Passage 1:

The Career of Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock, a film director best known for his cynical portrayal of the human condition and macabre sense of
humor, was born in 1899 in London, England. Despite having two siblings, he described his childhood as a lonely
one, and he thought of his father as a stern disciplinarian and his mother as overly watchful. After college,
Hitchcock worked a few odd jobs before finding his way to a career in film.

Hitchcock directed his first film in 1922, though it ran out of funding during production and was never completed.
The following year he co-directed his first released film, called Always Tell Your Wife. And he released his first
solo-directed film, The Pleasure Garden, in 1925.

Throughout his career, Hitchcock directed more than 50 major films and developed several signature trademarks,
one of which was his affinity for making cameos in the majority of his films. The Birds, for example, released in
1963, opens in San Francisco’s Union Square and shows the director leaving a pet store with two of his own dogs.
Another example comes from his 1929 film Blackmail, his first film with sound, in which he is shown being
pestered by a child as he reads a book on the London Underground.

Hitchcock also was a master at developing suspense, using alternating camera angles to achieve his goal. The
famous shower scene in his 1960 film Psycho and the cropduster sequence in his 1959 film North by Northwest are
particularly iconic instances of this technique.

Many of Hitchcock’s films were critically acclaimed and became influential to generations of later filmmakers. His
1940 film Rebecca, for example, won the Academy Award for Best Picture and gave Hitchcock his first nomination
for Best Director. He was awarded two stars on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame in 1960: one for his work in motion
pictures and the other for his accomplishments in television. One of Hitchcock’s most prestigious honors came from
the American Film Institute, which awarded him with its Lifetime Achievement Award in 1979.

Hitchcock’s health began to suffer, and in 1980 he died peacefully in his sleep. Shortly before his death, Hitchcock
was knighted, making him Sir Alfred Hitchcock.

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What the does the word macabre in the first paragraph mean?
a. sophisticated
b. gruesome
c. deadpan
d. pleasant

2. What does the word affinity in the third paragraph mean?

a. aversion
b. sympathy
c. introduction
d. tendency

Factual Questions:

3. The first film Hitchcock direct _____.

a. received negative reviews
b. received positive reviews
c. is regarded as his best
d. ran out of funding

4. How many stars does Hitchcock have on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?
a. One
 b. Two
c. None
d. Three

5. What is Hitchcock seen doing in the Birds?

a. reading a book
b. standing in the shadows
c. leaving a pet store
d. riding a train

6. How many films did Hitchcock direct during his career?

a. <50
b. >100
c. <75
d. >50

Passage 2:

The Age of Discovery

The Age of Discovery began in the early 15th century and extended several centuries, as Europeans sought out
wealth and trade in far-flung lands. These important voyages led to an astounding number of geographic discoveries
and the mapping of the planet. They also led to the formation of vast colonial empires that persisted well into the
20th century and sometimes resulted in battles between indigenous populations and Europeans.

Advances in sailing and the desire to find a sea route to the spice-rich Indies were two significant factors that led to
the Age of Discovery. The Portuguese launched the era with expeditions under the patronage of Prince Henry the
Navigator (1394-1460), who was among the first to order his ships to find a new route to the Indies that would not
be impeded by land blockades. Portuguese sailors employed new sailing methods that resulted in the sighting of the
islands of Madeira in the late 1410s and the Azores about a decade or so later.

In 1492 Christopher Columbus led an expedition to the Americas, ostensibly in search of a trade route to Asia.
Columbus was born in Genoa (now in Italy) but sailed under the patronage of King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella
I of Spain. His four voyages (1492-93, 1493-96, 1498-1500, and 1502-04) opened up much of the Americas to the
inland exploration of Spain’s conquistadors.

In 1497 Vasco da Gama’s Portuguese expedition rounded the Cape of Good Hope at the Southern tip of Africa,
opening up a sea route from western Europe to Asia. By the early 1510s the Portuguese established themselves on
the so-called Spice Islands (known today as the Moluccas) and reached China. And, in 1522, in perhaps the greatest
early achievement of this era of discovery, a Portuguese contingent completed the first circumnavigation of the
globe; the mission had initially been led by Ferdinand Magellan, but he died along the way, and the expedition was
completed under the leadership of the Basque navigator Juan Sebastian del Cano.

England, France, and the Netherlands eventually participated in these voyages of exploration and reached Australia
and Hawaii; they also found new sailing routes around South America’s Cape Horn.

Innovative methods of sailing and mapping the world along with the newly acquired knowledge of distant lands and
other cultures coincided with the Renaissance in Europe. This period of exploration opened up the world to
increased travel, new settlements, and large colonial empires. Although scholars mark the end of the Age of
Discovery in the early 17 th century, exploration continued in places like the Australian continent and the interior of
Africa. The discoveries of this period would have profound effects on the course of world history and shape the
formation of the modern world.
Factual Question:

1. About when did the Age of Discovery begin?

a. early 15th century
b. early 14th century
c. early 16th century
d. early 17th century

Exception Questions:

2. Which country was not mentioned in the passage as participating in these voyages?
a. Spain
b. Greece
c. Portugal
d. England

3. Which explorer is not mentioned in the passage?

a. Sebastian del Cano
b. Christopher Columbus
c. Hernando de Soto
d. Vasco da Gama

4. Which was not explored during the Age of Discovery?

a. Asia
b. Americas
c. Antarctica
d. Africa

Source Question:

5. The above passage is most probably an extract from _____.

a. a newspaper
b. a research Paper
c. an encyclopedia
d. a culture magazine

Passage 3:

The treadmill began to whir, and I gripped its handlebars as the belt started moving me backwards. All I could do
now was run -- or begrudgingly barrel forward -- toward an outdated screen that showed me the terrain I was
supposed to be running on. It was made of red squares stacked up, one on top of another: the higher stacks were
supposed to be steep hills, and the lower ones, valleys. I tried to picture them as burning coals to see if that would
make me speed up or at least feel like this exercise was somehow connected to nature -- even one of its cruel parts.

