READING 1 - ASEAN

EXERCISES OF MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

Passage A
Although speech is the most advanced form of communication, there are many ways of communicating without
using speech. Signals, signs, symbols, and gestures may be found in every known culture, the basic function of a signal
is to impinge upon the environment in such a way that it attracts attention, as, for example, the dots and dashes of a
telegraphic circuit. Coded to refer to speech, the potential for communication is very great. Less adaptable to the
codification of words, signs also contain meaning in and of themselves. A stop sign or a barber pole conveys meaning
quickly and conveniently. Symbols are more difficult to describe than either signals or signs because of their intricate
relationship with the receiver’s cultural perceptions. In some cultures, applauding in a theater provides performers with
an auditory symbol of approval. Gestures such as waving and handshaking also communicate certain cultural
messages.
Although signals, signs, symbols, and gestures are very useful, they do have a major disadvantage. They usually do
not allow ideas to be shared without the sender being directly adjacent to the receiver. As a result, means of
communication intended to be used for long distances and extended periods are based upon speech. Radio, television,
and the telephone are only a few.

1. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A. Signs, Signals, and Symbols C. Communication
B. Gestures D. Speech
2. What does the author say about speech?
A. That it is the only true form of communication
B. That it is dependent upon the advances made by investors
C. That it is necessary for communication to occur
D. That it is the most advanced form of communication
3. According to the passage, what is a signal?
A. The most difficult form of communication to describe
B. A form of communication which may be used across long distance
C. A form of communication that interrupts the environment
D. The form of communication most related to cultural perceptions
4. Applauding was cited as an example of
A. a signal B. a sign C. a symbol D. a gesture
5. Why were the telephone, radio, and TV invented?
A. Because people were unable to understand signs, symbols, and signals
B. Because people wanted to communicate across long distances
C. Because people believed that signs, signals, and symbols were obsolete
D. Because people wanted new forms of entertainment

Passage B
A complete fertilizer is usually marked with a formula consisting of three numbers, such as 4-8-2 or 3-6-4, which
designate the percentage content of nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash in the order stated.
Synthetic fertilizers are available in either solid or liquid form. Solids, in the shape of chemical granules are
popular because they are easy to store and apply. Recently, liquids have shown an increase in popularity, accounting
for about 20 percent of the nitrogen fertilizer used throughout the world. Formerly, powders were also used, but these
were found to be less convenient than either solids or liquids.
Fertilizers have no harmful effects on the soil, the crop, or the consumer as long as they are used according to
recommendations based on the result of local research. Occasionally, however, farmers may use more fertilizer than
necessary, damaging not only the crop but also the animals or humans that eat it. Accumulations of fertilizer on the
water supply accelerate the growth of algae and, consequently, may disturb the natural cycle of life, contributing to the
death of fish. Too much fertilizer on grass can cause digestive disorders in cattle and in infants who drink cow’s milk.

6. With which of the following topics is the passage primarily concerned?

A. Local research and harmful effects of fertilizer C. A formula for the production of fertilizer
B. Advantages and disadvantages of liquid fertilizer D. Content, form, and effects of fertilizer
7. Which of the following ha the smallest percentage content in the formula 4-8-2?
A. nitrogen C. acid
B. phosphorus D. potash
8. Which of the following statements about fertilizer is true?
A. Powders are more popular than ever.
B. Solids are difficult to store.
C. Liquids are increasing in popularity.
D. Chemical granules are difficult to apply.
9. What happens when too much fertilizer is used?
A. Local research teams provide recommendations. C. Animals and humans may become ill.
B. Algae in the water supplies begin to die. D. Crops have no harmful effects.

Passage C
It has been documented that, almost twelve million years ago at the beginning of the Pliocene Age, a horse, about
midway through its evolutionary development, crossed a land bridge where the Bering Straits are now located, from
Alaska into the grasslands of Europe. The horse was the hipparion, about the size of a modern-day pony with three toes
and specialized cheek teeth for grazing. In Europe the hipparion encountered another less advanced horse called the
anchitheres, which had previously invaded Europe by the same route, probably during the Miocene period. Less
developed and smaller than the hipparion, the anchitheres was completely replaced by it. By the end of the Pleistocene
Age both the anchitheres and the hipparion had become extinct in North America, where they had originated. In
Europe they had evolved into an animal very similar to the horse as we know it today. It was the descendant of this
horse that was brought by the European colonists to the Americas.

