Sample Proficiency Test 2  

SECTION I. USE of ENGLISH / Questions
Choose the alternative that best fits in each blank to make the texts meaningful..
Text 1.            
Why Are Children Curious?
Young children are always curious and attempting to discover and learn. They are curious 1_____ around them. Any child between the ages of four months and four years is said to be more curious than an adult scientist. Adults sometimes 2 _____ a child’s curiosity as a lack of ability to concentrate. The truth is that children begin to learn at birth, and 3 _____ they begin school at the age of five or six, they have already absorbed an amazing 4_____ of information. This is perhaps more than 5_____ in the rest of their lives. The role of adults in the learning process of children should not be underestimated. Adults should appreciate a child’s curiosity 6_____ them to learn. Only then can they contribute to the knowledge children absorb.
1. A) about everything B) in everything        C) for nothing          D) on anything
2. A) regard  B) remark  C) associate  D) approve
3. A) as soon as B) by the time  C) then             D) soon
4. A) capacity  B) total  C) amount  D) number
5.
A) learning                                 C) they will learn 
B) they learned                         D) having learned
6.
A) to encourage simultaneously                C) during simultaneous encouragement
B) for encouraging simultaneously              D) while simultaneously encouraging 
Text 2.
The Magic of Trees
In today’s modern computerized world, we humans have such a fast moving and short-lived life 7_____ the life of trees seems too long for 8_____. We may be excited about the prospect of a new millenium but there are trees still 9_____ firmly, which have seen millenia come and go. 3000 years is nothing to a yew. The world’s oldest tree, known as Eternal God, is a 12,000 year-old redwood that lives in the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park in California. There is a magic in trees that touches us all. The death of a tree inspires a strange empathy and may even make some people 10_____ at its loss.
7. A) than  B) that   C) where  D) which
8. A) to imagine  B) our imagining C) us to imagine D) us imagining
9. A) and stand  B) having stood  C) to be standing           D) standing
10. A) crying  B) to cry  C) cried   D) cry
 
Text 3 
A Huge Treat for Cinema Audiences
Cinema audiences in every country enjoy eating popcorn during a film. Soon they will be enjoying a fatter and fluffier kind of popcorn thanks to a group of physicists in Pennsylvania. The mathematical recipe they have cooked up for the new giant popcorn could also save manufacturers and 11_____ money. D. Hong at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, devised the recipe after 12_____ a speech by Young Hwa Kim, head of a company that 13_____ physics to industrial problems. Kim, in his speech, mentioned one challenge raised by a food company: how can the size of popcorn be increased?
To find out the answer to this question, Hong and his graduate student Joseph Both adapted some standard equations of thermodynamics to 14_____ how popcorn pops. When corn is heated in a pan or cooker, water inside the corn’s hard shell 15 _____ steam. Eventually the steam pressure becomes high enough to break the shell open.  The soft, fluffy inside then bursts out to equalize the pressure.
Hong’s mathematics showed that there is a simple way to make a bigger snack.  “To give popcorn a bigger volume, simply lower the pressure in the cooker,” said Hong. “For example, if you want to make it 10 times larger, you need to 16_____ the pressure about 20 times,” he says. 
Such pressure drops would be easy for industry to 17_____. Hong has submitted his work to the journal Physical Review E. and plans to experiment within a vacuum chamber 18_____ he can see how big he can make corn in practice.
“If industry is interested, I’d be willing to work with them,” he says. “Big popcorn would be fluffier and easier 19 _____,” he speculates, adding that it would bring more profit to any company that would be interested. “If the popcorn were 10 times larger, they 20_____ far less corn, just a tenth of the amount they do now, for the same price.”
11. A) competitors B) consumers   C) survivors         D) advisors
12. A) hearing  B) when he heard  C) to hear  D) that he heard
13. A) applies  B) conveys   C) converts  D) refers
14. A) justify  B) prescribe   C) describe  D) unify
15. A) brings up B) brings in          C) turns on  D) turns into
16. A) expand  B) increase   C) decline  D) reduce
17. A) achieve  B) install   C) succeed  D) conclude
18. A) in case  B) so that   C) provided that D) unless
19. A) for eating B) eaten   C) ate          D) to eat
20. 
A) should have been using             C) would be using
B) could have used              D) would have used
Text 4
Effects of Drugs on Drivers
Drugs taken for therapeutic purposes can affect a person’s driving more than alcohol. Ian Hindmarch of the University of Surrey studied the effect of the antidepressants 21 ______ since the 1950s. In one of his experiments, he divided the volunteers into two groups and he asked 22_____ their reactions on driving simulators. They were supposed to hit the car brakes whenever a break light flashed. If the volunteers were taking antidepressants, their reaction times were twice that of drivers who 23_____ the legal limit of alcohol just before the experiment. Currently, there is a joint project on the specifications of a drug-detection 24_____ for traffic police to use at the roadside. In addition, the Association of Chief Police Officers is trying other techniques for drug 25 _____ and ways to test drivers for any impairment in their reactions.
Can’t relief of depressive symptoms improve a patient’s 26_____? In fact, little 27____ known about the effects of depression itself on driving abilities. Hindmarch is planning to do research on this issue, too.
      
