Bài luyện tập về đọc hiểu hay (Phần 2) (Có đáp án)

TỔNG HỢP BÀI LUYỆN TẬP VỀ ĐỌC HIỂU HAY (p2)

EXERCISE 10

As the twentieth century began, the importance of formal education in the United States increased. The frontier had mostly disappeared and by 1910 most Americans lived in towns and cities. Industrialization and the bureaucratization of economic life combined with a new emphasis upon credentials and expertise to make schooling increasingly important for economic and social mobility. Increasingly, too, schools were viewed as the most important means of integrating immigrants into American society.
The arrival of a great wave of southern and eastern European immigrants at the turn of the century coincided with and contributed to an enormous expansion of formal schooling.
By 1920 schooling to age fourteen or beyond was compulsory in most states, and the school year was greatly lengthened. Kindergartens, vacation schools, extracurricular activities, and vocational education and counseling extended the influence of public schools over the lives of students, many of whom in the larger industrial cities were the children of immigrants. Classes for adult immigrants were sponsored by public schools, corporations, unions, churches, settlement houses, and other agencies.
Reformers early in the twentieth century suggested that education programs should suit the needs of specific populations. Immigrant women were once such population. Schools tried to educate young women so they could occupy productive places in the urban industrial economy, and one place many educators considered appropriate for women was the home.
Although looking after the house and family was familiar to immigrant women, American education gave homemaking a new definition. In preindustrial economies, homemaking had meant the production as well as the consumption of goods, and it commonly included income-producing activities both inside and outside the home, in the highly industrialized early-twentieth-century United States, however, overproduction rather than scarcity was becoming a problem. Thus, the ideal American homemaker was viewed as a consumer rather than a producer. Schools trained women to be consumer homemakers cooking, shopping, decorating, and caring for children "efficiently" in their own homes, or if economic necessity demanded, as employees in the homes of others. Subsequent reforms have made these notions seem quite out-of-date.
Questions
Question 1: The paragraph preceding the passage   probably discusses          .
A.   the industrialization and the bureaucratization of economic life the United States in the nineteen century.
B.   the formal schooling in the United States in the nineteen century.
C.   the urbanization in the United States in the nineteen century.
D.   the most important means of integrating immigrants into American society in the nineteen century.
Question 2: It can be inferred from paragraph 1 that one important factor in the increasing importance of education in the United  States was        .
A.   the expanding economic problems of schools
B.   the growing number of schools in frontier communities
C.   an increase in the number of trained teachers
D.   the increased urbanization of the entire country
Question 3: The word “means” in line 5 is closest in   meaning to          .
A.   qualifications       B.   method                 C.   advantages                       D. probability
Question 4: The phrase “coincided with” in line 7 is closest in   meaning to          .
A. happened at the same  time as                              B. ensured the success of
C.   was influenced by                                               D. began to grow rapidly
Question 5: According to the passage, one important change in United States education by the  1920's was that               .

A.   the amount of time spent on formal education was limited
B.   new regulations were imposed on nontraditional education
C.   adults and children studied in the same classes
D.   most places required children to attend school
Question 6: “Vacation schools and extracurricular activities” are mentioned in line 9 to illustrate           .
A.   activities that competed to attract new immigrants to their programs.
B.   alternatives to formal education provided by public schools
C.   the importance of educational changes
D.   the increased impact of public schools on students
Question 7: According to the passage, early-twentieth century education reformers believed that                  .
A.   special programs should be set up in frontier communities to modernize them
B.   corporations and other organizations damaged educational progress
C.   different groups needed different kinds of education
D.   more women should be involved in education and industry
Question 8: The word "it" in line 19   refers to          .
A.   education             B.   consumption                     C.   production           D. homemaking
Question 9: Women were trained to be consumer homemakers as a  result of          .
A.   scarcity in the highly industrialized early-twentieth-century United States
B.   economic necessity in the highly industrialized early-twentieth-century United States
C.   income-producing activities in the highly industrialized early-twentieth-century United States
D.   overproduction in the highly industrialized early-twentieth-century United States
Question 10: Which paragraph mentions the importance of abilities and experience in formal schooling?
A.  Paragraph  2          B.  Paragraph  4                      C.  Paragraph 1          D. Paragraph 3

