Read the passage below carefully and choose the correct answer a, b, c, or d.

The invention of the phonograph happened quite a by accident. Thomas Edison moved to Menlo Park, New Jersey, in 1876, where he established an industrial research laboratory. There, Edison was working on a carbon telephone transmitter to improve the existing Bell telephone system.

In that laboratory a year later, Edison invented the phonograph while he was trying to improve a telegraph repeater. He attached a telephone diaphragm to the needle in the telegraph repeater; in this way, he was able to produce a recording that could be played back. After he made some improvements to the machine, he tested it. He recited ‘Marry Had a Little Lamb’ into the machine and played his voice back to a very surprised audience.

According to the passage, how did Edition test his new invention?

The reading is followed by several questions about it. There are four possible answers (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Choose the best answer. 

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

Few people can embody the spirit of early America as much as Benjamin Franklin. He lived through almost the whole of the eighteenth century, being born six years after, and dying ten years before it ended. In this time he saw the American colonies grow from tiny settlements into a nation, and he also contributed much to the development of the new state.

At the age of 17, Franklin ran away to Philadelphia. He had already received some training as a printer’s apprentice, and this helped him seven years later, with his first publication, the Pennsylvania Gazette. He also received a contract to do government printing work, which helped him to rise from his poor background to become a successful entrepreneur. Some of his experience in business was shared in his famous Poor Richard’s Almanak. which established his reputation throughout the American colonies. In another of his works, the Autobiography, which was written toward the end of his life, he shows the same quiet common sense.

He was deeply interested in science and natural history, and his experiments with electricity and lightning led directly to the invention of the lightning rod. He was also interested in improving the conditions of his fellow men. He was involved in a number of projects in his native Philadelphia, including the setting up of a library, a university, a philosophical society, and because he was a pragmatic man-a fire prevention service. In 1753 he became Postmaster-General of the colonies. Through this experience, he began to develop the idea that the colonies of North America should be a single nation. Later, he went to London to try to persuade the British government to change the conditions, especially the taxes, that later led the American colonists into rebellion.

Whatever Benjamin Franklin’s personal feelings about the rebellion of the American states, he worked hard to make it succeed. As ambassador to France, he encouraged the French to help George Washington. After the war, he attended the American constitutional congress. This was his last contribution, for he died later that year. He is still fondly remembered by Americans as one of the creators of the United States.

In which countries did Franklin live?

Read the following passage carefully, and then select the best option A, B, C or D to complete it:

"Approximately one-third of the Arctic (1) _______ is underlain by continental shelf, (2) _______ includes a broad shelf north of Eurasia and the narrower shelves of North America and Greenland. Seaward of the continental shelves (3) _______ the Arctic Basin proper, which is subdivided (4) _______ a set of three parallel ridges and four basins (also (5) _______ as deeps). These features were discovered and explored (6) _______ in the late 1940s. The Lomonosov Ridge, the major ridge, cuts the Arctic Basin (7) _______ in half, extending as a submarine bridge 1,800 km (1,100 mi) (8) _______ Siberia to the northwestern tip of Greenland. Parallel (9) _______ it are two shorter ridges: the Alpha Ridge on the North American (10) _______, defining the Canada and Makarov basins, (11) _______ the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge on the Eurasian side, (12) _______ the Nansen and Amundsen basins. The average (13) _______ of the Arctic Ocean is only 1,300 m (4,300 ft) (14) _______ the vast shallow expanses on the continental shelves. The deepest (15) _______ in the Arctic Ocean is 5,450 m (17,880 ft)."

11. defining the Canada and Makarov basins, (11) _______ the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge on the Eurasian side,

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to answer these following questions

Finding Innovative Applications of Technology

While technology, in and of itself, does not always spur innovation in the classroom, there are countless innovative ways to use technology to better teach and engage students. Here are some examples:

Robots in the Classroom – South Korean schools have experimented with robot teachers. This makes lessons more interesting and entertaining for kids and enables teachers from anywhere in the world to be “present” in the classroom.

