Stagnant  scientific education endangers U.S. economic leadership, says a report by leading business and science figures.      Released at a congressional meeting attended by senators  and Congress members of  both parties, the report updates a 2005 science education report that led to moves to double federal  research funding.        Nevertheless, the Rising Above the Gathering Stormreview finds little improvement in U.S. elementary and secondary technical education since then.     "Our nation's future has worsened," concludes the report panel headed by former Lockheed chief Martin Norman Augustine. The report "paints a discouraging future for America if it were to continue on the  _ path it has been following'':     * U.S. K-12 education in mathematics and science ranks 48thworldwide.     * 49%of U.S. adults don't know how long it takes for the Earth to circle the sun.      Although US school achievement scores have stagnated, harming the economy as employers look elsewhere for competent workers, the report says that other nations have made gains.      If the USA's students matched Finland's, for example, analysis suggests the US economy would grow 9%-16%. "The real point is that we have to have a well-educated workforce to create  opportunities for young people," says Charles Vest,head of the National Academy of Engineering, a report sponsor. "Otherwise, we don't have a chance."    "The current economic crisis makes the link between education and employment very clear,'' says Steven Newton of the National Center for Science Education in Oakland.      In 2007, however, an analysis led by B. Lindsay Lowell of Georgetown University found that worries about US science education were overblown . It saw three times more science and engineering college graduates than job openings each year. Other reports have found top science and engineering students migrating to better-paying jobs in finance, law and medicine since the  1900s. We can conclude from what Charles Vest says that   _  . A) he is satisfied with America's science education B) improving science education helps the growth of the U. S. economy C) American young people have no chance to find good-paying jobs D) Finland's students are not as good as the USA's students in school achievement
B

Today, I felt terrible. My head was full of problems, burdens and confusion. I decided to take a walk even though I didn't know where I would go. The most extraordinary thing happened when I was on this walk. I saw an old man sitting on a chair. He was a seller of second-hand shoes. I thought he looked at least seventy years old. He seemed so tired and nobody was buying his shoes. I wanted to give him something but I had not brought anything with me. Then, a little girl came toward him. I heard the child say, "Grandfather, may I polish your shoes?" That old man took pity on her and he gave her a shoe to polish. The girl said, "I polish the shoe because I need money to buy my brother a new school uniform." I heard this and tears came to my eyes. The old man answered, "Oh, little girl. Just stop doing this. Come with me and I will buy you a school uniform." Then they walked to a market and I followed them behind. There he bought her a school uniform. The girl said, "Thank you so much for doing this. May God bless you." Then she left, leaving the old man smiling. He walked away from the market, but I stopped him. I whispered in his ear, "You are a hero! Thank you for your kindness!" As I walked away, I glanced back and I could see him still smiling. My own sadness disappeared and was chased away   by the light of this kind act. I began realizing that I have a lot to be thankful for. I hope, some day, I can show my appreciation of what I have by following the example of the old man who only had a little, but shared it beautifully with someone who had nothing. Why did the girl offer to polish shoes for the old man? A) She took pity on him. B) She wanted to take care of him. C) She meant to be friendly to him. D) She expected to get help from him.
D

With the development of society and economy, animals and their habitats are getting pushed aside as households decrease in size and increase in number. Small numbers of people per household on average use more energy and goods per person. Greater numbers of households require more natural resources for construction. The possible result of this problem may be _ natural resources to meet consumer demand without endangering habitats important to biodiversity. Personal freedom and social choice may come at huge environmental cost. Direct costs include visible damage to animal habitats and plant life. Indirect costs include the release of more greenhouse gases. The effects of such "personal freedom and social choice" have already surfaced in south-west China's Wolong Nature Reserve. In Wolong, they found that a reduced average household size was directly tied to an increase in homes, and thus an increase in the amount of firewood consumed for cooking and heating. The rise in wood fuel use has contributed to disappearance of forests and to the loss of habitats for giant pandas. Curious about whether other parts of the world were experiencing similar phenomena, they got the support of a team of researchers including Stanford's Paul Ehrlich, well-known for his population studies, to find out the household dynamics in 141 countries between 1985 and 2000. Their study proved that the difficult choice of Wolong is part of a global trend. In the 76 countries considered biodiversity "hotspots", such as the United States, Brazil, Australia, and Kenya, the number of households grew by 3.1% every year, while the population increased just 1.8%. Meanwhile, the number of people per home dropped from 4.7 to 4.0. The decline in household size has resulted in 155 million additional households in hotspot countries, almost always limiting biodiversity. In the 10 non-hotspot countries -- those without high-density areas of animal and plant species -- similar results were found, though on a lesser scale. Even in countries experiencing... It can be learned from the passage that China's Wolong Nature Reserve  _ A) is facing the same threat as many other parts of the world B) sets a good example in protecting animals C) is a place where giant pandas and their habitats are not affected D) is a place where animals and their habitats are seriously damaged

A