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.

      Perhaps better known than the Cullinan Diamond is the Hope Diamond, a valuable and blue gem with a background of more than 300 years as a world traveler.The 112-carat blue stone later became the Hope Diamond was mined in India sometime before the middle of the seventeenth century and was first known to be owned by Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his beloved wife. From India, the celebrated blue stone has changed hands often, moving from location to location in distant corners of the world.

      In the middle of the seventeenth century, a trader from France named Jean Baptiste Tavernier acquired the large blue diamond, which was rumored to have been illegally removed from a temple Tavemier returned to France with the big blue gem, where the stone was purchased by the Sun King Louis XIV. Louis XIV had it cut down from 112 to 67 carats to make its shape symmetrical and to maximize its sparkle. The newly cut diamond, still huge by any standards, was passed down through the royal family of France, until it arrived in the hands of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. During the French Revolution, Louis XVI and his wife met their fate on the guillotine in 1793, and the big blue diamond disappeared from public sight.

      The diamond somehow managed to get from France to England, where banker Henry Hope purchased it from a gem dealer early in the nineteenth century. The huge blue stone was cut into a 45.5-carat oval, and at this point it took on the name by which it is known today. The diamond stayed in the Hope family for around a century, when deep indebtedness brought on by a serious gambling habit on the part of one of Henry Hope's heirs forced the sale of the diamond.

          From England, the Hope Diamond may have made its way into the hands of the Sultan of Turkey; whatever route it took to get there, it eventually went on to the United States when American Evelyn Walsh McLean purchased it in 1911. Mrs. McLean certainly enjoyed showing the diamond off guests in her home were sometimes astounded to notice the huge stone embellishing the neck of Mrs. McLean’s Great Dane as the huge pet trotted around the grounds of her Washington, D.c. home. The Hope Diamond later became the property of jeweler Harry Winston, who presented the stunning 45.5- carat piece to the Smithsonian in 1958. The Hope Diamond is now taking a well-earned rest following its rigorous travel itinerary and is on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., where it has been since 1958.

It can be inferred from the passage that the author is not certain

A. who bought the Hope Diamond in England

B. who sold the Hope Diamond in England

C. how the Hope Diamond went from France to England

D. how big the Hope Diamond was in the nineteenth century

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 01 to 10.

Early writing and Alphabets

When people first began to write, they did not use an alphabet. Instead, they drew small pictures to (01) ______ the objects they were writing about. This was very slow because there was a different picture for (02) ______ word.

The Ancient Egyptians had a (03) ______ of picture writing that was (04) ______ hieroglyphics. The meaning of this writing was forgotten for a very long time but in 1799 some scientists (05) ______ a stone near Alexandria, in Egypt. The stone had been there for (06) ______ a thousand years. It had both Greek and hieroglyphics on it and researchers were finally able to understand what the hieroglyphics meant.

An alphabet is quite different (07) ______ picture writing. It (08) ______ of letters or symbols that represent a sound and each sound is just part of one word. The Phoenicians, (09) ______ lived about 3,000 years ago, developed the modern alphabets. It was later improved by the Roman’s and this alphabet is now used (10) ______ throughout the world

Điền vào ô 6

A. quite                          

B. more                

C. over                           

D. already

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 from 55 to 64.

A recent study shows that an unequal share of household chores is still the norm in many households, despite the fact that many more women now have jobs. In a survey of 1,256 people ages between 18 and 65, men said they contributed an average of 37% of the total housework, while the women estimated their share to be nearly double that, at 70%. This ratio was not affected by whether the woman was working or not.

When they were asked what they thought was a fair division of labor, women with jobs felt that housework should be shared equally between male and female partners. Women who did not work outside the home were satisfied to perform 80% - the majority of the household work – if their husbands did remainder. Research has shown that, if levels increase beyond these percentages, women become unhappy and anxious, and feel they are unimportant.

After marriage, a woman is reported to increase her household workload by 14 hours per week, but for men the amount is just 90 minutes. So the division of labor becomes unbalanced, as a man’s share increases much less than the woman’s. It is the inequality and loss of respect, not the actual number of hours, which leads to anxiety and depression. The research describes housework as thankless and unfulfilling. Activities included in the study were cooking, cleaning, shopping, doing laundry, washing up and childcare. Women who have jobs report that they feel overworked by these chores in addition to their professional duties. In contrast, full-time homemakers frequently anticipate going back to work when the children grow up. Distress for this group is caused by losing the teamwork in the marriage.

In cases where men perform most of the housework, results were similar. The men also became depressed by the imbalance of labor. The research showed that the least distressed people are those who have equal share, implying that men could perform significantly more chores and even benefit from this. The  research concludes “Everybody benefits from sharing the housework. Even for women keeping house, a share division of labor is important. If you decide to stay at home to raise the children, you don’t want to become the servant of the house”.

Objects of the  survey were________.

A. people of a wide range  of ages                       

B. married people

C. working  people                                              

D. unemployed people

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.

      Perhaps better known than the Cullinan Diamond is the Hope Diamond, a valuable and blue gem with a background of more than 300 years as a world traveler.The 112-carat blue stone later became the Hope Diamond was mined in India sometime before the middle of the seventeenth century and was first known to be owned by Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his beloved wife. From India, the celebrated blue stone has changed hands often, moving from location to location in distant corners of the world.

