A. VERY B. TOO C. AS D. SOB. READ THE PASSAGE AND FILL IN EACH BLA...

15.

A. very

B. too

C. as

D. so

B. Read the passage and fill in each blank space with ONE appropriate word:

Water pollution, contamination of streams, lakes, underground water, bays, or oceans by

substances, is harmful (1)___________________living things.

Water is necessary to life on (2)___________________. All organisms contain it;

(3)___________________live in it; some drink it. Plants and animals require water

(4)___________________is moderately pure, and they cannot survive if their water is

(5)___________________with toxic chemicals or harmful micro-organisms. If severe, water pollution can

kill large (6)___________________of fish, birds, and (7)___________________ animals. In some cases it

may kill all members of a (8)_____________________in an affected area. Pollution makes streams, lakes,

and coastal waters (9)____________________to look at, to smell, and to (10)__________________in. Fish

and shellfish harvested from polluted waters (11)__________________be unsafe to eat. People who use

polluted water can (12)__________________ill, and, with prolonged exposure, may develop cancers or

have (13)__________________with birth defects. The major water (14)___________________are

chemical, biological, or physical materials that degrade (15)___________________quality to the highest

degree.

PART FIVE: READING COMPREHENSION (10 points)

Choose the item (A, B, C, or D) that best answers the question or completes the unfinished statement

about the passage:

Air travel is the most common way in which people travel long distance. International airports

are so busy that planes are taking off and landing every few minutes. They can carry as many as 500

passengers at a time. Flying is the fastest way of traveling to far-off destinations.

The very first human flight was made in a balloon built by two French brothers, in 1783. It was

able to fly because it contained hot air, which is lighter than cold air. The balloon floated up into the sky

just as a piece of paper is blown upwards by the wind.

The wind blows balloons, and so they cannot be steered in any one direction. Because of this,

airships were invented in the mid-1800s. These were balloons with engines so that the flying direction

could be controlled. Unfortunately, many of these airships caught fire during the flight. As a result, they

were never used again after the 1930s.

It is strange to think that at the beginning of this century, no one had ever flown in an airplane.

However, a few brave people were making test flights in gliders. A German inventor designed the hang

glider in the 1890s. It looked like a large kite, and the person would hang underneath it. His experiments

helped to show how aircraft with wings could be controlled in the air.

A few years later, two American brothers built the first airplane. This was, in fact, a glider fixed

with a small engine. It was called Flyer I, and had its flight in 1903. Unfortunately, it never flew for

longer than a minute. Their airplanes improved quickly, however, in 1908, Flyer DI flew more than 100

kilometers. The next year, a Frenchman flew from France to England. The airplane he designed formed

the shape of the airplane that is used today.