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 35 to 42.

Life in the Universe

Exobiology is the study of life that originates from outside of Earth. As yet, of course, no such life forms have been found. Exobiologists, however, have done important work in the theoretical study of where life is most likely to evolve, and what those extrateưestrial life forms might be like.

What sorts of planets are most likely to develop life? Most scientists agree that a habitable planet must be terrestrial, or rock-based, with liquid surface water and biogeochemical cycles that somewhat resemble Earth’s. Water is an important solvent involved in many biological processes. Biogeochemical cycles are the continuous movement and transformation of materials in the environment. These cycles include the circulation of elements and nutrients upon which life and the Earth’s climate depend. Since (as far as we know) all life is carbon-based, a stable carbon cycle is especially important.

The habitable zone is the region around a star in which planets can develop life. Assuming the need for liquid surface water, it follows that most stars around the size of our sun will be able to sustain habitable zones for billions of years. Stars that are larger than the sun are much hotter and bum out more quickly; life there may not have enough time to evolve. Stars that are smaller than the sun have different problem. First of all, planets in their habitable zones will be so close to the star that they will be “tidally locked” – that is one side of the planet will always face the star in perpetual daylight with the other side in the perpetual night. Another possible obstacle to life on smaller stars is that they tend to vary in their luminosity, or brightness, due to flares and “star spots”. The variation can be large enough to have harmful effects on the ecosystem.

Of course, not all stars of the right size will give rise to life; they also must have terrestrial planets with the right kind of orbits. Most solar systems have more than one planet, which influence each other’s orbits with their own gravity. Therefore, in order to have a stable system with no planets flying out into space, the orbits must be a good distance from one another. Interestingly, the amount of space needed is roughly the width of a star’s habitable zone. This means that for life to evolve, the largest possible number of life-supporting planets in any star’s habitable zone is two.

Finally, not all planets meeting the above conditions will necessarily develop life. One major threat is large, frequent asteroid and comet impacts, which will wipe out life each time it tries to evolve. The case of Earth teaches that having large gas giants, such as Saturn and Jupiter,.in the outer part of the solar system can help keep a planet safe for life. Due to their strong gravitation, they tend to catch or deflect large objects before they can reach Earth.

Which of the following best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 23 to 27.

CHESS

Chess, often (23)______ to as the Royal Game, is the oldest of all board games which do not contain an element of chance.

The origins of chess are uncertain, (24)______ there are a number of legends regarding its invention. One story says that it was King Solomon who invented chess, another that it was the Greek god Hermes, and yet another that the Chinese mandarin Han-Sing was responsible for its creation. In fact, chess almost certainly originated in India in the sixth or seventh century AD. The game’s popularity then spread quickly through Persia (now known as Iran) and from there came to Europe. The first documented reference to chess in literature is in a Persian romance which was written about 600 AD.

It is (25)_______ the word ‘chess’ comes from ‘shah’, the Persian word for ‘king’ and that ‘checkmate’, the game’s winning (26)_______, comes from the phrase ‘shah mat’, (27)______ ‘the king is dead’.

The rules and pieces used in the game have undergone changes over the centuries. Modem chess owes much to the Spaniard Lopez de Segura, who in 1561 wrote the first book on how to play the game. In it, he introduced the concept of ‘castling’, which had not been part of the game until then.

Điền vào ô 26.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 23 to 27.

CHESS

Chess, often (23)______ to as the Royal Game, is the oldest of all board games which do not contain an element of chance.

The origins of chess are uncertain, (24)______ there are a number of legends regarding its invention. One story says that it was King Solomon who invented chess, another that it was the Greek god Hermes, and yet another that the Chinese mandarin Han-Sing was responsible for its creation. In fact, chess almost certainly originated in India in the sixth or seventh century AD. The game’s popularity then spread quickly through Persia (now known as Iran) and from there came to Europe. The first documented reference to chess in literature is in a Persian romance which was written about 600 AD.

It is (25)_______ the word ‘chess’ comes from ‘shah’, the Persian word for ‘king’ and that ‘checkmate’, the game’s winning (26)_______, comes from the phrase ‘shah mat’, (27)______ ‘the king is dead’.

The rules and pieces used in the game have undergone changes over the centuries. Modem chess owes much to the Spaniard Lopez de Segura, who in 1561 wrote the first book on how to play the game. In it, he introduced the concept of ‘castling’, which had not been part of the game until then.

Điền vào ô 23.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of primary stress in each of the following questions.

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 school officials are considering a comprehensive planning to alleviate the problem of overcrowding in the dormitories.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best completes each of the following exchanges.

Jack and Joe are discussing how to make salad for dinner.

Jack: “______”

Joe: How about putting some grapes in it, instead?

I’m afraid we no longer sell that model of laptop because we had_____a lot of complaints.

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.

Sarah was not best speaker in the class, but her personality and ability to convey her feelings helped her become the most requested.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that is closest in meaning to each of the following questions.

“Shall I help you do the dishes, Carlo?” said Robert.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best combines each of sentences in the following questions.

I started training to be an accountant six months ago. I’ve got more months to go and then I have to take exams.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 23 to 27.

CHESS

Chess, often (23)______ to as the Royal Game, is the oldest of all board games which do not contain an element of chance.

The origins of chess are uncertain, (24)______ there are a number of legends regarding its invention. One story says that it was King Solomon who invented chess, another that it was the Greek god Hermes, and yet another that the Chinese mandarin Han-Sing was responsible for its creation. In fact, chess almost certainly originated in India in the sixth or seventh century AD. The game’s popularity then spread quickly through Persia (now known as Iran) and from there came to Europe. The first documented reference to chess in literature is in a Persian romance which was written about 600 AD.

It is (25)_______ the word ‘chess’ comes from ‘shah’, the Persian word for ‘king’ and that ‘checkmate’, the game’s winning (26)_______, comes from the phrase ‘shah mat’, (27)______ ‘the king is dead’.

The rules and pieces used in the game have undergone changes over the centuries. Modem chess owes much to the Spaniard Lopez de Segura, who in 1561 wrote the first book on how to play the game. In it, he introduced the concept of ‘castling’, which had not been part of the game until then.

Điền vào ô 24.

Mrs. Jenkins was too ill to go out and pay her phone bill, and they’ve just cut her_____. She ought to complain!

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best completes each of the following exchanges.

Arm and Mary are studying in their classroom.

Ann: “Can I borrow you dictionary?”

Mary: “______ ”

The amount Sarah earned was_______ on how much she sold.

The party, _______ I was the guest of honour, was extremely enjoyable.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 23 to 27.

CHESS

Chess, often (23)______ to as the Royal Game, is the oldest of all board games which do not contain an element of chance.

The origins of chess are uncertain, (24)______ there are a number of legends regarding its invention. One story says that it was King Solomon who invented chess, another that it was the Greek god Hermes, and yet another that the Chinese mandarin Han-Sing was responsible for its creation. In fact, chess almost certainly originated in India in the sixth or seventh century AD. The game’s popularity then spread quickly through Persia (now known as Iran) and from there came to Europe. The first documented reference to chess in literature is in a Persian romance which was written about 600 AD.

It is (25)_______ the word ‘chess’ comes from ‘shah’, the Persian word for ‘king’ and that ‘checkmate’, the game’s winning (26)_______, comes from the phrase ‘shah mat’, (27)______ ‘the king is dead’.

The rules and pieces used in the game have undergone changes over the centuries. Modem chess owes much to the Spaniard Lopez de Segura, who in 1561 wrote the first book on how to play the game. In it, he introduced the concept of ‘castling’, which had not been part of the game until then.

Điền vào ô 27.