Scientific articles often utilize a clear, straightforward, _____, and unbiased writing style.
Not being _____ for a while, the researcher now wants to attend conferences to get up to date on the integration of machine learning advances in her field.
In geometry, an ellipse may be defined as the locus of all points, _____ distances from two fixed points is constant.
To solve this problem, it is advisable _____.
He was impressed by the _____ teacup displayed in the antique shop.
Alfred embraced new experiences with enthusiasm. Not for a moment _____ his choice to study abroad in France.
_____ our children may be, we cannot go picnic in this weather.
_____, the balcony chairs will be ruined in this weather.
After the investigation, the accident was put down to human _____.
Andrew: I felt that she was dying to postpone the wedding.
Ben: Yes, I _____ that as well.
_____ their poverty, they managed to live a happy life.
Where _____ is the commonest form of colour-blindness.
Fill in each blank with ONE best word.
Early photography
In the days of photography, a stand some other firm support for the camera was essential. This was because photographic materials were insensitive to light that a typical exposure lasted several seconds. The camera have to be held still for this time in order to obtain a sharp picture. The subjects also had to be still if their images were to register properly on the film. Some early street scenes include blurred, transparent, ghostlike images of people who wandered past while the scene was in the process of photographed.
Studio portraits from the late 1800s show people posed rigidly, often leaning against furniture, helped them to remain motionless. As it was important to keep the head , support was often provided for the neck. Bright studio lights, sometimes produced by setting fire to a strip of magnesium or a small pile of magnesium powder, helped reducing the required exposure time. These burned with an intensely blue flame that gave the necessary amount of light, but the smoke was unpleasant and there was also a of fire.
The problems with long exposure were overcome by the introduction of faster, more sensitive photographic plates, and later, roll films. The development of smaller cameras to photography becoming a popular hobby. Nowadays, digital cameras have further revolutionized photography, enabling even the most inexperienced photographers to produce professional-looking pictures.
Fill in each blank with ONE best word.
Most people I know never go to a martial arts movie, even if you paid them, but I defy anyone not to enjoy seventy minutes in the dark with Jackie Chan. For a start, Chan is simply interested in evading the bullies who want to do him over - and if he bumps into someone as he's running away, he's invariably apologetic. His screen persona is never to bombast. Chan is a likable, bumbling character. Every man who tries to extricate himself from scrapes with his astounding athletic : as he leaps up the side of a building, you swear he was on wires. With the kind of agility limited to monkeys and flies, Chan seems of scuttering up any surface. But it is extremely for him to go on the offensive. The films of lesser action stars like Jean-Claude Van Damme provide a diet of relentless violence, punctuated now and by some semi-moronic 'witticism' but Chan's balletic altercations with his enemies are as a oriented around the art of comic evasion.
Read the text and choose the best answer to fill in the blanks.
Since April 27, Vietnam's Ministry of Health has confirmed over 1,100 new cases of community transmission in 27 cities and provinces, prompting the isolation of specific areas, large-scale contact and closure of several non- businesses. Please see "Movement Restrictions" below for further information. Vietnamese authorities are urging people to follow COVID-19 prevention measures - including wearing a mask, practicing social distancing, and following handwashing guidelines.
the current COVID-19 situation in Vietnam, the Consular Section of the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City will limit the number of applicants and customers allowed to enter the U.S. Consulate General. As a result, several American Citizen Services (ACS), Immigrant Visas (IV), and Nonimmigrant Visas (NIV) appointments be canceled. Impacted applicants will receive notification individually via e-mail with instructions how to reschedule their appointment.
The U.S. Mission in Vietnam reminds all US. citizens that they are subject to Viemamese local laws and regulations while visiting or living in Vietnam. Individuals by the Vietnamese government to conduct COVID-19 testing and to quarantine should with these instructions; violators may be subject to serious . The Vietnamese government currently mandates (a 7-day increase from previous regulation). Please note these quarantine periods may be without prior notice.
Read the text and choose the best answer to fill in the blanks.
