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9 June, 2008

 

University of Bari, Faculty of Political Science. June 9, 2008.   Part 1.
                            
 
 
The use of the dictionary is not permitted. Time allowed: 20 minutes
SURNAME:                                       NAME:                                  NUMBER:
 
Write the right answer (A-B-C-D) in the square box. Do not rewrite the answer or circle it:
 
1. I’m looking forward ......................................... my University studies.
A. end                            B. to end                        C. to ending                  D. ending               
 
2. The new Russian President ............................. to China last May to cement strategic ties.
A. is going                      B. went                          C. has gone                   D. goes                              
 
3. Gordon Brown ...............................the British Prime Minister for a year.
A. has been                     B. is                               C. has been being          D. is being                         
 
4. We have been fighting extremism in the Taliban .................................. several years.
A. for                            B. since                             C. from                        D. by                                
 
5. Many of us .......................................... to answer these questions for a long time.
A. try                           B. have been trying              C. to try                       D. are trying                                            
 
6. We try to …..........…... people, especially reporters, that when you go into a war zone it is risky.
 A. record                        B. remember                   C. remind                   D. recall                           
 
7.  Dmitry Medvedev became the new Russian President ..................... 7 May 2008.
A. in                                 B. on                             C. at                         D. up
 
8. Thank you for ……………………………. , Senator. I appreciate you being here today.
A. coming                        B. come                         C. to come                   D. to have come                                    
 
9. The more free countries there are in the world, ............................ likely it is we’ll have peace.
A. more                          B. most                           C. the most                 D. the more                       
 
10. In 1997, people ………… more than 18 months for their operation; now, those waiting lists are at record lows.
A. had waited                     B. wait                      C. used to wait           D. used to waiting            
 
11. Mr. Bush doesn’t speak any Italian, .............................................?
 A. isn’t it                       B. isn’t he                         C. does he                    D. doesn’t he                 
 
12. Europeans are ……………………………..concepts together with Americans in NATO.
A. used to developing       B. used to develop C. developed               D. develop                   
 
13. I believe that the movie “Sex and the City” that has just been released should be rated ....................
A. R                                    B. ER                            C. E                        D. GP                              
 
14. I can’t wait ........................... with you and with all the new ministers of your government.  
A. to work                     B. to working                  C. work                      D. working                     
 
15. Would you mind ......................................... your cells during the lesson? Thanks a lot.
A. turn off                     B. to turn off                  C. turning off                 D. turned off                  
 
16.  Accession to the European Union is ...................................... guaranteed nor automatic.
A. both                          B. or                 C. either                         D. neither                        
 
17. They were not very tired last night, and ..............................................................
A. neither did I             B. neither am I             C. neither  do I               D. neither was I             
 
18. Let me give you an idea that I think is worth………………………………………….
A. consider                 B. to consider                   C. considering              D. of consider                 
 
19. India is an extraordinary example of a democratic country,................ all the problems of development.
 A. in spite                         B. despite                C. nonetheless                D. although                     
 
20. “Gomorra” is being released internationally like an American movie, ................. it was filmed in Italian.
A. in spite                         B. despite                  C. nonetheless                D. although                     
 
21. Rarely …………………….………………. to pray in my day.
A. do I forget                  B. I forget                    C. forget I                 D. I am forgetting                
 
22. Many people are still ............................................................... in Iraq.      
A. been killed                 B. being killing               C. being kill              D. being killed                     
 
23. These people have no conscience, they’ll cut off a head just like …………….. and don’t care.
A. this                          B. that                          C. so                         D. easy                                  
 
24. We must be sceptical that they will willingly ............ their WMD, let alone that they already have.
A. pick up                    B. give up                       C. ring up                 D. put up                               
 
25. You have to ................................ a questionnaire, either online or hard copy.  
A. give in                    B. put in                           C. break in                 D. fill in                                                    
 
26. I wake up every morning trying to ……………………….. how best to protect our country.
A. give out                   B. figure out                    C. put out                    D. break out                                                  
 
