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Reading Comprehensive Exercise 1
Reading Comprehensive Exercise 1
Reading Comprehensive Exercise 1
My name is Hans. I (1)—- a mechanic. I (2)—- in London, I (3)—- a brother and a sister. My sister is a
university student. She (4)—- medicine. She is going to be a doctor. My brother doesn’t want (5)—- to
university. (6)—-he wants to be a mechanic like me. He comes and (7)—- me in my shop on Sundays. He
hasn’t finished his education yet. (8)—- his education, he is thinking of (9)—- with me. We will (10)—-
the business together.
1. A. is B. are C. am D. do
5. A. go B. goes C. went D. to go
Part 2
We believe the Earth is about 4.6 billion years old. At percent, we are forced to look to other bodies in
the solar system for hints as to what the early history of the Earth was like. Studies of our moon,
Mercury, Mars, and the large satellites of Jupiter and Saturn have provided ample evidence that all
these large celestial bodies had formed. This same bombardment must have affected Earth as well. The
lunar record indicates that the rate of impacts decreased to its present low level about 4 billion years
ago. On Earth, subsequent erosion and crustal motions have obliterated the craters that must have
formed during this epoch.
Scientists estimate the Earth’s age by measuring the ratios of various radioactive elements in rocks. The
oldest Earth’s rocks tested thus far are about 3 1/3 billion years old. But no one knows whether these
are oldest rocks on Earth. Tests on rocks from the moon and on meteorites show that these are about
4.6 billion years old. Scientists believe that this is the true age of the solar system and probably the true
age of the Earth.
A. created
B. destroyed
C. changed
D. erosion
2. According to this passage, how do scientists estimate the age of the Earth?
B. By examining fossils
C. By studying sunspots
D. By examining volcanic activity
4. Which of the following processes led to the obliteration of the craters formed by the bombardment of
the Earth by the celestial bodies?
A. Volcanic activity
B. Solar radiation
C. Gravity activity
D. Crustal motions
5. According to the passage, why are scientists forced to look at other bodies in the solar system to
determine the early history of the Earth?
C. Solar flares.
Part 3
Read the passages and choose the correct options according to the readings.
Last summer, we decided to spend our vacation at the beach because the weather was very hot in the
mountains. The travel agent said that traveling by bus was the cheapest way, but we went by plane
because it was faster. We wanted to have more time to spend at the beach. The weather was beautiful
and we had a great time.
A. best
B. easiest
C. cheapest
D. slowest
A. more fun
B. cheaper
C. expensive
D. faster
4. We —- our vacation.
A. hated
B. didn’t like
C. enjoyed
D. regretted
5. We had very —- weather during our vacation.
A. good
B. freezing
C. terrible
D. cold
Part 4
Read the passages and answer the follow-up questions according to the readings.
Section 1
Dear Melissa,
I hope you are well. Guess what! I am having a big party next week at my house and I am inviting all my
close friends. The theme of the party is going to be Harry Potter, so all must dress accordingly. You
would make a great witch! I need to let everyone know by Wednesday since I am throwing the party
next Saturday. Sam is going to decorate the house and my mother is going bake a cake and make lots of
food. There is going to be music and dancing as well. John is going to be the DJ. You can stay over at my
house. It’s going to be great! I hope to see you then.
Love,
Sarah
A) It is a slumber party
B) It is a costume party
C) It is about making a cake
D) It is a dance party
B) On Wednesday
C) It is next Saturday
A) It is Sarah’s party
B) It is Judy’s party
Section 2
Ryu: Because there’s a new science-fiction movie at the theater. Would you like to see it?
Ryu: Oh… What about a comedy then? There’s one starring Adam Sandler.
Ken: You know me very well Ryu… You are welcome to watch it with me.
Ryu: That’s a great idea! Let’s meet at your place at 7:30 then!
