Curious about which digital camera is best for you? Where you can hear reggae music in  Toronto? Or what the distance is to Mars? Question-and-answer sites offer an alternative to the  ubiquitous search engine: a place to post a question – and then wait for another Internet user to  respond. 
The idea isn’t new: Usenet newsgroups have let us do this for years. But Q&A sites offer features that enhance and simplify the process. All offer eBay-like feedback, where users rate the  helpfulness of experts: over time, these scores become a benchmark score for determining how  trustworthy someone’s answers are. Question-and-answer sites also e-mail you when an expert has responded, and they offer personalized page where you can see the questions you’ve asked, the  people who have responded, and what they’ve had to say.

In this passage, “ubiquitous” means..........

 

Choose the best answer: 
In the western customs (1) _____hands is the customary form of greeting, but in China a nod of the head or slight bow is sufficient. Hugging and kissing when greeting are uncommon. Business cards are often (2) ______and yours should be printed in your own language and in Chinese. Also, it is more respectful to present your card or a gift or -any other article using (3) ______hands. The Chinese are enthusiastic applauders. You may be greeted with group clapping, even by small children. When a person is applauded in this practice it is the custom for that person to return the applause or a "thank you." (4)______walking in public places, direct eye contact and staring is uncommon in the larger cities, especially in those areas accustomed to foreign visitors. (5) ______ , in smaller communities, visitors may be the subject of much curiosity and therefore you may notice some stares.

5.

Read the following passage and choose the correct answer for each of the blanks.

Revising for exams is not as easy as it looks. You will need to work out which routine suits you best, and then stick to it. Some people like studying at night when it’s quiet, whereas others find the early morning is a good time to get things done. You might enjoy (1)…….. to music while you revise, but this can be (2)……... Can you really concentrate (3)……….. two things at once? So think (4)……… you turn your radio on. Your (5)…….. is also important while you are revising. This may be a more than usually (6)………. period of your life, when you should take extra care to eat properly. No missed meals, or junk food, or (7)…….cups of coffee! Get plenty of exercise as well. If you have got fed up with (8)……. you’re doing, or find it hard to concentrate, go for a walk to clear your head. (9)……. exercise will help to keep your body fit and your brain working (10)………… Finally, you also need to take time off. Go out occasionally, see your friends, and make time to relax. Then you will return to your studies fresh and full of enthusiasm.

(2) ______

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.
One of the most interesting authors of the twentieth century, J.R.R Tolkien, achieved fame through his highly inventive trilogy. The Lord of the Rings. Born in 1892, Tolkien received his education from Oxford and then served in World War I. After the war, he became a professor of Anglo -Saxon and English language and literature at Oxford University.
Although published in 1965, the three books that comprise the Lord of the Rings were written in intervals from 1936 to 1949. This was mainly due to Tolkien's responsibilities as a professor and the outbreak of World War II. By the late 1960s, this fascinating trilogy had become a sociological phenomenon as young people intently studied the mythology and legends created by Tolkien.
The trilogy is remarkable not only for its highly developed account of historical fiction but also its success as a modern heroic epic. The main plot describes the struggle between good and evil kingdom as they try to acquire a magic ring that has the power to rule the world. The novels, which are set in a time called Middle Earth, describe a detailed fantasy world. Established before humans populated the Earth, Middle Earth was inhabited by good and evil creatures such as hobbits, elves, monsters, wizards, and some humans. The characters and the setting of Middle Earth were modeled after mythological stories from Greece and Northern Europe.
Although readers have scrutinized the texts for inner meaning and have tried to connect the trilogy with Tolkien's real life experiences in England during World War II, he denied the connection. He claims that the story began in his years as an undergraduate student and grew out of his desire to create mythology and legends about elves and their language.
Tolkien was a masterful fantasy novelist who used his extensive knowledge of folklore to create a body of work that is still read and enjoyed throughout the world today.

What does the word "trilogy" in the first paragraph mean?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.
One of the most beautiful parts of Britain is the Lake District. The Lake District is situated in the north-west of England and consists of high hills, mountains and, of course, lakes. In all, there are 16 lakes, of (16)... the largest is Lake Windermere. Over the years many writers have been (17).......   with this region but there can be no (18).....  that the most famous of all was   William Wordsworth (1770-1850), who was born and lived almost the whole of his life there. He had close connections with the village of Grasmere, where he lived for some thirteen years. He loved this particular part of England and many of his poems of the joy he felt when surrounded by beautiful countryside.
Every year more than 14 million people from Britain and abroad visit the Lake District to enjoy the fresh air and the scenery. Some go to walk in the mountains while others sail boats on the lakes or simply sit admiring the (19).......   views. Unfortunately, the  region is becoming a   victim of its own success in attracting visitors.  (20).....  come to the  Lake District that they  threaten to destroy the peace and quite which many are searching for there
(18).....................................