 EXERCISE 11
Herman Melville, an American author best known today for his novel Moby Dick, was actually more popular during his lifetime for some of his other works. He traveled extensively and used the knowledge gained during his travels as the basis for his early novels. In 1837, at the age of eighteen, Melville signed as a cabin boy on a merchant ship that was to sail from his Massachusetts home to Liverpool, England. His experiences on this trip served as a basis for the novel Redburn (1849). In 1841, Melville set out on a  whaling ship headed for the South Seas. After jumping ship in Tahiti, he wandered around the islands of Tahiti and Moorea. This South Sea island sojourn was a backdrop to the novel Omoo (1847). After three years away from home, Melville joined up with a U.S. naval frigate that was returning to the eastern United States around Cape Horn. The novel White Jacket (1850) describes this lengthy voyage as a navy seaman.
With the publication of these early adventure novels, Melville developed a strong and loyal following among readers eager for his tales of exotic places and situations. However, in 1851, with the publication of Moby Dick, Melville's popularity started to diminish. Moby  Dick, on one level the saga of the hunt for the great white whale, was also a heavily symbolic allegory of the heroic struggle of humanity against the universe. The public was not ready for Melville's literary metamorphosis from romantic adventure to philosophical symbolism. It is ironic that the novel that served to diminish Melville's popularity during his lifetime is the one for which he is best known today.
Questions
Question 1: The main subject of the  passage is          .
A.  Melville's  travels                                                  B. the popularity of Melville's novels
C.  Melville's personal background                           D. Moby Dick
Question 2: According to the passage, Melville's early  novels were          .
A. published while  he was traveling                         B. completely fictional
C. all about his work on   whaling ships                     D. based on his travel experience
Question 3: In what year did Melville's book about his experiences as a cabin boy appear?
A.   1837                                    B.   1841                     C.   1847                                 D. 1849
Question 4: The word “basis” in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to                              .
A.   background          B.   message                C.   bottom                             D. dissertation
Question 5: The passage implies that Melville stayed in   Tahiti because           .
A.   he had unofficially left his ship
B.   he was on leave while his ship was in port
C.   he had finished his term of duty
D.   he had received permission to take a vacation in Tahiti
Question 6: A “frigate” in paragraph 1   is probably          .
A.  an office               B.  a  ship                    C.  a  troop                              D. a fishing boat
Question 7: How did the publication of Moby Dick affect Melville's popularity?
A.   His popularity increased immediately.
B.   It had no effect on his popularity.
C.   It caused his popularity to decrease.
D.   His popularity remained as strong as ever.
Question 8: According to the passage, Moby  Dick is         .
A.   a romantic adventure
B.   a single-faceted work
C.   a short story about a whale
D.   symbolic of humanity fighting the universe
Question 9: The word “metamorphosis” in paragraph 2 is closest in   meaning to          .
A.   circle                    B.   change                  C.   mysticism                         D. descent
Question 10: The passage would most likely be assigned reading in a   course on          .
A.  nineteenth-century novels                                    B. American history
C.   oceanography                                                       D. modem American literature

