PASSAGE 1
The principle of use and disuse states that those parts of organisms' bodies that are used grown larger. Those parts that are not tend to wither away. It is an observed fact that when you exercise particular muscles, they grow. Those that are never used diminish. By examining a man's body, we can tell which muscles he uses and which he doesn't. We may even be able to guess his profession or his reaction. Enthusiasts of the "body-building" cult make use of the principle of use and disuse to "build" their bodies, almost like a piece of sculpture, into whatever unnatural shape is demanded by fashion in this peculiar minority culture. Muscles are not the only parts of the body that respond to use in this kind of way. Walk barefoot and you acquire harder skin on your soles. It is easy to tell a farmer from a bank teller by looking at their hands alone. The farmer's hands are horny, hardened by long exposure to rough work. The teller's hands are relatively soft.
The principle of use and disuse enables animals to become better at the job of surviving in their world, progressively better during their lifetime as a result of living in that world. Humans, through direct exposure to sunlight, or lack of it, develop a skin color which equips them better to survive in the particular local conditions. Too much sunlight is dangerous. Enthusiastic sunbathers with very fair skins are susceptible to skin cancer. Too little sunlight, on the other hand, leads to vitamin-D deficiency and rickets. The brown pigment melanin, which is synthesized under the influence of sunlight, makes a screen to protect the underlying tissues from the harmful effects of further sunlight. If a suntanned person moves to a less sunny climate, the melanin disappears, and the body is able to benefit from what little sun there is. This can be represented as an instance of the principle of use and disuse: skin goes brown when it is "used", and fades to white when it is not.
Question 1: What does the passage mainly discuss?
A. How the principles of use and disuse change people's concepts of themselves.
B. The way in which people change themselves to conform to fashion.
C. The changes that occur according to the principle of use and disuse.
D. The effects of the sun on the principle of use and disuse.
Question 2: The phrase wither away in line 4 is closest in meaning to ______
A. split
B. rot
C. perish
D. shrink
Question 3: The word Those in line 4 refers to ______
A. organisms
B. bodies
C. parts
D. muscles
Question 4: According to the passage, men who body build ______
A. appear like sculptures
B. change their appearance
C. belong to strange cults
D. are very fashionable
Question 5: From the passage, it can be inferred that author views body building ______
A. with enthusiasm
B. as an artistic from
C. with scientific interest
D. of doubtful benefit
Question 6: The word horny in line 12 is closest in meaning to ______
A. firm
B. tough
C. strong
D. dense
Question 7: It can be inferred from the passage that the principle of use and disuse enables organisms to ______
A. survive in any condition
B. change their existence
C. automatically benefit
D. improve their lifetime
Question 8: The author suggests that melanin ______
A. is necessary for the production of vitamin-D
B. is beneficial in sunless climates
C. helps protect fair-skinned people
D. is a synthetic product
Question 9: In the second paragraph, the author mentions suntanning as an example of ______
A. humans improving their local condition
B. humans surviving in adverse conditions
C. humans running the risk of skin cancer
D. humans using the principle of use and disuse
Question 10: The word susceptible could be best replaced by ______
A. condemned
B. vulnerable
C. allergic
D. suggestible
PASSAGE 2
There are only a few clues in the rock record about climate in the Proterozoic eon. Much of our information about climate in the more recent periods of geologic history comes from the fossil record, because we have a reasonably good understanding of the types of environment in which many fossil organisms flourished. The scarce fossils of the Proterozoic, mostly single-celled bacteria, provide little evidence in this regard. However, the rocks themselves do include the earliest evidence for glaciation, probably a global ice age.
The inference that some types of sedimentary rocks are the result of glacial activity is based on the principle of uniformitarianism, which posits that natural processes now at work on and within the Earth operated in the same manner in the distant past. The deposits associated with present-day glaciers have been well studied, and some of their characteristics are quite distinctive. In 2.3-billion-year-old rocks in Canada near Lake Huron (dating from the early part of the Proterozoic age), there are thin laminae of fine-grained sediments that resemble varves, the annual layers of sediment deposited in glacial lakes. Typically, present-day varves show a two-layered annual cycle, one layer corresponding to the rapid ice melting and sediment transport of the summer season, and the other, finer-grained, layer corresponding to slower winter deposition. Although it is not easy to discern such details in the Proterozoic examples, they are almost certainly glacial varves. These fine-grained, layered sediments even contain occasional large pebbles or "drop stones," a characteristic feature of glacial environments where coarse material is sometimes carried on floating ice and dropped far from its source, into otherwise very fine grained sediment. Glacial sediments of about the same age as those in Canada have been found in other parts of North America and in Africa, India, and Europe. This indicates that the glaciation was global, and that for a period of time in the early Proterozoic the Earth was gripped in an ice age.
Following the early Proterozoic glaciation, however, the climate appears to have been fairly benign for a very long time. There is no evidence for glaciation for the next 1.5 billion years or so. Then, suddenly, the rock record indicates a series of glacial episodes between about 850 and 600 million year ago, near the end of the Proterozoic eon.
