READING COMPREHENSION

Direction: In this section you will several passages. Each passage is followed by questions about it.
Choose the one best answer, (A), (B), (C), or (D), for each question. Answer all questions based on
what is stated or implied in the passage.

Questions 21 – 25

Which is the world’s highest, driest, coldest, and windiest continent? Which is the only
place on earth not yet ruined, still untouched by the destructive hand of man? Australasia? Or “the
ice” as Antartica is referred to by its old friend? Of course, the former still has large areas as yet
untouched, but nothing like the huge virgin expanses of “the ice”.
Now, the virgin continent has become the source of yet another conflict between scientists
and environmentalists. The latter believe that Antartica must be maintained as such and that
scientists should be careful not to leave behind anything that might damage the environment.
Scientists say that limited local environmental impact has to be expected and accepted, because the
continent is an important natural laboratory for estimating the effects humans have on the globe,
even functioning as a kind of early-warning system for the whole planet.
There is a treaty designed to protect this continent which has only 8,000 inhabitants and
most of them not permanent, but contains 70% of the world’s fresh water. Oil and minerals cannot
be exploited, but what controls are there on the growing number of scientists, explorers, and even
tourists?

11. What is the main topic of the passage?

A. Australasia
B. Iceland
C. Antartica
D. The Ice Continents
12. What cannot be said about Antartica?
A. It’s the only place on earth still not ruined.
B. It’s the oldest continent.
C. It is still untouched.
D. It is the continent with the least fresh water.
13. Which of the following can people still do in Antartica?
A. Search for oil.
B. Come as tourists.
C. Dig for precious stones.
D. Mine for tin.
14. According to the passage what is the main reason for the conflict between the scientists and the
environmentalists?
A. The possible environmental damage.
B. The use of Antartica as a laboratory.
C. Antartica becoming a tourist spot.
D. Antartica is being used as an early-warning system.
15. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Antartica cannot be saved.
B. Antartica has too few inhabitants to worry about.
C. Antartica is worth saving.
D. There is treaty about Antartica, so there is nothing to worry obout.
Question 26 – 35
Carbohydrates, which are sugars, are an essential part of a healthy diet. They provide the
main source of energy for the body, and they also function to flavor and sweeten foods.
Carbohydrates range from simple sugars like glucose to complex sugars such as amylase and
amylopectin. Nutritionists estimate that carbohydrates should make up about one-fourth to one-fifth
of a person’s diet. This translates to about 75-100 grams of carbohydrates per day.
A diet that is deficient in carbohydrates can have an adverse effect on a person’s health.
When the body lack a sufficient amount of carbohydrates it must then use its protein supplies for
energy, a process called gluconeogenesis. This, however, results in a lack of necessary protein, and
further health difficulties may occur. A lack of carbohydrates can also lead to ketosis, a build-up of
ketones in the body that causes fatigue, lethargy, and bad breath.

16. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. Carbohydrates are needed for good health.
B. Carbohydrates prevent a build-up of proteins.
C. Carbohydrates can lead to ketosis.
D. Carbohydrates are an expendable part of a good diet.
17. The word “function” as used in line 2 refers to which of the following?
A. Neglect
B. Serve
C. Dissolve
D. Profess
18. The word “range” as used in line 3 is closest in meaning to which of the following?
A. Probe
B. Proceed
C. Hail
D. Extend
19. In line 4, the word “estimate” could best be replaced by?
A. Disbelieve
B. Declare
C. Calculate
D. Wonder
20. According to the passage, what do most nutritionists suggest?
A. Sufficient carbohydrates will prevent gluconeogenesis.
B. Carbohydrates are simple sugars called glucose.
C. Carbohydrates should make up about a quarter of a person’s daily diet.
D. Carbohydrates should be eaten in very small quantities.
21. Which of the following do carbohydrates NOT do?
A. Prevent ketosis
B. Cause gluconeogenesis
C. Provide energy for the body
D. Flavor and sweeten food.
22. Which of the following words could best replace “deficient” (line 6)?
A. Outstanding
 B. Abundant
C. Insufficient
D. Unequal
23. What does the word “this” refer to in line 8?
A. Using protein supplies for energy.
B. Converting carbohydrates to energy.
C. Having a deficiency in carbohydrates.
D. Having an insufficient amount of protein.
24. According to the passage which of the following does NOT describe carbohydrates?
A. A protein supply
B. A necessity
C. A range of sugars
D. An energy source
25. Which of the following best describes the author’s tone?
A. Sensitive
B. Emotional
C. Informative
D. Regretful