Today, the ancient game of ulama, which has been played in Mexico for at least 3,000 years, is facing extinction. The game, in which players use their hips to hit a rubber ball around a court, survived the rise and fall of the Maya and Aztec civilizations as well as the Spanish conquest. Ulama was once played by people throughout Central America, but today only about two hundred players . This, and the fact that the number of younger players is confirm the game's unofficial as an endangered sport. A variety of have combined to bring ulama to this position, including the geographical isolation of the areas where it is still played and competition from newer sports.
The sport's survival is also threatened by a lack of natural rubber. In the time of the Aztec Empire, the southern Gulf Coast of Mexico was an important centre for rubber production, but today the forests have been out to make way for building developments. As a result, ulama balls can be difficult to obtain and may cost as much as $1,000. With the annual income of the average player some $250 less than this, the cost of a new ball obviously presents a problem. For ulama to survive, an alternative material must be found.
It is also important that more people be encouraged to play, or at least follow, the sport. If interest in ulama can be then perhaps the current trend could be so that this ancient game will survive.
Read the following passage and complete the tasks.
The intense rate of change in the world
A. The intense rate of change in the world gives rise to numerous new products – many of them electronic. What is brand new and state-of-the-art one month is quickly relegated to old model status the next. Within the world of computing, this frenetic pace of change has led to millions of out-dated, worthless products. Keystone, an American-based research company reported, 'In 2005, one computer became obsolete for every new one introduced in die market. By the year 2010, experts estimate that in the USA there will be over 500 million obsolete computers. Most of these computers will be destined for landfills, incinerators or hazardous waste exports.' Old, outdated keyboards, monitors and hard drives all combine to produce what is now widely known as ‘e-waste’ and the way to appropriately dispose of them is proving to be a challenge.
B. Most computers are a complicated assembly of hundreds of different materials, many of which are highly toxic. Most computer users are unaware that these toxic metals, acids, plastics and other substances have been shown to be the cause of various blood diseases and cancers. Amongst workers involved in the recycling of computer products, there has been a proliferation of blood diseases. Printed circuit boards, for example, contain heavy metals such as antimony, silver, chromium, zinc, lead, tin and copper. Environmentalist Kieran Shaw estimates there is hardly any other product for which the sum of the environmental impacts of raw material, extraction, industrial refining and production, use and disposal is so extensive as for printed circuit boards.
C. Workers involved in the disposal of computers via incineration are themselves being exposed to significantly high levels of toxicity. Copper, for example, is a catalyst in the release of harmful chemicals when exposed to the high tempera lures of incineration. In US and Canadian environments, incineration is one of the greatest sources of heavy metal contamination of the atmosphere. Unfortunately, another form of incineration, smelting, can present dangers similar to incineration. Concerns have been expressed that the Noranda Smelter in Quebec, Canada is producing atmospheric pollutants from the residual presence of plastics in the e-scrap.
D. In an effort to explore other alternatives, landfills have been tried, studies have shown, however, that even the best landfills are not completely safe. In feet, the shortcomings of dealing with waste via modern landfills are well documented. The main ‘offender’ in the area of metal leaching is mercury. In varying degrees, mercury escapes or leaches from certain electronic devices such as circuit breakers, condensers and computer circuit boards into the soil. According to Phil Stevenson, managing director of CleanCo a recycling plant in the UK, 'Everyone knows that landfills leak – it has become common knowledge. Even the best, state-of-the-art landfills are not completely tight throughout their lifetimes, to one degree or another, a certain amount of chemical and metal leaching occurs. The situation is far worse for older or less stringent dump sites. If uncontrolled fires are allowed to burn through these landfill areas, other toxic chemicals such as lead and cadmium are released.'
E. An overwhelming majority of the world’s hazardous e-waste is generated by the industrialised market economies. Because labour costs are cheap and government regulations in some countries are decidedly lax, the exporting of e-waste has been practiced as another method to deal with its disposal. In the USA, for example, Datatek, a research company, estimated that it was 12 times cheaper to ship old computer monitors to China than it was to recycle them. Data on the prevalence of this activity is scarce due to past bad publicity and dealers of e-scrap not bothering to determine the final destination of the products they sell. In 1989 the world community established the Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste for final Disposal to stop the industrialised nations of the OECD from dumping their waste on and in less-developed countries.
