Mid
Test, Starlight, 10.
Task
I.
Read
the article and choose the most suitable heading from the list A-I for each
paragraph 1-8. There is one extra heading which you do not need to use.
A – Rejecting
Reality
B – Nothing to Worry about
C – Entertainment and Adventure
D – A Perfect Pretend Place
E – Not - so - Natural Wonders
F – A Dream Comes True
G – An Island Paradise
H – Do You Prefer Perfection?
I – Fantastic Facilities
Paradise
Found?
Close your eyes and imagine the perfect beach: soft
white sand, beautiful blue sea, and the temperature a constant 30 degrees
Celsius. But wait, there’s more: no risk of sunburn, no insects or bugs, no
sharks or jellyfish, and, at regular intervals, the best surfing waves imaginable.
Too good to be true? Not anymore. Thanks to modern technology and the miracles
of science, this beach really does exit and it is on the island of Kyushu in
southern Japan.
In a resort complex called Seagaia you will find the
Ocean Dome. The Ocean Dome contains, among other things, the world’s largest
artificial sea beside the biggest indoor beach. It is roughly the size of six
football fields and has an 85-metre shoreline. The soft white sand is actually
made of crushed marble chips, which won’t stick to your skin, and the water is
salt free and chlorinated. The temperature of the water is kept at 28degrees C
and the air is kept at 30 degrees C.
The Dome has everything you would expect to find on a
big tropical island: caves, waterfalls, small islands, palm trees and that’s
just the beginning. There is a man-made volcano that erupts at regular
intervals, waterslides, a wave pool and even a virtual raft ride where
passengers are tossed, shaken and splashed with water.
There is plenty to do for the whole family in Seagaia
and, if you want a break from the beach, you can visit the ‘Lost World’
rainforest. This is a Jurassic Park style jungle full of artificial creatures
and holographic pirates. There is also a beach carnival held every afternoon
with dancers and musicians dressed in colourful Caribbean costumes and in the
evening there is a spectacular show put on by aquatic dancers.
In Seagaia you don’t even have to carry any money with
you. Visitors pay an admission fee at the entrance and are given colour coded
barcode tags, which they use instead of cash. This type of holiday is wonderful
for anyone who enjoys lying on the ‘beach’ or swimming in the ‘sea’ without
having to check the weather forecast first. In fact, many Japanese businessmen
and office workers come here just relax and unwind after a hard week’s work.
Naturally, no island holiday is complete without
luxury hotels, boutiques and a wide variety of restaurants with everything from
fine dining to fast food, and Seagaia has them all. There are even several
theatres, golf courses and tennis courts. The Ocean Dome feels so real that
visitors to the resort still use suntan lotion and wear sunhats even though the
‘sunlight’ is artificial and harmless.
The Dome itself actually has a roof that opens but it
is only used when the weather outside is at the same temperature as the weather
inside the Dome. It is also quite ironic that the Ocean Dome was built only 300
metres away from the real ocean. Strangely enough, the real beach is usually
quite empty even on hot and sunny days because holidaymakers seem to prefer the
safety, comfort and predictability of the artificial beach.
Nowadays, theme parks are springing up everywhere and
it looks like virtual reality holidays are going to be the way of the future.
After all, they are cleaner, safer and far more convenient than real holidays.
However, can we really compare the experience of sitting on an artificial beach
with man-made sand under a fake sun to a day on a real beach? Where is the
challenge in surfing man-made waves when you know exactly how big they are
going to get and exactly when they are going to appear? More importantly, where
is the fun in coming back from a seaside holiday without tan lines?
Task
II.
Read the following text.
For gaps 1-8 choose the correct answer A-D.
The
Origin of Crisps.
Crisps have been great favourites with many of us 1----------- years. Who
2-----------enjoy nibbling thin round pieces of fried potatoes in front of the
TV or as a snack to go with a drink at a party? One would think that such a
popular food was born from an idea that came to one of the top chefs of America
at a moment of great inspiration, but the truth is quite different.
