TEST –
26
Nobody knows when fiction started. Perhaps, the
first story-teller was a prehistoric mother trying
to explain the world to her children. Or maybe it
was a hunter telling about hi adventures around the
camp fire. Who can till? What we do know, though, is
that story- telling was a purely oral activity
around 800 BC. Myths and tales were passed down by
word of mouth and had to be memorized by each new
generation of story-tellers. This oral tradition
only examples of Homer, a blind professional
story-teller, who lived in the eighth century BC.
1. It is stressed in the passage that
story-telling.................
a) was first introduced by Homer in ancient times
b) possibly began in prehistoric times
c) began as a written activity
d) became less and less popular during the 8*
century BC.
e) Became far more popular with the invention of
writing
2. It is very clear from the passage that the
Homeric epics...................
a) were among the first stories to be written down
b)consisted mainly of myths and other tales
c)are the first examples of prehistoric tales and
myths
d) were not the best of their kind in the 8th
century BC.
e) Have often been imitated successfully in later
centuries
3. We can infer from the passage that, throughout
the oral tradition, professional
story-tellers...............
a) were much respected in primitive societies
b) depended on Homer for their stories
c) were skilful at creating new stories
d) collected the first stories going back to
prehistoric times
e) used to learn myths and tales by heart
The printing press was invented by Gutenberg in the
city of Mainz, in Germany. He built and operated the
printing press with moveable metal letters.
Actually, simple printing methods had existed for
centuries, but they had to be done by hand and took
a long time. What made Gutenberg's press so
different was that the individual letters themselves
could swiftly and easily be moved to create
different pages. This made it possible to print
entire books more cheaply and more rapidly than ever
before.
4. It is emphasized in the passage that the basic
new feature of Gutenberg's printing
press..............
a) was that all the pages of a boo were printed at
the same time
b) was that it could easily be operated by unskilled
workmen
c) was that the printing of books was less costly
although it took a long time to do
d) was the use of metal letters that could be moved
into different positions
e) made it possible to print books without any error
at all
5. One can infer from the passage that actually, the
history of printing..................
a) first begins with Gutenberg's invention
b) has always been associated with Germany
c) can be traced back well before the time of
Gutenberg
d) runs parallel to the history of books
e) gives less importance to Gutenberg's invention
than it deserves
6. It can be understood from the passage that the
printing technique which was introduced by Gutenberg
.
a) made printing more complicated and time-consuming
b) was not as important as it has often been thought
c) was not used outside Germany for a long time
d) speeded up the printing of books
e) adopted the metal letters system of earlier
methods
In many countries in the process of
industrialization, overcrowded cities present a main
problem. The overpopulation of towns is generally
caused by the drift of large numbers of people from
the rural areas. The only long-term solution is to
make life in the rural areas more attractive, which
would encourage people to stay there. This could be
achieved by providing incentives for people to go
and work in the villages. Furthermore, facilities in
the rural areas, such as transport, health and
education services, should be improved.
7. According to the passage, one important outcome
of industrialization has been.......
a) a massive migration from the countryside to
cities
b) a general improvement in the quality of urban
life
c) the decline of health services in cities
d) the emergence of new cities throughout the
country
e) an overall increase in the population of the
country
8. The author stresses that one way in which rural
life might be made more attractive
a) has already been tried; namely improved education
services
b) would be to set up better medical facilities
c) has been suggested by those migrating to the
towns
d) has been regarded by some as a threat to the
progress of industrialization
e) is likely to prove unpopular among city-dwellers
9. The writer suggests that, so as to solve the
problem of overcrowding in cities,
a) health an education services in the cities have
to be modernized
b) transport facilities have to be renewed
completely
c) measures should be taken to make the city
environment more attractive
d) the number of those migrating to the cities
should be restricted
e) living conditions in the countryside need to be
made better and more agreeable
The famous English detective Tom Wilkinson was
actually a great lover of music; he often played the
violin and even composed some music. He would
sometimes spend a whole afternoon listening to
music, and this would make him extremely happy. On
such occasions he grew gentle and dreamy, quite
unlike the sharp, clever and rather frightening
detective that everybody knew him to be. But such a
mood rarely lasted long; and when it left him he was
more alert and businesslike than ever.
10. The writer describes a side of Detective
Wilkinson's character which................
a) he thinks is unsuitable for a detective.
b) is referred to as a major defect.
c) was little known by the general public.
d) had a bad effect upon his work.
e) eventually led to his downfall.
11. The writer points out that, after a quiet
afternoon spent in listening to music, Wilkinson
a) went back to his detective work with greater
efficiency.
b) would lose interest in his professional work.
c) found himself behaving in an aggressive manner.
d) wished he didn't have to work as a detective.
e) would take up his violin and play some of his own
works.
12. We can understand from the passage that
Wilkinson was generally regarded as o
a) being rather unreliable as a detective
b) a man of many and varied talents
c) rather a cruel person, even a wicked one
d) an extremely intelligent detective, and one to be
feared
e) someone whose behaviour was disliked by many
people.
During the World War, Faye Googman showed
extraordinary qualities of determination and
organizing ability. In the English hospital where
she worked, conditions at first were terrible; dirt
and disease probably caused more deaths among the
soldiers than did the wounds received-in battle.
