Twenty-one days after they left Panama in their yacht, they met some whales. “ They started to hit the side of the boat”, said Bill, “and then ______ we heard water.”

Read the passage below then pick out ONE best option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each of the following sentences. (1.5 points)

    Sydney was founded as a British colony in 1788. Sydney was the first everlasting European settlement in Australia and today it is the country's largest city area, with about 4 million residents. Sydney is the seat of state government as the capital of New South Wales, Australia's most populous and economically important state. The city is an active cultural center with a varied economy based on service industries, tourism, manufacturing, and international commerce. Its port is one of the leading centers of intercontinental trade in the Asia-Pacific region. Sydney is located on Australia’s southeastern coast at Port Jackson, a large, sheltered, deep-water inlet of the Tasman Sea.

   Sydney is well-known for its Opera House. The Sydney Opera House is the centerpiece of the city’s places for live performances of ballet, opera, and classical music. The Australian Opera, Australian Ballet, and Sydney Dance companies regularly stage performances there. Moreover, the place often hosts internationally touring performances. Sydney also has many places for musical theater, drama, and popular music. The Sydney Theatre Company is one of many successful theatre companies in the city. Sydney is also home to the internationally praised Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

   The cultural life of Sydney is exciting and varied, reflecting the multicultural nature of the city. Many festivals, parades, and outdoor concerts cheer up the city streets in the summer months. Annual events include the Sydney Festival in January and February, the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in March, the Royal Easter Show in April, and the multicultural festival Carnivale in September and October. Sydney has also become world-renowned for its street parties and fireworks on New Year's Eve and Australia Day celebrated on Sydney's Founding date, January 26.

from the passage, it can be inferred that Sydney was established……

Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. Circle A, B, C, or D to indicate your answers.

Alfred Bernhard Nobel, a Swedish inventor, and philanthropist bequeathed most of his vast fortune in trust as a fund from which annual prizes could be awarded to individuals and organizations who had achieved the greatest benefit to humanity in a particular year. Originally, there were six classifications for outstanding contributions designated in Nobel’s will, including chemistry, physics, physiology or medicine, literature, and international peace.

The prizes are administered by the Nobel Foundation in Stockholm. In 1969, a prize for economics endowed by the Central Bank of Sweden was added. Candidates for the prizes must be nominated in writing a qualified authority in the field of competitions. Recipients in physics, chemistry, and economics are selected by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences; and physiology or medicine by the Caroline Institute; in literature by the Swedish Academy; and in peace by the Norwegian Nobel Committee appointed by Norway’s parliament. The prizes are usually in Stockholm on December 10, with the King of Sweden officiating, an appropriate tribute to Alfred Nobel on the anniversary of his death. Each one includes a gold medal, a diploma, and a cash award of about one million dollars.

Why are the awards presented on December 10?

Khoanh tròn A, B, C hoặc D ứng với phương án đúng để hoàn chỉnh văn bản sau: 

The Mediterranean has been described as ______(0)___ world’s largest swimming pool. However, it can also be described now as the world’s dirtiest sewer, full of rubbish, oil, chemicals, and wastes _____(1) all kinds.
Unfortunately, most countries bordering the Mediterranean ________(2) ____ greatly in their attitudes to this problem. While some countries want to start cleaning up the Mediterranean, others have begun building new ports to develop their oil wells and natural gas fields. Industries _______(3) ______ in all the countries surrounding the Mediterranean. It will take a century for all the water in the Mediterranean to drain into the Atlantic Ocean, and be replaced completely by clean water. Three great rivers, the Nile, Po, and Rhone, all flow into the Mediterranean, carrying lots of ______(4)_______ into the sea and making it very dangerous for everyone who swims in the Mediterranean and who eats fish ______(5)_____ there.

3._________

Read the text and then choose the best answer A, B, C, or D.

    Visit the Edinburgh Festival

Every year, thousands of people come to Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland, to be part of the Edinburgh Festival. For three weeks every August and September the city is filled with actors and artists from all over the world. They come to Edinburgh for the biggest arts festival in Britain. During this time, the streets of the city are alive with music and dance from early in the morning untill late at night. You can even see artists painting pictures on the streets.

