Read the passage and answer the questions.

THE POSTAGE STAMP

      Before the invention of the postage stamp, it was difficult to send a letter to another country. The sender paid for the letter to travel in his or her own country. Then the person in the other country paid for that part of the trip. If a letter crossed several countries, the problem was worse.

      Rowland Hill, a British teacher, had the idea of the postage stamp with gum on the back. The British post office made the first stamps in 1840. They were the Penny Black and the Twopence Blue. A person bought a stamp and put it on a letter, the post office delivered the letter. When people received letters, they didn’t have to pay anything. The letters was prepaid.

      Postage stamps became popular in Great Britain immediately. Other countries started making their own postage stamps very quickly.

      There were still problems with international mail. Some countries did not want accept letter with stamps from another countries. Finally, in 1874, a German organized the Universal Postal System. Each country in the UPS agreed to accept letter with prepaid postage from the other members. Today the offices of the U PS are in Switzerland. Almost every country in the world is a member of this organization. It takes care of any international mail problems.

      Today post offices in every country sell beautiful stamps. Collecting stamps is one of the most popular hobbies in the world, and every stamp collector knows about the Penny Black and the Twopence Blue.

 

Questions

1.   Why was it difficult to send a letter to another country before the invention of the postage stamp?

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2.   Why were the postage stamps popular?

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3.   How did other countries react with the postage stamps?

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4.   What does the Universal Postal System do today?

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5.   Why do stamp collectors know about the Penny Black?

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Read the information about France and Spain. Complete the sentences about the countries, using a comparative form of the words in bracket.

1.   France .................................. Spain.(big)

2.   Spain .................................. France.(smaller)

3.   Spain’s population .................................. France’s population. (large)

4.   France’s population .................... not ..................... Spain’s population.(small)

5.   Spain .................................. France in summer. (hot)

6.   Spain .................... not ................... France in winter.(cold)

7.   Spain .................... not .................... France. (rainy)

8.   France .................................. Spain.(rainy)

Read the passage and complete the sentences.

      One of the main sources for the spreading of news and events through out the world is the newspaper. The purpose of newspaper is to inform the public of political, social, economic and entertainment happenings, among other things. Generally, there are three types of newspapers. Daily newspapers publish at least one edition every weekday. Most dailies also have a weekend edition. Daily newspapers often have sections for news, sports, arts, and entertainment, business, and classified advertising. Weekly newspapers print once a week and cover news of interest to readers in a smaller area than that of a daily paper. They focus on local happenings rather than national or international events. Special-interest newspapers may publish daily, weekly, monthly, or even less frequently. They generally disseminate news of interest to a particular group of readers of feature news about a specific topic.

      Thanks to the development of Internet, we can now get access to electronic newspapers. To some extent, e-newspapers are cheap, up-to-date, and convenient for most readers in the world.

1.   The purpose of newspapers is to.................................................................................................

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2.   There are three types of newspaper. They are ............................................................................

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3.   Daily newspapers often have sections for ..................................................................................

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4.   Weekly newspapers focus on .....................................................................................................

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5.   Special-interest newspapers cover news of interest to ...............................................................

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6.   Electronic newspapers are ..........................................................................................................

Read the passage, and then decide whether the statements that follow are True (T) or False (F).

      In my opinion, using the computer as your hobby can be harmful to both your health and your social life. Firstly, sitting all day in front of the computer can cause health problems such as eye-tiredness and obesity. Secondly you may get irritated easily. Besides, if you use the computer too much, you will not have time for your family and friends. In short, computers should only be used for a limited time.

1.   Using the computer too much can make your eyes tired.                        1. _______

2.   Using the computer too much is not good for you.                                  2._______

3.   We still can spend a lot of time with our family and friends.                  3. _______

4.   According to the writer, we can use the computer for a long time.         4._______

5.   Computers should only be used for a limited time.                                  5. _______

Read the passage and complete the sentences. True (T) or false (F).

      Air pollution is a serious problem in many cities. Motor vehicles, factories and other sources create so much air pollution that it may hang in the air like dirty fog. Air pollution threatens the health of the people who live in cities. City wastes cause water pollution when they are poured into the waterways. These wastes kill fish and make some areas unfit for swimming. In addition, many large cities have difficulties in disposing of their garbage. The amount of garbage grows each year, but places to put it are quickly filling up. Citizens, governments, industries, scientists, and business people must work together in different ways to gradually reduce pollution. For example, most cities have introduced recycling programmes.

¨    1. Motor vehicles and factories are among some sources of air pollution.

