Read the following passage and mark A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer to each of the blanks from 46 to 50.
What make a good souvenir?
On my desk at home, I have a collection of souvenirs; objects that remind me of places I‟ve visited and important events in my life. These objects include a model boat that I saw being carved from a piece of wood on a Caribbean island, a piece of lava that emerged hot from a volcano in the year I was born, and a shell (46)_______ on my favourite childhood beach.
Unlike everything else, from which memory and detail fades, it is as if the longer you hold on to certain objects, the (47)_______ their associations with the past become, and the sharper the recollections that gather around them. They are, (48)_______ , real souvenirs, encapsulations not only of the place, but of your time in the place. But these days, the term “real souvenirs” sounds like a contradiction in terms, and this is because the objects sold to tourists as souvenirs are often cheap mass-produced imports that have nothing to do with the place at all.
It‟s often the (49)_______ that the best souvenirs, like my shell, are found rather than purchased, but browsing for souvenirs can also be a fun holiday activity. But if you are buying souvenirs on holiday this summer,  make sure they (50)_______ the reality test. A good souvenir is not just made in the area where it is bought, it also says something about the culture of that area. It is something made by local people using sustainable local materials, and because you are effectively supporting the local economy, it shouldn't come too cheap, either.
(48).........................

Choose the letter A, B, C or D to complete the passage below

What do you do well? What do you enjoy doing? Your answers to these two questions will help you identify your (1) _____. An employer will consider you seriously for a spot when you can show them that you know who you are, what you can offer and which you have studied. Sometimes it is difficult to know what your weaknesses are. Clearly not everyone is equally good (2)_____ everything. You may need to improve yourself and so (3) _____ courses in that field could turn a weakness into strength. You will need to (4) _____ some time on your self-assessment. Your honesty and the desire for self-improvement will lead to (5) _____ in getting the right job. Explore the following seven areas to start to get to know yourself: your aptitude, your skills, your personality, the level of responsibility you feel comfortable with, your interests and your needs.

(4)...................

Read the following passage and choose the best answer for each blank.

The Middle East and North Africa are one of the driest regions on earth. Nearly two-thirds of the region is desert. The Sahara Desert of northern Africa is the largest desert in the world. Desert air (26) ____ little moisture, so few clouds form over the land. Without clouds to block the sun, temperatures may reach as (27) ____ as 125°F during the day. At night, without the clouds to contain the heat, the temperature can fall to as low as 125°F. Extreme temperatures (28) ____ with little rainfall make desert life difficult for people, plants, and animals. (29) ____, some life forms have adapted to even the most severe desert (30) ____, Camels are able to survive long periods without food or water. Many desert plants have long, shallow (31) ____ systems. This allows the plants to reach out to collect water over great distances. Other desert plants have taproots. Taproots grow very deep (32) ____ they can tap sources of underground water. Plant life in the desert is usually spread out over great distances. This is (33) ____ deserts are often described as barren, or lifeless. When many people think of a desert they often think of endless miles of hot sand, but a desert does not have to be hot or sandy. Most of the land of the Middle East and North Africa is hot, dry desert land, (34) ____ some deserts look very different. Most of Antarctica is a desert but there is no sand on the continent and the climate of Antarctica is (35) ____ coldest on earth.

(35) ____

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.

   It is commonly believed in the United States that school is where people go to get an education. Nevertheless, it has been said that today children interrupt their education to go to school. The distinction between schooling and education implied by this remark is important.

   Education is much more open-ended and all-inclusive than schooling. Education knows no bounds. It can take place anywhere, whether in the shower or on the job, whether in a kitchen or on a tractor. It includes both the formal learning that takes place in schools and the whole universe of informal learning. The agents of education can range from a revered grandparent to the people debating politics on the radio, from a child to a distinguished scientist. Whereas schooling has a certain predictability, education quite often produces surprises. A chance conversation with a stranger may lead a person to discover how little is known of other religions. People are engaged in education from infancy on. Education, then, is a very broad, inclusive term. It is a lifelong process, a process that starts long before the start of school, and one that should be an integral part of one's entire life.