EXERCISE 12
An air pollutant is defined as a compound added directly or indirectly by humans to the atmosphere in such quantities as to affect humans, animals, vegetation, or materials adversely. Air pollution requires a  very flexible  definition that  permits   continuous change. When the first air pollution laws were established in England in the  fourteenth century, air pollutants were limited to compounds that could be seen or smelled - a far cry from the extensive list of harmful substances known today. As technology has developed and knowledge of the health aspects of various chemicals has increased, the list of air pollutants has lengthened. In the future, even water vapor might be considered an air pollutant under certain conditions.
Many of the more important air pollutants, such as sulfur oxides, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides, are found in nature. As the Earth developed, the concentration of these pollutants was altered by various chemical reactions; they became components in biogeochemical cycles. These serve as an air purification scheme by allowing the compounds to move from the air to the water or soil. On a global basis, nature's output of these  compounds dwarfs that resulting from human activities.
However, human production usually occurs in a localized area, such as a city. In such a region, human output may be dominant and may temporarily overload the natural purification scheme of the cycles. The result is an increased concentration of noxious chemicals in the air. The concentrations at which the adverse effects appear will be greater than the concentrations that the pollutants would have in the absence of human activities. The actual concentration need not be large for a substance to be a pollutant; in fact, the numerical value tells us little until we know how much of an increase this represents over the concentration that would occur naturally in the area. For example, sulfur dioxide has detectable health effects at 0.08 parts per million (ppm), which is about 400 times its natural level. Carbon monoxide, however, has a natural level of 0.1 ppm and is not usually a pollutant until its level reaches about 15 ppm.
Questions
Question 1: What does the passage mainly discuss?
A.   The economic impact of air pollution.
B.   What constitutes an air pollutant.
C.   How much harm air pollutants can cause.
D.   The effects of compounds added to the atmosphere.
Question 2: The word “adversely” in the first paragraph is closest in meaning to          .
A.   negatively            B.   quickly                 C.   admittedly                       D. considerably
Question 3: It can be inferred from the first paragraph that__________.
A.   water vapor is an air pollutant in localized areas
B.   most air pollutants today can be seen or smelled
C.   the definition of air pollution will continue to change
D.   a substance becomes an air pollutant only in cities
Question 4: The word “These” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to__________.
A. the various chemical reactions
B. the pollutants from the developing Earth
C. the compounds moved to the water or soil
D. the components in biogeochemical cycles
Question 5: For which of the following reasons can natural pollutants play an important role in controlling air pollution?
A.   They function as part of a purification process.
B.   They occur in greater quantities than other pollutants.
C.   They are less harmful to living beings than other pollutants.
D.   They have existed since the Earth developed.
Question 6: According to the passage, human-generated air pollution in localized regions           .
A.   can be dwarfed by nature's output of pollutants
B.   can overwhelm the natural system that removes pollutants
C.   will damage areas outside of the localized regions
D.   will react harmfully with natural pollutants
Question 7: The word “localized” in the third paragraph is closest in   meaning to          .
A.   specified              B. circled                                                                    C.   surrounded         D. encircled
Question 8: According to the passage, the numerical value of the concentration level of a substance  is  only useful if         .
A. the other substances in the area   are known         B. it is in a localized area
C. the natural level is  also known                             D. it can be calculated quickly
Question 9: The word “detectable” in the third paragraph is closest in   meaning to          .
A.   beneficial             B.   special                  C.   measurable                       D. separable
Question 10: Which of the following is best supported by the passage?
A.     To effectively control pollution, local government should regularly review their air pollution laws.
B.   One of the most important steps in preserving natural lands is to better enforce air pollution laws.
C.   Scientists should be consulted in order to establish uniform limits for all air pollutants.
D.   Human activities have been effective in reducing air pollution.

