TEXT B
In an article some Chinese scholars are described as being "tantalized by the mysterious dragon bone hieroglyphics." Tantalized is one of many English words that have their origins in myths and legends of the past (in this case, Greek and Roman ones). The meaning of the verb tantalize is a very particular one: "to promise or show something desirable to a person and then take it away; to tease by arousing hope." Many (but not all) English dictionaries give you a brief indication of a word's origins in brackets before or after the explanation of the meaning. For tantalize the following explanation is given: [> Tantalus]. This means that you should look up the name Tantalus to find out the word's origins, and if you do, you will find out that in Greek mythology, Tantalus was a king who was punished in the lower world with eternal hunger and thirst; he was put up to his chin in water that always moved away when he tried to drink it and with fruit on branches above him placed just a little bit out of his reach. Can you see why his name was changed into a verb meaning "to tease or torment by arousing desire"?
Another example is the word siren, familiar to us as the mechanical device that makes such an alarming sound when police cars, ambulances, or fire engines approach. This word also has its origins in Greek mythology. The traveler Odysseus (Ulysses to the Romans) made his men plug their ears so that they wouldn't hear the dangerous voices of the sirens, creatures who were half bird and half woman and who lured sailors to their deaths on sharp rocks. So the word came to be associated both with a loud sound and with danger!
When someone speaks of a "jovial mood" or a "Herculean effort," he or she is using words with origins in mythology. Look these words up to find their meaning and relationship to myths.
Many common words, such as the names for the days of the week and the months of the year, also come from mythology. Wednesday derives from the ancient Norse king of the gods, Woden, and Thursday was originally Thor's day, in honour of Thor, the god of thunder. As a matter of fact, all the planets, except the one we live on, bear names that come from Roman mythology, including the planet that is farthest away from the sun and for that reason was called after the Roman god of the dead. This god has also given his name to one of the chemical elements.
Several other elements have names that come from mythology, too.
It seems that myths and legends live on in the English language.
85. The purpose of the first sentence in Paragraph One is ________.
A. to describe the work of some Chinese scholars
B. to arouse readers' interest in hieroglyphics
C. to lead readers onto the main theme
D. to link the preceding part to the present one
86. We learn from the passage, all English dictionaries include ________.
A. legends
B. mythology
C. word origins
D. word definitions
87. The example of tantalize is to show ________.
A. how the word came into existence
B. how Tantalus was punished in the lower world
C. how all English dictionaries show word origins
D. how the meaning of the word changed over the years
88. According to the passage, which of the following does NOT have origins in myths or legends?
A. Jovial.
B. Wednesday.
C. Earth.
D. March.
89. Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
A. Greek and Roman Mythology in Language.
B. Mythological Origins of English Words.
C. Historical Changes in Word Meanings.
D. Mythology and Common Words.
TEXT C
My heart sank when the man at the immigration counter gestured to the back room. I'm an American born and raised, and this was Miami, where I live, but they weren't quite ready to let me in yet.
"Please wait in here, Ms Abujaber," the immigration officer said. My husband, with his very American last name, accompanied me. He was getting used to this. The same thing had happened recently in Canada when I'd flown to Montreal to speak at a book event. That time they held me for 45 minutes. Today we were returning from a literary festival in Jamaica, and I was startled that I was being sent "in back" once again.
The officer behind the counter called me up and said, "Miss, your name looks like the name of someone who's on our wanted list. We're going to have to check you out with Washington."
"How long will it take?"
"Hard to say... a few minutes," he said. "We'll call you when we're ready for you."
After an hour, Washington still hadn't decided anything about me. "Isn't this computerized?"
I asked at the counter. "Can't you just look me up?"
Just a few more minutes, they assured me.
After an hour and a half, I pulled my cell phone out to call the friends I was supposed to meet that evening. An officer rushed over. "No phones!" he said. "For all we know you could be calling a terrorist cell and giving them information."
"I'm just a university professor," I said. My voice came out in a squeak.
"Of course you are. And we take people like you out of here in leg irons every day."
I put my phone away.
My husband and 1 were getting hungry and tired. Whole families had been brought into the waiting room, and the place was packed with excitable children, exhausted parents, even a flight attendant.
I wanted to scream, to jump on a chair and shout: "I'm an American citizen; a novelist; l probably teach English literature to your children." Or would that all be counted against me?
After two hours in detention, I was approached by one of the officers. "You're free to go," he said. No explanation or apologies. For a moment, neither of us moved, we were still in shock.
Then we leaped to our feet.