21.
A) has been widely prescribed       C) widely prescribed 
B) has prescribed widely              D) was widely prescribed
22. A) them for testing B) testing for them C) to test them  D) them to test
23. A) used to drink B) drink  C) were drinking D) had drunk
24. A) device  B) machinery  C) appliance  D) material
25. A) recognition B) addiction  C) introduction  D) prediction
26. A) objectives B) performance  C) production  D) operations
27. A) aren’t           B) isn’t             C) is   D) are

Text 5.
Formation of Soil
The term weathering refers to all the ways in which rock can be broken down. It 28_____ because minerals formed in a particular way (at high temperatures, in the case of igneous rocks) are often unstable when exposed to various conditions. Weathering 29_____ the interaction of the litosphere with the atmosphere and the hydrosphere. It occurs at different rates and in different ways, depending on the climatic and environmental 30_____. However, all kinds of weathering ultimately 31_____ broken minerals and rock fragments as well as other products of the decomposition of  stone.
Soil is the most obvious and the most important result of the weathering 32_____ . Soil is the weathered part of the earth’s crust that is 33_____ of sustaining plant life. The character of soil depends on the nature of rock from 34_____.  It also depends on the climate and on the relative ‘age’ of the soil. Immature soils are little more than broken rock fragments. Over time, immature soil develops into mature soil, resulting from decayed plant matter. Mature soil is darker, richer in microscopic life, and more supportive of plant growth 35_____ immature soil.
28. A) comes across B) takes after  C) comes up  D) takes place
29. A) comprises B) involves  C) interferes         D) contains
30. A) conditions B) coincidences  C) situations  D) opportunities
31. A) manufacture B) produce  C) maintain   D) persist
32. A) principals B) process  C) procedure         D) criteria
33. A) responsible      B) composed             C) capable       D) accused
34. A)  that it forms   B) it forms             C) which it is formed   D) that it is formed
35. A) such as  B) like   C) than   D) of
 
SECTION II. READING COMPREHENSION
Text 1.  Read the text and choose the alternative that best answers each question.
Books as Therapeutic Tools

Studies on the psychological state of children whose parents are divorced have shown that books can serve as therapeutic tools – or at least as effective additions to professional therapy – helping children cope with their parents’ divorce. According to educator-counsellor Joanne Bernstein, stories that confront problems with sincerity, honesty and credibility may provide insights, prompt self-examination, and lead to positive changes in attitude and behaviour. One way stories establish this is through identification. Reading about the grief and anxiety of others, she explains, can arouse sudden awareness as “problems that had not been consciously or completely recognized are allowed to surface. Introduced to characters who share their difficulties, children may no longer feel alienated and thus develop a sense of belonging. They feel freer to discuss and resolve their own problems.” 
Stories and books lacking credibility, which do not sound real due to their supernatural characters and fantasy worlds, do not produce such therapeutic results, however. They may, on the contrary, lead these children to live in an imaginary world where they will try to seek shelter and security, hiding away from their problems. On reading these stories and books, children will have even more problems confronting the ‘real’ world and be not just  disillusioned but also more distressed.
 

36. The word ‘prompt’ in line 5 is closest in meaning to _______.
A) stop        B) cancel  C) encourage             D) discourage
37. The word ‘alienated’ in line 9 is closest in meaning to ______.
A)  protected B) excluded  C) accepted                D) connected
    
38. ‘They’ in line 12 refers to _____.
A) Stories lacking credibility  C) Supernatural characters 
B) Therapeutic results   D) Fantasy worlds
39. Which of the following is not discussed in the article?
A) Children who read books and stories may examine and judge their own behavior.
B) Books can help children solve their problems by causing them to examine themselves.
C) It is difficult for children to improve their relationships with their divorced parents.
D) Children may be influenced by books or stories which have fantasy characters.
40. J. Bernstein believes that stories can help children find themselves if they _____.
A) are written by psychologists or therapists
B) allow the characters to have shelter and freedom
C) deal with life’s problems frankly and honestly
D) arouse sudden problems in the lives of children
41. From the text, we can understand that children of divorced parents need to ______.
A) leave home and live independently
B) recognize their problems
C) stop discussing their problems
D) stop seeing their parents  
42. Which of the following is not a reason why books and stories can act as effective therapeutic means?
A) They lead children to complete freedom and independence.
B) They can help bring children’s problems to the surface.
C) They lead the way to the resolution of problems.
D) They help children cope with their grief and problems.
43. When children read about the problems and sadness of others in books, they start to _____.
A) discuss their problems with them
B) withdraw themselves from real life
C) start reading fantasy books
D) identify themselves with these characters
44. Which of the following does the article mainly discuss?
A) Books can teach therapists how to better cope with children.
B) Divorced parents should buy more books for their children.
C) Children can learn to accept the realities of life through reading.
D) Children should learn to create their own fantasies.
 
