( C )

If you have a chance to go to Finland, you will probably be surprised to find how “foolish” the Finnish people are.

Take the taxi drivers for example. Taxis in Finland are mostly high-class Benz with a fare of two US dollars a kilometer. You can go anywhere in one, tell the driver to drop you at any place, say that you have some business to attend to, and then walk off without paying your fare. The driver would not show the least sign of anxiety.

The dining rooms in all big hotels not only serve their guests, but also serve outside diners. Hotel guests have their meals free, so they naturally go to the free dining rooms to have their meals. The most they would do to show their good faith is to wave their registration card to the waiter. With such a loose check, you can easily use any old registration card to take a couple of friends to dine free of charge.

The Finnish workers are paid by the hour. They are very much on their own as soon as they have agreed with the boss on the rate. From then on, they just say how many hours they have worked and they will be paid accordingly.

With so many loopholes in everyday life, surely Finland must be a heaven to those who love to take “petty advantages”. But the strange thing is, all the taxi passengers would always come back to pay their fare after they have attended to their business; not a single outsider has ever been found in the free hotel dining rooms. And workers always give an honest account of the exact hours they put in. As the Finns always act on good faith in everything they do, living in such a society has turned everyone into a real “gentleman”.In a society of such high moral practice, what need is there for people to be on guard against others?

28. While taking a taxi in Finland, ________.

A.a passenger can go anywhere without having to pay the driver

B.a passenger pays two US dollars for a taxi ride

C.a passenger can never be turned down by the taxi driver wherever he wants to go

D.a passenger needs to provide good faith demonstration before leaving without paying

29. We know from the passage that big hotels in Finland ________.

A.are mostly poorly managed

B.provide meals for any diners

C.provide free wine and charge for food

D.provide meal for only those who live in the hotels

30. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A.The workers in Finland are paid by the hour.

B.The workers are always honest with their working hours.

C.The workers and their bosses will make an agreement in advance about the pay.

D.The bosses in Finland are too busy to check the working hours of their employees.

31. What can we infer from the passage?

A. The Finnish people are honest.

B. The Finnish people like to take pretty advantages.

C. The Finnish people are foolish.

D. There are many loopholes in everyday life.

( D )

Some kinds of mental skills naturally decrease as people get older. Yet research seems to show that some training can improve such skills. A recently published study also appears to attest that the good effects of training can last for many years after that training has ended.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland wanted to learn how long memory and thinking skills would last in older people who were trained to keep them. The people were part of the ten-year research project. They were taught methods meant to improve their memory, thinking and ability to perform everyday tasks.

More than 2,800 volunteered for the study called ACTIVE — short for Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly. Most were studied when they were more than 70 years old.

The volunteers took one of several short training classes meant to help them keep their mental abilities. One class trained participants in skills including how to remember word lists. Another group trained in reasoning. A third group received help with speed-of-processing — speed of receiving and understanding information. A fourth group — the control group did not get any training.

Earlier results had established that the training helped the participants for up to five years. Now, leading study writer George Rebok says, the research showed most of the training remained effective a full ten years later.

Professor Rebok and his team found that the people trained in reasoning and speed-of-processing did better on tests than the control group.

“We are wondering whether those effects which endured over time would still be there ten years following the training, and in fact, that's exactly what we found.

The effect on memory, however, seemed not to last as long. Still, the old people in any of the three classes generally reported less difficulty in performing daily activities than the control group. The total training time for the older people was between 10 and 15 hours.

32. Which statement is false according to the text?

A.This kind of training can only have effects on people for a few years.

B.The people were trained during a period of ten years.

C.Most of the people who were studied were more than 70 years old.

D.The first group were trained how to remember word lists.

33. How would the old in the second group perform after receiving the training?

A. Remember more words B. understand information more quickly

C. Act as poorly as before D. perform daily activities better

34. What does the underlined word "attest" in the first paragraph mean?

A. Affect B. Deny C. Prove D. Improve

35. Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?

A. Mental Training Helped Elderly Stay Sharp for Years.

B. Some Kinds of Mental Skills Naturally Decrease.

C.Four Groups of Old People Were Trained Mentally.

D.A Ten-year Research Affects Elderly.