Questões de Concurso Comentadas sobre vocabulário | vocabulary em inglês

Foram encontradas 2.365 questões

Q859155 Inglês
“I think reading the news is really______.”
Alternativas
Q859152 Inglês
Choose the alternative that explains the closest use for the phrasal verb “make for” in the sentence “Alcohol and teenage drivers make for trouble.”
Alternativas
Q859150 Inglês

Complete the directions below with the right prepositions:


This is certainly the best way to get______ the Hotel. You come______the bus station and turn______ . Then you go ______ station road for about two blocks. You will see the hotel on your______ . 

Alternativas
Q859145 Inglês

Read the extract of the song GIVE ME LO VE by ED Sheeram and answer


Told you l ’d let them go

And TU fight my comer

Maybe tonight Til call ya

After my blood turns into alcohol

No I just wanna hold ya

Give a little time to me, we’ll burn this out

We’ll play hide and seek, to turn this around

All I want is the taste that your lips allow

Give me love like never before

‘Cause lately /Ve been craving more

And it’s been a while but I still feel the same

Maybe I should let you go

Choose the alternative that contains the full form of “I'd” in the sentence “Told you I'd let them go”:
Alternativas
Q859144 Inglês

                         

Choose the alternative that contains the negative form of the sentence “Fve looked everywhere” :
Alternativas
Q859142 Inglês

                         

The opposite of “everywhere” in the sentence “Fve looked everywhere” is:
Alternativas
Q859141 Inglês

A recent study, performed with children aged 2 months to 10 years, produced clinicai evidence delineating the stages a child goes through in developing a self-image. It involved exposing the child to his reflection in both a true mirror and then one that was convexly distorted. Children from 9 to 10 months old were highly responsive to both the true and the distorted mirror images. Their excitement, attention, and activity seemed to be unaffected by the distortion, indicating they had no self-image. Slightly older children, aged 10 to 11 months, made rhythmic circular movements when exposed to their distorted image as though attempting to correct the distortion. This change in response indicates the child may have some idea of his image and perhaps recognizes the distorted image is wrong. Amarked change in response changes when a child reaches 18 to 22 months of age. The child avoids both images, having begun to develop a self-image which does not match the mirror image. From 2 to 5 years, the child has developed a definite self-image which is recognizable in the mirror, since the child literally flees the distorted image. Children ages 7 to 10 had reached a levei of cognitive development which allowed them to laugh at the distorted images, play with the mirror and observe the changes they could effect.

                                                                                                                       Crescer magazine 1992

Choose the correct antonym for “avoids” in the sentence “The child avoids both images”:
Alternativas
Ano: 2015 Banca: Centec Órgão: Centec Prova: Centec - 2015 - Centec - Professor - Inglês |
Q761912 Inglês

Complete the blank spaces and check the correct sequence.

This car is so ________.

I’m ________ sorry for this.

She feels _____ about that experience.

Alternativas
Ano: 2015 Banca: Centec Órgão: Centec Prova: Centec - 2015 - Centec - Professor - Inglês |
Q761909 Inglês

Answer question about the text below:

A US dentist who killed a lion in Zimbabwe says he regrets shooting the well-known animal. 
In a written statement, Walter Palmer insists that he thought he was on a legal hunt and that he "deeply regrets" his actions. 
Cecil the lion, known for his black mane, was about 13 years old, and a famous attraction for wildlife tourists in Zimbabwe. But earlier this month, it’s understood the big cat was tempted outside a national park using bait and allegedly shot with a bow and arrow by Palmer. 
"Cecil was collared. You may want to know what that means. Collared is an animal which is under surveillance and a GPS system which is being used for research, for different things…” 
Wildlife officials accused Mr Palmer of killing Cecil, without a permit, after paying $50,000 to two people who lured the beast to its death. 
"The person involved, or the offender, is a gentleman who is an American called Walter James Palmer. Walter James Palmer is the guy who came into the country around the beginning of this month of July and was enticed, we're not quite sure yet, to harvest this particular lion. The proper market value for this lion, which is a big treasure, would be around $100,000 US dollars.” 
Police in Zimbabwe say two people have been arrested and that Mr Palmer may also face poaching charges. If convicted, the two men would be required to pay $20,000 in compensation, but the court may impose an additional jail term. 
According to the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, investigations show that the killing of Cecil was illegal because the land owner was not allocated a lion on his hunting quota for 2015. 
Lions are not a protected species in Zimbabwe. The country issues annual permits allowing foreign hunters to kill wildlife like elephant, buffalo and lion, and say doing so allows it to raise money for conservation. 
(Source:www.ondemandnews.com)

