If you live in a big city, there are many thing to drive you crazy on your daily route, and it's not just overcrowded subway trains. Vicky Zhao is a mainlander working in Hong Kong. For her, one thing she can't put up with is people standing on the wrong side of the escalator  in subway stations. "Escalators help us move faster and save time. It isn't a place to rest," the 24-year-old says. "I often see tourists block the way with their suitcases or chatting on the escalators during rush hours. _ annoys me to no end." Admitting she is not the patient type, Zhao says things are much better in Hong Kong than in cities on the mainland where "stand right, walk left" signs are often ignored. The logic behind the "stand right, walk left" escalator etiquette  seems obvious. Even though you may want to catch your breath while you're transported up or down, you should still consider others and leave enough space for people in a hurry, so that they can run and catch the train. Many cities' escalators, including London's and Beijing's, use the "stand right, walk left" system to speed up the flow of people. (Australia is an exception and you should stand on the left side instead.) But some cities discourage people from moving on escalators out of safety reasons. In Hong Kong's subway stations there are regular announcements asking people to "stand still" on escalators. Even so, most people in thisfast-paced cityobserve the "stand right, walk left" etiquette. But the people who stand on escalators defend themselves by telling the walkers not to be so impatient. The BBC quotes one stander as saying: "If the person is in such a rush, why not just take the stairs? Even when the escalator is packed and there's nowhere to move, I see these same people complaining about not being able to pass." Whatever the escalator etiquette is in the place you live or visit, do what most people are doing and always be mindful of others: leave enough space between each other, don't stay at the end of the escalator, and if someone is blocking... Which of the following statements is the writer's opinion? A) People should stand right no matter where they are. B) People should do as the Romans do and consider others. C) People should do as they like on the escalators. D) People should be seriously criticized when they block the way.
B


For years and years people have been saying that the rail ways are dead. "We can do without railways", people say as if motorcars and planes have made the railways unnecessary. We all keep hearing that trains are slow, that they lose money, and that they're dying. But this is far from the truth. In these days of expensive oil, the railways have become highly competitive with motorcars and planes. If you want to carry people or goods from place to place, they are cheaper than planes. And they have much in common with planes. A plane goes in a straight line and so does a railway. What is more, it takes you from the heart of a city into the heart of another. It doesn't leave you as a plane does, miles and miles from the city center. It doesn't hold you up as a car does, in endless traffic jams. And a single train can carry goods which no plane or motorcar could ever do. Far from being dead, the railways are very much alive. Modern railway lines give you a smooth, untroubled journey. Where else can you eat well, sleep in comfort, feel safe and enjoy the scene while you are traveling at speed at the same time? And we are only at the beginning,for we have just entered the age of  _  . Trains are traveling at 150 miles an hour and more. Soon we will be wondering why we spent so much on motorways we can't use because we have not enough money to buy the oil and planes we can't fly in for the same reason. The writer thinks that the railways, far from being dead, are very much alive because   _  . A) we can have a smooth and untroubled journey B) we'll not have enough money to fly in planes C) we can now travel in super-fast trains D) all the above
D


Q: Many years ago in a small German town, a Jewish businessman had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to the moneylender. The moneylender, who was old and ugly, fancied the businessman's beautiful daughter. So he proposed a bargain. The moneylender told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would then have to pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the black pebble, she would become the moneylender's wife and he would _ her father's debt. If she picked the white pebble, she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail. They were standing on a pebble-strewn path. As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. The sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag. No doubt she was caught in a dilemma. What would you have done if you were the girl? Careful analysis would produce three possibilities: 1.The girl should refuse to take a pebble. 2.The girl should know that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the money-lender as a cheat. 3.The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment. The above story is used with the hope that it will make us appreciate the difference between lateral  and logical thinking. Read on... The girl put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles. "Oh, how clumsy of me!" she said. "But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked." Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an... It can be inferred from the passage that   _  . A) The girl dropped the pebble onto the path on purpose B) The girl dropped the pebble onto the path by accident C) The girl didn't know there were two black pebbles in the bag D) The girl replaced a black pebble in the bag

A: A