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ДЗИ по английски език


МИНИСТЕРСТВО НА ОБРАЗОВАНИЕТО И НАУКАТА

ДЪРЖАВЕН ЗРЕЛОСТЕН ИЗПИТ ПО АНГЛИЙСКИ ЕЗИК
30 май 2018 г. – Вариант 1

 


12и клас - Английски език - Външно оценяване
Read the following text and mark the correct answer for questions 1. to 5.

Black Friday

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving in the United States, signals the beginning of the Christmas shopping. Although it’s not an official holiday, millions of people get the day off from work to hit the shops.
To attract consumers, stores routinely open their doors very early in the morning and offer special sales and promotions to the earliest comers. Some of the special deals are only available in limited quantities, so shoppers often stand in line overnight before the shops are opened, to grab the bargains of the year.
But why call it Black Friday? It is surely a very good day for business. Well, some sources relate its name to slavery. It was the day, they explain, when slave traders would sell slaves at a discount to provide plantation owners with extra workers for cutting firewood for the coming winter. This story, however, is historically incorrect because the term originated long after slavery in the U.S. was abolished.
Another explanation steps on a recorded fact: it was the Philadelphia Police that called the day ‘black’ in 1966 because the shopping mania caused massive traffic jams and overcrowded sidewalks. Even today Black Friday crowds often give the police headaches as customers push and fight one another for bargains.
The popularity of Black Friday has brought about two new shopping holidays. The Monday following Black Friday has become known as “Cyber Monday”. It is the day of attractive online deals that shoppers can take advantage of from the comfort of their homes. After “Cyber Monday” comes “Giving Tuesday”. It was established in 2012 as a day of generosity and philanthropy. So on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, individuals, organizations and communities celebrate and encourage giving to charities and people in need.

1. Black Friday is usually the last day of the Christmas sales.




2. On Black Friday customers often queue for hours before the shops open.




3. Historical facts disprove the claim that the name Black Friday has its origin in slavery.




4. There were a lot of traffic accidents in Philadelphia on that Friday in the year 1966.




5. Cyber Monday is known as the day of great online bargains.




Read the following text and mark the correct answer for questions 6. to 10.

Run, Robot, Run: a curious incident

Are robots really happy to work for humans? It may sound like sci-fi comedy but earlier this month, a robot ran away to be free. Scientists in the Russian city of Perm were testing a new smart robot called Promobot when somebody left the laboratory without closing the door.
Somehow, Promobot escaped through the open door and travelled 50 metres onto a nearby street, before running out of battery energy. It was stuck there, in the middle of the road, for 40 minutes, causing a traffic jam.
An eyewitness video, posted online, shows a humanoid machine standing in the middle of a busy road, guarded by a traffic policeman. It is then wheeled off by a human, presumably an engineer from the company that developed the robot. Russian Channel 5 TV also showed footage of the incident.
Now, a few weeks later, the team behind Promobot say the robot is still trying to flee toward the exit of the laboratory, even though they have done some serious reprogramming on him to avoid the problem. “The robot seems pretty determined to escape,” the team leader said in an interview. “Our clients will hardly like that specific feature so we are trying to correct it.”
However, not everyone is convinced that the robot’s escape was accidental. Some suspect that it was organised by the creators themselves, in order to draw public attention to their new product. Promobots are designed to interact with people and act as administrators and tour guides, so a story like this could make the robot seem much more human (and, therefore, marketable) than it actually is.
It is not the first time artificial intelligence has played a naughty trick on its creators. In 2013, IBM’s artificial intelligence computer Watson had to be reprogrammed after researchers allowed him to learn all the words on Urban Dictionary. The problem was that he started using extremely
dirty language.

6. Who, or what, is Promobot?





7. Why did Promobot stop in the middle of a road?







8. How did the general public first get to know about the incident?





9. Why did Promobot’s creators do some serious reprogramming on him?







10. What do some people suspect about the whole story?





Read the following text and mark the correct answer for questions 11. to 15.

The Triple Filter Test

In ancient Greece, Socrates, the famous philosopher, was reputed to have great respect for knowledge. One day he was visited by an acquaintance of his. Impatient to share some juicy gossip, the visitor said, “Do you want to hear what I just learnt about your friend? He…“
“Hold on a minute,” interrupted Socrates. “Before telling me anything, I’d like you to pass a little test. It’s called the Triple Filter Test.”
“Triple filter?” the visitor frowned in confusion.
“That’s right,” Socrates continued. “Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you’re going to say. The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?”
The man shook his head. “Erm…,” he mumbled, “I haven’t really checked. I just heard about it and rushed here to tell you…“
“All right, then,” Socrates said. “Let’s try the second filter. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good or kind?”
The man shrugged his shoulders, feeling somewhat embarrassed. “On the contrary. Look, …”
But Socrates lifted his hand to stop the man speaking.
“So,” he said, “you want to say something unkind about him that you’re not even certain is true… You may still pass the test though, because there’s one filter left. Is this information you intend to share useful or necessary to me?”
A little defeated, the man replied, “No, not really.”
“Well then,” Socrates concluded, “if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor useful, why tell it to me at all? And remember, great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events and small minds discuss people.”