Mobile Technology – Smartphones and other mobile devices are increasingly used in education. Mobile apps let teachers conduct digital polls, enhance verbal and presentation skills, and incorporate technological skills with core competency lessons.

3D Learning – Kids enjoy 3D games and movies, so why not use this technology to help them learn? GEMS Modern Academy in Dubai does just this, providing students with a 3D lab that offers interactive multimedia presentations.

Assisting Special Needs Students – Assistive technology is especially useful for students with learning disabilities. For example, phonetic spelling software helps dyslexic students and others with reading problems to convert words to the correct spelling.

 Are there robot teachers in South Korea?

Read the following passage carefully, and then select the best option A, B, C or D to complete it:

"Approximately one-third of the Arctic (1) _______ is underlain by continental shelf, (2) _______ includes a broad shelf north of Eurasia and the narrower shelves of North America and Greenland. Seaward of the continental shelves (3) _______ the Arctic Basin proper, which is subdivided (4) _______ a set of three parallel ridges and four basins (also (5) _______ as deeps). These features were discovered and explored (6) _______ in the late 1940s. The Lomonosov Ridge, the major ridge, cuts the Arctic Basin (7) _______ in half, extending as a submarine bridge 1,800 km (1,100 mi) (8) _______ Siberia to the northwestern tip of Greenland. Parallel (9) _______ it are two shorter ridges: the Alpha Ridge on the North American (10) _______, defining the Canada and Makarov basins, (11) _______ the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge on the Eurasian side, (12) _______ the Nansen and Amundsen basins. The average (13) _______ of the Arctic Ocean is only 1,300 m (4,300 ft) (14) _______ the vast shallow expanses on the continental shelves. The deepest (15) _______ in the Arctic Ocean is 5,450 m (17,880 ft)."

10. the Alpha Ridge on the North American (10) _______,

Read the text carefully and then choose the correct answers.

Three decades ago, children were considered adults at around twenty years of age. This was an age to make important life decisions. Kids were no longer kids. They found places to live, goy jobs, and planned to get married. In the 1970s, the average age for marriage was twenty-four. Now the average age is close to thirty. Many big decisions are happening later than before.

Is it really just a case of not growing up? Are people really just making their “teen” years stretch into their twenties? Are they still dependent upon their parents? Certainly, many in their twenties live with their parents after college. They like the comfortable lives they had before. They want to be able to pay off the money they borrowed to pay for college. They also want to have fun at the same time.

But this is not enough to explain the trend. People are living longer and want to put these big decisions off until later. They see that older people are retiring later. The working years have increased. The young generation believes they will take care of very old parents and their own children for many years. They do not wish to hurry into this stage of life.

Why does the author mention that kids were no longer kids?

Read the passage and choose the correct answer to each question.

Between 1977 and 1981, three groups of American women, numbering 27 in all, between the ages of 35 and 65, were given month-long tests to determine how they would respond to conditions resembling those abroad the space shuttle.

Though carefully selected from among many applicants, the women were volunteers and pay was barely above the minimum wage. They were not allowed to smoke or drink alcohol during the tests, and they were expected to tolerate each others’ company at close quarters for the entire period. Among other things, they had to stand pressure three times the force of gravity and carry out both physical and mental tasks while exhausted from strenuous physical exercise. At the end of ten days, they had to spend a further twenty days absolutely confined to bed, during which time they suffered backaches and other discomforts, and when they were finally allowed up, the more physically active women were especially subject to pains due to a slight calcium loss.

Results of tests suggest that women will have significant advantages over men in space. They need less food and less oxygen and they stand up to radiation better. Men’s advantages in terms of strength and stamina, meanwhile, are virtually wiped out by the zero-gravity condition in space.

