Nội dung text CHUYÊN ĐỀ VII. ĐỌC HIỂU - GV.docx
CHUYÊN ĐỀ VII. ĐỌC HIỂU Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct option to each of the questions that follow. Exercise 1 Glass fibers have a long history. By 1600 B.C., the Egyptians were producing coarse fibers, and as early as 1375 B.C., fibers were used as ornaments on Egyptian pottery. Glassmakers in Venice employed glass fibers to adorn the exterior of simple glass vessels throughout the Renaissance, which took place in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries A.D. But glassmakers were so secretive about their trade that no one wrote about the creation of glass fiber until the early seventeenth century. During the seventeenth century, "spun glass" fibers were created. French physicist Rene-Antoine de Reaumur attempted to create glass feather substitutes. By spinning a wheel into a puddle of molten glass and plucking glass threads where the hot, viscous liquid adhered to the wheel, he created fibers. Despite the short and delicate nature of his fibers, he anticipated that spun glass threads as thin as spider silk would be flexible enough to be woven into textiles. Glassmakers discovered at the beginning of the nineteenth century that using a hot glass tube to extract fibers from molten glass produced longer, stronger fibers. The creators wrapped a yarn reel with the cooling end of the thread and quickly spun it to extract additional fiber from the molten glass. At fairs, it was the custom of itinerant craftsmen to spin glass fibers into decorations and ornaments for collectors. However, this material proved to be unsuitable for most purposes, as the tattered, brittle threads could only extend up to ten feet, which was the circle of the largest reels. But by the middle of the 1870s, the finest glass fibers were finer than silk, and they could be combined to create faux ostrich feathers that could be used to adorn hats or woven into garments. Spun glass cloth in white had a silvery appearance, whereas fibers extracted from yellow-orange glass had a golden hue. Before their thermal and electrical insulating qualities were recognised and techniques for creating continuous filaments were discovered, glass fibers were essentially a novelty in the 1930s. Glass is supplied directly from a glass-melting furnace into a bushing, a container punctured with hundreds of tiny nozzles, where it emerges in fine streams, as part of the modern manufacturing process. The streams of glass are collected into a single strand and wrapped onto a reel as they solidify. 1. Which of the following aspects of glass fiber does the passage mainly discuss? A. The major development in its production B. Its relationship with pottery making
C. Important inventors in its long history D. Modern applications of glass fibers 2. The word coarse is closest in meaning to __________. A. decorative B. natural C. crude D. weak 3. Why was there nothing written about the making of Renaissance glass fiber until the seventeenth century? A. Glassmakers were unhappy with the quality of the fibers they could make. B. Glassmakers did not want to reveal the methods they used. C. Few people were interested in the Renaissance style of glass fibers. D. Production methods had been well known for a long time. 4. According to the passage, using a hot glass tube rather than a wheel to pull fibers from molten glass made the fibers _________. A. quicker to cool B. harder to bend C. shorter and more easily broken D. longer and more durable 5. The phrase this material refers to ___________. A. glass fibers B. decorations C. ornaments D. novelties for collectors Exercise 2 The most thoroughly studied cases of deception strategies employed by ground-nesting birds involve plovers, small birds that typically nest on beaches or in open fields, their nests merely scrape in the sand or earth. Plovers also have an effective repertoire of tricks for distracting potential nest predators from their exposed and defenseless eggs or chicks. The ever-watchful plover can detect a possible threat at a considerable distance. When she does, the nesting bird moves inconspicuously off the nest to a spot well away from eggs or chicks. At this point, she may use one of several ploys. One technique involves first moving quietly toward an approaching animal and then setting off noisily through the grass or brush in a low, crouching run away from the nest, while emitting rodent like squeaks. The effect mimics a scurrying mouse or vole, and the behaviour rivets the attention of the type of predators that would also be interested in eggs and chicks. Another deception begins with quiet movement to an exposed and visible location well away from the nest. Once there, the bird pretends to incubate a brood. When the predator approaches, the parent flees, leaving the false nest to be searched. The direction in which the plover "escapes" is
such that if the predator chooses to follow, it will be led still further away from the true nest. The plover's most famous stratagem is the broken-wing display, actually a continuum of injury- mimicking behaviours spanning the range from slight disability to near-complete helplessness. One or both wings are held in an abnormal position, suggesting injury. The bird appears to be attempting to escape along an irregular route that indicates panic. In the most extreme version of the display, the bird flaps one wing in an apparent attempt to take to the air, flops over helplessly, struggles back to its feet, runs away a short distance, seemingly attempts once more to take off, flops over again as the "useless" wing fails to provide any lift, and so on. Few predators fail to pursue such obviously vulnerable prey. Needless to say, each short run between "flight attempts" is directed away from the nest. 1. What does the passage mainly discuss? A. The nest-building technique of plovers B. How predators search for plovers C. The strategies used by plovers to deceive predators D. Why plovers are vulnerable to predators 2. In the deception technique described in paragraph 2, the plover tries to _________. A. stay close to her nest B. attract the predator's attention C. warn other plovers of danger D. frighten the approaching predator 3. The word flees in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ________. A. stays B. runs away C. sleeps D. fights 4. The word spanning is closest in meaning to ___________. A. covering B. selecting C. developing D. explaining 5. According to paragraph 4, which of the following aspects of the plover's behaviour gives the appearance that it is frightened? A. Abnormal body position B. Irregular escape route C. Unnatural wing movement D. Unusual amount of time away from the nest 6. According to the passage, a female plover utilizes all the following deception techniques EXCEPT __________. A. appearing to be injured B. sounding like another animal C. pretending to search for prey D. pretending to sit on her eggs
7. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage? A. Plovers prefer closed areas. B. Plovers do not know how to trick their predators. C. The position of the wing or wings reveals nothing about plovers' health. D. Calm birds tend to follow regular routes. Exercise 3 When imagining a rhino, you may picture a tank-like rhino with a three-foot horn on the African savannah. But there are five different species of rhinos - three that live in Asia and two that live in Africa. Javan rhinos inhabit Asian rainforests on the island of Java. The island lies in the ocean south of Vietnam and north of Australia. Javan rhinos have only one, small horn about 10 inches long, setting them apart from their African relatives. Poaching has been a past and present threat for Javan rhinos. Farmers have killed rhinos invading their fields or threatening crops. Poachers hunt rhinos for their horns, which are used in traditional Asian medicine. As a result, Javan rhinos are the most endangered large mammal, with only 67 known to exist. All Javan rhinos live in one national park called Ujung Kulon National Park. But even at Ujung Kulon, Javan rhinos face challenges. An eruption of the nearby Anak Krakatau volcano could destroy the world's population of Javan rhinos. Despite being protected, human activity has invaded the park and damaged the rhino habitat. And an invasive palm tree has choked out much of the rhino's native food supply. Organisations, like the Rhino Foundation of Indonesia, work with park staff to improve protections for the Javan rhino found in Ujung Kulon. In addition, the World Wildlife Fund developed plans to introduce a second population of Javan rhinos in another protected park to reduce the likelihood of extinction. 1. What could be the best title for the passage? A. Critically endangered Javan rhinos B. Javan rhinos and African rhinos C. Extinct Javan rhinos D. Homes of Javan rhinos 2. What does them in paragraph 1 refer to? A. African rhinos B. Asian rainforests C. Javan rhinos D. Species of rhinos 3. What is the biggest threat to the Javan rhino? A. Plants B. Food supply C. Other animals D. Humans