EXERCISE 13
The history of clinical nutrition, or the study of the relationship between health and how the body takes in and utilizes food substances, can be divided into four distinct eras:  the first began in the nineteenth century and extended into the   early twentieth century when it was recognized for the first time that food contained constituents that were essential for human function and that different foods provided different amounts of these essential agents. Near the end of this era, research studies demonstrated that rapid weight loss was associated with nitrogen imbalance and could only be rectified by providing adequate dietary protein associated with certain foods.
The second era was initiated in the early decades of the twentieth century and might be called "the vitamin period. "Vitamins came to be recognized in foods, and deficiency syndromes were described. As vitamins became recognized as essential food constituents necessary for health, it became tempting to suggest that every disease and condition for  which there had been no previous effective treatment might be responsive to vitamin therapy. At that point in time, medical schools started to become more interested in having their curricula integrate nutritional concepts into the basic sciences. Much of the focus of this education was on the recognition of deficiency symptoms. Herein lay the beginning of what ultimately turned from ignorance to denial of the value of nutritional therapies in medicine. Reckless claims were made for effects of vitamins that went far beyond what could actually be achieved from the use of them.
In the third era of nutritional history in the early 1950's to mid-1960's, vitamin therapy began to fall into disrepute. Concomitant with this, nutrition education in medical schools also became less popular. It was just a decade before this that many drug companies had  found their vitamin sales skyrocketing and were quick to supply practicing physicians with generous samples of vitamins and literature extolling the virtue of supplementation for a variety of health-related conditions. Expectations as to the success of vitamins in disease control were exaggerated. As is known in retrospect, vitamin and mineral therapies are much less effective when applied to health-crisis conditions than when applied to long-term problems of under nutrition that lead to chronic health problems.
Questions
Question 1: What does the passage mainly discuss?
A.   The stages of development of clinical nutrition as a field of study
B.   The effects of vitamins on the human body
C.   Nutritional practices of the nineteenth century
D.   The history of food preferences from the nineteenth century to the present
Question 2: It can be inferred from the passage that which of the following discoveries was made during the first era in the history of nutrition?
A.   Effective techniques of weight loss were determined.
B.   Vitamins were synthesized from foods.
C.   Certain foods were found to be harmful to good health.
D.     Protein was recognized as an essential component of diet.
Question 3: The word “tempting” is closest in   meaning to          .
A.   realistic                 B.   attractive              C.   correct                              D. necessary
Question 4: It can be inferred from the passage that medical schools began to teach concepts of nutrition in order to                       .
A.   encourage medical doctors to apply concepts of nutrition in the treatment of disease
B.   convince medical doctors to participate in research studies on nutrition
C.   convince doctors to conduct experimental vitamin therapies on their patients
D.   support the creation of artificial vitamins
Question 5: The word “Reckless” is closest in  meaning to          .
A.   informative          B.   recorded               C.   irresponsible                     D. urgent
Question 6: The word “them”  refers to          .
A.   therapies               B.   vitamins                C.   effects                              D. claims
Question 7: Why did vitamin therapy begin losing favor in the 1950's?
A.   The public lost interest in vitamins
B.   Nutritional research was of poor quality
C.   Claims for the effectiveness of vitamin therapy were seen to be exaggerated.
D.   Medical schools stopped teaching nutritional concepts
Question 8: The phrase “concomitant with” is closest in   meaning to           .
A.  in regard to                                                          B. in dispute with
C.  prior  to                                                                 D. in conjunction with
Question 9: The word "skyrocketing" is closest in   meaning to          .
A.   surprising                                                             B. increasing rapidly
C.   acceptable                                                            D. internationally popular
Question 10: The paragraph following the passage most  probably discusses           .
A.   problems associated with undernutrition
B.   why nutrition education lost its appeal
C.   the fourth era of nutrition history
D.   how drug companies became successful