Tone of the Author:

1. How would you describe this author's attitude towards the treadmill?
a. negative
 b. nonchalant
c. encouraging
d. inspired

Passage 4:

One of the industrial giants who changed American society was Henry Ford. Born on a farm in Michigan in 1863,
he grew up to bring forth some of the most revolutionary improvements in automotive technology in the early 20th
century. His outstanding mechanical ability led him to become interested in the new automobiles in the early 1900s.
Though he did not invent the automobile, he improved upon everyone else's designs.

He was a person who believed in inexpensive, efficient production, so he established standards for his plant and
workers. He also standardized and produced many new auto parts for his Ford Motor Company cars. Then he
studied the workers' problems and built an assembly line -- the first of its kind in America. This ingenious
improvement led to mass production of thousands of automobiles per year. In fact, his plants had produced 15
million Model Ts by 1927.

Ford's personality was not all thrift, efficiency, and ingenuity, however. He was a man who was cold and who could
not keep pace with the competition due to his own rigidity. His company suffered because of his desire to maintain
the status quo instead of meeting and beating the competition by changing his product. Finally, he saw that he must
change or lose out; therefore, he introduced the eight-cylinder engine and once again took over the automobile
market. Ford left a legacy of millions of dollars, millions of jobs for American workers, and millions of satisfied
customers.

Tone of the Author:

1. The tone of this passage can be described as _____.

a. optimistic
b. formal
c. serious
d. critical

Technique Questions:

2. In developing the passage, the organizational pattern used by the author could be described as _____.
a. simple listing
b. time order
c. example
d. cause and effect
e. compare and contrast

Passage 5:

Excerpt from Churchill’s Speech: We Shall Fight on the Beaches

We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with
growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall
fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall
fight in the hills; we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large
part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet,
would carry on the struggle, until, in God’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to
the rescue and the liberation of the old.

Technique Questions:

1. Why does Churchill repeat the phrase “we shall fight” over and over? How does it support the main
purpose of this speech?
a. to express his bravery when he is vulnerable
b. to show that he also lacks something to say
c. to add emphasis and show conviction
d. to make his message easy to digest

Passage 6:

People often refer to taxes in terms of their being much too high. In reality, they are probably even higher than you
think, because in addition to the federal income tax we are now studying, there are many other Federal, State, and
local taxes, including sales taxes, inheritance taxes, state income taxes, personal property taxes, real estate taxes, and
others. These are just some of the most obvious ones.

Primary Idea Question:

1. What is the main idea of the paragraph?

a. Taxes are much too high.
b. We pay more taxes than we may realize.
c. Inheritance taxes and real estate taxes are unfair.
d. Some taxes are hidden

Passage 7:

The attitudes of Americans toward gambling are amazingly contradictory. You may find, for example, that horse
racing is legal in your state, but that you cannot legally play poker for money on your front porch; bookies may be
prosecuted by state law, but they are supposed to purchase a federal license nonetheless; one church condemns
gambling, while another raises money by sponsoring Bingo games. Gambling laws are inconsistent from state to
state or even from town to town and are very difficult to enforce.

Primary Idea Question:

1. What is the main idea of the paragraph?

a. Americans have negative attitudes toward gambling.
b. Gambling laws are difficult to enforce.
c. Gambling laws are inconsistent from community to community.
d. Churches do not have uniform ideas about gambling.

Passage 8:

Vietnam and the Middle East have taught us that our security position is not solely a matter of dealing with the
Warsaw Pact countries or the giants among the nations. Before our heavy intervention in Vietnam, fewer than five
American-born experts on Vietnam, Cambodia, or Laos … could speak with ease one of the languages of that area
…. What if—a big if—we had had … a mere twenty Americans who spoke Vietnamese fluently, who understood
their culture, aspirations, and political history? Maybe, just maybe, we would have avoided that conflict.

Inference Question:

1. It can be inferred from the passage that _____.

a. the author believes immersing with a culture and knowing their history prevent conflict
 b. the author thinks that conflict is born out of lack of education in a country
c. the author recommends cultural studies in the United States
d. the author wishes that English language and American history is taught in other countries

Evaluation Question:

2. Which of the following would the author most likely agree with?
a. Pulling out US troops that wage wars in other countries
b. Regulating the number of immigrants in the US
c. Imposing sanction on Russia to stop it from waging war in Ukraine
d. Sending army to third world countries for joint military exercises

The History of Reggae

Bob Marley is one of the most beloved musicians in the world, but few people are familiar with the history of the
music that he made famous. Reggae developed from a number of other indigenous Jamaican musical genres. The
mother of all Jamaican music is mento. Mento developed during the late 19 th century flourish during the 1950s. It is
a uniquely Jamaican fusion of African and European