Комплекс заданий олимпиадного характера

You will hear people talking in eight different situations. For questions 1 – 8, choose the best answer (A, B or C).

A It was an unpleasant place to visit.

B It provided a lot of space for butterflies.

C It was easy to see the butterflies in detail.

A loss of income

B invasion of privacy

C risk of damage

A She doesn’t want to travel by car.

B She doesn’t know why there is a delay.

C She won’t get to her appointment on time.

A throwing things away

B buying new clothes

C collecting things

A It is too expensive for him.

B It takes too much of his time.

C It is too physically demanding.

A It is better than he expected.

B It is going to be difficult.

C It is similar to his last job.

A disappointed not to have won a competition

B unconcerned about his lack of qualifications

C sorry not to have kept a promise

A It was frightening.

B It was difficult.

C It was useful.

 

You will hear a radio report about a trip to an animal fair in India. For questions 9 – 18, complete the sentences.

On the way to the fair, the speaker saw women wearing bracelets made of_____9.

The fair lasts for almost_______ 10 each year.

At the fair, there are people who specialize in checking the elephants’ ________11.

Traditionally, the elephants stand in a special area near to the ________12.

Behind the elephants there is a very large ________13 which is used by a theatre.

The speaker bought some perfectly cooked ________ 14 for her lunch.

Expensive items made out of ________15 can be bought at the fair.

The speaker found that large numbers of ________16 were being sold at the back of the fairground.

It is traditional at an Indian ________17 for the man to ride a white horse.

Some young horse dealers put on a display of ________18 at the fair. 

Использованные источники:http://www.izenglish.ru/olympiads/archieves-2013/

Прочитайте текст и выберите вариант A, B, C или D, соответствующий содержанию текста

 

Set within treacherously steep cliffs, and hidden away in the secluded valleys of northeast Brazil, is some of South America’s most significant and spectacular rock-art. Most of the art so far discovered from the ongoing excavations comes from the archeologically-important National Park of the Serra da Capivara in the state of Piaui, and it is causing quite a controversy. What is the reason for the uproar? The art is being dated to around 25,000 or perhaps, according to some archeologists, even 36,000 years ago. If correct, this is set to challenge the widely held view that theAmericas were first colonized from the north, via the Bering Strait from eastern Siberia at around 10,000 BC, only moving down into Central and South America in the millennia thereafter.

Prior to the designation of 130,000 hectares as a National Park, the rock-art sites were difficult to get to, and often dangerous to enter. In ancient times, this inaccessibility must have heightened the importance of the sites, and indeed of the people who painted on the rocks. Wild animals and human figures dominate the art, and are incorporated into often-complex scenes involving hunting, supernatural beings, fighting and dancing. The artists depicted the animals that roamed the local ancient brushwood forest. The large mammals are usually painted in groups and tend to be shown in a running stance, as though trying to escape from hunting parties. Processions – lines of human and animal figures – also appear of great importance to these ancient artists. Might such lines represent family units or groups of warriors? On a number of panels, rows of stylized figures, some numbering up to 30 individual figures, were painted using the natural undulating contours of the rock surface, so evoking the contours of the surrounding landscape. Other interesting, but very rare, occurrences are scenes that show small human figures holding on to anddancing around a tree, possibly involved in some form of a ritual dance.

Due to the favourable climatic conditions, the imagery on many panels is in a remarkable state of preservation. Despite this, however, there are serious conservation issues that affect their long-term survival. The chemical and mineral qualities of the rock on which the imagery is painted is fragile and on several panels it is unstable. As well as the secretion of sodium carbonate on the rock surface, complete panel sections have, over the ancient and recent past, broken away from the main rock surface. These have then become buried and sealed into sometimes-ancient floor deposits. Perversely, this form of natural erosion and subsequent deposition has assisted archeologists in dating several major rock-art sites. Of course, dating the art is extremely difficult given the non-existence of plant and animal remains that might be scientifically dated. However, there are a small number of sites in the Serra da Capivara that are giving up their secrets through good systematic excavation. Thus, at Toca do Boqueirao da Pedra Furada, rock-art researcher Niéde Guidon managed to obtain a number of chronological periods. At different levels of excavation, she located fallen painted rock fragments, which she was able to date to at least 36,000 years ago.

Along with the painted fragments, crude stone tools were found. Also discovered were a series of scientifically datable sites of fireplaces, or hearths, the earliest dated to 46,000 BC, arguably the oldest dates for human habitation in the Americas.

However, these conclusions are not without controversy. Critics, mainly from North

America, have suggested that the hearths may in fact be a natural phenomenon, the result of seasonal brushwood fires. Several North American researchers have gone further and suggested that the rock-art from this site dates from no earlier than about 3,730 years ago, based on the results of limited radiocarbon dating. Adding further fuel to the general debate is the fact that the artists in the area of the National Park tended not to draw over old motifs (as often occurs with rock-art), which makes it hard to work out the relative chronology of the images or styles. However, the diversity of imagery and the narrative the paintings create from each of the many sites within the National Park suggests different artists were probably making their art at different times, and potentially using each site over many thousands of years.