"Oh, one more thing." He handed me a tattered photocopy with an address on it. "If you weren't happy with your treatment, you can write to this agency."
"Will they respond?" I asked.
"I don't know – I don't know of anyone who's ever written to them before." Then he added,
"By the way, this will probably keep happening each time you travel internationally."
"What can I do to keep it from happening again?"
He smiled the empty smile we'd seen all day. "Absolutely nothing."
After telling several friends about our ordeal, probably the most frequent advice I've heard in response is to change my name. Twenty years ago, my own graduate school writing professor advised me to write under a pen name so that publishers wouldn't stick me in what he called "the ethnic ghetto" – a separate, secondary shelf in the bookstore. But a name is an integral part of anyone's personal and professional identity-just like the town you're born in and the place where you're raised.
Like my father, I'll keep the name, but my airport experience has given me a whole new perspective on what diversity and tolerance are supposed to mean. I had no idea that being an
American would ever be this hard.
90. The author was held at the airport because ________.
A. she and her husband returned from Jamaica
B. her name was similar to a terrorist's
C. she had been held in Montreal
D. she had spoken at a book event
91. She was not allowed to call her friends because ________.
A. her identity hadn't been confirmed yet
B. she had been held for only one hour and a half
C. there were other families in the waiting room
D. she couldn't use her own cell phone
92. We learn from the passage that the author would ________ to prevent similar experience from happening again.
A. write to the agency
B. change her name
C. avoid traveling abroad
D. do nothing
93. Her experiences indicate that there still exists ________ in the US.
A. hatred
B. discrimination
C. tolerance
D. diversity
94. The author sounds in the last paragraph.
A. impatient
B. bitter
C. worried
D. ironic
TEXT D
Public speaking fills most people with dread. Humiliation is the greatest fear; self-exposure and failing to appeal to the audience come a close second. Women hate it most, since girls are pressurized from an early age to be concerned with appearances of all kinds.
Most people have plenty of insecurities, and this seems like a situation that will bring them out. If you were under pressure to be perfect, you are terrified of falling in the most public of ways.
While extroverts will feel less fear before the ordeal, it does not mean they will necessarily do it better. Some very shy people manage to shine. When I met the British comedian Julian Clary, he was shy and cautious, yet his TV performances are perfect.
In fact, personality is not the best predictor of who does it well. Regardless of what you are like in real life, the key seems to be to act yourself.
Actual acting, as in performing the scripted lines of a character other than yourself, does not do the job. While politicians may limit damage by having carefully rehearsed, written scripts to speak from, there is always a hidden awareness among the audience that the words might not be true.
Likewise, the incredibly perfect speeches of many American academics are far from natural.
You may end up buying their book on the way out, but soon afterwards, it is much like fast food, and you get a nameless sense that you've been cheated.
Although, as Earl Spencer proved at his sister Princess Diana's funeral, it is possible both to prepare every word and to act naturally. A script rarely works and it is used to help most speakers.
But, being yourself doesn't work either. If you spoke as if you were in your own kitchen, it would be too authentic, too unaware of the need to communicate with an audience.
I remember going to see British psychiatrist R.D. Laing speak in public. He behaved like a seriously odd person, talking off the top of his head. Although he was talking about madness and he wrote on mental illness, he seemed to be exhibiting rather than explaining it.
The best psychological place from which to speak is an unselfconscious self-consciousness, providing the illusion of being natural. Studies suggest that this state of "flow", as psychologists call it, is very satisfying.
95. Women hate public speaking most mainly because of ________.
A. their upbringing very early on
B. their inability to appeal to the audience
C. their sense of greater public pressure
D. their sense of greater humiliation
96. "this" in Paragraph Two refers to ________.
A. insecurity
B. sense of failure
C. public speaking
D. pressure
97. Which of the following is NOT the author's viewpoint?
A. Acting like performers spoils the message in a speech.
B. Perfection of scripts is necessary in making good impressions.
C. Acting naturally means less dependence on the prepared script.
D. There should be a balance between actual acting and acting naturally.
98. What is the author's view on personality?
A. Personality is the key to success in public speaking.
B. Extroverts are better public speakers.
C. Introverts have to learn harder to be good speakers.
D. Factors other than personality ensure better performance.
99. The author implies that while speaking R. D. Laing.
A. was both too casual and authentic
B. was acting like a performer
C. was keeping a good balance
D. was aware of his audience
100.In the last paragraph the author recommends that ________.
A. you forget about your nervousness
B. you feel natural and speak naturally
C. you may feel nervous, but appear naturally
D. you may imagine yourself to be natural
