Directions: In this part of the test, there are five passages. Following each passage, there are five questions with four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the best answer and then write the corresponding letter on your Answer Sheet.

Passage One

        Animal life first appeared on the earth about 400 million years ago. Through the passing millennia, thousands of animal species have come and gone. Until recently, this process was gradual, the result of changes in climate, in habitat, or in the genes of the animals themselves. But the tremendous expansion of modern civilization now threatens to upset this natural balance, putting unprecedented pressure on the survival of our wildlife.

        Of all the continents, the most drastic reduction in wildlife has occurred in North America, where the transition from a rural to a highly industrialized society has been most rapid. Among the victims are birds, mammals, and fish. We will never again see the passenger pigeon or the eastern elk. They have been wiped out. Of many other species, only a few representatives still survive in the wild. The U.S. Department of the Interior has put no fewer than 109 species on the endangered species list. This list includes everything from the timber wolf to the whooping crane. Even the bald eagle, our national symbol, is threatened.

        Animals that kill other game for food are called predators. The predators include the wolf, mountain lion, fox, bobcat, and bear. Attack against these animals began with the arrival of the first European settlers, who wished to protect their livestock. Eventually, a reward was offered to hunters for every predator that was killed. This reward is called a bounty. Ironically, the Federal government was the chief funder of predator-control programs.

        The settlers also brought with them their Old World fears and superstitions concerning predators．Whether preying on livestock or not，predators were shot on sight．This attitude continues to this day for coyotes，eagles，foxes，mountain lions，and bobcats，and is largely responsible for placing the eastern timber wolf, grizzly bear, and bald eagle on the endangered species list．

        Yet every animal，including the predator, has its place in nature’s grand design．Predators help maintain the health of their prey species by eliminating the diseased，young，old，and injured．Predators like the mountain lion and the wolf help to keep the deer herds healthy．Their kill also provides food for scavengers that feed on carrion．Occasional loss of livestock must be weighed against the good these animals do in maintaining the balance of nature．

Questions 1-5 are based on Passage One．

The fastest disappearance of wildlife has occurred in ______．

A．Europe

B．Australia

C．North America

D．South America

The major threats to wildlife in the modern world come from ______．

A．industrialization and urbanization．

B．changes in climate，habitat，or the genes

C．rapid increase in man’s population

D．the use of pesticides

An endangered species is the one that ______．

A．kills other animals for food

B．faces extinction thus needs protection

C．is dangerous to human beings

D．1ives in places of danger

“Animals that kill other game for food are called predators．”(Para．3)The word “game” means ______．

A．animals that kill predators for food

B．animals that feed on carrion

C．animals that are hunted for food

D．animals that appear on the endangered species list

Bounty hunters are those who ______· 

A．take care of the wild areas

B．kill predators for money

C．preserve wild animals

D．protect the habitat of the wildlife

Passage Two

    The establishment of Earth Day began with an idea proposed in October 1969 by John McConnell，a San Francisco resident．

    McConnell approached the San Francisco Board of Supervisors with a resolution to devote one day a year to public awareness dedicated to nature and the fragile ecosystem that comprises it．The day’s events would emphasize the urgency of all inhabitants of the planet to take responsibility for building a healthy and ecologically sustainable planet．The board was impressed with McConnell’s idea and declared Earth Day an annual celebration to be held on March 21，the date of  the vernal equinox．McConnell stated，“This is the moment when night and day are equal throughout the earth—reminding us of Earth’s beautiful systems of balance which humanity has partially upset and must restore．’’

    Earth Day was established as a national day of celebration in the United States in 1 970 and was embraced by the United Nations in 1 97 1 when it declared an Earth Day ceremony to be held each year on the day of the March Equinox．In 1970，Senator Gaylord Nelson，proposed an Earth Week for the third week in April and together with Bruce Anderson，an architect of solar energy and environmental author, co-founded Earth Day USA．The first national Earth Day was celebrated in the United States on April 22，1 970．Twenty million participants nationwide took part in teach-ins，street demonstrations，and workshops in 2,000 communities and 12，000 college and high school campuses．The major public concern at that time was industrial pollution and its effect on the air we breathe，the water we drink，and the health of the planet we live on．Those celebrations led to overwhelming public outcries for legislation mandating ecologically sound environmental policies and rigid controls on industrial pollution．

    Over the years, the issues of concern have expanded greatly into all aspects of air, water, soil, and noise pollution. Whether it comes from vehicles, factories, agriculture, housing, or private property, public concern and activism continue unabated with citizens from around the world involved in efforts to achieve a sustainable and enduring ecosystem.

Questions 6-10 are based on Passage Two.

This passage mainly discusses ______.

A. how Earth Day originated and developed

B. why Earth Day was set on the day of vernal equinox

C. why John McConnell proposed the idea of Earth Day

D. what the major public concern was in the 1970s

Earth Day was first proposed to ______. 

