BILET Nr.

1
Read the text and answer the questions:
A long time ago, a young man, called Icarus, wanted to fly like a bird. He made himself a pair of
wings, using wax. He flew so high that he got too near the sun. The heat melted his wings and he fell
to earth and died. So goes the story in classical Greek mythology.
Man has always wanted to fly. Many people have devoted their lives to building flying machines.
Many have died in the process. We have been travelling by air for such a long time that it is easy to
forget the achievements of the pioneers which have made it possible for us to fly.
Now the air travel is a common experience, man has turned his attention to the conquest of space. It
isnt yet possible for you or me to travel into space for a holiday but you can be sure that someone,
somewhere, is working to make it possible, perhaps during our lifetime.

1. Tell the legend of Icarus.
2. What has been mans desire for a very long time?
3. Would you like to spend a holiday in space? Why?/Why not?


















BILET Nr. 2

Read the text and answer the questions:

In 1800 London was home to about one million people, fewer than todays rush hour travelers! By
1900, London was the biggest city in the world, with a population of over six million. As the city grew,
new kinds of transport were needed. This project is about the history of bus services in London.
The first London omnibus service was introduced by George Shillibeer in 1829. The omnibuses were
pulled by horses. By 1834 there were 376 licensed omnibuses in London. In 1858, The London
General Omnibus Company took over three quarters of the smaller companies. In 1870 the first
horse tram began running. It ran along tracks which lay level with the road surface. They were cheap
and could carry as many passengers as the horse buses. The public was impressed and the trams
were an instant success. Later trams became powered by electricity from overhead wires and buses
by diesel engines.
1. Tell, briefly, the history of London public transport.
2. How were the trams pulled at the beginning?
3. How was London by 1900?














BILET Nr. 3

Read the text and answer the questions:

There are many theories, but most experts believe the increase in allergies is because of changes in
our lifestyle and environment. We are exposed to more allergens because we eat more processed
foods, keep more pets indoors, and live in warmer houses the dust mites favourite environment!
There may also be a link between allergies and the great advantages of modern life, such as
antibiotics, clean modern homes and, generally, less disease. Once our immune systems were kept
busy fighting off disease, now theyve got less to do and so may direct their energies against less
harmful substances like pollen. In other words, they have become over-sensitive.


1. What is the cause of allergies?
2. What are the factors in favour of allergies?
3. What are the advantages of modern life?




BILET Nr. 4

Read the text and answer the questions:

Science has learnt a great deal from polar expeditions. For instance, we now know a lot more about
the effects polar conditions have on a persons mind and body.
In the early days, explorers often went mad. One cause of this madness was later discovered: when
people arent used to living in extreme cold, their bodies use up a lot of energy to keep warm and
this gets rid of all the vitamins in the body. The brain, deprived of vitamins, cant work normally, at
least until the body gets used to the cold. After a certain period, the body adapts itself to its new
environment and makes the most of whatever vitamins are available.
Low temperatures can cause any part of the body to freeze. This painful condition is called frostbite.
Although the body does get used to functioning in low temperatures, the danger of frostbite is
always there if temperatures fall below freezing point. Nowadays, polar explorers carry medication
which they can take to allow the blood to flow and slowly defrost the affected parts.

1. Why did explorers go mad in the early days?
2. Why cant the brain function normally in extreme cold.
3. What do todays polar explorers use medication for?














BILET Nr. 5

Read the text and answer the questions:

Anya woke up with a start. She knew straight away that today will be a special day. She had that
familiar feeling in her stomach as if lots of butterflies were trapped and were flapping their wings,
trying to escape.
She had had that feeling just before her grandmother died and when her father was awarded a prize
for his research. She felt most things before anybody else had heard about them, perhaps even
before they had actually happened. To those who didnt know Anya well, she seemed strange; to
those who did know her well, she was simply special.
London was extremely hot and its streets crowded. Anya walked wherever her feet took her, as if
pulled by some invisible forces. Eventually she reached Piccadilly Circus. She stopped to let the slow
traffic advance. A coach stopped just in front of her. Anya saw herself reflected in the window. Then
suddenly she realized. What she was looking at was not herself, but a boy about her age, sitting in
the coach.

1. Why do some people think Anya is strange?
2. How does she decide to go to Piccadilly Circus?
3. What happens in Piccadilly Circus?












