Comprehension1. The Spirit of Spain
Spain looks pretty small on a world map, but this country has produced an extraordinary culture.
All over the world, people have no problem recognizing the music, art, dance, or food that comes from Spain. Spanish culture is unmistakable.
When a person thinks of Spain, the first thing that comes to mind might be flamenco dancing. Passionate and lively, usually performed to the accompaniment of fast guitars, flamenco dancing originated in southern Spain, and it has strong gypsy roots. Bullfighting is another of Spain's most famous attractions, and it is not just for tourists; bullfighting is enormously popular with the Spanish themselves. Thrilling and artistic, a bullfight is a match between a toreador, or bullfighter, and a bull. Bullfighting is one of Spain's long-standing traditions that might seem quite different from the ways of the modern world.
Spain is known as a country of romance, and for good reason. The history of Spain had its starting point not in a war over territory or the discovery of a new continent, but in a marriage. In 1469, Queen Isabella of the Kingdom of Castile married King Ferdinand of the Kingdom of Aragon, joining two of the most powerful Christian kingdoms in what is known as the unification of Spain. This unification began the period of Spanish history that saw three centuries of global exploration, trade, and conquest, carrying the Spanish language and culture all over the world.
No longer one of the world's strongest empires, Spain's political power has declined over the years, but its culture is as inspiring and well known now as ever. The spirit of Spain continues to inspire the world.
1. Which of the following is true about Spain ?
(A) Spain is an extremely large country.
(B) Spain has become a global power in the last fifty years.
(C) Spain spread its power around the world for about 300 years.
(D) Spain does not have much influence anymore.
2. Based on the article, which of the following can be inferred about
Spain ?
(A) Its culture has changed fundamentally over the past three centuries.
(B) Its cultural attractions are diverse.
(C) It has outlawed the controversial activity of bullfighting.
(D) Flamenco is performed before or during bullfights.
3. Flamenco dancing _____.
(A) is a slow dance performed by gypsies
(B) is only performed in the south of Spain
(C) was discovered by the Spanish during their globalexplorations
(D) is an energetic form of dance
4. Which aspect of Spanish culture is NOT mentioned in the article ?
(A) Cuisine
(B) Architecture
(C) Music
(D) Religion
come to mind be remembered
toreador a person, usually a man, who takes part in a bullfight riding a horse
The Beijing Water Cube
The Water Cube is set to make a splash for the 2008 Olympics.
China is no doubt one the most remarkable places in the world today, particularly in terms of its architectural marvels. Its buildings, many of them epic in size and design, range from the ancient to the high-tech and modern. National Geographic Channel's China Special Month is about the stories of the modern-day architectural projects in China that are producing amazing new buildings for the world to enjoy.
Beijing Water Cube is one of the programs in this series, and it is very much about the modern as opposed to the ancient. The Beijing Water Cube is a building for the Beijing 2008 Olympics. The building, which will be the National Aquatics Center, is indeed in the shape of a cube, but its appearance is far from run-of-the-mill. It is made of a steel honeycomb-like frame covered in a unique skin that is modeled after soap bubbles. Simply put, the effect is that the Water Cube looks like an enormous cube-shaped bundle of bubbles.
The bubbles are made of a plastic called ETFE, which is also used to protect spaceships from cosmic radiation. One of the advantages of ETFE is that it traps solar energy in the winter and reflects it in the summer, helping to control the building's temperature. 3,500 bubbles had to be cut individually and sized in order to create the honeycomb-like structure. The bubbles are not identical or symmetrical, but seem to be organized randomly, with different shapes and sizes nestled together. Despite its random appearance, however, the soap-bubble structure used in the design has a geometry that's perfect for a high-tech building. Soap bubbles actually always cling together in regular patterns, and the fragile-looking skin of the building's bubbles—the plastic covering is only 1/5 of a millimeter thick! — is entirely safe.
Tune in to Beijing Water Cube to get the full story on this incredible new structure.
1. Which of the following is true about the Beijing Water Cube ?
(A) It is made with a huge number of steel cubes.
(B) It is meant to show Chinese architecture, old and new.
(C) The plastic is put in place around a steel frame.
(D) It was finished during the last Olympics and will be used in the 2008 Olympics.