Still, under these circumstances, Faye Goodman
gradually built up a highly disciplined nursing
staff and, together with more adequate medical
supplies, she was able to improve conditions and be
of real service to the soldiers. However, the work
was hard, and, as a result, her own health suffered.
13. One important point the passage makes is that
Faye Goodman ....................
a) would have been more efficient if she had a more
qualified nursing staff
b) was not liked by the nursing staff because of her
harsh discipline
c) hated the terrible conditions she was working in
and wanted to get away
d) failed to improve conditions in the hospital as
she herself had poor health
e) overcame, with great efficiency, the problems she
faced in a military hospital
14. It is clear from the passage that because Faye
Goodman was a determined person, with a gift form
organising, she....................
a) volunteered to serve in the Crimean War
b) was widely criticised by her staff
c) did little nursing herself
d) was able to succeed in her work
e) was selected by the army to work as a nurse in
the hospital
15. As the writer emphasizes in the passage,
conditions in the military hospital were, at the
beginning, so bad that............
a) they accounted for more deaths among the soldiers
than the war itself
b) little could be done to improve them
c) Florence Nightingale felt she had little chance
of success
d) many of the nursing staff fell ill
e) medical supplies soon ran out
Skiing is a popular sport, enjoyed by people of all
ages. The best skiers, that is, the professionals,
have recently been Europeans. The Austrians, the
Norwegians and the Italians have generally been the
fastest in international competitions: recently,
however, skiers from other countries have also come
to the fore and demonstrated their skills. As a
result, interest in the sport has become worldwide,
and this has led to a highly competitive ski
industry.
16. It is shown from the passage that the European
countries.....................
a) are determined to improve their skiing skills
b) are now losing their lead in skiing sports
c) will soon dominate the ski industry in the world
d) regard skiing as the world's most popular sport
e) regret having invested so heavily in the ski
industry7
17. The passage writer emphasizes that the
development of the ski industry in the
world...............
a) owes little to the growing international interest
in this sport
b) has been fastest in countries outside Europe
c) has been the result of the efforts made by the
European professionals
d) has been to the benefit of the European countries
e) is due to the growing international popularity of
skiing as a sport
18. According to the text, as a sport,
skiing......................
a) arouses little interest outside Europe
b) is in the hands of professionals only
c) is not confined to any special age group
d) is rapidly becoming too expensive for most people
e) originally came into being in Austria
The Amazon basin is a huge area in Brazil. It has
always attracted businessmen on account of its
valuable and rich resources such as rubber, coffee
and cocoa. However, it not easy to make money by
starting an enterprise there. As the Brazilians say,
"If you want to succeed, you must believe in the
Amazon, and you must be young." Many rich men,
including Hardy Folk, have poured money into the
area and gone away with nothing.
19. The writer points out that many businessmen...
..................
a) have expected to make their fortune in the Amazon
basin, but most of them have been disappointed
b) have invested heavily in the Amazon basin and
made huge profits
c) have followed the example of Hardy Folk and
started an enterprise in the Amaze; basin.
d) have only been interested in importing rubber,
coffee and cocoa from the Amaze basin.
e) have followed the advice of the Brazilians and
became rich
20. According to the passage, there has been a great
deal of economic interest in the Amazon
basin................... .
a) and the interest is still growing rapidly
b) even though Hardy Folk invested very little money
there
c) but very few people have actually invested money
there
d) since many investors have lost money in the
region
e) because the region has a wealth of raw materials
21. One can understand from the passage that the
Amazon basin................... .
a) is producing less and less in the way of raw
materials
b) still remains a challenge to businessmen and does
not give any profits
c) is rich in rubber, coffee and cocoa, but in
nothing else at all
d) is fast becoming one of the world's major
industrial areas
e) no longer welcomes foreign investments
Nigeria is heavily dependent on the export of crude
oil to finance industrial development. 95% of
Nigeria's exports by value are crude oil. At current
production rates, known reserves are only sufficient
until the end of the century. Industrialization was
boosted after 1973 following the fourfold increase,
in oil prices. In the early 1980s prices fell, and
Nigeria lost important income. Oil production peaked
in 1974 when output reached 112 million tones.
22. It is emphasized in the passage that the sharp
rise in oil prices in 1973 ........ .
a. had less effect on Nigeria's economy than might
have been expected
b. contributed greatly to industrial development in
Nigeria
c. coincided with a considerable fall in oil
production
d. provided Nigeria with a high revenue well into
the late 1980s
e. put a great deal of pressure on Nigeria's oil
reserves
23. It is clearly understood from the given passage
that only a fraction of Nigeria's exports .........
.
a. are goods other than crude oil
b. would be needed to support industrial development
c. were affected by the fail in oil prices in the
1980s
d. were oil-related
e. have benefited from price increases
24. The passage says that ,as long as the current
rate of oil production is maintained ............. .
a. world oil prices are not expected to rise
significantly
b. Nigeria's industrial development plans will soon
be fully realized
c. Nigeria is likely to have no oil reserves left by
the year 2000
d. Nigeria will continue to enjoy large revenues
e. the variety of goods exported from Nigeria will
increase
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