   Schooling, on the other hand, is a specific, formalized process, whose general pattern varies little from one setting to the next. Throughout a country, children arrive at school at approximately the same time, take assigned seats, are taught by an adult, use similar textbooks, do homework, take exams, and so on. The slices of reality that are to be learned, whether they are the alphabet or an understanding of the workings of government, have usually been limited by the boundaries of the subject being taught.

   For example, high school students know that they are not likely to find out in their classes the truth about political problems in their communities or what the newest filmmakers are experimenting with. There are definite conditions surrounding the formalized process of schooling.

The phrase “For example,” line 19, introduces a sentence that gives examples of

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

Desert biomes are the (1) _____ of all the biomes. In fact, the most important characteristic of a desert is that it receives very little (2) _____. Most deserts receive less than 300 mm a year compared (3) _______ rainforests, which receive over 2,000 mm. That means that the desert only gets 10 percent of the rain that a rainforest gets! The temperature in the desert can (4) _____ drastically from day to night because the air is (5) _____ dry that heat escapes rapidly at night. The daytime temperature averages 38°C (6) _____ in some deserts it can get down to -4°C at night. The temperature also varies greatly depending on the (7) _____ of the desert. Since desert conditions are so severe, the plants that live there need to have (8) _____ to compensate for the lack of water. Some plants, such as cacti, (9) _____ water in their stems and use it very slowly, while others like bushes conserve water by growing few leaves or by having large root systems to gather water or few leaves. Some desert plant species have a short life cycle of a few weeks that (10) _____ only during periods of rain.

(6) _____

Read the passage and choose the best answers to questions below. Write the answers on your answer sheet.

Millions of people are using cell phones today. In many places, it is actually considered unusual not to use one. In many countries, cell phones are very popular with young people. They find that the phones are more than a means of communication - having a mobile phone shows that they are cool and connected.

The explosion in mobile phone use around the world has made some health professionals worried. Some doctors are concerned that in the future many people may suffer health problems from the use of mobile phones. In England, there has been a serious debate about this issue. Mobile phone companies are worried about the negative publicity of such ideas. They say that there is no proof that mobile phones are bad for your health.

On the other hand, medical studies have shown changes in the brain cells of some people who use mobile phones. Signs of change in the tissues of the brain and head can be detected with modern scanning equipment. In one case, a traveling salesman had to retire at young age because of serious memory loss. He couldn't remember even simple tasks. He would often forget the name of his own son. This man used to talk on his mobile phone for about six hours a day, every day of his working week, for a couple of years. His family doctor blamed his mobile phone use, but his employer's doctor didn't agree.

What is it that makes mobile phones potentially harmful? The answer is radiation. High-tech machines can detect very small amounts of radiation from mobile phones. Mobile phone companies agree that there is some radiation, but they say the amount is too small to worry about.

As the discussion about their safety continues, it appears that it's best to use mobile phones less often. Use your regular phone if you want to talk for a long time. Use your mobile phone only when you really need it. Mobile phones can be very useful and convenient, especially in emergencies. In the future, mobile phones may have a warning label that says they are bad for your health. So for now, it's wise not to use your mobile phone too often
7.The word "potentially" in the passage most closely means_________ .

Read the following passage and choose the best answer for each blank.

The Middle East and North Africa are one of the driest regions on earth. Nearly two-thirds of the region is desert. The Sahara Desert of northern Africa is the largest desert in the world. Desert air (26) ____ little moisture, so few clouds form over the land. Without clouds to block the sun, temperatures may reach as (27) ____ as 125°F during the day. At night, without the clouds to contain the heat, the temperature can fall to as low as 125°F. Extreme temperatures (28) ____ with little rainfall make desert life difficult for people, plants, and animals. (29) ____, some life forms have adapted to even the most severe desert (30) ____, Camels are able to survive long periods without food or water. Many desert plants have long, shallow (31) ____ systems. This allows the plants to reach out to collect water over great distances. Other desert plants have taproots. Taproots grow very deep (32) ____ they can tap sources of underground water. Plant life in the desert is usually spread out over great distances. This is (33) ____ deserts are often described as barren, or lifeless. When many people think of a desert they often think of endless miles of hot sand, but a desert does not have to be hot or sandy. Most of the land of the Middle East and North Africa is hot, dry desert land, (34) ____ some deserts look very different. Most of Antarctica is a desert but there is no sand on the continent and the climate of Antarctica is (35) ____ coldest on earth.

