A
Long，relaxing bathroom breaks that allow people to read news or visit social media may be coming to an end due to a new toilet seat design that is supposed to make sitting on the toilet for more than seven minutes become uncomfortable.
Called the Standard Toilet，the new design thought up by English consulting engineer Mahabir Gill slopes(倾斜)at a downward angle of 13 degrees，forcing the person sitting on it to use his leg muscles in order to keep from sliding off.According to its creator，the longest time someone can comfortably sit on such a toilet seat is for 5 to 7 minutes.Gill said the angle is enough to cause some feelings of strain(绷紧)in the users' legs，making them want to get up faster than they would from a horizontal(水平的)toilet seat，but not enough to cause serious health problems.Gill also added that the Standard Toilet would be great for businesses wanting to maximize employees' working hours.
The Standard Toilet has already received the backing of the British Toilet Association (BTA)，but has come under fire on social media，where people either joked about ways to “defeat” the design or called it a shame.
Gill told Wired Magazine that as a consulting engineer he sometimes discovered workers asleep on the toilet，and he also became increasingly annoyed by queues for public toilets.The final straw came one morning，after a heavy night of drinking，when in desperate need of a toilet，he only found locked cubicles(小隔间)．He started working on a solution，and the Standard Toilet was born.
While the sloped toilet apparently offers some health benefits to users，like improving posture and lowering the risk of developing some health problems，Mr.Gill admits that the main purpose of the Standard Toilet is to reduce the financial loss of businesses.
[语篇解读] 本文是一篇说明文。在很多上班族眼中，为数不多的福利之一就是自由的如厕时间。这是一个在高压工作环境下享受自我时光的好机会。不过，随着“标准厕所”的诞生，这一切可能很快就会结束。
1．Why is the Standard Toilet designed at a downward angle of 13 degrees?
A．To exercise its users' leg muscles.
B．To shorten its users' bathroom breaks.
C．To deal with its users' health problems.
D．To guarantee its users' great comfort.
解析：推理判断题。根据第二段的最后两句可知，“标准厕所”的设计者说，这个角度足以让使用者的腿部肌肉有绷紧感，使他们想要比从水平马桶座上更快地起来。由此可以推断，“标准厕所”的马桶座位被设计成向下倾斜13度是为了缩短使用者的如厕时间。
答案：B
2．What do we know about the Standard Toilet?
A．It's a controversial subject.
B．It has been widely used in companies.
C．It has brought huge profits to businesses.
D．It will not be available when people use it for over 7 minutes.
解析：推理判断题。根据第三段可知，“标准厕所”已经得到了英国厕所协会的支持，但是却在社交媒体上受到了抨击，人们要么开玩笑说如何“击败”这个设计，要么称之为耻辱。由此可以推断，“标准厕所”颇受争议。
答案：A
3．What does Paragraph 4 mainly talk about?
A．What makes workers less productive in companies.
B．The most common problem of using public toilets.
C．The biggest advantage of the Standard Toilet.
D．Why Gill designed the Standard Toilet.
解析：段落大意题。本段主要是介绍了Gill为什么要设计“标准厕所”。
答案：D
4．What can we infer from the text?
A．Gill used to fall asleep on the toilet.
B．Gill used to be heavily addicted to drinking.
C．Gill's design is likely to be well received by employers.
D．Gill thinks toilet time reflects a person's health conditions.
解析：推理判断题。根据第二段的最后一句和最后一段可知，“标准厕所”对于那些想最大化员工的工作时间的公司来说是再好不过了，并且Gill也承认“标准厕所”的主要目的是减少企业的财务损失。由此可以推断，他的设计可能会深受雇主的欢迎。
答案：C