Question 36 – 40
Although the period that we call the Renaissance began in Italy in the fourteenth century,
this idea of rebirth in learning characterized other epochs in history in different parts of the world.
In 800 A.D. Charlemagne became king of the Franks and initiated the Carolingian
Renaissance, a period which saw beautiful and more modern cities patterned on Roman
architecture. His improvements in instruction for boys expanded the educational system, helped
maintain Roman culture, and continued a society in Western Europe, as well as created libraries (a
carryover from Alexandrian Egypt of 323 B.C.)
Kieven Russia also enjoyed a period of rebirth some 200 years later under the table rule of
Yaroslav the Wise. Like Charlemagne, he founded schools, established libraries, and brought about
many architectural achievements.

26. Which was the earliest period of rebirth mention?

A. Russian
B. Italian
C. Carolingian
D. Roman
27. Which city did Charlemagne look upon as a model for his architectural improvements?
A. Kiev B. Rome C. Carolingian D. Roman
28. Which of the following was not mentioned as a characteristic of the Renaissance movement?
A. Maintaining the status quo
B. Improved education
C. Architectural advances
D. Creation of libraries
29. How many centuries separated the Kieven and the Italian Renaissance?
A. 2 B. 3 C. 4 D. 5
30. What can we assume about Yaroslave?
 A. He was demented.
B. He was a competent leader.
C. He was inept.
D. He was cruel.

Many people think of gorillas as dangerous killers. One reason for this is that television and
movies often show these animals this way. But gorillas are really gentle animals.
The gorilla is a vegetarian. It lives in the African rain forests where it finds the fruits and
plants it needs to survive. A large, wild gorilla might eat over 40 pounds of leaves and fruit in one
day.
Unfortunately, these peaceful creatures are in danger of becoming extinct. Each year, large
areas of the rain forests are being cut down. Because there is less and less food from these forests,
the number of wild gorillas is becoming smaller and smaller.

31. What is the passage about?

A. Dangerous killers
B. Vegetarian animal
C. Gorillas
D. People’s opinion

32. The second passage indicates that…

A. Gorillas live in the African rain forests
B. The gorilla is a vegetarian
C. The size of gorillas
D. Gorillas finds the fruits and plants it needs to survive

33. The passage describes gorillas as being:

A. Dangerous killers
B. Carnivores
C. TV and movie stars
D. Gentle animals
34. Which is the following is not mentioned in the text?
A. Many people think of gorillas as dangerous killers
B. Gorillas are really gentle animals.
C. Gorillas are really tame animals
D. Gorillas are vegetarian

35. In the third paragraph, the word “these” refers to…(line 1)

A. People
B. Gorillas
C. Animals
D. Dangerous killers

36. The word”survive” in the second paragraph can be replaced by…

A. Keep a life
B. Prevent
 C. Feed
D. Take care

37. Where do most gorillas live?

A. Jungle
B. Rain forest
C. Zoo
D. Africa

38. What do the gorillas eat?

A. Animal
B. Fish
C. Fruit and vegetable
D. Only fruit

39. According to the passage, why are gorillas in danger?

A. Because people keep hunting them.
B. Because they eat too much.
C. Because forests get too much rain.
D. Because their food supply is being destroyed.