F. Europe has taken the lead on e-waste management by requiring governments to implement laws controlling the production and disposal of electrical products. The European Union (EL) lias drafted legislation on Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (the WEEE Directive) based on a concept known as Extended Producer Responsibility (EFR). Essentially, EFR places the responsibility of the production and disposal squarely on the shoulders of the producers of electronic products, it requires that producers consider carefully the environmental impact of the products they bring to the marketplace. The aim of EPR is to encourage producers of electrical equipment to prevent pollution and reduce resource and energy use at each stage of the product file cycle. The lead in Europe has been necessary because WEEE is about three times higher than the growth of any other municipal waste streams.
G. WEE legislation will phase out the use of toxic substances such as mercury, cadmium and lead in electronic and electrical goods by the year 2008. It will require producers of electrical equipment to be responsible financially for the collection, recycling and disposal of their products. It has stipulated that products containing any lead, mercury, cadmium and other toxic substances must not be incinerated. It encourages producers to integrate an increasing quantity of recycled material in any new products they produce. In fact, between 70% and 90% by weight of all collected equipment must be recycled or re-used. These directives will go a long way toward improving the e-waste problem in Europe and other governments of the world should look seriously at implementation of some or all of the legislation.
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
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List of headings i. Exporting e-waste ii. The hazards of burning computer junk iii. Blame developed countries for e-waste iv. Landfills are not satisfactory v. Producer’s legal responsibility vi. The dangers of computer circuit boards vii. Electronic changes bring waste viii. European e-waste laws ix. The dangerous substances found in computers x. Landfills and mercury leaching xi. New products must contain recycled products |
Paragraph A:
Paragraph B:
Paragraph C:
Paragraph D:
Paragraph E:
Paragraph F:
Paragraph G:
According to the information in the text, which THREE of the following pollution laws have been proposed in Europe?
Read the following passage and complete the tasks.
How to Spot a Liar
However much we may abhor it, deception comes naturally to all living things. Birds do it by feigning injury to lead hungry predators away from nesting young. Spider crabs do it by disguise: adorning themselves with strips of kelp and other debris, they pretend to be something they are not – and so escape their enemies. Nature amply rewards successful deceivers by allowing them to survive long enough to mate and reproduce. So it may come as no surprise to learn that human beings - who, according to psychologist Gerald Johnson of the University of South California, or lied to about 200 times a day, roughly one untruth every 5 minutes- often deceive for exactly the same reasons: to save their own skins or to get something they can’t get by other means.
But knowing how to catch deceit can be just as important a survival skill as knowing how to tell a lie and get away with it. A person able to spot falsehood quickly is unlikely to be swindled by an unscrupulous business associate or hoodwinked by a devious spouse. Luckily, nature provides more than enough clues to trap dissemblers in their own tangled webs - if you know where to look. By closely observing facial expressions, body language and tone of voice, practically anyone can recognise the tell-tale signs of lying. Researchers are even programming computers – like those used on Lie Detector - to get at the truth by analysing the same physical cues available to the naked eye and ear. “With the proper training, many people can learn to reliably detect lies,” says Paul Ekman, professor of psychology at the University of California, San Francisco, who has spent the past 15 years studying the secret art of deception.
In order to know what kind of Lies work best, successful liars need to accurately assess other people’s emotional states. Ackman’s research shows that this same emotional intelligence is essential for good lie detectors, too. The emotional state to watch out for is stress, the conflict most liars feel between the truth and what they actually say and do.
Even high-tech lie detectors don’t detect lies as such; they merely detect the physical cues of emotions, which may or may not correspond to what the person being tested is saying. Polygraphs, for instance, measure respiration, heart rate and skin conductivity, which tend to increase when people are nervous – as they usually are when lying. Nervous people typically perspire, and the salts contained in perspiration conducts electricity. That’s why sudden leap in skin conductivity indicates nervousness - about getting caught, perhaps - which makes, in turn, suggest that someone is being economical with the truth. On the other hand, it might also mean that the lights in the television Studio are too hot - which is one reason polygraph tests are inadmissible in court. “Good lie detectors don’t rely on a single thing” says Ekma, but interpret clusters of verbal and non-verbal clues that suggest someone might be lying.”