Text 2. Read the text and choose the alternative that best answers each question.
Driven to Distraction

The E.U.’s tough new rules on recycling could mean a rocky road ahead for Europe’s carmakers.
If it hadn’t been for Henry Ford’s drive to create a mass market for cars, America wouldn’t have a middle class today. Undoubtedly, the car was the most important engine of economic growth in the 20th century. However, Ford’s American Dream is fast becoming Europe’s environmental nightmare because cars that are cast aside as useless cannot be disposed of entirely and thus contaminate the environment. Unfortunately, redundant cars do not simply vanish.
While a car’s metal components, which account for about 75% of its weight, can be reused, the remainder – a mix of plastic, rubber, fluids and paint that often contains toxic substances like mercury, cadmium and lead – is shredded into “fluff” and buried under garbage dumps. The environmental group Friends of the Earth says that this “fluff” accounts for around a tenth of the hazardous waste in Europe. And with 9 million cars discarded every year, the amount of uncontaminated land left is decreasing fast. According to environmentalists, although carmakers now have a variety of new, more easily recyclable materials to choose from, the pressures to work quickly and keep costs low often exceed their ecological concerns. What is needed is some incentive to motivate car designers to think about the environmental aspect of their work.
Recently, the European Parliament provided just such an incentive when it approved a directive that transfers responsibility for the environmental effect of a vehicle over its entire life cycle – from design to disposal – directly onto the manufacturers’ shoulders. Some requirements, such as a ban on the use of toxic heavy metals, and officially required recycling rates of 80% and 85% for cars that will go on the market after 2006 and 2015, are far reaching but feasible because with some effort, new cars can be adapted to the new regulations. But the new law will also apply retroactively and force carmakers to pay the full price for the disposal of every auto they ever produced. “The prospect of recycling cars that weren’t built to be recycled is unbearable from a financial point of view,” says Camille Blum, secretary-general of the Association of European Car Manufacturers (ACEA) . ACEA believes that the new measures announced by the European parliament will cost around $23 billion, based on a recycling cost of around $155 a car and an estimated 150 million cars on the EU’s roads.

45. The word ‘discarded’ in line 13 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) thrown away   C) got through
B) used up   D) got away with
46. The word ‘their’ in line 16 refers to _____.
A) recyclable materials  C) pressures 
B) environmentalists  D) carmakers
47. The word ‘incentive’ in line 17 is closest in meaning to _____. 
A) response    C) encouragement
B) conflict                     D) exposure
48. The word ‘feasible’ in line 24 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) unbelievable   C) available 
B) improbable   D) possible
49. The word ‘retroactively’ in line 25 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) currently  B) presently  C) previously  D) recently 
50. The word ‘measures’ in line 29 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) dimensions  B) degrees  C) concerns       D) regulations
  
51. The article points out that ______.
A) carmakers in Europe have always taken care to use only recyclable materials
B) 75 % of a car’s weight turns into “fluff” when it is disposed of
C) 25 % of a car’s weight consists of materials that cannot be recycled         
D) most European carmakers already have the incentive to consider ecology
52. Which of the following statements is not correct according to the article?
A) Toxic waste from disposed cars is a cause of land pollution in Europe.
B) The car industry helped in the development of the middle class in America.
C) Ecological concerns will increase car manufacturing costs.
D) European carmakers have been held responsible for the disposal of cars.
53. Which is correct according to the text?
A) Carmakers will only be partly responsible for the recycling and disposal of  cars.
B) The recycling of new cars will present more difficulties for car makers in the future.
C) ACEA says that recycling about 150 million European cars will cost over $20 billion.
D) Car manufacturers were always obliged to use non-toxic materials for car parts.
54. The purpose of the article is to discuss _____.
A) why car manufacturers insist on using toxic materials for making cars
B) the different materials used in the production of car components
C) the new regulations brought to car manufacturing for the sake of ecology
D) how the car industry helped economic growth in America and Europe

Text 3. Read the text and choose the alternative that best answers each question.
Catching Colds

One of the critical factors that play a part in susceptibility to colds is age according to a study done by the University of Michigan School of Public Health. The particulars revealed by the study seem to hold true for the general population. Infants are the most cold-ridden group, averaging more than six colds in their first year. Boys have more colds than girls up to age three. After the age of three, girls are more susceptible than boys, and teenage girls average three colds a year as opposed to boys’ two.
The general incidence of colds continues to decline into maturity. Elderly people who are in good health have as few as one or two colds annually. One exception is found among people in their twenties, especially women, who show a rise in cold infections due to the fact that people in this age group are most likely to have young children. Adults who delay having children until their thirties and forties experience the same sudden increase in cold infections.
The study also found that economics plays an important role. As income increases, the frequency at which colds are reported in a family decreases. Families with the lowest incomes suffer about a third more colds than families with the highest incomes. Lower income generally forces people to live in more crowded residences than those typically occupied by wealthier people, and crowding increases the opportunities for the cold virus to travel from person to person. Low income may also adversely influence diet. The degree to which poor nutrition affects susceptibility to colds is not yet clearly established, but an inadequate diet accounts for lowering resistance in general.
 
