Peter: I didn’t know you could play badminton so well, David. 

David: Thank you. ______. I wish I could play half as well as you. 

Trends in worldwide energy use point up an urgent need to expedite the development of technology that can wean the world % from fossil fuels. Many experts contend that the recent increases in the price of oil will not be followed, as in the past, by an casing off after a year or two. Even if that were not the ease, the world would have to be concerned about inevitable constraints on supply. Gasoline and diesel engines in motor vehicles consume the (i) _______ majority of fossil fuel used outside power generation. The only technology currently in the pipeline for rescuing transportation from a very serious oil crunch is (ii)  _______ vehicles operating with hydrogen fuel-cell engines. Private industry, long a mere bystander in the development of the hydrogen economy, is now (iii) _______ the way to develop affordable and environmentally desirable hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. The United States government is spending about $ 100 million per year for researeh on hydrogen vehicles and hydrogen-slorage technology. Major automobile manufactures claim they will have (iv) _______ hydrogen cars by 2015. These cars, it should be noted, will produce no greenhouse gases. Like any new fuel technology, hydrogen will require infrastructure. Plants to generate usable hydrogen, pipelines to move it, and depots in which to store it, must be put in place. Stations for refilling a vehicle’s hydrogen tank must be as common as ordinary gas stations before many consumers will venture onto the open road with hydrogen cars, yet this is not an unrealistic scenario. Most probably, existing oil and gasoline infrastructure can be affordably – and incrementally – (v) _______ to hydrogen infrastructure.

(i)_____-

When (i) _______ people think of sports, the first ones that come to mind are probably football – both American and European soccer – and basketball, hockey, tennis, and baseball. But that knights in shining armour who rode horses and carried sharp swords and lances in their hands to knock (ii) _______ knights off their horses, created the new sport of jousting. The idea of jousting dates back to really times before the 1100s and had its origins in France where jousting was not really a sport. Instead, it was really more of an occupation since jousting tournaments were really warring tournaments held between the families of nobility for the purpose of gaining notoriety and monetary wealth. As jousting became more of a sport, a code of “fair play” was enacted and chivalry entered (iii)  _______  the picture as well as the ideas conveyed in the talcs of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. In addition to the Inaugural code of ethics, the concepts of fair maidens and brave knights continues to (iv) _______  an important role in jousting. And even to this (v) _______ day, the idea of chivalry has an impact on the pageantry and activities of jousting tournaments.

(iv)____

Based on measurements of the expansion of the universe, of the position of galaxies, as well as of the cosmic microwave background radiation, the birth of the universe is said to (i) _______  13.7 billion years ago, when the early cosmos was a dense gaseous fireball of plasma, with temperatures 100,000 times higher than (ii) _______  of the sun’s core. 10 microseconds after the initial explosion, the universe experienced a period of huge exponential (iii) _______  called cosmic inflation, allowing basic particles such as quarks and gluons to stop moving around willy-nilly without purpose and form strong bonds of protons and neutrons. 100 seconds later, as temperatures dropped even further, these protons and neutrons would form helium and other hydrogen composites in a period cissalled nucleosynthesis. Matter would (iv) _______  to a halt and stop moving, (v) _______  gravitational forces come into play, and after 380,000 years the first atoms would make their appearance.

(v)______-

Although the act of writing a book is by necessity a (i) _______ process, it’s often after publication that the sense of isolation is the strongest. Many writers long for critical feedback, but have little (ii) _______  to the average reader’s opinion. While it may be true that good reviews in newspapers and magazines can be gratifying, they’re of little help in establishing what ordinary people think of your work. So, well done to those websites where anyone with access to the Internet can post an opinion about any book. (iii) _______       this, these customer reviews are not without risk. Most writers can expect some glowing praise from family or friends but these reviews are easy to recognize since they tend to be sent in anonymously. On the other hand, visits to these websites can also result in great anxiety. It might well be the (iv) _______ that you receive an unkind review and there is no kind editor to shield you. You can expect most reviewers to be brief but there are those who write long, strangely formal essays, usually containing references to classical literature, presumably in (v) _______ to impress others with their literary knowledge. If you are a sensitive author, I suggest you think twice before you go off searehing for reviews on-line rather than in the safer, traditional places.

