II.

READING (6/ 20 points)

Part 1: Read the following passage and decide which answer (A, B, C, or D) best fits each gap. Write your
answer in the numbered box. (0) has been done as an example.
When faced (0)________ some new and possible bewildering technology change, most people
(51)________ in one of two ways. They either recoil (52)________ anything new, claiming that it is
unnecessary, or too complicated or that it (53)________ makes life less than human. Or they learn to adapt to
the new invention and (54)________ wonder how they could possibly have existed (55)________ it. Take
computers as example. For many of us, they still (56)________ a threat to our freedom and give us a
frightening (57)________ of a future in which all decisions will be (58)________ by machines. This may be
because they seem (59)________, and difficult to understand. Ask most people what you can use a home
computer for, and you usually get vague answers about how ‘they give you information’. In fact, even those of
us who are (60)________ with computer and use them in our daily work, have little idea of how they work. But
it does not take long to learn how to operate a business programme, even if things occasionally go wrong for no
apparent (61)________. Presumably, much the same happened when telephone and television became
widespread. What seems to alarm most people is the (62)________ of technology change, (63)________ than
change itself. And the objections that are made to new technology may (64)________ have a point to them,
since change is not always an improvement. As we discover during power cuts, there is a lot to be said for the
oil lamp, the coal fire, and forms of entertainment, such as books or board (65)________, which don’t have to
be plugged into work.

0. A. with B. to C. for D. on
51. A. react B. treat C. solve D. perform
52. A. of B. out of C. away from D. from
53. A. somewhere B. someplace C. someway D. somewhat
54. A. eventually B. possibly C. initially D. naturally
55. A. with B. without C. on D. for
56. A. show B. meet C. face D. represent
57. A. possibility B. sense C. idea D. prospect
58. A. invented B. changed C. taken D. done
59. A. unsteady B. unsure C. mysterious D. obvious
60. A. accustomedB. familiar C. used D. commonplace
61. A. reason B. cue C. excuse D. cause
62. A. rate B. swiftness C. speed D. tempo
63. A. more B. less C. rather D. other
64. A. badly B. better C. worse D. well
65. A. sports B. games C. plays D. shows
Exercise 3. Read the following passage and choose the best answer for each question. Identify your answer by
writing the corresponding letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet.
WIND - The untamable weather machine
On 15 October 1987, the southern counties of Britain were struck by the strongest winds they had
experienced in 200 years. Gusts of over 130 kilometers per hour slammed across the region and £1.5-billion-
worth of damage was (1) _________ in just a few hours.
Extreme weather events like this are dramatic (2) _________ of the power of the wind. It’s one part of
the weather we generally don't give a second thought to in Britain but it plays a vital role in people’s lives
across the world. Without the formation and circulation of winds there would quite (3)__________ be no
climate.
Some parts of the world seem to suffer more than others from the effects of ‘ill winds’, and links
between particular winds and psychological problems (4)__________ back centuries. The Föhn, the hot dry
wind that slides off the slopes of the Alps, is capable of boosting temperatures quite suddenly by 10°C or more.
It affects as many as one in three people in its (5)__________, making them feel anxious, irritable and generally
ill. In California, many people (6)__________ the arrival of the Santa Ana, which rushes down from the high
Mojave desert. Lyall Watson, in his book Heaven’s Breath, claims that when the Santa Ana blows, murder rates
soar.
The wind may get into the headlines when it comes in the form of tornadoes and hurricanes, but for the
(7)__________ part it goes about its job of shifting huge masses of air around the planet. Plants take
(8)__________ of this free ride to send their pollen grains far and wide. Trees (9)__________ on it to remove
old leaves and make way for new growth. Spiders have been caught (10)__________ a lift at altitudes of almost
4.5 kilometers.
1. A. made B. caused C. destroyed D. completed
2. A. reminders B. recollections C. mementos D. memorial
3. A. easily B. rightly C. surely D. simply
4. A. last B. originate C. pass D. date
5. A. line B. road C. path D. bypass
6. A. despair B. respect C. dread D. warn
7. A. most B. maximum C. majority D. general
8. A. benefit B. chance C. occasion D. advantage
9. A. need B. trust C. hope D. rely
10. A. traveling B. hitching C. borrowing D. making