TEST 1

I. WRITING (60 min.)

Write an essay of about 350 words on the following topic:
Commercial advertising is psychological manipulation rather than a source of
information. How far do you agree?

II. DICTATION (30 min.)

In January Crystal went to work in town as a waitress. And even that won her
mothers anger. She accused her of wanting to meet men, but all she did was wait on tables
in the diner. Her brother-in-law came in occasionally and gave her a hard time, but whenever
possible, she disappeared and went out to the kitchen to take a turn washing dishes when he
was there. The people at the diner were friendly to her, and she made good money with tips,
and got a fair number of propositions. She always played stupid, and turned them down
when she had to, and the owner of the diner liked her, and made sure that no one went too
far. She was a nice girl, and he had always liked her father. He didnt think much of Tom
Parker though, and he didnt like the way he treated her. He told Crystal more than once to
stay away from him when he was drunk, and more than once he drove her home himself
after dark, and watched to make sure she got home safely. She kept her money hidden under
the bed, and she had four hundred dollars saved up by late April. It was her ticket to
Hollywood, or to freedom anyway, and she guarded it with her life, counting the money late
at night, in the moonlight with her bedroom door locked. She was biding her time now till
she could leave. It wouldnt be long. But each day seemed like a lifetime.
Danielle Steel, Star

III. READING (45 min.)

Each of the texts below is followed by 4 multiple-choice questions. Read the texts and
answer the questions, marking the answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
TEXT 1
The United States is pressing Prime Minister Tony Blair to become a special envoy to the
Middle East, representing the diplomatic "quartet" of world powers. The appointment would be
the most visible attempt at laying the groundwork for a Palestinian state since President Bill
Clinton wrangled with Yasser Arafat and Ehud Barak during the waning hours of his
administration in 2001. If the proposal, endorsed by President George W. Bush and Secretary of
State Condoleezza Rice, goes forward, and if Blair accepts, he would work on behalf of the
United States, the European Union, the United Nations and Russia to help the Palestinian
president, Mahmoud Abbas, build the institutions and apparatus necessary for a viable state.
European and American officials said that so far, the only grumbling about the possible Blair
appointment has come from Russia, which has had contentious relations with Britain of late,
including the charges regarding the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko. Diplomats on both
sides of the Atlantic said that if Blair wanted the job, it was unlikely that Russia would seek to
block the appointment. But British officials said Blair had not yet decided if he would take on
the task, and bristled that public comments from the Bush administration were premature. It
remains unclear how broad Blair's role would be. American and Israeli officials want him to
focus primarily on shoring up Palestinian institutions and governance, economic development
and security issues in the West Bank.
Blair's appointment would also be an ironic footnote to the end of his 10 years of stewardship
of Britain, given that his support of Bush and the war in Iraq hurt him politically at home. But
his close relationship with Bush is part of the reason why Bush wants Blair to take the envoy's
role. On the other hand, Blair is still wrestling with the perception that his American friend is
pressing him too hard at a time when Blair is thinking about his own legacy.
International Herald Tribune, www.iht.com
1.

What would be the purpose of Tony Blairs appointment as a special envoy to the Middle East?
A. To boost the economy in the Middle East.
B. To improve the strenuous relations between George W. Bush and Mahmoud Abbas.
C. To assist Mahmoud Abbas with establishing Palestinian institutions and governance.
D. To increase the influence of the four world powers in The Middle East.

2.

According to the text, Russia

A. is enthusiastic about Tony Blairs new mission in the Middle East.
B. would hardly make an attempt to prevent Tony Blair from receiving the new post.
C. would urge Tony Blair to focus on making the Palestinian institutions more efficient.
D. does not blame Britain for Litvinenkos death.

3.

Which of the following statements about Tony Blair is NOT true?

A. He is not concerned about his own legacy at all.
B. The war in Iraq has damaged his reputation in the UK.
C. He is not sure if he will accept the job in the Middle East.
D. He is a good friend of George W. Bush.

4.

What does the text predict about Tony Blairs appointment?

A. It would be the triumph of his career as Prime Minister.
B. It would put an end to his support for Bush.
C. It would free him from Bushs political influence altogether.
D. It would strengthen his uneasiness about Bushs authoritative attitude to him.

