Passage 1

Higher education is more than a vocational or technical training. The essential purpose of it has never been about "usefulness" in a narrow sense of acquiring a specific, practical tool so as to make oneself marketable. In the words of my late college professor of philosophy, the purpose of higher education is for students to become broadly acquainted with cultural traditions and deeply appreciate them, so that it may help us become responsible citizens and good people in general.
    It is also about love—learning what one loves for the love of learning. Hence, it is "gloriously useless. " As for me, there was no way of knowing which major or degree was going to be "useful. " And since then, everything around me is constantly changing. I have long forgotten the details of what I absorbed in classrooms and libraries. I did, however, learn how to think for myself, and that is invaluable in the workplace and outside of it.

The United States is a sports-loving nation. Sports in America take a variety of forms; Organized competitive struggles, which draw huge crowds to cheer their favorite team to victory; athletic games, played for recreation anywhere sufficient space is found; and hunting and fishing. Most sports are seasonal, so that what is happening in sports depends upon the time of year. Some sports are called spectator sports, as the number of spectators greatly exceeds the number playing in the game.
    Baseball is the most popular sport in the US. It is played throughout the spring and summer, and professional baseball teams play well into the fall. Football is the most popular sport in the fall. The game originated as a college sport more than 75 years ago. It is still played by almost every college and university in the country. Basketball is a winter sport, very popular with high schools and colleges. Of course, wrestling, boxing, and horse racing are among other spectator sports in the United States.