2. Regarding ETFE, which of the following can NOT be inferred from the article ?
(A) The plastic is extremely thin.
(B) The plastic feels like soap when you touch it.
(C) An astronaut might find ETFE useful.
(D) The plastic helps the building stay cool on hot summer days.
3. According to the article, soap bubbles are a good model for a building because _____.
(A) they are cheap and easy to get
(B) they are transparent
(C) their structure is not as delicate as it seems
(D) they blend in with the environment
4. Which of the following could be another title for the article ?
(A) An Amazing New Building for the Olympics
(B) The Discovery of ETFE
(C) Soap Bubbles Can Be Used for Many Things
(D) The Water Cube Replaces All Older Chinese Buildings
make a splash to become suddenly very successful or very well known
run of the mill ordinary, average
Five Minutes to Midnight
The University of Chicago publishes the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a magazine about topics related to nuclear technology. On the cover of every issue of the magazine, there is a picture of a clock. Since it first appeared, the time on the clock has ranged between 11:43 and 11:58. The time it shows does not indicate the time of day, though. Instead, the time displayed represents how close we are to midnight, a time symbolizing the destruction of mankind.
The idea for the clock came about in 1947, shortly after atomic bombs had been dropped on Japan. Scientists had seen the destructive power of these weapons, and they concluded that nuclear war would be a catastrophe for the entire planet. They created the doomsday clock to show how close humans had come to destroying themselves. The first time it showed was 11:53. After that, the clock has been turned ahead or back based on world events. In 1949, when the Soviet Union tested its first atomic bomb, for example, the clock was turned ahead four minutes, to 11:57. In 1953, with the US and USSR both testing more destructive nuclear weapons within months of each other, it was turned ahead another minute. The clock has never been that close to midnight before or since.
These days, the threat of global nuclear war is much lower. However, scientists have added global warming and other factors like nanotechnology to their calculations of the time for the doomsday clock. As a result, the clock is currently at 11:55, five minutes to midnight. Of the nineteen times the doomsday clock has displayed over the years, this one is the fifth-closest to 12:00. It is a silent warning that global affairs are currently heading towards destruction, and it reminds us to be careful in order to keep time from running out.
1. What first caused scientists to create the doomsday clock?
(A) Russia's first atomic test.
(B) The atomic bomb attack on Japan.
(C) The publication of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
(D) A worldwide natural disaster.
2. Which event would be most likely to cause the clock's time to be turned ahead?
(A) A major peace treaty being signed by two countries.
(B) The invasion of one powerful nation by another.
(C) One of the important stock markets crashing.
(D) The extinction of an important species of animal.
3. How is the current doomsday clock different from the original clock?
(A) It is based on more than just the problem of nuclear war.
(B) Its time is the closest to 12:00.
(C) Nuclear war is no longer part of its calculations.
(D) Its time is fixed at 11:55 since the threat of nuclear war is gone.
4. The current time on the doomsday clock indicates that the world is _____.
(A) unlikely to experience anything bad any time soon
(B) already certain to be destroyed by mankind
(C) in more danger now than ever before
(D) getting dangerously close to the destruction of human being
catastrophe a sudden event that causes very great trouble or destruction
doomsday the end of the world
Five Minutes to Midnight
The University of Chicago publishes the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a magazine about topics related to nuclear technology. On the cover of every issue of the magazine, there is a picture of a clock. Since it first appeared, the time on the clock has ranged between 11:43 and 11:58. The time it shows does not indicate the time of day, though. Instead, the time displayed represents how close we are to midnight, a time symbolizing the destruction of mankind.
The idea for the clock came about in 1947, shortly after atomic bombs had been dropped on Japan. Scientists had seen the destructive power of these weapons, and they concluded that nuclear war would be a catastrophe for the entire planet. They created the doomsday clock to show how close humans had come to destroying themselves. The first time it showed was 11:53. After that, the clock has been turned ahead or back based on world events. In 1949, when the Soviet Union tested its first atomic bomb, for example, the clock was turned ahead four minutes, to 11:57. In 1953, with the US and USSR both testing more destructive nuclear weapons within months of each other, it was turned ahead another minute. The clock has never been that close to midnight before or since.
