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:
More often than not, you can't just "order up a job" by responding to an online posting and have it delivered in one or two days as if you were buying whatever your heart desires on Amazon.  Even as employers are hiring at a higher rate than they have in the last several years, it can often take months to work your way through the job search process. If you are a new graduate yet to receive a job offer, if you recently moved to a new locale with your spouse or partner or if you   are unemployed for any other reason, you may find success in your job search by spending time volunteering at a nonprofit organization.
Both the nonprofit and for-profit worlds need people with many of the same talents. The best volunteer jobs for you to consider are ones where the experience you acquire will be applicable in the "for-pay" position you want to attain. It's often the case that once you display your passion for the organization and its mission, and have demonstrated your abilities, you'll earn strong consideration when a paying position opens up that can benefit from your talents. Even if you don't have a path to employment at the place you volunteer, by highlighting your volunteer experience on your resume,  you can demonstrate that you haven't been wasting your time away staying at home watching the grass grow.
There are a few strategies you might adopt when considering at  which organization you'll  want to volunteer. You' ll probably want to make a priority of volunteering to do what you've already done, or want to do, in the for-profit sector. Alternatively, however, it might make sense to volunteer to do something where you can turn an area of professional weakness into a new strength. Remember, as well, that nonprofit organizations maintain strong relationships with their corporate sponsors, and you might look for a volunteer position that would enable you to be that nexus point between the two. And, especially if you are recently out of school, you should look for positions  that let you learn about an occupation, a field of interest or an industry.
As you try to determine what you want to volunteer to do, and where you want to do it, make three lists: your marketable skills, the roles you seek and the kinds of charitable organizations you would want to support. For example, perhaps your skills cluster around accounting, marketing or event planning. Think about how these might come in handy for organizations that need financial help figuring out how to brand the organization to attract other volunteers or donors or run anything from charitable golf tournaments to gala dinners.

What is the author's main purpose in the passage?

Read the following text then answer the questions that followed by circling its corresponding letter marked A, B, C or D.
How can a person offend people just because they cross their legs? In Thailand, it is rude for a person to show other people the bottom of their feet. This is considered unclean, and Thais can (1) ………….. serious offense at it. Another thing people do in the West is to touch people on the head especially children. It is very normal to see an old woman walking up to a young boy and (2).....his hair tenderly while saying what a handsome young man he is.
In Thailand, touching a person’s head is strictly taboo because that is the (3) …………… part of the body, and it is where the (4) ……………. is thought to reside in a person. Although very close family members might touch a child on the head, even this is considered rude after a child grows up.
In the Middle East and some parts of Asia, the left hand is used to wash oneself after using a toilet. (5)………….., the left hand can never offered to another person or used to eat with. Food must always be passed with the right hand, and it is considered polite to always use the right hand for social interactions.
(5)..........................

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. 
         The growing popularity of the video games, online gaming and videos make the children inactive in their daily routine. The time (1) ________________ has been spent watching online videos and games can be better utilized by doing some physical activities. Here, parents can become a role model in their children’s life. The parents should not make them addictive to the techie-gadgets and be active in their lifestyle so that their kids can also become physically (2) _______________ and active.
        The best way to become a physically fit is to be active in sports and games. The importance of sports in our life is crucial. It not only makes a body physically fit and active but also contributes (3) ______________ the mental growth and development. An active participation in sports and games can have many benefits in students’ life. It gives a student a chance to enhance the physical and the social skills. It offers a child a change from a monotony of a daily routine. It keeps the stress and anxiety away. However, a proper balance has to be maintained between a child’s maturity, skills and interests.
            Nowadays, sports and games are taken to be a good career option as well. It plays a pivotal role in shaping a child’s interest towards his profession. Sports and games also help in character building and provide strength and energy. Sport is a form of a competitive physical activity (4) ______________ by a person via an organized or a casual participation. Sports and games not only involve the development of skills but it also stimulates the competitive behavior among students. It builds up the confidence in the minds of the students. It not only strengthens the physical growth rather it also contributes towards the mental growth. (5) ______________, it plays an important role in a student’s life.

(3).................

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:
Dear Editor,
I read with interest the article on American families. In general I agree with it, but there are some important things it left out. It didn't tell the reader much about the life of a househusband. It's not an easy life. I know, because I'm now a househusband myself. A househusband has to change many of his ideas and his ways.
First of all, he has to change the way he thinks about time. Before I was a househusband, I worked full-time for the New York Times. I was a reporter, and time was always important. We had to finish our article quickly and give them to the editor. Everyone was always in a hurry. This is the way, many other men work, too. Businessmen, lawyers, bankers, and doctors all have to work quickly.
At home it's different. The househusband cannot be in a hurry all the time. If you rush around, you will make everyone unhappy! The children will be unhappy because they don't understand. For them, time is not important. Your wife will be unhappy because the children are unhappy. You will be unhappy, too, because they are all unhappy. So you have to learn to slow down. That is the first and most important rule for a househusband.
There is something else the househusband must learn. You must learn to show how you feel about things. At work, men usually do not talk about feelings. If they do, people think they are strange. So, many men are not used to telling anyone about their feelings. They do not know how to talk about their anger, worries, or love. But children need to know how you feel. They need to know how much you love them. If you are angry, they need to know why. Your wife also needs to know about your feelings. If you do not say anything, your family may get the wrong idea. Then there may be serious problems.
People talk a lot about househusbands these days. Usually they talk about men doing the housework, the cooking, cleaning, and shopping. But in my opinion, these are the easiest things to learn. It was much harder for me to change the way I think and the way I act with my family. I think, other men will also find this harder, but, like me, will find it necessary if they want to have a happy family!
Ted Diamond

It can be inferred from the passage that Ted thinks     .

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Since the first Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960, swimming has been one of its main sports.
The thrill of competition aside, swimming offers many benefits including strengthening the cardiovascular systems and the major muscle groups of both the upper and lower body. It also develops flexibility in the muscles and joints as the swimmer performs a wide range of motion against the water's resistance. It is an activity that keeps your heart rate up but takes some of the stress that is common in impact sports off the body; injuries don't occur as easily. The water's buoyancy evenly distributes and supports the weight of the body; there is no danger of falling, and there are no impact forces on the residual limb. Swimmers who have disabilities endorse the sport because it gives them a sense of freedom. They don't have to rely on any supportive device, such as a wheelchair, to assist them. They are independent. They are only judged on their times and whether those times are dropping. “Water is one of the big equalizers,” said Queenie Nichols, long-time Paralympic swim coach. "One of the phrases I heard since I got involved in this is that we are all equal in the water and that is really true. Athletes with disabilities, from below-knee amputations to severe quads, can compete and compete successfully.”
While it is not essential to begin swimming at an early age to become an elite athlete, Nichols believes that the sooner an individual becomes comfortable in the water, the better. "I think starting at about 5 years old is a good age to get children involved, in the pool at least once a week. Keep it fun for them until they show an interest in growing with a Club," she said.
“Most clubs that belong to USA Swimming or YMCAs offer coaching and training at the appropriate level for age and experience,” Nichols said. "We suggest aspiring athletes participate with an able-bodied club at first because of the greater number of individuals they will compete with."
Typically, swimmers in this introductory/ foundation phase, usually aged 5 to 8 or 9, remain there for about 5 years before transitioning to the next level, which includes more advanced drills and stroke efficiency. Athletes with disabilities who join swimming clubs benefit from better sport-specific coaching, more rigorous training, more competition in practice, and higher expectations than they are likely to receive in other settings. Other benefits include socialization opportunities, greater independence in activities of daily living, and improved ability to cope with limitations imposed by disabilities.

According to the passage, which of following is TRUE about disabled swimmers?

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:
Charles Lindbergh was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1902 but was raised on a farm in Minnesota, where his father was elected to the U.S. Congress in 1907. From then on, he spent his boyhood alternately in Washington, D.C. Detroit, and Little Falls, Minnesota. Because Lindbergh exhibited exceptional mechanical talent, in 1921 he was admitted to the University of Wisconsing to study engineering. However, the young man was seeking more challenging endeavors, and two years later he became a stunt pilot who performed feats at county fairs and public assemblies. This unusual and dangerous undertaking paid off handsomely in the sense that it allowed him to gain a diverse and well–rounded experience in aeronautics. He particularly delighted in what he called “wing–walking” and parachute jumping.
After a year of training as a military cadet, Lindbergh completed his program at the Brooks and Kelly airfields at the top of his class and earned the rank of captain.
Robertson Aircraft Corporation of St. Louis, Missouri, offered him employment as a mail pilot to run the routes between St. Louis and Chicago, and Lindbergh retained his position with the company until 1927. During this period, he set out to win the Raymond B. Orteig prize of $25,000 to be awarded to the first pilot to fly nonstop from New York to Paris. This ambition would irreversibly change his life and accord him a prominent place in the history of aviation.
Embarking on the greatest adventure of his time, Lindbergh left Roosevelt Field at 7:52 A.M. on May 20, 1927, and landed at Le Bourget Field at 5:24 P.M. the next day. Fearing that he would be unknown when he arrived, Lindbergh carried letters of introduction to dignitaries in Paris, but when his plane came to a stop, he was overwhelmed by tremendous welcoming crowds. He was decorated in France, Great Britain, and Belgium, and President Coolidge sent a specially designated cruiser, the Memphis, to bring him back, His accomplishments in aeronautics brought him more medals and awards than had ever been received by any other person in private life.

The word “handsomely” is closest in meaning to

Staggering tasks confronted the people of the United States, North and South when the Civil War ended. About a million and a half soldiers from both sides had to be demobilized, readjusted to civilian life, and reabsorbed by the devastated economy.
Civil government also had to be put back on a peacetime basis and interference from the military had to be stopped. The desperate plight of the South has eclipsed the fact that reconstruction had to be undertaken also in the North, though less spectacularly. Industries had to adjust to peacetime conditions; factories had to be retooled for civilian needs.
Financial problems loomed large in both the North and the South. The national debt had shot up from a modest $65 million in 1861, the year the war started, to nearly $3 billion in 1865, the year the war ended. This was a colossal sum for those days but one that a prudent government could pay. At the same time, war taxes had to be reduced to less burdensome levels.
Physical devastation caused by invading armies, chiefly in the South and border states, had to be repaired. This Herculean task was ultimately completed, but with discouraging slowness.
Other important questions needed answering. What would be the future of the four million Black people who were freed from slavery? On what basis were the Southern states to be brought back into the Union?
What of the Southern leaders, all of whom were liable to charges of treason? One of these leaders, Jefferson Davis, president of the Southern Confederacy, was the subject of an insulting popular Northern song, “Hang Jeff Davis from a Sour Apple Tree,” and even children sang it. Davis was temporarily chained in his prison cell during the early days of his two-year imprisonment. But he and the other Southern leaders were finally released, partly because it was unlikely that a jury from Virginia, a Southern Confederate state, would convict them. All the leaders were finally pardoned by President Johnson in 1868 in an effort to help reconstruction efforts proceed with as little bitterness as possible.

Why does the author mention a popular song?

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 different metaphors used to describe culture. My favorite one is the iceberg. I think, it demonstrates so vividly what can happen to us if we believe only in the visible and ignore or underestimate the invisible part. The hidden part of our culture is that part which we know instinctively because we absorbed it from childhood on. It's handed down to us from generation to generation. We could also say, it's the "thinking" and "feeling" part of culture: habits, assumptions, attitudes, desires, values, tastes, etc.
Now, if we are in a new culture, our customary evaluations and interpretations are likely not to be on target because we see everything through our own cultural glasses. Imagine yourself in a new city trying to get around with a map from your own hometown. It wouldn't take long for you to get lost and completely frustrated! When we experience an encounter in the new culture that puzzles us, the most common reaction is to judge it through our own cultural glasses. 
I want to propose an alternate approach to our initial gut reaction. Instead of immediately and instinctively judging a situation through our own glasses, we might first just pause and notice what is happening and then realize that this is a cultural learning situation. Remember the iceberg metaphor! The new culture becomes your mirror that shows you a hidden part of your own culture. What an opportunity for personal growth and new insight! You can compare two different approaches, that of the new culture and of your own culture. This gives you a choice. Now you can decide what fits best for you or even take the best from both sides. 

The word “embrace” in paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to _______.

There are a number of natural disasters that can strike across the globe. Two that are frequently linked to one another are earthquakes and tsunamis. Both of them can cause a great amount of devastation when they hit. However, tsunamis are the direct result of earthquakes and cannot happen without them.
The Earth has three main parts. They are the crust, the mantle, and the core. The crust is the outer layer of the Earth. It is not a single piece of land. Instead, it is comprised of a number of plates.
There are a few enormous plates and many smaller ones. These plates essentially rest upon the mantle, which is fluid. As a result, the plates are in constant – yet slow – motion. The plates may move away from or toward other plates. In some cases, they collide violently with the plates adjoining them. The movement of the plates causes tension in the rock. Over a long time, this tension may build up. When it is released, an earthquake happens.Tens of thousands of earthquakes happen every year. The vast majority are so small that only scientific instruments can perceive them. Others are powerful enough that people can feel them, yet they cause little harm or damage. More powerful earthquakes, however, can cause buildings, bridges, and other structures to collapse. They may additionally injure and skill thousands of people and might even cause the land to change it appearance.
Since most of the Earth’s surface is water, numerous earthquakes happen beneath the planet’s oceans. Underwater earthquakes cause the seafloor to move. This results in the displacement of water in the ocean. When this occurs, a tsunami may form. This is a wave that forms on the surface and moves in all directions from the place where the earthquake happened. A tsunami moves extremely quickly and can travel thousnads of kilometres. As it approaches land, the water near the coast gets sucked out to sea. This causes the tsunamis to increase in height.
Minutes later, the tsunami arrives. A large tsunami – one more than ten meters in height – can travel far inland. As it does that, it can flood the land, destroy human settlements, and kill large numbers of people

The word “perceive” in bold in paragraph 3 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 blanks.
Spring is coming and it’s time for us to grow plants. Of course, not all plants are (1)..... in season. This makes it very (2)...... to pick the best plants to grow. The good news is that there are tons of choices. Do you know that plants can grow in nearly every climate?
It's true that some plants are picky but most are super (3)..... and only require water, dirt and of course sun. This spring is the (4)......... time to start your own garden. There are three amazing plants that work in every single climate. The first plant is spinach. Spinach is very easy to grow because it removes water well and can (5) ........ different levels of heat. The second one is carrots. There are many types of carrots you can grow. Most carrots are very quick to grow and also handle all types of climates as well. The third one is tomatoes. There are tons of different types of tomatoes. It’s easy to find the perfect tomato for any location. Go plant some plants!
(4)..............................

Read the passage below and decide whether the statements are TRUE or FALSE?

   In 1981, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) created a Species Survival Plan (SSP) in order to help preserve specific endangered and threatened species through captive breeding. With over 450 SSP Plans, there are a number of endangered species that are covered by the AZA with plans to cover population management goals and recommendations for breeding for a diverse and healthy population, created by Taxon Advisory Groups. These programs are commonly created as a last resort effort. SSP Programs regularly participate in species recovery, veterinary care for wildlife disease outbreaks, and a number of other wildlife conservation efforts. The AZA's Species Survival Plan also has breeding and transfer programs, both within and outside of AZA - certified zoos and aquariums. Some animals that are part of SSP programs are giant pandas, lowland gorillas, and California condors.

   Some animals that are part of SSP programs are giant pandas, lowland gorillas, and California condors.

A part of SSP programs are giant pandas, lowland gorillas, and California condors.

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Amelia Earhart was born in Kansas in 1897. Thirty one years later, she received a phone call that would change her life. She was invited to become the first woman passenger to cross the Atlantic Ocean in a plane. The flight took more than 20 hours – about three times longer than it routinely takes today to cross the Atlantic by plane. Earhart was twelve years old before she ever saw an airplane, and she didn’t take her first flight until 1920. But she was so thrilled by her first experience in a plane that she quickly began to take flying lessons. She wrote, “As soon as I left the ground, I knew I myself had to fly.”
After that flight Earhart became a media sensation. She was given a ticker tape parade down Broadway in New York and even president Coolidge called to congratulate her. Because her record – breaking career and physical appearance were similar to pioneering pilot and American hero Charles Lindbergh, she earned the nickname “Lady Lindy.” She wrote a book about her flight across the Atlantic, called 20 Hrs, 40 Min.
Earhart continued to break records, and also polised her skills as a speaker and writer, always advocating women’s achievements, especially in aviation. Her next goal was to achieve a transatlantic crossing alone. In 1927 Charles Lindbergh became the first person to make a solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic. Five years later, Earhart became the first woman to repeat that feat. Her popularity grew even more and she was the undisputed queen of the air. She then wanted to fly around the world, and in June 1973 she left Miami with Fred Noonan as her navigator. No one knows why she left behind important communication and navigation instruments. Perhaps it was to make room for additional fuel for the long flight. The pair made it to New Guinea in 21 days and then left for Howland Island, a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The last communication from Earhart and Noonan was on July 2, 1937 with a nearby Coast Guard ship. The United States Navy conducted a massive search for more than two week but no trace of the plane or its passengers was ever found. Many people believe they got lost simply ran out of fuel and died.

Amelia Earhart eas called “Lady Lindy” because     .

The ocean bottom - a region nearly 2.5 times greater than the total land area of Earth - is a vast frontier that even today is largely unexplored and uncharted. Until about a century ago, the deep-ocean floor was completely inaccessible, hidden beneath waters averaging over 3,600 meters deep. Totally without light and subjected to intense pressures hundreds of times greater than at the Earth’s surface, the deep-ocean bottom is a hostile environment to humans, in some ways as forbidding and remote as the void of outer space.
Although researchers have taken samples of deep-ocean rocks and sediments for over a century, the first detailed global investigation of the ocean bottom did not actually start until 1968, with the beginning of the National Science Foundation’s Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP). Using techniques first developed for the offshore oil and gas industry, the DSDP’s drill ship, the Glomar Challenger, was able to maintain a steady position on the ocean’s surface and drill in very deep waters, extracting samples of sediments and rock from the ocean floor.
The Glomar Challenger completed 96 voyages in a 15-year research program that ended in November 1983. During this time, the vessel logged 600,000 kilometers and took almost 20,000 core samples of seabed sediments and rocks at 624 drilling sites around the world.. The Glomar Challenger’s core samples have allowed geologists to reconstruct what the planet looked like hundreds of millions of years ago and to calculate what it will probably look like millions of years in the future. Today, largely on the strength of evidence gathered during the Glomar Challenger’s voyages, nearly all earth scientists agree on the theories of plate tectonics and continental drift that explain many of the geological processes that shape the Earth.
The cores of sediment drilled by the Glomar Challenger have also yielded information critical to understanding the world’s past climates. Deep-ocean sediments provide a climatic record stretching back hundreds of millions of years, because they are largely isolated from the mechanical erosion and the intense chemical and biological activity that rapidly destroy much land-based evidence of past climates. This record has already provided insights into the patterns and causes of past climatic change - information that may be used to predict future climates.

Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage as being a result of the Deep Sea Drilling Project?

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:
Around the year 1500, hunting people occupied the entire northern third of North America. They lived well from the animals with which they shared these lands. Hunters of sea mammals had colonized the Arctic coasts of Canada and Greenland between four and five thousand years before. Land-hunting people had lived throughout much of the northern interior for at least 12,000 years.
Northern North America is part of a larger circumpolar ecological domain that continues across the narrow Bering Strait into Siberia and northern Europe. The overall circumpolar environment in the 1500's was not very different from the environment of the present. This vast landmass had a continental climate and was dominated by cold arctic air throughout a long winter and spring season. Summer temperature ranged from near freezing to the mid-20's Celsius, while winter temperature were often as low as 40 degrees below zero Celsius.
Geographers divide the overall circumpolar domain into two zones, the Arctic and, below it, the Subarctic. They refer to the landforms of these areas as tundra and taiga, respectively.
Temperatures in the northern lands were below freezing for eight or nine months of the year. Subsurface soil in the Arctic's tundra remained permanently frozen. Even when summer temperatures were above freezing and the top inches of earth became saturated with water, the soil below remained frozen into a permafrost, as hard as rock. When water flowed upon the surface of permanently frozen tundra, it made overland travel extremely difficult. Summer travel in the boggy lands, or muskeg country, of the Sub Arctic’s taiga was also slow and arduous. Tracking animals was more difficult than it was during the winter when the swampy ground was frozen solid and covered with snow. In both tundra and taiga, hordes of mosquitoes and biting flies bred in the standing pools of water. Clothing lost its thermal efficiency when it became damp. Northern people looked forward to the turn of the season to bring the easier traveling conditions associated with cold weather. In the Arctic, they could haul food and supplies by dogsled while in the Subarctic; people could travel quickly and efficiently by snowshoes and toboggan.

The word “standing” in line 25 is closest in meaning to

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.
After a busy day of work and play, the body needs to rest. Sleep is necessary for good health. During this time, the body recovers from  the (1)............ of the previous day. The rest that you get while sleeping enables your body to prepare itself for the next day.
There are four levels of sleep, each being a little (2)....... than the one before. As you sleep, your muscles relax little by little. Your heart beats more slowly, and your brain slows down. After you (3).......the fourth level, your body shifts back and forth from one level of sleep to the other.
Although your mind slows down, you will dream from time to time. Scientists who study sleep state that when dreaming (4)....., your eyeballs begin to move more quickly. This stage of sleep is called REM, which stands for Rapid Eye Movement.
If you have trouble falling asleep, some people recommend breathing very slowly and deeply. Other people believe that drinking warm milk will make you (5).................. There is also an old suggestion that counting sheep will put you to sleep!
(2).......................

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Have you ever thought about inventing something? Did you worry that your idea was too strange or unrealistic? Well, maybe you should think again. Strange or unrealistic ideas never stopped Arthur Pedrick. Pedrick was a British inventor. Originally a government clerk, he spent his retirement in the 1960s and 1970s developing new and unusual ideas. Some of these ideas contradicted basic physics, but that didn’t stop Pedrick. One of his strangest ideas was a plan to connect large tubes from the continent of Australia all the way to Antarctica, a distance of 10,000 km! These tubes would carry giant ice balls from Antarctica to Australia. This ice would then melt in the Australian desert, and the water would be used in irrigation. Another of Pedrick’s inventions was a radio-controlled golf ball. A golfer could change the speed and direction of the golf ball by small flaps, controlled by computer chips. Using radio waves, the golfer could also find lost golf balls. Arthur Pedrick had thousands of bizarre ideas for inventions, most of which were never built.
Though many of Pedrick’s inventions were never developed, a lot of other strange ideas were. In 1989, a company designed and sold a theft-prevention device for expensive cars. As part of this device, several tubes were attached to the bottom of a car. If someone tried to steal the car, super hot flames would come out of the tubes and burn the car thief. Some people who were not thieves, however, were seriously injured. They accidentally set off the device by walking past the car. Other strange inventions include underwear for dogs and pens with drinkable ink. The underwear keeps dogs from making a mess when they go out for a walk. Also, if you are ever thirsty during a test, a pen with drinkable ink would be very handy! If you have an idea that seems a little out in left field, don’t let that stop you from trying it. You’ll be in good company.

From the passage, what can be inferred about Arthur Pedrick?

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These days it is easy for most of us to get a hold of the latest books or magazines. We can go to bookstores, order them through the Internet, or borrow them from the local libraries. Now imagine having to walk miles and miles through a hot sandy desert just to borrow a book. This is the reality for people living in the villages of the Carissa region of Kenya in East Africa.
In 1996, librarian Wycliffe Oluoch used to spend each day waiting for people to come to borrow some of the 24,000 books in his library in Carissa. The library had no shortage of books, but people weren’t coming to read them. It was too much effort to walk through the desert just to borrow books. Oluoch racked his brain for ways to entice people into the library. After a lot of thought, he hit upon a great idea. If people wouldn’t come to the library, then he would have to take the library to them. Oluoch strapped boxes of books onto the backs of camels, and created the Mobile Camel Library.
Starting with three camels in 1996, but more recently expanding the service to six camels, the Mobile Camel Library serves over one million people. Twice a month, the camel library can be seen carrying books all around the Carissa region. These hard-working animals need little water and can carry up to 500 pounds of books across the sands. A librarian, a library assistant, a herdsman, and a lookout all travel with the camels. The lookout helps protect the books from thieves.
The children of Carissa love the camel library and appreciate Oluoch’s effort. Eleven-year-old Mohamud Mohamed reads his library books carefully and always returns them on time. He knows the Carissa library punishes people for losing books, just like any other library. However, the punishment is very stiff compared to that of other libraries. If a village loses a book, the camel library stops visiting.a

The word “stiff” is closest in meaning to     .

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.
Looking for an unforgettable way to celebrate that special occasion? Well, the (1)........... of options open today’s youngster - or even “oldster” for that matter, is a far cry from the traditional party or restaurant visit. No longer is it considered sufficient to invite your friends round, buy some food and get a barker to produce a cake. No, today’s birthday boy or girl is looking for something out of the ordinary, ranging from the outrageously expensive to the downright dangerous. Anything goes, as long as it is unusual and impressive.
Top  of  this  year’s  popular  (2)....... are as follows: taking some friends rally driving, helicopter lessons, plane trip and parachuting, and hot air ballooning. Then there is always group bungee jumping or taking your buddies on a stomach - churning, while water rafting ride down rapids.
The desire of adventurous celebration is not restricted to the young I recently met an octogenarian (3)... _ celebrated (4)..... the milestone of eighty by having a fly lesson.
Of course, if you have money the world is your oyster. A very rich relation of mine flew fifty of his friends to a Caribbean island to mark the passing of his half century. Unfortunately I was only a distant relation.
Undoubtedly, the more traditional  forms (5)...... celebration do continue to satisfy the less extravagant or less adventurous among us. However, with my own half century looming on the horizon I would not say no to a weekend in Paris and a meal at the Eiffel Tower. I can but dream. Perhaps by the time I’m eighty I’ll be able to afford it.
(3)..........................................................