Tens of thousands of tourists come to the festival to see new films and plays and to hear music played by famous musicians. This year, you can see over five hundred performances with actors from more than forty countries.

The tickets for these performances are quite cheap, and it is usually easier to see your favourite star in Edinburgh than it is in London. So come to Edinburgh next summer!

 How long does the Edinburgh Festival last?

Read this passage carefully and then choose the best answers to the questions below by circling the corresponding letter A, B, C, or D. 

A recent investigation by scientists at the US Geological Survey shows that strange animal behavior might help predict the future earthquake.
Investigators found such occurrences in a ten-kilometer radius of the center of a fairly recent quake. Some birds screeched and flew about wildly. Dogs yelped and ran uncontrollably.
Scientists believe that animals can perceive these environmental changes as early as several days before the disaster.
In 1976 after observing animal behavior, the Chinese were able to predict a terrible quake. Although hundreds of thousands of people were killed, the government was able to evacuate millions of people and thus keep the death toll at a lower rate.

In the passage, the word “evacuate” most means …………..

Khoanh tròn A, B, C hoặc D ứng với phương án đúng để hoàn chỉnh văn bản sau: 

The Mediterranean has been described as ______(0)___ world’s largest swimming pool. However, it can also be described now as the world’s dirtiest sewer, full of rubbish, oil, chemicals, and wastes _____(1) all kinds.
Unfortunately, most countries bordering the Mediterranean ________(2) ____ greatly in their attitudes to this problem. While some countries want to start cleaning up the Mediterranean, others have begun building new ports to develop their oil wells and natural gas fields. Industries _______(3) ______ in all the countries surrounding the Mediterranean. It will take a century for all the water in the Mediterranean to drain into the Atlantic Ocean, and be replaced completely by clean water. Three great rivers, the Nile, Po, and Rhone, all flow into the Mediterranean, carrying lots of ______(4)_______ into the sea and making it very dangerous for everyone who swims in the Mediterranean and who eats fish ______(5)_____ there.

1____________

Visit the Edinburgh Festival

Every year, thousands of people come to Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland, to be part of the Edinburgh Festival. For three weeks every August and September the city is filled with actors and artists from all over the world. They come to Edinburgh for the biggest arts festival in Britain. During this time, the streets of the city are alive with music and dance from early in the morning untill late at night. You can even see artists painting pictures on the streets.

Tens of thousands of tourists come to the festival to see new films and plays and to hear music played by famous musicians. This year, you can see over five hundred performances with actors from more than forty countries.

The tickets for these performances are quite cheap, and it is usually easier to see your favourite star in Edinburgh than it is in London. So come to Edinburgh next summer!

How many people come to attend the Edinburgh Festival every year?

In the ______ they could see the sea. Paul was very sad when it was time to go back to London and school.

Read the text and then choose the best answer A, B, C, or D.

Every year, thousands of people come to Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland, to be part of the Edinburgh Festival. For three weeks every August and September the city is filled with actors and artists from all over the world. They come to Edinburgh for the biggest arts festival in Britain. During this time, the streets of the city are alive with music and dance from early in the morning untill late at night. You can even see artists painting pictures on the streets.

Tens of thousands of tourists come to the festival to see new films and plays and to hear music played by famous musicians. This year, you can see over five hundred performances with actors from more than forty countries.

The tickets for these performances are quite cheap, and it is usually easier to see your favourite star in Edinburgh than it is in London. So come to Edinburgh next summer!

Question: What can you even see artists doing on the streets?

Britain is now a highly industrialized country and there are only 238,000 farms in the UK. More and more farmers leave the land because they can not earn enough money to survive. Only large farms are economic and because of this most British farm are big. They usually grow cereals in the east of England and raise sheep and cowsin the north of England and Scotland. The small family farms often have to earn more money by offering bed and breakfast accommodation to tourists.

Farming methods in Britain have also changed. Fields used to be quite small, divided by hedges which were sometimes a thousand years old and full of wild flowers and birds. Many hedges were pulled up to allow farmers to use mordern machinery. Now most fields in England are large by European standards.

Question: Which of the following sentences is not true?

Read the following passage and choose the correct answer to each of the following questions from 46 to 50.

