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PASSAGE 8

Read the following passage on transport, and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to

indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 1 to 8.

Quite different from storm surges are the giant sea waves called tsunamis, which derive their name from

the Japanese expression for “high water in a harbor.” These waves are also referred to by the general

public as tidal waves, although they have relatively little to do with tides. Scientists often referred to them

as seismic sea waves, far more appropriate in that they do result from undersea seismic activity.

Tsunamis are caused when the sea bottom suddenly moves, during an underwater earthquake or volcano

for example, and the water above the moving earth is suddenly displaced. This sudden shift of water sets

off a series of waves. These waves can travel great distances at speeds close to 700 kilometers per hour.

In the open ocean, tsunamis have little noticeable amplitude, often no more than one or two meters. It is

when they hit the shallow waters near the coast that they increase in height, possibly up to 40 meters.

Tsunamis often occur in the Pacific because the Pacific is an area of heavy seismic activity. Two areas of

the Pacific well accustomed to the threat of tsunamis are Japan and Hawaii. Because the seismic activity

that causes tsunamis in Japan often occurs on the ocean bottom quite close to the islands, the tsunamis

that hit Japan often come with little warning and can, therefore, prove disastrous. Most of the tsunamis

that hit the Hawaiian Islands, however, originate thousands of miles away near the coast of Alaska, so

these tsunamis have a much greater distance to travel and the inhabitants of Hawaii generally have time

for warning of their imminent arrival.

Tsunamis are certainly not limited to Japan and Hawaii. In 1755, Europe experienced a calamitous

tsunami, when movement along the fault lines near the Azores caused a massive tsunami to sweep onto

the Portuguese coast and flood the heavily populated area around Lisbon. The greatest tsunami on record

occurred on the other side of the world in 1883 when the Krakatoa volcano underwent a massive

explosion, sending waves more than 30 meters high onto nearby Indonesian islands; the tsunami from this

volcano actually traveled around the world and was witnessed as far away as the English Channel.

Question 1. The paragraph preceding this passage most probably discusses .

A. tides

B. underwater earthquakes

C. storm surges

D. tidal waves

Question 2. According to the passage, all of the following are true about tidal waves except that .

A. they are the same as tsunamis

B. they refer to the same phenomenon as seismic sea waves

C. they are caused by sudden changes in high and low tides

D. this terminology is not used by the scientific community

Question 3. The word “displaced” in line 6 is closet in meaning to .

A. located

B. moved

C. filtered

D. not pleased

Question 4. It can be inferred from the passage that tsunamis .

A. are often identified by ships on the ocean

B. are far more dangerous on the coast than in the open ocean

C. causes serve damage in the middle if the ocean

D. generally reach heights greater than 40 meters