Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: Each spring brings a new wildflower blooming in the fields along the highway I travel daily to work. There is one particular blue flower that has always caught my eye. I've noticed that it blooms only in the morning hours. The afternoon sun is too warm for it. Every day each year for about two weeks, I see those beautiful flowers. This spring, I started a wildflower garden in my yard. I can look out of the kitchen window while doing the dishes and see the flowers. I've often thought that those lovely blue flowers from the fields would look great in that bed alongside other wildflowers. Every day I drove past the flowers, thinking, "I'll stop on my way home and dig them." "Gee, I don't want to get my good clothes dirty..." Whatever the reason, I never stopped to dig them. My husband even gave me a tool one year for that expressed purpose. One day on my way home from work, I was saddened to see that the highway department had cleared up the fields and the pretty blue flowers were gone. I thought to myself, "Way to go, you waited too long. You should have done it when you first saw them blooming this spring. " A week ago we were shocked and saddened to learn that my oldest sister-in-law has a cancer. She is 20 years older than my husband and unfortunately, because of age and distance, we haven't been as close as we all would have liked. I couldn't help but see the connection between the pretty blue flowers and the relationship between my husband's sister and us. I do believe that God has given us some time left to plant some wonderful memories that will bloom every year for us. And yes, if I see the blue flowers again, I'm sure I'll stop and transplant them to my wildflower garden. Question: How long might the blue flower bloom in spring? Answer:

A: About two weeks


Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: Some people may be born happy, while others are genetically negative, scientists have suggested in a study published late February in a British journal. Earlier research had already established that the gene known as 5-HTTLPR plays a key role in determining how the neurotransmitter   serotonin works within the brain. Serotonin, a hormone  , passes chemical messages between nerve cells. It has been closely linked to mood. Several anti-depressant   drugs regulate serotonin levels.    Scientists had also identified three variants   of the gene. Two so-called "short" variants were linked to a higher risk of depression and suicide attempts. Unlike the two "short" variants, the "long" variant of 5-HTTLPR showed a clear dislike of negative images, such as fierce animals, and a clear liking for positive ones, such as flowers.    Researchers from the University of Essex in Britain showed participants a series of images, which were divided into three kinds: negative ones aimed at inspiring fear or stress such as a snake or person about to commit suicide, pleasant ones and neutral   ones.     The participants who had the long variant of the 5-HTTLPR gene "showed a clear dislike of negative material alongside a careful attention for positive material," the researchers found. They paid close attention to the pretty pictures, and ignored the frightening ones. On the other hand, the short variant groups had the opposite reaction.    In January, the Australian government organized "happiness workshops", teaching government staff how to be happy. The department that held the "happiness workshops" said unhappy staff weren't productive staff.     Australian political opposition parties have argued that the "happiness workshops" are probably a waste of money and couldn't increase productivity as intended. However, whether the workshop will have a happy or disappointing result, we will have to wait and see. Question: The article is mainly about   _  . Answer:

A: the link between people's mood and their gene


Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: Tragedy struck for brothers Rob and Paul Forkan when they lost their parents in the 2004 Asian tsunami. Now, over ten years later, they're using their flip flop business to help other orphans. The boys had an unusual childhood. They were just 11 and 13 when their parents, Kevin and Sandra, took them out of the UK education system and moved the family to Goa in India. Their parents were of the philosophy that they would receive a healthier and fuller education by traveling the world and helping others. There they did lots of voluntary work and mixed with the local community. It was when the family were on holiday in Sri Lanka that the tsunami hit. Although the children managed to escape, their parents tragically couldn't. But Paul says their upbringing meant they were able to cope with this tough blow. "Our parents gave us this confidence that we could do anything, that nothing was hard to achieve," says Paul. What the boys did was to start a business selling ethically-sourced sandals. They're called 'Gandys' after the father of India's independence movement, Mahatma Gandhi. "He was in all our schoolbooks as kids; he's on all the money over in India;  he's famous for wearing his flip flops," says Paul. The entire project was inspired by their parents' philosophy, their globetrotting childhoods and what happened to them in Sri Lanka. Their parents had previously worked in the fashion industry before quitting their jobs and focusing on humanitarian projects. Thus, Gandys is a very fitting tribute to their lives. Gandys sells flip-flops and donates 10 percent of the profits from every pair sold to orphans around the globe. In conjunction with Gandys, the Forkans also founded Orphans for Orphans, a charitable organization dedicated to helping orphans. They say they can make a profit and do good at the same time: they give 10% of their profit to charity, and have set up their own foundation through which they've been able to open a children's home in Sri Lanka. This year alone, Gandys has sold 250,000 pairs of flip... Question: What's the best title of the passage? Answer:

A: Rise Up from Tragedy to Success


Q: Read the following article and answer the question. Article: To Whom It May Concern: Your address was forwarded to us by How to Magazine.All of us here think The International Institute of Not Doing Much is the best organization in the world.You know how to avoid unnecessary activities! As a matter of fact, we closely followed the advice in your article.First, we replaced all our telephones with carrier pigeons.Simply removing the jingle of telephones and replacing them with the pleasant sounds of birds has had a remarkable effect on everyone.Besides, birds are cheaper than telephone service.After all, we are a business.We have to think of the bottom line.As a side benefit, the birds also fertilize the lawn outside the new employees' sauna . Next, we sold the computers off to Stab, Grab, Grit, and Nasty, a firm of lawyers nearby.Our electricity bill went way down.Big savings! The boss is impressed.We have completely embraced paper technology.Now that we all use pencils, doodling is on the increase, and the quality of pencil woman ship is impressive, as you can tell from my handwriting in this letter.By the way, if you can, please send this letter back to us.We can erase and reuse it.Just tie it to Maggie's leg and she'll know where to take it. Now it's very calm and quiet here.You can notice the difference.No more loud chatter on the telephones! All we hear is the scratching of pencil on paper, the sound of pigeons, and the delivery of inter-office correspondence by paper airplane. Wonderful! I've always wanted to work for an insurance company ever since I was a little girl.Now it's perfect. Sincerely yours, Eleanor Lightly Spokeswoman and Company Hair Stylist ABC Activity Insurance: insure against overdoing it Question: What is the purpose for the person to write this letter? Answer:

A: