Apple Inc. was founded in the 1970s in California by , and Ronald Wayne. It built and marketed some of the first personal computers in the world, and has been responsible for such computers as the Apple II, the , the iMac, as well as the iPod and iPhone. Of these, the most revolutionary was probably the Macintosh, since it was this model that introduced the mouse-driven graphical user interface (GUI) that has defined modern computing. Having established itself by the mid-1980s, the company began to decline in the 1990s when confronted with competition from IBM and Microsoft, whose cheap PC proved more popular than the expensive Apple II and Macintosh (the Macintosh cost $2000–$2500 in 1984, compared to less than $1600 for IBM’s PC). For five years, from 1993 to 1998, Apple lost money and seemed ready to go out of business. It was saved in part by the iMac, launched in 1998, featuring Jonathan Ive’s ground-breaking designs, which returned the company to profitability and launched a new era innovation. Apple has released an innovative new product nearly every year since then, including, most notably, the iPod and more recently the iPhone. To reflect this move away from computers and towards more general consumer electronics, Apple Computer Inc. changed its name simply to Apple Inc. in 2007. 1 ...... 2 ...... 3 ...... 4 ...... 5 ...... 6 ...... 7 ...... 8 ...... 9 ...... 10 ......

The Greatest Sport in the World

Cricket is a sport that has been played in England for hundreds of years, although it was in the eighteenth century that the rules were formalised, and in the nineteenth century that it was popularised by W.G. Grace. The home of cricket is the Lords Ground in north London. It involves two teams of eleven players each. One player from team A ‘bowls’ a ball to a player from team B, who has a bat. This player, who is called a batsman, must hit the ball to prevent it from hitting the ‘wicket’, which consists of three vertical sticks of wood in front of which he stands. The opposing team must try to catch the ball before it lands. At the international level, a game of cricket can last five days, with six hours of play each day. People play cricket mostly in countries of the Commonwealth such as Australia and New Zealand, India, Pakistan and the West Indies, although its popularity is slowly expanding because of recent changes in the rules concerning one-day matches.

1 ...... 2 ...... 3 ...... 4 ...... 5 ...... 6 ...... 7 ...... 8 ...... 9 ...... 10 ...... Apple Inc. was founded in the 1970s in California by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. It built and marketed some of the first personal computers in the world, and has been responsible for such computers as the Apple II, the Macintosh, the iMac, as well as the iPod and iPhone. Of these, the most revolutionary was probably the Macintosh, since it was this model that introduced the mouse-driven graphical user interface (GUI) that has defined modern computing. Having established itself by the mid-1980s, the company began to decline in the 1990s when confronted with competition from IBM and Microsoft, whose cheap PC proved more popular than the expensive Apple II and Macintosh (the Macintosh cost $2000–$2500 in 1984, compared to less than $1600 for IBM’s PC). For five years, from 1993 to 1998, Apple lost money and seemed ready to go out of business. It was saved in part by the iMac, launched in 1998, featuring Jonathan Ive’s ground-breaking designs, which returned the company to profitability and launched a new era innovation. Apple has released an innovative new product nearly every year since then, including, most notably, the iPod and more recently the iPhone. To reflect this move away from computers and towards more general consumer electronics, Apple Computer Inc. changed its name simply to Apple Inc. in 2007. 1 When was Apple founded? 2 Where was Apple founded? 3 Who was Apple founded by? (By whom was apple founded [formal, written style]) 4 What did it build and market? 5 Which computer was probably the most revolutionary? 6 How much did the Macintosh cost in 1984? 7 How long did Apple lose money? For how long did Apple lose money? How long did Apple lose money for? 8 Whose ground-breaking designs did the iMac feature? 9 How often has Apple released an innovative new product? 10 Why did Apple change its name?

The Greatest Sport in the World

Cricket is a sport that has been played in England for hundreds of years, although it was in the eighteenth century that the rules were formalised, and in the nineteenth century that it was popularised by W.G. Grace. The home of cricket is the Lords Ground in north London. It involves two teams of eleven players each. One player from team A ‘bowls’ a ball to a player from team B, who has a bat. This player, who is called a batsman, must hit the ball to prevent it from hitting the ‘wicket’, which consists of three vertical sticks of wood in front of which he stands. The opposing team must try to catch the ball before it lands. At the international level, a game of cricket can last five days, with six hours of play each day. People play cricket mostly in countries of the Commonwealth such as Australia and New Zealand, India, Pakistan and the West Indies, although its popularity is slowly expanding because of recent changes in the rules concerning one-day matches.

1 How long has cricket been played in England? (For how long has...? How long has... been played for?) 2 When were the rules formalised? 3 Who was it popularised by? (By whom was it popularised? [Formal, written style] 4 Where is Lords Cricket Ground? 5 What does a player from team B have? 6 What is this player called? 7 Why must he hit the ball? 8 How long can a game of cricket last? 9 Where do people play cricket? 10 Why is its popularity slowly expanding?