Read the passage below and choose the best answer (A, B, C or D ) to each question.

Sometimes you know things about people the first time you see them, for example, that you want to be friends with them or that you don't trust them. But perhaps this kind of intuition isn't as hard to explain as may seem. For instance, people give out body language signals all the time. The way you hold your body, head and arms tells people about your mood. If you hold your arms tightly at your sides, or fold them across your chest, people will generally feel that you are being defensive. Holding your head to one side shows interest in the other, while an easy, open posture indicates that you are self-confident. All this affects the way you feel about someone.

Also, a stranger may remind you of a meeting with someone. This may be because of something as simple as the fact that he or she is physically similar to someone who treated you well or badly. Your feelings about a stranger could be influenced by a smell in the air that brings to mind a place where you were happy as a child. Since even a single word can bring back a memory such as that, you may never realize it is happening.

What does the word "open" in the passage most closely mean?

Choose the correct answer to complete the following passage by writing the corresponding letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet.
Of the myriad of Japanese ceremonies introduced to the West, the Japanese tea ceremony would have to be the least accessible. (1)__________ many other aspects of Japanese culture, the practice of drinking tea was (2) __________ from China well over a thousand years ago. In Japan, green tea developed its own character, and the Japanese tea ceremony has evolved (3) __________ a peculiarly Japanese phenomenon.
The modern tea ceremony can be (4) ____traced______back to the 17th century when it developed alongside another singular Japanese adaption of Chinese culture: the philosophy of Zen. The tea ceremony eventually became established as a recognized form of high art, where it was practiced in (5) __________ locations, from a Zen temple to an ordinary home. Even today, the simplest and most secular tea ceremony still embraces the Zen aesthetics of (6) __________, austerity and devotion. During the ceremony strictly prescribed words of invitation and gratitude are murmured quietly; tea maker and guests (7) __________ their roles with humility and respect. A brief moment of (8) __________ tranquility has been communally created and shared. It is simultaneously an aesthetic, social and spiritual moment. Significantly it is a Japanese moment, fleeting and poignant with its own peacefulness (9) __________ the noise and confusion of the everyday world is temporarily suspended as a vague, indefinable (10) __________ of the eternal pervades.

10

Choose the best answer: 
Archaeological records ― paintings, drawings, and carvings of humans engaged in activities involving the use of hands ― indicate that humans have been predominantly right-handed for more than 5,000 years. In ancient Egyptian artwork, for example, the right-hand is depicted as the dominant one in about 90percent of the examples. Fracture or wear patterns on tools also indicate that a majority of ancient people were right-handed. Cro-Magnon cave paintings some 2,000 years old commonly show outlines of human hands made by placing one hand against the cave wall and applying paint with the other. Children today make similar outlines of their hands with crayons on paper. With few exceptions, left hands of Cro-Magnons are displayed on cave walls, indicating that the paintings were usually done by right- handers. Anthropological evidence pushes the record of handedness in early human ancestors back to at least 1.4 million years ago. One important line of evidence comes from flaking patterns of stone cores used in toolmaking: implements flaked with a clockwise motion (indicating a right-handed toolmaker) can be distinguished from those flaked with a counter-clockwise rotation (indicating a left-handed toolmaker). Even scratches found on fossil human teeth offer clues. Ancient humans are thought to have cut meat into strips by holding it between their teeth and slicing it with stone knives, as do the present-day Inuit. Occasionally the knives slip and leave scratches on the users' teeth. Scratches made with a left-to-right stroke direction (by right-handers) are more common than scratches in the opposite direction (made by left-handers). Still other evidence comes from cranial morphology: scientists think that physical differences between the right and left sides of the interior of the skull indicate subtle physical differences between the two sides of the brain. The variation between the hemispheres corresponds to which side of the body is used to perform specific activities. Such studies, as well as studies of tool use, indicate that right- or leftsided dominance is not exclusive to modern Homo sapiens. Populations of Neanderthals, such as Homo erectus and Homo habilis, seem to have been predominantly right-handed, as we are.
4.:The word "clues" in paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to