EXERCISE 14
Colors are one of the most exciting experiences in life. I love them, and they are just as important to me as emotions are. Have you ever wondered how the two are so intimately related? Color directly affects your emotions. Color both reflects the current state of your emotions, and is something that you can use to improve or change your emotions. The color that you choose to wear either reflects your current state of being, or reflects the color or emotion that you need.
The colors that you wear affect you much more than they affect the people around you. Of course they also affect anyone who comes in contract with you, but you are the one saturated with the color all day! I even choose items around me based on their color. In the morning, I choose my clothes based on the color or emotion that I need for the day. So you can consciously use color to control the emotions that you are exposed to, which can help you to feel better.
Color, sound, and emotions are all vibrations. Emotions are literally energy in motion; they are meant to move and flow. This is the reason that real feelings are the fastest way to get your energy in motion. Also, flowing energy is exactly what creates healthy cells in  your body. So, the fastest way to be healthy is to be open to your real feelings. Alternately, the fastest way to create disease is to inhibit your emotions.
Questions
Question 1: What is the main idea of the passage?
A.   Colors are one of the most exciting.
B.   Colorful clothes can change your mood
C.   Emotions and colors are closely related to each other
D.   Colors can help you become healthy.
Question 2: Which of the following can be affected by color?
A.  Your need for thrills                                            B. Your friend's feelings
C.  Your  mood                                                          D. Your appetite
Question 3: Who is more influenced by colors you wear?
A.  You  are more influenced                                     B. Your family
C. The people around you are  more influenced       D. Anyone
Question 4: According to the passage, what do color, sound, and emotion all have in common?
A. They are all related  to health                               B. They are all forms of motion
C. They all affect the cells of  the body                    D. None is correct
Question 5: According to this passage, what creates disease?
A.  Wearing the color black                                       B. Ignoring your emotions
C.  Being open to your emotions                               D. Exposing yourself to bright colors
Question 6: The term “intimately” in paragraph 1 is closest in  meaning to           .
A.   clearly                  B.   closely                  C.   simply                              D. obviously
Question 7: The term “they” in paragraph 3  refers to          .
A.   emotions              B.   colors                    C.   people                              D. none of these
Question 8: Why does the author mention that color and emotions are both vibrations?
A.   Because vibrations make you healthy
B.   Because they both affect how we feel.
C.   To prove the relationship between emotions and color.
D.   To show how color can affect energy levels in the body.
Question 9: The phrase “saturated with” in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to __________.
A.  covered  with        B.  bored  with            C.  in need of                         D. lacking in
Question 10: What is the purpose of the passage?
A.   to give an objective account of how colors affect emotions
B.   to prove the relationship between color and emotion
C.   to persuade the reader that colors can influence emotions and give a person more energy
D.   to show that colors are important for a healthy life

EXERCISE 15
Learning means acquiring knowledge of developing the ability to perform new behaviors. It is common to think of learning as something that takes place in school, but much of human learning occurs outside the classroom, and people continue to learn throughout their lives.
Even before they enter school, young children learn to walk, to talk, and to use their hands to manipulate toys, food, and other objects. They use all of their senses to learn about the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells in their environments. They learn how to interact with their parents, siblings, friends, and other people important to their world. When they enter school, children learn basic academic subjects such as reading, writing, and mathematics. They also continue to learn a great deal outside the classroom. They learn which behaviors are likely to be rewarded and which are likely to be punished. They learn social skills for interacting with other children. After they finish school, people must learn to adapt to the many major changes that affect their lives, such as getting married, raising children, and finding and keeping a job.
Because learning continues throughout our lives and affects almost everything we do, the study of learning is important in many different fields. Teachers need to understand the best ways to educate children. Psychologists, social workers, criminologists, and other human-service workers need to understand how certain experiences change people’s behaviors. Employers, politicians, and advertisers make use of the principles of learning to influence the behavior of workers, voters, and consumers.
Learning is closely related to memory, which is the storage of information in the brain. Psychologists who study memory are interested in how the brain stores knowledge, where this storage takes place, and how the brain later retrieves knowledge when we need it. In contrast, psychologists who study learning are more interested in behavior and how behavior changes  as a result of a person’s experiences.
There are many forms of learning, ranging from simple to complex. Simple forms of learning involve a single stimulus. A stimulus is anything perceptible to the senses, such as a sight, sound, smell, touch, or taste. In a form of learning known as classical conditioning, people learn to associate two stimuli that occur in sequence, such as lightning followed by thunder. In operant conditioning, people learn by forming an association between a behavior and its consequences (reward or punishment). People and animals can also learn by observation – that is, by watching others perform behaviors. More complex forms of learning in clued learning languages, concepts, and motor skills.
Questions
Question 1: According to the passage, which of the following is learning in broad view comprised of?

