Read the text and decide if the statements (1-10) are true (T) or false (F).

MARIE CURIE

Marie Curie was one of the most accomplished scientists in history. Together with her husband, Pierre, she discovered radium, an element widely used for treating can­cer, and studied uranium and other radioactive substances. Pierre and Marie's amicable collaboration later helped to unlock the secrets of the atom.

Marie was born in 1867 in Warsaw, Poland, where her father was a professor of phy­sics. At an early age, she displayed a brilliant mind and a blithe personality. Many of her friends would even describe her as easy-going. Her great exuberance¹ for learning prom­pted her to continue with her studies after high school. She became disgruntled, however, when she learned that the university in Warsaw was closed to women. Determined to receive a higher education, she defiantly left Poland and in 1891 entered the Sorbonne, a French university, where she earned her master's degree and doctorate in physics.

Marie was fortunate to have studied at the Sorbonne with some of the greatest scientists of her day, one of whom was Pierre Curie. Marie and Pierre were married in 1895 and spent many productive years working together in the physics laboratory. A short time after they discovered radium, Pierre was killed by a horse-drawn wagon in 1906. Marie was stunned by this horrible misfortune and endured heart-breaking anguish. Despondently she recalled their close relationship and the joy that they had shared in scientific research. The fact that she had two young daughters to raise by herself greatly increased her distress.

Curie's feeling of desolation finally began to fade when she was asked to succeed her husband as a physics professor at the Sorbonne. She was the first woman to be given a professorship at the world-famous university. In 1911 she received the Nobel Prize in chemistry for isolating radium. Although Marie Curie eventually suffered a fatal illness from her long exposure to radium, she never became disillusioned about her work. Regardless of the consequences, she had dedicated herself to science and to revealing the mysteries of the physical world.

 

1. Pierre and Marie Curie helped unlock the secrets to the universe.

2. The Curies had a poor working relationship.

3. Marie Curie's father worked as a science professor.

4. The university in Warsaw only admitted men.

5. Marie challenged the norms of society by leaving Poland to go to a university in France.

6. Marie met her future husband, Pierre, in Warsaw.

7. A long time after the couple discovered radium, Pierre died in an accident.

8. When Pierre died, Marie had to raise their three children alone.

9. Marie was asked to find a new professor to replace her husband at the Sorbonne.
10. The Noble prize for physics was awarded to Marie Curie.

 

Read the text below. For questions (6—17) choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D).

 

The British Museum is the (11) __, and one of the largest museums in the world. Where else can you (12) __ some of the greatest treasures of all time under one roof? Here you can see at first hand The Elgin Marbles, The Portland Vase, The Lewis Chessmen, The Sutton Hoo Treasure,to name only a few of the (13) __ collections awaiting you. You (14) __ fascinated by the Egiptian Mummies, and (15) __ by the superb exhibition of prints and drawings which changes severaltimes a year. Allow plenty of time for your visit — the British Museum is a vast store house of treasures. Better still, why not (16) __ several times, concentrating on just one exhibit eachtime? In 1753 an act of Parliament (17) __ the British Museum as the world's first public museum. The Cottonian Library was immediately (18) __ to the collection.

Another major change to the museum (19) __ place when it was decided to remove the British Library to new purpose built premises at St Pancreas. This enormous undertaking begun in the 1970s was not completed until 1998.
Today, the British Museum is home to no less than six and a half million objects and has ninety-four permanent and temporary exhibition galleries. An Education Department (20) __ a wide range of services for adults and children. Other departments are Coins and Medals, Ancient Egypt and Sudan, Africa, Oceania and the Americas, Greek and Roman Antiquities, Asia, Prehistory and Europe, Prints and Drawings, and Middle Eastern Antiquities.

If you want to visit the British Museum, you should remember the following information.
Please, note there are two entrances: the main entrance is at Great Russell Street — this is where the information desk (21) __ and where you may obtain a free floor plan. The other entrance is (22) __ the north side of the building in Montague Place.

