Icfes 2020
Icfes 2020
Icfes 2020
PARTE 1
PARTE 3
PARTE 5
How planes were born
The history of planes started before 1800. In the 16 th century, Mark Clerck was the first
man to think of flying machines; he had dreams and made drawings of helicopters, but he
did not actually build them.
Many years later, the Irwins, two French brothers, made a balloon that flew for five miles
in 1738. In 1848, John Hartman made a small plane that was able to make short flights.
Then, in January of 1890, Samuel Secrest tried to fly a flying machine, but he couldn’t
because the weather was too bad. He tried once more the next month, but again it didn’t
go up, so he stopped the project.
In 1901, the Americans Orville and Wilbur Wright built a machine to fly, but it did not work
the first time. Finally, on December 17, 1903, they flew the Kitty Hawk Flyer, which was in
the air for 12 seconds. The White Brothers did 1,000 short-distance flights in the desert of
North Carolina. Thanks to the experience learned during these flights, the practice of air
transport began in 1907.
Then, in 1910, the first airplane company was created by two pilots from Rome, Gabriel
and Charles Oliveri, while the American Brett Graham and the Englishman Mike Major
started the first US airplane in New York. Air transport is now one of the biggest
businesses in the world.
12. According to the reading, the most appropriate piece of advice that you might get is
A. “Be what you want to be by using your knowledge and background”.
B. “Be the only one in your family to go to the university”.
C. “Be an active person if you want to begin your university studies”.
D. “Be good at talking to people if you want to get an excellent job”
NAME:_________________________________________________________________
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PARTE 4
PARTE 4
The unknown woman
There is a mystery in US history which is worth mentioning. In 1963, while the police was
checking the film of the crime of John F. Kennedy that (54) ________ in Texas, a woman
with a scarf around her face was noticed.
In (55) ________, she appears in plenty of photos of the scene and seems to carry a
camera. (56) _______ the shots that killed Kennedy, she kept recording while most people
were (57) _______. Later, the FBI publicly (58) _________ the film from the woman, but
she never gave it to them.
At (59) ______, in 1970 the police received an (60) ________ call; a woman named Beverly
Oliver (61) _________ that she was the ‘Scarf Woman’ but her description had many gaps,
and she didn’t (62) ________ further details. Nowadays, this story remains a mystery, and
(63) ________ the ‘Scarf Woman’ was Beverly Oliver or not, her purposes are still
unknown.
PARTE 5
Anime and Manga
Anime is a Japanese video cartoon that began when Japan tried to make movies in the
Western way. To make these “Western” movies, the money was not enough, places
were difficult to film, and Japanese actors looked different from other people in the
world. So, directors preferred cartoons and asked artist to draw villages or people not
found in other movies; for example, they started making people with big heads, lots of
hair and colorful eyes.
Most Anime movies come from Manga or comics, which means written and drawn
stories. During the 1970s, many Anime movies were made from Manga written by
Osamu Tezuka, an artist well-known for his writings about the future, wonderful
machines and amazing adventures.
Here in the West, we believe anime is about Japanese cartoons, but it’s actually the
world they use in Japan for any kind of video cartoon. The same happens with Manga,
which in Japan refers to all comics everywhere, but in the West it means Japanese
comics. Anime movies are made with the help of computer programs and special
teams, while Manga can be written and drawn by a single artist.
International companies rewrite Manga stories from Japanese into other languages
and sell them. However, some fans do this before the companies in order to share the
stories online for free. More people can read Manga now, but some companies say
that’s a form of stealing.
13. Making movies in Japan was difficult because most of the time
A. actors were foreign.
B. places were miles away.
C. money was not available.
First, I decided to visit a museum I think museums are now more interesting and enjoyable
places than before I visited the Gold Museum and saw the gold from all over Colombia
Ancient people used to stick little gold pieces to their clothes during religious activities.
They never considered it as a valuable metal. I wonder why people love gold and money so
much nowadays. It’s nothing special, just a metal, if you die, will you enjoy it?
After that, I stayed with a family I had met at the museum. They invited me to stay with
them in Chia. They live on the land that used to be their parents’ farm. That’s why they
have divided it into smaller parts, which means that they all live close to, next to, opposite
or near each other. That is one really close and warm family. The houses are old and badly
designed, built by the people themselves in different styles, but all beautiful and amazing.
To have such a beautiful sense of family was something I had not seen in my whole life.
Finally, we went to a typical restaurant. It was huge, with a fantastic view, and the food I
ate was great. This was the part I liked the most, Colombian food is magnificent.
23. What does the writer think about the family’s houses in Chia?
A. They were made in an unorganized but nice way.
B. They were constructed with no order at all.
C. Everybody likes to live near their family in Chia.
D. Everybody lives next to each other because there’s no space.
PARTE 1
PARTE 4
Two years ago, my colleagues and I began researching into the brains of dogs. Some dogs had to
go into an M.R.I. scanner (64) _________ awake. We wanted to (65) __________ how dog brains
work. An M.R.I. scanner can (66) _________ information about their thoughts.
The dog owners agreed with this by (67) _________ a form. In the study we used positive training
(68) _________; the dogs could leave the scanner (69) _________ they wanted.
My dog Lassie, which was (70) __________ from a homeless dog charity, was the first. After
training Lassie for months, we got the first maps of her brain activity. This was a great (71)
________ for us.
In later experiments, we (72) _________ the similarity between dogs and humans in an important
brain region: the caudate nucleus. In humans, this part plays an important role in the anticipation
of things we enjoy, like food. (73) ___________ these facts about the canine brain are limited,
they cannot be ignored.
