Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 35 to 42.

        A mansion is a very large home. McDonald's is the name of a fast food hamburger chain. What do you get when you put the two together? You get McMansion, the recently created name for a type of large suburban, two storied home that originated in the United States. Many people love McMansions for their low price, abundant space and impressive styling, but the news is not all gooD. In fact, McMansions may now be a threatened species.

        McMansion became very popular in the United States during the 1990s, and this popularity continued for almost 20 years. During those years the economy was relatively strong, and banks were willing to lend large sums of money to people who wanted to buy a home. The result was an increase in the average home size. In 1988, the average new American home was 170 square meters, but by 2008 this had risen to 244 square meters, a 44% increase.

        To offset the greater costs of these large homes, land developers built many homes that all used a similar basic design and identical construction methods. Framing and interior fittings were constructed in

factories, instead of on site, and the materials used were often of a lower quality. Finally, the sections of land used for each house were much smaller than before.

        The result was suburban developments full of huge homes, often over 280 square meters in floor area, that all looked similar to each other. Their standardization and lowest possible-cost construction reminded people of McDonald's hamburgers, hence the term McMansion. For many people a McMansion was their dream home, but that dream is now rapidly turning sour.

        There are two main problems with McMansions. One problem is that their huge size means that they cost a lot to heat or cool. Energy is becoming more expensive, so owners are faced with huge bills if they try to heat or cool their home. The other problem is that McMansion owners are often in a lot of debt. They borrowed a lot of money to pay for their impressive home, but during the 2000s, with struggling economy and high unemployment, they couldn't afford to repay their loan.

        McMansion are still popular in some area, but no one is sure how long it will last. Will energy become even more expensive and force owners to downsize? Will the economy grow and banks become more willing to end again? Will the drop-in house prices allow larger, less affluent families to afford a McMansion? These questions are weighing heavily on the future of one of the most popular housing styles of the late 20th century.

(Source: Reading planet)

The phrase “turning sour” in paragraph 4 refers to the fact that _____.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 25 to 29. Fill in the appropriate word in question 29

        It is true that digital manufacturing does cut out the middle-man. More and more routine, repetitive assembly tasks will be taken (25)______ by machines. But as certain jobs disappear, new ones open up in other parts of the factory. Germany in many ways exemplifies this trend. Today, German manufacturers (26)______ three times more robots than U.S. companies, but they also still employ more humans. Relative to the size of our economies, German's manufacturing workforce is twice the size of America's.

        From its very beginning, the fourth Industrial revolution has never presented manufacturers with an

either-or choice - robots or humans. It has always been about combining the talents of (27)______ . (28) ______, it is the convergence of artificial and human intelligence that will enable manufacturers to achieve a new era of speed, flexibility, efficiency and connectivity in the 21st century. Machines have the ability to assemble things faster than any human ever could, but humans possess the analytics, domain expertise and valuable knowledge (29)______ to solve problems and optimize factory floor production.

(Adapted from: http://time.com/4940374/joe-kaeser-siemens-robots-jobs/)

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 30 to 34.

        Bitcoins are a form of virtual currency. In other words, they are a type of money that does not exist in the actual world. However, they can be used to purchase actual products and services from real companies.

        The bitcoin system was created in 2009 by an enigmatic person named Satoshi Nakamoto. In fact, no one is sure if Satoshi Nakamoto is an actual person or a group of people. Bitcoins are designed to serve as an alternative to national currencies, such as dollars and euros, They can be used to pay for things instead of cash or credit cards. When bitcoins are transferred from a buyer to a seller, the transaction is recorded in a public database.

        Governments are concerned that bitcoins can easily be stolen by hackers. It has dawned on them that they might be used for illegal purposes. For example, stolen goods could be purchased without the government's knowledge. Although more and more companies are beginning to accept bitcoins, the percentage of purchases made using bitcoins is minuscule compared to other online payment methods, such as credit cards. Instead, many bitcoin owners simply keep them as an investment since more valuable in the future.

        This may or may not be a wise approach. Currently, the value of bitcoins is fluctuating wildly, especially when compared to highly stable national currencies, Bitcoin Investors are gambling on the hope that as this high-tech money becomes more widely accepted, its value will soar.

(Adapted from: https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/)

Which of the following is defined in the passage?