(32) ____

The Alaska pipeline starts at the frozen edge of the Arctic Ocean. It stretches southward acros the largest and northernmost state in the United States, ending at a remote ice-free seaport village nearly 800 miles from where it begins. It is massive in size and extremely complicated to operate. The steel pipe crosses windswept plains and endless miles of delicate tundra that tops the frozen group. It weaves through crooked canyons, climbs sheer mountains, plunges over rocky crags, make it way through thick forests, and passes over or under hundreds of rivers and streams. The pipe is 4 feet in diameter and up to 2 million barrels or 84 million gallons of crude oil can be pumped through it daily. Resting on H-shaped steel racks called “bents,” long sections of the pipeline follow a zigzag course high above the frozen earth. Other long sections drop out of sight beneath spongy or rocky ground and return to the surface later on. The pattern of the pipeline’s up-and-down route is determined by the often harsh demands of the arctic and subarctic climate, the tortuous lay of the land, and the varied compositions of soil, rock, or permafrost permanently frozen ground. A little more than half of the pipeline is elevated above the ground. The remainder is buried anywhere from 3 to 12 feet, depending largely upon the type of terrain and the properties of the soil. One of the largest in the world, the pipeline cost approximately $8 billion and is by far the bigges and most expensive construction project ever undertaken by private industry. In fact, no single busines could raise that much money, so 8 major oil companies formed a consortium in order to share the cost. Each company controlled oil rights to particular shares of land in the oil fields and paid into the pipeline –construction fund according to the size of its holdings. Today, despite enormous problems o climate, supply shortages, equipment breakdowns, labor disagreements, treacherous terrain, a certain amount of mismanagement, and even theft, the Alaska pipeline has been completes and is operating.

According to the passage, 84 million gallons of oil can travel through the pipeline each_____.

    A. month    B. day    C. week    D. year

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 from 1 to 5.
Psychologists have long known that having a set of cherished companions is crucial to mental well-being. A recent study by Australian investigators concluded that our friends even help to (1)_______ our lives. The study concentrated (2)_______ the social environment, general health, and lifestyle of  1,477 persons older than 70 years. The participants were asked how much contact they had with friends, children, relatives and acquaintances. Researchers were surprised to learn that friendships increased life (3)_______ to a far greater extent than frequent contact with children and other relatives. This benefit held true even after these friends had moved away to another city and was independent of factors such as socioeconomic status, health, and way of life. According to scientists, the ability to have relationships with people to _______(4) one is important has a positive effect on physical and mental health. Stress and  tendency towards depression are reduced, and behaviours that are damaging to health, such as smoking and drinking, occur less frequently. (5)_______, our support networks, in times of calamity in particular, can raise  our moods and feelings of self-worth and offer helpful strategies for dealing with difficult personal challenges. (Source: Academic Vocabulary in Use by Michael McCarthy and Felicity O’Dell)
(5)......................