Which option has NOT a synonym of the word “impose” (line 25)?
Alternativas
Ano: 2015 Banca: Centec Órgão: Centec Prova: Centec - 2015 - Centec - Professor - Inglês |
Q761908 Inglês

Answer question about the text below:

A US dentist who killed a lion in Zimbabwe says he regrets shooting the well-known animal. 
In a written statement, Walter Palmer insists that he thought he was on a legal hunt and that he "deeply regrets" his actions. 
Cecil the lion, known for his black mane, was about 13 years old, and a famous attraction for wildlife tourists in Zimbabwe. But earlier this month, it’s understood the big cat was tempted outside a national park using bait and allegedly shot with a bow and arrow by Palmer. 
"Cecil was collared. You may want to know what that means. Collared is an animal which is under surveillance and a GPS system which is being used for research, for different things…” 
Wildlife officials accused Mr Palmer of killing Cecil, without a permit, after paying $50,000 to two people who lured the beast to its death. 
"The person involved, or the offender, is a gentleman who is an American called Walter James Palmer. Walter James Palmer is the guy who came into the country around the beginning of this month of July and was enticed, we're not quite sure yet, to harvest this particular lion. The proper market value for this lion, which is a big treasure, would be around $100,000 US dollars.” 
Police in Zimbabwe say two people have been arrested and that Mr Palmer may also face poaching charges. If convicted, the two men would be required to pay $20,000 in compensation, but the court may impose an additional jail term. 
According to the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, investigations show that the killing of Cecil was illegal because the land owner was not allocated a lion on his hunting quota for 2015. 
Lions are not a protected species in Zimbabwe. The country issues annual permits allowing foreign hunters to kill wildlife like elephant, buffalo and lion, and say doing so allows it to raise money for conservation. 
(Source:www.ondemandnews.com)

Which of the following options can substitute the verb “regrets”, at line 1, without changing its meaning in text? 
Alternativas
Q606884 Inglês
Teen romance usually digitally enhanced, says US study

Technology plays a key role in teenage romance from initial encounters to eventual break-ups, says a US study. 

Teenagers rarely meet online but do use technology for flirting, asking out, meeting up and parting, American think tank, the Pew Research Center, found. A survey of 1,060 US teenagers aged 13 to 17 revealed that technology brings them closer but also breeds jealousy.

"Digital platforms are powerful tools for teens," said Amanda Lenhart, lead author of the report from Pew. "But even as teens enjoy greater closeness with partners and a chance to display their relationships for others to see, mobile and social media can also be tools for jealousy, meddling and even troubling behaviour."

Digital romance, broken down

Of the 1,060 teenagers surveyed:

• 35% said they were currently dating and 59% of that group said technology made them feel closer to their partner

   • For boys who were dating, 65% said social media made them more connected to a significant other while it was 52% for girls

   • 27% of dating teenagers thought social media made them feel jealous or insecure in relationships

   • 50% of all teens surveyed, dating or not, said they had indicated interest by friending someone on Facebook or other social media and 47% expressed attraction by likes and comments 

• Texting is king - 92% of teens who were dating said they texted a partner, assuming the partner would check in with "great regularity"

