Practice Test One

Section A?

News Report 1

? ? Many people traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada last week for the 50th Consumer Electronics Show, or CES. The show is said to have the largest collection of new electronic devices in the world.

? ? The 2017 show had many examples of “smart home” devices. “Smart home” technology is designed to make life easier for people by letting computers control many things inside our homes. Jeremy Warren is with smart home service provider Vivint.?

? ? “When someone comes to my front door and rings the doorbell,the light can turn on immediately. I get a notification when I’m halfway around the world that someone came, and I can start talking to the person who’s at my front door, and I can say, 'Oh, here let me let you in.' I can unlock the door for them very easily, ”

? ? Another use of smart home technology is being able to watch what is taking place in your home—whether you are just around the corner or halfway around the world."

? ? A concern for many homeowners is the possibility that someone else might find a way to attack these smart home devices. An official from Vivint said his company is sure that only owners of the home can gain use of information on the devices.?

? Many of these devices at the Consumer Electronics Show were available before. But now they communicate better and can learn repeat behavior and habits.?

Q1. What is NOT true about the 50th consumer electronic show?

Q2. What is the concern for some homeowners when they use smart devices?

News report 2

Britain's decision to leave the European Union prompted prime minister David Cameron to resign? and markets to fall around the world.

Final results in Thursday's historic referendum gave the "Leave" campaign 52 percent, while "Remain" took 48 percent. Voter turnout was reported high across Britain, even with heavy rain falling in many areas. The outcome shocked many within Britain and across the world since recent opinion polls showed a growing lead for "Remain."

UK Independent Party Leader Nigel Farage was the most vocal voice in the anti-EU movement. He said the "Leave" win was "our independence day." He called the results "a victory for real people, a victory for ordinary people, a victory for decent people."

The close vote showed how deeply divided Britons are on issues of immigration and sovereignty that became the focus of the "Leave" campaign. Prime Minister Cameron addressed that divide outside the official residence at 10 Downing Street Friday morning.?

Q3. Which of the following is the consequence of Britain's decision to leave the European Union?

Q4. Which is NOT the comment of the UK Independent Party Leader?

News Report 3

The International Football Association's ethics committee banned its president, Sepp Blatter, from the organization for eight years on Monday. The association is known as FIFA. Also getting an eight-year ban was Michel Platini, the head of the European soccer federation, UEFA. The ruling came bacause of a $2 million payment from FIFA to Platini in 2011.

The two men called it salary for advising the president. But according to the Associated Press news service, Platini had no such contract with FIFA at the time.

Blatter was already serving a provisional ban over the scandal earlier this year when 14 FIFA officials were arrested on corruption charges. The payment is also being investigated by authorities in Switzerland. The organization will elect a new president in February. For many years, it was anticipated that Platini would take over for Blatter. That is not likely after the news of his eight-year ban. Also, Platini is not on the list of candidates for the upcoming election. Blatter promised to fight the ban in the Court of Arbitration for Sport. He denied doing anything wrong by authorizing payments to Platini, calling the lack of a contract an administrative error.

Q5. What was the FIFA ruling about?

Q6. What was the reason of ruling?

Q7. What was Blatter's response to the ruling?

Section B

Conversation 1

M: Well, Cathy, now that we have seen the three apartments, which one do you like best?

F: I don’t know, Brad. I know one thing. I didn’t like the one on the 66th Street.?

M: Neither did I. Let's cross that one off. That leaves the 75th Street one and the 82nd Street one.

W: The one on the 82th street has a better view, and a very cheerful kitchen.

M: Yes, and I like the carpeting in the hall. It was very clean. But there was no good place to put a desk.

W: That's true. You could always just put in a corner of the living room, but then you wouldn't have any secrecy, and the bedroom was too small.

M: Yes, you are right.

W: If the desk is put in the living room, it is a constant reminder of unfinished work. What about the 75th Street apartment? It has a dining area. We could eat in the kitchen, and put the desk in the dining area. It is more private there.

M: Yes, that sounds OK. Only, what I did not like about that place is the west window. It gets quite hot in the late afternoon with the sun beating down on the window.

