Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word for each of the blanks.
A thousand years ago (51)________ lived two Chinese brothers. One was very wealthy but miserly. The other was poor but generous. The wealthy brother, whose name was Kim, (52)_________all of his time figuring out how Ito increase his wealth. The poor brother, (53)___________name was Cho, shared with his neighbors what little he had.
By and by came a time when it rained for many days. The rice in Cho's little paddy would not grow, for it was at the bottom of the hill. Kim, who raised silkworms, was not (54)_______. Cho climbed the hill to ask his brother for help. Kim had many silkworms, whose thread he sold at a large profit. Kim did not want to give his brother (55)________valuable, but only to appear to be helping him. Kim gave Cho a box of worms (56)________he thought were near dead. Cho thanked him and took them home.
Cho fed the worms (57)_________with mulberry leaves and they grew fat and healthy. Soon Cho had silk to sell. When Kim heard of this, he became enraged at his brother's good fortune. One night he sneaked down the hill and cut all Cho's worms in half. Instead of dying, each of Cho's worms regenerated, so he had twice as (58)________as before. Upon hearing this. Kim became more enraged. He went out into his own collection and cut all his (59)_________ worms in half. But, Kim's worms died and he lost his fortune. Cho never knew what his brother had done or why. He just took him into his modest home and cared for Kim for the (60)_________of his life.
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.
The green building movement is changing the way buildings are constructed. This movement started in the 1970s, as people began to see that modern life was destroying the environment we all share. Natural resources were being destroyed, energy and water consumption was rising, and so was pollution of all kinds. This environmental destruction has continued, and one important factor has been the way that buildings are constructed. In fact. energy use in buildings represents about 32 percent of all energy use in the United States. In the early years, green builders were a small minority, and their goals of reducing the environmental impact of buildings were considered unrealistic. Now, however, the green building movement is growing, as builders have been able to take advantage of new technology and as the costs of this technology have gone down. Environmental building methods are now practical enough to save money for builders and for building owners, even as they reduce damage to the environment.
First, green builders try to make use of recycled materials as much as possible. In fact, vast amounts of materials such as steel, cement, and wood are used in construction. Now there are companies that specialize in gathering old materials, processing them, and selling them to builders for new buildings. States and cities are encouraging these companies, as the reuse of materials also means less waste in dumps. For larger builders or individual homeowners, it is possible to find everything from steel and cement to doors, windows, sinks, tubs, brick, and hardware.
Another way that builders can reduce environmental impact is to reduce the energy requirements of a building. This can be done in several ways. One is to provide an alternative, nonpolluting source of energy. The first alternative energy source to be developed was solar power. With solar panels-wide. flat sheets of special material-it is possible to produce electricity from the rays of the sun. Builders can install solar panels on the roofs of buildings and connect them to cooling or lighting systems. Once the panels are installed, they provide energy at no cost and with no pollution. Another, nonpolluting solution for reducing energy use is a technology known as geothermal heating. To obtain geothermal heat, buildets place special pipes below ground, where temperatures remain constant all year. In the winter, the earth's natural heat can be collected in these pipes, and then transferred into the building's heating system. In the summer, heat in the buildinçffe collected and sent to the pipes underground.
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.
No one can calculate the quantity of solid waste that has been dumped in the world's oceans, but the total certainly exceeds many millions of tons. For example, from 1880 to 1895, 75 percent of the solid waste from New York City was dumped untreated into the Atlantic Ocean. Although it is now prohibited by law, the dumping of solid waste, including wastewater sludge, industrial waste, and high-level radioactive waste were common in the United States until 1970. Cruise ships and huge floating fishing factories still regularly dispose of their solid waste products directly into the ocean.
The earth naturally recycles water and refreshes the land in what is called the hydrological cycle. The hydrological cycle not only renews the supply of water, but cleans it as well. The process begins as heat from the sun causes sea water, 97 percent of the earth's total water reserve, to evaporate and form clouds. Because water evaporates at lower temperatures than most pollutants, the water vapor that rises from the seas is relatively pure and free of the contaminants, which are left behind. Next, water returns to earth as rain, which drains into streams and rivers and rushes toward the sea.
Chemicals, petroleum products, and other dangerous substances such as radioactive materials remain in the ocean, polluting it permanently. The polluted ocean water kills fish or makes them dangerous to eat, posing health problems for those who consume them. It kills the tiny sea creatures that are the source of food for larger fish, sharks, and whales. It also spoils a source of great beauty and pleasure when some solid waste is thrown onto beaches during storms. Discharged petroleum products are frequently found on beaches and they not only ruin the beach, the petroleum residue kills hundreds of shore birds.
Nonpoint pollutants are dumped into lakes, rivers, and streams that may be far away from any ocean. However, these pollutants flow, eventually, into the oceans. They can come from a variety of sources, from road salt to agricultural pesticides. One source of nonpoint pollution is runoff from farming, including fertilizers, manure, and pesticides. Another source is industrial runoff, including heavy metals, phosphorous, and many other chemicals. Urban runoff (oils, salts, various chemicals) and atmospheric fallout of airborne pollution are other sources of nonpoint pollutants that reach the oceans. This includes water and waste from sinks, toilets, washing machines, and bathtubs. The problem with this type of waste is that it provides massive amounts of nutrients for water plants, such as algae, so that they grow rapidly. This sudden growth causes concentrations or algae blooms, which use up the oxygen in the water. As the oxygen levels of the water decline, many organisms suffer and die, and the ocean ecosystem is radically altered. This can be prevented by the installation of waste treatment plants that prevent waste from entering the sea, but such facilities exist in many poorer countries.