The clues are written all over the face. Because the musculature of the face is directly connected to the areas of the brain that processes emotion, the countenance can be a window to the soul. Neurological studies even suggest that genuine emotions travel different pathways through the brain than insincere ones. If a patient paralyzed by stroke on one side of the face, for example, is asked to smile deliberately, only the mobile side of the mouth is raised. But tell that same person a funny joke, and the patient breaks into a full and spontaneous smile. Very few people - most notably, actors and politicians - are able to consciously control all of their facial expressions. Lies can often be caught when the liars true feelings briefly leak through the mask of deception. We don’t think before we feel, Ekman says. “Expressions tend to show up on the face before we’re even conscious of experiencing an emotion.”
One of the most difficult facial expressions to fake- or conceal, if it’s genuinely felt - is sadness. When someone is truly sad, the forehead wrinkles with grief and the inner corners of the eyebrows are pulled up. Fewer than 15% of the people Ekman tested were able to produce this eyebrow movement voluntarily. By contrast, the lowering of the eyebrows associated with an angry scowl can be replicated at will but almost everybody. “ If someone claims they are sad and the inner corners of their eyebrows don’t go up, Ekma says, the sadness is probably false.”
The smile, on the other hand, is one of the easiest facial expressions to counterfeit. It takes just two muscles -the zygomaticus major muscles that extend from the cheekbones to the corners of the lips - to produce a grin. But there’s a catch. A genuine smile affects not only the corners of the lips but also the orbicularis oculi, the muscle around the eye that produces the distinctive “crow’s feet” associated with people who laugh a lot. A counterfeit grin can be unmasked if the corners of the lips go up, the eyes crinkle, but the inner corners of the eyebrows are not lowered, a movement controlled by the orbicularis oculi that is difficult to fake. The absence of lowered eyebrows is one reason why the smile looks so strained and stiff.
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage?
| YES | if the statement agrees with the views of the writer |
| NO | if the statement contradicts the views of the writer |
| NOT GIVEN | if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this |
All living animals can lie.
Some people tell lies for self-preservation.
Scientists have used computers to analyze which part of the brain is responsible for telling lies.
Lying as a survival skill is more important than detecting a lie.
To be a good liar, one has to understand other people's emotions.
Lie detectors can't be used as evidence in a court of law because _____
Why does the author mention the paralyzed patients?
Complete the passage by changing the form of the word in capitals.
The natural uses of bioluminescence vary widely, and organisms have learned to be very creative with its use. Fireflies employ bioluminescence primarily for (PRODUCE) means – their flashing patterns advertise a firefly’s readiness to breed. Some fish use it as a handy spotlight to help them locate prey. Others use it as a lure; the anglerfish, for example, dangles a (LUMINAIRE) flare that draws in gullible, smaller fishes which get snapped up by the anglerfish in an automated reflex. Sometimes, bioluminescence is used to resist predators. Vampire squids eject a thick cloud of glowing liquid from the tip of their arms when threatened, which can be (ORIENT) . Other species use a single, bright flash to (TEMPORARY) blind their attacker, with an effect similar to that of an (COME) car which has not dipped its headlights.
Humans have captured and (UTILE) bioluminescence by developing, over the last decade, a technology known as Bioluminescence Imaging (BLI). BLI involves the extraction of a DNA protein from a bioluminescent organism, and then the integration of this protein into a laboratory animal through trans-geneticism. Researchers have been able to use luminized pathogens and cancer cell lines to track the (RESPECT) spread of infections and cancers. Through BLI, cancers and infections can be observed without intervening in a way that affects their independent development. In other words, while under an ultra-sensitive camera and bioluminescent proteins add a visual element, they do not disrupt or (MUTANT) the natural processes. As a result, when testing drugs and treatments, researchers are permitted a single perspective of a therapy’s progression.
In the following magazine article, five paragraphs have been removed. Read and choose, from the paragraphs A-F, the one which fits each gap. There is ONE extra paragraph which you do not need to use.
Missing paragraphs
A. While there is indeed much to learn from many species not yet known to science, it's the already opened texts that attract the majority of us, however. And we are attracted in ever increasing numbers.