BILET Nr. 6

Read the text and answer the questions:

The elephant was lying heavily on its side, fast asleep. A few dogs started barking at it. The elephant
woke up in a terrible fury: it chased the dogs into the village where they ran for safety. That didnt
stop the elephant. It destroyed a dozen houses and injured several people. The villagers were scared
and angry. Then someone suggested calling Parbati, the elephant princess.
Parbati hasnt always lived in the jungle. After a happy childhood hunting with her father, she was
sent to a boarding school in the city. But Parbati never got used to being there and many years later
she returned to her old life.
Parbati is such a fragile-looking woman and her voice is so soft that you would not think her capable
of dealing with such huge, wild animals. Despite her appearance, she has the power to make
elephants obey her: she tames, as well as catches elephants. Parbati can make an elephant respond
and obey to about forty two different oral commands

1. Why was the elephant furious?
2. Why didnt Pambati remain in the city?
3. What does she do in the jungle?












BILET Nr. 7

Read the text and answer the questions:
Many animals and plants are in danger of disappearing forever .The dormouse, for example, needs
woodland plants for food and trees to nest in. Its habitat is being destroyed by man and it needs our
help to survive.
On a conservation camp holiday you will learn all about nature and how to protect it. Our trained
leaders will accompany you and tell you everything you need to know. Because of this you dont
need any experience, just energy and enthusiasm. You will explore the countryside and work to
ensure the survival of hundreds of animal and plants and still have plenty of time to enjoy the camps
excellent sports facilities and organized nature trails through beautiful scenery.
The International Conservation Scouts is a worldwide organization, so there is bound to be a camp
near you.

1. Why are animals and plants in danger of disappearing?
2. What can you do in a Conservation Camp holiday?
3. What is the International Conservation Scouts?










BILET Nr. 8

Read the text and answer the questions:
Myths are traditional stories occurring in a timeless past. They involve supernatural elements and are
beyond the frontiers of logic. Long ago, when our ancestors heard the sound of thunder and saw
lightning, they were often frightened because they could not understand why these things
happened. In order to understand these and other natural events, they created stories. The stories
were handled down from generation to generation all around the world.
Although myths are not based on objective truth, they reflect both universal worries and the worries
of specific cultures. The presence of the sun in the sky was a mystery in different parts of the world.
In the cold northern countries, where the sun disappears almost completely during the winter, great
fires were lit in midwinter to help the sun to be reborn.
The ancient Greeks tell a myth in which Prometheus stole fire from Zeus, the chief god, and gave it to
humans so that they could keep themselves warm. To punish him, Zeus chained Prometheus to a
rock where his liver was eaten by an eagle every day, but grew again every night.

1. What are myths?
2. How have myths appeared?
3. Tell, briefly, Prometheus myth
















BILET Nr. 9

Read the text and answer the questions:
Legends are stories about real people who are famous for doing something brave or extraordinary.
Every time the story was told, it became more exaggerated and so it is now difficult to tell how much
of the story is really true.
One of the great legendary figures in Britain is King Arthur. He was the son of King Uther Pendragon,
a Celtic king. King Uther gave his child to Merlin, the wizard. Merlin taught Arthur everything he
knew so that he could become a great king. When King Uther died, Merlin stuck a sward into a rock
and said :This sword is in the stone by magic. Only the true king will be able to pull it out. Many men
tried but none succeeded. When Arthur tried, the sword slipped out easily. Arthur was made king. He
went on to found the Round Table, an order of knights who became famous for fighting the wicked
and helping the poor.

1. What are legends?
2. Why cant we tell how much of the story is true?
3. Tell, briefly, Arthurs legend
















BILET Nr. 10

Read the text and answer the questions:
A short while ago, Nick Moss was an ordinary schoolboy. Now hes a well paid model who gets
constant offers of work.
He is the kind of success stories which fuels the imagination of thousands of young people round the
world. Nick hadnt really considered becoming a model. It all started quite by chance when he was
spotted by his sister Kates modelling agency. Kate Moss is one of the best paid models in the world.
The agency took some photographs of Nick and things just took off straight away he says, still
sounding surprised.
But success stories like Nicks are rare. If you think a modeling career depends on looks alone, your
in for disappointment. Its not just looks. But providing you have personality as well, things could turn
out the same way for you.

1. How did Nick become a model?
2. What do you need to become a model?
3. Would you like to become a model? Why?/ Why not?
















BILET Nr. 11

Read the text and answer the questions:
Mathew is an expert on Amerindian cultures. He looks at the tomb carefully for a couple of minutes
and then says: This is a tomb of a man, probably a rich, important warrior. And Im almost sure that
he didnt die of natural causes.
How can he tell? Easy, Mathew explains. Do you see the line on the side of the skull? Thats where
the skull was broken by something very heavy. Thats probably what killed him. If this man had died
of natural causes, the skull wouldnt have that fracture.
The contents of the tomb help Mathew determine the occupation and even the rank of the person.
In some cultures people used to bury the dead with some of their belongings and sometimes even
with dishes of their favourite foods. If the man hadnt been rich and important, he wouldnt have
owned those fantastic jewels, says Mathew.

1. What is Mathew?
2. How did he know how the man died?
3. How the occupation and the rank of the person can be determined?











BILET Nr. 12

Read the text and answer the questions:

Sport has become closely connected with politics. In the 1970s and 1980s, for example, many people
protested against sporting links with South Africa because of the system of apartheid there. As a
result, many countries boycotted all games with South Africa. In the same way, the United States of
America and forty other nations boycotted the Olympic Games in Moscow in 1980 when Soviet
armies entered Afghanistan. The Soviet Union then boycotted the following Olympic Games in Los
Angeles, USA in 1984.
Today, the sports industry is huge. Most big football clubs, for example, are run as business and
aimed to make profit. Individual football players are promoted like film or pop stars, and they are
then sold to other clubs for millions of dollars. In 1997, for example, the Brazilian player Ronaldo
was sold for 18 million pounds.

