READING COMPREHENSION PRACTICE 3

Read the text to answer questions 1 to 9

The next famous woman writer to be considered is Dorothy Parker, an American poet,
short story writer, and literary critic who became famous in the early twentieth century for her
witty but cynical observations on life. She got her first paying jobs a writer in 1916 at the 5 age
of 23 when she began working for a women's magazine, and nine years later she became a
contributor to The New Yorker as a book reviewer .
In addition to her magazine work, she published volumes of poetry and short stories with
the recurrent themes of disappointment with life and the loss of idealism. One of her most
famous observations, 10 "Men seldom make passes/At girls who wear glasses," came from the
poem "News Item," which was published in the volume Enough Rope (1926). This volume of
poetry was followed by Sunset Gin (1928), Death and Taxes (1931), and a collection of short
stories Here Lies (1939).Her book reviews were published in 1970 in a volume entitled
“constant Reader”.

1. What topic does the paragraph preceding the passage most likely discuss ….
a. Dorothy Parker's early childhood
b. American literatue of the nineteenth century
c. An introduction to literary criticism
d. A well-known female author other than Dorothy Parker

2. According to the passage Dorothy Parker was NOT famous for …..
a. poetry.
b. humor.
c. book reviews.
d. autobiography.

3. The word “observations” in paragraph 1 could best be replaced by ……

a. Looks
b. Scenes
c. Views
d. Jokes

4. Dorothy Parker's first job was ……

a. for a women's magazine
b. as a literary critic
c. for The New Yorker
d. as a short story writer
 5. Paragraph 2, the word "recurrent" is closest in meaning to which of the following ?
a. Related
b. Repeated
c. Flowing
d. Negative

6. The word “pessimistic in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to …….

a. Negative
b. Impractial
c. Forgotten
d. Unattained

7. The expression “biting wit” in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by which of the
following ?
a. Intelligence
b. Sadness
c. Sharp Humor
d. Hunger

8. In what year did "News Item" appear?

a. 1916
b. 1926
c. 1928
d. 1931

9. It can be inferred from the passage that the title of parker’s volume of book reviews came
from …..
a. Some earlier work she had done
b. A favorite expression of hers
c. A title of none of her poems
d. Her biting sense of humor

Read the text to answer questions 10 to 19

Fog occurs when moisture from the surface of the Earth evaporates; as this evaporated
moisture moves upward, it cools and condenses into familiar phenomenon of fog. For differs
from clouds in that fog touches the surface of the Earth, while clouds do not.
Of the two types of fog, advection fog occurs along the ocean coast or near rivers and lakes.
This type of fast-moving fog, which may cover vast areas, occurs when the temperature of the
wind blowing over a body of water differs from the temperature of the body of water itself. This
kind of fog can occur when warm air moves over a cold surface of water; this commonly occurs
along the ocean coastline or along the shores of large lakes. Advection fog can also occur when
cooler air moves over the surface of warmer water; this is very common in the winter in an area
such as Florida, where the temperature of the lakes is quite warm in relation to the temperature
of the air.
Radiation forg, quite different from advection fog, is immobile, cloudlike moisture
generally found hovering over wintertime valleys. It occurs on clear nights when the Earth's
warmth escapes into the upper atmosphere; the ground gives off heat through raidation. As the
land becomes cooler, the air above it also becomes cooler. This cooler air is unable to hold as
much water vapor as it had when it was warmer; in this manner fog is created.

10. According to the passage , fog is formed when wetness in the air is ……
a. Vaporized
b. Cooled
c. Dampened
d. Heated

11. The word “familiar” in paragraph 1 could best be replaced by ……

a. Friendly
b. Confidential
c. Common
d. Parental

12. According to the passage , advention fog is found ……

a. In valleys
b. In the ocean
c. Near bodies of water
d. Only in small , enclosed areas

13. The word “vast” in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to …….

a. Immese
b. Flat
c. Humid
d. Windy

14. In the passage , radiation fog is said to be ….

a. Similar to advection fog
b. Found in coastal areas
c. Fast – moving
d. Trapped moisture hanging over inland valleys
 15. The word “immobile” in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ……..
a. Unmotivated
b. Unsteady
c. Variabel
d. Unmoving

16. The pronoun “it” in paragraph 3 refers to which of the following ?

a. Radiation fog
b. Advection fog
c. Cloudlike moisture
d. The Earth’s warm

17. The word “manner” in paragraph 3 refers to ………

a. The fact cooler air is unable to hold as much water vapor
b. The way the fog is created
c. A warmer condition when the fog is created
d. The way the cooler air becomes fog

18. According to the passage,which of the following statements about fog is not true ?
a. Advection fog occour when the cooled atmosphere meets with heat from the earth
b. Advection fog generally moves quickly across vast areas of land
c. Radiation fog often stars on clear nights
d. Radiation fog is the type of fog that occurs in small valleys on clear night

19. The author’s purpose in this passage is to ….

a. Explain the different types of fog
b. Describe where different types of fog are found
c. Discuss advection fog
d. Give a scientific discription of varios types of precipitation

