English Reading Comprehension

The author feels sad about the later part of his life because ____________________________.

Read the following passage & answer the questions that follow:
The last half of my life has been lived in one of those painful epochs of human history during which the world is getting worse, and past victories which had seemed to be definitive have  turned out to be only temporary.

Why were the people anxious to help the author?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage.

In a little place called Le Monastier, in a pleasant highland valley 15 miles from Le Puy I spent about a month of fine days. Monastire is notable for the making of lace, for drunkenness, for freedom of language and for unparalled political dissension there are adherents of each of the four French parties Legitimists, Orleanists Imperialist and  Republicans in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe decry and calumniate each other.
Except for a business purpose or to give each other the lie in a tavern brawl they have laid aside even the civility of speech in the midst of this Babylon, I found myself a rallying point. Everyone was anxious to be kind and helpful to the stranger. This was not merely from the natural hospitality of mountain people nor even from the surprise with which I was regarded as a man living of his own free will in Le Monastire when he might just as well have lived any where else in this big world; it arose a good deal from my projected journey southward through the Cevennes. A traveller of my sort was a thing hitherto unheard of in that district. I was looked upon with contempt like a man who should project a journey to the moon, but yet with a respectful interest like one setting for the inclement pole. All were ready to help in my preparation; a crowd of sympathizers supported me at the critical moment of a bargain; not a step was taken, but was heralded by glasses round and celebrated by a dinner or a breakfast.

The author prepared himself for protection against ________.

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage.

In a little place called Le Monastier, in a pleasant highland valley 15 miles from Le Puy I spent about a month of fine days. Monastire is notable for the making of lace, for drunkenness, for freedom of language and for unparalled political dissension there are adherents of each of the four French parties Legitimists, Orleanists Imperialist and  Republicans in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe decry and calumniate each other.
Except for a business purpose or to give each other the lie in a tavern brawl they have laid aside even the civility of speech in the midst of this Babylon, I found myself a rallying point. Everyone was anxious to be kind and helpful to the stranger. This was not merely from the natural hospitality of mountain people nor even from the surprise with which I was regarded as a man living of his own free will in Le Monastire when he might just as well have lived any where else in this big world; it arose a good deal from my projected journey southward through the Cevennes. A traveller of my sort was a thing hitherto unheard of in that district. I was looked upon with contempt like a man who should project a journey to the moon, but yet with a respectful interest like one setting for the inclement pole. All were ready to help in my preparation; a crowd of sympathizers supported me at the critical moment of a bargain; not a step was taken, but was heralded by glasses round and celebrated by a dinner or a breakfast.

Which of the following is/are one of the features of Le Monastier?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage.

In a little place called Le Monastier, in a pleasant highland valley 15 miles from Le Puy I spent about a month of fine days. Monastire is notable for the making of lace, for drunkenness, for freedom of language and for unparalled political dissension there are adherents of each of the four French parties Legitimists, Orleanists Imperialist and  Republicans in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe decry and calumniate each other.
Except for a business purpose or to give each other the lie in a tavern brawl they have laid aside even the civility of speech in the midst of this Babylon, I found myself a rallying point. Everyone was anxious to be kind and helpful to the stranger. This was not merely from the natural hospitality of mountain people nor even from the surprise with which I was regarded as a man living of his own free will in Le Monastire when he might just as well have lived any where else in this big world; it arose a good deal from my projected journey southward through the Cevennes. A traveller of my sort was a thing hitherto unheard of in that district. I was looked upon with contempt like a man who should project a journey to the moon, but yet with a respectful interest like one setting for the inclement pole. All were ready to help in my preparation; a crowd of sympathizers supported me at the critical moment of a bargain; not a step was taken, but was heralded by glasses round and celebrated by a dinner or a breakfast.

In the passage the author describes his stay at _____________.

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage.

