Bac Techno Blanc Anglais LV1 2001 : Compréhension écrite

1) This text deals with
 o  American people's fear of cold weather
 þ  American people's extensive use of air-conditioning
 ¨  American people's allergy to air-conditioning
 o  The danger of changing temperatures

2) The narrator
 o  approves of American people's attitudes
 o  is angry with American people
 þ  criticizes American people's attitudes
 o  is not surprised at American people's attitudes

3) The narrator is
 o  English
 o  Irish
 þ  American
 o  French

A) True or false ? Justify your answer with brief quotations :
1) The situation described in paragraph one takes place in fine weather
 þ  True          o  False
It was a glorious day.

2) On the day the narrator recalls, air-conditioning was necessary
 o  True          þ  False
To create a climate inside their sealed vehicles that was identical to the climate already existing in the larger world outside.

3) Americans are no longer used to being out of doors
 þ  True          o  False
They will go out for the novel experience of being out of doors.

4) Americans mostly shop in street-markets
 o  True          þ  False
They shop in enclosed malls.

5) In most American cities, shops are underground
 o  True          þ  False
All the shops that used to be at street level have moved up to the first floor.

6) The narrator has always lived in the same town
 o  True          þ  False
The last time I was in my hometown.

7) The narrator had not planned to meet his old friend when he went to Des Moines
 þ  True          o  False
The last time I was in (...) Des Moines, I ran into an old friend of the family.

C) Tick the correct answer
1) "The bulk of their lives" (ligne 11) means
 o  The early years of their lives
 o  A few years in their lives
 þ  The most important part of their lives
 o  Half their lives

2) "An outsized motor-home" (ligne 16) is
 o  A motor-home that is too small
 þ  A motor-home that is too big
 o  A motor-home that has a normal size
 o  A motor-home that has a strange aspect

3) "People having a smoke" (ligne 26) means
 o  People making a fire
 þ  People smoking a cigarette
 o  People analysing smoke
 o  People running from a fire

4) "No muggers" (ligne 32) means
 o  No storms
 o  No wild animals
 o  No hunters
 þ  No robbers

E) Find in the text equivalents of the following words or expressions :
1) Strange : odd
2) Closed : sealed
3) I got the idea : it occurred to me
4) Perfect : flawless
5) A walking person : a pedestrian
6) A bridge : a flyover
7) In the city centre : downtown
8) Drunkards : winos