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. 
If you’ve done any traveling at all, you’re likely quite aware that customs and etiquette differ from one culture to another: what may be perfectly innocuous in one place may be hideously offensive in another, and vice-versa. Granted, even if you haven’t traveled at all, you’re probably aware of the fact that certain types of behavior aren’t exactly acceptable in other countries: belching at the table may be a sign of gratitude in some places, but in most areas of North America and Europe, such a display will earn you a fair bit of ire. Whether you plan on traveling to any of the places listed below or just doing business with a foreign client, it’s important to educate yourself on the standards of politesse and etiquette beforehand—the last thing you want to do is offend someone with any ignorant, boorish behavior. Here’s how to be polite in different countries.
When dealing with Japanese clients, be sure to dress fairly conservatively, and make sure that you bow lower than they do upon meeting them. Accept gifts with both hands and open them later, not in front of the giver, and never blow your nose at the dining table. Avoid asking and answering direct questions: it’s better to imply rather than ask, and to answer with vagueness during conversations.
In Mexico, when meeting others, women should initiate handshakes with men, but all people should avoid making too much eye contact; that can be seen as aggressive and belligerent behavior. If sharing a meal with others, keep your elbows off the table and try to avoid burping at all costs. Keep your hands off your hips, and make sure you never make the “okay” sign with your hand: it’s vulgar.
In Kenya, when greeting someone older or of a higher status than yourself, grip their right wrist with your left hand while shaking it; it’s a sign of respect and deference. Do ask questions about their health, family, business etc. before getting to major topics, as skipping these niceties is seen as impolite. If sharing meals, do not begin eating until the eldest male has been served and starts to eat.
Turning down an alcoholic drink is considered terribly offensive in Russia, so it’s a good idea to fortify yourself with some greasy food before heading out for a meal with Russian or Ukrainian clients. Don’t smile at strangers or they’ll think you’re deranged, and when paying for items, place your money on the counter rather than trying to hand it directly to the cashier.

According to the passage, which of the following behavior should be avoided when sharing meals with others?

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. 
     Many of us worry about the effects of television on family life. We think that we spend too much time watching television and that it takes us away from more important activities, such as reading, exercising and talking to family and friends. But is this really true? 
      Studies have shown that people in the United States do spend a lot of time in front of their television sets. About 98% of American homes have at least one TV set, and in the average home the TV is on more than six hours a day. But how much attention do people actually pay to the programs? And do people who watch TV really spend less time on other free-time activities? Recently some researchers in New York City tried to find the answers to these questions by conducting a telephone survey. They phoned more than a thousand people all over the United States and asked them questions about how they spend their free time.
      No one was surprised to find out that watching TV is the most popular free-time activity in the United States. More than 70% of those asked said that they watch TV every day or almost every day. The second most popular activity that they mentioned was reading the newspaper. Listening to music at home was third, talking on the phone to friends and relatives was fourth and doing some form of exercise was fifth. 
      But the researchers discovered an interesting fact about Americans' TV habits. According to this survey, although most people turn the TV on every day, they do not actually watch it very much. Six out of ten people said that when the TV is on, they seldom pay attention to it. During a typical television program, they may eat dinner, do housework, read a newspaper or magazine, talk to their children or even read to them. The TV may be on, but it is just background music.
      The researchers therefore concluded that television does not take Americans away from more important activities. It doesn't keep them from doing other free-time activities. In fact, when they compared people who frequently watch TV and those who seldom watch TV, they found that there were no great differences in their other activities. The frequent watchers read to their children and talk to their families just as much as the others. 
(Adapted from “Reading Academic English” by Judy Rapoport, Ronit Broder and Sarah Feingold)

Which of the following could be the best tittle of the passage?

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 blank from 36 to 40 .
Child workers, some as young as 10, have been found working in a textile factory in conditions described as close to slavery to produce clothes that appear destined for one of the major high street retailers.
The discovery of these children working in appalling conditions in the Shahpur Jat area of Delhi has renewed concerns about the (36)_______ by some large retail chains of their garment production to India, recognised (37)_______ the United Nations as one of the world‟s hotspots for child labour. According to one (38)_______ , over 20 percent of India's economy is dependent on children, (39)_______ comes to a total of 55 million youngsters under 14 working. Consumers in the West should not only be demanding answers from retailers about how their (40)_______ are produced but also should be looking  into their consciences at how they spend their money and whether cheap prices in the West are worth the suffering caused to so many children.
(40)..................

Read the passage and choose the best answer.