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.

If you say bad things about the person who give a job you bite the hand that feeds you.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

These _____ suggest that there is not direct link between unemployment and crime.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

When someone is down on their _____, friends are not easy to find.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

The process of _____ Jackson from a talented teenager into a franchise player began in training camp.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 25 to 29. Fill in the appropriate word in question 25

        It is true that digital manufacturing does cut out the middle-man. More and more routine, repetitive assembly tasks will be taken (25)______ by machines. But as certain jobs disappear, new ones open up in other parts of the factory. Germany in many ways exemplifies this trend. Today, German manufacturers (26)______ three times more robots than U.S. companies, but they also still employ more humans. Relative to the size of our economies, German's manufacturing workforce is twice the size of America's.

        From its very beginning, the fourth Industrial revolution has never presented manufacturers with an

either-or choice - robots or humans. It has always been about combining the talents of (27)______ . (28) ______, it is the convergence of artificial and human intelligence that will enable manufacturers to achieve a new era of speed, flexibility, efficiency and connectivity in the 21st century. Machines have the ability to assemble things faster than any human ever could, but humans possess the analytics, domain expertise and valuable knowledge (29)______ to solve problems and optimize factory floor production.

(Adapted from: http://time.com/4940374/joe-kaeser-siemens-robots-jobs/)

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 30 to 34.

        Bitcoins are a form of virtual currency. In other words, they are a type of money that does not exist in the actual world. However, they can be used to purchase actual products and services from real companies.

        The bitcoin system was created in 2009 by an enigmatic person named Satoshi Nakamoto. In fact, no one is sure if Satoshi Nakamoto is an actual person or a group of people. Bitcoins are designed to serve as an alternative to national currencies, such as dollars and euros, They can be used to pay for things instead of cash or credit cards. When bitcoins are transferred from a buyer to a seller, the transaction is recorded in a public database.

        Governments are concerned that bitcoins can easily be stolen by hackers. It has dawned on them that they might be used for illegal purposes. For example, stolen goods could be purchased without the government's knowledge. Although more and more companies are beginning to accept bitcoins, the percentage of purchases made using bitcoins is minuscule compared to other online payment methods, such as credit cards. Instead, many bitcoin owners simply keep them as an investment since more valuable in the future.

        This may or may not be a wise approach. Currently, the value of bitcoins is fluctuating wildly, especially when compared to highly stable national currencies, Bitcoin Investors are gambling on the hope that as this high-tech money becomes more widely accepted, its value will soar.

(Adapted from: https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/)

The word “they” in paragraph 1 refers to

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

It was the first time I had visitors _____ I had moved to London.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

While I _____ at the bus stop, three buses went by in the opposite direction.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

Over the past 30 years, the average robot price _____ by half in real terms, and even further relative to labor costs.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.

Janet admitted _____ the car without insurance.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.

Telomeres are the tiny caps on the ends of chromosomes that protect our DNA from damage during cell division.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 30 to 34.

        Bitcoins are a form of virtual currency. In other words, they are a type of money that does not exist in the actual world. However, they can be used to purchase actual products and services from real companies.

        The bitcoin system was created in 2009 by an enigmatic person named Satoshi Nakamoto. In fact, no one is sure if Satoshi Nakamoto is an actual person or a group of people. Bitcoins are designed to serve as an alternative to national currencies, such as dollars and euros, They can be used to pay for things instead of cash or credit cards. When bitcoins are transferred from a buyer to a seller, the transaction is recorded in a public database.

        Governments are concerned that bitcoins can easily be stolen by hackers. It has dawned on them that they might be used for illegal purposes. For example, stolen goods could be purchased without the government's knowledge. Although more and more companies are beginning to accept bitcoins, the percentage of purchases made using bitcoins is minuscule compared to other online payment methods, such as credit cards. Instead, many bitcoin owners simply keep them as an investment since more valuable in the future.

        This may or may not be a wise approach. Currently, the value of bitcoins is fluctuating wildly, especially when compared to highly stable national currencies, Bitcoin Investors are gambling on the hope that as this high-tech money becomes more widely accepted, its value will soar.

(Adapted from: https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/)

The word “minuscule” is closest in meaning to

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.

Congo's presidential election is hoped to enable the country's first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since independence from Belgium in 1960.