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[題組:第44-47題]47. What is the last paragraph mainly about?
(A) The origins and sizes of the signs in the Signpost Forest.
(B) The quantity and variety of the signs in the Signpost Forest.
(C) The difficulty of categorizing the signs in the Signpost Forest.
(D) The practice of nailing illegal signs to the posts in the Signpost Forest.

[題組:第48-51題]In finance, an exchange rate is the rate at which one country’s currency is exchanged for the currency of another. The rate is set according to the respective values of the currencies to be exchanged. Before World War I, most currencies were evaluated by the Gold Standard. That is, paper currency issued by a government represented a real amount of gold held by that government. For example, in the 1930s, the British government owned about 8 times as much gold as the U.S. government. Therefore, 1 ounce of gold was worth 4.24 GBP (United Kingdom pound sterling) or 35 USD (U.S. dollars). The difference in the price of gold became the exchange rate for the two currencies: 1GBP was worth 8.25 USD.
The Gold Standard started to break down during the Second World War, when European powers printed more money than they had in gold reserves in order to fund military projects. After World War II, the Bretton Woods System was established. The U.S. dollar was chosen as the international reserve currency for trading. Every country knew how much gold a USD was worth, and thus they based the value of their currencies on the USD. All countries were expected to maintain a fixed exchange rate, but were permitted to change it in extraordinary times, such as a recession or inflation.
Unfortunately, this system could not keep pace with the fast-changing global economy. As the U.S. increased its military spending, foreign aid, and international investment in the 1960s, it no longer held gold reserves necessary to cover the volume of USD circulation around the world. Other major currencies thus became more valuable and stable compared to the USD, and the Bretton Woods System was finally abolished in 1971.
In 1976, the Jamaica Agreement formalized the floating exchange rate system that continues to this day. The value of a country’s currency may vary according to the supply and demand of the foreign exchange market. Countries around the world can also allow their central banks to determine their own exchange rate.
48. According to the passage, which of the following is true about the Gold Standard?
(A) It showed the importance of gold for currency exchange.
(B) It reflected the dominance of the U.S. economy in the world.
(C) It demonstrated how rich countries manipulated exchange rates.
(D) It decided that the GBP was worth less than the USD in the 1930s.

[題組:第48-51題]49. What is the second paragraph mainly about?
(A) The cause of economic recession.
(B) Changes in currency rates and European powers.
(C) World War II and the drop in gold prices.
(D) The rise of a new currency exchange system.

[題組:第48-51題]50. What caused the Bretton Woods System to fail?
(A) Major world powers fell into economic depression.
(B) The U.S. did not have enough gold to cover the amount of U.S. dollars.
(C) The system was too complicated for the practice of currency exchange.
(D) European countries printed more paper money than they had in gold reserves.

[題組:第48-51題]51. According to the passage, which of the following is true about the Jamaica Agreement?
(A) Individual countries may not decide their own exchange rate.
(B) In a recession, all countries need to follow a fixed exchange rate.
(C) Gold is again used as the standard of the currency exchange rate.
(D) Supply and demand in the currency market determines the exchange rate.

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[題組:第31-35題]Copernicus, founder of modern astronomy, was born in 1473 to a well-to-do merchant family in Torun, Poland. He was sent off to attend university in Italy, studying mathematics and optics, and canon law. Returning from his studies abroad, Copernicus was appointed to an administrative position in the cathedral of Frauenburg. There he spent a sheltered and academic life for the rest of his days.
31 He made his observations from a tower situated on the protective wall around the cathedral. His observations were made with the “bare eyeball,” so to speak, as a hundred years were to pass before the invention of the telescope. In 1530, Copernicus completed his famous work De Revolutionibus, which later played a major role in changing the philosophical view of humankind’s place in the universe. 32
Copernicus died in 1543 and was never to know what a stir his work would cause. In his book, he asserted that the Earth rotated on its axis once daily and traveled around the Sun once yearly. 33 People then regarded the Earth as stationary, situated at the center of the universe, with the Sun and all the planets revolving around it. Copernicus’ theory challenged the long-held belief that God created the Heavens and the Earth, and could overturn the core values of the Catholic world. 34 Other ministers quickly followed suit, saying of Copernicus, “This fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside down.”
Ironically, Copernicus had dedicated his work to Pope Paul III. 35 The Church ultimately banned De Revolutionibus, and the book remained on the list of forbidden reading material for nearly three centuries thereafter.
(A) Meanwhile, Copernicus was a lifelong member of the Catholic Church.
(B) The book, however, wasn’t published until two months before his death.
(C) If this act was an attempt to seek the Catholic Church’s approval, it was of no use.
(D) This went against the philosophical and religious beliefs held during medieval times.
(E) Religious leader Martin Luther voiced his opposition to the sun-centered system model.
(F) In his spare time, Copernicus studied the stars and the planets, applying his math knowledge to the mysteries of the night sky.

[題組:第31-35題]32.

