Text 2
Are you always sure you know what people mean when they try to describe their
feelings to you? We use both words and gestures to express our feelings, but the
problem is that these words and gestures can be interpreted in different ways. It
is true that a smile means the same thing in any language. So does laughter or
crying. There are also a number of striking similarities in the way different
animals show the same feeling. Dogs, tigers and humans, for example, often show
their teeth when they are angry. This is probably because such behaviour patterns
are inherited rather than learned.
Fear is another emotion that is shown in much the same way all over the world. In
Chinese and in English fiction, a phrase like he went pale and began to tremble
suggests that the man is either very afraid or has just had a very nasty shock.
However, "he opened his eyes wide" is used to suggest anger in Chinese whereas in
English it conveys surprise. In Chinese surprise can be described in a phrase
like "they stretched out their tongues". Sticking out your tongue in English is an
insulting gesture or expresses disgust.
Even in the same culture, people differ in their ability to interpret and
express feelings. Experiments in America have shown that women are usually better
than men at recognizing fear, anger, love and happiness on people’s faces.
Disgust, contempt and suffering seem to be the most difficult emotions for people
everywhere either to recognize or to express. Other studies have shown that older
people usually find it easier to interpret body language ( the way people stand or
move etc. ) than younger people do. And psychologists such as E. G. Beicr have also
shown that some people frequently give completely the wrong impression of how they
feel. For instance, they try to show affection but in fact communicate dislike. Or
when they want to show interest, they give the impression that they don ’ t care.
This can happen even among close friends and members of the same family. In other
words, what we think we are communicating through language, voice, face and body
movements may be the exact opposite of what other people understand.
51. What might be the reason for the behaviour patterns of animals and humans?
[A] They learn them from their parents.
[B] They develop the patterns as they grow older.
[C] They are born with them.
[D] They are taught about them by their elders.
52. Which of the following emotions is NOT shown in the same way in different cultures?
[AJ Happiness. [B] Surprise.
[C] Sadness. [D] Terror.
53. What kind of people are better at recognizing the expression of horror?
[A] Men. [B] Children.
[C] Old people. [D] Women.
54. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
[A] Two close friends won’t make mistakes in expressing and interpreting each
other’s feelings.
[B] Stretching out one’s tongue conveys an unfavourable expression in English.
[C] It is easy for people to recognize and express the strong feeling of
dislike.
[D] Older people are not better than young people in understanding body language.
55. We can generalize from the passage that _________.
[A] we express our feelings in much the same way
[B] men differ from women in their ability to express and interpret feelings
[C] our feelings are not so easy to express and interpret
[D] different cultures have different ways in expressing and interpreting feelings
Text 3
Are the British people Europeans? This may seem a strange question to Africans
and Asians, who tend to think of all white men as Europeans. But the British, when
they are in Britain, do not regard themselves as Europeans. The Europeans, to them,
are those rather excitable foreigners from the other side of the English Channel,
who have never learnt how to speak English. Europe is " the Continent" : a place
full of interest for British tourists, but also the source of almost all the wars
in which Britain has ever been involved. Thus, although geographically speaking
Britain is a part of Europe, yet the fact that it is a separate island that has
made its people feel very, very insular. They feel, and in many ways are, different
from the rest of Europe and they sometimes annoy continental nations by failing to
support them, or even to understand them, in time of need.
Where did the British people come from? This is an extraordinary interesting
question, since they are a mixture of many different races, and all these races
invaded Britain at various times from Europe. Nobody knows very much about Britain
before the Romans came during the first century B. C. , but there had been at
least three invasions before that. The first of these was by a dark-haired
Mediterranean race called the Iberians. The other two were by Celtic tribes; first
the Gaels, whose descendants are the modern Scots and Irish, some of whom still
speak the Gaelic language; and secondly the Britons, who gave their name to the
whole island of Britain. These were the people whom the Romans conquered. The
Romans gave the Britons a good deal of their civilization, but they never settled
in Britain in very large numbers, so the British race survived until the overthrow
of the Roman Empire by the "barbarians", i. e. the numerous Germanic tribes which
overran the whole of Western Europe.
