Question: When you're surfing the Internet on your laptop from your dorm or home, do you know your personal details are being gathered secretly? And would you be surprised to know the information may be sold cheaply to advertisers and marketers? According to an investigation by The Wall Street Journal, all it takes is a tiny file in a computer-a single code consisting of a long series of numbers and letters to record the computer user's age, gender, location, favorite movies and hobbies. The newspaper reports that Lotame Solutions Inc., a New York company, uses sophisticated   software called a " beacon" to capture what people are typing on a website. Lotame packages that data into profiles   about individuals, only without their names, and sells the profiles to companies seeking customers. Batches of such data may be sold for a few dollars. The Wall Street Journal survey discovered that spying on Internet users is one of the fastest-growing businesses on the World Wide Web. The "cookie" a tiny text file put on your PC by websites or marketing firms which might be used to remember your. preferences for one site, or to track you across many sites is already old news. There are new and more complex tools such as "beacons " which scan in real time what people are doing on a webpage. These beacons instantly assess the Internet user's location, income, shopping interests and even medical conditions. Millions of Internet users around the world also face unprecedented   threats. Private, sensitive, personal and business information is being gathered and sold without their knowledge. Companies insist the information they gather is anonymous and the data is used harmlessly. But the technology has grown so powerful that even some of the biggest websites in the US don't know that they were installing intrusive files on visitors' computers. These include MSN. com and Yahoo. com. Next time you visit a webpage and find an ad banner advertising something you've been planning to buy, don't be amazed that your computer can read your mind. All of the following statements are False except   _  . A) Lotame sells the profiles about individuals to companies seeking customers with their age, gender, location, hobbies and names B) spying on Internet users is the fastest-growing businesses on the World Wide Web C) some of the biggest websites in the US know they were installing intrusive files on visitors' computers D) a tiny file in a computer-a single code consisting of a long series of numbers and letters can record users' information
Answer: D

Question: In the Netherlands,cycling isn't seen as eccrfriendly exercise; it's part of everyday life, as it's people's top choice to school and work. There are more bicycles than residents in the Netherlands. In cities like Amsterdam and The Hague, up to 70 percent of all journeys are made by bike. So how did cycling become such a popular means of transportation in the European country? In the 1970s, the Dutch government began to improve its cycling infrastructure due to both a social movement demanding safer cycling condition for children and the oil crisis in the Middle East, when oil producing countries stopped their exports to Western Europe. To make cycling safer and more appealing, the Dutch have built the widest cycling net- work in the world. The country has over 40,000 kilometers of bicycle lanes and paths,which are clearly marked. They have smooth surfaces,separate signs and lights for those on two wheels. The lanes are wide enough to allow side-by-side cycling and passing. In many cities the bike lanes are completely segregated from motorized traffic. And in many traffic situations cyclists are given priority over drivers. Sometimes, where space is limited and both must share, you can see signs showing an image of a cyclist with a car behind accompanied by the words "Bike Street:Cars are guests". As young people aren't allowed to drive alone until they are 18,cycling offers Dutch teen- agers an alternative form of freedom. The government also makes cycling training lessons a compulsory part of the Dutch school curriculum . Bike parking facilities are ubiquitous in the country. Cyclists are accommodated in the way motorists are elsewhere. Take Groningen, a city in the northeastern part of the Netherlands,for example. The city's central train station has underground parking for 10,000 bikes. We can conclude that in the Netherlands cycling is  _  . A) regarded as eco-friendly exercise B) thought of as part of people's life C) looked on as a way to lose weight D) considered as a way to entertain
Answer: B

Question: England has a longstanding problem with youngsters dropping out of training. Almost half of 17-year-olds in some parts of England have dropped out of fulltime education or training. The statistics show 49% in Thurrock and 44% in Salford have dropped out of school or job training.     Across England,31%of 17-year-olds are not in education or training.     The figures also reveal deep regional divides,with wealthier areas such as Richmon and Harrow recording18% of 17-year-olds out of official education.     The statistics confirm England's poor international standing for staying-on rates in education.     The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development considers England's drop-out rates as among the worst among the industrialised countries.     Regionally,the statistics show Yorkshire and the Humber have the highest rate of 17-year-olds not in full-time education or work-based training at 35%.     Outer London has the highest staying-on rate,with l3%of 17-year-olds having dropped out of official learning.     In the east of England this figure stands at 31%and at 29%in the South West.     Edward Davey,Liberal Democrat Shadow Education Secretary,said the government "should be ashamed"that so many youngsters were dropping out of school.     A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said the government had carried out a series of reforms,with aPS2.5 billion rise in funding for further education. Which part of England has the lowest rate of 17-year-olds dropping out of education? A) Thurrock and Salford. B) Outer London. C) Yorkshire and the Humber. D) Richmon and Harrow.
Answer:
B