree on is that what kids use and expect from their world has changed rapidly. And it's all because of technology.
To the psychologists, sociologists, and generational and media experts who study them, their digital gear sets this new group apart, even from their tech-savvy Millennial elders. They want to be constantly connected and available in a way even their older siblings don't quite get. These differences may appear slight, but they signal an all-encompassing sensibility that some say marks the dawning of a new generation.
The contrast between Millennials and this younger group was so evident to psychologist Larry Rosen of California State University that he has declared the birth of a new generation in a new book, Rewired: Understanding the ingeneration and the Way They Learn, out next month. Rosen says the tech-dominated life experience of those born since the early 1990s is so different from the Millennials he wrote about in his 2007 book, Me, MySpace and I: Parenting the Net Generation, that they warrant the distinction of a new generation, which he has dubbed the "ingeneration".
"The technology is the easiest way to see it, but it's also a mind-set, and the mind-set goes with the little ‘i', which I'm talking to stand for 'individualized'," Rosen says. "Everything is defined and individualized to ‘me'. My music choices are defined to ' me'. What I watch on TV any instant is defined to ‘me'. " He says the iGeneration includes today's teens and middle-school ers, but it's too soon to tell about elementary-school ages and younger.
Rosen says the iGeneration believes anything is possible. "If they can think of it, somebody probably has or will invent it," he says. "They expect innovation."
They have high expectations that whatever they want or can use "will be able to be tailored to their own needs and wishes and desires."
Rosen says portability is key. They are inseparable from their wireless devices, which allow them to text as well as talk, so they can be constantly connected-even in class, where cell phones are supposedly banned.
Many researchers are trying t6 determine whether technology somehow causes the brains of young people to be wired differently. "They should be distracted and should perform more poorly than they do," Rosen says. "But findings show teens survive distractions much better than we would predict by their age and their brain development. "
Because these kids are more immersed and at younger ages, Rosen says, the educational system has to change significantly.
"The growth curve on the use of technology with children is exponential, and we run the risk of being out of step with this generation as far as how they learn and how they think," Rosen says.
"We have to give them options because they want their world individualized. " | 882.txt | 0 |
[
"The number of earthquakes is closely related to depth.",
"Roughly the same number of earthquakes occur each year.",
"Earthquakes are impossible at depths over 460 miles.",
"Earthquakes are most likely to occur near the surfaces."
] | Which of the following CANNOT be concluded from the passage? | Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth's surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as high as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total number of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.
The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a toy house with an erect set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthquake in Agadir, Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it completely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a building is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earthquakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very serious factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result.
The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of most practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous earthquakes almost a thing of the past.
There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caused by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis. (These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrect. They have nothing to do with tides.)
In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. These submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbors, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbor waves", because they reach a sizable height only in harbors.
Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves.
But this only enables people to leave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave. | 21.txt | 2 |
[
"faulty building construction",
"an earthquake's strength",
"widespread panic in earthquakes",
"ineffective instruments"
] | The destruction of Agadir is an example of | Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth's surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as high as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total number of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.
The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a toy house with an erect set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthquake in Agadir, Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it completely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a building is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earthquakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very serious factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result.
The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of most practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous earthquakes almost a thing of the past.
There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caused by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis. (These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrect. They have nothing to do with tides.)
In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. These submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbors, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbor waves", because they reach a sizable height only in harbors.
Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves.
But this only enables people to leave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave. | 21.txt | 0 |
[
"construct strong buildings",
"put forward proposals",
"detect disastrous earthquakes",
"monitor earthquakes"
] | The United Nations' experts are supposed to _ . | Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth's surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as high as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total number of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.
The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a toy house with an erect set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthquake in Agadir, Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it completely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a building is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earthquakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very serious factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result.
The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of most practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous earthquakes almost a thing of the past.
There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caused by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis. (These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrect. They have nothing to do with tides.)
In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. These submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbors, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbor waves", because they reach a sizable height only in harbors.
Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves.
But this only enables people to leave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave. | 21.txt | 1 |
[
"notice them out at sea",
"find ways to stop them",
"be warned early enough",
"develop warning systems"
] | The significance of the slow speed of tsunamis is that people may | Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth's surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as high as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total number of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.
The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a toy house with an erect set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthquake in Agadir, Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it completely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a building is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earthquakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very serious factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result.
The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of most practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous earthquakes almost a thing of the past.
There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caused by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis. (These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrect. They have nothing to do with tides.)
In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. These submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbors, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbor waves", because they reach a sizable height only in harbors.
Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves.
But this only enables people to leave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave. | 21.txt | 2 |
[
"come from different situations in one's life",
"are largely affected by one's behavior",
"remain unchanged in one's daily life",
"could be chosen according to one's will"
] | According to the passage, attitudes _ . | Attitude is an internal (） state that influences the choices of personal action made by the individual (）. Some researchers consider that attitudes come from differences between beliefs and ideas; others believe that attitudes come from emotional states. Here, we focus on the effects of attitudes upon behavior, that is, upon the choices of action made by the individual.
