Thi thử VSTEP – 10 Bài Reading Test 8 Part 2

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 3
Questions 21-30

A few languages have only one class of nouns and treat all nouns the same way, but most languages have different classes of nouns. One common way to classify nouns is by gender. In Indo-European languages, genders typically include feminine, masculine, and neuter. Latin has all three of these, but in many of its modern descendants, such as Spanish and French, the neuter gender has all but disappeared. However, a few words in French, especially pronouns with no clear gender, such ascela(this), are considered neuter by some grammarians.

English is one language that uses natural gender (also called logical gender). Gender depends on biology.Motheris feminine,fatheris masculine, andchairis neuter. There are, however, a few oddities. Ships are sometimes referred to asshe, and so are nations. Animals can be neuter or follow natural gender.

Other languages use grammatical gender. Languages that have only two genders, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, and Urdu, all use grammatical gender. So do some languages, such as German, Russian, and Greek, which have masculine, feminine, and neuter nouns. Sometimes grammatical gender is logical, especially for nouns that refer to people. In Spanish, for example,hijo(son) is masculine andhija(daughter) is feminine. However, while the assignment of gender to certain nouns seems obvious to a native speaker of these languages, it seems arbitrary and confusing to non-native speakers. Why ischaise(chair) feminine in French butbanc(bench) masculine? Why, in German, isFels(rock) masculine,Fenster(window) andTür(door) feminine? And noun gender varies by culture. In French,soleil(sun) is masculine, whilelune(moon) is feminine. The reverse is true in German:Sonne(sun) is feminine, butMond(moon) is masculine.

In some languages, such as modern Greek, it is impossible to predict the gender of a noun by the form of the noun. Gender must simply be memorized. In other languages, it is possible, or at least it is sometimes possible. In Latin, most singular nouns that end inaare feminine, most singular nouns that end inusare masculine, and most nouns that end inumare neuter. There are, however, exceptions, such asagricola(farmer), which is masculine, andulmus(elm tree), which is feminine. For some languages, there are complicated and often incomplete rules that relate form to gender. This is true in German. It may be useful to learn the rule that nouns that end inleinandchert(meaning young or small) are all neuter. The nounMädchen(little girl) is, rather unexpectedly, neuter. However, is it worth learning that, of the 107 single-syllable nouns ending in a nasal sound plus another consonant, 70% are masculine? A student may end up learning more rules than nouns.

Besides gender, there are many other classes of nouns. According to the linguist Carl Meinhof, the Bantu language family has a total of 22 noun classes. Tamil – spoken in Sri Lanka – divides nouns into rational versus non-rational. In Ojibwa (a Native American language), there is a distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. The names of all living things, as well as sacred things and things connected to the earth, belong to the animate class. Still, the assignment is somewhatarbitrary, as the word forraspberryis animate but the word forstrawberryis inanimate.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.

PASSAGE 4
Questions 31-40

Nickel (Ni), a precious metal with unique resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and other extreme conditions, is occasionally used alone but is more often combined with another metal or metals to form an alloy used for different industrial applications. Different combinations of nickel and other metals can be combined to form alloys with specific characteristics.

One common nickel-based alloy is stainless steel, which generally contains 10 percent nickel and 90 percent iron. Alloys containing lower percentages of nickel resist stress and extreme temperatures more poorly compared to alloys with higher percentages of nickel. Alloys with higher percentages of nickel are called super-alloys, and may have nickel percentages as high as 70 percent, along with other substances that give them very specific performance features. Substances commonly combined with nickel to make super-alloys are chromium, iron, and cobalt. Super-alloys are used for chemical processing, the aerospace industry, various medical applications, and power plants.

It is vital that nickel mined for use in super-alloys is as pure as possible, because the parts manufactured from super-alloys are generally responsible for the proper functioning of the larger unit, or “safety-critical.” For this reason, mined nickel isrefinedspecifically until it reaches the proper level of purity to be combined in a super-alloy for safety-critical parts. This extremely pure nickel is called high-purity nickel, and is extremely valuable because only a small portion of the nickel mined worldwide is ever refined to the required state of purity to be labeled high-purity nickel.

Nickel is extracted from ore by roasting at high temperatures. [A] This achieves up to a 75 percent purity level, which is enough for the many alloys creating stainless steel. [B] For more resistant alloys, however, the nickel must be refined further. [C] The most common nickel-refining process is a three-step procedure of flotation, smelting, and something called the Sherritt-Gordon process, in which the nickel is treated with hydrogen sulfide (which removes any copper) and then a solvent that separates the nickel from any cobalt. [D] This procedurecan achieve 99 percent purity, which is enough for most industrial applications, but is still not high-purity nickel.

High-purity nickel is further refined using the Mond process achieving 99.99 percent purity to create high-purity nickel. Named after its creator, the Mond process has been in use for over a century and involves several steps of refining. The first involves changing the nickel to nickel carbonyl by combining the nickel with carbon monoxide at a very specific temperature. Then the nickel carbonyl is put through a chamber filled with nickel pellets and stirred until it decomposes and sticks to the pellets, or heated to a temperature of 230 degrees Celsius at which it turns into a fine, pure powder called carbonyl nickel, or high-purity nickel.

Because the refining process to create high-purity nickel requires so many steps and such specific conditions, it is not performed in many locations. This means that high-purity nickel is quite expensive, and the producers of high-purity nickel have significant control over the market price. This creates a unique industry situation, and the two main producers of high-purity nickel have been investigated by authorities in several countries to determine if they have been colluding on price or exercising undue control over prices through the duopoly in the industry.