On January 17, 1995, a powerful earthquake hit the city of Kobe, Japan. Many buildings burned or collapsed. Part of an expressway fell over. Train lines were damaged, so trains could not run, and supplies of electricity, gas, and water were cut off. Soon after the earthquake was over, people in Kobe began working together to save their city. Neighbors pulled each other out of collapsed buildings. Ordinary people put out fires even before the fire trucks arrived. Volunteers in Kobe organized themselves into teams. They worked out a system to send help to where it was needed. Some people brought food, water, clothes, and electric generators to different parts of the city. Other teams searched for belongings in damaged stores and homes. Some volunteers took care of the children who had lost their parents. Teams of volunteers from outside Japan helped, too. A rescue team with search dogs came from Switzerland. A group of doctors called Doctors Without Borders came from all over the world. A group called the International Rescue Corps also sent its members to help.

Today, Kobe has been rebuilt. But people there still remember the outpouring of support they received from all over the world back in 1995.

On the whole , the passage is about ______________.

Pick out ONE best option (A, B, C, or D) to fill in each numbered blank, completing the meaning of the passage: 

   The International Space Station (ISS) is a large spacecraft that was launched in 1998. It orbits the Earth and is the place where astronauts live and conduct research in microgravity (25)…..

   Below is about the day in the life of an astronaut aboard the International Space Station.

   Astronauts sleep in sleeping bags. The microgravity makes them (26)……. They have to attach themselves so they don’t float about.

   Hair is washed with a “senseless” shampoo that does not need water. For toothbrushing, a small (27)……of water is used with toothpaste and then swallowed.

   The crew spend their day doing science experiments. They also carry out checks for the maintenance of the station. The Mission Control Centre on Earth (28)……their operations.

   The astronauts eat various foods (29)……fruits, nuts, chicken, beef, seafood, brownies, salt and pepper (in liquid forms), etc. Drinks include coffee, tea, and fruits juice (all packaged). Foods can be heated up or kept cool with special machines.

   A popular pastime while orbiting Earth is (30)……looking out of the windows to admire its beauty. In their free time, astronauts exercise, watch movies, play music, read books, play cards, and talk to their families.

   How are astronauts trained? Anyone can apply to train as an astronaut as long as they have a bachelor’s degree in science, mathematics, or engineering, experience as a jet pilot, and are (31)…… If they get accepted, there are several phases of training. The first phase requires them to pass a swimming test in a flight suit. They take parabolic flights that produce weightlessness. They also learn about various spaceship systems. In the second phase, they are trained to operate spacecraft systems and deal with emergencies. The training is often (32)……in a water tank laboratory so that trainees become familiar with crew activities in simulated microgravity in order to perform spacewalks.

28_________

Read the passage below and decide which options A, B, C, or D best fits each space:
Christmas is a biggest festival of the year (21)__________ Britain. Before Christmas, people send Christmas (22)__________ to their friends and family showing traditional Christmas symbols such as Santa Claus, angels, holly, and snowmen. Shops are decorated for Christmas from September and in the weeks before Christmas people do their Christmas (23)__________, buying Christmas presents for friends and family. A few days before Christmas, families decorate a Christmas tree, a fir tree (24)__________in lights and colorful decorations, in their home. Many people go to midnight mass in church on Christmas Eve. Young children believe that Santa Claus will bring them presents during the night and they usually wake up to find a stocking, a long sock filled with small presents, by (25)__________bed.

23. _________

Choose the word among A, B, C, D that best fits the blank space in the following passage.
POCKET MONEY
      I was sixteen when I got my first job. The man who ran our local supermarket was one of my mother's friends. She told him that I was hard-working and needed to (29)………….some money. He gave me an interview, and after(30)……………..questions he told me to start work. The wages were not good, but I worked every evening for twelve weeks and saved enough money for a short holiday with my friends. I was very (31)………………to be able to pay for everything I wanted (32)………of asking my parents for money. Since that time, I have always done a job as well as studying.

31.________

Read the text and then choose the best answer A, B, C, or D.

    Visit the Edinburgh Festival

Every year, thousands of people come to Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland, to be part of the Edinburgh Festival. For three weeks every August and September the city is filled with actors and artists from all over the world. They come to Edinburgh for the biggest arts festival in Britain. During this time, the streets of the city are alive with music and dance from early in the morning untill late at night. You can even see artists painting pictures on the streets.