10. What is this passage mainly about?

A. The evolution of the horses
B. The migration of horses
C. The modern-day pony
D. The replacement of the anchitheres by the hipparion
11. The author suggests that the hipparion and the anchitheres migrated to Europe.
A. by means of a land route that is now nonexistent C. because of a very cold climate in North America
B. on the ships of European colonists D. during the Miocene Period
12. Which of the following conclusions may be made on the basis of information in the passage?
A. The hipparions migrated to Europe to feed in developing grasslands.
B. There are no fossil remains of either the anchitheres or the hipparion.
C. There were horses in North America when the first European colonists arrived.
D. Very little is known about the evolution of the horse.
13. According to this passage, the hipparions were
A. five-toed animals C. larger than the anchitheres
B. not as highly developed as the anchitheres D. about the size of a small dog
14. Both the hipparion and the anchitheres
A. were the size of a modern pony C. migrated to Europe in the Pliocene Period
B. were native to North America D. had unspecialized teeth
15. According to this passage, the hipparions were
A. Miocene Period was prior to the Pliocene C. Pleistocene Period was prior to the Pliocene
B. Pleistocene Period was prior to the Miocene D. Pliocene Period was prior to the Miocene

Passage D
Precipitation, commonly referred to as rainfall, is a measure of the quantity of water in the form of either rain,
hail, or snow which reaches the ground. The average annual precipitation over the whole of the United States is thirty-
six inches. It should be understood however, that a foot of snow is not equal to a foot of precipitation. A general
formula for computing the precipitation of snowfall is that ten inches of snow is equal to one inch of precipitation. In
New York State, for example, twenty inches of snow in one year would be recorded as only two inches of precipitation.
Forty inches of rain would be recorded as forty inches of precipitation. The total annual precipitation would be
recorded as forty-two inches.
The amount of precipitation is a combined result of several factors, including location, altitude, proximity to
the sea, and the direction of prevailing winds. Most of the precipitation in the United States is brought originally by
prevailing winds from the Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Great Lakes. Because these
prevailing winds generally come from the West, the Pacific Coast receives more annual precipitation than the Atlantic
Coast. Along the Pacific Coast itself, however, altitude causes some diversity in rainfall.
16. Which of the following is another word that is often used in place of precipitation?
A. humidity B. wetness C. rainfall D. rain-snow
17. If a state has 40 inches of snow in a year, by how much does this increase the annual precipitation?
A. By two feet B. By four inches C. By four feet D. By 40 inches
18. Where is the annual precipitation highest?
A. The Atlantic Coast C. The Gulf of Mexico
B. The Great Lakes D. The Pacific Coast

Passage E
During the nineteenth century, women in the United States organized and participated in a large number of reform
movements, including movements to reorganize the prison system, improve education, ban the sale of alcohol, and,
most importantly, to free slaves. Some women saw similarities in the social status of women and slaves. Women like
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucy Stone were feminists and abolitionists. Some male abolitionists, including William
Lloyd Garrison and Wendell Philips, supported the rights of women to speak and participate equally with men in
antislavery activities. Probably more than any other movement, abolitionism offered women a previously denied entry
into politics. They became involved primarily in order to better their living conditions and the conditions of others.
When the Civil War ended in 1865, the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution adopted in 1868
and 1870 granted citizenship and suffrage to blacks but not to women. In 1869 the Wyoming Territory has yielded to
demands by feminists, but eastern states resisted more stubbornly than before. A women’s suffrage bill had been
presented to every Congress since 1878 but continually failed to pass until 1920, when the Nineteenth Amendment
granted women the right to vote.