55. The word ‘particulars’ in line 2 is closest in meaning to ________.
A) variables       C) contradictions
B) specific details     D) conflicts
56. The word ‘susceptible’ in line 5 is closest in meaning to ________.
A) resistant to    C) likely to recover from
B) likely to be affected by                        D) well protected against
57. The word ‘those’ in line 15 refers to ________.
A) forces  B) incomes  C) people  D) houses
58. The word ‘adversely’ in line 17 is has a similar meaning to ________.
A) admirably    C) unexpectedly 
B) adequately    D) unfavourably
59. Which of the following groups of people is most likely to catch colds according to the text?
A) teenage boys   C) elderly women
B) one year old boys   D) 2 year old girls
60. It is inferred in the text that _________.
A) children can infect their parents with colds
B) men catch colds more frequently than women
C) people in cold climates have a high number of colds annually
D) 30-40 year old adults show a high frequency of colds
61. Which of the following is true according to the article?
A) According to the study, generally, the older the people are, the fewer colds they have.
B) The study has determined the role of nutrition in resistance to colds.
C) The study did not involve people of higher incomes who were well off.
D) No connection has yet been found between housing conditions and colds.
62. The main purpose of the article is to ________.
A) discuss the frequency rate of colds in different age groups
B) discuss the different factors affecting cold frequency
C) show the relationship between resistance to colds and people’s income
D) show that the incidence of colds decreases with age
Text 4.
Gapped Text (Questions 63- 65)
Three sentences have been deleted from the text below. Choose  the  alternative (A -D)
that would best fit in each box (63 –65) and mark the answer on the answer sheet. There is one extra sentence which you do not need.
Story Telling
“Once upon a time, in a certain land, in a certain village, not near, not far, … there lived a peasant.”  This is the way storytellers began many of their tales. Long before stories were written down, they were passed on through the generations by storytellers, people who used the gift of words to transport an audience out of this world and into another inhabited by kings and princesses, heroes and monsters, witches and wizards.
Today, both the tales and the skills of the old storytellers are being revived by a new generation of performers in many parts of the world. (63) __________ Beginning in clubs and bars and village halls, these tellers of tales have planted the seeds of interest which have grown into at least 70 storytelling festivals that are staged annually in dozens of languages.
During last month’s literature festival at Hay-on-Wye in Wales, for example, several British storytellers used their talents to amuse and entertain. (64) __________ Such tales may seem anachronistic in this visual age ruled by the cinema, television and computers.  But Daniel Morden, a young Welsh storyteller, thinks the enjoyment of listening to stories is the chance to make up our own images.  “Every member of an audience makes subtly different pictures in  their head, based on their own experience, fears, preoccupations and obsessions,” he says.  “So everyone hears a subtly different story.” 
Traditions of storytelling are still strong in many parts of the world today. (65) _________  Ben Haggarty, one of Britain’s leading storytellers, believes that Europe lost many of its stories after World War I, for instance, since people didn’t feel like telling stories afterward.  And once the stories disappear, they’re gone. 
As a contribution to the revival of stories, in many countries formal courses are offered to teach would-be storytellers how to peel back the layers and get to the heart of a story. In Germany, for example, the European Fairy Tale Society runs training courses for students to learn how language works, how to present a story, and how to use gestures and adjust the voice.
A) Enthusiasts from the U.S. and Canada to Australia and New Zealand are now demonstrating that the stories that we all carry in our heads as part of our common heritage are ready to be retold.
B) The difficulty for storytellers today is that in the telling and retelling, the origins of the  stories have become obscured by changes made over the years.
C) However, political conflicts, industrialization and urbanization are the biggest  enemies of oral narrative.
D) The range of stories told on one day – from a Romanian folk tale about a prince fleeing  death to a late night collection of adult tales about water nymphs and a prince searching for a wife – showed how varied the content can be.
 
SECTION III. WRITING ( 20 points)
Write an essay of 250 – 300 words on ONE of the topics given below. Your essay must have an introduction / a clear thesis statement (with controlling idea/s), at least 2 body paragraphs with relevant supporting ideas and a conclusion. Your ideas should be organized properly.
Why do most young people in Turkey live with their parents until they get married?   Discuss.
At present, the number of women in business life is much higher than 15-20 years ago. Discuss the factors that have led to the increasing number of women in business life.
Discuss the effects of low income on a person’s life.
4.  How does losing one’s job affect his/her life and his/her family? Discuss.
 
 
WRITE YOUR ESSAY ON THE SHEET PROVIDED.
DO NOT WRITE HERE
Essays written on the pages of this booklet will NOT be graded.
PROFICIENCY B KEY
1. A
2. A
3. B
4. C
5. C
6. D
7. B
8. C
9. D
10. D
11. B
12. A
13. A
14. C
15. D
16. D
17. A
18. B
19. D
20. C
21. C
22. D
23. D
24. A
25. A
26. B
27. C
28. D
29. B
30. A
31. B
32. B
33. C
34. C
35. C
36. C
37. B
38. A
39. C
40. C
41. B
42. A
43. D
44. C
45. A
46. D
47. C
48. D
49. C
50. D
51. C
52. D
53. C
54. C
55. B
56. B
57. D
58. D
59. B
60. A
61. A
62. B
63. A
64. D
65. C