A. reflect public concern for industrial pollution at the time

B. call for legislation on environment

C. achieve a sustainable and enduring ecosystem

D. raise the public awareness of nature and the ecosystem

The major concern of the first national Earth Day in the United States was _______. 

A. deforestation and desertization

B. air pollution and water pollution

C. agricultural waste and pesticide use

D. industrial pollution and its effect

 According to the last paragraph, people have now realized ______.

A. the establishment of the Earth Day can do little to save our planet

B. the importance of protecting our environment and the ecosystem

C. John McConnell’s proposal played an important role in saving our planet

D. the issues of concern of Earth Day have expanded greatly into all aspects of air, water, soil, and noise pollution

The word “enduring” in the last sentence probably means ______. 

A. lasting

B. tolerating

C. strengthening

D. deteriorating

Passage Three

    Several months ago I decided it would be wise to investigate the possibilities of buying a life insurance policy, if for no other reason than because I understood it might be a good investment. I got the name of an insurance agent from a friend and called the agent to get some information. From the kinds of questions I put to him, the agent would tell that I knew nothing about insurance so he kindly offered to explore the matter with me in more detail — to help me determine the kind of policy I ought to be considering.

    That evening he appeared at my door promptly at 7:30; without wasting time on amenities, he spread his papers out on the kitchen table and launched into a lengthy explanation. I listened attentively as he talked about the difference between various types of policies, and he explained the kind of coverage he felt I ought to have because of my age bracket and financial objectives. Toward the end of the evening (after three or four hours of talking), he kindly helped me fill out an application for a 50,000 dollar policy, and then he asked if I could go to a Dr. Luther’s office on Friday for a physical examination.

    I don’t know why, but it was not until the mention of the doctor’s appointment that I realized fully what was happening. I was about to sign a lifetime contract, yet I had not really made a decision about whether I wanted to buy the policy or not. As a matter of fact, the question of the need for a decision from me one way or the other had not even come up. Suddenly I felt sure that I definitely did not want to buy the policy. However, since he had spent so much time with me, I didn’t want to make him feel that he had wasted his time. So I invented an excuse about things I had to do on Friday, and I assured him I would call him in a few days. Actually, I had no intention of going to see Dr. Luther or of calling the agent again. I wanted to forget the whole thing.

    It’s been over three months now since our meeting, and my friendly insurance agent still calls at my office faithfully two or three times a week. My secretary knows that I don’t want to talk to him, so when he calls she tells him that I’m in a meeting or that I’m out of the office or that I’m away on a business trip. I realize now that it was a mistake not to tell him outright that I’m not interested, and please not to bother me any more, all I can do is to avoid his calls and hope I don’t run into him someplace.

Questions 11-15 are based on Passage Three.

 The writer got the name of the insurance agent from ______.

A. a TV commercial

B. one of his friends

C. an insurance company

D. one of his colleagues

Why did the writer phone the insurance agent?

A. He wanted to fill out an application for a life insurance policy.

B. He had decided to buy a life insurance policy.

C. He wanted to explore the possibilities of buying a life insurance policy.

D. He took great interest in the insurance company.

After helping the writer fill out the application, the agent asked if ______.

A. he was satisfied with his explanation

B. he could pay the insurance premium immediately

C. he could recommend other people to buy a life insurance

D. he could go to the doctor’s for a physical check-up

What do you think about the secretary?

A. She is dishonest.

B. She is experienced.

C. She is sophisticated.

D. She is sympathetic.

“... all I can do is to avoid his calls and hope I don’t run into him someplace.”

(Para. 4) The expression “run into him” means ______.

A. being caught by him

B. getting him annoyed

C. meeting him accidentally

D. seeing him as scheduled

Passage Four

    We all know that people sometimes change their behavior when someone is looking their way. Now, a new study reported online on April 2nd in Current Biology shows that jackdaws —birds related to crows with eyes that appear similar to human eyes — can do the same.

    “Jackdaws seem to recognize the eye’s role in visual perception, or at the very least they are extremely sensitive to the way that human eyes are oriented,” said Auguste von Bayern, formerly of the University of Cambridge and now at the University of Oxford.

    When presented with a preferred food, hand-raised jackdaws took significantly longer to retrieve the reward when a person was directing his eyes towards the food than when he was looking away, according to the research team led by Nathan Emery of the University of Cambridge. The birds hesitated only when the person in question was unfamiliar and thus potentially threatening.

    In addition, the birds were able to interpret human communicative gestures, such as gaze alternation and pointing to help them find hidden food, they found. The birds were unsuccessful in using static cues, including eye gaze or head orientation, in that context.

