Read the following passage and choose the option (A, B, C or D) that best answers each of the questions below.

At the top of the list of the costliest natural disasters in the history of the United States is Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina was the third strongest hurricane ever to hit the U. S. It affected 90,000 square miles in Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, and Alabama.

The hurricane formed over the Bahamas and turned into a Category 1 hurricane by the time it hit the southeastern tip of Florida. It got stronger as it traveled across the Gulf of Mexico. It made its second landfall off the coast of southeast Louisiana on Monday, August 29, 2005. It had become a category 4 hurricane by then. The storm surge that followed caused destruction from central Florida to Texas. New Orleans, Louisiana, experienced even more damage because its levees were breeched, letting water flood a large portion of the city.

The National Weather Service warned people of the tropical monster that was heading towards the southern coast. Residents were told to expect power outages. They were told they might lose their rooftops and to expect water shortages. The National Hurricane Director was very concerned. He personally called the governors of Louisiana and Mississippi. He even called President Bush at his ranch in Texas. He spoke directly with New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin. Nagin issued an evacuation order for his city. Most people left. About eighty percent of the population evacuated. The estimate was that around 100,000 people remained in

the metro area. Some were stranded tourists; others did not own a car and had no way out. Those who were not able to leave were instructed to go to the New Orleans Convention Center and the Superdome.

41.     What is the passage mainly about?

A. The history of the United States hurricanes.

B. A hurricane in the history of the United States.

C. Hurricanes in the world, especially in the United States.

D. What the United States does to prevent hurricanes.

42.     According to the passage, what is NOT true about Hurricane Katrina?

A. It is the costliest natural disaster in the history of the United States.

B. It is the third strongest hurricane ever to hit the US.

C. It affected 90,000 square miles in Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, and Alabama.

D. It formed over the Bahamas.

43. What can be true from the passage about Hurricane Katrina when it hit the southeastern tip of Florida?

A. It was very weak.                                            B. It was very strong.

C. It was not as weak as it started.                      D. It was not as strong as it started.

44.What is NOT true about the National Hurricane Director?

A. He called the governors of Mississippi.

B. He called President Bush at his ranch in Texas.

C. He spoke directly with the New Orleans mayor.

D. He was very unconcerned.

45. According to the passage, how many people were evacuated?

A. About 80,000 people.                                     B. About 80% of the population.

C. Around 100,000 people.                                 D. Around 20% of the population.

At the top of the list of the costliest natural disasters in the history of the United States is Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina was the third strongest hurricane ever to hit theU.S. It affected 90,000 square miles in Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, and Alabama. The hurricane formed over the Bahamas and turned into a Category 1 hurricane by the time it hit the southeastern tip of Florida. It got stronger as it traveled across the Gulf of Mexico. It had become a category 4 hurricane when it reached Louisiana. The storm surge that followed caused destruction from central Florida to Texas. Louisiana, experienced even more damage because its levees were breeched, letting water flood a large portion of the city. The National Weather Service warned people of the tropical monster that was heading towards the southern coast. Residents were told to expect power outages.

They were told they might lose their rooftops and to expect water shortages. About 4/5 of the population evacuated. The estimate was that around 100,000 people remained in the metro area. Some were stranded tourists; others did not own a car and had no way out.

Decide if the following statements are true (T) or false (F).

1.Katrina is the most economically damaging hurricane to the US.                                         ....

2.Katrina was the strongest hurricane in the US‟s history.                                                            ...

3.Louisiana suffered the most in the hurricane.                                                                          ....

4.The US residents had no information about the hurricane.                                                     ....

5.Those who got stuck in the metro area were all local resident                                                 

Read the passage below and choose the best option A, B, C or D to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions

Passage 1:

New Orleans, in Louisiana, is known as the most unique city in the United States with distinctive architecture, cross-cultural heritage and annual music festivals.

However, due to its location along the Mississippi River with lakes on the other side, and nearly half of the city below sea level, the city faces the danger of flooding. So, a levee system and drainage canals were built to protect the city.

Early in the morning of August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive natural disaster in the history of New Orleans, struck the city. The storm brought strong winds and heavy rains for several days. As a result, water from the river and lakes rose, breaking the levees and poured directly into the city. Soon 80 percent of the city was under the water. People scrambled to rooftops for safety, desperate for food and drinking water. The winds were so strong that even beds in Hyatt Hotel were seen flying out of the hotel windows. The loss was tremendous. Most of the major roads and bridges were destroyed, and houses collapsed. Nearly 2,000 people were killed. After the storm, several natural grounds for the breeding and migrating of different species of animals and birds were permanently lost.