Copernicus, founder of modern astronomy, was born in 1473 to a well-to-do merchant family in Torun, Poland. He was sent off to attend university in Italy, studying mathematics and optics, and canon law. Returning from his studies abroad, Copernicus was appointed to an administrative position in the cathedral of Frauenburg. There he spent a sheltered and academic life for the rest of his days.
31 He made his observations from a tower situated on the protective wall around the cathedral. His observations were made with the “bare eyeball,” so to speak, as a hundred years were to pass before the invention of the telescope. In 1530, Copernicus completed his famous work De Revolutionibus, which later played a major role in changing the philosophical view of humankind’s place in the universe. 32
Copernicus died in 1543 and was never to know what a stir his work would cause. In his book, he asserted that the Earth rotated on its axis once daily and traveled around the Sun once yearly. 33 People then regarded the Earth as stationary, situated at the center of the universe, with the Sun and all the planets revolving around it. Copernicus’ theory challenged the long-held belief that God created the Heavens and the Earth, and could overturn the core values of the Catholic world. 34 Other ministers quickly followed suit, saying of Copernicus, “This fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside down.”
Ironically, Copernicus had dedicated his work to Pope Paul III. 35 The Church ultimately banned De Revolutionibus, and the book remained on the list of forbidden reading material for nearly three centuries thereafter.
(A) Meanwhile, Copernicus was a lifelong member of the Catholic Church.
(B) The book, however, wasn’t published until two months before his death.
(C) If this act was an attempt to seek the Catholic Church’s approval, it was of no use.
(D) This went against the philosophical and religious beliefs held during medieval times.
(E) Religious leader Martin Luther voiced his opposition to the sun-centered system model.
(F) In his spare time, Copernicus studied the stars and the planets, applying his math knowledge to the mysteries of the night sky.

[題組:第31-35題]33.

Copernicus, founder of modern astronomy, was born in 1473 to a well-to-do merchant family in Torun, Poland. He was sent off to attend university in Italy, studying mathematics and optics, and canon law. Returning from his studies abroad, Copernicus was appointed to an administrative position in the cathedral of Frauenburg. There he spent a sheltered and academic life for the rest of his days.
31 He made his observations from a tower situated on the protective wall around the cathedral. His observations were made with the “bare eyeball,” so to speak, as a hundred years were to pass before the invention of the telescope. In 1530, Copernicus completed his famous work De Revolutionibus, which later played a major role in changing the philosophical view of humankind’s place in the universe. 32
Copernicus died in 1543 and was never to know what a stir his work would cause. In his book, he asserted that the Earth rotated on its axis once daily and traveled around the Sun once yearly. 33 People then regarded the Earth as stationary, situated at the center of the universe, with the Sun and all the planets revolving around it. Copernicus’ theory challenged the long-held belief that God created the Heavens and the Earth, and could overturn the core values of the Catholic world. 34 Other ministers quickly followed suit, saying of Copernicus, “This fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside down.”
Ironically, Copernicus had dedicated his work to Pope Paul III. 35 The Church ultimately banned De Revolutionibus, and the book remained on the list of forbidden reading material for nearly three centuries thereafter.
(A) Meanwhile, Copernicus was a lifelong member of the Catholic Church.
(B) The book, however, wasn’t published until two months before his death.
(C) If this act was an attempt to seek the Catholic Church’s approval, it was of no use.
(D) This went against the philosophical and religious beliefs held during medieval times.
(E) Religious leader Martin Luther voiced his opposition to the sun-centered system model.
(F) In his spare time, Copernicus studied the stars and the planets, applying his math knowledge to the mysteries of the night sky.

[題組:第31-35題]34.

Copernicus, founder of modern astronomy, was born in 1473 to a well-to-do merchant family in Torun, Poland. He was sent off to attend university in Italy, studying mathematics and optics, and canon law. Returning from his studies abroad, Copernicus was appointed to an administrative position in the cathedral of Frauenburg. There he spent a sheltered and academic life for the rest of his days.
31 He made his observations from a tower situated on the protective wall around the cathedral. His observations were made with the “bare eyeball,” so to speak, as a hundred years were to pass before the invention of the telescope. In 1530, Copernicus completed his famous work De Revolutionibus, which later played a major role in changing the philosophical view of humankind’s place in the universe. 32
Copernicus died in 1543 and was never to know what a stir his work would cause. In his book, he asserted that the Earth rotated on its axis once daily and traveled around the Sun once yearly. 33 People then regarded the Earth as stationary, situated at the center of the universe, with the Sun and all the planets revolving around it. Copernicus’ theory challenged the long-held belief that God created the Heavens and the Earth, and could overturn the core values of the Catholic world. 34 Other ministers quickly followed suit, saying of Copernicus, “This fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside down.”
Ironically, Copernicus had dedicated his work to Pope Paul III. 35 The Church ultimately banned De Revolutionibus, and the book remained on the list of forbidden reading material for nearly three centuries thereafter.
(A) Meanwhile, Copernicus was a lifelong member of the Catholic Church.
(B) The book, however, wasn’t published until two months before his death.
(C) If this act was an attempt to seek the Catholic Church’s approval, it was of no use.
(D) This went against the philosophical and religious beliefs held during medieval times.
(E) Religious leader Martin Luther voiced his opposition to the sun-centered system model.
(F) In his spare time, Copernicus studied the stars and the planets, applying his math knowledge to the mysteries of the night sky.