27. No flights will ............................. from the United Kingdom for which we cannot apply the highest standards of security for air crew and passengers.
A. put off                     B. break off                    C. take off                  D. leave off                        
 
28. It’s already more than five years since the Iraqi war .....................................
A. broke in                   B. broke out                  C. broke up                D. broke down                   
 
29. “Yes, but ............................... a second, we are talking about two different things here”.
 A. hold on                    B. hold up                    C. hold in                   D. hold on to                      
 
30.  All the meetings were ......................................... yesterday because of the weather.
A. called off                  B. broken off              C. taken off                  D. passed off                     


 

Part 2 – June 9, 2008
The use of the dictionary is not allowed.
 
 
A Translate the following passage into Italian (15 points)
 
The Lisbon Treaty, also known as The Reform Treaty, was signed in Lisbon, Portugal, on 13 December 2007.
Three years ago, on 29 October 2004 the European Constitution, agreed by the heads of governments from the 25 Member States, was signed at a ceremony in Rome. Before it could enter into force, however, it had to be unanimously ratified by each Member States. Ratification took different forms in each country. In 2005, Dutch and French voters rejected the European Constitution in national referendums. While the majority of the Member States already had ratified the European Constitution, mostly through parliamentary ratification (although Spain and Luxembourg held referenda), due to the requirement of unanimity to amend the constitutional treaties of the EU, it became clear that it could not enter into force. This led to a “period of reflection” and the political end of the proposed European Constitution. In 2007, Germany took over the rotating EU Presidency and declared the period of reflection over. By March, the 50th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome, the Berlin Declaration was adopted by all Member States. This declaration outlined the intention of all Member States to agree on a new treaty in time for the 2009 Parliamentary elections, that is to have a ratified treaty before mid-2009.
 
 
B Translate the following passage into English (5 points)
 
Barack Obama abbandona la Chiesa nera di Chicago
Il senatore Barack Obama ha deciso “con tristezza” di rompere i legami con la Trinity United Church of Christ di Chicago a cui apparteneva da 20 anni. “Non voglio che la mia esperienza di chiesa si trasformi in un circo politico. Non lo voglio per me e non lo voglio per la chiesa”, ha detto il candidato democratico alla Casa Bianca, che negli ultimi mesi era stato messo in imbarazzo varie volte dai sermoni dei due reverendi della Trinity Church.
Le dimissioni sono state comunicate da Obama e dalla moglie Michelle al nuovo pastore della chiesa, Otis Moss, che ha sostituito il famoso Jeremiah Wright. Il sermone di padre Pfleger, un ospite bianco della chiesa nera, è stata la goccia che ha fatto traboccare il vaso.
 
 
C Read the following passage and then answer the questions below (10 points)
 
Would the Labour Party really consider having a second unelected prime minister on Britain?
“No more unelected leaders”, says Jack Straw. “Technically it would be unconstitutional. It’s not going to happen again”. Next general elections are scheduled for some time in 2010.
Less than a year ago Gordon Brown succeeded Tony Blair. Last summer, when Prime Minister Gordon Brown handled competently a series of minor crises, he seemed able to turn floodwaters into wine. His long wait for the top job appeared to have been triumphantly vindicated. Nevertheless, in the local elections on May 1st, the Labour Party recorded its worst result in living memory, including the loss of London's mayoralty to the Conservatives, and now Boris Johnson (Conservative) has taken over Ken Livingstone (Labour) as mayor of London. Mr Brown's personal rating has plunged even more violently. His apotheosis, it now seems, has led only to agony. As a result, some Labour MPs are conducting a campaign against him that is likely to damage not only their leader but also their party's chances of re-election. David Cameron, the Tory leader, described these days as “a big moment”. A “bad” and “disappointing” week, said Mr Brown.
 
 
1.      Explain the meaning of “he seemed able to turn floodwaters into wine”. (2.5 points)
2.      Explain what happened on May 1st, 2008. (2.5 points)
3.      Write a short comment on British politics today. (5 points)