Long conversation
Converstation I
W: Hi, Bill, how is it going?
M: Oh, hi, Jan. I’m OK. How about you?
W: You can probably tell just by looking at me. I’m really busy. Hey, what are you reading?
M: A pretty interesting article. My biology professor assigned it, and I thought I just look it over. It’s about endangered species.
W: That sounds pretty interesting. I’m getting frustrated with the two research papers I’m struggling with.
M: Oh?
W: And can you believe they are both due on the same day?
M: That’s tough.
W: I’ll get through it. So what’s this you are reading?
M: Well, it’s basically about the choices environmentalists are faced with. You know, these days it is difficult to get funding. W: Wait a minute. Is the focus on biology or economics?
M: Both. Environmentalists don’t have enough funding to save every endangered species in the world, so they have to decide which species should be saved firstly. W: Can you give me an example of what you mean?
M: Take for instance, two animals, the spotted awl and the tailed toad. The article says the toad is unique. It has no relatives. But there are a lot of varieties of awls.
W: So, if that toad became extinct, we’d lose an important link in the chain of revolution, right?
M: Exactly. So it might be clear choice of which animal to save.
W: I see. I am glad I don’t have to make that kind of decision. Aren’t you?
19 Q. Why is the woman so busy?
20 Q. Why does the woman say she’s frustrated?
21 Q. What problems do environmentalists have?
22 Q. What can be inferred about the tailed toad?
Conversation II
M: Hi, Sue. Where have you been?
W: Oh. Hi, Dan. I was just at the library. I have to hand in my biology paper tomorrow.
M: Tomorrow? Oh, no! I thought it wasn't due till Monday.
W: Oh. Don't worry. It is due Monday. But I'm going away for the weekend and won't be back till Monday night.
M: Oh, where are you going?
W: California. We're having a family reunion. It's my grandmother's ninetieth birthday, so all the cousins and aunts and uncles are going. She planned the whole thing herself.
M: Wow. That's great. How many people will be there?
W: Around sixty. My family is big and spread up but we're pretty close. So have you started working on your biology paper?
M: Yeah. I'm doing it on bees and how they're able to recognize whether another bee is related to them.
W: How can they tell?
M: They use their sense of smell. The sweat bees guard their nest this way. If another bee approaches the nest, the guard determines if the new bee is familiar. If it is, it's allowed to enter.
W: Interesting. Can other insects do this? Well, the paper wasps can. Each wasp nest has a special combination of plant fibers and so the wasps that live there have a unique smell. Those two are the only kinds I've read about so far.
M: Well, you've still got time. It sounds like that the bees are picky about who comes to their family reunion.
23. What is the relationship between the speakers?
24. Why was the man worried at first?
25. According to the man, how do some bees use their sense of smell?
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