Women work harder than men at university and get better degrees as a result, according to a study at Brunel University. The research, which followed 200 students for four years, found that women consistently outperformed men in their studies even though they had started their courses with almost identical A-level grades. An analysis of the results showed that while 65 percent of female graduates were awarded, only 35 percent of male graduates did as well. Girls are known to outperform boys at school, but this research showed that trend continued at university. Fiona Smith, who led the research, said, "The research shows that the difference has something to do with schools in general." "It also shows something about the inequality for working women in terms of pay and promotion. Women work harder at school, harder at university, and do better at both, but they still receive less pay." The research found that female students were more faithful, less likely to miss lectures, and more likely to believe that their marks reflected their abilities than male students. Female students were also more likely to ask for and receive support from their professors. Women were also more likely to choose their universities because they liked the courses offered. In contrast, men were more likely than women to miss lectures due to "other affairs" and "laziness", and to believe that playing sports was an important part of university life. Generally, people think that women's success comes from more emphasis on coursework, but the research showed that female geographers at Brunel did better in their exams than in their coursework. Dr Smith said, "Most women feel that getting good grades is the most important part of university life. They believe that they need to work harder in order to compete in the male-dominated   environment they will encounter at work. Good grades are viewed as an 'insurance policy' for success. Men, on the other hand, prefer going out and playing sports to academic work." "This research shows how... The main purpose of the research is to   _  . A) give the government some advice on higher education B) show us some information about higher education C) show the sex difference in higher education D) make all students work hard and realize the importance of higher education
D

SYDNEY 2005-01-01 08:30--Mother of two, Jillian Searle, had to choose between her children when she made a life--or--death decision. Swept up by mountainous tsunami waves at a Thai resort, she could not hold on to both her young sons and survive. Fighting to stay above the waters, she had to choose which one would have to take his chances in the swirling torrent. "I knew I had to let go of one of them and I just thought I'd better let go of the one that's the older," she told Sky News television in a report broadcast on Thursday. She said she was accompanied by the two, Lachie, 5, and two--year--old Blake, and their father, Brad, who had watched the drama helplessly from their first-floor hotel room, when the waves struck." And I was screaming, trying to find _ , and we thought he was dead."she told reporters on arrival back in Australia. Lachie was found alive about 2 hours later clinging to a door and looked uninjured as his mother spoke to reporters. British surfer Martin Markwell is also a lucky man. He had always dreamed of catching that perfect wave--but when it finally came along, it was a nightmare. He was on his surfboard when he was swept up by a tsunami wave. "It was really terrible because I was surfing, I was really surfing on a wave I wasn't supposed to be on,"he said. "As an experienced surfer, when I saw the wave come I realized something was wrong, but I couldn't escape because my surfboard was tied to my ankle." His wife, Vicki and son Jake looked on in horror from a hotel balcony as he crashed towards the shore. Luckily, he stayed atop his board until he reached the hotel, jumped off and got to safety as the ocean rolled back to feed a much larger tsunami wave on its way. The family regrouped and ran to safety just minute before a giant tsunami wave 10 meters high. Which of the following is the best title? A) Narrow Escape B) Disaster Caused by Tsunami C) Exciting Surfing Experience D) Struggle Against Tsunami
A

South Africa hosted the fifth BRICS Summit in March 2013,which completed the first cycle of BRICS summits,BRICS is an acronym for the powerful grouping of the world's leading up-and-coming economies,namely Brazil,Russia,India,China and South Africa.The BRICS aims to achieve peace,security,development and cooperation.It also seeks to contribute to the development of humanity and build a more stable and fairer world. The industry leaders from the business communities of the five countries agreed that the BRICS countries will actively support industrialization on the African continent in order to contribute significantly to its development and to expand trade links between Africa and  BRICS.The global economic situation,though improving,continues to remain uncertain with the Euro-crisis a major concern.The task ahead is to build on these developments and BRICS countries remain committed to the cause of promoting sustainable growth.Greater economic cooperation among BRICS countries can be significantly important,which will prove beneficial for global economic growth. According to Dr.Rob Davies,South African Minister of Trade and Industry,the African continent is recognized as the second fastest growing continent after Asia.There are four drivers of the economic growth in African continent.These are the boom in mineral products in the African continent,the development of the service industries,the benefit of not having the financial crisis,and infrastructure development.Davies also adds that other BRICS countries have advantage of large populations providing big home markets for their products.The South African population is small compared to other BRICS countries,but if you add up numbers on continent then you have a critical mass that can support the new industrial wave in Africa:That is why the South African needs to create large trading blocks across large parts of African continent. "BRICS" refers to  _  . A) the most active economy group in today's world B) the most powerful economies in western world C) leading countries with fast development of humanity D) the most stable and secure countries in the world

A