13 The presence of a lovely animal can be ______ for the elderly who live by themselves.
(A) aggravating
(B) disrespectful
(C) domesticated
(D) therapeutic

9 (A) reverence (B) ecstasy (C) apathy (D) disdain

10 (A) As (B) If (C) Because (D) Although

11 (A) falters (B) persists (C) expires (D) collapses

12 It was not until the 1970s, when ranchers began acquiring bison with an eye toward encouraging a boutique meat market, that the species rebounded in significant numbers. (A) The population of bison increased a lot in the 1970s because ranchers saw the potential of bison as a kind of meat on the table and started to raise them on their farms. (B) Bison eyes became a popular item in many jewelry stores in the 1970s when ranchers developed an interest in purchasing bison. (C) Many one-eyed bison boutiques were opened in the marketplace in the 1970s, which contributed to the fast growth of the species on ranches. (D) There was a big increase in the numbers of the bison species in the 1970s when ranchers started to appreciate its beauty.

14 More damaging are the little violations of ethical standards forced on managers or other employees who are asked every day to sacrifice personal values for company gain. (A) Management will be at stake while little sacrifice on workers’ personal values is forced to happen. (B) Employees’ little sacrifice on personal values for company gain is considered more damaging. (C) Employees sacrifice their values to rescue the damaging ethical standards in companies. (D) Ethical standards being violated means more damage of the company gain.

15 The green fairy tale of replacing fossil fuel with biofuel, such as palm oil, begins to look more like an environmental nightmare. (A) The wide use of fossil fuel is believed to be a nightmare to the environment for its burning is causing severe environmental problems. (B) The long use of fossil fuel is being replaced by palm oil, which is called biofuel and believed to bring a cleaner environment. (C) Replacing fossil fuel with biofuel was believed to be good to the environment, but now it seems to cause more problems. (D) Replacing fossil fuel with biofuel like palm oil is a green fairy tale because biofuel is called green oil.

16 African voters are losing patience with faulty elections that often exclude popular candidates and are marred by serious irregularities. (A) Many voters in Africa have lost in their fight against the government, which often removes popular candidates from the ballots in elections. (B) In Africa, the citizenry is irritated by elections which often exclude well-liked contenders and are marked with unfair practices. (C) It is common to see that candidates in popular elections in Africa are often those with moral or financial liabilities. (D) Many African voters are not happy about problematic elections in which candidates smear each other irresponsibly.

17 (A) But one of the more surprising culprits was India. (B) What was behind this decision? (C) But vast areas of the agricultural sector are hugely inefficient. (D) By refusing to move on from its outdated approach to agriculture, India is condemning farmers to misery.

18 (A) But the fundamental problem is that many Indian farmers will never make a proper living on their own land. (B) What was behind this decision? (C) And there is also a humanitarian problem. (D) But one of the more surprising culprits was India.

19 (A) But vast areas of the agricultural sector are hugely inefficient. (B) And there is also a humanitarian problem. (C) But the fundamental problem is that many Indian farmers will never make a proper living on their own land. (D) What was behind this decision?