TEXT 2
Dr Wilmut and his colleagues at Roslin have made it quite clear that they think that to
clone humans would be unethical. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority agrees with
the general public impression that to clone human beings would be ethically unacceptable as a
matter of principle. Most people in the Church of Scotland would certainly agree that to replicate
any human technologically is something which goes against the basic dignity of the uniqueness of
each human being in God's sight. Christians would see this as a violation of the uniqueness of a
human life, which God has given to each of us and to no one else. In what sense do we mean this?
Some say that that the existence of "identical" twins means that we should have no ethical
difficulty over cloning, or that to object to cloning implies that twins are abnormal. This argument
does not hold. Biologically, identical human twins are not the norm, but the unusual manner of their
creation does not make them any less human. We recognise that each is a uniquely valuable
individual. There are two fundamental differences between cloning and twinning, however.
Twinning is a random, unpredictable event, involving the duplicating of a genetic composition
which has never existed before and which at that point is unknown. Cloning would choose the
genetic composition of some existing person and make another individual with the same genes. It is
an intentional, controlled action to produce a specific known end. In terms of ethics, choosing to
clone from a known individual, and the unpredictable creation in the womb of twins of unknown
genetic nature belong to categories as different as accidental death is to murder. The mere existence
of "identical" twins cannot be cited to justify the practice of cloning.
Should we clone humans? http://www.srtp.org.uk/clonhum2.htm
5.

What does the passage discuss?

A. The reasons why human cloning is morally wrong.
B. The need for a worldwide ban on cloning human beings.
C. The legal aspects of human cloning.
D. The biological and social risks of human cloning.

6.

For Christians human cloning

A. questions the very concepts of right and wrong.
B. is a flagrant violation of human rights.
C. undermines the sense of individuality.
D. is a major breakthrough which may open exciting possibilities.

7.

According to the text, identical human twins are

A. clones of one another.
B. genetically engineered organisms.
C. not normal because they have a kind of genetic damage.
D. distinct individuals created in an unusual way.

8.

The author leaves the reader with the impression that

A. unlike cloning, twinning is a deliberate event.
B. clones would not be as similar as identical twins.
C. clones should not be compared to twins as they belong to different categories.
D. human cloning is justified in preventing genetic disease.

TEXT 3
The Tower of the Winds stood desolately, in the midst of a wide-eyed agricultural country,
and was approached only by a sort of farm track that ran up hill and down dale, in a most erratic
course, to the distant main road. The country was not mountainous, though it lay in a northern
district of Scotland; it was bleak and solitary, with vast bare fields of grass or corn; and below in the
valley, a river that rushed sweeping over its rough bed, silent where it ran deep, but chattering
busily in the shallows. Here was greenery to one's heart's content; the whole country being a
singular mixture of bleakness on the heights, and woodland richness in the valley; bitterly cold in
the winter months, when the light deserted the uplands ridiculously early in the afternoon, leaving
long mysterious hours that held the great silent stretches of field and hill-side in shadow; a
circumstance, which had, perhaps, not been without its influence in the forming of Hadria's
character. She, more than the others, seemed to have absorbed the spirit of the northern twilights. It
was her custom to wander alone over the broad spaces of the hills, watching the sun set behind
them, the homeward flight of the birds, the approach of darkness and the rising of the stars. Every
instinct that was born in her with her Celtic blood - which lurked still in the family to the
confounding of its fortunes--was fostered by the mystery and wildness of her surroundings.
Mona Caird, The Daughters of Danaus
9.

Which of the following statements is true of the Tower of the Winds?

A. It benefited from easy access to the main road.
B. It was uninhabited and forlorn.
C. It was situated at the end of a rural dead-end road.
D. None of the above.

10.

The valley in the country

A. was surrounded by hills as it lay in the north of Scotland.
B. was absolutely bare.
C. was crossed by a river, which rustled drowsily in the shallows.
D. contained vast lands covered with trees.

11.

Which of the following circumstances contributed to the formation of Hadrias character?

A. Her Celtic origin.
B. The adverse winter conditions.
C. The mystery and silence which spread over the area in the dreary winter afternoons.
D. All of the above.

12.

How did Hadria feel within her surroundings?