Question 1: New Orleans is famous for ___________.

A.  its modern architecture                     C. its Mississippi River

B. its cross-cultural heritage                    D. its location

Question 2: Which statement is NOT correct about New Orleans?

A. It lies between the Mississippi River and lakes.

B. One of its attractions is its annual music festivals

C. The city is surrounded by water.

D. Most of the city is below sea level.

Question 3: Which one is NOT mentioned as being damaged by Hurricane Katrina?

A. Distinctive architecture         B. The levee system      C. Major roads        D. Houses

Question 4: The word ‘tremendous' means ___________.

A.puzzling                       B. huge                 C. unique                   D. legendary

Question 5: The word ‘permanently' is similar to ___________.

A.  temporarily            B.  partially                  C.  forever         D.  rarely

Passage 2:

        How can scientists predict earthquakes? Earthquakes are not scattered anywhere but happen in certain areas. They happen in places where pieces of the earth’s surface meet. For example, earthquakes often occur on the west-coast of North and South America, around the Mediterranean Sea, and along the Pacific coast of Asia.

Another way to predict earthquakes is to look for changes in the earth’s surface, like a sudden drop of water level in the ground. Some people say animals can predict earthquakes. Before earthquakes people have seen chickens sitting in trees, fish jumping out of the water, snake leaving their holes and other animals acting strangely.

After an earthquake happens, people can die from lack of food, water and medical supplies. The amount of destruction caused by an earthquake depend on types of building, soil conditions and population. Of the 6000 earthquakes on the earth each year, only about fifteen cause great damage and many deaths.

Question 1:  Earthquakes happen in certain areas where _______________.

A. the population is large             B. pieces of the earth’s surface meet

C. the soil conditions are stable      D. many buildings are built

Question 2: Earthquakes often happen along ________________.

A. the east-coast of North America          B. the east-coast of South America

C. the Pacific coast of Asia             D. the coast of Australia

Question 3: Looking for ____________ can help predict earthquakes.

A. changes in the earth’s surface        B. water beneath the earth’s surface

C. drops of water                     D. water currents

Question 4: After an earthquake, as a result of _________ people may die.

A. lack of food                              B. lack of friendship

C. lack of information              D. lack of knowledge

Question 5: The passage mainly discusses ______________.

A. the damage caused by earthquakes B. how strong earthquakes are

C. strange animal behaviors                         D. how to predict earthquakes

Ex 1: complete the passage with the given words.

Early in the morning of August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive natural (1) _________ in the history of New Orleans, struck the city. The storm brought strong winds and heavy rains for several days. As a result, (2) _____________ from the river and lakes rose, breaking the levees and poured directly into the city. Soon 80 percent of the city was (3) ________ the water. People scrambled to rooftops for safety, desperate for food and drinking water. The (4) ___________ were so strong that even beds in Hyatt Hotel were seen flying out of the hotel windows. The loss was tremendous. Most of the major roads and bridges were (5) _______, and house collapsed. Nearly 2,000 people were killed. After the storm, several natural grounds for the breeding and migrating of different species of animals and birds were (6) __________ lost.

1. A. disaster B. wonder C. landmark D. monument

2. A. fish B. mud C. water D. debris

3. A. in B. on C. under D. with

4. A. rains B. earthquakes C. floods D. winds

5. A. destroyed B. built C. repaired D. widened

6. A. slowly B. carefully C. permanently D. happily

III. Read the following  passage and do the tasks below :  

HURRICANE KATRINA

New Orleans, in Louisiana, is known as the most unique city in the United States with distinctive architecture, cross-cultural heritage and annual music festivals.

However, due to its location along the Mississippi River with lakes on the other side, and nearly half of the city below sea level, the city faces the danger of flooding. So, a levee system and drainage canals were built to protect the city.

Early in the morning of August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive natural disaster in the history of New Orleands, struck the city. The storm brought strong winds and heavy rains for several days. As a result water from the river and lakes rose, breaking the levees and poured directly into the city. Soon 80 percent of the city was under water. People scrambled to rooftops for safety, desperate for food and drinking water. The winds were so strong that even beds in Hyatt Hotel were seen flying out of the hotel windows. The loss was ‘tremendous’. Most of the major roads and bridges were destroyed and houses collapsed. Nearly 2,000 people were killed. After the storm, several natural grounds for the breeding and migrating of different species of animals and birds were permanently lost.