    Unlike most birds, jackdaws’ eyes have a dark pupil surrounded by a silvery white iris. The researchers said they believe jackdaws are probably sensitive to human eyes because, as in humans, eyes are an important means of communication for them. The hand-raised birds examined in the study may be even better than wild jackdaws at attending to human gaze and responding to the gestures of the people who have raised them.

    The findings are particularly notable given that most other species investigated so far, including our closest relatives the chimpanzee and “man’s best friend,” the dog, are not particularly sensitive to eye orientation and eye gaze, von Bayern said. Rather, she continued, chimps and dogs seem to rely on other cues such as head or body orientation in determining the looking direction of others and do not appear to appreciate the eyes as the visual organs. The results suggest that birds may deserve more respect for their mental abilities.

Questions 16-20 are based on Passage Four.

According to the report, when does a hand-raised jackdaw hesitate to take a preferred food?

A. When the feeder is looking away from the food.

B. When the feeder is unfamiliar to the bird.

C. When the. feeder holds the food in his hand.

D. When the feeder is looking at the food.

According to the researchers，jackdaws can notice human eye orientation  probably because ______．

A．1ike humans，they also use eyes to communicate

B．they are far more intelligent than other birds

C．they are mostly hand-raised by humans

D．their eyes also have a dark pupil

According to the 4th paragraph，jackdaws are good at interpreting all of the following cues EXCEPT ______．

A．alternating one’s gaze to another direction

B．pointing to where the food is hidden

C．keeping a long gaze at one direction

D．directing one’s eyes towards the food

Why does the author refer to chimpanzees and dogs in the last paragraph?

A．To suggest that they are much better at interpreting gaze alternation．

B．To illustrate how unique jackdaws are in being able to notice gaze orientation．

C．To make clear that they rely on other means in determining people’s intention．

D．To show that they communicate more frequently with humans than jackdaws．

What does the research finding suggest?

A．We know embarrassingly less about birds than we assume．

B．The closer we communicate with animals，the better we understand them．

C．Not all jackdaws are good at attending to human gaze．

D．We may have underestimated jackdaws’ mental abilities．

Passage Five

    Although Beethoven could sit down and make up music easily, his really great compositions did not come easily at all．They cost him a great deal of hard work．We know how often he rewrote and corrected his work because his notebooks are still kept in museums and libraries．He always found it hard to satisfy himself．

    When he was 28, the worst difficulty of all came to him. He began to notice a strange humming in his ears. At first he paid little attention; but it grew worse, and at last he consulted doctors. They gave him the worst news any musician can hear: he was gradually going deaf. Beethoven was in despair; he was sure that he was going to die.

    He went away to the country, to a place called Heiligenstadt, and from there he wrote a long farewell letter to his brothers. In this he told them how depressed and lonely his deafness had made him. “It was impossible for me to ask men to speak louder or shout, for I am deaf,” he wrote. “How could I possibly admit an infirmity in the one sense (hearing) which should have been more perfect in me than in others ... I must live like an exile.” He longed to die, and said to death, “Come when you will, I shall meet you bravely.”

    In fact, Beethoven did something braver than dying. He gathered his courage and went on writing music, though he could hear what he wrote only more and more faintly. He wrote his best music, the music we remember him for, after he became deaf. Instead of the elegant and stately music that earlier musicians had written for their wealthy listeners, Beethoven wrote stormy, exciting, revolutionary music, which reminds us of his troubled and courageous life. He grew to admire courage more than anything, and he called one of his symphonies the “Eroica” or heroic symphony, “to celebrate the memory of a great man”. Describing the dramatic opening notes of his famous Fifth Symphony, he said, “thus fate knocks on the door”.

    In those years when he went completely deaf he wrote more gloriously than ever. He could “hear” his music with his mind, if not with his ears. His friends had to write down what they wanted to say to him. He was lonely and often unhappy, but in spite of this, he often wrote joyful music. In his last symphony, the Ninth, a choir sings a wonderful Hymn of Joy. Because of his courage and determination to overcome his terrible disaster, his music has given joy and inspiration to millions of people.

Questions 21-25 are based on Passage Five.

When he first learned that he was gradually going deaf, Beethoven accepted the fact ______.

A. placidly

B. courageously

C. despairingly

D. gracefully

“How could I possibly admit an infirmity in the one sense ...” The word “infirmity” is closest in meaning to ______.

A. weakness

B. strength

C. deafness

D. disorder

Beethovan’s best piece of music was composed ______. 

A. in his prime time

B. shortly before his death

C. when he noticed a humming in his ears

D. when he became completely deaf

Which of the following is the best title for this passage?

A. Beethoven’s Life Story

B. Beethoven’s Fateful Hearing Loss

C. The Music of Beethoven

D. Beethoven’s Courageous Triumph Over Tragedy

This passage is arranged in ______.

A. chronological order

B. spatial order

C. flashbacks

D. general-specific pattern