Post category:Exam Tips / Fill in the Blanks (Reading)
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Here are Top 3 frequently asked Fill in the Blanks (Reading) questions in recent PTE Academic test (February 2020).

1.Suez Canal

Britain became the largest shareholder in the canal in 1875, purchasing its interest from the Egyptian khedive. The Convention of Constantinople signed by the major European powers in 1888 keeps it open for free passage to all nations in time of peace or war. Britain became the guarantor of the canal’s neutrality and management was left to the Paris-based Suez Canal Co.

2. Lumiere

Our sense of cinema as a site of commercial entertainment can be traced back to the Lumière brothers. In December 1895 they attracted a fee-paying public in Paris to sit and watch flickering images on an illuminated screen. The commercial Pandora’s Box they opened was to blossom in a few years into a world cinema industry and, at its peak, the fantastical Hollywood. Yet in the 30 years in which this miraculous construction was accomplished, audiences rarely had to listen to films, only watch them. Hence, the early decades of cinema were characterized by the title silent. In fact, there was a lot of noise, machinery, audiences, musicians and commentators. Even so, the absence of the human voice and dialogue make the films seem rather strange when viewed by a modern audience.

3.Emerald Green

Emerald is defined by its green color. To be an emerald, a specimen must have a distinctly green color that falls in the range from bluish green to green to slightly yellowish green. To be an emerald, the specimen must also have a rich color. Stones with weak saturation or light tone should be called “green beryl.” If the beryl’s color is greenish blue then it is an “aquamarine.” If it is greenish yellow it is “heliodor.”

This color definition is a source of confusion. Which hue, tone, and saturation combinations are the dividing lines between “green beryl” and “emerald”? Professionals in the gem and jewelry trade can disagree on where the lines should be drawn. Some believe that the name “emerald” should be used when chromium is the cause of the green color, and that stones colored by vanadium should be called “green beryl.”

Calling a gem an “emerald” instead of a “green beryl” can have a significant impact upon its price and marketability. This “color confusion” exists within the United States. In some other countries, any beryl with a green color – no matter how faint – is called an “emerald.”