Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of the primary stress in each of the following questions

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of the primary stress in each of the following questions

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 30 to 34 

     A little more than a hundred years ago, a number of European scholars began to record stories being told in peasant cottages and compile them into the first great collections of European folk tales. Written evidence exists to prove that the folk tales they recorded existed long before then though. Collections of sermons from the 12th to the 15th century show that medieval preachers knew of some of the same stories as those recorded by the 19th century folklorists. 

          The collections of folk tales made in the late 19th and early 20th centuries provide a rare opportunity to make contact with the illiterate masses who have disappeared into the pass without leaving a trace. To reject folk tales as historical evidence because they cannot be dated and situated with precision like other historical documents is to turn one’s back on one of the few points of entry into the previous centuries. But to attempt to penetrate that world is to face a daunting set of obstacles, the greatest of which is the impossibility of listening in on the story tellers. No matter how accurate they may be the versions of the tales recorded in writing cannot convey the effects that the storytellers must have used to bring the stories to life: the dramatic pauses, the sly glances, the use of gestures to set scenes, and the use of sounds to punctuate actions. All of those devices shaped the meaning of the tales, and all of them elude the historian. He cannot be sure that the limp and lifeless text he holds between the covers of a book provides an accurate account of the performance that took place in earlier times

The author believes that written versions of folk tales _____. 

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 35 to 42 

DON'T HANDLE WITH CARE

     People always go shopping for the latest and greatest gadgets. Speed, performance, and the latest functions are always key factors before making a purchase. Yet the most important factor of all, which often isn’t considered, is a product’s durability. After all, if a product breaks easily and can’t be repaired, the buyer will have wasted their investment. In other cases, weakly-designed product can cost someone their life. Thankfully, today’s inventors and engineers coming up with some incredible ways to ensure that many products can survive the most difficult situations. 

     One area where durability is absolutely essential is in designing weaponry. In the industry, lapses in quality can lead to death. Designers of military vehicles have recently made great strides in creating some extra tough bulletproof vehicles. Researchers were inspired by the advances made with a similar technology, bulletproof vests. This equipment, which keeps police officers and soldiers protected from gunfire, has been continually upgraded as time has gone on. In order to get tougher, these vests have got lighter, so officers and soldiers can move more freely while working. 

     Beautiful screens, a fast computer processor, and the latest software are probably the biggest concerns for most people shopping for new smartphones. Yet, since most mobiles will be subject to their fair share of bumps and bruises during their life cycle, durability should also be a major concern. A major breakthrough in recent years was the invention of Gorilla Glass. This technology not only prevents devices from breaking when dropped on hard surfaces, but it also makes them scratch-resistant as well. Gorilla Glass screens are given molten alkaline salt baths that produce a hard, compressed layer at the surface. Before a screen can crack, it will have to penetrate this rugged surface, which takes a large degree of force. 

          Recently, another new technique called electrospinning was developed that could make future products even tougher to break. The process involves applying high voltage to a polymer to create a strand of nanofiber. Products designed with the material will be able to absorb more energy without breaking. Researchers are aiming to lighten up aircraft and potentially decrease the damage planes suffer in crashes. Hopefully, these advances are just the beginning. Although science has come a long way in helping manufacturers to create more durable products, the next century should surely bring some even more incredible improvements

The word “penetrate” in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ________

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation in each of the following questions

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to choose the word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 25 to 29 

          An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. At the Earth's surface, earthquakes are recognized (25) _______ vibration, shaking and sometimes displacement of the ground. The vibrations may vary in (26) _______. They are caused mostly by slippage within geological faults, but also by other events such as volcanic activity, landslides, mine blasts, and nuclear tests. The underground point of (27) _____ of the earthquake is called the focus. The point directly above the focus on the surface is called the epicenter. Earthquakes by themselves rarely kill people or wildlife. It is usually the secondary events (28) _______ they trigger, such as building collapse, fires, tsunamis (seismic sea waves) and volcanoes, that are actually the human disaster. Many of these could possibly be avoided by better construction, safety systems, early warning and (29) _______ planning

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation in each of the following questions