A.   Knowledge acquisition and ability development
B.   Acquisition of academic knowledge
C.   Acquisition of social and behavioural skills
D.   Knowledge acquisition outside the classroom
Question 2: According to the passage, what are children NOT usually taught outside the classroom?
A.  Interpersonal communication                               B. Life skills
C.  Literacy and calculation                                      D. Right from wrong
Question 3: Getting married, raising children, and finding and keeping a job are mentioned in paragraph  2  as examples of         .
A.   The changes to which people have to orient themselves
B.   The situations in which people cannot teach themselves
C.   The areas of learning which affect people’s lives
D.   The ways people’s lives are influenced by education
Question 4: Which of the following can be inferred about the learning process from the passage?
A.   It becomes less challenging and complicated when people grow older.
B.   It plays a crucial part in improving the learner’s motivation in school.
C.   It takes place more frequently in real life than in academic institutions.
D.   It is more interesting and effective in school than that in life.
Question 5: According to the passage, the study of learning is important in many fields due to           .
A.   The influence of various behaviours in the learning process
B.   The great influence of the on-going learning process
C.   The exploration of the best teaching methods
D.   The need for certain experiences in various areas
Question 6: It can be inferred from the passage that social workers, employers, and politicians concern themselves with the study of learning because they need to         .

A.   Thoroughly understand the behaviours of the objects of their interest
B.   Understand how a stimulus relates to the senses of the objects of their interest
C.   Change the behaviours of the objects of their interest towards learning
D.   Make the objects of their interest more aware of the importance of learning
Question 7: The word “retrieves” in paragraph 4 is closest in   meaning to          .
A.   Generates             B.   creates                  C.   gains                                 D. recovers
Question 8: Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
A.   Psychologists studying memory are concerned with the brain’s storage of knowledge.
B.   Psychologists are all interested in memory as much as behaviours.
C.   Psychologists studying learning are interested in human behaviours.
D.   Psychologists studying memory are concerned with how the stored knowledge is used.
Question 9: According to the passage, the stimulus in simple forms  of learning          .
A.  is  created by the senses                                       B. is associated with natural phenomena
C.  makes  associations between behaviours              D. bears relation to perception
Question 10: The passage  mainly discusses          .
A.   General principles of learning
B.   Application of learning principles to formal education
C.   Simple forms of learning
D.   Practical examples of learning inside the classroom 

EXERCISE 16

Commuting is the practice of travelling a long distance to a town or city to work each day, and then travelling home again in the evening. The word commuting comes from commutation ticket, a US rail ticket  for repeated journeys, called a season ticket  in Britain. Regular travellers are called commuters.
The US has many commuters. A few, mostly on the East Coast, commute by train or subway, but most depend on the car. Some leave home very early to avoid the traffic jams, and sleep in their cars until their office opens. Many people accept a long trip to work so that they can live in quiet bedroom communities away from the city, but another reason is ‘white flight’. In the 1960s most cities began to desegregate their schools, so that there were no longer separate schools for white and black children. Many white families did not want  to send their children to desegregated schools, so they moved to the suburbs, which have their own schools, and where, for various reasons, few black people live.
Millions of people in Britain commute by car or train. Some spend two or three hours a day travelling, so that they and their families can live in suburbia or in the countryside.  Cities are surrounded by commuter belts. Part of the commuter belt around London is called the stockbroker belt because it contains houses where rich business people live. Some places are becoming dormitory towns, because people sleep there but take little part in local activities.
Most commuters travel to and from work at the same time, causing the morning and evening rush hours, when buses and trains are crowded and there are traffic jams on the roads. Commuters on trains rarely talk to each other and spend their journey reading, sleeping or using their mobile phones, though this is not popular with other passengers. Increasing numbers of people now work at home some days of the week, linked to their offices by computer, a practice called telecommuting.
Cities in both Britain and the US are trying to reduce the number of cars coming into town each day. Some companies encourage car pooling (called car sharing in Britain), an arrangement for people who live and work near each other to travel together. Some US cities have a public service that helps such people to contact each other, and traffic lanes are reserved for car-pool vehicles. But cars and petrol/gas are cheap in the US, and many   people prefer to drive alone because it gives them more freedom. In Britain many cities have park- and-ride schemes, car parks on the edge of the city from which buses take drivers into the centre.
Questions
Question 1: Which of the following definitions of commuting would the author of this  passage most probably agree with?
A.   Travelling to work and then home again in a day within a rural district.
B.   Travelling for hours from a town or city to work in the countryside every day.
C.   Regularly travelling a long distance between one’s place of work and one’s home.
D.   Using a commutation ticket for special journeys in all seasons of the year.
Question 2: The word “repeated” in paragraph 1 most  probably means          .
A. buying a season  ticket again.                               B. happening again and again.
C.  saying something again.                                       D. doing something once again.
Question 3: The passage mentions that many Americans are willing to travel a long distance to work in order to be able to  live in                                    .
A.  quiet  neighbourhoods                                          B. comfortable bedrooms
C.  city centres                                                           D. noisy communities
Question 4: Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.   The US has considerably more commuters than Britain.
B.   Commuting helps people in the US and Britain save a lot of time.
C.   Britain has considerably more commuters than the US.
D.   Both the US and Britain have a great number of commuters.
Question 5: Which of the following is NOT true about the London commuter belt?
A.   It surrounds London.
B.   It is in central London.
C.   It is home to some wealthy business people.
D.   It is like “bedroom communities” in the US.
Question 6: It can be inferred from the passage that dormitory towns in Britain are places where   people                      .
A.   stay for the night
B.   contribute to the local community
C.   are employed locally
D.   take part in local activities
Question 7: As mentioned in the passage,  commuters usually          .
A. talk to each other during  train journeys               B. go to work at different hours
C. go home  from work at  different hours                D. cause traffic congestion on the roads
Question 8: The phrase “linked to” in paragraph 4 is closest in   meaning to           .
A.  shared  with          B.  satisfied  with        C.  connected to                    D. related to
Question 9: All of the following are measures to reduce the number of cars coming into town each day in the US and/or  Britain EXCEPT                        .
A. traffic lanes for  car pooling                                  B. free car parks in the city centre
C.  park-and-ride  schemes                                         D. car pooling/sharing
Question 10: The word “it” in the last paragraph  refers to          .
A.  travelling together B.  car  pool                C.  driving  alone                    D. petrol/gas