(ii)_____

To many people the idea of graffiti has negative images and responses. If the drawings are done on surfaces without permission, it is thought of as vandalism. And in many instances, a crime. In most countries of the world graffiti, not only has negative connotations but is also considered illegal. One of the reasons is that graffiti is placed on buildings and property not owned by the painter. And where it is applied without (i) _______ , it is usually done quickly W’ith products such as permanent markers and spray paint. Historically, though, graffiti was important to the Romans because it was a way of expressing the knowledge they had as a people as well as a way of expressing their appreciation of beauty of (ii) _______      subjects. Today, tourists can see for themselves examples of ancient graffiti when they visit the catacombs in Rome or Pompeii. Modem graffiti is considered an art form, but it is one whichis greatly misunderstood by most people. In the 1970s, when the punk rock movement was big, many of the anti­establishment groups wrote and drew on walls and other surfaces to draw attention to their cause, group, or agenda. A lot of bands also used graffiti to (iii) _______ recognition and notoriety. For about a (iv) _______ of a century, from the mid 1960s to the late 1980s, graffiti was considered in its prime as an art form. In urban areas, graffiti could be seen on the walls of vacant buildings, on subway station walls, and on the subway cars themselves. Political activities used the medium to transmit their messages because it was an easy and inexpensive way to do (v) _______.

(i)______-

Choose the best option:

What a mess! We _____ up here for hours.

It would fall (i) _______ the shoulders of the rulers of the Middle Kingdom to restore Egypt’s former glory and herald the beginning of the classical era. After a century of civil war, the southern warrior princes of Thebes defeated their northern rivals in Hcraklciopolis and were responsible for placing Egypt under one single ruler. Under the 11th Dynasty, Egypt’s capital was moved from Memphis to Thebes, while the local god Amun of Karnak gained significant status and (ii) _______ up replacing Ra as the main god. Pharaoh Mentuhotep (2008 – 1957 BC) continued the tradition of building royal and religious structures With the construction of a funerary temple in Thebes. (iii) _______  pharaohs kept strengthening the royal administration, reclaiming land for agricultural purposes and (iv) _______ art and classical literature. The energetic and capable Amcncmhct III established new trading routes by digging a canal to connect the Nile river with the Red Sea just as Senwosret III consolidated and expanded Egypt’s borders to include (v) _______ fertile territories as Nubia, Sudan and Canaan

(iii)_____

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word or phrase that is OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined part in each of the following questions: Fruit and vegetables grew in abundance on the island. The islanders even exported the surplus. 

Based on measurements of the expansion of the universe, of the position of galaxies, as well as of the cosmic microwave background radiation, the birth of the universe is said to (i) _______  13.7 billion years ago, when the early cosmos was a dense gaseous fireball of plasma, with temperatures 100,000 times higher than (ii) _______  of the sun’s core. 10 microseconds after the initial explosion, the universe experienced a period of huge exponential (iii) _______  called cosmic inflation, allowing basic particles such as quarks and gluons to stop moving around willy-nilly without purpose and form strong bonds of protons and neutrons. 100 seconds later, as temperatures dropped even further, these protons and neutrons would form helium and other hydrogen composites in a period called nucleosynthesis. Matter would (iv) _______  to a halt and stop moving, (v) _______  gravitational forces come into play, and after 380,000 years the first atoms would make their appearance.

(i)______-

I have several good friends but I (i) _______ that my best friend is Ellen. We have been friends with each other since we were very young because she (ii) _______ next door to me. We have always been in the same class al school, although she has always been much cleverer than me. I don’t mind (iii) _______, because she often helps me with my homework! Anyway, I’ve always been better at sports than she is. I always beat her at tennis, and she doesn’t like that. In fact, she hates losing al anything and gets very annoyed if she docs. That’s the only thing that 1 don’t like about her. Otherwise, she has a great sense of humour and she’s always making me laugh. We get on very well together, although occasionally we’ve had arguments – usually about silly little things. Ellen and her family moved to another district last year, but I still see her a lot. We’re planning to go on a trip around Europe next summer, I’m really (iv) _______ to it because 1 think we’ll have a lot of fun and sec exciting places. Of course, it’s going to be hard -to afford such a wonderful and exciting trip, so we’re both going to get jobs and try to (v) _______ enough money for it