Sample Proficiency Test 3   
 
SECTION I. USE of ENGLISH
Choose the alternative that best fits in each blank to make the texts meaningful.
Text 1.
The Great Wall Myth
As science develops, recently collected evidence leads to radical changes in textbooks. One such example is the Great Wall myth. Chinese education officials have even ordered school textbooks to be rewritten to 1___________ the myth that the Great Wall can be seen from space. Thanks to Yang Liwei, China’s first man in space, people now have accepted the idea that the Great Wall of China cannot be seen from space. When he returned from his mission last year, Liwei told reporters he was unable to see the Great Wall of China 2___________ the Earth in his craft Shenzhou V. The Beijing Times quoted an official as saying school textbook publishers have been asked to take out the 3___________ passages. He said: “Printing this falsehood in our elementary school textbooks is probably the main reason that such a false belief is so widespread. I wish textbook editors 4___________ more attention to this issue which creates the wrong impression among people.”
1. A) remove  B) convey  C) focus  D) conclude
2. A) on the orbit      B) while orbiting C) for orbiting  D) to orbit
3. A) relevant  B) ignorant  C) adequate  D) sufficient
4. A) have paid  B) had paid  C) were paid  D) had been paid
Text 2.
Alternative History
Alternative history is generally classified as a type of science fiction, but it also bears some relation to historical fiction. This type of writing 5___________ an imaginary world that is identical to ours up to a certain point in history, but at that point, the two worlds differ; some important historical event takes place in one world but not in 6___________ , and they then go in different directions. Alternative histories may suppose that some technology 7___________ in the world’s history long before it actually happened. For example: What would be different today if computers 8___________ in the 18th century? Many readers find these stories interesting because of the way they stimulate the imagination and get 9___________ about the phenomenon of cause and effect in history.
5. A) surrounds  B) describes  C) detects  D) supplies
6. A) other  B) others  C) another  D) the other 
7.
A) would have been introduced  C) will have been introduced
B) had been introduced   D) is introduced
8.
A) had been invented   C) are invented
B) were invented   D) will be invented
9. A) them think  B) them to think  C) their thinking  D) them thought

Text 3.
Why Does a Puppy Make Us Feel Better?
       
It’s well known that pets, especially dogs, offer their owners many health benefits. For centuries, therapy dogs have been used to visit nursing homes, calm troubled children and help ease pain in people undergoing physical rehabilitation. However, according to Dr Daniel Johnson of St. George’s Medical Institute, Florida, the field of animal-assisted therapy is still in its infancy.  Researchers are trying to 10___________ which types of people would best benefit from being with pet animals.
“By showing how interacting with pets actually works in the body, we can help animal-assisted therapy become a 11___________ practice that would be prescribed to patients and, in the long run, be paid for by insurance companies,” says Johnson. The study was funded by The Skeeter Foundation, a group 12___________ by Dr. Jack Stephens, founder of Veterinary Pet Insurance, a nationwide insurer of pet medical coverage. Johnson’s study expanded on research conducted in 1999 by South African scientists, 13___________ that 15 minutes of quietly stroking a dog caused hormonal changes that were beneficial to both the dog and the human. However, the South African study was small, 14___________ only 18 people and a few friendly dogs. It didn’t test for serotonin— the brain chemical strongly linked to depression. Thanks to serotonin, we become more mentally alert and our sleep 15___________ as well.
10. A) invent  B) suspect  C) determine  D) conceal
11.
A) medical acceptance B) medically accepted C) medically acceptance D) medical acceptable
12. A) headed  B) is headed  C) heading  D) has been headed
13. A) found  B) which was found C) were found  D) who found
14. A) involved  B) involving  C) involve  D) was involved
15. A) provides  B) proceeds  C) imposes  D) improves
Text 4.
Rain Forests ‘Threatened’ by Crisps and Chocolate
How many of us are aware of the harmful effects of chocolate and crisps on ecology? According to a new report, if we didn’t eat such supermarket foods, we 16___________ to the destruction of the world’s rainforests. Friends of the Earth says the damage is 17___________ the booming demand for palm oil which is used in products 18 ___________ chocolate, crisps, margarine, shampoo and detergents. The campaign group says trade in palm oil is fuelling the destruction of rainforests in South East Asia, 19 ___________ human rights abuses and devastating pollution. The report shows that large scale palm oil plantations are 20___________ the forests in Indonesia and Malaysia at an 21___________ rate, wiping out 80% to 100% of wildlife. In Indonesia, the forests are disappearing at a rate of more than two 22___________ hectares a year – an area greater than Wales. FOE 23__________ that a quarter of Indonesia’s palm oil goes to the European Union while British companies are involved in the trade as 24___________ and retailers and in processing palm oil. “The global trade in palm oil is destroying some of the world’s most precious wildlife, but the UK  Government and the companies involved seem 25___________ ignoring the issue,” says director Tony Juniper.
16.
A) won’t contribute    C) wouldn’t be contributing
B) didn’t contribute    D) weren’t contributing
17. A) because  B) result of  C) in spite  D) due to
18. A) as  B) as an example C) such as  D) mainly
19. A) resulting from  B) bringing to  C) leading to  D) taking up
20. A) covering  B) including  C) replacing  D) substituting
21. A) endless  B) alarming  C) infinite         D) ultimate
22. A) millions of B) million    C) million in       D) millions
23. A) estimates B) exposes  C) exerts  D) evaluates
24. A) investments B) investors  C) supplies  D) colleagues
25. A) as if  B) to be  C) like   D) that
 
