15000 bài tập tách từ đề thi thử môn Tiếng Anh có đáp án (Phần 43)

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indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.

In the course of its history, human inventions have dramatically increased the average amount of energy available for use per person. Primitive peoples in cold regions burned wood and animal dung to heat their caves, cook food, and drive off animals by fire. The first step toward the developing of more efficient fuels was taken when people discovered that they could use vegetable oils and animal fats in lieu of gathered or cut wood. Charcoal gave off more intensive heat than wood and was more easily obtainable than organic fats. The Greeks first began to use coal for metal smelting in the 4th century, but it did not come into extensive use until the Industrial Revolution.

In the 1700s, at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, most energy used in the United States and other nations undergoing industrialization was obtained from perpetual and renewable sources, such as wood, water streams, domesticated animal labor, and wind. These were predominantly locally available supplies. By mid-1800s, 91 percent of all commercial energy consumed in the United States and European countries was obtained from wood. However, at he beginning of the 20th century, coal became a major energy source and replaced wood in industrializing countries. Although in most regions and climate zones wood was more readily accessible than coal, the latter represents a more concentrated source of energy. In 1910, natural gas and oil firmly replaced coal as the main source of fuel because they are lighter and, therefore, cheaper to transport. They burned more cleanly than coal and polluted less. Unlike coal, oil could be refined to manufacture liquid fuels for vehicles, a very important consideration in the early 1900s, when the automobile arrived on the scene.

By 1984, non-renewable fossil fuels, such as oil, coal, and natural gas, provided over 82 percent of the commercial and industrial energy used in the world. Small amounts of energy were derived from nuclear fission, and the remaining 16 percent came from burning direct perpetual and renewable fuels, such as biomass. Between 1700 and 1986, a large number of countries shifted from the use of energy from local sources to a centralized generation of hydropower and solar energy converted to electricity. The energy derived from non-renewable fossil fuels has been increasingly produced in one location and transported to another, as is the case with most automobile fuels. In countries with private, rather than public transportation, the age of non-renewable fuels has created a dependency on a finite resource that will have to be replaced.

Alternative fuel sources are numerous, and shale oil and hydrocarbons are just two examples. The extraction of shale oil from large deposits in Asian and European regions has proven to be labor consuming and costly. The resulting product is sulfur-and nitrogen-rich, and large scale extractions are presently prohibitive. Similarly, the extraction of hydrocarbons from tar sands in Alberta and Utah is complex. Semi-solid hydrocarbons cannot be easily separated from the sandstone and limestone that carry them, and modern technology is not sufficiently versatile for a large-scale removal of the material. However, both sources of fuel may eventually be needed as petroleum prices continue to rise and limitations in fossil fuel availability make alternative deposits more attractive.

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indicate the word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

Ever since it was first possible to make a real robot, people have been hoping for the invention of a machine that would do all the necessary jobs around the house. If boring and repetitive factory work could be (176) ________ by robots, why not boring and repetitive household chores too?

For a long time the only people who really gave the problem their attention were amateur inventors And they came up against a major difficulty. That is, housework is actually very complex It has never been one job it has always been many. A factor robot (177) ________ one task endlessly until it is reprogrammed to do something else. It doesn’t run the whole factory. A housework robot on the other hand, has to do several different (178) ________ of cleaning and carrying jobs and also has to cope (179) ________ all the different shapes and positions of rooms, furniture, ornaments, cats and dogs. (180) ________, there have been some developments recently. Sensors are available to help the robot locate objects and avoid obstacles. We have the technology to produce the hardware. All that is missing the software- the programs that will operate the machine.

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New cycling schemes

The County Council has decided to give a higher (181)______ to cycling and agreed a new strategy to guide the way ahead in East Sussex.

Cycling is a (182) ______, healthy and environmentally friendly form of transport. It is (183) ______ to make it safer, more convenient, and to increase the proportion of journeys made by bicycle.

Cycling is being encouraged both for utility purposes (such as journeys to work, school and the shops) and for recreation trips for exercise and enjoyment, including longer trips by tour. Recent cycle schemes carried out in conjunction with District Councils and other bodies (184) ______ the Brighton and Hove seafront route and the Cross Levels Way cycle route, in Eastbourne.

