A. RESULTING B. PRODUCING C. FINISHING D. FORCINGREAD THE FOLLOWIN...

27. A. resulting B. producing C. finishing D. forcing

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

Mars has captured the imaginations of people since ancient times. People have long

wondered if the planet is home to alien life. Over the years, a number of theories

concerning this matter have arisen.

In the nineteenth century, there were finally telescopes made that could closely examine

at the surface of the Red Planet. While looking at Mars, an Italian astronomer saw many

straight channels on its surface. These were most likely caused by the action of either the

wind or water in the distant past. When he published his observations, he used the Italian

word canali, which means "channels". However, English-speaking astronomers

interpreted the word as "canals" and assumed that he was referring to something akin to

manmade canals on Earth.

An American astronomer. Percival Lowell, believed that these "canals" had been built by

a race of intelligent beings that had lived - and might still be living - on Mars. The result

of that highly publicized claim was that a great number of myths about Mars suddenly

arose. For instance, H. G. Wells wrote The War of the Worlds, a book about a Martian

invasion of Earth, in 1898. Over the next few decades, Mars and Martians featured in

countless science fiction stories, movies, and TV shows.

Years later, in the 1960s and 1970s, the United States sent several satellites to investigate

Mars more closely. The satellites found no canals. but one picture suddenly ignited a

great deal of interest in Mars. In 1976, Viking 1 took a snapshot of the Martian surface.

In the picture was what appeared to be an enormous human face. It was so large that it

measured more than three kilometers long. This convinced people that there was - or had

been - intelligent life on Mars.

In 2001, however, the mystery of the Martian face was solved by Mars Global 30

Surveyor. The pictures that it transmitted proved that the face was just a mesa, a type of

geological formation. As for the "eyes, nose, and mouth" of the face, they were merely

shadows. Despite this proof, many people are still convinced that signs of life could be

found on Mars someday.