4. Ken doesn’t want to go to the movie theatre with Ryu, because —-.
A) he wants to be alone
Part 5
Read the passages and answer the follow-up questions according to the readings.
Section 1
Dear Marcos,
Hi, my name is Rebecca and I am your new pen pal. I’m ten years old, and I live in Barcelona, Spain. I go
to the 4th grade in Saint Michael Elementary School. On weekdays, I get up at 6 o’clock. The school
starts at 7:30 in the morning. I have my lunch at the school cafeteria and I usually leave around 3:30 in
the afternoon. I am good at math, I also like history and geography but I my favorite subject is science. I
like playing basketball and soccer. I also play tennis, and I like swimming. On the weekends, I go to the
movie theater with my friends. We like action movies. I usually go to church with my parents on
Sundays.
Please write and tell me about you and your life. What’s your family like? What do you like doing in your
spare time?
Best wishes,
Rebecca
Section 2
Hi, my name’s Aldo. I love football, I am a great fan of AC Milan. I have also been interested in cars since
I was a child. I’m crazy about driving and I also enjoy fixing cars. When I was ten, I had many toy cars. I
would play with them, repair the ones my friends broke. I also used to help my dad fix his car. So,
eventually I decided to become a mechanic and open up my own shop. My parents are happy with my
choice, too. They think it’s important that I pursue a carrier that I like. I have a bright career now and I
really enjoy it. I’m planning to get married soon. My girlfriend is also interested in cars. Who knows,
maybe we can run the car shop together with our kids in the future.
A) 2007
B) he was born
Part 6
Read the passages and answer the follow up questions according to the readings.
Section 1
Opera refers to a dramatic art form, originating in Europe, in which the emotional content is conveyed
to the audience as much through music, both vocal and instrumental, as it is through the lyrics. By
contrast, in musical theater an actor’s dramatic performance is primary, and the music plays a lesser
role. The drama in opera is presented using the primary elements of theater such as scenery, costumes,
and acting. However, the words of the opera, or libretto, are sung rather than spoken. The singers are
accompanied by a musical ensemble ranging from a small instrumental ensemble to a full symphonic
orchestra.
E) there is an argument over whether the music is important or the words in opera
Dolphins are regarded as the friendliest creatures in the sea and stories of them helping drowning
sailors have been common since Roman times. The more we learn about dolphins, the more we realize
that their society is more complex than people previously imagined. They look after other dolphins
when they are ill, care for pregnant mothers and protect the weakest in the community, as we do. Some
scientists have suggested that dolphins have a language but it is much more probable that they
communicate with each other without needing words. Could any of these mammals be more intelligent
than man? Certainly the most common argument in favor of man’s superiority over them that we can
kill them more easily than they can kill us is the least satisfactory. On the contrary, the more we discover
about these remarkable creatures, the less we appear superior when we destroy them.
5. The fact that the writer of the passage thinks that we can kill dolphins more easily than they can kill us
—-.
A) means that they are better adapted to their environment than we are
C) proves that dolphins are not the most intelligent species at sea
E) proves that Dolphins have linguistic skills far beyond what we previously thought
C) dolphins have skills that no other living creatures have such as the ability to think
E) dolphins have some social traits that are similar to those of humans
Section 3
Naval architects never claim that a ship is unsinkable, but the sinking of the passenger-and-car ferry
Estonia in the Baltic surely should have never have happened. It was well designed and carefully
maintained. It carried the proper number of lifeboats. It had been thoroughly inspected the day of its
fatal voyage. Yet hours later, the Estonia rolled over and sank in a cold, stormy night. It went down so
quickly that most of those on board, caught in their dark, flooding cabins, had no chance to save
themselves: Of those who managed to scramble overboard, only 139 survived. The rest died of
hypothermia before the rescuers could pluck them from the cold sea. The final death toll amounted to
912 souls. However, there were an unpleasant number of questions about why the Estonia sank and
why so many survivors were men in the prime of life, while most of the dead were women, children and
the elderly.