Local people will be consulted as the strategy is implemented. The County council will work with local cycling and other groups, and a countrywide Cycling Forum will be formed to (185) ______ that all bodies concerned with cycling are in regular (186) ______ .

The (187) ______ of the Cycling strategy are given in a leaflet, and a copy of the full strategy document can be seen in County Council Public Libraries.

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The days of the camera-toting tourist may be numbered. Insensitive travelers are being ordered to stop pointing their cameras and camcorders at reluctant local residents. Tour companies selling expensive trips to remote corners of the world, off the well-trodden path of the average tourist, have become increasingly irritated at the sight of the visitors upsetting locals. Now one such operator plans to ban clients from taking any photographic equipment on holidays. Julian Mathews is the director of Discovery Initiatives, a company that is working hand-in-hand with other organizations to offer holidays combining high adventure with working on environmental projects. His trips are not cheap; two weeks of white-water rafting and monitoring wildlife in Canada cost several thousand pounds.

 Matthews says he is providing 'holidays without guilt', insisting that Discovery Initiatives is not a tour operator but an environmental support company. Clients are referred to as 'participants' or 'ambassadors'. 'We see ourselves as the next step on from eco-tourism, which is merely a passive form. of sensitive travel - our approach is more proactive.'

 However, says Matthews, there is a price to pay. 'I am planning to introduce tours with a total ban on cameras and camcorders because of the damage they do to our relationships with local people. I have seen some horrendous things, such as a group of six tourists arriving at a remote village in the South American jungle, each with a video camera attached to their face. That sort of thing tears me up inside. Would you like somebody to come into your home and take a photo of you cooking? A camera is like a weapon; it puts up a barrier and you lose all the communication that comes through body language, which effectively means that the host communities are denied access to the so-called cultural exchange.'

 Matthews started organizing environmental holidays after a scientific expedition for young people. He subsequently founded Discovery Expeditions, which has helped support 13 projects worldwide. With the launch of Discovery Initiatives, he is placing a greater emphasis on adventure and fun, omitting in the brochure all references to scientific research. But his rules of conduct are strict. 'In some parts of the world, for instance, I tell people they should wear long trousers, not shorts, and wear a tie, when eating out. It may sound dictatorial, but I find one has a better experience if one is well dressed. I don't understand why people dress down when they go to other countries.'

 Matthews' views reflect a growing unease among some tour companies at the increasingly cavalier behaviour of well-heeled tourists. Chris Parrott, of Journey Latin America, says: 'We tell our clients that indigenous people are often shy about being photographed, but we certainly don't tell them not to take a camera. If they take pictures without asking, they may have tomatoes thrown at them.' He also reports that increasing numbers of clients are taking camcorders and pointing them indiscriminately at locals. He says: 'People with camcorders tend to be more intrusive than those with cameras, but there is a payoff - the people they are filming get a tremendous thrill from seeing themselves played back on the viewfinder.'

 Crispin Jones, of Exodus, the overland truck specialist, says: 'We don't have a policy but, should cameras cause offence, our tour leaders will make it quite clear that they cannot be used. Clients tend to do what they are told.

 Earthwatch, which pioneered the concept of proactive eco-tourism by sending paying volunteers to work on scientific projects around the world, does not ban cameras, but operates strict rules on their use. Ed Wilson, the marketing director of the company, says: 'We try to impress on people the common courtesy of getting permission before using their cameras, and one would hope that every tour operator would do the same. People have to be not only environmentally aware but also culturally aware. Some people use the camera as a barrier; it allows them to distance themselves from the reality of what they see. I would like to see tourists putting their cameras away for once, rather than trying to record everything they see.'

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Biological diversity has become widely recognized as a critical conservation issue only in the past two decades. The rapid destruction of the tropical rain forests, which are the ecosystems with the highest known species diversity on Earth, has awakened people to the importance and fragility of biological diversity. The high rate of species extinctions in these environments is jolting, but it is important to recognize the significance of biological diversity in all ecosystems. As the human population continues to expand, it will negatively affect one after another of Earth’s ecosystems. In terrestrial ecosystems and in fringe marine ecosystems (such as wetlands), the most common problem is habitat destruction. In most situations, the result is irreversible. Now humans are beginning to destroy marine ecosystems through other types of activities, such as disposal and runoff of poisonous waste; in less than two centuries, by significantly reducing the variety of species on Earth, they have irrevocably redirected the course of evolution.