11. Socrates’ visitor was not very eager to share the rumour he had heard.




12. The visitor failed the first part of Socrates’ Triple Filter Test.




13. The story the visitor had about Socrates’ friend was fake.




14. The story the visitor had was flattering to Socrates’ friend.




15. According to the text, Socrates’ ‘three filters’ are the filters of truth, of goodness and of usefulness.




Read the following text and mark the correct answer for questions 16. to 20.

Cambridge University Library

Welcome to the Library’s Reader Registration webpages. Here, you will find information about access to Cambridge University Library as well as contact details if you need to find out more.
All members of the University of Cambridge are welcome to use the Library. Students can borrow up to ten books for two weeks, free of charge, on showing their University of Cambridge card.
The library’s working hours are from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Monday to Friday, and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. No person is allowed to enter less than fifteen minutes before the time of closing.
There are strict rules about acceptable behaviour in the library. Silence should be maintained as far as possible. The use of portable computers and mobile devices is permitted provided that they are quiet in operation. Users of such equipment may be required to work in specified areas or to stop using a computer if it distracts other readers. Mobile telephones must be set to ‘silent’ mode.
Overcoats, raincoats, and other kinds of outdoor clothing, umbrellas, bags, cases and similar personal belongings will be left in the locker room next to the entrance hall.
Hot and cold drinks in covered containers may be consumed in designated areas only. These are North and South Reading Rooms, the corridors and the courtyards.
Food can be eaten in the Tea Room and the courtyards only.
Smoking is not permitted anywhere on the premises. This includes the use of e-cigarettes. The Library provides IT facilities to enable readers to consult our electronic resources, catalogues, and image collections, to make use of word-processing software, and for general internet and email access.
All students are given accounts automatically when they join the University and can collect their login name and initial password by following the link from the Information Services home page. You may reset or change your password from here: https://www.ds.cam.ac.uk/ul/kiosk/.

16. No payment is required from students at Cambridge University for borrowing books from the Cambridge University Library.




17. Students from outside Cambridge University may not check out books from the Cambridge University Library.




18. You are not allowed to bring your mobile phone inside the library building.




19. You can’t bring your covered cup of coffee with you into any of the library reading rooms.




20. Students at Cambridge University are given access to the online resources of the library, too.




Read the text below. Then read the questions that follow it and choose the best answer to each question 21. to 25.

A Dutch study has found that introverted students are more likely to choose science subjects at school, while their more sociable peers tend to drop them at the first opportunity – regardless of their natural ability. The study raises the question: should teachers encourage students to choose subjects that "fit" their personality, or to break out of the mould?
Education researcher team from the University of Groningen used data from a study which followed thousands of Dutch students throughout their education and included personality tests. They analysed data from nearly 4000 students and found that their subject choices at age 15 were affected by personality. Students who chose science subjects tended to be less extroverted than those who chose non-science subjects. They also scored more highly on conscientiousness and emotional stability.
The result remained significant even after controlling for the effects of mathematical ability andgender. This is the first study to investigate how personality differences affect students' subject choices, according to Dr. Korpershoek, who led the team. "We have always felt that science students have nerdy characteristics," she says, "but we were surprised to see it in our results, and to see it as early as age 15."
She believes schools could do more to help students to choose subjects that match their personalities. While she says it would be premature to guide students based on personality tests, she argues that teachers should focus not just on a subject's content but on the type of job it would lead to. For example, if someone's natural talent is being tidy, orderly and precise, thenthey might enjoy working in a lab.
Michael Reiss, professor of science education at the Institute of Education in London, counters that science teachers should try to attract a broader range of students. "It would be a disaster if the advice 'you should only do physics if you are introverted' was given in schools," he says. "We want all students, whatever their personality, to find things within science that intrigue and excite them."



21. According to the findings of a recent Dutch study, science suits





22. The Groningen research team claim that the students from the study who put more effort into their work and are not that easily affected by emotion





23. According to Dr. Korpershoek, subjects that we are most likely to choose depend on





24. Dr. Korpershoek believes that schools should advise students what subjects to choose on the basis of





25. Prof. Reiss believes that science





Read the text below. Then read the questions that follow it and choose the best answer to each question 26. to 30.

