INSPECTORATUL ŞCOLAR JUDEŢEAN GALAŢI

OLIMPIADA DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ – ETAPA LOCALĂ

CLASA A XI-A, SECŢIUNEA B
1 FEBRUARIE 2020

Nota: Toate subiectele sunt obligatorii.

Timp de lucru: 3 ore

SUBIECTUL I – USE OF ENGLISH ……………………………………….......……….(40 points)

1. Read the text below and choose the correct word for each space. For each question, mark the
correct letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet. (10p)
Social-networking sites are a great way to keep in touch with people and 1)……………new friends.
However, by using them, we also unintentionally 2)……….a lot about their personalities. These sites
are increasingly being studied by psychologists to gain 3)…………into people’s personalities.
After years of 4)……into how relationships in real life are formed, psychologists are finding that
social-networking sites provide a rich 5)……of useful data. It’s possible to study 6)…..social-
networks and communication patterns in new ways.
We no longer have to rely 7)…….on people reporting how they feel about each other. Messages and
images on these sites act as open-ended stimuli that people react to in ways 8)…..with their
personalities. Psychologists have found enough 9)……. to be able to confirm that extroverts post more
messages and photos on social-networking sites than introverts. For example, introverts tend to read
messages, but not (10) ........... to them.

1. A. build B. make C. cause D. design

2. A. reveal B. give C. deliver D. exhibit
3. A. vision B. insight C. intuition D. comprehension
4. A. exploration B. testing C. trial D. research
5. A. origin B. source C. heart D. core
6. A. immense B. excessive C. complex D. incalculable
7. A. solely B. merely C. barely D. uniquely
8. A. constant B. reliable C. consistent D. stable
9. A. assurance B. evidence C. basis D. foundation

10. A. retort B. answer C. acknowledge D. respond

2. Complete the text with words formed from the words in capitals. (10 p)

According to the statistics, around 40 million people around the globe are blind. Not
surprisingly, medical researchers in this field have one (1)OBJECTIVE OBJECT and that’s a
definitive cure for blindness. They are working (2)ZEALOUSLY ZEAL towards developing
technology that is as effective for the visually (3)DISABLED ABLE as that available for the
hearing-impaired. And their (4)PERSEVERANCE PERSEVERE may finally pay off.
The “bionic eye” is maybe the greatest (5) BREAKTHROUGH BREAK that scientists could
make in this field. Although curing all forms of blindness may be too (6)AMBITIOUS
AMBITION a goal, the bionic eye may be the solution to at least certain forms of blindness. It
differs from the “prosthetic eye” in that the latter (7)REPLACES PLACE the physical
structure and appearance of the eye whilst the former works inside the eye structure or in the
brain.
One of the first people to benefit from the (8) REMARKABLE REMARK new technology
spoke of her joy at finally being able to tell the time after more than six years. “The doctors’
(9)ACCOMPLISHMENT ACCOMPLISH is just incredible”, she said.
With further work and steadfast (10)DETERMINATION DETERMINE , scientists hope that
they will be able to restore many more people’s sight.

3. Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the
word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between three and six words, including
the word given. (5 x2p = 10p)
1. Karen says it takes less than an hour to drive there, but I'm sure she has got it wrong. MUST
Karen says it takes less than an hour to drive there, but she MUST HAVE MADE A mistake.
2. Students wishing to enrol on the course should complete all sections of the application form.
REQUIRED
Students wishing to enrol on the course ARE REQUIRED TO FILL in all sections of the application
form.
3. I wish I had considered the question more carefully before answering. THOUGHT
I should HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT the question more carefully before answering.
4. The factory has been able to reduce its CO2 emissions by 50% in the last year. SUCCEEDED
The factory HAS SUCCEEDED IN CUTTING back its CO2 emissions by 50% in the last year.
5. It's a long walk home, so I advise you not to miss the last train. BETTER
It's a long walk home, so YOU’D BETTER NOT MISS the last train.