Read the text to answer questions 20 to 30

Harvard University, today recognized as part of the top echelon of the world's
universities, came from very inauspicious and humble beginnings
     This oldest of American universities was founded in 1636, just sixteen years after the
Pilgrims landed at Plymouth. Included in the Puritan emigrants to the Massachusetts colony
during this period were more than 100 graduates of England's prestigious Oxford and Cambridge
Universities, and these university graduates in the New World were determined that their sons
would have the same educational opportunities that they themselves had had. Because of this
support in the colony for an institution of higher learning, the General Court of Massachusetts
appropriated 400 pounds for a college in October 1636 and early the following year decided on a
parcel of land for the school; this land was in an area called Newtown, which was later renamed
Cambridge after its English cousin and is the site of the present-day university.
     When a young minister named John Harvard, who came from the neighboring town of
Charlestone, died from tuberculosis in 1638, he willed half of his estate of 1,700 pounds to the
fledgling college. In spite of the fact that only half of the bequest was actually paid, the General
Court named the college after the minister in appreciation for what he had done. The amount of
the bequest may not have been large, particularly by today's standards, but it was more than the
General Court had found it necessary to appropriate in order to open the college.
     Henry Dunster was appointed in the first president of Harvard in 1640, and it should be
noted that in addition to serving as president, he was also the entire faculty, with an entering
freshman class of four students. Although the staff did expand somewhat, for the first century of
its existence the entire teaching staff consisted of the president and three of four tutors.
20. The main idea of this passage is that …..
a. Hardvard is one of the world’s most prestigious universitas
b. What is today a great university started out small
c. John harvard was key to the development of a great university
d. Harvard university develoded under the auspices of the general court of massachusets

21. The Passage indicates that harvard is ….

a. One of the oldest universitas in the world
b. The oldest university in the world
c. One of the oldest universitas in America
d. The oldest university in america

22. It can be inferred from the passage that the puritans who traveled to the massachusetts
colony were ……
a. Rather well educated
b. Rather rich
c. Rather supportive of the english government
d. Rather undemocratic

23. The pronoun “they” in paragraph 2 refers to …

a. Oxford and cambridge universitas
b. Universitas graduates
c. Sons
d. Educational opportunities

24. A “Pound” in paragraph 2 is probably ……

a. A type of book
 b. A type of student
c. A type of money
d. A type of college

25. The “English Cousin” in paragraph 2 refers to a …..

a. City
b. Relative
c. Person
d. Court
26. Which of the following is not mentioned about john harvard ?
a. What he died of
b. Where he came from
c. Where he was buried
d. How much he bequeathed to harvard

27. The word “fledgling: in paragraph 3 could best be replaced by which of the following ?
a. Newborn
b. Flying
c. Winged
d. Established

28. The passage implies that …

a. Henry dunster was an in effective president
b. Someone else really served as president of harvard before henry dunster
c. Hunry duster spent much od his time as president managing the harvard faculty
d. The position of president of harvard was not merely an administrative position in the
early years

29. The word “somewhat” in the last paragraph could best be replaced by …
a. Back and forth
b. To and from
c. Side by side
d. More or less

30. Where in the passage does it indicate how much moneu minister hardvard was really
responsible for giving to the university …
a. Paragraph 1
b. Paragraph 2
c. Paragraph 3
d. Paragraph 4
 Read the text to answer questions 31 to 40

A binary star is actually a pair of stars that are held together by the force of gravity.
Although occasionally the individual stars that compose a binary star can be distinguished, they
generally appear as one star. The gravitational pull between the individual stars of a binary star
causes one to orbit around the other. From the orbital pattern of a binary, the mass of its stars can
be determined: the gravitational pull of a star is in direct proportion to its mass, and the strength
of the gravitational force of one star on another determines the orbital pattern of the binary.
Scientists have discovered stars that seem to orbit around an empty space. It has been
suggested that such a star and the empty space really composed a binary star. The empty
space is known as a “black hole”, a star with such strong gravitational force that no light is able
to get through. Although the existence of black holes has not been proven, the theory of their
existence has been around for about two centuries, since the French mathematician Pierre Simon
de Laplace first proposed the concept at the end of the eighteenth century. Scientific
interest in this theory has been intense in the last few decades. However,currently the theory is
unproven. Black holes can only be potentially identified based on the interactions of objects
around them,as happens when a potential black hole is part of a binary star; they of course cannot
be seen because of the inability of any light to escape the star’s poerfull gravity.

31. A binary star could best be described as …

a. Stars that have been forced apart
b. A star eitj a strong gravitational force
c. Two stars pulled together by gravity
d. A large number of attached stars

32. The word “distinguished”in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to …

a. Renowned
b. Tied
c. Celebrated
d. Differentiated

33. According to the passage . what happens as a result of the gravitational force between the
stars ?
a. One star circles the other
b. The mass of the binary star increases
c. A black hole is destroyed
d. The gravitational force decreases

34. The word “proportion in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to which of the following ?
a. Contrast
 b. Ratio
c. Inversion
d. Force

35. According to the passage , what is a “black hole”?

a. An empty space around which nothing orbits
b. A star with close to zero
c. A`star whose gravitational force blocks the passage of light
d. An empty space so far away that no light can reach it

36. Which of the following statements about black holes is not supported by the passage ?
a. A black hole can have a star orbiting around it
b. A binary star can be composed of a black hole and a visible star
c. All empty space contains black holes
d. The gravitational pull of a black hole is strong .

37. The word “get” in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by ….

a. Pass
b. Sink
c. Jump
d. See

38. Which of the following is implied in the passage about the theory of black holes ?
a. No reputable scientist believe it
b. It has only recently been hypothesized
c. At least some scientists find it credible
d. Scientist are hoping to see black hole in order to prove the theory

39. The word “intense” in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to …

a. Briliant
b. Intermittent
c. Bright
d. Strong

40. This “passage” would” probally be assigned reading in a course on …

a. Botany c. Geology
b. Astrophysics d. Astrology