In a little place called Le Monastier, in a pleasant highland valley 15 miles from Le Puy I spent about a month of fine days. Monastire is notable for the making of lace, for drunkenness, for freedom of language and for unparalled political dissension there are adherents of each of the four French parties Legitimists, Orleanists Imperialist and  Republicans in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe decry and calumniate each other.
Except for a business purpose or to give each other the lie in a tavern brawl they have laid aside even the civility of speech in the midst of this Babylon, I found myself a rallying point. Everyone was anxious to be kind and helpful to the stranger. This was not merely from the natural hospitality of mountain people nor even from the surprise with which I was regarded as a man living of his own free will in Le Monastire when he might just as well have lived any where else in this big world; it arose a good deal from my projected journey southward through the Cevennes. A traveller of my sort was a thing hitherto unheard of in that district. I was looked upon with contempt like a man who should project a journey to the moon, but yet with a respectful interest like one setting for the inclement pole. All were ready to help in my preparation; a crowd of sympathizers supported me at the critical moment of a bargain; not a step was taken, but was heralded by glasses round and celebrated by a dinner or a breakfast.

The sleeping - sack was _______.

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage.

In a little place called Le Monastier, in a pleasant highland valley 15 miles from Le Puy I spent about a month of fine days. Monastire is notable for the making of lace, for drunkenness, for freedom of language and for unparalled political dissension there are adherents of each of the four French parties Legitimists, Orleanists Imperialist and  Republicans in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe decry and calumniate each other.
Except for a business purpose or to give each other the lie in a tavern brawl they have laid aside even the civility of speech in the midst of this Babylon, I found myself a rallying point. Everyone was anxious to be kind and helpful to the stranger. This was not merely from the natural hospitality of mountain people nor even from the surprise with which I was regarded as a man living of his own free will in Le Monastire when he might just as well have lived any where else in this big world; it arose a good deal from my projected journey southward through the Cevennes. A traveller of my sort was a thing hitherto unheard of in that district. I was looked upon with contempt like a man who should project a journey to the moon, but yet with a respectful interest like one setting for the inclement pole. All were ready to help in my preparation; a crowd of sympathizers supported me at the critical moment of a bargain; not a step was taken, but was heralded by glasses round and celebrated by a dinner or a breakfast.

What is the meaning of the expression ''to give each other the lie''?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage.

In a little place called Le Monastier, in a pleasant highland valley 15 miles from Le Puy I spent about a month of fine days. Monastire is notable for the making of lace, for drunkenness, for freedom of language and for unparalled political dissension there are adherents of each of the four French parties Legitimists, Orleanists Imperialist and  Republicans in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe decry and calumniate each other.
Except for a business purpose or to give each other the lie in a tavern brawl they have laid aside even the civility of speech in the midst of this Babylon, I found myself a rallying point. Everyone was anxious to be kind and helpful to the stranger. This was not merely from the natural hospitality of mountain people nor even from the surprise with which I was regarded as a man living of his own free will in Le Monastire when he might just as well have lived any where else in this big world; it arose a good deal from my projected journey southward through the Cevennes. A traveller of my sort was a thing hitherto unheard of in that district. I was looked upon with contempt like a man who should project a journey to the moon, but yet with a respectful interest like one setting for the inclement pole. All were ready to help in my preparation; a crowd of sympathizers supported me at the critical moment of a bargain; not a step was taken, but was heralded by glasses round and celebrated by a dinner or a breakfast.

Why did the author live in the village?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage.

In a little place called Le Monastier, in a pleasant highland valley 15 miles from Le Puy I spent about a month of fine days. Monastire is notable for the making of lace, for drunkenness, for freedom of language and for unparalled political dissension there are adherents of each of the four French parties Legitimists, Orleanists Imperialist and  Republicans in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe decry and calumniate each other.
Except for a business purpose or to give each other the lie in a tavern brawl they have laid aside even the civility of speech in the midst of this Babylon, I found myself a rallying point. Everyone was anxious to be kind and helpful to the stranger. This was not merely from the natural hospitality of mountain people nor even from the surprise with which I was regarded as a man living of his own free will in Le Monastire when he might just as well have lived any where else in this big world; it arose a good deal from my projected journey southward through the Cevennes. A traveller of my sort was a thing hitherto unheard of in that district. I was looked upon with contempt like a man who should project a journey to the moon, but yet with a respectful interest like one setting for the inclement pole. All were ready to help in my preparation; a crowd of sympathizers supported me at the critical moment of a bargain; not a step was taken, but was heralded by glasses round and celebrated by a dinner or a breakfast.