 

	A	B	C	D
	old	older	oldest	eldest
	see	to see	saw	seeing
	wonder	wondered	wonderful	wondering
	be	to be	being	will be
	inspire	inspired	inspiring	inspires
	visit	to visit	visited	visiting
	establish	established	establishing	establishment
	add	to add	added	adding
	take	took	taking	taken
	provide	provides	providing	provision
	situated	being situated	situates	is situated
	in	to	on	for

 

Read the text and decide if the statements (1-5) are true (T) or false (F).

HARRY PORTER

Harry is famous in the wizarding world for his encounter with the evil Lord Voldemort, one of the most powerful sorcerers of all time and the primary antagonist villain in the series, when he was just a year old. Voldemort mysteriously lost his powers in the encounter and was severely crippled, although he survived.

James and Lily Potter were killed in this incident in 1981 while protecting baby Harry from Voldemort's attack. James died first, and Lily's dying act - sacrificing herself to save her infant son - placed Harry under a spell of love and protection, Subsequently, Harry survived the Avada Kedavra or 'killing curse' which was cast against him by Voldemort. Due to a spell of love and protection attributed to Harry after his mother's act of sacrifice, Voldemort's attempt to kill Harry backfired; resulting in the loss of his po­wers, as well as exile and eventual decline from a position of power and fear in the wizard-ing world. This event led to Harry being heralded as a celebrity - "The boy who lived"; due to him being the only person to ever survive the Avada Kedavra curse - a lightning shaped scar being the sole remnant of the incident.

Despite the fact that Harry survived Voldemort's attempted murder, he still has no recollection as to why Voldemort lost his powers. In "Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets", Harry confirms this fact when he questions Voldemort.

After the death of his parents, Harry was left with the only family he had left - his mother's sister and her husband Petunia and Vernon Dursley in a small town in Surrey, England, called Little Whinging. They neglected him in favour of their own son and in their attempt to remove all traces of his magical self to make him 'normal', kept him fully isolated from the wizarding world.

 

1. James and Lily Potter couldn't help their son to survive 'killing curse" which was cast on him by Voldemort.

2.Voldemort lost his powers because of Harry's mother placed her son under a spell of love and protection.

3. Harry had a lightning shaped scar, the reminder of the Avada Kedavra curse survival.

4. Harry Potter lived a happy life at his mother's sister.

5. His aunt and uncle wanted Harry to keep away from the wizarding world.

Read the text below. For questions (6—17) choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D).

 

In 2005 the Rolling Stones released an album (6) __ «A Bigger Bang». Many critics, as usual, chose it as their favourite of the year. This isn't very (7) __, but if you think that «A Bigger Bang» was their 25^th album now the Rolling Stones have been around (8) __ more than 40 years, and that singer Mick Jagger, guitarist Keith Richards and the other musicians are all well into their 60s, and are (9) __ grandfathers, it starts to look a bit strange. The idea of my grandfather standing on a stage in front of thousands of people singing «I Can't Get No Satisfaction» is just embarrassing. Can you imagine your grandfather doing this?

But the Rolling Stones are not an exception. (10) __ year, ex-Beatle Paul McCartney (11) __ released a new record. He worked with the producer of the band Radiohead to (12) __ himself a more modern sound. His record had limited success, but again thousands of people came out to (13) __ the man when he played live concerts. Many young people still listen to Madonna, as well. She is regarded as being an exciting contemporary artist, even though she has now been making records for more (14) __ 20 years and is in her 50s. It used to be said that pop music was an art form created by and for young people, but now it has grown (15) __. Now pop and rock music have been around for 50 years, people who started listening to it when they were young are now old. Why should their tastes change?

Of course, boy bands — groups of singing and dancing young people who are often not much older than the people who buy or download their songs — still continue to be hugely popular all (16) __ the world. However, it is very difficult to imagine a group like Blue still going in forty years' time. And while older readers might remember the Backstreet Boys, or even Take That — how significant has their contribution to popular music really been? And can anyone already even (17) __ McFly? Will anybody still be listening to Blue or Britney Spears when they're in their sixties?

	A	B	C	D
	name	called	termed	identity
	surprising	ordinary	predicted	disbelief
	for	since	until	before
	each	every	entire	all
	First	Next	Last	After
	too	also	and	besides
	give	take	get	bring
	look	notice	imagine	see
	that	than	then	them
	out	about	up	down
	above	under	beyond	over
	remember	consider	keep in mind	summon up