Read the passage carefully and choose the correct answer:
In the future, genetic engineering will allow us to create the perfect human. It will be hard to get used to. Parents will order a baby who 'will grow up to become his new job because he is not quite prepared a genius or to have a Miss World appearance. Also, genetic engineering will allow us to mix plants and animals.
As computers have advanced, they have helped us remember, calculate, organize, and clarify. So it will become easier to deal with things, and much quicker. At a point in a future time, some may claim that computers become about as smart as Newton or Einstein. More advanced computers will be able to be creative, respond to feelings in a feeling way, develop intuition, recognize patterns, and suggest innovative alternatives. There is a hope if we choose to take action. We can select Internet information wisely, choose healthy computer games, limit our exposure to television commercials, and select television programs carefully. People will be aware of the importance of keeping active, getting outside to do more physical activities. We will also plan to make a major sacrifice the next time we buy a car, take the bus. Everybody will be more concerned about making environmentally friendly choices, eating healthy, and helping build a healthier society by shopping at better stores that sell better food. 
Most people will be aware that a happy, loving family is a joy to be part of, and that it is a necessary foundation for building a strong society. But it is extremely important for our future that we maintain a healthy perspective. We need to value and appreciate the importance of what can be achieved by loving and committed parents. People need a strong foundation, so it is vital for our society that we encourage parents to work at creating love, joy, and happiness for their children in a .decent, stable, and productive atmosphere.

The phrase to have a Miss World appearance means that _______.

Read the following passage and choose among A, B, C or D the correct answer to each of the questions.

Telecommuting is some form of computer communication between employees' homes and offices. For employees whose job involves sitting at a terminal or word processor entering data or typing reports, the location of the computer is of no consequence. If the machine can communicate over telephone lines, when the work is completed, employees can dial the office computer and transmit the material to their employers. A recent survey in USA Today estimates that there are approximately 8.7 million telecommuters. But although the numbers are rising annually, the trend does not appear to be as significant as predicted when Business Week published "The Portable Executive" as its cover story a few years ago. Why hasn't telecommuting become more popular?

Clearly, change simply takes time. But in addition, there has been active resistance on the part of many managers. These executives claim that supervising the telecommuters in a large workforce scattered across the country would be too difficult, or at least systems for managing them are not yet developed, thereby complicating the manager's responsibilities.

It is also true that employees who are given the option of telecommuting are reluctant to accept the opportunity. Most people feel that they need regular interaction with a group, and many are concerned that they will not have the same consideration for advancement if they are not more visible in the office setting. Some people feel that even when a space in their homes is set aside as a work area, they never really get away from the office.

The phase “of no consequence” means ____.

Read the passage carefully and choose the correct answer A, B, C or D

Diwali is a main Hindu festival. It is known as the “Festival of Lights”. It makes the victory of good over evil. In other words, lights are symbols of victory of brightness over darkness. People in India turn on lamps in every house and watch firecrackers in the night sky. These lights are a way showing honor to the gods of India for giving the people health, knowledge, riches and peace.

On the day of Diwali, children get up at 3:00 a.m and take a bath. They dress up in festival clothes, light up the candles and share sweets. There is competition among the children to light the first firecracker and to make the loudest noise. Soon, the whole sky is bright. Children seem to have the most fun during this festival.

What does the passage mainly discuss?

Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage:

"Oxford engineer, David Heston, is planning an interesting cycle ride this summer - (1)….. the Sahara Desert. During his five-week journey, temperatures (2)…..  a sizzling 45°. David, 19, of Church Road, Dorchester, hopes to complete the first summer (3)…… of the desert on a tandem (bicycle for two people). “It does sound a bit (4)….. he said. (5)…. there are good reasons. It’s part of a research expedition about finding ways of (6)…. the spread of the desert. The Sahara is getting bigger and bigger and that’s bad (7)…… .
David is taking five Cambridge University friends with him. One will join him on the tandem and the others will drive two Land Rovers in support, travelling from (8)….. of Algeria to Agadez in the South. The journey is not without its problems, and (9)….. a 600-mile section (10)…..has no roads and no water."

7. The Sahara is getting bigger and bigger and that’s bad (7)…… .

Choose the best answer: 
Children get presents _______ Christmas and for their birthday.