1. How is sport connected to politics?
2. Why did the Soviet Union boycott the Olympic Games in 1984?
3. Explain the connection of sports and business.
















BILET Nr. 13.

Read the text and answer the questions:

In 1948 The South African government introduced apartheid (apartheid is Dutch for separateness).
They separated the population into four races:
1. Whites ( 18% of the population)
2. Blacks (70%)
3. Asian (3%)
4. Coloured (9%)
Blacks, the largest group, had no power at all and they were not allowed to move freely. The races
were completely separated in schools, transport,public places, hospitals, etc.
Many black people opposed apartheid and thousands of people were killed in protests. In 1962, the
government arrested one of the main black leaders, Nelson Mandela. Many countries criticized South
Africa and boycotted all trading, cultural and sporting contact with the country.
After years and years of pressure, the government finally agreed to end apartheid and talk with black
leaders. In 1990 Nelson Mandela was released after 27 years in prison. Four years later, in 1994,
South Africa held its first election in which everybody could vote. Mandelas party won and he
became the first black president of South Africa.

1. What is apartheid?
2. Why were black people killed?
3. Who was Nelson Mandela?









BILET Nr. 14

Read the text and answer the questions:

Virtual reality is an artificial, three-dimensional environment, produced by a computer. Objects in
virtual reality seem to have height, length and width. We can pick them up and turn them around.
We can see, hear and feel things that do not exist.
To see a virtual world, users put on a head-mounted display and wear a special glove. Today virtual
reality is mainly used in video games. In the future, we will see more serious uses of the virtual
reality. Surgeons could plan and practise an operation on a virtual patient. Engineers could test
machines which do not even exist. Architects could show people around houses that have not been
built and tennis players could play against opponents before the real match begins.

1. What is virtual reality?
2. How does it work?
3. What use does it have?
















BILET Nr. 15

Read the text and answer the questions:

Acupuncture has recently become very popular, but doctors have been using it in China for over two
thousand years.
Acupuncture involves pushing needles into the skin at special points around the body, Ancient
Chinese philosophers believed these points were connected to different organs such as the heart or
lungs and that the needles could cure diseases.
Today, acupuncture is used in many countries, and studies show that it works especially for
headaches, backaches and addiction to smoking. Since the 1950s, doctors in China have also been
using acupuncture as an anaesthetic in major operations. Patients are awake and know what is
happening in the operation but they feel little or no pain.
Chinese philosophers believed that the needles helped to balance forces that they called yinand
yang. Today, scientists think that the needles make the body produce a chemical called endophin.
This helps to reduce the feeling of pain.

1. What is acupuncture?
2. Where and when was it first used?
3. How does acupuncture function?












BILET Nr. 16

Read the text and answer the questions:
Can you control your heartbeat? Can you control your body temperature with your mind? For
hundreds of years, holy men in India have been saying this is possible and that they can do it.
Scientists used to laugh at these claims, however, until experiments in the USA in the 1950s showed
that is possible. Today, control over our own internal processes is part of a new type of medicine
called biofeedback.
Biofeedback uses new technology to help people control their own internal organs. For exemple, if a
person has problems with sleeping, he or she is connected to a special computer that shows the
activity of the brain. The person then does mental exercises to try to relax. When brain activity falls,
the computer makes a noise. Slowly, the person learns what type of mental exercises can reduce the
activity of the brain.
Doctors in many parts of the world have been using biofeedback with great success for many years. It
is now a very useful form of medicine for problems with stress, tension, epilepsy, the heart, pain and
insomnia.

1. What is biofeedback?
2. What can you control by help of this technology?
3. What is biofeedback useful for?








BILET Nr. 17

Read the text and answer the questions:
In March, Class 10 had a visit from Mr. Jeff Hopkins who works with blind and deaf students.
Mr. Hopkins explained that deaf people can communicate by using their hands. This is called
signing. He showed us how to do it and brought a sigh dictionary with him.
He pointed out that there are many kinds of sign language. American sign language, for example, is
different from British sign language, and both of these are different from Japanese sign language. In
most countries, there are two kinds of signing. The first one is simply a code. Words are translated
into signs in the same order as spoken language. In Britain and USA this is called Signed Exact
English. Sometimes, people spell the letters of a word with their hands.
Mr. Hopkins explained that this is quite slow. A faster way of getting a message across is to use a sign
language. This uses the shape, position and movement of the hands to make a grammar which is
different from the spoken language. In English, for example, question words such as what, or when
come at the beginning of a question, but in sign language they come at the end. (You go last night
where?).
1. How do deaf people communicate?
2. How many kinds of sign language are there?
3. What does the sign language consist of?