19. With what topic is the passage primarily concerned?

A. The Wyoming Territory C. Abolitionists
B. The Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments D. Women’s suffrage
20. According to the passage, why did women become active in politics?
A. To improve the conditions of life that existed at the time
B. To support Elizabeth Cady Stanton for president
C. To be elected to public office
D. To amend the Declaration of Independence
21. The word suffrage could best be replaced by which of the following?
A. pain C. freedom from bondage
B. citizenship D. the right to vote
22. What does the Nineteenth Amendment guarantee?
A. Voting rights for blacks C. Voting rights for women
B. Citizenship for blacks D. Citizenship for women
23. What had occurred shortly after the Civil War?
A. The Wyoming Territory was admitted to the Union.
B. A women’s suffrage bill was introduced in Congress.
C. The eastern states resisted the end of the war.
D. Black people were granted the right to vote.
24. When were women allowed to vote throughout the United States?
A. After 1866 B. After 1870 C. After 1878 D. After 1920

Passage F
Edna Ferber (1887 – 1968) was a popular American novelist in the first half of the twentieth century. She
embarked on her career by working as a newspaper reporter in Winconsin and soon began writing novels. Her first
novel, Dawn O’Hara, the Girl Who Laughed, was published in 1911, when she was only twenty-four years old.
Her big break came with the novel So Big (1924), which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Literature. The main
conflict in the novel is between a mother who places a high value on hard work and honor and a son who repudiates his
mother’s values, instead preferring the easier path to fortune and celebrity. Like many of Ferber’s novels, this novel
features a tenacious female protagonist with strong character who struggles to deal with ethnical dilemmas about the
importance of status and money.
Probably the best known of Ferber’s novel was Show Boat (1926), which tells the story of a Southern woman
married to a charismatic but irresponsible man who leave he with a daughter she must take great pains to support. In
1927, the novel was made into a musical that has endured to the present.
Other well-known novels by Ferber include Cimarron (1930) and Giant (1952), both of which were made into
movies. These were epic novels about the settlement and growth of the West, centering on strong female lead
characters who marry men lacking the same strength of character.
25. The phrase embarked on in paragraph 1 is closest meaning to
A. took a trip to C. improved upon
B. started out on D. had an opinion about
26. The word break in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by
A. rupture B. revelation C. opportunity D. rest
27. The word places in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by
 A. locates B. puts C. recites D. positions
28. The phrase take great pains in paragraph 3 is closest meaning to
A. work diligently C. accept unequivocally
B. recognize hurtfully D. hurt agonizingly
29. The word epic in paragraph 4 could best be replaced by
A. lengthy narrative C. emotionally romantic
B. detailed non-fictional D. rousing Western
30. The phrase centering on in paragraph 4 could best be replaced by
A. circling around B. pointing to C. focusing on D. arranging for

Passage G
The general principles of dynamics are rules that demonstrate a relationship between the motions of bodies and the
forces that produce those motions. Based in large part on the work of his predecessors, Sir Isaac Newton deduced three
laws of dynamics, which he published in 1687 in his famous Principia.
Prior to Newton, Aristotle had established that the natural state of a body was a state of rest, and that unless a
force acted upon it to maintain motion, a moving body would come to rest. Galileo had succeeded in correctly
describing the behavior of falling objects and in recording that no force was required to maintain a body in motion. He
noted that the effect of force was to change motion. Huygens recognized that a change in the direction of motion
involved acceleration, just as did a change in speed, and further, that the action of a force was required. Kepler
deduced the laws describing the motion of planets around the sun. It was primarily from Galileo and Kepler that
Newton borrowed.

31. What was the main purpose of this passage?

A. To demonstrate the development of Newton’s laws
B. To establish Newton as the authority in the field of physics
C. To discredit Newton’s laws of motion
D. To describe the motion of planets around the sun
32. The phrase “prior to” could best be replaced by which of the following?
A. before B. after C. with D. simultaneously
33. Who was the first scientist to correctly describe the behavior of falling objects?
A. Aristotle B. Newton C. Kepler D. Galileo
34. According to Huygens, when was acceleration required?
A. For either a change in direction or a change in speed
B. Only for a change in speed
C. Only for a change in direction
D. Neither for a change in direction nor for a change in speed
35. According to this passage, Newton based his laws primarily upon the work of
A. Galileo and Copernicus C. Huygens and Kepler
B. Ptolemy and Copernicus D. Galileo and Kepler

