Perhaps better known than the Cullinan Diamond is the Hope Diamond,a valuable and rare blue gem with a background of more than 300 years as a world traveler.The 112 carat blue stone that late became the hope Diamond was mined in India sometime before the middle of the seventeenth century and was first known to be owned by Shah Jahan,who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his beloved wife.From India,the celebrated blue stone has changed hands often,moving from location to location in distant corners of the world.
In the middle of the seventeenth century,a trader from France named Jean Baptiste Tavernier acquired the large9 blue diamond,which was rumored to have been illegally removed from a temple.Louis XIV .Louis XIV had it cut down from 112 to 67 carats to make its shape symmetrical and to maximize its sparkle.The newly cut diamond,still huge by any standards ,was passed passed down through the royal family of France,until it arrived in the hands of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.During the French Revolution.Louis XVI and his wife met their fate on the guillotine in 1793,and the big blue diamond disappeared from public sight.
The diamond somehow managed to get from France to England,where banker Henry Hope purchased it from a gem dealer,early in the nineteenth century.The huge blue stone was cut into a 45.5-carat oval,and at this point it took on the name by which it is known today.The diamond stayed in the Hope family for around a century,when deep indeptedness brought on by a serious gambling habit on the part 999 of one of Henry Hope's heirs forced 9the sale of the diamond.
From England,the Hope Diamond may have made its way into the hands of the hands of the sultan of Turkey,whatever route it took to get there,it eventually went on to the United States when American Evelyn Walsh McLean puechased it in 1911.Mrs.McLean certainly enjoyed showing the diamond off,guests in her home were sometimes astounded to notice the huge stone embellishing the neck of Mrs.McLean's Great Dane as the huge pet trotted around the grounds of her Washington,D.C.home.The Hope Diamond later become the property of jeweler Harry Winston,who presented the stunning 45.5 carat piece to the Smithsorian in 1958 .The Hope Diamond is now taking a well-earned rest following its rigorous travel itinerary and is on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington,D.C.where it has been since 1958.
42.The paragraph preceding the passage most likely discussed
a.why gems are considered valuable
b.how the Hope Diamond was mined
c.a diamond other than the Hope Diamond
d.methods for mining diamonds
43.The main idea of this passage is that the Hope Diamond
a.came from India
b.has moved around a lot
c.has been cut several times
d.now resides in the Smithsonian
44.The pronoun"it"in line 12 refers to
a.its shape
b.the newly cut diamond
c.the royal family
d.the French Revolution
45.It can inferred from the passage that the author is not certain
a.who bought the Hope Diamond in England
b.who sold the Hope Diamond in England
c.how the Hope Diamond went from France to England
d.how big the Hope Diamond was in the nineteenth century
46.A"dealer"in line 16 is most likely a
a.card player
b.miner
c.cutter
d.businessman
47.It can be determined from the passage that Henry Hope most likely had how many carats cut off the Hope Diamond?
a.21.5
b.45.5
c.66.5
d.67
48.According to the passage,Mrs.McLean
a.donated the Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian
b.let her dog wear the Hope Diamond
c.purchased the Hope Diamond from the French
d.had the Hope Diamond cut to its present size of 45.4 carats
49.Which country is NOT mentioned in the passage as a place where the Hope Diamond spent time?
a.India
b.France
c.England
d.Denmark
50.Where in the passage does the author describe what happpened to the royal French owners of the Diamond.
a.Lines 7-8
b.Lines 10-11
c.Lines 12-14
d.Lines 15-16
READING
PASSAGE ONE
Fort Konx,Kentucky,is the site of a U.S.army post,but it is even more renowned for the Fort Knox Bullion Depository,the massive vault that contains the bulk of the U.S.government's gold deposits.Completed in 1936.the vault is housed in a two-story building constructed of granite,steel,and concrete;the vault itself is made of steel and concrete and has a door that weighs more than twenty tons.Naturally the most up to date security devices available are in place at Fort Knox,and the army post nearby provides further protection.