• Jealousy happens, but not as much as flirting does - 11% of teenage daters reported accessing a partner's online accounts and 16% reported having a partner asking them to de-friend someone

What gets discussed during all those frequent social media enabled check-ins? According to the survey, it is mostly "funny stuff" followed by "things you're thinking about" as well as other Information such as where they are and what their friends have been doing. And forget having to meet up to resolve a conflict - 48% of dating teenagers said that could be done by texting or talking online. Online tools, with their accessibility and ease of use, also showed some signs of giving this group relationship anxiety. Females are more likely to be subject to unwanted flirting and 25% of teenagers surveyed said they have blocked or unfriended someone because of uncomfortable flirting. And 15% of teenage daters said a partner had used the internet to pressure them into unwanted sexual activity.

'More than emojis'


Nearly half the respondents admitted to concentrating on their phone ahead of their partner when together with 43% of dating teens saying that had happened to them. "I don't think this survey reveals much that is surprising. But it is affirming. Humans are social animals and we build tools to connect with each other, "wrote Julie Beck, an associate editor at The Atlantic news site, of the survey's findings.

"It's not all heart emojis all the time, no, but the tools that facilitate relationships facilitate all aspects of them, good and bad.


"Connecting with others is scary, hard, sometimes dangerous, but usually, hopefully, good. The teens get it." 

(Fonte: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34416989) 
What is the meaning of "emojis" in the sentence 'More than emojis'?
Alternativas
Ano: 2015 Banca: ACAFE Órgão: SED-SC Prova: ACAFE - 2015 - SED-SC - Professor - Inglês |
Q603290 Inglês

Teen romance usually digitally enhanced, says US study

Technology plays a key role in teenage romance from initial encounters to eventual break-ups, says a US study.

Teenagers rarely meet online but do use technology for flirting, asking out, meeting up and parting, American think tank, the Pew Research Center, found.

A survey of 1,060 US teenagers aged 13 to 17 revealed that technology brings them closer but also breeds jealousy.

"Digital platforms are powerful tools for teens," said Amanda Lenhart, lead author of the report from Pew.

"But even as teens enjoy greater closeness with partners and a chance to display their relationships for others to see, mobile and social media can also be tools for jealousy, meddling and even troubling behaviour."

Digital romance, broken down

Of the 1,060 teenagers surveyed:

35% said they were currently dating and 59% of that group said technology made them feel closer to their partner.

For boys who were dating, 65% said social media made them more connected to a significant other while it was 52% for girls.

27% of dating teenagers thought social media made them feel jealous or insecure in relationships.

50% of all teens surveyed, dating or not, said they had indicated interest by friending someone on Facebook or other social media and 47% expressed attraction by likes and comments.

Texting is king - 92% of teens who were dating said they texted a partner, assuming the partner would check in with "great regularity"

Jealousy happens, but not as much as flirting does - 11% of teenage daters reported accessing a partner's online  accounts and 16% reported having a partner asking them to de-friend someone.

What gets discussed during all those frequent social media enabled check-ins?

According to the survey, it is mostly "funny stuff" followed by "things you're thinking about" as well as other information such as where they are and what their friends have been doing.

And forget having to meet up to resolve a conflict - 48% of dating teenagers said that could be done by texting or talking online.

Online tools, with their accessibility and ease of use, also showed some signs of giving this group relationship anxiety. Females are more likely to be subject to unwanted flirting and 25% of teenagers surveyed said they have blocked or unfriended someone because of uncomfortable flirting.

And 15% of teenage daters said a partner had used the internet to pressure them into unwanted sexual activity.

'More than emojis'

Nearly half the respondents admitted to concentrating on their phone ahead of their partner when together with 43% of dating teens saying that had happened to them.

"I don't think this survey reveals much that is surprising.

But it is affirming. Humans are social animals and we build tools to connect with each other,"wrote Julie Beck, an associate editor at The Atlantic news site, of the survey's findings.

