Variant 1 You could have come first and won the race if you … faster

18. There are about twenty modern nations … currency is called the “dollar”.
A) which B) whom C) who D) whose
19. Although Emily Dickinson is now a well-known American poet, only her seven poems … while she was alive.
A) to publish B) publishing C) were published D) published
20. Wellington has been the capital of New Zealand since 1865, and is one of its … parts.
A) more busy B) busy C) busiest D) busier


The dinosaurs probably became extinct after a giant asteroid hit the Earth about 65 million years ago. But what would have happened if this asteroid had missed? Scientists believe that in this case, dinosaurs would have continued to dominate the Earth, and that modern animals would probably not exist. Instead of elephants and lions and so on, there would be different types of dinosaurs, because the animals we have now simply wouldn’t have been able to evolve. Some scientists have even suggested that dinosaurs would have developed along the same lines as human beings, but this is a minority view. The general view is that perhaps dinosaur brains would have grown larger, but if they existed today, dinosaurs wouldn’t have changed very much in general, and would look much the same. The prospects for human beings wouldn’t be so good, however. If the asteroid hadn’t collided with the Earth, there would probably not be any humans alive today. When the asteroid disaster wiped out the dinosaurs, it gave mammals the advantage. Without that space collision, mammals wouldn’t have stood much chance against the dominant dinosaur species.


21. According to the text, all of the following statements are TRUE EXCEPT:
A) Almost certainly that current animals wouldn’t be present but for that hit.
B) More than half a million centuries passed after that enormous crash.
C) Had not that asteroid reached our planet, dinosaurs would be ruling the world now.
D) Elephants and lions survived after that astronomical accident.