 EXERCISE 17
Under the Medicare insurance policy, people approaching 65 may enroll during the seven-month period that includes three months before the sixty-fifth birthday, the month in which the birthday falls, and three months after the birthday. However, if they wish the insurance coverage to begin when they reach 65, they must enroll three month s before their birthday. People who do not enroll within their first enrollment period may enroll later,  during  the  first  three  months of each  year.  Those people,  however,  must  pay  10% additional for each twelve-month period that elapsed since they first could have enrolled. The monthly premium is deducted from social security payments, railroad retirement or civil service retirement benefits.
Questions
Question 1: The author’s purpose  is to         .
A.   describe the benefits of Medicare
B.   stimulate enrollment in Medicare
C.   advertise Medicare
D.   tell people when they may enroll in Medicare
Question 2: People would pay 10% more for their insurance   if they          .

A.   were under 65
B.   applied seven months before their sixty-fifth birthday
C.   enrolled after their sixty-fifth birthday
D.   enrolled in a private plan
Question 3: To start coverage by Medicare on their sixty-fifth birthday, people must apply           .
A.   seven months before their birthday
B.   four months before their birthday
C.   three months before their birthday
D.   the month in which their birthday occurs
Question 4: The word “deducted” in the passage can be   replaced by         .
A.  taken  away           B.   protected              C.   subtracted                        D. escaped
Question 5: The seven-month period described in this  passage includes          .
A.   seven months before the subscriber’s birthday
B.   seven months after the subscriber’s birthday
C.   seven months since the subscriber’s birthday
D.    three months before, three months after, and the month during which the subscriber’s birthday occurs
Question 6: The word “elapsed” in the passage most   closely means          .
A.   passed                  B.   finished                C.   ended                               D. expired
Question 7: The period after the sixty-fifth birthday during which people may apply for Medicare   is            .
A.  a quarter of a year                                                B. seven months
C.  one  month                                                            D. January 1 to March 31 yearly
Question  8: Medicare subscriber’s premiums           .
A. are due the first of  every month                          B. are taken out of their salaries
C.  are subtracted from their pension                        D. come from the government
Question 9: The word “civil service” in this passage is   relating to          .
A.  the government workers                                      B. the citizens of a country
C.  the office workers                                                D. the factory workers
Question 10: You can infer that people over 65 who enroll two years after they could have enrolled pay 10% more for two years and  then could         .
A.   continue to pay more than people who enrolled before they were 65
B.   pay less than people who enrolled before 65
C.   pay the same as people who enrolled before 65
D.   be excluded from the Medicare plan completely