It can take a long time to become successful in your chosen field, however talented you are. One thing you have to be (1) ____ of is that you will face criticism along the way. The world is (2) ____ of people who would rather say something negative than positive. If you've made up your (3) ____ to achieve a certain goal, such as writing a novel, (4) ____ the negative criticism of others prevent you from reaching your target, and let the constructive criticism have a positive effect on your work. If someone says you're totally in the (5) ____ of talent, ignore them. That's negative criticism. If (6) ____, someone advises you to revise your work and gives you a good reason for doing so, you should consider their suggestions carefully. There are many film stars (7) ____ were once out of work. There are many famous novelists who made a complete mess of their first novel - or who didn't, but had to keep on approaching hundreds of publishers before they could get it (8) ____. Being successful does depend on luck, to a (9) ____ extent. But things are more likely to (10) ____ well if you persevere and stay positive.

(8) ______

Read the passage carefully and choose the correct answer.

Approximately one-third of the Earth's land surface is desert, arid land with meager rainfall that supports only sparse vegetation and a limited population of people and animals. Deserts have been portrayed as fascinating environments of adventure and exploration. These arid regions are called deserts because they are dry. They may be hot. They may be cold. They may be regions of sand or vast areas of rocks with occasional plants

Deserts are natural laboratories in which to study the interactions of wind and sometimes water on the arid surfaces of planets. They contain valuable mineral deposits that were formed in the arid environment or that were exposed by erosion. Because deserts are dry, they are ideal places for human artifacts and fossils to be preserved. Deserts are also fragile environments. The misuse of these lands is a serious and growing problem in parts of our world.

There are many animals in the desert. Some are very large, like the kangaroo or the  gazelle. Both are big and have to travel long distances for water at a spring, or an oasis.  Another fairly large animal is the addax. The addax is a desert antelope. They live in the Sahara Desert. All addaxes are herbivores. There are less than 200 of them left because of hunting and tourists. Some animals crawl along. Examples of these are snakes and  lizards. Snakes rarely drink water; they get their moisture from other prey that they eat.  So do others, like the kangaroo rat. Lizards are commonly found in the desert. They stay  out of the sun and move as little as possible. There are also other animals in the desert.  The fennec lives in northern Africa in the Sahara Desert. They are a relative of the fox.  They eat mice, small birds, lizards, and insects. When necessary, they will eat fruit. One  more desert animal is the jerboa. The jerboa is a small, long-distance jumper that lives in the desert. They are free drinking animals and they eat plants, seeds, and bugs.

Deserts______.

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.
Are you interested in seeing the beautiful fall foliage of New England but tired of traffic jams and overbooked hotels? Then this year forget the crowds in New England and see the beautiful colors of autumn in the Catskills.
These rugged mountains in New York State, just 90 miles northwest of New York City, are famous for the legendary tales of Rip Van Winkle, and more recently for the summer hotels that sprang up in the region during the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. Families trying to escape the heat of New York City found the Catskills to be the perfect place to stay for a month or so each summer. By the late 1950s there were over 500 resorts and hotels offering nighttime entertainment as well as all kinds of outdoor activities. Famous comedians like Jackie Gleason, Joan Rivers, and Sid Caesar all got their start touring the hotel clubs here. Since the introduction of air-conditioning and cheaper air travel, however, families have stopped coming to the Catskills in such large numbers, choosing instead more distant locations at different times of the year. Many of the Catskill hotels closed in the 1970s, but some remain and have expanded and changed their facilities to meet the needs of today's visitors.
Currently, there are many activities available to the traveler besides witnessing the changing colors of the leaves. There is an all-organic sheep farm where visitors can see how a traditional sheep farm operates. There are also hundreds of miles of scenic drives in the area. Route 42, for instance, is an excellent site for spotting bald eagles. For more information on vacations in the Catskills, call the Office of Public Information.

The word "rugged" in paragraph 2 could be best replaced by which of the following?

Read the passage and choose the best answer.