The number of children born to married mothers in the U.S. is approximately how many times the number of children born to unwed mothers?

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question. 
Though the U.S. prides itself on being a leader in the world community, a recent report shows that it lags far behind other industrialized countries in meeting the needs of its youngest and most vulnerable citizens. The U.S. has a higher infant mortality rate, a higher proportion of low birth weight babies, a smaller proportion of babies immunized against childhood diseases and a much higher rate of adolescent pregnancies. These findings, described as a “quiet crisis requiring immediate and far-reaching action, appeared in a report prepared by a task force of educators, doctors, politicians and business people. According to the report, a fourth of the nation’s 12 million infants and toddlers live in poverty. As many as half confront risk factors that could harm their ability to develop intellectually, physically and socially. Child immunization is too low, more children are born into poverty, more are in substandard care while their parents work and more being raised raised by single parents. When taken together these and other risk factors can lead to education and health problems that are much harder and more costly to reverse.
>            The crisis begins in the womb with unplanned parenthood. Women with unplanned pregnancies are less likely to seek pre-natal care. In the U.S. 80% of teenage pregnancies and 56% of all pregnancies are unplanned. The problems continue after birth where unplanned pregnancies and unstable partnerships often go hand in hand. Since 1950, the number of single parent families has nearly tripled. More then 25 percent of all births today are to unmarried mothers. As the number of single parent families grow and more women enter the work force, infants and toddlers are increasingly in the care of people other than their parents.
            Most disturbingly, recent statistics show that American parent are increasingly neglecting or abusing their children, in only four years from 1987-1971 the number of children in foster care increased by over 50 percent. Babies under the age of one are the fastest growing category of children entering foster care. The crisis affects children under the age of three most severely, the report says. Yet, it is this period from infancy through preschool years that sets the stage for a child’s future.

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question

An increasing number of infants in the U.S. are in foster care on account of _______.

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question. 
Though the U.S. prides itself on being a leader in the world community, a recent report shows that it lags far behind other industrialized countries in meeting the needs of its youngest and most vulnerable citizens. The U.S. has a higher infant mortality rate, a higher proportion of low birth weight babies, a smaller proportion of babies immunized against childhood diseases and a much higher rate of adolescent pregnancies. These findings, described as a “quiet crisis requiring immediate and far-reaching action, appeared in a report prepared by a task force of educators, doctors, politicians and business people. According to the report, a fourth of the nation’s 12 million infants and toddlers live in poverty. As many as half confront risk factors that could harm their ability to develop intellectually, physically and socially. Child immunization is too low, more children are born into poverty, more are in substandard care while their parents work and more being raised raised by single parents. When taken together these and other risk factors can lead to education and health problems that are much harder and more costly to reverse.
>            The crisis begins in the womb with unplanned parenthood. Women with unplanned pregnancies are less likely to seek pre-natal care. In the U.S. 80% of teenage pregnancies and 56% of all pregnancies are unplanned. The problems continue after birth where unplanned pregnancies and unstable partnerships often go hand in hand. Since 1950, the number of single parent families has nearly tripled. More then 25 percent of all births today are to unmarried mothers. As the number of single parent families grow and more women enter the work force, infants and toddlers are increasingly in the care of people other than their parents.
            Most disturbingly, recent statistics show that American parent are increasingly neglecting or abusing their children, in only four years from 1987-1971 the number of children in foster care increased by over 50 percent. Babies under the age of one are the fastest growing category of children entering foster care. The crisis affects children under the age of three most severely, the report says. Yet, it is this period from infancy through preschool years that sets the stage for a child’s future.