Certainly, there have been periods in Earth’s history when mass extinctions have occurred. The extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by some physical event, either climatic or cosmic. There have also been less dramatic extinctions, as when natural competition between species reached an extreme conclusion. Only 0.01 percent of the species that have lived on Earth have survived to the present, and it was largely chance that determined which species survived and which died out.

However, nothing has ever equaled the magnitude and speed with which the human species is altering the physical and chemical world and demolishing the environment. In fact, there is wide agreement that it is the rate of change humans are inflicting, even more than the changes themselves, that will lead to biological devastation. Life on Earth has continually been in flux as slow physical and chemical changes have occurred on Earth, but life needs time to adapt-time for migration and genetic adaptation within existing species and time for the proliferation of new genetic material and new species that may be able to survive in new environments.

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The Forbidden City is the former imperial palace in the center of Beijing, China. Construction began in 1406, and the emperor's court officially moved in by 1420. The Forbidden City got its name because most people were barred from entering the 72-hectare site, surrounded by walls. Even government officials and the imperial family were permitted only limited access. Only the emperor could enter any section at will.

The architecture of the Forbidden City conforms rigidly to traditional Chinese principles. All buildings within the walls follow a north-south line and the most important ones face south to honor the sun. The designers arranged the other buildings, and the ceremonial spaces between them, to impress all visitors with the great power of the Emperor, while reinforcing the insignificance of the individual. This architectural concept was carried out to the smallest detail. For example, the importance of a building was determined not only by its height or width but also by the style of its roof and the quantity of statuettes placed on the roof’s ridges.

In recognition of the importance of its unparalleled architecture, UNESCO added the palace to its World Heritage List in 1987. Today, visitors from all over the world do not wait for an imperial invitation to walk about this palace, now a museum of imperial art.

One of the most impressive landmarks of the Forbidden City is the Meridian Gate, the formal entrance to the southern side of the Forbidden City. The gate, with its auxiliary wings on either side of the entryway, is 38 meters high at its roof ridge. When you stand in front of this majestic structure, you understand how awed people felt when they stood there listening to imperial proclamations.

As you walk through the gate, you come into a large courtyard, 140 meters long and 210 meters wide. Running through the courtyard is the Golden River, which is crossed by five parallel white marble bridges. These bridges lead to the Gate of Supreme Harmony, which, in turn, leads to the heart of the Forbidden City. At the northernmost end of the Forbidden City is the Imperial Garden, which is totally different from the rest of the compound. Instead of rigid formality, you see a seemingly spontaneous arrangement of trees, fishponds, flowerbeds, and sculpture. Here is the place of relaxation for the emperor.

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People have been donating blood since the early twentieth century to help accident victims and patients undergoing surgical procedures. Usually a pint of whole blood is donated, and it is then divided into platelets, white blood cells, and red blood cells. People can donate blood (for red blood cells) about once every two months. Transfusing the blood from the donor to the recipient is straightforward. It involves taking the blood from a donor’s arm vein by means of a hypodermic syringe. The blood flows through a plastic tube to a collection bag or bottle that contains sodium citrate, which prevents the blood from clotting. When the blood is given to a patient, a plastic tube and hypodermic needle are connected to the recipient's arm. The blood flows down from the container by gravity. This is a slow process and may last as long as 2 hours to complete the infusion of blood into the recipient. The patient is protected from being infected during the transfusion. Only sterile containers, tubing, and needles are used, and this helps ensure that transfused or stored blood is not exposed to disease causing bacteria. Negative reactions to transfusions are not unusual. The recipient may suffer an allergic reaction or be sensitive to donor leukocytes. Some may suffer from an undetected red cell incompatibility. Unexplained reactions are also fairly common. Although they are rare, other causes of such negative reactions include contaminated blood, air bubbles in the blood, overloading of the circulatory system through administration of excess blood, or sensitivity to donor plasma or platelets. Today, hospitals and blood banks go to great lengths to screen alt blood donors and their blood. All donated blood is routinely and rigorously tested for diseases, such as HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis. When the recipient is a newborn or an infant, the blood is usually irradiated to eliminate harmful elements. Donated blood is washed, and the white blood cells and platelets removed. Storing the blood sometimes requires a freezing process. To freeze the red blood cells, a glycerol solution is added. To unfreeze the, the glycerolis removed. The ability to store blood for long periods has been a boon to human health.