One day in 1853 in a restaurant a choosy customer complained to the waitress
3---------- the quality of his chips, saying that they were 4----------- thick
and oily. When the cook heard about this, he became very angry. He made some
paper-thin slices of potatoes, fried them until they were brown and
5----------- a rather generous amount of salt. Finally, he 6---------- his
crisps to the dissatisfied customer in person and literally dumped them in
front of him. The customer tried one, liked the taste, and went on to eat
7--------all. Today, according 8---------statistics, an American eats an
average of six pounds of crisps each year.
1. A) many B) since C) from D) for
2. A) isn’t B) doesn’t C) hasn’t D) wasn’t
3. A) on B) that C) for D) about
4.
A) enough B) more C) too D) so
5.
A) mixed B) added C) put D) did
6. A) served B) gave C) sold D) fried
7. A) them B) it C) this D) that
8. A) to B) with C) by D) on
Task
III.
Complete
the advertisement. Use the words correctly.
ABBOTS
Health &
Fitness Club.
Dear member,
We now (1- finish)
our work on the new ABBOTS – the difference is amazing! Six weeks ago we (2
-close) the club, and since then we (3- work) hard to improve all
the public areas. We (4-add) several new machines to the gym and we’ve
increased the (5 -long) of the swimming pool to 25 metres.
Many
of you (6 -be) members of (7-we) club for several years– to thank
you for staying with us, we (8-reduce) gym, pool and class prices for
you.
And we have some
new classes! You ever (9 - try) judo? Now (10 - be) your chance!
If you (11- not
visit) our new website yet, go to
WWW. abbots.co.uk
Task IV.
Use the words in brackets to form one word
for each gap 1-8.
The
School Lottery.
In some big cities in Britain, identical houses
in similar areas are sold for 1__________(difference) prices. Why is
this? Each school in Britain has a list of streets it takes its students from.
It can only take students from another area if there are not enough local
students to take up all the places. Understandably, parents will pay more for a
house in a street where their children could attend a better school.
What about those who can’t afford to pay more for
their house? At the moment, if they don’t have the 2______________(able)
to pay, their children will have to go to a worse school which 3_________(
probable) has more problem students and 4_________(low) exam
results.
Some people believe that this is 5___________(fair).
They say that the children of poor parents who want a good 6____________(educate)
should have the same chance as the children of richer parents. They suggest
introducing ’lottery’ schemes to decide which school a child will attend. The
idea is that the better students will help the others and the teachers will be
able to control them more 7________(easy).
Obviously not everyone likes the idea. The parents who
are upset are generally richer and more 8___________(power) than others,
and they have a good chance of keeping things as they are. The ideal solution,
of course, would be to make all schools better.
Task
V.
Form the opposites of the adjectives and
write the nouns these adjectives are formed from.
|
Adjective
|
Opposite
|
Noun
|
|
careful
|
|
|
|
responsible
|
|
|
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important
|
|
|
|
successful
|
|
|
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honest
|
|
|
|
polite
|
|
|
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patient
|
|
|
The key:
Task I: 1- F; 2-D; 3- E; 4- C; 5- B; 6- I; 7 – A;
8 – H
Task II: 1 – D; 2- B; 3 -A; 4- C; 5 – B; 6 – B; 7 –
A; 8 – A
Task
III: 1 – have __finished; 2 – closed; 3 – have been working; 4 – have added;
5- the length; 6 – have been; 7 – our; 8 – have reduced; 9 – Have ____
tried; 10 – is; 11 – haven’t visited
Task
IV: 1- different; 2 – ability; 3 – probably; 4 – lower; 5 – unfair; 6 –
education; 7 – easier; 8 - powerful
Task V:
|
Adjective
|
Opposite
|
Noun
|
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careful
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careless
|
care
|
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responsible
|
irresponsible
|
responsibility
|
|
important
|
unimportant
|
importance
|
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successful
|
unsuccessful
|
success
|
|
honest
|
dishonest
|
honesty
|
|
polite
|
impolite
|
politeness
|
|
patient
|
impatient
|
patience
|
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