W: Didn't you notice the air conditioner?

M: No. Was there one?

W: Yes. And we could improve on the curtains, too.

M: Yes, I think the apartment is the best for our needs. There is good parking, and there is a semi-private area for our desk.?

W: OK. Let's take that one.

Q8. Why did they cross off the apartment on the 66th Street?

Q9. Which of the following is NOT true about the apartment on the 82nd Street?

Q10. What's wrong with the west window?

Q11. Which consideration is crucisal in their choice of an apartment?

Conversation 2

W: Hi, John.

M: Oh, hi, Laura. What are you doing here?

W: Uh, I'm usually here on weekends. It's my dad's shop. So, you are looking for a bike??

M: Yeah. Now the weather is warming up. I thought I'd get some exercise instead of taking the bus all the time.

W: Well, you came to the right place. Do you know what you'd like?

M: Well, I don't want a racer or a touring bike or anything. Mostly I'll just be using it to get me back and forth from work.

W: How far is that?

M: About four miles.

W: Are there a lot of hills on the way?

M: Some I guess. But, um, maybe I should just tell you in front that I've got a hundred and fifty dollars. Can I get anything decent for that?

W: Well, you are not going to get anything top of the line. But we do have a few used ones in the back that are in good condition.

M: That sounds good.

W: And you're right. For that kind of riding you're going to be doing, the most important thing is confort. You want to make sure it's the right height for you.? Follow me and I’ll show you what we’ve got.?

Q12. Why is Laura at the bicycle shop?

Q13. Why does John want to buy a bicycle?

Q14. What does Laura suggest that John buy?

Q15. What does Laura say is the most important about a bike?

Passage 1

In American high schools, most students take English, science, math and history. These are basic courses and each course is as useful as the others. In English class, the students study grammar and read famous literature. In science class, they study biology, chemistry or physics. History is more interesting to some students because they learn important events and places in USA. Students take other courses, too. These are called electives. Some of them are music, home economics and computer science. Students don't have to take all of these courses. Some study music because they feel it is more enjoyable. Some study computer science because they think it is more practical. In each class, teachers give students exams. Some exams are more difficult than others, but a good student can always do well.

Q16. What are the basic courses in American high schools?

Q17. Which of the following is true?

Q18. Why do some students choose to study computer science?

Passage 2

It has been found that less than one shopper in five makes a complete shopping list before going to the store. The reason for this is that seven out of ten of today's purchases are decided in the store, where the shoppers tend toward impulse buying. Buying groceries on impulse has risen for the past forty years, and, this rise has coincided with the growth of self-service shopping. However, in grocery stores where clerks wait on customers there is much less impulse buying. It is hard for people to buy on impulse if they have to address a clerk.

Psychologists have joined forces with merchandising experts. It is their job to persuade people to buy products which they may not need or even want until they see them attractively presented. It was discovered by the psychologists that shoppers want help in their purchases. Having so many choices confuses them,? they prefer the package that attracts them. Therefore, it is now more usual for food packers to pay attention to their package design. Attraction depends heavily on the position of the product on the shelf, however. Thus, persuading the shopper to buy is easier if the product is located at eye-level.

Q19. Which can be the best title for this passage?

Q20. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

Q21. Why is there less impulse shopping in grocery stores where customers are served?

Passage 3

We use both words and gestures to express our feelings, but the problem is that these words and gestures can be understood 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 feelings. Dogs, tigers and humans, for example, often show their teeth when they axe angry. This is probably because they are born with those behavior patterns. Fear is another emotion that is shown in much the same way all over the world. In Chinese and in English literature, a phrase like "he went pale and begin to tremble" suggests that the man is either very afraid or he has just got a very big shock. However, "he opened his eyes wide" is used to suggest anger in Chinese whereas in English it means 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 strong dislikes.??

Even in the same culture, people differ in ability to understand 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. Other studies show that older people usually find it easier to recognize or understand body language than younger people do.

Q22. Why do people's facial expressions often cause misunderstandings?

Q23. Which group of people have better ability in recognizing facial expressions?

Q24. What can we conclude from this passage?

Q25. What may be the best title for this passage?