"It's not all heart emojis all the time, no, but the tools that facilitate relationships facilitate all aspects of them, good and bad. "Connecting with others is scary, hard, sometimes dangerous, but usually, hopefully, good. The teens get it."

(Fonte: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34416989)

In the sentence "technology brings them (teenagers) closer but also breeds jealousy", the verb "breeds" can be replaced by which other verb without changing its meaning?
Alternativas
Q599906 Inglês
TEXT 2

Innovation is the new key to survival

[…]

At its most basic, innovation presents an optimal strategy for controlling costs. Companies that have invested in such technologies as remote mining, autonomous equipment and driverless trucks and trains have reduced expenses by orders of magnitude, while simultaneously driving up productivity.

Yet, gazing towards the horizon, it is rapidly becoming clear that innovation can do much more than reduce capital intensity. Approached strategically, it also has the power to reduce people and energy intensity, while increasing mining intensity.

Capturing the learnings 

The key is to think of innovation as much more than research and development (R&D) around particular processes or technologies. Companies can, in fact, innovate in multiple ways, such as leveraging supplier knowledge around specific operational challenges, redefining their participation in the energy value chain or finding new ways to engage and partner with major stakeholders and constituencies.

To reap these rewards, however, mining companies must overcome their traditionally conservative tendencies. In many cases, miners struggle to adopt technologies proven to work at other mining companies, let alone those from other industries. As a result, innovation becomes less of a technology problem and more of an adoption problem.

By breaking this mindset, mining companies can free themselves to adapt practical applications that already exist in other industries and apply them to fit their current needs. For instance, the tunnel boring machines used by civil engineers to excavate the Chunnel can vastly reduce miners' reliance on explosives. Until recently, those machines were too large to apply in a mining setting. Some innovators, however, are now incorporating the underlying technology to build smaller machines—effectively adapting mature solutions from other industries to realize more rapid results. 

Re-imagining the future

At the same time, innovation mandates companies to think in entirely new ways. Traditionally, for instance, miners have focused on extracting higher grades and achieving faster throughput by optimizing the pit, schedule, product mix and logistics. A truly innovative mindset, however, will see them adopt an entirely new design paradigm that leverages new information, mining and energy technologies to maximize value. […]

Approached in this way, innovation can drive more than cost reduction. It can help mining companies mitigate and manage risks, strengthen business models and foster more effective community and government relations. It can help mining services companies enhance their value to the industry by developing new products and services. Longer-term, it can even position organizations to move the needle on such endemic issues as corporate social responsibility, environmental performance and sustainability.

(http://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/ru/Document s/energy-resources/ru_er_tracking_the_trends_2015_eng.pdf)
“For instance" in “Traditionally, for instance, miners have focused on extracting" (l. 34-35) is used to:
Alternativas
Q599904 Inglês
TEXT 2

Innovation is the new key to survival

[…]

At its most basic, innovation presents an optimal strategy for controlling costs. Companies that have invested in such technologies as remote mining, autonomous equipment and driverless trucks and trains have reduced expenses by orders of magnitude, while simultaneously driving up productivity.

Yet, gazing towards the horizon, it is rapidly becoming clear that innovation can do much more than reduce capital intensity. Approached strategically, it also has the power to reduce people and energy intensity, while increasing mining intensity.

Capturing the learnings 

The key is to think of innovation as much more than research and development (R&D) around particular processes or technologies. Companies can, in fact, innovate in multiple ways, such as leveraging supplier knowledge around specific operational challenges, redefining their participation in the energy value chain or finding new ways to engage and partner with major stakeholders and constituencies.

To reap these rewards, however, mining companies must overcome their traditionally conservative tendencies. In many cases, miners struggle to adopt technologies proven to work at other mining companies, let alone those from other industries. As a result, innovation becomes less of a technology problem and more of an adoption problem.