With fierce debates thus ranging over the dating, where these artists originate from, is also still very much open to speculation. The traditional view ignores all the early dating evidence from the South American rock-art sites. In a revised scenario, some paleo-anthropologists are now suggesting that modern humans may have migrated from Africa using the strong currents of the Atlantic Ocean some 60,000 years or more ago, while others suggest a more improbable colonization coming from the Pacific Ocean. Yet, while either hypothesis is plausible, there is still no supporting archaeological evidence between the South American coastline and the interior.

Rather, it seems possible that there were a number of waves of human colonization of the Americas occurring possibly over a 60,000 – 100,000 years period, probably using the Bering Strait as a landbridge to cross into the Americas.

Despite the compelling evidence from South America, it stands alone: the earliest secure human evidence yet found in the state of Oregon in North America only dates to 12,300 years BC.

So this is a fierce debate that is likely to go on for many more years. However, the splendid rock-art and its allied archaeology of northeast Brazil, described here, is playing a huge and significant role in the discussion.

A the figures of wild animals and human beings cannot be called ‘art’ in the modern sense of the word.

B South and North Americas are competing for having been populated earlier in the history of mankind.

C the time when the rock-art was created has not yet been determined with compelling evidence.

D critics from North America claim that some oldest findings such as hearths may in fact be a natural phenomenon.

A the way primitive people lived in North America.

B the date when the earliest people arrived in South America.

C the origin of the people who crossed the Bering Strait.

D the variety of cultures which developed in South America.

3. How did the ancient artists use the form of the rock where they painted?

A To mimic the shape of the countryside nearby.

B To emphasise the shape of different animals.

C To give added light and shade to their paintings.

D To give the impression of distance in complex works.

A They had a very wide range of subject-matter.

B Their work often appears to be illustrating a story.

C They tended to use a variety of styles in one painting.

D They rarely made new paintings on top of old ones.

 

Для утверждений 1-7 используйте буквы

A (ДА) если утверждение соответствует позиции автора

B (НЕТ) если утверждение противоречит позиции автора

C (НЕ СКАЗАНО) если в тексте нет информации по данному вопросу

1. Archaeologists have completed their survey of the rock-art in Piaui.

2. The location of the rock-art suggests that the artists had a significant role in their society.

3. The paintings of animals show they were regarded as sacred by the ancient humans.

4. Some damage to paintings is most likely due to changes in the weather of the region.

5. The fact that some paintings were buried is useful to archaeologists.

6. The tools found near some paintings were probably used for hunting animals.

7. The North American researchers have confirmed Niéde Guidon’s dating of the paintings.

 

Соотнесите начало предложений, обозначенных цифрами 1-4, с их правильным окончанием (буквы A-F). Обратите внимание, что некоторые из окончаний предложений под буквами A-F являются лишними

 

1. Materials derived from plants or animals

2. The discussions about the ancient hearths

3. Theories about where the first South Americans originated from

4. The findings of archaeologists in Oregon

 

A are giving rise to a great deal of debate among paleo-anthropologists.

B do not support the earliest dates suggested for the arrival of people in America.

C are absent from rock-art sites in the Serra da Capivara.

D have not been accepted by academics outside America.

E centre on whether or not they are actually man-made.

F reflect the advances in scientific dating methods.

Earthquakes are amongst the most destructive …………..(1) disasters. They usually …………………(2) without any warning and ………………(3) in a great  ……………………..(4) of life and an enormous demolition of buildings. Additionally, they may cause devastating landslides or create gigantic tidal waves which, in …………………….(5), are colossal walls of water smashing into seashores with such force that they are …………………(6) of destroying coastal cities. However, the …………..(7) majority of fatalities and serious injuries …………………….(8) about when buildings ……………………..(9).

Most frequently, the earthquake lasts 30 to 60 seconds, so usually there is no time to …………………(10) the mortal ……………………. (11) once the shaking starts. The savage forces of an earthquake trigger …………………….(12) a complex chain ……………………..(13) in the building’s structure when it is shaken, lifted, pushed or pulled. A building’s height  , its shape and construction materials are the most significant …………………(14) deciding about the survival or collapse of the structure and, consequently, about the life or death of its ………………………….(15).

1.     c	6.  c	11. c
2.     b	7.  d	12. d
3.     a	8.  b	13. d
4.     d	9.  d	14. a
5.     a	10. a	15. c

Прочитайте приведенный ниже текст. Преобразуйте, если необходимо, слова, напечатанные заглавными буквами в конце строк, обозначенных номерами 1-6 , так, чтобы они грамматически и лексически соответствовали содержанию текста. Заполните пропуски полученными словами

Many trees that once dominated the forests of North America are now 1. __________.	APPEAR
In the past squirrels could travel from the Northeast to the Mississippi without 2. ________ to touch the ground.	HAVE
There are several reasons for this situation. Native Americans cleared forests for farming. Pines were used for shipbuilding. Many trees were burned by early 3. ______ to use ashes as fertilizer.	SETTLE
Old trees were 4. ____________ by young ones.	PLACE
The new trees are much smaller and there are 5._____ of them.	FEW
Other types of trees were also introduced by colonists. Forests are also affected by global 6.__________ . This is a problem that needs careful consideration now.	WARM

Использованные источники: www.englishteachers.ru

Выберите правильный вариант ответа

a) Gatwick Airport          

b) Stansted Airport       

c) Heathrow Airport       

d) Luton

 

Использованные источники: festival.1september.ru/