(iv)____

Dear Mr Hill,

With (i) _______ to your advertisement in the Educational Gazette, I would like to (ii) _______ one of the scholarships your Trust is offering to students who wish to continue their studies at a British university. I am 22 years old and have just graduated in English Philology from the Complutense University in Madrid, Spain. I am very interested in doing a Master’s degree in English literature. My (iii) _______ interest is the English playwright Arnold Wesker. However, it is almost impossible for me to study Wesker here in Spain, as he is not very well-known. I would really need to come to Britain. Unfortunately, the (iv) _______ of university fees in your country makes that almost impossible. I would also be living away from home. My parents could contribute so mething towards my keep but that is all. My level of English is good I passed the TOEFL iBT test last year with a score of 106.

I hope you will (v) _______ my application.

Yours sincerely,

(iv)___

A recent investigation by scientists at the US Geological Survey shows that strange animal behaviour might help (i) _______ future earthquakes. Investigators found such (ii) _______ about ten kilometres from where a fairly recent earthquake took place. Some birds made strange sounds and flew about wildly; dogs barked and ran around (iii) _______. Scientists believe that animals can sense these environmental changes as early as several days before (iv) _______ disaster. In 1976, after observing animal behaviour, the Chinese scientists were able to predict a (v) _______  earthquake. Although hundreds of thousands of people were killed, the government was able to evacuate millions of other people and thus keep the death toll al a lower level.

(i)______

Gounod’s Faust made its debut at the Theatre Lyrique in Paris in 1853 after having been refused by other playhouses on (i) _______ that it wasn’t spectacular enough. In fact, the music is very spiritual and pure to match Marguerite’s nobleness of heart and Faust’s trials and tribulations, (ii) _______ his desperate seareh for meaning in life. In an age where grandeur and luxury were the norm, Faust was not well received by the publiC. It was (iii) _______ in 1862 with an added ballet scene at the start of the first act, and the opera became a tremendous success. Marguerite’s famous aria, the jewel song, was included in (iv) _______ comic strips and children adventure stories, (v) _______ the New York House regularly opened its season with a Faust performance.

(ii)______-

In 1866, the United States Congress passed legislation which permitted the use of the metric system in commercial dealings. The law, permissive rather than mandatory, (i)  _______  that any contract or dealing – as well as any court pleadings – would not be considered objectionable or invalid because of the use of the metric system in the dealing or reference to metric measurements and (ii) _______ in the legal documents or pleadings. American business people and scientists have continued to use the metric system and support it. Metrication is evident in America because goods that are produced (iii) _______ commercial purposes are labelled in metric units as well as non-mctric units. As the result of legislation in the 1980s, the federal government and (iv) _______ its agencies are now required to use metric measures. There are a few exceptions to this law and those exceptions (v) _______ around documents which are intended for consumers but the primary purpose of this law is to promote and strengthen the American manufacturing and trade posture and competitiveness throughout the metric world of nations

(v)_____

The USA has seen a steady stream of immigrants (i) ______  into their country over the past few centuries. While in the beginning, most immigrants came from Ireland or Germany, current immigrants originates mostly from Central America and less developed South East Asian territories. (ii) ______  , the country that has supplied the largest number of immigrants to the US is Mexico, with over 8,500,000 people moving into their new country in 2004 alone. The figure is expected to rise by almost a quarter in 2010. China and India place second and third, (iii) ______  contributing a whopping 1,600,000 and 1,250,000 respectively (iv) ______  the United States’ population growth, and (v) ______   current uncommonly large trends continue, it is estimated that 3,000,000 people from both countries will immigrate to the USA over the next five years.

(ii)_____

In Poland, there are many customs at Easter: for example, the ‘blessing basket’, (i) _______ (amongother things) coloured eggs, bread, salt and white sausages. (ii) _______ in the basket has a meaning: the eggs represent Christ; the bread, salt and sausages, good health and enough money in the coming year. The family Easter breakfast on Sunday morning is (iii) _______ important as Christmas dinner for Poles.

And there is one more Polish tradition connected with Easter Monday: ‘watering’. People throw water (iv) _______ each other, and this is a (v) _______ for good health, too. Even strangers on the street are not safe from a bath of cold -water on Easter Monday!