According to the passage, physical and mental tasks were carried out by the women_________

Choose the best answer: 
Jalan Hang Jebat, or (1)............ ..known as Jonker Walk, is a street in (2)..........Chinatown of Melaka starting just across the river from the Dutch Square. Jonker Walk is flanked on (3)...........sides of the road with heritage houses dating (4)........... to the 17th century. At that time, rich Baba Nonyas (also known as Perankans, descendants of 15th - 16th century Chinese immigrants marrying local Malay women) lived and (5)did  their business here. Today, the street houses many shops selling antiques, textiles, (6).............. and souvenirs (similar to what you can find at Central Market in Kuala Lumpur). On the weekends, starting Friday night at 6pm, the road is closed (7).............. to traffic and turns in a very crowded night market. The famous Chicken Rice Ball dish (8).............. also be found here, just opposite the start of Jonker Walk near the bridge.
8.

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

In many Western countries, people (19)________ Halloween on October 31st. The word Halloween (20)_________ from “All Hallows’ Eve”. It is the night before All Saints’ Day, a religious holiday in some parts of the world. On this night, children dress up in special costumes, put (21)___________ masks, and go door to door saying “trick-or-treat” to get candy. Many people decorate their homes with paper ghosts, black cats, or witches to give their houses a (22) ______ look. People also decorate their homes with jack-o-lanterns. They carve scary faces on pumpkins, and (23)______ candles inside the pumpkins. In some places, both children and adults can make (24)_____ of haunted houses. They all seem very excited about the festival.

24___________

Read the passage carefully and choose the best option to answer each of the following questions below:

Every child in England between the age of five and fifteen must attend schools. There are three main types of educational institutions, primary (elementary) schools, secondary schools, and universities

Like most countries in the world, there are two types of schools in England, independent schools (fee-paying schools) and state schools in which students do not have to pay tuition fees. In both types, attendance is compulsory. Morning classes begin at nine o’clock and last until half past four in the afternoon. After classes, most English children often stay at school and take part in extracurricular activities like sports, singing and dancing. Schools are open five days a week. On Saturdays and Sundays there are no lessons. There are holidays at Christmas, Easter and in summer. In London as in all cities there are two grades of schools for those who will go to work at fifteen: primary schools for boys and girls between the ages of five and eleven, and secondary schools for children from eleven to fifteen.

Besides such compulsory lessons as reading, writing, the English language, English literature, English history, geography, science, and nature study, children in England can take many optional subjects like drawing, painting, singing, or woodwork to develop their aptitudes.

Which types of schools do 14-year-old children often attend?

Read the passage and choose the best option A, B or C to fill in each blank:

It might sound strange to you but these are some important rules. If you want to pass examinations, then study grammar. ____________ (26), if you want to become fluent in English, try to learn English without studying too much grammar because that will only ____________(27) you down and confuse you.

You will think about rules when creating sentences ____________ (28) than speaking naturally like a native speaker. Some native speakers do not know so many grammatical rules as non-native students.

Everyone can speak at least one language whether they are intelligent or lack some brain power. This could be achieved by being surrounded by that language at all times. You may notice that there are also some people ____________ (29) study abroad and learn very little.

That is because they go to an English speaking school, but find friends from their own country and don't practice English. Some others can speak English well ____________ (30) they live in an English speaking environment.

(27).....................

Read the passage carefully and choose the best option to answer each of the following questions below:

Every child in England between the age of five and fifteen must attend schools. There are three main types of educational institutions, primary (elementary) schools, secondary schools, and universities

Like most countries in the world, there are two types of schools in England, independent schools (fee-paying schools) and state schools in which students do not have to pay tuition fees. In both types, attendance is compulsory. Morning classes begin at nine o’clock and last until half past four in the afternoon. After classes, most English children often stay at school and take part in extracurricular activities like sports, singing and dancing. Schools are open five days a week. On Saturdays and Sundays there are no lessons. There are holidays at Christmas, Easter and in summer. In London as in all cities there are two grades of schools for those who will go to work at fifteen: primary schools for boys and girls between the ages of five and eleven, and secondary schools for children from eleven to fifteen.

Besides such compulsory lessons as reading, writing, the English language, English literature, English history, geography, science, and nature study, children in England can take many optional subjects like drawing, painting, singing, or woodwork to develop their aptitudes.

"Sports" is mentioned in the reading passage as _____.