By breaking this mindset, mining companies can free themselves to adapt practical applications that already exist in other industries and apply them to fit their current needs. For instance, the tunnel boring machines used by civil engineers to excavate the Chunnel can vastly reduce miners' reliance on explosives. Until recently, those machines were too large to apply in a mining setting. Some innovators, however, are now incorporating the underlying technology to build smaller machines—effectively adapting mature solutions from other industries to realize more rapid results. 

Re-imagining the future

At the same time, innovation mandates companies to think in entirely new ways. Traditionally, for instance, miners have focused on extracting higher grades and achieving faster throughput by optimizing the pit, schedule, product mix and logistics. A truly innovative mindset, however, will see them adopt an entirely new design paradigm that leverages new information, mining and energy technologies to maximize value. […]

Approached in this way, innovation can drive more than cost reduction. It can help mining companies mitigate and manage risks, strengthen business models and foster more effective community and government relations. It can help mining services companies enhance their value to the industry by developing new products and services. Longer-term, it can even position organizations to move the needle on such endemic issues as corporate social responsibility, environmental performance and sustainability.

(http://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/ru/Document s/energy-resources/ru_er_tracking_the_trends_2015_eng.pdf)
The verb “reduce" in “reduce capital intensity" (l. 7) has the same meaning as:
Alternativas
Q599903 Inglês
TEXT 2

Innovation is the new key to survival

[…]

At its most basic, innovation presents an optimal strategy for controlling costs. Companies that have invested in such technologies as remote mining, autonomous equipment and driverless trucks and trains have reduced expenses by orders of magnitude, while simultaneously driving up productivity.

Yet, gazing towards the horizon, it is rapidly becoming clear that innovation can do much more than reduce capital intensity. Approached strategically, it also has the power to reduce people and energy intensity, while increasing mining intensity.

Capturing the learnings 

The key is to think of innovation as much more than research and development (R&D) around particular processes or technologies. Companies can, in fact, innovate in multiple ways, such as leveraging supplier knowledge around specific operational challenges, redefining their participation in the energy value chain or finding new ways to engage and partner with major stakeholders and constituencies.

To reap these rewards, however, mining companies must overcome their traditionally conservative tendencies. In many cases, miners struggle to adopt technologies proven to work at other mining companies, let alone those from other industries. As a result, innovation becomes less of a technology problem and more of an adoption problem.

By breaking this mindset, mining companies can free themselves to adapt practical applications that already exist in other industries and apply them to fit their current needs. For instance, the tunnel boring machines used by civil engineers to excavate the Chunnel can vastly reduce miners' reliance on explosives. Until recently, those machines were too large to apply in a mining setting. Some innovators, however, are now incorporating the underlying technology to build smaller machines—effectively adapting mature solutions from other industries to realize more rapid results. 

Re-imagining the future

At the same time, innovation mandates companies to think in entirely new ways. Traditionally, for instance, miners have focused on extracting higher grades and achieving faster throughput by optimizing the pit, schedule, product mix and logistics. A truly innovative mindset, however, will see them adopt an entirely new design paradigm that leverages new information, mining and energy technologies to maximize value. […]

Approached in this way, innovation can drive more than cost reduction. It can help mining companies mitigate and manage risks, strengthen business models and foster more effective community and government relations. It can help mining services companies enhance their value to the industry by developing new products and services. Longer-term, it can even position organizations to move the needle on such endemic issues as corporate social responsibility, environmental performance and sustainability.

(http://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/ru/Document s/energy-resources/ru_er_tracking_the_trends_2015_eng.pdf)
The fragment “To reap these rewards" (l. 17) means to:
Alternativas
Ano: 2015 Banca: BIO-RIO Órgão: IF-RJ Prova: BIO-RIO - 2015 - IF-RJ - Secretário Executivo |
Q597373 Inglês
TEXT 1

How to Deal with the Stress and Anxieties in the Public Relations Industry

Stress and anxiety are very common in today’s public relations industry. As a result, here is a list of techniques that a person can use to help manage the daily stresses and anxieties of their public relations industry profession.