A. In full harmony with nature.
B. Constantly threatened.
C. Lonesome and depressed.
D. Scared by the unknown

IV. USE OF ENGLISH (60 min.)

ERROR IDENTIFICATION
Identify the error in each of the following sentences by choosing between A, B and
C. Mark all answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.
20.
21.

22.

It wasn't immediately clear how the attackers evaded the shrine's guard force, which
A
B
have been strengthened after the 2006 bombing.
C
A Chinese court has jailed two officials after they let a blind contractor to build a bridge which
A
B
collapsed during construction.
C
Iraq has the world's third largest reserves of oil, but thousand of people now queue for as long as a
A
B
C
day at petrol stations.
The cyclone has started to batter the coast of the country with winds of up to 260 kilometres
A
B
in an hour.
C
For months, she had been thought about breaking up with Holmes, but it never seemed
A
B
C
like the right time.
Unless the client does not pay the single-time price within the specified period, it shall be
A
B
considered that the client has declined the service.
C
I can't go out in such weather and I have a little food in the house, so I'm quite worried.
A
B
C
Bradford highlights Diana's complex personality and particular her paradoxical attitude to fame.
A
B
C
His father was a diver and used to be going beneath the vessels to repair the damage below
A
B
C
the waterline.
Tens of thousands died of the Plague, who was finally swept away by the Great Fire of London
A
B
C
in 1666.

CLOZE TEST
In the following text there are 10 missing words and phrases. Select the correct choice
from the list after the text for each blank (23 32) and mark it on your ANSWER SHEET.

Camel-drawn carts and brightly clad women carrying shallow 23 of food on their
heads usually dominate traffic in the Indian village. But on Friday evening, the village played
24 to a jarring new visitor: Nokia's traveling mobile phone van. Hundreds of spectators, most
men and boys between the ages of 15 and 50, 25 outside or squeezed into the van, hoping to
win free merchandise like a Nokia-branded hat.
Mobile phone usage is 26 faster in India than anywhere else in the world, with
some six million customers 27 every month. Large cities and many medium-sized towns are
already blanketed with retail 28, and competition among manufacturers and carriers is
fierce.
Nokia has sent two dozen vans staffed with sales representatives on continuous sixmonth treks through the countryside. The sales reps don't take orders and they don't sell phones;
29, their task is to explain why anyone in a small farming 30 would want a mobile phone
in the first place, and a Nokia in particular. The 31 resembles the trucks which carry carnival
games to country 32, but with cellphones behind glass instead of balloons and darts.
23.

A) bowls

B) boles

C) bales

D) balls

24.

A) owner

B) host

C) landlord

D) master

25.

A) convened

B) summoned

C) gathered

D) accumulated

26.

A) arousing

B) arising

C) rising

D) raising

27.

A) added

B) attached

C) appended

D) adjoined

28.

A) outposts

B) outskirts

C) outhouses

D) outlets

29.

A) instead

B) by contrast

C) as a result

D) unlike

30.

A) company

B) congregation

C) parish

D) community

31.

A) vehicle

B) conveyance

C) vessel

D) transport

32.

A) fanfares

B) fairs

C) fares

D) demonstrations

PARAPHRASE

In sentences 33 through 42 below complete (B) by paraphrasing (A) and preserving the
original meaning.
33.

(A) My car broke down yesterday, so I couldnt give him a lift to the station.
(B) If ..

34.

(A) As soon as the secretary entered the office, the phone rang.
(B) Hardly .

35.

(A) I wouldnt drive at night, John, if I were you, said Sarah.

(B) Sarah advised

36.

(A) I am sorry I didnt tell him the truth about his health.
(B) I regret ...

37.

(A) It was necessary to lift the car on to a breakdown truck after the accident.
(B) After the accident the car ..

38.

(A) This flat is too small for my family.

(B) This flat is not

39.

(A) Mike doesnt like ice cream as much as his sister.

(B) Mikes sister ..

40.

(A) They say the Princess is staying incognito at the Hilton.

(B) The Princess ..

41.

(A) It was a mistake to invite Jane to the party last weekend.

(B) Jane should ....

42.

(A) Well, if you really do want to wear this awful skirt, I cant stop you, Jason told his wife.
(B) Jason said