1 Read the following passage and circle the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.

(Đọc đoạn văn sau và khoanh tròn chữ cái A, B, C hoặc D để chỉ ra câu trả lời đúng cho mỗi câu hỏi)

A biography is a narrative of a person's life written by another person. There are usually five main steps in writing a good biography.

1. Choose a subject. Choosing the person you want to write about is, of course, the first step. This could be a celebrity, or someone who is lesser known. You could also write about someone who is still alive or someone who is dead. Most importantly, choose a person who has had an impact on other people, or whose life is interesting.

2. Get permission. Although you can still write about a person's life without his or her permission, it is always better to get the subject's agreement. This will not only help you in your research, but you will also avoid upsetting the person later on if he or she thinks your account is not true.

3. Do your research. You can obtain information through primary sources, e.g. the subject's letters or other personal writings, and interviews with her or him. You can also use secondary sources prepared by someone who didn't know the subject or published at a later time.

4. Choose a format. A biography is usually told in chronological or time order. However, you may also choose to organise the events by themes or specific achievements.

5. Outline, write, and edit. It's a good idea to start with a detailed outline including your main points and the number of chapters. After that, write your first draft. Then revise and edit it until you've got a final version you are happy with.

Writing a biography is not easy, but it is worth the effort. A biography often influences or motivates people, and teaches valuable life lessons.

1. Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?

A. Five steps in writing your life story

B. Different types of biographies

C. Things to avoid when writing a biography

D. How to write a good biography

2. The word 'narrative' in the introduction is closest in meaning to

A. life

B. story

C. impact

D. research

3. The word 'subject' in Section 1 mostly means

A. the topic of a biography

B. the person that is described in the biography

C. a celebrity who is still alive

D. someone with an interesting life

4. The word 'this' in Section 2 refers to

A. the subject of the biography

B. writing about a person's life

C. getting permission from the subject

D. doing research about the subject

5. According to the passage, primary sources of information

A. come from the subject himself/herself

B. are stories about the subjects written by someone else

C. are more diverse than secondary sources

D. are better than secondary sources

6. It can be inferred from the passage that newspaper reports about the life of a subject are examples of

A. primary sources of information

B. secondary sources of information

C. both A and B

D. neither A nor B

7. It can be inferred from the passage that a chronological structure

A. is preferred by most biography writers

B. is the only way to organise a biography

C. means organising events by topics or themes

D. means listing the person's achievements in order

8. According to the passage, which is NOT true about writing a biography?

A. It can be done without much effort.

B. It will be important and useful.

C. It may have a positive impact on the readers' lives.

D. We can learn from the experiences of others.

2 Read the following passage and circle the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct word that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

(Đọc đoạn văn sau và khoanh tròn chữ cái A, B, C hoặc D để chỉ ra từ đúng phù hợp nhất với mỗi chỗ trống được đánh số.)

Isaac Newton (1643-1727) and Albert Einstein (1897-1955) are regarded as two of the most important scientists of all (1) _____. They also share some similarities.

(2) _____ Einstein and Newton were described as lonely children who lacked social skills, but had a passion for complex topics. Einstein dropped out of school at the age of 15 (3) _____  he felt bored and didn't like the teaching style. (4) _____, Newton didn't excel in school, although he completed his secondary education and managed to enter Cambridge University.

Both worked in the field of physics and maths, but in different time periods and contributed to our (5) _____ of gravity. Newton was the first person to describe gravity and discover the basic laws of mechanics and motion. While Einstein agreed with some aspects of his theory, he showed that Newton was (6) _____  about time and space, and came up with a new theory of gravity. Einstein also established the foundations of modern physics.

The scientific (7) _____ of both Newton and Einstein are impressive, and there is still a(n) (8) _____ about who made the bigger contribution to humankind.

1. A. times

B. time

C. men

D. world

2. A. None

B. Either

C. Neither

D. Both

3. A. afterwards

B. because of

C. because

D. despite

4. A. Similarly

B. Of course

C. By contrast

D. After that

5. A. understanding

B. knowing

C. learning

D. contrasting

6. A. better

B. clever

C. right

D. wrong

7. A. accidents

B. decisions

C. events

D. achievements

8. A. agreement

B. debate

C. competition

D. contrast