EXERCISE 18
May 7, 1840, was the birthday of one of the most famous Russian composers of the nineteenth century Peter Illich Tchaikovsky. The son of a mining inspector, Tchaikovsky  studied  music  as  a  child  and  later  studied  composition  at  the St. Petersburg  Conservatory.  His  greatest  period  of productivity  occurred  between 1876 and 1890, during which time he enjoyed the patronage of Madame von Meck, a woman he never met, who gave him a living stipend of about $1,000.00 a year. Madame von Meck later terminated her friendship with Tchaikovsky, as well as his living allowance, when she, herself, was facing financial difficulties. It was during the time of Madame von Meck's patronage, however, that Tchaikovsky created the music for which he is most famous, including the music for the ballets of Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty.
Tchaikovsky's music, well known for its rich melodic and sometimes melancholy passages, was one of the first that brought serious dramatic music to dance. Before this, little attention had been given to the music behind the dance. Tchaikovsky died on November 6, 1893, ostensibly of cholera, though there are now some scholars who argue that he committed suicide.
Questions
Question 1: With what topic is the passage primarily concerned?
A.   the life and music of Tchaikovsky
B.   development of Tchaikovsky's music for ballets
C.   Tchaikovsky's relationship with Madame Von Meck
D.   the cause of Tchaikovsky's death
Question 2: Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word "productivity"?
A.   fertility                 B.   affinity                 C.   creativity                          D. maturity
Question 3: The phrase "enjoyed the patronage of" probably means__________.
A.  liked  the company of                                           B. was mentally attached to
C.  solicited  the advice of                                         D. was financially dependent upon
Question 4: Which of the following could best replace the word "terminated"?
A.   discontinued        B.   resolved                C.   exploited                          D. hated
Question  5:  According  to  the  passage,  all  of the  following  describe  Madame  von Meck EXCEPT__________ .
A.   She had economic troubles.
B.   She was generous.
C.   She enjoyed Tchaikovsky's music.
D.   She was never introduced to Tchaikovsky.
Question 6: It is known that before Tchaikovsky,__________.
A.   the music behind the dance had been taken seriously
B.   serous dramatic music had been already brought to dance
C.   the music behind the dance had been given very little attention.
D.   music had been famous for its rich melodic passages
Question 7: According to the passage, for what is Tchaikovsky's music most well known?
A.   its repetitive and monotonous tones
B.   the ballet-like quality of the music
C.   its lively, capricious melodies
D.   the richness and melodic drama of the music
Question 8: According to the passage, "Swan Lake" and "The Sleeping Beauty" are__________.
A.   dances                  B.   songs                    C.   operas                               D. plays
Question 9: Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
A.   Tchaikovsky's influence on ballet music
B.   Tchaikovsky's unhappiness leading to suicide
C.   the patronage of Madame von Meck
D.   Tchaikovsky's productivity in composing
Question 10: Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word "behind"?
A.   supporting            B.  in back of             C.  going  beyond                   D. concealing

ĐÁP ÁN
Ex10: 1. B   2.D   3. B   4. A   5. D   6. A   7. C   8. D   9. D   10. C
Ex11: 1. B   2. D   3. D   4. A   5. A  6. B  7. C   8. D   9. B    10. A
Ex12: 1. B   2. A   3. C    4. D   5. A   6. B  7. A  8. C   9. C     10. D
Ex13: 1. A   2. D   3. B    4. A   5. C    6. B  7. C   8. D  9. B    10. C
Ex14: 1. C   2. C    3. A    4. D   5. B    6. B   7. B  8. D  9. A    10. C
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