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Working as a novelist is not really a career like being a doctor or a scientist. Although a fewwell-known ones, like Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling, have become wealthy, most writers find it difficult even to make a living from their book sales. Novels take a long time towrite, and authors can get into financial (216) _____ if they don’t have money coming in regularly from another job. But for those determined to write novels, it is without (217)______ one of the most enjoyable kinds of work to do. The writer has to be creative, thinking up completely new stories, and (218) _____, meaning they put all their time and effort into their work. They also need to be able to cope in a crisis, as nobody else can write their book for them. For this, a good sense of (219)______ often helps. Or the thought that maybe their novel might one day be turned into a film and become a Hollywood (220) _____!

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The world is losing languages at an alarming rate. Michael Krauss suggested that of the approximately 6,000 human languages alive today, only 350 to 500 are safe from extinction. Some linguists estimate that a language dies every two weeks or so. At the current rate, by 2100, about 2,500 native languages could disappear.

Languages become extinct for many reasons. Through imperialism, colonizers impose their languages on colonies. Some politicians believe multilingualism will fragment national interests. Thus they prohibit education in all but the national language. Another reason for language death is the spread of more powerful languages. In the world today, several languages, including English, are so dominant in commerce, science, and education, that languages with fewer speakers have trouble competing.

Although in the past, governments have been one of the primary causes of language death, many have now become champions of preserving endangered languages and have had some significant successes. Two outstanding examples are the revival of Hebrew and Irish. Hebrew was considered a dead language, like Latin, but is now the national language of Israel. Irish was not dead, but severely threatened by English when the government of Ireland began its rescue immediately after the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. All students in public schools must now take some classes in Irish and there are Irish programs in major media, such as television and radio. According to the Irish government, approximately 37% of the population of Ireland now speaks Irish.

One of the largest programs to revive languages, Documenting Endangered Languages (DEL), is being conducted by three U.S. government agencies: the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Museum of Natural History. Researchers funded by these agencies are recording interviews with the mostly elderly people who still speak the languages. Analyses of these interviews will help linguists publish dictionaries and grammars of the languages. Eventually, linguists hope to establish language-training programs where younger people can learn the languages, carrying them on into the future.

The linguists participating in DEL defend spending millions of dollars to preserve dying languages. They point out that when a language dies, humanity loses all of the knowledge of the world that that culture held. Traditional healers in rural areas have given scientists important leads in finding new medicines; aspirin is an example of these. But one of the most common reasons given by these researchers is that studying languages gives us insight into the radically different way humans organize their world. David Lightfoot, an official at the National Science foundation, gives the example of Guguyimadjir, and Australian aboriginal language, in which there are no words for “right” or left,” only for “north,” “south,” “east,” and “west.”

Many researchers are optimistic that the efforts to save dying languages will succeed, at least in part. Bruce L. Cole, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, said, “Not only is this a time of great potential loss, it is also a moment for enormous potential gain. In this modern age of computers and our growing technological capabilities, we can preserve, assemble, analyze, and understand unprecedented riches of linguistic and cultural information.”

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We all want to live in a clean and green world and breathe pollution free air. For this kind of environment we desperately need a fossil fuel free world. Scientists are toiling hard to come up (229)______ alternative fuels which can replace conventional fuels. One such study was presented at the 237th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society. This study throws interesting light on the first economical, eco-friendly process to (230)______ algae oil into biodiesel fuel. The scientists are quite hopeful that one day America will become independent (231)______ fossil fuels. Ben Wen is the (232)______ researcher and vice president of United Environment and Energy LLC, Horseheads, N.Y. According to him, “This is the first economical way to produce biodiesel from algae oil. It costs much less than conventional processes because you would need a much smaller factory, there (233)______ no water disposal costs, and the process is considerably faster.”