¨    2. Air pollution doesn’t endanger people’s health in some cities.

¨    3. Air pollution is the only problem of the environment mentioned in this passage.

¨    4. Garbage disposal is a problem in many large cities.

¨    5. Everyone must cooperate to reduce pollution.

¨    6. We can reduce pollution by recycling programmes only.

Read the following passage and answer the questions.

THE OLYMPIC GAMES

      Every four years people all over the world watch the Olympic Games. It is a time for all kinds of people to unite in peace. Some of them join together to compete for gold medals. Millions of other people watch them on television.

      Why do we have the Olympics? How did they begin? The first Olympic Games were in Greece in 776 B.C. There was only one event. People ran a race the length of the stadium. The Games lasted one day.

      Slowly people added more events. The Games were only for men, and women could not even watch them. Only Greeks competed. They came from all parts of the Greek world. The time of the Games was a time of peace, and the government let everyone travel safely. Kings competed against common people. The winners became national heroes.

      The first modern Games were in 1896 in Athens. The Greeks built a new stadium for the competition. Athletes from several countries competed. Then there were Olympics every four years in different cities in Europe and the United States until 1952. After that they were held in Melbourne, Tokyo, Mexico City, and Montreal besides in European cities. Each year there were athletes from more nations. The first Winter Olympics were in 1924. The athletes compete in skiing and other winter sports.

      Today there must be Olympic Games every four years. The Games must have at least fifteen events, and they cannot last more than sixteen days. There is no age limit people of any age can compete.

      The competitors must not be professionals. They must be amateurs. The athletes compete for gold medals. The winners are still national heroes, as they were in the early Olympic Games in Greece.

      In 1956, Egypt, Iraq, and Lebanon boycotted the Games. They did not compete in the Games because several countries took the Suez Canal from Egypt that year. Other countries boycotted the Games in 1964 and 1976. In 1980, the United States and other countries boycotted the Games in Moscow. In 1984, the Soviet Union and other countries boycotted the Games in Los Angeles. How can the nations of the world solve this problem? Maybe the Games should be in Greece every year, where they began. Then athletes from all over the world could compete without any boycotts.

Questions

1.   What was the only event in the first Olympic Games?

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2.   How many nations played in the first Games?

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3.   What is the age limit?

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4.   Are the competitors professionals or amateurs?

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5.   Where and when is the next Olympic Games?

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Read the following passage, and answer the questions below.

      Duong Lam Village is located in Duong Lam Commune at a 45km distance from Hanoi. It is the birthplace of two kings in the history of Vietnam, Phung Hung and Ngo Quyen, who opened up the long-term self-control and independence period of Vietnam after Bach Dang Victory in the year 938.

      All houses, gates, village gates and wells are built of laterite creating an architectural complex, a unique village that is typical for villages in the midlands in the North of Vietnam.

      At present, there are still nearly old 200 houses and many other historical monuments such as Phung Hung Temple, Ngo Quyen Royal Tomb, MongPhu Communal House, Ho Gam Hill at which Phung Hung liked tigers to rescue villagers and the temple at which the diplomat Giang Van Minh is worshiped.

1.   Where is Duong Lam village?

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2.   Who were the two kings whose birthplace is Duong Lam Village?

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3.   What is Duong Lam typical for?

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4.   How many old houses are there in Duong Lam?

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Read the passage about family traditions in Viet Nam, and fill in the blanks with the suitable words.

            importance           there         because           ancestors        by

            arrange                 more         responsible     look                 after

      Marriage and family are very important in Viet Nam. In the countryside,parents often (1)                                marriages; divorce remains uncommon, thoughis (2)                                   frequent in cities. In traditional Vietnamese families, rolesare rigid. The man of the house is primarily (3)                                       for the family’seconomic well-being. Older children help to (4)                                                after youngersiblings. Discipline is viewed as a parental duty.

      The woman of the house looks (5)                       her parents, husband andchildren. In rural areas, women also do much agricultural work. Vietnamesewomen live (6)                         the “four virtues”: hard work, beauty, refined speechand excellent conduct.

      The Vietnamese attach great (7)                                       to two traditional familyobligations: to care for their parents in their old age and to worship them after death. In each Vietnamese family, (8)                         is at least one altar on whichthere are the pictures of their ancestors. Family members worship their ancestors (9)                                they think parents after death will go to live in another world and this altar is the place where the ancestors’ souls live in. As a result, every day Vietnamese people lay flowers or sometimes fruits on the altar for the belief that those (10)                         will enjoy them.