Below is a selection from a popular science book. If blood is red, why are veins  blue? Actually, veins are not blue at all. They are more of a clear, yellowish colour. Although blood looks red when it's outside the body, when it's sitting in a vein near the surface of the skin, it's more of a dark reddish purple colour. At the right depth, these blood-filled veins reflect less red light than the surrounding skin, making them look blue by comparison. Which works harder, your heart or your brain? This question depends on whether you're busy thinking or busy exercising. Your heart works up to three times harder during exercise, and shifts enough blood over a lifetime to fill a supertanker. But, in the long run, your brain probably tips it, because even when you're sitting still your brain is using twice as much energy as your heart, and it takes four to five times as much blood to feed it. Do old people shrink as they age? Yes and no. Many people do get shorter as they age. But, when they do, it isn't because they're shrinking all over. They simply lose height as their spine  becomes shorter and more curved due to disuse and the effects of gravity . Many (but not all) men and women do lose height as they get older. Men lose an average of 3-4 cm in height as they age, while women may lose 5 cm or more. If you live to be 200 years old, would you keep shrinking till you were, like 60 cm tall, like a little boy again?No, because old people don't really shrink!It is not that they are growing backwards--their legs, arms and backbones getting shorter. When they do get shorter, it's because the spine has shortened a little. Or, more often, become more bent and curved. Why does spinning make you dizzy ? Because your brain gets confused between what you're seeing and what you're feeling. The brain senses that you're spinning using special gravity and motion sensing organs in your inner ear, which work together with your eyes to keep your vision and balance stable. But when you suddenly stop spinning , the system goes out... Which of the following statements about our brain is TRUE? A) In the long run, our brain probably works harder than our heart. B) When our brain senses the spinning, we will feel dizzy. C) The brains of the other mammals are as complex as those of humans. D) Our feelings and emotions come from the most developed area in our brain.
A

The Crouch quadruplets have always been considered quite special but not so special---all four have been accepted into America's Yale University. Dean  at the university, Jeffrey Brenzel, said the admission  for Kenny, Martina, Ray and Carol, all 18-year-old students at Danbury High School in Connecticut , was probably the  first for the university. "The living memory in the office here shows that we've just had twins, never quadruplets," he told the reporters. "They are all interesting and quite smart in their own way. They are extremely lively kids, very attractive, but clearly four different people. They are all in the top 10 percent of the class."     The quadruplets explained to The New York Times how they nervously logged on one by one to the Yale website to discover their fates, First was Ray, who described how the screen suddenly turned Yale blue and displayed the university's bulldog mascot  with the message "welcome to the Class of 2014". "We just kept logging on and screaming, logging on and screaming,' Martina, last to find out, said in an interview with the local television station WINH-TV. Until May 1 they have to decide whether to accept Yale's offers and part of the decision will come down to money, they told the Times.  Their father Steven works as a case manager with the Connecticut mental health department and their mother, Caroline, who originally came from Nigeria, is studying for her master's degree in social work, according to the Times.      Ranked as one of the top three universities in the US after Harvard and Princeton, Yale's school fees each year can be as high as 36,500 dollars, which would land the Crouch family with a very heavy load by the time they graduate in 2014. How much money will their parents spend on their four-year schooling ? A) $36,500 B) $146,000 C) $584,000 D) $292,000
C

Some disabled people use a special card when they park their cars. These are called disabled placards, which are removable signs that can be hung from the rear-view  mirror of a car. These placards are only supposed to be for disabled people. These placards are meant to help disabled people in a number of ways. They allow the person to park in special parking spaces. They can also be used when disabled people are being dropped off or picked up. Disabled people can even use them to park without having to pay. Parking officials think that some people are cheating. Not all people who have these placards are disabled. Today, one in sixteen drivers in California carries the sign. There are a lot more people who have disabled placards today than ten years ago. An official from the DMV  says that there are many reasons for the increase. As people get older, they may develop health problems and need to have one. There are also other reasons why more drivers have them today. Finally, there are a number of people who have them that should not. Last year the DMV cancelled more than 25,000 permits. They found that lots of people who had the disabled placards had died. These permits are no longer valid. Some people are worried that the system is being abused. They are worried that access to the program could be limited because of the misuse. More rules could make it harder for people with real disabilities to get these placards. What can people do with the placards? A) Drivers can use them when picking up disabled people B) Disabled people can pay for parking with them. C) Drivers can use them to drive their cars. D) People can have access to DMV with them.
A

The traditional tent cities at festivals such as prefix = st1 /Glastonburymay never be the same again. In a victory of green business that is certain to appeal to environmentally-aware music-lovers, a design student is to receive financial support to produce eco-friendly tens made of cardboard that can be recycled after the bands and the crowds have gone home. Major festivals such as Glastonburythrow away some 10,000 abandoned tents at the end of events each year. For his final year project at the University of the West of England, James Dunlop came up with a material that can be recycled. And to cope with the British summer, the cardboard has been made waterproof. Taking inspiration from a Japanese architect, who has used cardboard to make big buildings including churches, Mr. Dunlop used cardboard material for his tents, which he called Myhabs. The design won an award at the annual New Designers Exhibition after Mr. Dunlop Graduated from his product design degree and he decided to try to turn it into a business. To raise money for the idea, he toured the City's private companies which fund new businesses and found a supporter in the finance group Mint. He introduced his idea to four of Mint's directors and won their support. Mint has committed around PS500,000 to MyHab and taken a share of 30 per cent in Mr. Dunlop's business. The first Myhabs should be tested at festivals this summer, before being marketed fully next year. Mr. Dunlop said that the design, which accommodates two people, could have other uses, such as for disaster relief and housing for the London Olympics. For music events, the cardboard houses will be ordered online and put up at the sites by the Myhab team before the festival-goers arrive and removed by the company afterwards, They can be Personalized and the company will offer reductions on the expense if people agree to sell exterior  advertising space. The biggest festivals attract tens of thousands of participants, with Glastonburyhaving some 150,000 each year. Altogether there are... The passage is mainly concerned with_. A) an attempt at developing recyclable tents B) some efforts at making full use of cardboards C) an unusual success of a graduation project D) the effects of using cardboard tents on music festivals

A