It can take a long time to become successful in your chosen field, however talented you are. One thing you have to be (1) ____ of is that you will face criticism along the way. The world is (2) ____ of people who would rather say something negative than positive. If you've made up your (3) ____ to achieve a certain goal, such as writing a novel, (4) ____ the negative criticism of others prevent you from reaching your target, and let the constructive criticism have a positive effect on your work. If someone says you're totally in the (5) ____ of talent, ignore them. That's negative criticism. If (6) ____, someone advises you to revise your work and gives you a good reason for doing so, you should consider their suggestions carefully. There are many film stars (7) ____ were once out of work. There are many famous novelists who made a complete mess of their first novel - or who didn't, but had to keep on approaching hundreds of publishers before they could get it (8) ____. Being successful does depend on luck, to a (9) ____ extent. But things are more likely to (10) ____ well if you persevere and stay positive.

(2) ______

The Alaska pipeline starts at the frozen edge of the Arctic Ocean. It stretches southward acros the largest and northernmost state in the United States, ending at a remote ice-free seaport village nearly 800 miles from where it begins. It is massive in size and extremely complicated to operate. The steel pipe crosses windswept plains and endless miles of delicate tundra that tops the frozen group. It weaves through crooked canyons, climbs sheer mountains, plunges over rocky crags, make it way through thick forests, and passes over or under hundreds of rivers and streams. The pipe is 4 feet in diameter and up to 2 million barrels or 84 million gallons of crude oil can be pumped through it daily. Resting on H-shaped steel racks called “bents,” long sections of the pipeline follow a zigzag course high above the frozen earth. Other long sections drop out of sight beneath spongy or rocky ground and return to the surface later on. The pattern of the pipeline’s up-and-down route is determined by the often harsh demands of the arctic and subarctic climate, the tortuous lay of the land, and the varied compositions of soil, rock, or permafrost permanently frozen ground. A little more than half of the pipeline is elevated above the ground. The remainder is buried anywhere from 3 to 12 feet, depending largely upon the type of terrain and the properties of the soil. One of the largest in the world, the pipeline cost approximately $8 billion and is by far the bigges and most expensive construction project ever undertaken by private industry. In fact, no single busines could raise that much money, so 8 major oil companies formed a consortium in order to share the cost. Each company controlled oil rights to particular shares of land in the oil fields and paid into the pipeline –construction fund according to the size of its holdings. Today, despite enormous problems o climate, supply shortages, equipment breakdowns, labor disagreements, treacherous terrain, a certain amount of mismanagement, and even theft, the Alaska pipeline has been completes and is operating.

the author mentions all of the following as important in determining the pipeline’s route EXCEPT the _________.

Choose the item among A, B, C or D thai best answers the question about the passage:

"Desert is the term applied to regions of the earth that are characterized by less than 254 mm (10. inches) of annual rainfall, an evaporation rate that exceeds precipitation, and, in most cases, a high average temperature. Because of a lack of moisture in the soil and low humidity in the atmosphere, most of the sunlight penetrates to the ground. Daytime temperatures can reach 55° c (131° F) in the shade. At night the desert floor radiates heat back to the atmosphere, and the temperature can drop to near freezing. Deserts are caused by a combination of climate patterns and geological features.
 Because so little water moves through the desert soil to carry nutrients away, desert soils are naturally fertile. Crops are grown on desert lands with water provided by irrigation from rivers or wells. Such transformations of deserts are not without problems. Evaporation of the irrigation water results in the accumulation of salt on the surface soil, eventually rendering it useless for further crop production. By tapping reservoirs of fossil water deep beneath the desert, humans are, in effect, mining water. Once this water is gone, it is irreplaceable. Burning and overgrazing of semiarid lands on the periphery of deserts can irreversibly damage the plants that concentrate moisture and hold the soil together, thus enabling deserts to encroach on arable land. This encroachment, a serious world problem, is called desertification. A 1984 report of a desertification study made for the United Nations stated that 35 percent of the earth’s land surface was at least threatened by such processes."