These days, the threat of global nuclear war is much lower. However, scientists have added global warming and other factors like nanotechnology to their calculations of the time for the doomsday clock. As a result, the clock is currently at 11:55, five minutes to midnight. Of the nineteen times the doomsday clock has displayed over the years, this one is the fifth-closest to 12:00. It is a silent warning that global affairs are currently heading towards destruction, and it reminds us to be careful in order to keep time from running out.
1. What first caused scientists to create the doomsday clock?
(A) Russia's first atomic test.
(B) The atomic bomb attack on Japan.
(C) The publication of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
(D) A worldwide natural disaster.
2. Which event would be most likely to cause the clock's time to be turned ahead?
(A) A major peace treaty being signed by two countries.
(B) The invasion of one powerful nation by another.
(C) One of the important stock markets crashing.
(D) The extinction of an important species of animal.
3. How is the current doomsday clock different from the original clock?
(A) It is based on more than just the problem of nuclear war.
(B) Its time is the closest to 12:00.
(C) Nuclear war is no longer part of its calculations.
(D) Its time is fixed at 11:55 since the threat of nuclear war is gone.
4. The current time on the doomsday clock indicates that the world is _____.
(A) unlikely to experience anything bad any time soon
(B) already certain to be destroyed by mankind
(C) in more danger now than ever before
(D) getting dangerously close to the destruction of human being
catastrophe a sudden event that causes very great trouble or destruction
doomsday the end of the world
60 Tons of Paint
If you'd lived in Paris between 1889 and 1930, you would have enjoyed the sight of the world's tallest building. La Tour Eiffel was named after its head contractor, Gustave Eiffel, and was built to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution. It remained the world's tallest structure until it was surpassed by New York City's 319-meter-high Chrysler Building in 1931.
Today's towers built close to the Eiffel's height are most often used for communication. Television, radio, and cell phone companies depend on such towers to transmit their signals. But the Eiffel Tower was built before radio communication was necessary, and even before the radio was invented.
As one of the world's most famous monuments, the tower has attracted a lot of attention, but not all Parisians welcomed its construction. The French writer Guy De Maupassant supposedly hated the structure, but ate at its restaurant every day. When asked why, he remarked that it was the only place in the city from which he couldn't see the tower. During the years between 1925 and 1930, the tower acted as the world's largest sign, advertising cars for the French company, Citroen. When the German army invaded Paris in 1940, the lift cables were cut as Hitler's men stormed the city. However, German soldiers still climbed all the way to the tower's flagpole in order to fly the swastika.
Modern structures make the Eiffel Tower look small in comparison. Today's architects design populated buildings that surpass 500 meters—nearly double the height of the Eiffel Tower. Even so, the romance continues, and the tower welcomes over 6 million visitors per year. To keep the 118-year-old structure looking fresh, 60 tons of paint are reapplied every 8 years! Through it all, the grand old tower lives on.
1. The Eiffel Tower was constructed to _____.
(A) honor its head contractor, Gustave Eiffel
(B) celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution
(C) be the tallest structure in the world
(D) compete with New York City's Chrysler Building
2. The tower was not built to be a radio tower because _____.
(A) it wasn't high enough
(B) radios were illegal in France
(C) it was built before the time of radios
(D) radio waves cannot be broadcast from over 300 meters
3. Why were German soldiers forced to climb to the tower's top?
(A) A sudden storm damaged the electrical systems.
(B) They wanted to send radio signals from that height.
(C) Parisians cut the elevator cables.
(D) Parisians were attacking them
commemorate to remember officially
swastika a symbol in the form of a cross with each of its arms bent at a 90° (degree) angle half way along, used in the 20th century as the symbol of the Nazi party
The Beijing Water Cube
The Water Cube is set to make a splash for the 2008 Olympics.
China is no doubt one the most remarkable places in the world today, particularly in terms of its architectural marvels. Its buildings, many of them epic in size and design, range from the ancient to the high-tech and modern. National Geographic Channel's China Special Month is about the stories of the modern-day architectural projects in China that are producing amazing new buildings for the world to enjoy.