A) the lifesaving equipment did not work well and lifeboats could not be lowered
B) design faults and incompetent crew contributed to the sinking of the Estonia ferry
C) 139 people managed to leave the vessel but died in freezing water
E) most victims were trapped inside the boat as they were in their cabins
8. It is clear from the passage that the survivors of the accident —-.
A) helped one another to overcome the tragedy that had affected them all
B) were mostly young men but women, children and the elderly stood little chance
C) helped save hundreds of lives
D) faster reaction by the crew could have increased Estonia’s chances of survival
E) all the passengers had already moved out into the open decks
Section 4
Erosion of America’s farmland by wind and water has been a problem since settlers first put the prairies
and grasslands under the plow in the nineteenth century. By the 1930s, more than 282 million acres of
farmland were damaged by erosion. After 40 years of conservation efforts, soil erosion has accelerated
due to new demands placed on the land by heavy crop production. In the years ahead, soil erosion and
the pollution problems it causes are likely to replace petroleum scarcity as the nation’s most critical
natural resource problem.
10. As we understand from the reading, today, soil erosion in America —-.
A) has damaged 282 million acres ever since settlers first put the prairies and grasslands under the
plough
B) has been so severe that it has forced people to abandon their settlements
B) heavy crop production is necessary to meet the demands and to prevent a disaster
C) soil erosion has been hastened due to the overuse of farming lands
Section 5
Many consider World War I to have been the first modern war, a total war where the civilian
populations were deliberately endangered as a direct tactic of war, which has continued in all
subsequent wars. While civilians have always died in wars, World War I made civilian casualties
accepted and commonplace, from, for example, aerial bombardment. All aspects of the societies
fighting were affected by the conflict, often causing profound social change, even if the countries were
not in the war zone.
A) the war’s economic impact was felt sharply in countries that were
B) the aftermath of World War I brought more attempts to protect civilians in war
E) the impact of World War I was felt even by the countries which were not close to the war fronts
A) very few countries had designed or built aircraft specifically for war functions before World War I
B) World War I was not the first war in which civilians died
E) deaths in World War I usually resulted from mistake, accident, or being too close to a military target
Section 6
In the 1920s, new technology allowed filmmakers to attach to each film a soundtrack of speech, music
and sound effects synchronized with the action on the screen. These sound films were initially
distinguished by calling them talking pictures, or talkies. The next major step in the development of
cinema was the introduction of color. While the addition of sound to film revolutionized the medium,
quickly driving out silent movies, color was adopted more gradually. The public was relatively indifferent
to color photography as opposed to black-and-white. But as color processes improved and became as
affordable as black-and-white film, more and more movies were filmed in color after the end of World
War II, as the industry in America came to view color an essential to attracting audiences in its
competition with television, which remained a black-and-white medium until the mid-60s. By the end of
the 1960s, color had become the norm for filmmakers.
16. We can understand from the passage that the introduction of sound films —-.
B) the transition to colour films was not as rapid as the transition to sound films
B) the film industry fell into a serious crisis after the end of World War II
D) the introduction of colour to movies didn’t help the movie industry in its competition with television
Section 7
Although there is a great deal of variation within each gender, on the average, men and women discuss
a surprisingly different range of topics. According to some studies, women and men ranging in age from
seventeen to eighty described the range of topics each discussed with friends of the same sex. Certain
topics were common to both men and women; work, movies, and television proved to be frequent
topics for both groups. The differences between men and women were more striking than the
similarities. Female friends spent much more time discussing personal and domestic subjects,
relationship problems, family, health and reproductive matters, weight, food and clothing. Men, on the
other hand, were more likely to discuss music, current events, sports and business. Women were more
likely to gossip about close friends and family. By contrast, men spent more time gossiping about sports
figures and media personalities. These differences can lead to frustration when men and women try to
converse with one another.