      In the middle of the seventeenth century, a trader from France named Jean Baptiste Tavernier acquired the large blue diamond, which was rumored to have been illegally removed from a temple Tavemier returned to France with the big blue gem, where the stone was purchased by the Sun King Louis XIV. Louis XIV had it cut down from 112 to 67 carats to make its shape symmetrical and to maximize its sparkle. The newly cut diamond, still huge by any standards, was passed down through the royal family of France, until it arrived in the hands of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. During the French Revolution, Louis XVI and his wife met their fate on the guillotine in 1793, and the big blue diamond disappeared from public sight.

      The diamond somehow managed to get from France to England, where banker Henry Hope purchased it from a gem dealer early in the nineteenth century. The huge blue stone was cut into a 45.5-carat oval, and at this point it took on the name by which it is known today. The diamond stayed in the Hope family for around a century, when deep indebtedness brought on by a serious gambling habit on the part of one of Henry Hope's heirs forced the sale of the diamond.

          From England, the Hope Diamond may have made its way into the hands of the Sultan of Turkey; whatever route it took to get there, it eventually went on to the United States when American Evelyn Walsh McLean purchased it in 1911. Mrs. McLean certainly enjoyed showing the diamond off guests in her home were sometimes astounded to notice the huge stone embellishing the neck of Mrs. McLean’s Great Dane as the huge pet trotted around the grounds of her Washington, D.c. home. The Hope Diamond later became the property of jeweler Harry Winston, who presented the stunning 45.5- carat piece to the Smithsonian in 1958. The Hope Diamond is now taking a well-earned rest following its rigorous travel itinerary and is on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., where it has been since 1958.

Which country is NOT mentioned in the passage as a place where the Hope Diamond spent some time?

A. India      

B. France    

C. England  

D. Denmar

________rapid population increases and industrial growth, some groups of people have been able to live in harmony with the planet

A. although        

B. In spite   

C. Despite    

D. While

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.

      Perhaps better known than the Cullinan Diamond is the Hope Diamond, a valuable and blue gem with a background of more than 300 years as a world traveler.The 112-carat blue stone later became the Hope Diamond was mined in India sometime before the middle of the seventeenth century and was first known to be owned by Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his beloved wife. From India, the celebrated blue stone has changed hands often, moving from location to location in distant corners of the world.

      In the middle of the seventeenth century, a trader from France named Jean Baptiste Tavernier acquired the large blue diamond, which was rumored to have been illegally removed from a temple Tavemier returned to France with the big blue gem, where the stone was purchased by the Sun King Louis XIV. Louis XIV had it cut down from 112 to 67 carats to make its shape symmetrical and to maximize its sparkle. The newly cut diamond, still huge by any standards, was passed down through the royal family of France, until it arrived in the hands of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. During the French Revolution, Louis XVI and his wife met their fate on the guillotine in 1793, and the big blue diamond disappeared from public sight.

      The diamond somehow managed to get from France to England, where banker Henry Hope purchased it from a gem dealer early in the nineteenth century. The huge blue stone was cut into a 45.5-carat oval, and at this point it took on the name by which it is known today. The diamond stayed in the Hope family for around a century, when deep indebtedness brought on by a serious gambling habit on the part of one of Henry Hope's heirs forced the sale of the diamond.

          From England, the Hope Diamond may have made its way into the hands of the Sultan of Turkey; whatever route it took to get there, it eventually went on to the United States when American Evelyn Walsh McLean purchased it in 1911. Mrs. McLean certainly enjoyed showing the diamond off guests in her home were sometimes astounded to notice the huge stone embellishing the neck of Mrs. McLean’s Great Dane as the huge pet trotted around the grounds of her Washington, D.c. home. The Hope Diamond later became the property of jeweler Harry Winston, who presented the stunning 45.5- carat piece to the Smithsonian in 1958. The Hope Diamond is now taking a well-earned rest following its rigorous travel itinerary and is on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., where it has been since 1958.

A “dealer" is most likely a ____ .

A. card player       

B. miner      

C. cutter      

D. businessman

A: Anything else?

B:_________

A. Right now.     

B. Not today, thanks.   

C. No, it isn’t.      

D. Not at all.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word or phrase that is OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined part in each of the following questions
She was unhappy that she lost contact with a lot of her old friends went she went abroad to study.

A. made room for

B. put in charge of

C. got in touch of

D. lost control of

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 following questions.

         In the past, British children were frequently encouraged to try out their performing skills for the benefit of adults. They did this by reading aloud, acting or ___(5)___ a musical instrument. As they (6) _____ up they were taken to public places of entertainment - the theatre, opera, circus or ballet.

       They looked forward to these ___(7)___ with great ___(8)__ and would remember and discuss what they had seen for many weeks afterwards. But nowadays television and computers ____(9)____ an endless stream of easily available entertainment, and children quickly accept these marvelous inventions  as a very ordinary part of their everyday lives. For many children, the sense of witnessing a very special live performance is gone forever.

Điền vào số (6)

A. developed       

B. brought 

C. advanced         

D. grew