Beijing Water Cube is one of the programs in this series, and it is very much about the modern as opposed to the ancient. The Beijing Water Cube is a building for the Beijing 2008 Olympics. The building, which will be the National Aquatics Center, is indeed in the shape of a cube, but its appearance is far from run-of-the-mill. It is made of a steel honeycomb-like frame covered in a unique skin that is modeled after soap bubbles. Simply put, the effect is that the Water Cube looks like an enormous cube-shaped bundle of bubbles.
The bubbles are made of a plastic called ETFE, which is also used to protect spaceships from cosmic radiation. One of the advantages of ETFE is that it traps solar energy in the winter and reflects it in the summer, helping to control the building's temperature. 3,500 bubbles had to be cut individually and sized in order to create the honeycomb-like structure. The bubbles are not identical or symmetrical, but seem to be organized randomly, with different shapes and sizes nestled together. Despite its random appearance, however, the soap-bubble structure used in the design has a geometry that's perfect for a high-tech building. Soap bubbles actually always cling together in regular patterns, and the fragile-looking skin of the building's bubbles—the plastic covering is only 1/5 of a millimeter thick! — is entirely safe.
Tune in to Beijing Water Cube to get the full story on this incredible new structure.
1. Which of the following is true about the Beijing Water Cube ?
(A) It is made with a huge number of steel cubes.
(B) It is meant to show Chinese architecture, old and new.
(C) The plastic is put in place around a steel frame.
(D) It was finished during the last Olympics and will be used in the 2008 Olympics.
2. Regarding ETFE, which of the following can NOT be inferred from the article ?
(A) The plastic is extremely thin.
(B) The plastic feels like soap when you touch it.
(C) An astronaut might find ETFE useful.
(D) The plastic helps the building stay cool on hot summer days.
3. According to the article, soap bubbles are a good model for a building because _____.
(A) they are cheap and easy to get
(B) they are transparent
(C) their structure is not as delicate as it seems
(D) they blend in with the environment
4. Which of the following could be another title for the article ?
(A) An Amazing New Building for the Olympics
(B) The Discovery of ETFE
(C) Soap Bubbles Can Be Used for Many Things
(D) The Water Cube Replaces All Older Chinese Buildings
make a splash to become suddenly very successful or very well known
run of the mill ordinary, average
The Virgin Queen
Like many historical figures that keep people fascinated, Elizabeth I remains somewhat enigmatic. No one knows the whole truth about the personal aspects of Elizabeth's story. Of course, these things are difficult to know from a historical distance, but even in her own time, her success, power, and mystery were legendary.
Elizabeth became Queen of England when she was only 25 years old. Probably the most talked about aspect of her rule remains her romantic life. Elizabeth was an effective and impressive young queen, but she never married. Much has been made of this fact, and even today, people speculate and disagree about her reasons for remaining "The Virgin Queen." This is so partly because she never offered a complete explanation herself and partly because she displayed an intriguing mix of intelligence and reserve that still keeps people wondering what she was thinking.
Elizabeth undoubtedly had accomplishments outside of her private life which have cemented her place in history. One of the most significant is her role in the establishment of the Protestant Church in England. For reasons both personal and political, she sided with the general feelings of the people and moved to separate the Church in England from the authority of the Pope. Elizabeth is seen as having led England into a "golden age," a time that saw England rise to a place of unprecedented global importance. It was a time when England produced renowned playwrights, most notably Shakespeare, and several famous adventurers. As we can see from the recent release of the Hollywood movie on the subject, the story of Elizabeth I has not lost its appeal.
1. Which of the following is TRUE of Elizabeth I?
(A) She established the Church of England when she was only 25.
(B) She was intelligent and said whatever was on her mind.
(C) She was credited with contributing to a very prosperous time for England.
(D) She had Shakespeare produce many plays for her.
2. According to the article, what can we infer about Elizabeth's love life?
(A) It was more important than the rest of the things she did.
(B) It is not clear why she never married, and this keeps people interested.
(C) While she was successful as a queen, she was a failure with men.
(D) It's the main reason why she wanted to abolish the Church.
3. The people of England probably _____.
(A) had no interest in religion at all
(B) thought the Church should be led by the Pope
(C) didn't care about Elizabeth's religious preference
(D) were pleased with Elizabeth's decision about the Church
enigmatic mysterious and impossible to understand completely
unprecedented never having happened or existed in the past