Tens of thousands of tourists come to the festival to see new films and plays and to hear music played by famous musicians. This year, you can see over five hundred performances with actors from more than forty countries.

The tickets for these performances are quite cheap, and it is usually easier to see your favourite star in Edinburgh than it is in London. So come to Edinburgh next summer!

What can you even see artists doing on the streets?

Decide if the following statements are True or False or Not Given according to the text.

Hello students. Today I'd like to tell you some information about types and sources of energy. Energy is classified into two main groups: renewable and non-renewable.

The energy generated from natural sources such as the sun, wind, rain, and tides is called renewable energy. They are plentiful and can be generated again and again. They also have low carbon emissions so they are considered green and environment-friendly. Moreover, using renewable energy can reduce your electricity bills. Unfortunately, solar energy can be only used during the daytime but not during night or the rainy season. Geothermal energy also can bring toxic chemicals beneath the earth's surface to the top and can create environmental changes.

 Non-renewable energy will run out in 150 years.

Read the text and then choose the best answer A, B, C, or D.

    Visit the Edinburgh Festival

Every year, thousands of people come to Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland, to be part of the Edinburgh Festival. For three weeks every August and September the city is filled with actors and artists from all over the world. They come to Edinburgh for the biggest arts festival in Britain. During this time, the streets of the city are alive with music and dance from early in the morning untill late at night. You can even see artists painting pictures on the streets.

Tens of thousands of tourists come to the festival to see new films and plays and to hear music played by famous musicians. This year, you can see over five hundred performances with actors from more than forty countries.

The tickets for these performances are quite cheap, and it is usually easier to see your favourite star in Edinburgh than it is in London. So come to Edinburgh next summer!

How many people come to attend the Edinburgh Festival every year?

Read the passage below and decide which option (A, B, C, or D) best fits each space. 

In 1853, Levi Strauss (21)_ to San Francisco from New York. His brothers ran a business there selling pillows, blankets, and clothes and Levis went to help them. He worked (22) and, over the next twenty years, he expanded the business.

One day in 1872, Levi got a letter from Jacob Davis who made men's clothes. In the letter Jacob (23) Levis about a difficult customer. He kept on tearing the pockets of his trousers. Jacob had found an answer – he had added some metal to the corners of the pockets. Levi recognized a business opportunity, (24) _ the two men started working together. They decided to make some trousers out of denim, a material which was suitable for working clothes. The first pair of denim blue jeans (25) _ produced in 1873. Today people all around the world wear Levi jeans every day.

23_________

Read the following passage and then choose the correct answer A, B, C, or D.
One of the most important discoveries of the nineteenth century was the method of using natural gas for cooking and heating. Large amounts of natural gas are found in the United States, usually several feet below the surface of the earth. Natural gas is most often found in places where petroleum, the oil from which gasoline is made, is found. Often the natural gas must be removed before the oil itself can be reached.
For many years after natural gas was first discovered, it was thought to have no value. Finally, however, people began to understand its use and to find ways of storing it and moving it from place to place. Today natural gas is stored in large tanks and used for lighting, cooking, and heating. It has also been used for electric generators and hybrid cars recently. In many ways, natural gas is one of our finest fuels. It can be used for cooking without making the room hot. It is cheap and can be moved easily from one place to another through long pipelines, some of which are hundreds of miles in length.

Which of the following is NOT true about natural gas?

 Read the passage below then pick out ONE best option (A, B, C or D . to complete each of the following sentences:

Britain is now a highly industrialized country and there are only 238,000 farms in the UK. More and more farmers leave the land because they can not earn enough money to survive. Only large farms are economic and because of this most British farm are big. They usually grow cereals in the east of England and raise sheep and cowsin the north of England and Scotland. The small family farms often have to earn more money by offering bed and breakfast accommodation to tourists.

Farming methods in Britain have also changed. Fields used to be quite small, divided by hedges which were sometimes a thousand years old and full of wild flowers and birds. Many hedges were pulled up to allow farmers to use mordern machinery. Now most fields in England are large by European standards.

 British farmers give up working on their farms because________ .