A. off B. out C. up D. down

D. The French were betrayed by the Belgians during World War II. 2. Which best expresses the author's purpose in writing the fourth paragraph ?

A. To persuade readers that the Maginot Line was not at all thin.

B. To inform reader s of the types of defenses along the Maginot Line,

C. To describe what the inside of the Maginot Line looked like.

D. To com pare and contrast defenses along the Maginot Line. 3. Which best describes the weakness of the Maginot Line?

A. It was built from cheap material and could not resist attack.

B. Poor screening let spies take control of the forts from within,

C. The line was not fortified along France's border with Belgium .

D. The French underestimated the power of newer German tanks. 4. Which of the following is a false statement?

A. André Maginot fought against the French in the First World War.

B. André Maginot served as the Minister of War for France.

C. The Maginot Line is named after André Maginot.

D. After WWI, André Maginot believed that Germ any would attack France again. 5. Which best explains why André Maginot wanted to build up France's defense rather than their offense?

A. After WWI, France and Germany became history's greatest allies.

B. France needed protection from the Germans and the hostile Belgians.

C. Maginot feared that French commanders might invade Germany if they had the power.

D. France had far fewer people than Germany and needed to save manpower. 6. Which best defines the meaning of the word stalemate as it is used in the second paragraph?

A. When troops lose morale because they miss their families

B. When two sides are locked in a draw

C. When breathing is made difficult by foul odors

D. When one side has a large advantage over the other 7. Which best expresses the main idea of the last paragraph of this text?

A. It describes how the Maginot Line is still used today.

B. It restates the main points of the text.

C. It discusses how the French used the Maginot Line during World War II.

D. It explains how the Maginot Line is used as a symbol. 8. How did the French lose control of the Maginot Line?

A. The Germans overtook the fortresses with military power.

B. The Germans tunneled into the fortresses using new technology,

C. The French were starved out of the fortresses by German siege.

D. The French surrendered the fortresses. 9. Which was NOT pail of Germany's strategy to invade France in World War II?

A. Position a decoy force in front of the Maginot Line

B. Sneak troops into France by tunneling underneath the Maginot Line

C. Bring a large army through Belgium

D. Move very quickly 10. Which title best expresses the main idea of this text?

A. Undefeatable: How the Maginot Line Became the World's Strongest Fortress

B. André Maginot: France's Greatest Patriot

C. Strong as the Weakest Link: The Mighty Maginot Wall and Its Shortcomings

D. Blood Feud: The History of War Between France and Germany

READING 2: Read the following passage and choose the best answer THE DOT-COM ERA

The late 1990s was a volatile time for the Internet entrepreneur. There were a large number of new

155 high-tech and Internet-based businesses being started up, some based on little more than dreams. And, nearly any entrepreneur with a high-tech or Internet-based business plan could receive a large amount of money from investors to develop the business. These businesses were called dot-coms” after the last part of their Internet addresses, and that time in business history has become known as the dot-com era. Most dotcom ventures failed as the inconsistencies between high-tech dreams and realities clarified, but a handful of entrepreneurs from that time remain successful today.

Many people look back at the dot-com era with a certain amount of cynicism. Some charge that there were entrepreneurs who deliberately mislead investors about the potential of their business plans; that they had the ulterior motive of getting their hands on large amounts of cash before anything else - a ploy that some say was common in the dot-corn era. By 2001, most of the dot-coms had disappeared and were sarcastically referred to as 11 dot-bombs.” By the time the hype died down, incredible amounts of money had been lost. This is an unfortunate legacy of the dotcom era.

Why did companies like Microsoft, Apple, and Google find success, whilst so many others disappeared? There is no concise answer, but one interesting coincidence is that many of them were started by two or more entrepreneurs working in conjunction with each other. At Microsoft, Bill Gates and Paul Allen complemented each other; Apple had Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak; and we owe Google to the rapport between founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

Besides collaborating with others, today’s entrepreneurs need to be able to think on. their feet because the business situation changes so quickly. Entrepreneurs need to do constant research to keep track of changing trends. Today 's entrepreneurs need to be hardworking and tenacious - the easy money of the dotcorn era is history. Experimentation and innovation a critical in a rapidly changing and highly competitive marketplace.

It seems that the mistakes of the dot-corn era have shown the world what the high-tech economy truly is - and what it isn’t. It isn’t a place where anyone with a dream can get rich. It is, however, a powerful and flexible business environment where people with sound business ideas and effective business models can work together to produce successful business innovations - sometimes very successful ones indeed. But, as has always been true in the business world, there is no substitute for thorough planning and hard work. 1. What is the author’s main purpose in writing this passage?

A. To expose the negative side of the dot-com era

B. To explain the history and qualities of a type of entrepreneur

C. To convince the: reader to become an entrepreneur

D. To show how being an entrepreneur is easier today than ever before 2. According to the passage, it was easy to get money from investors in the dotcom era is most probably because…………

A. investors were mainly Internet entrepreneurs

B. investors didn’t expect to get their money back in those days

C. investors were confused about the potential of high-tech business ideas

D. investors knew that any idea would succeed 3. According to the passage, many people look back on the dot-corn era with cynicism because…………

A. many companies misled their investors

B. they are jealous of the success of dot-coms

C. the level of technology was so much lower then

D. there were no true entrepreneurs in that era 4. According to the passage, some people referred to dot-corns as “dot bombs” by 2001 probably because …………

A. most dot-corn companies were short-lived failures

B. dot-corn companies started up extremely quickly

C. some dot-corns became extremely successful

D. many people wished to eliminate dot-corn businesses 5. According to the passage, what do Microsoft, Apple, and Google all have in common?