IV. Reading Comprehension (25 points)

　　Directions: There are five reading passages in this part. For each question there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose one best answer and blacken the corresponding letter on ANSWER SHEET.

　　A

　　The sun’s heat warms the air and makes it move. This movement is called a wind. Different parts of the Earth receive different amount of heat. Near the equator(赤道), the sun id overhead and heats the Earth intensely(強烈). Nearer the poles, the sun’s rays strike the Earth at a low angle so the heat is not so intense.

　　A lot of the earth’s heat is reflected back into spaces, by the atmosphere, clouds, dust in the air and by water, snow and ice. So some parts of the Earth are warm and some are cold. Warm air tends to rise and creates areas of high pressure. As warm air rises, cold air flows in and replaces it. The greater the pressure difference is, the stronger the wind blows.

　　76. The sun’s heat ____________.

　　A. make the air move B. reflects back into space

　　C. makes the air still D. make the air cold

　　77. A strong wind is usually caused by a difference in ______.

　　A. air B. pressure C. heat D. atmosphere

　　78. Some parts of the Earth is warm and some are cold because ____________.

　　A. a lot of the heat is reflected

　　B. different parts of the earth receive and reflect different amount of heat.

　　C. different parts of the Earth have different sources of heat.

　　D. there are clouds and dust in the air.

　　79. the best title of the article is ________.

　　A. The Sun’s heat B. Why Do Winds Blow

　　C. Pressure D. Atmosphere

　　B

　　If you’ve gone to the same seashore for several years, you may have noticed that the beach gets smaller every year. The wind and waves carry the beach out to sea, bit by bit. Most shore towns try to fight the beach changes caused by ocean currents and the tides. Some dig sand out of backwater bays and dump it on the beachfront. Others build wooden piers and jetties made to keep currents away from the beach.

　　A type of artificial sand that has been developed might be able to slow down beach erosion. Strangely, this new kind of sand is made of ground glass! You might think that walking barefoot on ground glass would be painful. But it’s not. The reason is very simple. Sand and glass are made of the same kind of material, called silicate. When glass is ground very finely, you get a sand-like substance that is harder than real sand. The size of the pieces can be controlled. Larger pieces won’t be as easily affected by the wind and waves. So, a beach covered with artificial sand would last longer than a beach with real sand.

　　A wonderful thing about artificial sand is that it can be made from waste glass. But making artificial sand costs three times as much as using conventional methods of beach protection. So, it is not likely that sand made of glass will be used in the near future.

　　80. The subject of this passage is _________.

　　A. sand and water B. summer vacation

　　C. artificial sand D. the seashore

　　81. Ground glass is ________.

　　A. hard to walk on B. found in nature

　　C. difficult to make D. similar to sand out but harder

　　82. The passage suggests that artificial sand is _________.

　　A. the best way to slow down erosion

　　B. not nice looking

　　C. too costly to ever be used

　　D. a foolish idea

　　83. In the first sentence, the author gets the reader’s attention by _______.

　　A. referring to something the reader might be familiar with

　　B. telling a fact that is very humorous

　　C. saying something very surprising

　　D. asking a question