56. The purpose of the passage is to _________.
[A] talk about Europeans
[B] discuss the origin of British people
[C] argue for the superiority of British people
[D] compare the Europeans with Africans and Asians
57. It can be known from the passage that _________.
[A] most people think white people are Europeans
[B] there are many Africans and Asians living in Europe
[C] white men are Europeans in the eyes of Africans and Asians
[D] the British people think of themselves as Europeans
58. It can be inferred from the passage that_________.
[A] Europeans are those who are unable to speak English
[B] those who invaded Britain coming from the other side of the English Channel
[C] Britain is a place full of interest for those excitable foreigners
[D] Britain is the source of almost all the wars in Europe
59. Why do the British people feel very insular?
[A] They are different from those people in the continent.
[B] They sometimes fail to support the continental countries in time of need.
[C] They are separated geographically from the continent.
[D] They are considered very difficult to understand.
60. Which of the following might be discussed after this passage?
[A] The Germanic tribes which invaded Britain.
[B] The civilization the Romans gave Britain.
[C] The Romans who did not settle in Britain.
[D] The survival of the British people in the first century B. C.
Part B
Directions:
Read the following article in which five people talk about their ideas of
dieting. For questions 61 to 65 , -match name of each speaker to one of the
statements (A to C ) given below. Mark your answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
Abbey
You can always recognize dieters from the sour expression on their faces.
They spend most of their time turning their noses up at food. They are forever
consulting calorie charts, gazing at themselves in mirrors, and leaping on to
weighing-machines in the bathroom. They spend a lifetime fighting a losing battle
against spreading hips, protruding tummies and double chins. What a miserable lot
dieters are!
Marlin
I began making some dietary and lifestyle changes during my second year of
college and have been eating this way ever since. I like the way I feel when I don’
t eat animal foods so much more than the pleasure I used to get from eating them. I
have much more energy; I need less sleep; I feel calmer; I can maintain an ideal
body weight without worrying about how much I eat, and I can think more clearly.
Maggie
During my first year of college, I gained forty pounds when I began throwing
the javelin. For the next twenty years, I carried all of this extra weight and
kidded myself that I was in good shape since that’s what I weighed in college. Now
that I’ ve lost all that extra weight, I feel great! People say all the
time, "Well, how do you live without eating cheeseburgers or this or that?" and I
say, "You just don’t. It’ s not even an option. It’ s not that hard once you get
on it. "
Belinda
If you are on a diet, you’ re always hungry. You can’t be hungry and happy
at the same time.
All the horrible concoctions you eat instead of food leave you permanently
dissatisfied. A complete food it may be, but not quite as complete as juicy steak.
So at least three times a day you will be exposed to temptation. How miserable to
watch others tucking into piles of mouth-watering food while you munch a water
biscuit and sip unsweetened lemon juice! And if hunger just proves too much for
you, in the end you will lash out and devour five huge guilt-inducing cream cakes
at a sitting. Then things will turn out to be even worse.
Wood
I went on diet when my doctor told me that my blood pressure tended to be
high. Only at that time did I realize the danger of being overweight. Since I began
making dietary changes in 1982, eating this way has become increasingly accepted.
I don ’ t feel I ’ ve lost something after dieting. Instead, I’ ve got something
valuable. That is good health
Now match each of the persons to the appropriate statement.
Note: there are two extra statements.
Statements
61. Abbey [A] Being on a diet is a torture.
62. Marlin [B] I feel better with vegetarian food.
63. Maggie [C] I lost weight after dieting.
[D] I began dieting for the sake of health.
64. Belinda [E] Dieting enables people to enjoy life more.
65. Wood [F] Dieting simply causes endless worries.
[G] Dieting does more harm than good to one’ s health.
Section IV Writing
(40 minutes)
You should write your responses to both parts on ANSWER SHEET 2.
Part A
66. Suppose you have a foreign friend, Frank Harrison, who invited you to his
house for a dinner party yesterday. Write a letter of thanks to Mr. Frank Harrison,
telling him about:
1) your thanks for his dinner party and his kindness;
2) your gladness of acquainting yourself with new friends at the dinner party;
3) your enjoyment of the dinner party.
Part B
67. Read carefully the information below about Canada. Write a description of
Canada on the
flowing points:
1) location;
2) size and physical background;
3) climatic features;
4) population and language.
Canada
Capital: Ottawa
Total area: 9,976,139 sq. km.
Land area: 5% arable ("T@), 46% forest, 41% mountain area
Climate: temperate in the southern part, mostly cold
Annual rainfall: 80cm
Population: 26,992,000 (1994)
Density: less than 3 per sq. km.
Language : English and French
Location @ north of North America, north of USA