Directions: Choose the word which is most opposite in meaning to the key word.

Extensive

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question. 
           
            During World War II, an inventor submitted a scheme for building a giant airship armed with death rays to the British government. He had provided details of the engines, navigational system, etc. when question about the death-ray themselves he exclaimed, “Oh, I thought the military had plenty of them available,”
            If a robot is defined, provisionally, as a machine made in the image of man, then it must be stated that like death – rays in 1940, robots in 1990 remain in the world of speculation not of established fact yet, just as the inventor took the existence of death – rays for granted and concentrated on putting them to use the popular imagination has been much more preoccupied by the question of what we should do when robots do arrive than with the business of actually making them , it is rather as if the Wright brothers first flight had been preceded by an extensive literature on air – traffic control .

The author compares the hypothetical literature on air-traffic control with _____________.

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question. 
           
            During World War II, an inventor submitted a scheme for building a giant airship armed with death rays to the British government. He had provided details of the engines, navigational system, etc. when question about the death-ray themselves he exclaimed, “Oh, I thought the military had plenty of them available,”
            If a robot is defined, provisionally, as a machine made in the image of man, then it must be stated that like death – rays in 1940, robots in 1990 remain in the world of speculation not of established fact yet, just as the inventor took the existence of death – rays for granted and concentrated on putting them to use the popular imagination has been much more preoccupied by the question of what we should do when robots do arrive than with the business of actually making them , it is rather as if the Wright brothers first flight had been preceded by an extensive literature on air – traffic control .

The author of the passage through the story of the inventor in Britain, desires to illustrate the point that _______.

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question. 
           
            During World War II, an inventor submitted a scheme for building a giant airship armed with death rays to the British government. He had provided details of the engines, navigational system, etc. when question about the death-ray themselves he exclaimed, “Oh, I thought the military had plenty of them available,”
            If a robot is defined, provisionally, as a machine made in the image of man, then it must be stated that like death – rays in 1940, robots in 1990 remain in the world of speculation not of established fact yet, just as the inventor took the existence of death – rays for granted and concentrated on putting them to use the popular imagination has been much more preoccupied by the question of what we should do when robots do arrive than with the business of actually making them , it is rather as if the Wright brothers first flight had been preceded by an extensive literature on air – traffic control .

In the realm of science fiction, mechanical men have been treated differently from other technological paraphernalia because _____________.

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question. 
           
            During World War II, an inventor submitted a scheme for building a giant airship armed with death rays to the British government. He had provided details of the engines, navigational system, etc. when question about the death-ray themselves he exclaimed, “Oh, I thought the military had plenty of them available,”
            If a robot is defined, provisionally, as a machine made in the image of man, then it must be stated that like death – rays in 1940, robots in 1990 remain in the world of speculation not of established fact yet, just as the inventor took the existence of death – rays for granted and concentrated on putting them to use the popular imagination has been much more preoccupied by the question of what we should do when robots do arrive than with the business of actually making them , it is rather as if the Wright brothers first flight had been preceded by an extensive literature on air – traffic control .

Directions: Choose the word which is most nearly the SAME in meaning to the key word as used in the Passage.

Obscure

Directions: Read the following passage & answer the question. 
           
            During World War II, an inventor submitted a scheme for building a giant airship armed with death rays to the British government. He had provided details of the engines, navigational system, etc. when question about the death-ray themselves he exclaimed, “Oh, I thought the military had plenty of them available,”
            If a robot is defined, provisionally, as a machine made in the image of man, then it must be stated that like death – rays in 1940, robots in 1990 remain in the world of speculation not of established fact yet, just as the inventor took the existence of death – rays for granted and concentrated on putting them to use the popular imagination has been much more preoccupied by the question of what we should do when robots do arrive than with the business of actually making them , it is rather as if the Wright brothers first flight had been preceded by an extensive literature on air – traffic control .