Question I. Complete the passage with the given words in the box.

Natural (1)……………............. can be destructive; they can wreak havoc across large areas and cause loss of life or (2)…………….............  to property. We cannot prevent natural disasters, but we can prepare  for them. The first (3)…………….............  is to learn about the risks in your area and read the information about natural disasters on local government sites. Next, find out  what the  rescue  and  emergency workers advise. These (4)………............have been trained to deal with disasters, have been through lots of them and know how to help. Make sure you have all the emergency contact (5)……………........... entered  in  your  mobile phone.  It  is  also  important that you put together an emergency supply kit. Your emergency supply kit should include (6)……………...........  , water, medications, personal hygiene items, copies of personal documents and some money. You may also need some extra (7)………….............if  you live in a cold climate. Natural disasters can force people to leave their homes so you should also (8)……………............. familiar with  the  guidelines for  evacuation. Plan safe places to meet your family and get to know the evacuation routes and shelters.

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

        Environmental pollution is a term that (1)______ to all the ways by which man pollutes his surroundings. Man dirties the air with (2)______ gasses and smoke, (3)_____ the water with chemicals and other substances, and damages the (4)_____ with too many fertilizers and pesticides. Man also pollutes his surroundings (5)_____ various other ways. For example, people ruin natural beauty by (6)_____ junk and litter on the land and in the water.

       Environmental pollution is one of the most serious problems facing mankind today. Air, water and soil are necessary to the (7)_____ of all living things. Badly polluted air can cause illness, and (8)_____ death. Polluted water kills fish and other (9)_____ life. Pollution of soil reduces the amount of land that is available for growing food. Environmental pollution also brings ugliness to man’s (10)_____ beautiful world.

  1. A. means                        B. refers                    C. provides                     D. reduces

  2. A. thick                          B. natural                  C. exhaust                       D. influent

  3. A. purifies                      B. pumps                   C. sprays             D. poisons

  4. A. soil                            B. forests                   C. streets                        D. beaches

  5. A. on                              B. in                          C. by                               D. with

  6. A. spoiling                     B. leaving                 C. scattering                    D. gathering

  7. A. survival                     B. environment         C. development              D. growth

  8. A. so                              B. ever                       C. too                              D. even

  9. A. animal                      B. marine                   C. human                        D. plant

10. A. nature                       B. natural                   C. naturally                     D. natured

Mark the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the sentence that is closest in meaning to each of the following questions

Question 27: She has always had a good relationship with the children.

A. She has got a lot of children and relatives who she always gets along with.

B. She hardly gets along well with the children.

C. The children have had her as their friends and relatives.

D. She has always got on well with the children.

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 from 36 to 42.

 THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

Information technology is influencing the way many of us live and work today. We use the Internet to look and apply for jobs, shop, conduct research, make airline reservations, and explore areas of interest. We use e-mail and the Internet to communicate instantaneously with friends and business associates around the world. Computers are commonplace in homes and the workplace.

Although the number of Internet users is growing exponentially each year, most of the world’s population does not have access to computers or the Internet. Only 6 percent of the population in developing countries are connected to telephones. Although more than 94 percent of U.S. households have a telephone, only 42 percent have personal computers at home and 26 percent have Internet access. The lack of what most of us would consider a basic communications necessity –the telephone –does not occur just in developing nations. On some Native American reservations only 60 percent of the residents have a telephone. The move to wireless connections may eliminate the need for telephone lines, but it does not remove the barrier to equipment costs.

Who has Internet access? Fifty percent of the children in urban households with an income over $75,000 have Internet access, compared with 2 percent of the children in low-income, rural households. Nearly half of college-educated people have Internet access, compared to 6 percent of those with only some high school education. Forty percent of households with two parents have access; 15 percent of female, single-parent households do. Thirty percent of white households, 11 percent of black households, and 13 percent of Hispanic households have access. Teens and children are the two fastest-growing segments of Internet users. The digital divide between the populations who have access to the Internet and information technology tools is based on income, race, education, household type, and geographic location. Only 16 percent of the rural poor, rural and central city minorities, young householders, and single parent female households are connected..

Another problem that exacerbates these disparities is that African-Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans hold few of the jobs in information technology. Women hold about 20 percent of these jobs and are receiving fewer than 30 percent of the computer science degrees. The result is that women and members of the most oppressed ethnic groups are not eligible for the jobs with the highest salaries at graduation. Baccalaureate candidates with degrees in computer science were offered the highest salaries of all new college graduates in 1998 at $44,949.

Do similar disparities exist in schools? More than 90 percent of all schools in the country are wired with at least one Internet connection. The number of classrooms with Internet connections differs by the income level of students. Using the percentage of students who are eligible for free lunches at a school to determine income level, we see that nearly twice as many of the schools with more affluent students have wired classrooms as those with high concentrations of low-income students.

Access to computers and the Internet will be important in reducing disparities between groups. It will require greater equality across diverse groups whose members develop knowledge and skills in computer and information technologies. If computers and the Internet are to be used to promote equality, they will have to become accessible to populations that cannot currently afford the equipment which needs to be updated every three years or so. However, access alone is not enough. Students will have to be interacting with the technology in authentic settings. As technology becomes a tool for learning in almost all courses taken by students, it will be seen as a means to an end rather than an end in itself. If it is used in culturally relevant ways, all students can benefit from its power.

Which of the sentences below best expresses the information in the statement “Although the number ............. or the Internet.” in the paragraph 2?

A. The number of computers that can make the Internet available to most of the people in the world is not increasing fast enough

B. The Internet is available to most of the people in the world, even though they don't have their own computer terminals

C. Most of the people in the world use the Internet now because the number of computers has been increasing every year

D. The number of people who use computers and the Internet is increasing every year, but most people in the world still do not have connections