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.

        Sunlight is solar energy. Sunlight is needed for growing plants that you eat to get energy. Sunlight is also used to make clean electricity. Burning fossil fuels to make electricity pollutes our atmosphere and rivers. Fossil fuels are expensive and limited sources of energy. Nuclear fission is used to create enormous amount of heat and electricity. However, nuclear fission forms dangerous radioactive waste.

          Sunlight offers many ways to get energy. A window can allow warm sunlight into your room. Solar water-heating systems can use sunlight to warm the water for your home, swimming pool and school. Sunlight also warms the Earth and causes wind. Electricity can be made by wind generators.

Photovoltaic, or PV system use a type of material that converts sunlight into electricity. PV systems can power your air conditioner or a satellite like the International Space Station. PV systems are also used to run a calculator, recharge cell phone, or even power lightweight cars.

          Sunlight is also changed into electricity by concentrating solar power or CSP systems. CSP systems have mirrors that focus the sunlight. The concentrated sunlight turns water into steam which turns a turbine that is connected to an electric generator. A CSP system usually uses sunlight to make steam. CSP power plants can store large amount of heat. The stored heat is used to make electricity at night. During cloud days, many CSP plants can also burn natural gas to provide the heat that is used to turn water into steam.

         Sunlight provides the energy needed to grow plants and make large amount of environmentally friendly heat and electricity. Solar energy can provide power today and for a long time in the future.

In the third paragraph, the word “convert” is closest in meaning to _______

A. change form one religion to another 

B. transform

C. exchange for something equal in value

D. converse

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.

           In most discussions of cultural diversity, attention has focused on visible, explicit aspects of culture, such as language, dress, food, religion, music, and social rituals. Although they are important, these visible expressions of culture, which are taught deliberately and learned consciously, are only the tip of the iceberg of culture. Much of culture is taught and learned implicitly, or outside awareness. Thus, neither cultural insiders nor cultural outsiders are aware that certain “invisible” aspects of their culture exist.

          Invisible elements of culture are important to us. For example, how long we can be late before being impolite, what topics we should avoid in a conversation, how we show interest or attention through listening behaviour, what we consider beautiful or ugly- these are all aspects of culture that we learn and use without being aware of it. When we meet other people whose invisible cultural assumptions differ from those we have learned implicitly, we usually do not recognize their behaviour as cultural in origin.

           Differences in invisible culture can cause problems in cross-cultural relations. Conflicts may arise when we are unable to recognize others’ behavioural differences as cultural rather than personal. We tend to misinterpret other people’s behaviour, blame them, or judge their intentions or competence without realizing that we are experiencing cultural rather than individual differences.

           Formal organizations and institutions, such as schools, hospitals, workplaces, governments, and the legal system are collection sites for invisible cultural differences. If the differences were more visible, we might have less misunderstanding. For example, if we met a man in a courthouse who was wearing exotic clothes, speaking a language other than ours, and carrying food that looked strange, we would not assume that we understood his thoughts and feelings or that he understood ours. Yet when such a man is dressed similarly to us, speaks our language, and does not differ from us in other obvious ways, we may fail to recognize the invisible cultural differences between us. As a result, mutual misunderstanding may arise.

Which of the following would most likely result in misunderstanding?

A. Strange behaviour from someone speaking a foreign language

B. Learning about our own culture in school

C. Strange behaviour from someone speaking our language

D. Unusual food being cooked by foreign visitors

Read the following text then answer the questions that followed by circling its corresponding letter marked A, B, C or D from 33 to 37.

How can a person offend people just because they cross their legs? In Thailand, it is rude for a person to show other people the bottom of their feet. This is considered unclean, and Thais can (33) …………..

serious offense at it. Another thing people do in the West is to touch people on the head especially children. It is very normal to see an old woman walking up to a young boy and (34) …………… his hair tenderly while saying what a handsome young man he is.

In Thailand, touching a person’s head is strictly taboo because that is the (35) …………… part of the body, and it is where the (36) ……………. is thought to reside in a person. Although very close family members might touch a child on the head, even this is considered rude after a child grows up.