The kinds of actions taken by human beings are obviously influenced greatly by attitudes. Whether one listens to classical music or rock, whether one obeys the speed limit while driving, whether one encourages one's husband or wife to express his or her own ideas - all are influenced by attitudes. These internal states are acquired(）throughout life from situations one is faced with in the home, in the streets, and in the school.
Of course, the course of action chosen by an individual in any situation will be largely determined by the particulars of that situation. An individual who has a strong attitude of obeying laws may drive too fast when he is in a hurry and no police cars in sight. A child who has a strong attitude of honesty may steal a penny when she thinks no one will notice. But the internal state which remains unchanged over a period of time, and which makes the individual behave regularly in a variety of situations, is what is meant by an attitude.
Attitudes are learned in a variety of ways. They can result from single incidents, as when an attitude toward snakes is acquired by an experience in childhood at the sudden movement of a snake. They can result from the individual's experiences of success and pleasure, as when someone acquires a positive attitude toward doing crossword puzzles by being able to complete some of them. And frequently, they are learned by copying other people's behavior, as when a child learns how to behave toward foreigners by observing the actions of his parents. Regardless of these differences, there is something in common in the learning and modification (） of attitudes. | 3676.txt | 0 |
[
"people often make mistakes when they are not noticed",
"people with good attitudes may sometimes do bad deeds",
"particulars of a situation may influence an individual's action",
"an individual may change his or her attitude fairly easily"
] | The author uses the examples in Paragraph 3 to show. | Attitude is an internal (） state that influences the choices of personal action made by the individual (）. Some researchers consider that attitudes come from differences between beliefs and ideas; others believe that attitudes come from emotional states. Here, we focus on the effects of attitudes upon behavior, that is, upon the choices of action made by the individual.
The kinds of actions taken by human beings are obviously influenced greatly by attitudes. Whether one listens to classical music or rock, whether one obeys the speed limit while driving, whether one encourages one's husband or wife to express his or her own ideas - all are influenced by attitudes. These internal states are acquired(）throughout life from situations one is faced with in the home, in the streets, and in the school.
Of course, the course of action chosen by an individual in any situation will be largely determined by the particulars of that situation. An individual who has a strong attitude of obeying laws may drive too fast when he is in a hurry and no police cars in sight. A child who has a strong attitude of honesty may steal a penny when she thinks no one will notice. But the internal state which remains unchanged over a period of time, and which makes the individual behave regularly in a variety of situations, is what is meant by an attitude.
Attitudes are learned in a variety of ways. They can result from single incidents, as when an attitude toward snakes is acquired by an experience in childhood at the sudden movement of a snake. They can result from the individual's experiences of success and pleasure, as when someone acquires a positive attitude toward doing crossword puzzles by being able to complete some of them. And frequently, they are learned by copying other people's behavior, as when a child learns how to behave toward foreigners by observing the actions of his parents. Regardless of these differences, there is something in common in the learning and modification (） of attitudes. | 3676.txt | 2 |
[
"Attitudes are only learned through one's success.",
"Attitudes learned in danger will last longer.",
"Copying others' behavior is not a good idea.",
"Attitudes can be learned from one's parents."
] | Which of the following is TRUE about the learning of attitudes? | Attitude is an internal (） state that influences the choices of personal action made by the individual (）. Some researchers consider that attitudes come from differences between beliefs and ideas; others believe that attitudes come from emotional states. Here, we focus on the effects of attitudes upon behavior, that is, upon the choices of action made by the individual.
The kinds of actions taken by human beings are obviously influenced greatly by attitudes. Whether one listens to classical music or rock, whether one obeys the speed limit while driving, whether one encourages one's husband or wife to express his or her own ideas - all are influenced by attitudes. These internal states are acquired(）throughout life from situations one is faced with in the home, in the streets, and in the school.
Of course, the course of action chosen by an individual in any situation will be largely determined by the particulars of that situation. An individual who has a strong attitude of obeying laws may drive too fast when he is in a hurry and no police cars in sight. A child who has a strong attitude of honesty may steal a penny when she thinks no one will notice. But the internal state which remains unchanged over a period of time, and which makes the individual behave regularly in a variety of situations, is what is meant by an attitude.
Attitudes are learned in a variety of ways. They can result from single incidents, as when an attitude toward snakes is acquired by an experience in childhood at the sudden movement of a snake. They can result from the individual's experiences of success and pleasure, as when someone acquires a positive attitude toward doing crossword puzzles by being able to complete some of them. And frequently, they are learned by copying other people's behavior, as when a child learns how to behave toward foreigners by observing the actions of his parents. Regardless of these differences, there is something in common in the learning and modification (） of attitudes. | 3676.txt | 3 |
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