PARTE 6
Why I quit social media
In recent years, there has been plenty of research about social media. Some studies prove
it could be mentally unhealthy and suggest taking a break from it. I decided to quit
Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and see for myself what benefits it could bring.
Now that I no longer have access to those networks, I get more work done and have time
to do extra chores like answering more e-mails and talking people who I can do business
with. I might not get as many invitations nowadays, but the ones I get now are completely
genuine. So, it’s been positive.
As for my “friends”, I have no idea what they all are doing, but those who really care about
me are still there. I get involved with them on a real level, face to face. I listen to them
without checking Facebook on my cellphone at the same time.
I do things and enjoy them without wondering how cool they will look on Instagram.
When I went out to eat with friends or relatives, I’d always pause to upload pictures of the
food. I’d also publish online our location every time we went to whatever club or
department store we visited. Now, I’m living my life for my own pleasure, not for social
media.
I depended too much on social networks. My media was constantly full of videos and
photos showing my day-to-day life. It was an awful habit-some kind of disease. Today, I
feel free. I am enjoying something unexpected, which I had no idea I had lost.
38. What was different when the writer used facebook, Twitter, and Instagram?
A. the number of close friends that he had.
B. the way he cared about his health issues.
C. the types of relationships he used to have.
D. the time of the day he went out with friends.
39. Which of these sentences would the writer most likely say?
A. Use social networks more, daily.
B. I won’t go back to Facebook.
C. You must learn how to have more friends online.
D. I won’t get health issues anymore.
NAME:_________________________________________________________________
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PARTE 2
45.
A. at the beach
You can see the
B. at the park
elephants here.
C. at the zoo
Don't take
pictures
46.
A. on a watch
Now with B. on a book
lemon C. on a drink
47.
A. in a music room
Wear the right B. in a sports room
shoes in here C. in a computer room
48.
A. on a game
B. on a lamp
For children C. on a phone
under 7
49.
A. in a bathroom
B. in a hall
Please clean your desk
C. in a classroom
at the end of the
school day
PARTE 3
50. Can you hold the camera?
A. That’s quick!
B. Of course.
C. May I keep this?
PARTE 4
PARTE 4
Useful things
Few things are better than having everything you need with you. I am a single father
and I have to look (74) ________ two teenagers; both of them are beautiful and
clever. My car has become a very useful thing when it comes to (75) ________ them
to the museum or to the department store. (76) _________ their friends in these
places is important for them.
However, the (77) _______ important thing on my list is my cell phone. I (78) _______
shopping and bought a modern one two months (79) ________. It is useful since I use
it as an alarm clock to wake up (80) _______ 5 o’clock and I can (81) ________ check
information on the web or send text messages to my colleagues.
69. A. at B. into C. on
PARTE 5
Paula Radcliffe’s day
I’m an English runner who has won the world marathon six times. I also won four
marathons in the USA and three in London. These are the activities I do when I’m not in a
competition:
8.30 am – My daughter Vicky comes to our room before we wake up and says good
morning to Gary and me. Later, I eat some melon and give cereal to her. Then I have a look
at the newspaper.
9.45 am – We leave Vicky at her theatre class; then, I run and Gary cycles next to me to
keep me close to my time goal. I sometimes surf after this.
12.30 pm – After meeting Vicky at school, we get home and have a big lunch. Then, I play
with her.
2.10 pm – Gary usually takes Vicky out while I sleep. When I get up, I boil some water for
tea.
7.30 pm – In the evening, Gary gives Vicky tea while I finish doing my exercises.
Afterwards, I cook dinner while Gary gives Vicky a bath.
8.20 pm – Vicky goes to bed. I read my friends’ messages on the computer, watch
volleyball on TV, and have a conversation with Gary.
10.30 pm – Time for bed. I brush my teeth and wash my hands and face. I enjoy reading,
but I haven’t done it much since Vicky was born. I also wish I had time for playing the
drums, but it would wake Vicky up.
PARTE 6
It was the first time I traveled to South America, and I was surprised by the incredible
landscapes in the Lost City in Colombia. My luggage was light because I would have to
walk a lot. As soon as I reached Colombia, I was attracted by the mystery of the ´Lost
city’ ruins, which are thought to be older than Peru’s Machu Picchu.
After five days of adventure on the coast, which included recovering from an illness, I
waved goodbye to some friends in Santa Marta as I set off on a four-day walk to the
Lost City. I joined a group of strong explorers guided by Hernan. I was the only one
who walked very slowly. However, that did not stop me moving with the group up the
magic mountain range. Almost three days of walking for nine hours a day is art of this
adventure; trust me, it’s totally worth the sore legs!
We stopped to dive into cool pools and were impressed by blue butterflies, some of
the biggest in the world, which accompanied us during the journey. At every camp, we
ate fresh pineapple and oranges. The camps along the way appeared like illusions in
the hot desert after a long day’s walk. But the best of all was the three-course meal on
the menu every night, thanks to the efforts of chefs who climbed on ahead to get it
ready.
People who were born there see themselves as guardians of the planet, and that’s
great! We cannot offer them anything of importance since they have everything they
need. Both adults and children show their happiness by being polite with tourist; the
children exchange chocolates for a photo.