Read the following passage and choose the correct answer to each of the following questions:
Smog is a combination of smoke and fog. It occurs when gases from burnt fuel mix with fog on the ground. When heat and sunlight get together with these gases, they form fine, dangerous particles in the air.

Smog occurs in big cities with a lot of traffic. Particularly, in the summertime, when it is very hot, smog stays near the ground. It is dangerous to our breathing, and in smoggy areas, we cannot see very well.

Smog was first discovered in Great Britain in the 19th century, during the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. At that time, people used coal for heating and cooking. Factories also used coal to produce iron and steel. Smoke mixed with wet, foggy air and turned yellow. The smog often hung over cities for many days. It caused lung diseases and breathing problem. Thousands of people died in London every year.

Today, cities that have a large population and are located in hot, subtropical areas have the biggest smog problems - for example, Los Angeles, Mexico City and Cairo. 

According to the author, what kind of cities is facing the most severe smog problems?

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to answer these following questions

Finding Innovative Applications of Technology

While technology, in and of itself, does not always spur innovation in the classroom, there are countless innovative ways to use technology to better teach and engage students. Here are some examples:

Robots in the Classroom – South Korean schools have experimented with robot teachers. This makes lessons more interesting and entertaining for kids and enables teachers from anywhere in the world to be “present” in the classroom.

Mobile Technology – Smartphones and other mobile devices are increasingly used in education. Mobile apps let teachers conduct digital polls, enhance verbal and presentation skills, and incorporate technological skills with core competency lessons.

3D Learning – Kids enjoy 3D games and movies, so why not use this technology to help them learn? GEMS Modern Academy in Dubai does just this, providing students with a 3D lab that offers interactive multimedia presentations.

Assisting Special Needs Students – Assistive technology is especially useful for students with learning disabilities. For example, phonetic spelling software helps dyslexic students and others with reading problems to convert words to the correct spelling.

Which country provide students with a 3D lab that offers interactive multimedia presentations?

Choose the word or phrase (a, b, c or d) that best fits the blank space in the following passage.

People use energy each day for transportation, cooking, heating and cooling rooms, manufacturing, lighting, (31)______, and many other uses. The choices people make about how they use energy – (32)______ machines off when they’re not using them or choosing to buy (33)______  vehicles and energy-efficient appliances – affects the environment and everyone’s lives. What is the difference between energy conservation and energy efficiency? Energy efficiency is using (34)______ that requires less energy to perform the same function. Using a compact (35) ________ light bulb that requires less energy instead of using an incandescent bulb to produce the same amount of light is an (36)____ of energy efficiency. Energy conservation is any behavior that results in the use of (37)_____ energy. Turning the lights off when leaving the room and (38)______ aluminum cans are both ways of conserving energy.

31______________

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

When Jane left school at the age of sixteen , her aunt Flory gave her $500 for her birthday . Most of Jane's friends decided to go to college , but Jane used her aunt's money to start her own business . She bought fruit , sugar and some glass jars and began making her own jam . She sold the jam to her friends for $1 a jar and she soon double her aunt's $500 .

At first , her parents didn't want Jane to spend her time making jam and the thought that she should study instead . The hoped that one day she would be a teacher or a doctor . But Jane didn't listen to them . She just kept on making jam . After a few months , she started selling it to the local market . Then she started making orange juice . She sold this to a school where one of her friends worked .

After 2 years , her business was very large and her parents were very pleased with her . She made all kinds of food which she sold to shops and supermarkets . She was so busy that she had to get some people to work for her.

The word “it” in the line 7 refers to _______.

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to answer these following questions

Finding Innovative Applications of Technology

While technology, in and of itself, does not always spur innovation in the classroom, there are countless innovative ways to use technology to better teach and engage students. Here are some examples:

Robots in the Classroom – South Korean schools have experimented with robot teachers. This makes lessons more interesting and entertaining for kids and enables teachers from anywhere in the world to be “present” in the classroom.

Mobile Technology – Smartphones and other mobile devices are increasingly used in education. Mobile apps let teachers conduct digital polls, enhance verbal and presentation skills, and incorporate technological skills with core competency lessons.