1. When did Hurricane Katrina strick the city ?

____________________________________________________________________________

2. What did people scramble to rooftops for  ?

____________________________________________________________________________

3. How many people were killed ?

____________________________________________________________________________

HURRICANE KATRINA

New Orleans, in Louisiana, is known as the most unique city in the United States with distinctive architecture, cross-cultural heritage and annual music festivals. However, due to its location along the Mississippi River with lakes on the other side, and nearly half of the city below sea level, the city faces the danger of flooding. So, a levee system and drainage canals were built to protect the city.

Early in the morning of August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive natural disaster in the history of New Orleans, struck the city. The storm brought strong winds and heavy rains for several days. As a result, water from the river and lakes rose, breaking the levees and poured directly into the city. Soon 80 percent of the city was under the water. People scrambled to roof tops for safety, desperate for food and drinking water. The winds were so strong that even beds in Hyatt Hotel were seen flying out of the hotel windows. The loss was tremendous. Most of the major roads and bridges were destroyed, and houses collapsed. Nearly 2,000 people were killed. After the storm, several natural grounds for the breeding and migrating of different species of animals and birds were permanently lost.

1. New Orleans is famous for ______.
A. its modern architecture          B. its cross-cultural heritage       

 C. its Mississippi River             D. its location
2. Which statement is NOT correct about New Orleans?
A. It lies between the Mississippi River and lakes.   

B. One of its attractions is its annual music festivals.
C. The city is surrounded by water.                           

D. Most of the city is below sea level.
3. Which one is NOT mentioned as being damaged by Hurricane Katrina?
A. Distinctive architecture         B. The levee system             C. Major roads                     D. Houses
4. The word ‘tremendous’ means ______.
A. puzzling                   B. huge               C. unique          D. legendary
5.  The word ‘permanently’ is similar to ______.
A. temporarily               B. partially           C. forever         D. rarely

III. Read the text carefully, then choose the correct answers. The City of New York, often called New York City or simply New York, is the most populous city in the United States. With an estimated 2016 population of 8,537,673 distributed over a land area of about 302.6 square miles (784 km2). New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the United States. Located at the southern tip of the state of New York, the city is the center of the New York metropolitan area, one of the most populous urban agglomerations in the world. A global power city, New York City exerts a significant impact upon commerce, finance, media and entertainment, art, fashion, research, technology, education, politics, and sports, its fast pace defining the term New York minute. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy and has been described as the cultural, financial, and media capital of the world. New York City traces its origin to its 1624 founding in Lower Manhattan as a trading post by colonists of the Dutch Republic and was named New Amsterdam in 1626. The city and its surroundings came under English control in 1664 and were renamed New York after King Charles II of England granted the lands to his brother, the Duke of York. New York served as the capital of the United States from 1785 until 1790. It has been the country’s largest city since 1790. The Statue of Liberty greeted millions of immigrants as they came to the Americas by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is a symbol of the United States and its democracy. In the 21th century, New York has emerged as a global node of creativity and entrepreneurship, social tolerance, and environmental sustainability, and as a world symbol of freedom and cultural diversity. 1. Which city is the most densely populated in the US? ……………………………………………………………………………….. 2. Which field does New York exerts a significant impact upon? ……………………………………………………………………………………. 3. Was New York City named New Amsterdam in 1624? ……………………………………………………………………………………. 4. When did New York serve as the capital of the US? …………………………………………………………………………………… 5. Which symbolizes the US and its democracy? ……………………………………………………………………. D. WRITING I. Complete the second sentence so that it has the same meaning as the first. 1. I’ve never had to wait this long for a bus before. → This is 2. “You must stay in bed until next Monday!” the doctor said. → The doctor said 3. It took us more than 3 hours to discover the inner Hanoi. → We spent 4. No other book is more popular than Dickens’ “David Copperfield”. → Dickens’ “David Copperfield” is 5. Watching TV is not as important as doing homework. → Doing homework II. Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word in capital. 1. I’m really excited about the upcoming pottery workshop. (FORWARD) I’m 2. There is no oil and gas left on Earth. (RUN) The Earth has 3. When I was a child, I usually went to the local park every Saturday afternoon. (GO) When I was a child, 4. He left school because his mother was sick . (sickness) Because 5. You shouldn’t have behaved like that. (behave) I wish .................................................................................................................................................