Passage H
Perhaps it was his own lack of adequate schooling that inspired Horace Mann to work so hard for the important
reforms in education that he accomplished. While he was still a boy, his father and older brother died, and he became
responsible for supporting his family. Like most of the children in his town, he attended school only two or three
months a year. Later, with the help of several teachers, he was able to study law and become a member of the
Massachusetts bar, but he never forgot those early struggles.
While serving in the Massachusetts legislature, he signed a historic education bill that set up a state board of
education. Without regret, he gave up his successful legal practice and political career to become the first secretary of
the board. There he exercised an enormous influence during the critical period of reconstruction that that brought into
existence the American graded elementary school as a substitute for the older district school system. Under his
leadership, the curriculum was restructured, the school year was increased to a minimum of six months, and mandatory
schooling was extended to age sixteen. Other important reforms included the establishment of state normal schools for
teacher training, institutes for inservice teacher education, and lyceums for adult education. He was also instrumental in
improving salaries for teachers and creating school libraries.
Mann’s ideas were developed and distributed in twelve annual reports to the state of Massachusetts that he wrote
during his tenure as secretary of education. Considered quite radical at the time, the Massachusetts reforms later served
as a model for the nation. Mann was recognized as the father of public education.
 During his lifetime, Horce Mann worked tirelessly to extend educational opportunities to agrarian families and the
children of poor laborers. In one of his last speeches he summed up his philosophy of education and life: “Be ashamed
to die until you have won some victory for humanity.” Surely, his own life was an example of that philosophy.

36. Which of the following titles would best express the main topic of the passage?
A. The Father of American Public Education C. The Massachusetts State Board of Education
B. Philosophy of Education D. Politics of Educational Institutions
37. Which of the following describes Horace Mann’s early life?
A. He attended school six months a year. C. He was an only child.
B. He supported his family after his father died. D. He had to study alone, without help.
38. What did Horace Mann advocate?
A. The state board school system C. The substitute school system
B. The district school system D. The graded school system
39. The reforms that Horace Mann achieved
A. were not very radical for the time C. were later adopted by the nation as a model
B. were used only by the state of Massachusetts D. were enforced by the Massachusetts bar
40. How were Mann’s educational reforms distributed?
A. In twelve annual reports to the state of Massachusetts
B. In reports that he wrote for national distribution
C. In speeches that he made throughout the country
D. In books that could be found in school libraries
41. Which of the following statements best represents Mann’s philosophy?
A. Think in new ways C. Study as much as possible
B. Help others D. Work hard

Passage I
A huge loss of life resulted from the introduction of Old World disease into the Americas in the early sixteenth
century. The inhabitants of the Americas were separated from Asia, Africa, and Europe by rising oceans following the
Ice Ages, and, as a result, they were isolated by means of this watery barrier from numerous virulent epidemic diseases
that had developed across the ocean, such as measles, smallpox, pneumonia, and malaria. Pre-Columbian Americans
had a relatively disease-free environment but also lacked the antibodies needed to protect them from bacteria and
viruses brought to America by European explorers and colonists. A devastating outbreak of disease that strikes for the
first time against a completely unprotected population is known as a virgin soil epidemic. Virgin soil epidemics
contributed to an unbelievable decline in the population of native inhabitants of the Americas, one that has been
estimated at as much as an 80 percent decrease of the native population in the centuries following the arrival of
Europeans in the Americas.

42. The word they in the passage refers to

A. the inhabitants C. rising oceans
B. epidemic disease D. the Ice Ages
43. The word that in the passage refers to
A. disease-free environment C. virulent epidemic diseases
B. this watery barrier D. the ocean
44. The word them in the passage refers to
A. pre-Columbian Americans C. bacteria and viruses
B. the antibodies D. European explorers and colonists
45. The word one in the passage refers to
A. a virgin soil epidemic C. the population of native inhabitants
B. an unbelievable decline D. the arrival of Europeans