(iii)_____

People from all cultures and civilizations are also (i) _______ with numbers, dates and festival days. In North America, the number 13 is considered (ii) _______ unlucky that often high-rise buildings do not have a 13th floor and the apartment that should be number 13 is given another number. There is no clear reason behind this superstition, (iii) _______ there is evidence for a pathological fear of the number 13, called triskaidekaphobia. Conversely, in Japan, Korea and China, the number 4 is the one bringing bad luck since the character for this number, ‘shi’ sounds like the word ‘death’. Yet all cultures seem to agree (iv)  _______the importance of New Year’s Day. Virtually all countries have rituals surrounding this first day of the year to (v)________ good luck for the future.

(iv)_______

The origins of golf have been debated for quite a long time, but the Scots get the credit for practicing the sport sometime during the 15th century. Reports dating back to the Song Dynasty as early as the 10lh century (i) ________ that the Chinese nobility also used (ii) ________ a game named “chuiwan” by means of 10 different clubs, a game which later must have been imported to Europe during the Middle Ages by Mongolian travellers. Regardless of these claims, however, it remains a fact (iii) ________ the game of golf players as we know it over a distance of 18 holes is of Scottish descent. Thus a golf course is a tract of land that includes up to 18 or 19 holes, but (iv) ________ less than 9. A hole designates both the open in the ground into which a golf ball is displaced, as well as the total distance from the tee, or the starting point, to the green, or the grassy area surrounding the actual hole, which is also termed a cup. The bar of grill of the clubhouse where most golfers meet at the end of a game is referred to in colloquial terms (v) ________ “the 19th hotel”.

(ii)______

Think of a triangle when you think of the structure of the U.S. federal court system. The federal court system’s structure, when (i) _______ as a triangle, is easy to understand. At the lowest level, or the base of the triangle, are the trial courts which are called the District Courts. The next level contains the Circuit Courts of Appeals, and at the top of the triangle is the United States Supreme Court. Article III of the United States Constitution establishes the federal court system. The document provides for the Supreme Court, (ii) _______ court of the country, and the Constitution is considered the supreme law of the land.

The Constitution also provides that other inferior tribunals shall be established. The word “inferior’ in this sense means “lesser”or “lower” and even though the names or duties of the inferior tribunals are not spelled (iii) _______ in the Constitution, these courts have been established by Congress. The inferior tribunals are the District Courts and the Circuit Courts of Appeals. The Constitution also establishes special courts to (iv) _______ special types of eases. One types of special court is the court that deals with issues involving patents and one special court is the Bankruptcy Court. (v) _______, the Constitution explains that federal judges, who are appointed by the President, will serve during a term of good behavior.

(iv)_____

Health experts suggest that to stay healthy and happy, it’s important to keep our lives in balance. Chinese philosophy, which has spanned thousands of years, uses the principles of yin and yang to explain importance of balance in life. Explained simply, yang represents the active elements of the universe, (i) _______ the yin represents the passive elements. This expresses the importance of balance in all aspects of living. Today health experts agree that it’s important to have a balanced life. For example, they’ve said it’s necessary to have a balance between work and rest and to have a balanced exercise program. (ii) _______, I’m sure you’d agree that in our busy world, it’s not always easy to get and keep balanced in our lives. Due to business or study deadlines, many people work to excess, leaving little time at the end of their busy day to spend with family and friends. They cat fast-food and don’t get enough rest or recreation and then suffer badly from the effects of stress. It’s sad that this situation often is the answer to happen when people believe that access to (iii)   happiness instead of understanding the importance of balanced living.While ambition can be a good thing, having too much ambition can cause a person to become ‘out of balance’. Of course it’s also unbalanced to spend too much time on entertainment and pleasure activities, with little or no time (iv) _______ to work or education. Balance means allocating enough time for all the important aspects of life, such as spending time with family and friends, working or studying, as well as resting and relaxing. Experts now tell US that having balance in our life is the answer, not only to health and happiness, but also to success. If you’re balanced, you’ll have more energy and you’ll reach your ambitions in a more relaxed fashion, with less stress. So  (v) _______ is your life? Do you need to allocate your time differently to have better balance in your life?

(iii)______