In the Middle East and some parts of Asia, the left hand is used to wash oneself after using a toilet. (37) ………….., the left hand can never offered to another person or used to eat with. Food must always be passed with the right hand, and it is considered polite to always use the right hand for social interactions.

A. But

B. However

C. Therefore

D. Moreover

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.

Every year this charity organization takes on volunteers to support the needy and the poor.

A. dismisses

B. creates  

C. recruits    

D. interviews

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B , C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

Speech is one of the most important (13) ______ communicating. It consists of far more than just making noises. To talk and also to (14) ______ by other people, we have to speak a language, that is, we have to use combinations of (15) ______ that everyone agrees to stand for a particular object or idea. Communication would be impossible if everyone made up their own language.

Learning a language properly is very (16)______ . The basic (17) ______ of English is not very large, and not only about 2,000 words are needed to speak it quite (18)______. But the more idea you can (19) ______ the more precise you can be about their exact meaning.

Words are the (20) ______ thing we use in communicating what we want to say. The way we (21)______ the words is also very important. Our tone of voice can express many emotions and (22) ______ whether we are pleasedor angry, for instance

Điền vào ô 19

A. need                        

B. grow                       

C. express                    

D. pass

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.

Learning means acquiring knowledge or 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 include learning languages, concepts, and motor skills.

According to the passage, the stimulus in simple forms of learning _____ .

A. makes associations between behaviours

B. is created by the senses

C. is associated with natural phenomena

D. bears relation to perception

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.

           In most discussions of cultural diversity, attention has focused on visible, explicit aspects of culture, such as language, dress, food, religion, music, and social rituals. Although they are important, these visible expressions of culture, which are taught deliberately and learned consciously, are only the tip of the iceberg of culture. Much of culture is taught and learned implicitly, or outside awareness. Thus, neither cultural insiders nor cultural outsiders are aware that certain “invisible” aspects of their culture exist.

          Invisible elements of culture are important to us. For example, how long we can be late before being impolite, what topics we should avoid in a conversation, how we show interest or attention through listening behaviour, what we consider beautiful or ugly- these are all aspects of culture that we learn and use without being aware of it. When we meet other people whose invisible cultural assumptions differ from those we have learned implicitly, we usually do not recognize their behaviour as cultural in origin.

           Differences in invisible culture can cause problems in cross-cultural relations. Conflicts may arise when we are unable to recognize others’ behavioural differences as cultural rather than personal. We tend to misinterpret other people’s behaviour, blame them, or judge their intentions or competence without realizing that we are experiencing cultural rather than individual differences.

           Formal organizations and institutions, such as schools, hospitals, workplaces, governments, and the legal system are collection sites for invisible cultural differences. If the differences were more visible, we might have less misunderstanding. For example, if we met a man in a courthouse who was wearing exotic clothes, speaking a language other than ours, and carrying food that looked strange, we would not assume that we understood his thoughts and feelings or that he understood ours. Yet when such a man is dressed similarly to us, speaks our language, and does not differ from us in other obvious ways, we may fail to recognize the invisible cultural differences between us. As a result, mutual misunderstanding may arise.

The word “deliberately” in bold in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to _______.

A. slowly             

B. accurately     

C. intentionally     

D. randomly 

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B , C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

Speech is one of the most important (13) ______ communicating. It consists of far more than just making noises. To talk and also to (14) ______ by other people, we have to speak a language, that is, we have to use combinations of (15) ______ that everyone agrees to stand for a particular object or idea. Communication would be impossible if everyone made up their own language.

Learning a language properly is very (16)______ . The basic (17) ______ of English is not very large, and not only about 2,000 words are needed to speak it quite (18)______. But the more idea you can (19) ______ the more precise you can be about their exact meaning.

Words are the (20) ______ thing we use in communicating what we want to say. The way we (21)______ the words is also very important. Our tone of voice can express many emotions and (22) ______ whether we are pleasedor angry, for instance

Điền vào ô 15

A. sounds                      

B. languages               

C. systems                   

D. talks

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word of phrase that is OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined part in each of the following question.

During the five-decade history the Asian Games have been advancing in all aspects

A. holding to

B. holding at

C. holding back

D. holding by