Ques:The UK's education system is ranked  sixth best in the developed world, according to a global league table published by education firm Pearson in October,2012. The first and second places are taken by Finland and South Korea.The rankings combine international test results and data such as graduation rates between 2006 and 2010. Sir Michael Barber, Pearson's chief education adviser, says successful countries give teachers a high status and have a "culture" of education. International comparisons in education have become increasingly significant - and this latest league table is based upon a series of global test results combined with measures of education systems, such as how many people go on to university. The two education superpowers - Finland and South Korea - are followed by three other high-performing Asian education systems - Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore. The UK is then only ranked at the head of an above-average group including the Netherlands, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland. These are ahead of a middle-ranking group including the United States, Germany and France. At the lowest end are Mexico, Brazil and Indonesia. These _ draw upon tests that are taken every three or four years, in areas such as maths, science and literacy - and so present a picture lagging by several years. Looking at education systems that succeed, the study concludes that spending is important, but not as much as having a culture that is supportive of learning. It says that spending is easier to measure, but the more complex impact of a society's attitude to education can make a big difference. The success of Asian countries in these rankings reflects the high value attached to education and the expectations of parents. This can continue to be a factor when families migrate to other countries, says the report. Looking at the two top countries - Finland and South Korea - the report says that there are many big differences, but the common factor is a shared social belief in the importance of education and its "underlying moral purpose". According to Sir Michael Barber, Hong Kong's education system is ranked_in the world. A) 2nd B) 3rd C) 4th D) 5th

Ans:B
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Ques:Workers who commute by car, bus or train to the office are more likely to suffer from stress and exhaustion, according to a study. Scientists studied 12,000 employees aged between 18 and 65.They found that those who traveled to work by car or public transport reported higher levels of stress and tiredness compared to active commuters who traveled by foot or bicycle. The negative health of public transport users increased with journey time.       It is now expected that the study, from Lund University in Sweden, will encourage further   investigation into the health effects of commuting and the best forms of transportation.       Researcher Erik Hansson said:"Generally car and public transport users suffered more   everyday stress, poorer sleep quality, exhaustion and felt that they struggled with their health   compared to the active commuters."       According to the Office for National Statistics, the average Briton commutes 54 minutes   every day.       But now the scientists claim that the advantages of daily travel, such as higher pay or   housing conditions, need to be weighed against the negative health effects. Income, family background and environmental factors are other things that need to be considered.     It may also have a cost effect on industry. According to a Absence and Workplace Health   Survey, the U.K. economy lost 190 million working days to absence last year, with each employee taking an average of 6.5 days off sick, costing employers US$27 billion.     Hansson added that findings would help to reconsider the balance between economic needs, health, and the costs of working days lost. However, researchers stress that the findings, published in the journal BMC Public Health, do not prove that commuting causes ill health and   further research is needed. It hasn't been proved in the study that  _  . A) .the balance between economic needs and health is broken B) .more stay at public transport is more harmful to people C) going to work by bus is more tiring than by bike D) commuting causes ill health

Ans:D
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Ques:It is natural for young people to be critical of their parents at times and to blame them for most of the misunderstandings between them. They have always complained, more or less justly, that their parents are out of touch with modern ways; that they are possessive and dominant; that they do not trust their children to deal with problems; that they talk too much about certain problems--and that they have no sense of humor, at least in parent--child relationships. I think it is true that parents often underestimate their teenage children and also forget how they themselves felt when young. Young people often make their parents angry at their choices in clothes and hairstyles, in entertainers and music. This is not their motive. They feel cut off from the adult world into which they have not yet been accepted. So they create a culture and society of their own. Then, if it turns out that their music or entertainers or vocabulary or clothes or hairstyles make their parents angry, this gives them extra enjoyment. They feel they are superior, at least in a small way, and that they are leaders in style and taste. Sometimes you are resistant, and proud because you do not want your parents to agree what you do. If they agree, it looks as if you are betraying your own age group. But in that case, you are supposing that you are the underdog; you cannot win but at least you keep your honor. This is a passive way of looking at things. It is natural enough after long years of childhood, when you were completely under your parents' contro1. But it ignores the fact that you are now beginning to be responsible for yourself. If you plan to control your life, cooperation can be part of that plan. You can attract others, especially your parents, into doing things the way you want. You can impress others with your sense of responsibility, so that they will let you choose what you want to do. Teenagers tend to have strange clothes and hairstyles mainly because they  _  . A) want to show their existence by creating a culture of their own B) have a strong desire to be leaders in style and taste C) have no other way to enjoy themselves better D) want to make their Parents angry

Ans:A
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Ques:Tim Berners-Lee is the man who wrote the software program that led to the foundation of the World Wide Web. Britain played an important part in developing the first generation of computers. The parents of Tim Berners-Lee both worked on one of the earliest commercial   computers and talked about their work at home. As a child he would build models of computers from packing material. After graduating from Oxford University he went on to the real thing. In the 1980s, scientists were already communicating using a primitive version of e-mail. While working at a laboratory in Switzerland, Tim Berners-Lee wrote a program, which let him store these messages. This gave him another idea: write a program that will let academics  from across the world share information on a single place. In 1990 he wrote the HTTP and HTML programs which form the basis of the World Wide Web. The next year his programs were placed on to the Internet. Everyone was welcome to use them and improve them if they could. Programmers used this codes  to work with different operating systems. New things like web browsers  and search engines were developed. Between 1991 and 1994 the number of web pages rose from 10 to 100,000. In 1994 Tim Berners-Lee formed the newly formed World Wide Web consortium , or W3C. More than 200 leading companies and laboratories are represented by W3C. Together they make sure that everyone can share equally on the web. "The Web can help people to understand the way that others live and love. It helps us understand the humanity of people." he says. Which of the following is NOT true? A) The number of web pages rose rapidly in the 1990s. B) Tim's programs were placed on to the Internet in 1990. C) The World Wide Web will have an effect on the social development. D) Tim Berners-Lee made a great contribution to the computer science.

Ans:
B
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