4. Fill in each gap with only one word which fits the meaning of the text. (10p)
Television occupies a large portion of children’s time. Starting in preschool, children spend more time
watching television (1) THAN participating in any other activity (2) EXEPT for sleeping. Children
also have extensive experience of television before being exposed to many socializing agents, (3)
SUCH as schools and peers. Because television has this important role, it is important to understand its
potential positive and negative effects (4) ON most children.
The results of recent research suggest that there is considerable overlap (5) BETWEEN the
comprehension processes that take place while reading and the processes activated (6) BY a period of
television viewing. If (7) SO it may very well be the case that children who learn comprehension skills
from television viewing before they are ready to read are equipped with some very important tools
when they later learn to read.
Clearly, television viewing is not the sole context providing important foundations for literacy. Given
(8) THAT most parents are positive about the values of stories, many children may be read (9) TO at
bedtime. Television, however, is an ideal medium in (10) WHICH to cultivate some of the skills and
knowledge needed for later reading.
SUBIECTUL II – INTEGRATED SKILLS ……………………………………..… (60 points)
1. You are going to read an extract from a writer’s journal. For questions 1 – 5, choose the
answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text. (10 p)
Giving up a car has not been quite the liberating experience that George Monbiot had hoped.
Seventeen years after giving up my car, I still feel like a second-class citizen. I am trying to do the
right thing, but the United Kingdom just isn't run for people like me. Take our bus services. My home
city, Oxford, has invested massively in a park-and-ride scheme: buses carry people into the centre
from car parks on the outskirts. At first I thought this was a great idea. Now, having stood for what
must amount to weeks at bus stops, watching the full double deckers go by every couple of minutes
without stopping, I realise it's not just the roads which have been taken over by drivers, but also the
public transport system.
Or take the bike lanes. Most consist of lines painted on the road where it is wide and safe, which
disappear as soon as it becomes narrow and dangerous. One of them, in Oxford, has been surfaced
with small stones, which shows that the people who designed them have never ridden a bicycle. When
we asked for a bike lane on one of the city's busiest streets, the council chose instead to narrow the
street and widen the pavements, in the hope that the bicycles would slow down the cars. The cyclists,
reluctant to become human speed bumps, started travelling down the pavement.
Now there is almost nowhere reserved for people like me. Out of political cowardice, councils and the
police have given up enforcing the law. Preventing people from parking on the pavement would mean
cutting the number of parking places, as the streets are otherwise too narrow. In one part of Oxford
they have solved the problem by painting parking places on the pavement. Since my daughter was
born, and I have started pushing a pram, I have been forced to walk in the middle of the road. In one
respect this makes sense: the pavements are so badly maintained that she will only sleep when she's
being pushed down the smooth grey carpet laid out for the cars.
My problem is that by seeking to reduce my impact on the planet, I joined a political minority that is
diminishing every year. As car ownership increases, its only remaining members are a handful of
strange people like me, the very poor and those not qualified to drive. None of these groups have
political power. Our demands run counter to the usual wish to be successful, and have a better home,
job and car, and are therefore of little interest to either politicians or the media.
Now, to my horror, I find I am beginning to question even the environmental impact of my 17 years of
moderation. It is true that my own carbon emissions have been reduced. It is also true that if everyone
did the same thing the total saving would be enormous. The problem is that, in the absence of
regulation, traffic expands to fill the available space. By refusing to own a car I have merely opened
up mad space for other people, who tend to drive more fuel-hungry models than I would have chosen.
We can do little to reduce our impacts on the environment if the government won't support us.
There are some compensations, however. About three or four times a year I hire a car. When I stop at
motorway service stations, I am struck by the staggering levels of obesity: it appears to be far more
prevalent there than on trains or coaches. People who take public transport must at least walk to the
bus stop. The cyclists among us keep fit without even noticing.
Being without a car in Oxford has forced me to become more engaged with my home town. It throws
me into contact with far more people than I would otherwise encounter. There are a couple of routes
which make cycling a real pleasure: the footpath along the River Thames, for example, takes me most
of the way to the station. But overall, as far as self-interest is concerned, I would struggle to claim that
giving up my car was a wholly positive decision.
1. In the first paragraph, the writer says his view of the Oxford park-and-ride scheme is that
A. it has actually encouraged people to drive into town.
B. it has been an unqualified success.
C. it has had insufficient funding.
D. its popularity has become problematic.

2. The writer thinks that cyclists started travelling down the pavement in one of Oxford's busiest
streets because:
A. the council put in a speed restriction measure.
B. the pavement is very wide.
C. there is no bike lane.
D. in the bike lane cyclists are too close to cars.

3. In the third paragraph, the writer says he believes that Oxford city council has shown
'politicalcowardice' because it:
A. is reluctant to stop cars being left in pedestrian areas.
B. doesn't want cyclists on the city's roads.
C. has narrowed some roads to discourage cyclists from using them.
D. is unwilling to improve the standard of pavements.

4. In the fifth paragraph, the writer suggests that the effect of his actions has been to
A. discourage the government from giving support.
B. lower maintenance standards for pavements.
C. create more room on the road for other cars.
D. encourage others to drive bigger cars.

5. The writer's observations at motorway service stations suggest to him that

A. car drivers are more overweight than public transport users.
B. people who own cars are thinner than people who hire them.
C. people who use public transport don't get enough exercise.
D. cyclists ride bikes in order to keep fit.

2. Read the text again and write a for-and-against essay on cycling as a means of transport. You
should write between 250-280 words.(50 p)