Choose the best answer: 
Archaeological records ― paintings, drawings, and carvings of humans engaged in activities involving the use of hands ― indicate that humans have been predominantly right-handed for more than 5,000 years. In ancient Egyptian artwork, for example, the right-hand is depicted as the dominant one in about 90percent of the examples. Fracture or wear patterns on tools also indicate that a majority of ancient people were right-handed. Cro-Magnon cave paintings some 2,000 years old commonly show outlines of human hands made by placing one hand against the cave wall and applying paint with the other. Children today make similar outlines of their hands with crayons on paper. With few exceptions, left hands of Cro-Magnons are displayed on cave walls, indicating that the paintings were usually done by right- handers. Anthropological evidence pushes the record of handedness in early human ancestors back to at least 1.4 million years ago. One important line of evidence comes from flaking patterns of stone cores used in toolmaking: implements flaked with a clockwise motion (indicating a right-handed toolmaker) can be distinguished from those flaked with a counter-clockwise rotation (indicating a left-handed toolmaker). Even scratches found on fossil human teeth offer clues. Ancient humans are thought to have cut meat into strips by holding it between their teeth and slicing it with stone knives, as do the present-day Inuit. Occasionally the knives slip and leave scratches on the users' teeth. Scratches made with a left-to-right stroke direction (by right-handers) are more common than scratches in the opposite direction (made by left-handers). Still other evidence comes from cranial morphology: scientists think that physical differences between the right and left sides of the interior of the skull indicate subtle physical differences between the two sides of the brain. The variation between the hemispheres corresponds to which side of the body is used to perform specific activities. Such studies, as well as studies of tool use, indicate that right- or leftsided dominance is not exclusive to modern Homo sapiens. Populations of Neanderthals, such as Homo erectus and Homo habilis, seem to have been predominantly right-handed, as we are.
1: What is the main idea of the passage?

Fill in each numbered blank with one suitable word or phrase.

Robots are already a part of our lives. Industrial robots widely used in manufacturing. Military and police organizations use robots to (1) _____ in dangerous situations. Robots can (2) _____ be found from vacuuming the floors in your home to exploring the surface of Mars.

Within a few more years a whole host of robotic adaptations will be running many aspects' of our lives. "I think in (3) _____ next thirty years, we are going to see a transformation between the industrial sorts of robots to personal robots," says Brooks from Brooks' company, IRobot, markets floor cleaning robots for homes.

"The advances in robotics make it clear that many household (4) ____ will be easily handled by a robot in the near future," says Bob Christopher, who works for a robotic technology company that is marketing a toy robot (5) _____ Pleo. "We have only one child but I could easily (6) _____ five or six robots in the home as well."

Within the next 10 years one will be able to (7) _____, to lease or purchase a domestic robot that not only does the household cleaning and prepare and serve his meals, (8) _____ also can carry him to the bathtub if he cannot walk.

Demographic changes, such as a rapidly aging population and a shrinking workforce, will drive forward the application of new (9) ___. There is going to be a real pull for increasing the productivity of working age people. So there is going to be a real push for robotics to help people. (10) _____ addition it is likely that in the near future we will see robots- taking on some of the care functions elderly, or long-term ill people.

(2)....................

Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage:

"The big issue for plane-makers for the future is size, not speed. With the skies already full of air traffic, and with worse to come, the important questions for the designers are how many passengers they can (1)….. into the new super- planes and who will be able to build them first. (2) ……yourself ten years from now in a packed airport departure lounge. Eight hundred passengers are waiting with you for their first flight on one of a remarkable range of super-planes, and the check-in time (3)…… have been as much as four hours before take-off to (4)…… for the extra people. Impossible? Far from it. Designs for these planes are already stored on Computer at the world’s top aircraft manufacturers, waiting to be turned (5)…. reality. The airlines badly need the new jets to (6)…. with future increases in passenger numbers. A billion passengers a year are currently carried by plane, but that figure is (7)….. to double by the year 2010. The only practical way of avoiding making the skies even busier is to build much bigger planes. The (8)…. to build the new jets is the hottest contest in the airliner business. Manufacturers are working (9) ........ with the major airlines to produce designs I that will please airlines and passengers (10) …..."

4. before take-off to (4)…… for the extra people.