B. As people are able to travel to more extreme places in search of the ultimate wildlife experience, it's worth remembering that you don't have to go to the ends of the earth to catch rewarding glimpses of animals. Indeed, some of the best wildlife-watching opportunities are on our doorstep.
C. This growth has been stimulated by the efforts of conservation groups and natural history documentaries. Greater awareness of the planet has led to an increased demand for wildlife tours or the addition of a wildlife-watching component to traditional holidays. People want to discover nature at first-hand for themselves – not just on a screen.
D. Despite being an important part of the population there, they have largely been excluded from the benefits brought to the region by tourism. This initiative is a concerted effort to enable them to take up jobs and run programmes themselves.
E. Earthwatch is a non-profit international environmental group that does just that. ‘Participation in an Earthwatch project is a positive alternative to wildlife-watching expeditions, as we offer members of the public the opportunity to be on the front line of conservation,’ says Claudia Eckardt, Earthwatch programme manager.
F. It is a term which is overused, but the principle behind it undoubtedly offers hope for the future of many endangered species, as money from tourism directly funds conservation work. It also extends to the consideration of the interests of people living in the places that tourists visit.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE WILD KIND
The rise of wildlife-watching experiences.
Wildlife observation has always proved inspirational for humans, it led Charles Darwin to provide us with a better understanding of how we evolved and it has inspired such everyday innovations as Velcro. US author Peter Matthiessen wrote: ‘The variety of life in nature can be compared to a vast library of unread books, and the plundering of nature is comparable to the random discarding of whole volumes without having opened them and learned from them’.
‘What is interesting is how much people are willing to pay to be in a wilderness environment’, says Julian Matthews, director of Discovery Initiatives, a company which takes people on small-group trips to more than 35 countries. It’s still a small part of the tourism industry but it’s undoubtedly expanding. There are definitely more and more people seeking wildlife experiences now’.
Matthews recognises the contribution that television has made to our knowledge of nature, but he says ‘there’s no way to compare seeing an animal in the wild with watching one on TV. While a filmmaker may spend six months shooting an animal and will get closer to it than you ever will, there’s no greater pleasure than seeing an animal in its own environment. On film, you’re only getting the visuals and the sound. As impressive as they may be, it’s not the real thing.’ And the good thing is that tourists can now watch wildlife ‘live’ while helping to protect it – a concept that comes under the broad label of ‘ecotourism’.
In practice, this means that many tour operators, guided by ethical policies, now use the services of local communities, train local guides and have close ties to conservation projects. Tour operator Rekero, for example, has established its own school – the Koyiaki Guide School and Wilderness Camp – for Maasai people in Kenya.
Conservation organisations have also realised that tourism can help educate people and provide a valuable source of revenue and even manpower. The World Wildlife Fund, for example, runs trips that give donors the chance to see for themselves how their financial aid is assisting conservation projects in the field, and some organisations even allow tourists to take part in research and conservation.
Similarly, Biosphere Expeditions takes about 200 people every year on what its field operations director, Dr Matthias Hammer, calls an ‘adventure with a conscience’. Volunteers can visit six destinations around the world and take part in various activities including snow leopard, wolf and bear surveys and whale and dolphin research.
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
If Marc hadn't taken up politics, he might have become a famous art historian. (ESTABLISHED)
=> If Marc ...........
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
Suzanne is far superior to me in terms of technical knowledge. (match)
=> When it comes .......... for Suzanne.
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
Have a look at this picture. It may help you remember something. (JOG)
=> Have a ............
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
I resent the way that she clearly feels herself to be superior to me. (NOSE)
=> I am ..........
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
Initially, losing one's job can seem awful; afterward, it can work out well, for some people. (BLESSING)
=> Losing one's job has proved ..........
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
They remained close friends, despite having had many differences. (FALLEN)
=> Though ..........
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
The sales director told his staff nothing about the new market post. (DARK)
=> The sales director ..........
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
She told everyone that she had been fired by the company. (SACK)
=> She let ...........
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
So many people were really delighted when the government lost the election. (JUBILATION)
=> There ...........
Complete the second sentence using the word given so that it has the same meaning to the first.
No one can believe that Laura earns money to support the whole family at such a tender age. (BACON)
=> Hardly ..........