Sometimes, we get stressed when everything happens all at once. When this happens, a person should take a deep breath and try to find something to do for a few minutes to get their mind off of the problem. A person could take a walk, listen to some music, read the newspaper or do an activity that will give them a fresh perspective on things.

When facing a current or upcoming task at your job that overwhelms you with a lot of anxiety, divide the task into a series of smaller steps and then complete each of the smaller tasks one at a time. Completing these smaller tasks will make the stress more manageable and increases your chances of success.

Challenge your negative thinking with positive statements and realistic thinking. When encountering thoughts that make you fearful or depressed, challenge those thoughts by asking yourself questions that will maintain objectivity and common sense. For example, you are afraid that if you do not get that job promotion then you will be stuck at your job forever. This depresses you; however your thinking in this situation is unrealistic. The fact of the matter is that there all are kinds of jobs available and just because you don’t get this job promotion doesn’t mean that you will never get one. In addition, people change jobs all the time, and you always have that option of going elsewhere if you are unhappy at your present location.

Remember that no one can predict the future with one hundred percent certainty. Even if the thing that you feared does happen there are circumstances and factors that you can’t predict which can be used to your advantage. […] Remember: We may be ninety-nine percent correct in predicting the future, but all it takes is for that one percent to make a world of difference.

(http://bprschicago.org/how-to-deal-with-the-stress-and-anxieties-in-the-public-relations-industry-2/)


As regards the content of the text, analyse the assertions below:

I - One way of administering stress is to do the task all at once and finish it up as fast as possible.

II- Upcoming situations cannot be wholly anticipated and controlled.

III- One should ask questions on thoughts that may cause anxiety.

IV- Even if unhappy with a job, one should keep it as jobs are hard to obtain.
The verb in “When encountering thoughts” can be replaced without change in meaning by:
Alternativas
Ano: 2015 Banca: BIO-RIO Órgão: IF-RJ Prova: BIO-RIO - 2015 - IF-RJ - Secretário Executivo |
Q597372 Inglês
TEXT 1

How to Deal with the Stress and Anxieties in the Public Relations Industry

Stress and anxiety are very common in today’s public relations industry. As a result, here is a list of techniques that a person can use to help manage the daily stresses and anxieties of their public relations industry profession.

Sometimes, we get stressed when everything happens all at once. When this happens, a person should take a deep breath and try to find something to do for a few minutes to get their mind off of the problem. A person could take a walk, listen to some music, read the newspaper or do an activity that will give them a fresh perspective on things.

When facing a current or upcoming task at your job that overwhelms you with a lot of anxiety, divide the task into a series of smaller steps and then complete each of the smaller tasks one at a time. Completing these smaller tasks will make the stress more manageable and increases your chances of success.

Challenge your negative thinking with positive statements and realistic thinking. When encountering thoughts that make you fearful or depressed, challenge those thoughts by asking yourself questions that will maintain objectivity and common sense. For example, you are afraid that if you do not get that job promotion then you will be stuck at your job forever. This depresses you; however your thinking in this situation is unrealistic. The fact of the matter is that there all are kinds of jobs available and just because you don’t get this job promotion doesn’t mean that you will never get one. In addition, people change jobs all the time, and you always have that option of going elsewhere if you are unhappy at your present location.

Remember that no one can predict the future with one hundred percent certainty. Even if the thing that you feared does happen there are circumstances and factors that you can’t predict which can be used to your advantage. […] Remember: We may be ninety-nine percent correct in predicting the future, but all it takes is for that one percent to make a world of difference.

(http://bprschicago.org/how-to-deal-with-the-stress-and-anxieties-in-the-public-relations-industry-2/)


As regards the content of the text, analyse the assertions below:

I - One way of administering stress is to do the task all at once and finish it up as fast as possible.

II- Upcoming situations cannot be wholly anticipated and controlled.

III- One should ask questions on thoughts that may cause anxiety.