When we were in England last year, I went fishing with my friend, Peter. Early in the morning we were sitting quietly by the side of the lake when we had an unpleasant surprise. We saw a duck come along with three ducklings padding cheerfully behind her. As we watched them,  there was a sudden swirl in the water. We caught a glimpse of the vicious jaws of a pike – a fish  which is rather like a freshwater shark – and one of the ducklings was dragged below the surface. 
This incident made Peter furious. He vowed to catch the pike. On three successive  mornings we returned to the vicinity and used several different kinds of bait. On the third day Peter was lucky. Using an artificial frog as bait, he managed to hook the monster. There was a  desperate fight but Peter was determined to capture the pike and succeeded. When he had got it  ashore and killed it, he wieghed the fish and found that it scaled nearly thirty pounds – a record for that district. 

How much was the pike worth? 

When we were in England last year, I went fishing with my friend, Peter. Early in the morning we were sitting quietly by the side of the lake when we had an unpleasant surprise. We saw a duck come along with three ducklings padding cheerfully behind her. As we watched them,  there was a sudden swirl in the water. We caught a glimpse of the vicious jaws of a pike – a fish  which is rather like a freshwater shark – and one of the ducklings was dragged below the surface. 
This incident made Peter furious. He vowed to catch the pike. On three successive  mornings we returned to the vicinity and used several different kinds of bait. On the third day Peter was lucky. Using an artificial frog as bait, he managed to hook the monster. There was a  desperate fight but Peter was determined to capture the pike and succeeded. When he had got it  ashore and killed it, he wieghed the fish and found that it scaled nearly thirty pounds – a record for that district. 

Why do you think Peter was sitting quietly by the lake? 

Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage.

No matter who we are or where we are from, we only have 24 hours each day to get things done. Some people seem to make the most (1) ____ their time, using it to achieve their goals and dreams. Others feel that life is passing them by and they aren't (2) ____ anything. If you are in the latter group, it is not too late to turn things around. By implementing a few simple hacks, you can start getting better results very quickly.

If you want to become more productive, it pays to learn about the Pareto (3) ____ (which is also known as the 80-20 rule). It states that for most tasks, 80 percent of the results we get come from 20 percent of the work we do. For example, 80 percent of the company sales usually come from 20 percent of customers. Therefore, the trick is to focus your (4) ____ on the key 20 percent of actions that truly matter to greatly improve your results.

In some cases, people may be busy from morning to night but still seem to get nothing done. In this (5) ____, the problem might be that clear goals haven't been set. To fix this, set some time aside to list the things you want to achieve in life. Then, select the top three or four that you want to focus on for the next year. Look at your goals every night before bedtime and ask yourself what are the next (6) ____ to accomplish each day. Then, promise yourself that you will finish these tasks no matter how busy you get. If possible try completing the tasks first thing in the morning so you are (7) ____ of success.

Another common mistake regarding productivity is not considering our (8) ____ levels. If we try to work around the clock, we will eventually get tired and quit. Everyone needs time to sleep, eat, (9) ____ with friends, and unwind from the stress of the day. To make sure you don't burn out, be sure to schedule some time for breaks and fun activities into your (10) ____ every day. Finally, no matter how difficult your goals may seem, remember the old saying that "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step".

(9) ______

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.
Everyone has got two personalities - the one that is shown to the world and the other that is secret and real. You don’t show your secret personality when you are (51)...... because you can control yourself. But when you are asleep, your feeling position shows the real you. In a normal(52)..... , of course, people often change their positions. The important position is the one you go to sleep in.
If you go to sleep on your back, you are a very open person. You usually believe people and you accept new things or new ideas easily. You don’t like to make people sad, so you never express your (53)........ feeling. You are quite shy.
If you sleep on your stomach, you are a rather secretive person. You worry a lot and you always easily become sad. You usually live for today not tomorrow. This means that you (54)....having a good time.
If you sleep curled up, you are probably a very nervous person. You have a low opinion of yourself. You are shy and don’t like meeting people. You (55)..........  to be on your own. You are  easily hurt.
(52)..............................

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.
I live on the first floor of a house that has been (1).......... into three flats. Five months ago, a couple moved into the flat above and since then my life has been a nightmare. They get up at 6 a.m and make a terrible noise. They listen to the radio at top (2)......... , talk loudly and stamp on the floor. In the evening they play the same record on their stereo over and over again. It’s beginning to (3)......... me mad. I’ve tried turning my own stereo up to (4)............ out the noise but I like peace and quiet and find loud music stressful. I tried to talking to them but it hasn’t done any good. I realize I should live and (5)............. live , but I have begun to have quite irrational revenge fantasies about them – like switching off their electricity or deliberately making a lot of noise late at night when I know they are asleep. What on earth can I do?
(3).............................