2. At night the temperature on deserts can drop to near freezing because

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.
There are many theories of aging, but virtually all fall into the category of hypotheses with a minimum of supporting evidence. One viewpoint is that aging occurs as the body's organ systems become less efficient. Thus failures in the immune system, hormonal system, and nervous system could all produce characteristics that we associate with aging. Following a different vein, many current researchers are looking for evidence at the cellular and sub cellular level. It has been shown that cells such as human fibroblasts (generalized tissue cells) grown in culture divide only a limited number of times and then die. Only cancer cells seem immortal in this respect. Fibroblast cells from an embryo divide more times than those taken from an adult. Thus some researchers believe that aging occurs at the cellular level and is part of the cell's genetic makeup. Any event that disturbs the cell's genetic machinery such as mutation, damaging chemicals in the cell's environment, or loss of genetic material, could cause cells to lose their ability to divide and thus bring on aging. Other theories of aging look at different processes. 
Chronological aging refers to the passage of time since birth and is usually measured in years. While chronological age can be useful in estimating the average status of a large group of people, it is a poor indicator of an individual person's status because there is a tremendous amount of variation from one individual to the next in regard to the rate at which biological age changes occur. For example, on the average, aging results in people losing much of their ability to perform strenuous activities, yet some elderly individuals are excellent marathon runners.
Another type of aging is cosmetic aging, which consists of changes in outward appearance with advancing age. This includes changes in the body and changes in other aspects of a person's appearance, such as the style of hair and clothing, the type of eyeglasses, and the use of a hearing aid. Like chronological aging, it is frequently used to estimate the degree to which other types of aging have occurred. However, it is an inaccurate indicator for either purpose because of variation among individuals and because a person's appearance is affected by many factors that are not part of aging, including illness, poor nutrition, and exposure to sunlight.

The word "culture" in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ________.

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 blank from 36 to 40 .
Child workers, some as young as 10, have been found working in a textile factory in conditions described as close to slavery to produce clothes that appear destined for one of the major high street retailers.
The discovery of these children working in appalling conditions in the Shahpur Jat area of Delhi has renewed concerns about the (36)_______ by some large retail chains of their garment production to India, recognised (37)_______ the United Nations as one of the world‟s hotspots for child labour. According to one (38)_______ , over 20 percent of India's economy is dependent on children, (39)_______ comes to a total of 55 million youngsters under 14 working. Consumers in the West should not only be demanding answers from retailers about how their (40)_______ are produced but also should be looking  into their consciences at how they spend their money and whether cheap prices in the West are worth the suffering caused to so many children.
(38)..................

Choose the item among A, B, C or D thai best answers the question about the passage:

"Desert is the term applied to regions of the earth that are characterized by less than 254 mm (10. inches) of annual rainfall, an evaporation rate that exceeds precipitation, and, in most cases, a high average temperature. Because of a lack of moisture in the soil and low humidity in the atmosphere, most of the sunlight penetrates to the ground. Daytime temperatures can reach 55° c (131° F) in the shade. At night the desert floor radiates heat back to the atmosphere, and the temperature can drop to near freezing. Deserts are caused by a combination of climate patterns and geological features.
 Because so little water moves through the desert soil to carry nutrients away, desert soils are naturally fertile. Crops are grown on desert lands with water provided by irrigation from rivers or wells. Such transformations of deserts are not without problems. Evaporation of the irrigation water results in the accumulation of salt on the surface soil, eventually rendering it useless for further crop production. By tapping reservoirs of fossil water deep beneath the desert, humans are, in effect, mining water. Once this water is gone, it is irreplaceable. Burning and overgrazing of semiarid lands on the periphery of deserts can irreversibly damage the plants that concentrate moisture and hold the soil together, thus enabling deserts to encroach on arable land. This encroachment, a serious world problem, is called desertification. A 1984 report of a desertification study made for the United Nations stated that 35 percent of the earth’s land surface was at least threatened by such processes."

5. What are the causes of the process of desertification?