3D Learning – Kids enjoy 3D games and movies, so why not use this technology to help them learn? GEMS Modern Academy in Dubai does just this, providing students with a 3D lab that offers interactive multimedia presentations.

Assisting Special Needs Students – Assistive technology is especially useful for students with learning disabilities. For example, phonetic spelling software helps dyslexic students and others with reading problems to convert words to the correct spelling.

Which innovation helps teachers conduct digital polls?

Read the following passage carefully, and then select the best option A, B, C or D to complete it:

"Approximately one-third of the Arctic (1) _______ is underlain by continental shelf, (2) _______ includes a broad shelf north of Eurasia and the narrower shelves of North America and Greenland. Seaward of the continental shelves (3) _______ the Arctic Basin proper, which is subdivided (4) _______ a set of three parallel ridges and four basins (also (5) _______ as deeps). These features were discovered and explored (6) _______ in the late 1940s. The Lomonosov Ridge, the major ridge, cuts the Arctic Basin (7) _______ in half, extending as a submarine bridge 1,800 km (1,100 mi) (8) _______ Siberia to the northwestern tip of Greenland. Parallel (9) _______ it are two shorter ridges: the Alpha Ridge on the North American (10) _______, defining the Canada and Makarov basins, (11) _______ the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge on the Eurasian side, (12) _______ the Nansen and Amundsen basins. The average (13) _______ of the Arctic Ocean is only 1,300 m (4,300 ft) (14) _______ the vast shallow expanses on the continental shelves. The deepest (15) _______ in the Arctic Ocean is 5,450 m (17,880 ft)."

9. Parallel (9) _______ it are two shorter ridges:

Choose the word or phrase (a, b, c or d) that best fits the blank space in the following passage.

About twenty percent of the world’s present (31)_______ already comes from the sun in one form or another. Special devices have already been made available to put on the roof of houses and flats to (32)______ the sun’s rays and thus heat water. Thousands of these devices are now being used to provide (33)________ in homes throughout the United States while more than a million solar water-heating units have already been (34)____ in homes in Japan. Other purposes for (35)_____ solar energy is at present being used include the separation of salt (36)___________ seawater, irrigation, and sewage disposal. For most people in developing countries, the (37)___________ is not for air conditioners or central heating (38)________ for cheap ways of cooking food, drying crops and lighting homes.

34__________

Choose the word or phrase (a, b, c or d) that best fits the blank space in the following passage.

About twenty percent of the world’s present (31)_______ already comes from the sun in one form or another. Special devices have already been made available to put on the roof of houses and flats to (32)______ the sun’s rays and thus heat water. Thousands of these devices are now being used to provide (33)________ in homes throughout the United States while more than a million solar water-heating units have already been (34)____ in homes in Japan. Other purposes for (35)_____ solar energy is at present being used include the separation of salt (36)___________ seawater, irrigation, and sewage disposal. For most people in developing countries, the (37)___________ is not for air conditioners or central heating (38)________ for cheap ways of cooking food, drying crops and lighting homes.

34__________

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to answer these following questions

Finding Innovative Applications of Technology

While technology, in and of itself, does not always spur innovation in the classroom, there are countless innovative ways to use technology to better teach and engage students. Here are some examples:

Robots in the Classroom – South Korean schools have experimented with robot teachers. This makes lessons more interesting and entertaining for kids and enables teachers from anywhere in the world to be “present” in the classroom.

Mobile Technology – Smartphones and other mobile devices are increasingly used in education. Mobile apps let teachers conduct digital polls, enhance verbal and presentation skills, and incorporate technological skills with core competency lessons.

3D Learning – Kids enjoy 3D games and movies, so why not use this technology to help them learn? GEMS Modern Academy in Dubai does just this, providing students with a 3D lab that offers interactive multimedia presentations.

Assisting Special Needs Students – Assistive technology is especially useful for students with learning disabilities. For example, phonetic spelling software helps dyslexic students and others with reading problems to convert words to the correct spelling.

What are the advantages of robot instructors?