40. If something is becoming extinct, it is:

A. Becoming smaller.
B. Dying out.
C. Growing wild.
D. Getting sick.

Questions 21-30

The development of the horse has been recorded from the beginning through all of
its evolutionary stages to the modern form. It is, in fact, one of the most complete and well-
documented chapters in paleontological history. Fossil finds provide us not only with
detailed information about the horse itself, but also with valuable insight into the migration
of herds and even evidence for speculation about the climatic conditions that could have
instigated such migratory behavior.
It has been documented that, almost twelve million years ago at the beginning of the
Plionece Age, a horse, about midway through its evolutionary development, crossed a land
bridge where the Bering Straits are new located, from Alaska into the grassland o f Europe.
The horse was the Hipparion, about the size of a modern-day pony with three toes and
specialized cheek teeth for grazing. In Europe the hipparion encountered another less
advanced horse called the anchitheres, which had previously invaded Europe by the same
route, probably during the Miocene Period. Less development and smaller than the
Hipparion, the anchitheres was completely replaced by it. By the end of the Pleistocene Age
both anchitheres and the hipparion had become extinct in North America, where they had
originated. In Europe they had evolved into an animal very similar to the horse as we know
 it today. It was the descendant of this horse that was brought by the European colonist to the
Americas.

1. What is this passage mainly about? D. Very little is known about the
A. The evolution of the horse. evolution of the horse.
B. The migration of horses. 6. According to this passage, the
C. The modern-day pony hipparions were
D. The replacement of the anchitheres A. Five- toed animals
by the hipparion B. Not as highly developed as the
2. According to the author, fossils are anchitheres
considered valuable for all of the C. Larger than the anchitheres
following reasons EXCEPT D. About the size of small dog
A. They suggest how the climate may 7. The word it in “Less development and
have been smaller than the Hipparion, the
B. They provide information about anchitheres was completely replaced by
migration it”refers to
C. They documented the evolution of A. Anchitheres
the horse B. Hipparion
D. They maintain a record of life prior C. Miocene Periode
to the Miocene Age D. Route
3. The word ‘instigated’ could best be 8. The word ‘extinct’ is closest in meaning
replaced by to
A. Explained A. Familiar
B. Caused B. Widespread
C. Improved C. Nonexistent
D. Influenced D. Tame
4. The author suggests that the hipparion 9. Both the hipparion and the anchitheres
and the anchitheres migrated to Europe A. Were the size of a modern pony
A. By means of land route that is now B. Were native to North America
nonexistent C. Migrate to Europe in the Pliocene
B. On the ships of European colonists Periode
C. Because of a very cold climate in D. Had unspecialized teeth
North America 10. It can be concluded from this passage
D. During the Miocene periode that the
5. Which of the following consclusions A. Miocene Periode was prior to the
may be made on the basis of information Pliocene
in the passage? B. Pleistocene Periode was prior to the
A. The hipparions migrated to Europe Miocene
to feed in developing grassland. C. Pleistocene Periode was prior to the
B. There are no fossil remains of either Pliocene
the anchiteres or the hipparion. D. Pliocene Period was prior to the
C. There were horses in North America Miocene
when the first European colonists
arrived.

Questions 31-40

Romantic music of the nineteenth century differed greatly from the

classical music of the eighteenth century. Classical music was primarily concerned
with strict form and style. Romantic composers, however, wanted to express their
feelings and thoughts through music. Their music was less structured than the
 music of the classicists; its goal was to fill the listener with emotion, with
thoughts of beauty, wonder, and nature, and with poetry.