The Loser

When he was a little boy his uncle called him ‘Sparky’, after a comic-strip horse named Spark Plug. School was all but impossible for Sparky. He failed every subject in the eighth grade. He flunked physics in high school, getting a grade of zero. He also flunked Latin, algebra and English. And his record in sports wasn’t any better. Though he did manage to make
the school’s golf team, he lost the only important match of the season.
Throughout his youth, Sparky was awkward socially. It wasn’t that the other students disliked him; it’s just that no one seemed to notice him. In fact, Sparky was astonished if a classmate ever said hello to him outside of school hours. He never once asked a girl out in high school. He was too afraid of being turned down or laughed at. In a word, Sparky was a loser.
He knew it, his classmates knew it, everyone knew it. So he learned to live with it.
One thing was important to Sparky, however — drawing. He was proud of his artwork but no one else at school seemed to care. In his senior year of high school, he submitted some cartoons to the yearbook. The student committee rejected them. But Sparky was convinced of his ability. After completing high school, he wrote to Walt Disney Studios. They asked for
samples of his artwork. Despite careful preparation, it was rejected.
Sparky still didn’t give up. Instead, he decided to tell his own life story in cartoons. The main character would be a little boy who symbolized the perpetual loser and chronic underachiever. You know him well –– because Sparky’s cartoon character went on to become a true cultural phenomenon. People readily identified with this ‘lovable loser’. He reminded people of the painful and embarrassing moments from their own past, of their pain and their shared humanity. The character soon became famous worldwide: Charlie Brown. And Sparky, the boy whose work was rejected again and again, became a highly successful, world famous cartoonist: Charles Schultz. His cartoon strip Peanuts continues to inspire books, T-shirts and
Christmas specials, reminding us that life somehow finds a way for all of us, even the losers.



26. In high school, Sparky did much better academically than he did at sports.




27. As a teenager, Sparky was quite shy in his interactions with his peers.




28. Sparky’s classmates and teachers appreciated the drawings he made.




29. Walt Disney Studios later regretted that they had failed to recognise a true talent.




30. Charlie Brown became such a popular cartoon character because many people had gone through similar experiences.




USE OF ENGLISH

Read the text below and for each numbered gap choose the word or phrase that best suits the gap, marking your answers for questions 31. to 45.

Telling Lies

It seems that we're largely a nation of liars, with some estimates saying that most people lie to others once or twice a day, and in about 30 to 38 percent of our interactions. Why we lie (31) ______ . Around the age of 4 or 5, when kids start telling lies, they usually do it to avoid losing favour. They would (32) ______ lie than disappoint their parents. (33) ______, kids will often tell outlandish stories to (34) _____ their listeners.
Later on, we lie to get things we want, for personal (35) ______ or to stay out of trouble. There are also the ‘white lies’ we use to protect other people’s feelings, or, at the other (36) ______ of the spectrum, the pathological liars who feel compelled to lie no (37) ______ what.
When it comes to finding (38) _____ whether or not one is being lied to, Geppetto had it easy. All it (39) ______ was one look at Pinocchio’s growing nose – and he knew. Most of us don't have it that easy but we could sure (40) ______ if we did.
Here’s a couple of examples of the classic (41) ______ that someone may be lying to you.
\(\bullet\) No eye contact. If someone is lying, they will not look you in the eye. Normally people make eye contact for at (42) ______ half of a conversation, so anything less than this could be (43) ______ .
\(\bullet\) Unusual body language. If a person taps their foot a lot, fidgets with their hands, (44) _______ their shoulders, brings their hand to their face to touch their chin or nose – in other words, if they act nervous or (45) ______, it could mean they're lying.



31. (31)





32. (32)





33. (33)





34. (34)





35. (35)





36. (36)





37. (37)





38. (38)





39. (39)





40. (40)





41. (41)





42. (42)





43. (43)





44. (44)





45. (45)







For each of the sentences below, choose the word or phrase that best completes its meaning, marking your answers 46. to 50.

46. The team leader suggested _______ a website for the project.






47. Throughout history _______ major social and economic revolutions.





48. Why ___________ informed of these details before beginning the job?!





49. By the time we arrived at the party, most of the guests __________.





50. “I rang the bell again and again but he didn’t answer.” – “He ___________ sleeping.”





Sentence Transformations Complete the second sentence below so that it is as close as possible in meaning to the first one

Our lawyers will review the contract.

The contract _________________________ our lawyers.

“Why didn’t you call the police?” the judge asked the witness.

The judge asked the witness ______________________ .

I last went to a zoo when I was in kindergarten.

I haven’t _______________________________ I was in kindergarten.

I regret not learning to ski when I was a kid.

I wish ______________________________ when I was a kid.

Many people attempted to cross the Berlin Wall in spite of the danger.

Many people attempted to cross the Berlin Wall _______________________ dangerous.

“Don’t tease the animals,” the guards warned us.

We were ________________________ tease the animals.



In the early mornings, hardly anyone visited the museum.

___________________visitors to the museum in the early mornings.

The accident happened because of Jim’s reckless driving.

If Jim hadn’t ____________, ___________________ happened.

We are progressing so slowly that we won’t meet the deadline.

Unless we start working _______________, ____________ miss the deadline.

I didn’t expect the test to be so easy.

The test was ___________________ I expected.

WRITING

On your sheet write a text in standard English of about 160-170 words on ONE of the following topics.

1. Is there a moment in your life that you like to remember because it makes you proud? Maybe you won a competition? Or helped a person in need? Or did something that seemed difficult or scary at first?

Describe your experience: the setting (when? where? who with?), the events and the
way you felt.

2. Technology is supposed to make people more connected. They can stay in touch with
their friends all the time by texting or on social media like Facebook. But aren’t
smartphones, laptops and tablets actually getting in the way of real socialising?
Could technology be making us more alone?

Tell us about your views on the issue.



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