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If "suburb" means an urban margin that grows more rapidly than its already developed interior,  the process of suburbanization began during the emergence of the industrial city in the second quarter of the nineteenth century. Before that period the city was a small highly compact cluster in which people moved about on foot and goods were conveyed by horse and cart. But the early factories built in the 1830's and 1840's were located along waterways and near railheads at the edges of cities, and housing was needed for the thousands of people drawn by the prospect of employment. In time, the factories were surrounded by proliferating mill towns of apartments and row houses that abutted the older, main cities.
As a defense against this encroachment and to enlarge their tax bases, the cities appropriated their industrial neighbors. In 1854, for example, the city of Philadelphia annexed most of Philadelphia County. Similar municipal maneuvers took place in Chicago and in New York. Indeed, most great cities of the United States achieved such status only by incorporating the communities along their borders.
With the acceleration of industrial growth came acute urban crowding and accompanying social stress conditions that began to approach disastrous proportions when, in 1888, the first commercially successful electric traction line was developed. Within a few years the horse-drawn trolleys were retired and electric streetcar networks crisscrossed and connected every major urban area, fostering a wave of suburbanization that transformed the compact industrial city into a dispersed metropolis. This first phase of mass-scale suburbanization was reinforced by the simultaneous emergence of the urban Middle class 64whose desires for homeownership in neighborhoods far from the aging inner city were satisfied by the developers of single-family housing tracts.

The word "encroachment" is closest in meaning to     

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The word robot first appeared in a 1921 stage play by Czech writer Karel Capek. In the play, a man makes a machine that can think, which he calls a robot and which ends up killing its owner. In the 1940s, the American science fiction writer Isaac Asimov wrote a series of stories about robots and invented the term robotics, the science of robots. Meanwhile, in the real world, the first robots were developed by an engineer, Joseph F. Engelberger, and an inventor, George C. Devol. Together they started Unimation, a manufacturing company that produces the first real robot in 1961, called the Unimate. Robots of this type were installed at a General Motors automobile plant and proved to be a success. They worked reliably and saved money for General Motors, so other companies were soon acquiring robots as well.
These industrial robots were nothing like the terrifying creatures that can often be seen in science fiction films. In fact, these robots looked and behaved nothing like humans. They were simply pieces of computer-controlled machinery, with metal “arms” or “hands”. Since they were made of metal, they could perform certain jobs that were difficult or dangerous for humans, particularly jobs that involve high heat. And since robots were tireless and never got hungry, sleepy, or distracted, they were useful for tasks that would be tiring or boring for humans. Industrial robots have been improved over the years, and today they are used in many factories around the world. Though the use of robots has meant the loss of some jobs, at the same time other jobs have been created in the design, development, and production of the robots.

What is Unimation?

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Except for a few unfortunate individuals, no law in this world can go against the fact that for most of us our family is an essential part of our lives. The moment you enter this cruel world, where each man is for himself, there are some near and dear ones out there who will do anything to ensure your happiness. We are nothing more than a vulnerable and fragile object, without someone taking care of us on our arrival in this world. Despite all the odds, your family will take care of your wellbeing, and try their best to provide you the greatest comforts in the worled. No one out there, except your family must forgive the endless number of mistakes you may make in your life. Apart from teaching you forgive and forget
lessons, they are always there for you, when you need them the most.
Family is the only place where children study a lot after school. In school, teachers teach children about the subjects which will help them to find a good job in future. But at home, parents teach children about good habits. They are not only the elements which help the children to shape their personalities but they also prepare them a suitable and bright future.
A good family makes a greater society. Father, mother, and children have to work in order to build a strong family. If any one of them fails, the whole family may collapse. The good name of the whole family can be ruined by a single member of the family. In order to avoid that unhappy scenario, every family member has to work hard and try their best. As a result, they will set good examples for the whole society. Families have a powerful impact on society and societies create countries.

According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE about the relation between family and society?