1.Which of the following best describes the topic of the passage?
a.The city of Fort Konx,Kentucky
b.The federal gold depository
c.The U.S.army post at Fort Knox
d.Gold bullion
2.Which of the following would be the best tittle for this passage?
a.The Massive Concrete Vault
b.Fort Knox Security
c.Where the U.S. Keeps Its Gold
d.A Visit to Kentucky
PASSAGE TWO
One identifying characteristic of minerals is their relative hardness,which can be determined by scratching one mineral with another.In this type of test,a harder mineral can scratch a softer one,but a softer mineral is unable to scratch the harder one.The Mohs' hardness scale is used to rank mineralsaccording to hardness.Ten minerals are listed in this scale,ranging from talc with a hardness of 1 to diamond with a hardness of 10.On this scale,quartz(number 7)is harder than feldspar(number 6) and is therefore able to scratch it;however,feldspar is unable to make a mark on quartz.
3.Which of the following best states the subject of this passage?
a.The hardness of diamonds
b.Identifying minerals by means of a scratch test
c.Feldspar on the Mohs' scale
d.Recognizing minerals in their natural state
4.The main idea of this passage is that
a.the hardness of a mineral can be determined by its ability to make a mark on other minerals
b.diamonds,with a hardness of 10 on the Mohs' scale,can scratch all other minerals
c.a softer mineral cannot be scratched by a harder mineral
d.talc is the first mineral listed on the Mohs' scale
PASSAGE THREE
Hurricanes generally occur in the North Atlantic from May through November,with the peak of the hurricane season in September;only rarely will they occur from December through April in that part of the ocean.The main reason for the occurrence of hurricanes during this period is that the temperature on the water's surface is at its earnest and the humidity of the air is at its highest.
Of the tropical storms that occur each year in the North Atlantic,only about five,on the average,are powerful enough to be called hurricanes.To be classified as a hurricane,a tropical storm must have winds reaching speeds of at least 117 kilometers per hour,but the winds are often much stronger than that;the winds of intense can easily surpass 240 kilometers per hour.
5.The passage mainly discuss
a.how many hurricanes occur each year
b.the strength of hurricanes
c.the weather in the North Atlantic
d.hurricanes in one part of the world
6.The best tittle for this passage would be
a.The North Atlantic Ocean
b.Storms of the Northern Atlantic
c.Hurricanes:The Damage and Destruction
d.What Happens from May through November
PASSAGE FOUR
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow(1807-1882)was perhaphs the best-known American poet of the nineteenth century.His clear writing style and emphsis on the prevalent values of the period made him popular with the general public if not always with the critics.He was particularly recognized for his longer narrative poems Evangeline,The Song of Hiawatha,and The Courtship of Miles Standish,in which he told stories from American history in terms of the value of the time.
Evangeline was set during the French and Indian War(19754-1763),when the British forced French settlers9from Nova Scotia;two lovers,Gabriel and Evangeline,were separated by the British ,and Evangeline devoted her lifetime to the search for Gabriel.With its emphasis on sentimental ,undying love Evangeline was immensely popular with the public.
In T9he Song of Hiawatha Longfellow depicted the noble life of the American India through the story of the brave Hiawatha and his beloved wife Minehaha.The tear-inspiring poem follows Hiawatha through the tragedies and triuphs of life,ending with the death of Minehaha and Hiawatha's departure into the sunset in his canoe.
The Courtship of Miles Standish takes place during the early period of the settlement New England ,a period which was viewed as a time of horor and romance .In this poem centered around a love triangle ,Miles Standish asks his friend John Alden to propose to Priscilla Mullins for him,John Alden ends up marrying Priscilla Mullins himself ,and it takes time for his friendship with Miles Standish9 to recover.As with Longfellow's other narrative poems,the emphasis on high ideals and romance made the poem extremely popular.
7.Which of the following best describes the main idea of passage?
a.American history is often depicted in poetry .
b.Longfellow described American history even though people really did not enjoy it.
c.The popularity of Longfellow's 99poems results from his stress on the values of the people.
d.Longfellow wrote long narrative poems that were not always popular with the critics.
8.The best tittle of the passage is
a.Longfellow's Popular Appeal
b.Historical Narrative Poems
c.The Lyric,Dramatic,and Narrative Poems of Longfellow
d.Longfellow and the Critics
9.The subject of the fourth paragraph is
a.nobility and honor in the poems of Longfellow
b.the love triangle involving Miles Standish
c.the popular appeal of The Courtship of Miles Standish
d.the period of the early settlement of New England
REFERENCE
LONGMAN PREPARATION COURSE FOR THE TOEFL TEST
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