Text 5.
A Doubleheader for Comet Watchers
Comets whiz through the solar system all the time, but most are so faint that you can’t see them without a good telescope. A comet bright enough 26___________ with the naked eye is pretty rare, and the appearance of Hyakutake in 1996 and Hale-Bopp just a year later was considered a  27___________ coincidence. But that’s nothing 28___________ what stargazers have to look forward to in the next week or so: not just one, but two visible-to-the-naked-eye-comets lighting up the sky at the same time.
These are not average comets. Both were discovered not by astronomers, but by automated telescopes 29___________ to look for asteroids near Earth that might pose a 30___________ to the planet. That’s how they got their names – Comet Neat and Comet Linear. Unlike Comet Halley, neither comet 31___________ before. Both have plunged in toward the Sun from the Oort Cloud, a spherical halo of ice chunks left over from the 32___________ of the solar system. That’s why scientists will be looking at them so carefully: they will show 33___________ like in the universe 4.6 billion years ago.
34___________ both comets are naked-eye objects, binoculars are the best way to see them and their relatively faint tales. “Still, anyone can see them even with a very simple piece of  35 ___________, ” says David Eicher, editor of Astronomy magazine.
26. A) for seeing   B) to be seen  C) seen   D) having seen
27. A) remarkable  B) remarked  C) remarking  D) remark
28. A) consisting of  B) compared to  C) composed of  D) connected to
29.
A) which designed   C) designed 
B) were designed   D) and designed
30. A) threat   B) treat   C) treatment  D) trust
31.
A) has ever been seen   C) have ever been seen
B) has never been seen   D) have never been seen
32. A) existence   B) presence  C) formation  D) formula
33.
A) what were conditions   C) what conditions were
B) how conditions were   D) how were conditions
34. A) Even though  B) In addition  C) Despite  D) Since
35. A) machines  B) equipment  C) facility  D) access

SECTION II. READING COMPREHENSION
Text 1. Gapped Text (Questions 36-38)
Three sentences have been deleted from the text below. Choose  the  alternative (A -D)
that would best fit in each box (36–38) and mark the answer on the answer sheet. There is one extra sentence which you do not need.
Cats and Men
Grave discovery suggests cats have long been tamed by man.
Archaeologists have found the earliest known evidence of a special link between humans and cats. They have unearthed the grave of a 30-year-old neolithic villager who died 9,500 years ago in Cyprus. Buried with the body were jewellery and offerings, and in a special pit, a set of 24 sea shells. 36__________
“The association of this burial with the sea shells and the cat grave strengthens the idea of a special burial indicating a relationship between cats and human beings,” said the discoverer, Jean-Denis Vigne of the Natural History Museum in Paris. “Possibly tamed cats were devoted to special activities or human individuals.”
According to DNA evidence, the forerunner of the domestic dog – a far eastern wolf – first moved in with humans around 15,000 years ago. The first burial of a dog with a human dates from 12,500 years ago, in Israel. The goat, 10,000 years ago, was probably the first domestic milk-producer. 37__________ However, the discovery of the skeleton of a wildcat–
Felis Sylvestris–that had clearly been handled with care so long ago- has archaeologists shaken.
Cat bones have been found near human settlements before. Grain stores would have attracted rats and mice; cats would have found good hunting, so bones are not evidence of domestication. 38__________ And because the bones were in their right places in the skeleton, the animal must have been buried promptly upon death: otherwise, the bones would have been taken by scavengers, animals that feed on decaying plant or animal matter.
“The first discovery of cat bones on Cyprus showed that humans had brought cats from the mainland, but we couldn’t decide if these cats were wild or tame. With this discovery, we can now decide that these cats were linked to humans,” Dr Vigne said.
A) Only five thousand years later, the sheep replaced the goat as the main source of milk.
B) Less than 2ft away, in a grave made in the same sediment and at the same depth, lay the skeleton of a young cat.
C) But the bones, found in the grave at the neolithic village of Shillikamborous, and now being excavated by the College de France, showed no sign of being butchered.
D) Until now, the earliest household cats were believed to have been bred by the ancient Egyptians only 4,000 years ago.

