Test 1 / 30

Read the text and choose the correct answer. Click on a gap and a choice of words will appear.

Soap operas

It is surely beyond dispute that soap opera is the most consistently popular type of television programme in the world. It has succeeded in capturing the imagination of millions since it first emerged as a genre back in the 1930s. The word ‛soap’ alludes to the role originally played by detergent manufacturers, who promoted their products during commercial breaks. Soap operas have been dismissed as mindless entertainment, with viewers only resorting to these programmes in order to escape from reality.

Soaps are often set in friendly, tightly-knit neighbourhoods, evoking nostalgic feelings in some viewers, since such communities may no longer exist in many areas. The subject matter of soaps also holds great appeal for viewers since the stories invariably focus on domestic problems they may have experienced themselves.

There has been a significant shift in attitudes with many soaps now addressing moral and social issues. The characters and situations depicted are complex and ambiguous, providing much food for thought and no easy answers.

Test 2 / 30

Read the text and choose the correct answer. Click on a gap and a choice of words will appear.

Diamonds

Diamonds have inspired dreams of wealth and power throughout history. Until modern times, most diamonds were insignias of royalty and were beyond the reach of the common person, who could only elicit visions of the astounding beauty and wealth brought forth by diamonds.

It’s no wonder that other gems and precious metals have historically taken a back seat to diamonds. Some diamonds are so valuable that a person can literally carry a king’s ransom in a pocket. A similar value in gold would mean one would have to have access to a forklift, as some of the most valuable diamonds in the world have been appraised for many thousands of times that of a similar weigh in gold!

Diamond deposits are not easily found. Diamonds occur in some of the rarest rock types on the surface of the earth, and when found, they are disseminated in trace amounts even in the richest deposits. The principal host rock, kimberlite, forms very small deposits. Being a relatively soft rock, kimberlite commonly erodes faster than the surrounding country rock and often is covered by thin layers of soil and regolith derived from adjacent rock outcrops.