Question 1: Which of the following does the passage mainly discuss?
A. How patterns in rock layers have been used to construct theories about the climate of the Proterozoic age
B. What some rare fossils indicate about glacial conditions during the late Proterozoic age
C. The varying characteristics of Proterozoic glacial varves in different parts of the world
D. The number of glacial episodes that the Earth has experienced since the Proterozoic age
Question 2: According to the passage, the fossil record of the Proterozoic eon is.
A. highly regarded because it preserves the remains of many kinds of organisms
B. less informative than the fossil record of more recent periods
C. very difficult to interpret due to damage from bacteria
D. more useful to researchers than other aspects of the rock record
Question 3: The word scarce in line 5 is closest in meaning to ______
A. ancient
B. tiny
C. available
D. rare
Question 4::It can be inferred from the passage that the principle of uniformitarianism indicates that ______
A. similar conditions produce similar rock formations
B. rock layers in a given region remain undisturbed over time
C. different kinds of sedimentary rocks may
D. each continent has its own distinctive pattern of sediment layers
Question 5: The word resemble in line 16 is closest in meaning to ______
A. result from
B. penetrate
C. look like
D. replace have similar origins
Question 6: According to the passage, the layers in varves are primarily formed by ______
A. fossilized bacteria
B. pieces of ancient dropstones
C. a combination of ancient and recent sediments
D. annual cycles of sediment transport and deposition
Question 7: The phrase the other in line 19 refers to another ______
A. annual cycle
B. glacial lake
C. layer of sediment
D. season
Question 8: According to the passage, the presence of dropstones indicates that ______
A. the glacial environment has been unusually severe
B. the fine-grained sediment has built up very slowly
C. there has been a global ice age
D. coarse rock material has been carried great distances
Question 9: Why does the author mention Canada, North America, Africa, India, and Europe in lines 26-27?
A. to demonstrate the global spread of dropstones
B. to explain the principles of varve formation
C. to provide evidence for the theory that there was a global ice age in the early Proterozoic eon
D. to illustrate the varied climatic changes of the Proterozoic eon in different parts of the globe
Question 10: Which of the following terms is defined in the passage?
A. fossil record
B. laminae
C. varves
D. glacial episodes
PASSAGE 3
Pro bono work is usually thought of as the preserve of lawyers, but organisations as varied as advertising agencies and professional services firms also donate their staff's time to good causes – either for free or for reduced fees. Although employees should do pro bono work for selfless reasons, your good deeds can also be rewarded in terms of career.
What about job satisfaction?
Using your professional skills in the service of good causes often adds a kind of ethical dimension to your career and can be very motivating. Ms Mehta says the inspiration for starting the NAWP pro bono scheme came about from reading about forced marriages and honour killings: "It got to the point where I couldn't just turn the page. I wanted to do something about it."
She says it is also one way of bridging the divide between Canary Wharf and the less privileged areas that surround it.
Pro bono work can be rewarding in other ways, too. Mr Georgiadis says you can be freer to be more creative with work done for charities: "You often have the opportunity to do some really interesting marketing and [you have more leeway] than you might have with, say, a breakfast cereal."
Mr. Bell adds that ADP projects tend to be smaller and shorter than their corporate counterparts: "It's much easier to see overall results and understand the positive effect of what you are doing."
Are there any downsides?
Those who go on long-term schemes such as the ADP may be asked to take a reduced salary – although in the case of the ADP, if you're in Chad or Mongolia, even a reduced salary lets you live pretty well.
How does pro bono work add to my experience?
If you are relatively junior, it can be a very good way to step up. "People who do pro bono work in the Accenture Development Partnerships typically take on more senior roles than they would in big corporate roles,” says Royce Bell, a senior executive at the consultancy firm. “You get to see a lot of nuts and bolts and it's very good to get outside the normal cosy corporate world. You'd think that someone who sets up an IT system in Chad would have a broader view than a person who has only worked in Fortune 200 companies.” Six years ago, Maya Mehta, a senior associate at Clifford Chance, the law firm, set up the legal advice surgery for the Newham Asian Women's Project in London. "It's a great way to sharpen your skills as a lawyer," she says. "Particularly with the high level of client contact and range of issues. As a trainee in Hong Kong, working with Filipino women who had been abused made me realise how much I could help others just by applying basic legal skills."
What about opportunities for building relationships?
Pro bono work often brings together people from different parts of organisations who might not otherwise meet. Phil Georgiadis, chairman of Walker Media, the London agency, says it can cut through hierarchies, too. "I'm about to do some work for Great Ormond Street Hospital and I'll enlist a couple of graduates to work with me – that'll be the account team. So suddenly you have a graduate who is reporting directly to the chairman, which is very rare," he explains.
Question 1: Pro bono meaning for good comes from which language?