Text 2. Read the text and choose the alternative that best answers each question.
At last, a Clear-Cut Way to Predict Landslides

Clearing hillside forests can trigger landslides, with disastrous consequences. Now geologists have found a way to predict the location of landslide hotspots, information that could be vital for safe logging.
“The total area at high risk from clear-cutting is fairly small but the risk of clear-cutting in those areas is very high,” says Dave Montgomery of the University of Washington in Seattle. He says loggers should cut safe zones and avoid dangerous areas, where landslides are 10 times as likely after clearing.
Montgomery’s group spent a decade mapping every small landslide on a stretch of mountain near Coos Bay, Oregon, after it was cleared in 1987. Of the 35 slides they mapped, 30 occurred in hollows into which sediment had been washed from the hillsides. Montgomery says the most vulnerable areas tended to be steep wet spots, and landslides were also common along roads cut into the hillside.
Water weakens the soil as well as adding to its mass. In mature forests, tree roots increase the cohesion of soil in risky zones. But after logging, the roots decay, and it takes years for young trees to develop their own root networks to replace them. Montgomery noted that more than half the landslides in his study area occurred between three and five years after logging. He found that many of the slides occurred in insignificant storms likely to occur every year or two, rather than once-in-a-century events. He argues that there should be no logging at all in the highest-risk zones because they are so small. He also asserts that selective logging would not be economically worthwhile and might cause problems.
 
39. The word ‘it’ in line 9 refers to ______.
A) a stretch of mountain         C) Oregon    
B) Coos Bay    D) small landslide
40. The word ‘them’ in line 15 refers to _____.
A) years              B) young trees           C) decayed roots            D) developed roots 
41. The word ‘vulnerable’ in line 11 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) in danger of landslides  C) protected against landslides
B) safe from landslides   D) mapped for landslides
42. Which of the following sentences is true according to the article?
A) Clear-cutting forests can result in landslides and cause disasters.
B) There is no harm in clear cutting in small areas.
C) Geologists cannot predict where a landslide is to happen.
D) The occurrence of landslides is very rare in areas that are clear-cut.

43. According to Montgomery, _________.
A) high risk zones cover large areas
B) loggers should take risks when clearing
C) clearing increases the possibilities of landslides
D) landslides can be avoided through clearing
44. Montgomery’s study has shown that landslides happen _____.
A) whenever water increases the mass of soil
B) when the soil has cohesion due to branches
C) during unusually strong and disastrous storms
D) during a storm 3-5 years after logging
45. Which of the following does Montgomery support?
A) Logging should be stopped all together.
B) Logging should be done selectively.
C) Loggers should find other occupations.
D) Landslides can be prevented through safe logging.

Text 3. Read the text and choose the alternative that best answers each question.
 
Think Drink

According to a new study, when alcohol makes shy people less nervous in social situations, the effect is purely psychological. 
The study looked at the effects of alcohol on people with social phobia. For example, some people suffer from stress which is debilitating even in ordinary social situations, such as chatting on the phone. Earlier research showed that 15 percent of people with social phobia have at some time had drinking problems, and that alcoholics are nine times as likely as the general population to have the disorder.
Joseph Himle, a psychiatrist at the University of Michigan, wanted to find out whether alcohol really does reduce anxiety. So, he enlisted the help of 40 people with social phobia who agreed to drink an unknown amount of alcohol before giving two impromptu speeches in front of an audience. Giving a speech without any preparation beforehand would naturally cause stress even for people without the phobia.
A key factor in the experiment was that the volunteers could not tell exactly how much alcohol they had drunk. Before the first speech, everyone gargled with mouthwash and drank a “placebo” of sour grapefruit juice  that contained no alcohol except a little vodka rubbed on the rim of the glass. Before the second speech, 20 patients drank another placebo, and 20 drank grapefruit juice containing an amount of alcohol equivalent to between two and three glasses of wine.
The patients had to give 10-minute speeches on issues such as seat belts or gun control. After each one, the researchers monitored their heart rates and gave them a questionnaire to rate their level of anxiety. Himle assumed that everyone would be more relaxed the second time they gave a speech, but that people who had drunk alcohol would have calmed down the most.
However, consuming alcohol turned out to make no difference to anxiety levels when the volunteers gave the second speech. “We were surprised, because given the association between alcoholism and social anxiety, we were expecting a clear benefit.”
What did matter, the researchers found, was people’s perception of how much alcohol they had drunk. Even among those in the placebo group, a belief that the drinks contained alcohol made the volunteers significantly less nervous.
Bruce Thyer of the University of Georgia in Athens believes this is the most sophisticated study that’s ever been done to test the theory that alcohol has an effect on social phobia. “People’s expectations may make drinking helpful when they confront a frightening situation,” Thyer concludes. “But because alcohol can impair performance, it’s probably not the best way to cope with fear.”
 
46. The word ‘debilitating’ in line 4 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) having a weakening effect   C) having a little effect
B) giving courage    D) giving support