11. What is the topic of this passage? 16. The word “goal” in line 5 is close in
a. The characteristics of romantic music meaning to which of the following?
b. Various types of music a. Aim
c. Popular music in the eighteenth b. Objective
century c. Result
d. A comparison of romantic and d. Purpose
classical music 17. The word "emotion" in line 5 is closest
12. The word "greatly" in line 1 could best in meaning to
be replaced by which of the following? a. feeling
a. Famously b. logic
b. Tremendously c. sound
c. Structurally d. movement
d. Slightly 18. According to the passage, romantic
13. According to the passage, classical music filled the listener with all the
music following EXCEPT
a. expresses feelings and thoughts a. thoughts of poetry
b. was popular in the nineteenth century b. thoughts of wonder
c. has rigid forms c. thoughts of loveliness
d. is less structured than romantic music d. thoughts of strictness
14. The word "form" in line 3 is closest in 19. Where in the passage does the author
meaning to mention when the different types of
a. structure music were popular?
b. meter a. Lines 1-2
c. meaning b. Line 3
d. use c. Line 4
15. It can be inferred from the passage that d. Line 5
romantic music 20. The word “their” in line 3 refers to
a. developed prior to the eighteenth a. music
century b. classical music
b. did not have a strict form c. romantic music
c. came before classical music d. romantic composers
d. was more concerned with form than
feeling

Questions 41-50

(1) Anyone who has handled a fossilized bone knows that it is usually not exactly like its
modern counterpart, the most obvious difference being that it is often much heavier. Fossils
often have the quality of stone rather than of organic materials, and this has led to the use of the
term “petrifaction” (to bring about rock). The implication is that bone,
(5) and other tissues, have somehow been turned into stone, and this is certainly the
explanation given in some texts. But it is wrong interpretation; fossils are frequently so
dense because the pores and other spaces in the bone have become filled with minerals taken
up from the surrounding sediments. Some fossil bones have all the interstitial spaces filled
with foreign minerals, including the marrow cavity, if there is
(10) one, while others have taken up but little from their surroundings. Probably all of the
minerals deposited within the bone have been recrystallized from solution by the action of
water percolating thru them. The degree of mineralization appears to be determined by the
nature of the environment in which the bone was deposited and not by the antiquity of the
bone. For example, the black fossil bones that are so common in many
(15) parts of Florida are heavily mineralized, but they are only about 20,000 years old,
whereas many of the dinosaur bones from western Canada, which are about 75 million years
old, are only partially filled in. Under optimum conditions the process of mineralization
probably takes thousands rather than millions of years, perhaps considerably less.
21. What does the passage mainly discuss?
A. The location of fossils in North America
B. The composition of fossils
C. Determining the size and weight of fossils
D. Procedures for analyzing fossils
22. The word “counterpart” in line 2 is closest in meaning to
A. species
B. version
C. change
D. material
23. Why is fossilized bone heavier than ordinary bone?
A. Bone tissue solidifies with age.
B. The marrow cavity gradually fills with water
C. The organic materials turn to stone
D. Spaces within the bone fill with minerals.
24. The word “pores” in line 7 is closest in meaning to:
A. joints
B. tissues
C. lines
D. holes
25. What kind of fossil can be found in Florida?
A. Black fossil
B. Dense fossil
C. Many colorful crystals
D. Dinosaur fossil.
26. Which of the following factors is most important in determining the extent of
mineralization in fossil bones?
A. The age of fossil
B. Environmental conditions
C. The location of the bone in the animal’s body.
D. The type of animal the bone came from
27. Why does the author compare fossils found in western Canada to those found in Florida?
A. To prove that a fossil’s age cannot be determined by the amount of mineralization.
B. To discuss the large quantity of fossils found in both places
C. To suggest that fossils found in both places were the same age.
D. To explain why scientists are especially interested in Canadian fossils
28. The word ‘petrifaction’ has the same meaning with:
A. to bring about rock
B. to make something
C. the antiquity of the bone
D. the environmental condition
29. Where can the black fossils commonly be found?
A. Canada
B. Florida
C. Western Canada
D. Western Florida
30. What kind of fossil is found in the western Canada?
A. Dinosaur fossil
B. Black fossil
C. Plant fossil
D. Old fossil