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 from 38 to 42.

The custom of paying a bride price before marriage is still a well-established part of many African cultures. In paying a bride price, the family of the groom must provide payment to the family of the bride before the marriage is allowed. The bride price can vary greatly from culture to culture in Africa. In the Zulu and Swazi tribes of southern Africa, the bride price often takes the form of cattle. In Western African, kola nuts, shells, and other goods are often used for the payment of the bride price. The actual payment of money sometimes takes place, but the payment of goods is more frequent. The amount of paid in a bride price can also vary. In modern times, the bride price is occasionally quite small and its value is mainly symbolic. However, the bride price can still be quite high, especially among prominent or highly traditional families.

There are a number of justifications used to explain the payment of bride price. The first is that the bride price represents an acknowledgement of the expense the bride’s family has gone in order to raise her and bring her up as a suitable bride for the groom. It also represents payment for the loss of a family member, since the bride will officially become a member of her husbands family and will leave her own. On a deeper level the bride price represents payment for the fact that the bride will bring children into the family of the groom, thereby increasing the wealth of the family. This concept is reinforced by the fact that the bride price must often be returned if the bride fails to bear children.

The payment of the bride price has quite a number of effects on African society. First, the payment of bride price acts to increase the stability of African family structures. Sons are dependent on their fathers and older relatives to help them pay the bride price of their wives, and this generally leads to greater levels of obedience and respect. The negotiations between the two families concerning the bride price allow the parents and other family members to meet and get to know one another before the marriage. Finally, since the bride price must often be repaid in case of divorce, the bride’s family often works to make sure that any marital problems are solved quickly. Bride prices also work as a system of wealth distribution in African cultures. Wealthier families can afford to support the marriage of their son, and thus their wealth is transferred to other families.

What is the topic of the passage?

I always get    in my stomach before visiting the dentist. ___________

___________5 months for the fridge to be delivered, I decide to cancel the order.

This time last Friday, we___________to Moscow.

My boss expects the report___________on time.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

Some encyclopedias provide___________on specific fields such as music or philosophy.

Yesterday, John told me that he wished he___________harder in high school then university might not be so difficult for him.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the underlined part that needs correction in each of the following questions.

The graduated assistant informed us that the first exam was the most difficult of the two.

The clothes of my sister are more expensive___________of my mother.

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 from 43 to 50.

Contrary to popular belief, one does not have to be trained programmer to work online. Of course, there are plenty of jobs available for people with high-tech computer skills, but the growth of new media has opened up a wide range of Internet career opportunities requiring only a minimal level of technical expertise. Probably one of the most well-known online job opportunities is the job of webmaster. However, it is hard to define one basic job description for this position. The qualifications and responsibilities depend on what tasks a particular organization needs a webmaster to perform.

To specify the job description of a webmaster, one needs to identify the hardware and software that the website the webmaster will manage is running on. Different types of hardware and software require different skill sets to manage them. Another key factor is whether the website will be running internally (at the firm itself) or externally (renting shared space on the company servers). Finally, the responsibilities of a webmaster also depend on whether he or she will be working independently, or whether the firm will provide people to help. All of these factors need to be considered before one can create an accurate webmaster job description.

Webmaster is one type of Internet career requiring in-depth knowledge of the latest computer applications. However, there are also online jobs available for which traditional skills remain in high demand. Content jobs require excellent writing skills and a good sense of the web as a “new media”.

The term “new media” is difficult to define because it encompasses a constantly growing set of new technologies and skills, specifically, it includes websites, email, Internet technology, CD-ROM, DVD, streaming audio and video, interactive multimedia presentations, e-books, digital music, computer illustration, video games, virtually reality, and computer artistry.

Additionally, many of today’s Internet careers are becoming paid-by-the-job professions. With many companies having to downsize in tough economic items, the outsourcing and contracting of freelance workers online has become common business practice. The Internet provides an infinite pool of buyers from around the world with whom freelancers can contract their services. An added benefit to such online jobs is that freelancers are able to work on projects with companies outside their own country of residence.

How much can a person make in these kinds of career? As with many questions related to todays evolving technology, there is no simple answer. There are many companies willing to pay people with technical Internet skills salaries well above $70,000 a year. Generally, webmasters start at about $30,000 per year, but salaries can vary greatly. Freelance writers working online have been known to make between $40,000 and $70,000 per year.

The word “them” in paragraph 2 refers to____________.

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 from 43 to 50.

Contrary to popular belief, one does not have to be trained programmer to work online. Of course, there are plenty of jobs available for people with high-tech computer skills, but the growth of new media has opened up a wide range of Internet career opportunities requiring only a minimal level of technical expertise. Probably one of the most well-known online job opportunities is the job of webmaster. However, it is hard to define one basic job description for this position. The qualifications and responsibilities depend on what tasks a particular organization needs a webmaster to perform.

To specify the job description of a webmaster, one needs to identify the hardware and software that the website the webmaster will manage is running on. Different types of hardware and software require different skill sets to manage them. Another key factor is whether the website will be running internally (at the firm itself) or externally (renting shared space on the company servers). Finally, the responsibilities of a webmaster also depend on whether he or she will be working independently, or whether the firm will provide people to help. All of these factors need to be considered before one can create an accurate webmaster job description.

Webmaster is one type of Internet career requiring in-depth knowledge of the latest computer applications. However, there are also online jobs available for which traditional skills remain in high demand. Content jobs require excellent writing skills and a good sense of the web as a “new media”.

The term “new media” is difficult to define because it encompasses a constantly growing set of new technologies and skills, specifically, it includes websites, email, Internet technology, CD-ROM, DVD, streaming audio and video, interactive multimedia presentations, e-books, digital music, computer illustration, video games, virtually reality, and computer artistry.

Additionally, many of today’s Internet careers are becoming paid-by-the-job professions. With many companies having to downsize in tough economic items, the outsourcing and contracting of freelance workers online has become common business practice. The Internet provides an infinite pool of buyers from around the world with whom freelancers can contract their services. An added benefit to such online jobs is that freelancers are able to work on projects with companies outside their own country of residence.

How much can a person make in these kinds of career? As with many questions related to todays evolving technology, there is no simple answer. There are many companies willing to pay people with technical Internet skills salaries well above $70,000 a year. Generally, webmasters start at about $30,000 per year, but salaries can vary greatly. Freelance writers working online have been known to make between $40,000 and $70,000 per year.

The word “downsize” in paragraph 5 most likely means____________.

Peter was the last applicant___________by that interviewer.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word or phrase that is CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined part in each of the following questions.

The discovery of the new planet was regarded as a major breakthrough in astronomy.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word or phrase that is CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined part in each of the following questions.

The football final has been postponed until next Sunday due to the heavy snowstorm.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the most suitable response to complete each of the following exchanges.

Liz and Jenifer are talking about the gift Jenifer brought.

-  Liz: “Thanks for the nice gift you brought to us!”

-           Jenifer: “__________ ”

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the underlined part that needs correction in each of the following questions.

when I got home, Irene lay in bed watching a blockbuster movie.