47. The word ‘the disorder’ in line 7 refers to _____.
A) social phobia  B) drink problem       C) alcoholism   D) chatting on the phone
48. The word ‘impromptu’ in line 10 would best be replaced by _____.
A) spontaneous  B) controlled         C) organized   D) simultaneous
49. In this text, the word ‘placebo’ in line 15 refers to _____.
A) fruit juice which is used instead of alcohol
B) a mixture of mouthwash and grapefruit juice
C) sour fruit juice served with some alcohol 
D) fruit juice and a bit of alcohol mixed together
50. The word ‘one’ in line 20 refers to _____.
A) speech   B) issue  C) seat belt            D) gun control
51. The word ‘those’ in line 28 refers to _____.
A) volunteers   B) alcoholics  C) researchers  D) drinks
52. The word ‘impair’ in line 33 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) support    B) damage  C) reinforce  D) strengthen
53. We understand from the text that before their speeches, the volunteers _____.
A) thought that they had some alcohol 
B) had plenty of time to plan and practise
C) were all made to drink some amounts of alcohol
D) were given two or three  glasses of wine to drink
54. When giving their second speech, the volunteers _____.
A) believed that alcohol had made them less nervous
B) in the placebo group were more relaxed than the other 20
C) clearly displayed the behaviour which the researchers had expected
D) who were given alcohol showed no signs of fear at all
55. At the end of the experiment, the researchers _____.
A) found no connection between drinking and social anxiety
B) realized that the effects of drinking on people with social phobia were mostly psychological
C) realized that alcohol has the effect of impairing people’s performance
D) failed to determine the psychological effects of alcohol on people with social weaknesses
56. The purpose of the experiment mentioned in the article was to find out _____.
A) whether the effect of alcohol on social phobia is clearly psychological
B) how dangerous the effect of alcohol can be on people’s social behaviour
C) how risky it is to consume alcohol before any performance in public
D) whether  taking alcohol before making a speech in front of an audience is a good idea
 
 
Text 4. Read the text and choose the alternative that best answers each question.

‘Good’ Writing

The language used in written prose is worth changing and revising for the sake of clarity and style. Expository writing requires language to express far more complex trains of thought than it was designed to do. Inconsistencies caused by limitations of short-term memory and planning, which may go unnoticed in conversation, are not as tolerable when preserved on a page that is to be read more leisurely. In addition, unlike conversational partners, readers  rarely share enough background knowledge to insert all the missing information that make language comprehensible. Overcoming one’s natural egocentrism and trying to anticipate the knowledge level of a reader at every stage of the exposition is one of the most important tasks in writing well. All this makes writing a difficult craft that must be mastered through practice, instruction, feedback, and – probably most important – intensive exposure to good examples. There are excellent manuals of composition which discuss these and other skills with great wisdom, thus helping people to become good writers. They give relevant and practical advice to people who want to write well. For example, a simple but universally acknowledged key to good writing is to revise extensively. Good writers go through anywhere from two to twenty drafts before releasing a paper. Anyone who fails to appreciate this necessity is likely to  be a bad writer. Drafts and revisions are the key to writing clearly and producing good writing.

57. The word ‘which’ in line 4 refers to _____.
A) planning B) inconsistencies C) limitations  D) short-term memory
58. The word ‘manuals’ in line 11 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) handbooks B) grammar books C) books of wisdom D) literature
59. The word ‘They’ in line 12 refers to _____.
A) people  B) good writers C) manuals  D) writing skills
60. The word ‘acknowledged’ in line 13 is closest in meaning to _____.
A) recognized B) rejected  C) regretted  D) resented
61. The phrase ‘this necessity’ in line 15 refers to _____.
A) extensive revision    C) releasing a paper
B) being a good writer                D) intensive exposure
62. Which of the following is claimed in the article?
A) Some memories are not always accurate.
B) Short-term memory may be inadequate for writing.
C) People have problems of writing down their memories.
D) Long-term memory is an obstacle to good writing.
63. According to the text, readers sometimes have difficulty understanding written texts because _____.
A) they may not know enough about the topic
B) the texts are too difficult and too long
C) they cannot overcome their natural egocentrism
D) they do not have enough tolerance
64. It can be inferred from the article that good expository writers _____.
A) are self-centered
B) consider their readers
C) explain every point
D) write manuals
 
65. Which of the following conclusions is supported in the article?
A) Writing is a biological process with its own styles.
B) Conveying meaning in writing is easier than in conversation.
C) Writing can be best learned from a writing manual.
D) A good piece of writing is the result of  extensive revising.

SECTION III. WRITING
Write an essay of 250 – 300 words on ONE of the topics given below. Your essay must have an introduction / a clear thesis statement (with controlling idea/s), at least 2 body paragraphs with relevant supporting ideas and a conclusion. Your ideas should be organized properly.
There are more female than male teachers at primary and high schools. Discuss the reasons.
Why do people still go to the cinema although there are many films on TV and VCDs and DVDs are easily available? Discuss.
Discuss the possible effects of the increase in the number of private universities in Turkey in the next ten years.
What are the effects of being an only child in a family? Discuss.
 

WRITE YOUR ESSAY ON THE CODED SHEET PROVIDED.
Essays written on the pages of this booklet or on any other sheet will not be graded.
DO NOT WRITE HERE!
                

Key
1. A
2. B
3. A
4. B
5. B
6. D
7. B
8. A
9. B
10. C
11. B
12. A
13. D
14. B
15. D
16. C
17. D
18. C
19. C
20. C
21. B
22. B
23. A
24. B
25. B
26. B
27. A
28. B
29. C
30. A
31. A
32. C
33. C
34. A
35. B
36. B
37. D
38. C
39. A
40. C
41. A
42. A
43. C
44. D
45. D
46. A
47. A
48. A
49. A
50. A
51. A
52. B
53. A
54. A
55. B
56. A
57. B
58. A
59. C
60. A
61. A
62. B
63. A
64. B
65. D