A. Greek
B. French
C. Latin
D. Spanish
Question 2: Working for reduced fees or no fees at all is _______
A. launched to the legal profession
B. only common in law and advertising
C. found in the range of professional services
D. main in the modern world
Question 3: Normally, you donate your time, you ______
A. charge for it
B. don't charge for it
C. charge as much as for other work
D. charge not as much as for other work
Question 4: This article uses donate to mean ______
A. always charging nothing at all.
B. charging nothing or sometimes charging a reduced fee.
C. occasionally charging the full
D. changing premium price
Question 5: The opposite of the selfless is ______
A. selfish
B. self-help
C. self-service
D. self-assertion
Question 6: Which of the words is least similar in the meaning to deed?
A. doings
B. acts
C. thoughts
D. activities
Question 7: The reward for doing pro bono work comes in the form of ______
A. better career prospects
B. more job satisfaction
C. a better salary for your current job
D. a guarantee of the future promotions
Question 8: Which of the following is NOT mentioned as an aspect of doing pro bono work?
A. seeing very practical aspects of projects
B. working with a chairman, even if you are a recent graduate recruit
C. improving healthcare in the developing world
D. doing work with more responsible
Question 9: Where in the passage does the following sentence best fit?
"For young people, these relationships are a treasure."
A. At the end of paragraph 2
B. At the end of paragraph 3
C. At the end of paragraph 4
D. At the end of paragraph 5
Question 10: The word it in line 34 most probably refers to ______
A. Newham Asia Women's project.
B. Clifford Chance
C. Reading
D. Forced marriage
PASSAGE 4
Tools and hand bones excavated from the Swartkrans cave complex in South Africa suggest that a close relative of early humans known as Australopithecus robustus may have made and used primitive tools long before the species became extinct 1 million years ago. It may even have made and used primitive tools long before humanity's direct ancestor, Homo habilis, or "handy man" began doing so. Homo habilis and its successor, Homo erectus coexisted with Australopithecus robustus on the plains of Africa for more than 1 million years.
The Swartkrans cave in South Africa has been under excavation since the 1940's. The earliest fossil-containing layers of sedimentary rock in the cave date from about 1.9 million years ago and contain extensive remains of animal, primitive tools, and two or more species of apelike hominids. The key recent discovery involved both bones from the hand of Australopithecus robustus, the first time such bones have been found.
The most important feature of the Australopithecus robustus hand was the distal thumb tip, the last bone in the thumb. The bone had an attachment point for a "unique human" muscle, the flexor pollicis longus, that had previously been found only in more recent ancestors. That muscle gave Australopithecus robustus an opposable thumb, a feature that would allow them to grip objects, including tools. The researchers also found primitive bone and stone implements, especially digging tools, in the same layers of sediment.
Australopithecus robustus were more heavily built – more "robust" in anthropological terms – than their successor. They had broad faces, heavy jaws, and massive crushing and grinding teeth that were used for eating hard fruits, seeds, and fibrous underground plant parts. They walked upright, which would have allowed them to carry and use tools. Most experts had previously believed that Homo habilis were able to supplant Australopithecus robustus because the former's ability to use tools gave them an innate superiority. The discovery that Australopithecus robustus also used tools means that researchers will have to seek other explanations for their extinction. Perhaps their reliance on naturally occurring plants led to their downfall as the climate became drier and cooler, or perhaps Homo habilis, with their bigger brains, were simply able to make more sophisticated tools.
Question 1: It can be inferred from the first paragraph that all of the following may have made and used tools EXCEPT
A. Australopithecus robustus
B. Homo erectus
C. Homo habilis
D. Australopithecus rubustus
Question 2: The word extensive is closest meaning to ______
A. numerous
B. exposed
C. ancient
D. valuable
Question 3: Which of the following does the author mention as the most important recent discovery made in the Swartkrans cave?
A. tools
B. teeth
C. plant fossils
D. hand bones
Question 4: What does the third paragraph mainly discuss?
A. features of australopithecus robustus' hand
B. purposes for which hominids used tools
C. methods used to determine the age of fossils
D. significant plant fossils found in layers of sediment
Question 5: It can be inferred from the description in the last paragraph that Australopithecus robustus was so named because of the species _______
A. ancestors
B. thumb
C. build
D. diet
Question 6: The word supplant is closest meaning to ______
A. exploit
B. displace
C. understand
D. imitate
Question 7: The word them refers to ______
A. tools
B. homo habilis
C. australopithecus robustus
D. experts
Question 8: What does the author suggest is unclear about Australopithecus robustus?
A. Whether they used tools
B. What they most likely ate
C. Whether they are closely related to humans
D. Why they became extinct
Question 9: The phrase reliance on is closest meaning to ______
A. impact on
B. dependence on
C. tolerance of
D. discovery of
Question 10: Where in the passage does the author mention the materials from which tools were made?
A. Line 9-11
B. Line 13-15
C. Line 17-19
D. Line 23-24