IV- Even if unhappy with a job, one should keep it as jobs are hard to obtain.
When a person is “fearful”, this person is:
Alternativas
Q591643 Inglês
Based on the text, judge the item below.

In line 3, “immediately" means soon after leaving.
Alternativas
Q576069 Inglês

Text 3

                                                                                             Small, cold, and absurdly far away, Pluto has

                                                                                                            always been selfi sh with its secrets.

                THE X – FILES

      It wouldn´t be the fi rst time Pluto has confounded expectations. In 2006, the year New Horizons was launched, Pluto vanished from the list of planets and reappeared as a “dwarf planet.” That, of course, had more to do with astronomers on Earth than any celestial sleight of hand, but the truth is, Pluto has been a tough world to crack since before it was discovered.

      By the turn of the century, the hunt for that missing planet had gathered momentum: Whoever found it would earn the shiny distinction of discovering the first new planet in more than 50 years. Calling the rogue world “Planet X,”, Boston aristocrat Percival Lowell – perhaps best known for claiming to have spotted irrigation canals on the surface of Mars – vigorously took up the search. Lowell had built his own observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, and in 1905 it became the epicenter of the search for Planet X, with Lowell calculating and recalculating its probable position and borrowing equipment for the hunt. 

      But Lowell died in 1916, without knowing that Planet X really existed.

      Fast-forward to 1930. Late one February afternoon, 24-year-old Clyde Tombaugh was parked in his spot at Lowell Observatory. A transplant from the farm fields of Kansas, Tombaugh had been assigned the task of searching for Lowell`s elusive planet. He had no formal training in astronomy but had developed a skill for building telescopes, sometimes from old car parts and other improbable items.

                                                                 (Source: National Geographic Magazine – July 2015 - http://

                                                                  ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ print/2015/07/ pluto/drake-text

                                                                                                                                                 (adapted))

In the first paragraph, the expression “sleight of hand” means
Alternativas
Q576065 Inglês

Text 1

                                                                                                                            The good oil boys club

      It should have been a day of high excitement. A public auction on July 15th marked the end of a 77-year monopoly on oil exploration and production by Pemex, Mexico`s state-owned oil company, and ushered in a new era of foreign investment in Mexican oil that until a few years ago was considered unimaginable.

      The Mexican government had hoped that its firstever auction of shallow-water exploration blocks in the Gulf of Mexico would successfully launch the modernisation of its energy industry. In the run-up to the bidding, Mexico had sought to be as accommodating as its historic dislike for foreign oil companies allowed it to be. Juan Carlos Zepeda, head of the National Hydrocarbons Commission, the regulator, had put a premium on transparency, saying there was “zero room” for favouritism.

      When prices of Mexican crude were above $100 a barrel last year (now they are around $50), the government had spoken optimistically of a bonanza. It had predicted that four to six blocks would be sold, based on international norms.

      It did not turn out that way. The results fell well short of the government’s hopes and underscore how residual resource nationalism continues to plague the Latin American oil industry. Only two of 14 exploration blocks were awarded, both going to the same Mexican-led trio of energy fi rms. Offi cials blamed the disappointing outcome on the sagging international oil market, but their own insecurity about appearing to sell the country’s oil too cheap may also have been to blame, according to industry experts. On the day of the auction, the fi nance ministry set minimum-bid requirements that some considered onerously high; bids for four blocks were disqualifi ed because they failed to reach the offi cial fl oor.

                                                                (Source: http://www.economist.com/news/business/21657827-

                                   latinamericas-oil-fi rms-need-more-foreign-capital-historic-auctionmexico-shows)

In the sentence “Officials blamed the disappointing outcome on the sagging international oil market” the word “sagging” means
Alternativas
Respostas
1981: C
1982: A
1983: D
1984: B
1985: D
1986: C
1987: D
1988: A
1989: E
1990: B
1991: A
1992: D
1993: C
1994: E
1995: C
1996: E
1997: D
1998: C
1999: C
2000: C