ENGLISH PRACTICE TEST 1

FOR THE GIFTED | GRADES 10–11–12 | 2013 | 180 MINUTES (SECTIONS A–B.IV)

A. MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS
I. PHONOLOGY
Choose the word (A, B, C or D) whose underlined part is pronounced differently from that of the others.
1. A. belies B. invariably C. guidelines D. crystalline
2. A. accreditation B. endonormative C. enfranchisement D. encephalopathy
3. A. self-effacement B. misdiagnose C. misogynistic D. missus
4. A. oesophagus B. oarlock C. scorching D. subordinate
5. A. agglutinative B. agitation C. aggrandizement D. ignominious
Choose the word (A, B, C or D) whose stress pattern is different from that of the others.
6. A. extricate B. meandering C. quandary D. hedonist
7. A. mollify B. dissipate C. tentative D. obstreperous
8. A. superfluous B. veracity C. inevitable D. epileptic
9. A. euphemism B. equivocate C. pamphlet D. paradigm
10. A. philanthrophy B. vociferously C. antithesis D. hypertension

II. LEXICO-GRAMMAR
Choose the word or phrase (A, B, C or D) which best completes each sentence.

1. Trade _____ were imposed against any country that refused to sign the agreement.
A. actions B. blocks C. sanctions D. treaties
2. We _____ and hawed for weeks before deciding to buy the house.
A. blared B. dined C. hummed D. thudded
3. Some action groups have become so powerful that quite frequently we have a situation in which the tail is
wagging the _____.
A. body B. cat C. dog D. legs
4. Most discounts have been dramatically _____ in the final days of our clearance sale from 15% to 5%.
A. declined B. diminished C. slashed D. taken down
5. This curtain material _____ easily.
A. bends B. creases C. hangs itself D. makes itself
6. When she puts her mind to it, she is always capable of _____ sarcasm.
A. biting B. sharpening C. slicing D. striking
7. The player’s career is hanging by a _____ after his latest injury to his knee.
A. cord B. rope C. string D. thread
8. The lion silently _____ a zebra through the tangle of trees at the edge of the forest.
A. crept B. lurked C. prowled D. stalked
9. He was in the _____ of despair when he heard that his mother was leaving him.
A. abyss B. depths C. pits D. valley
10. I’m trying to explain things to Jackie but it’s like hitting your head against a _____ wall.
A. brick B. hard C. rock D. stone
11. He is proposing an appeal _____ the size of the fine.
A. against B. for C. out D. to
12. Police cars were constantly shedding past with their lights flashing and sirens _____ out so loudly I couldn’t
get a wink of sleep.
A. blaring B. blazing C. pouring D. roaring
13. When he was at the auction house, he luckily _____ upon a small boat on the horizon.
A. dug B. found C. lit D. nudged
14. I’m definitely going on that field trip. A week on Lake Michigan is not to be _____ at!
A. frowned B. laughed C. shrugged D. sneezed
15. When I got stuck in the elevator, I was scared the shit _____ my wits.
A. in on B. out of C. over from D. up with
16. The politician was extremely lucky to get _____ a suspended sentence.
A. away from B. off with C. on to D. through to

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17. Tom and I met at the kindergarten and we’ve been _____ our friendship ever since.
A. carrying over B. keeping to C. keeping up D. taking on
18. The government is running _____ considerable opposition to its tax reforms.
A. back over B. off with C. out on D. up against
19. The meeting was _____ in the media as an important event.
A. brushed up B. chipped in C. folded up D. hyped up
20. Suddenly it _____ me that they couldn’t possibly have met before.
A. dawned on B. flicked through C. handed down D. passed out
21. She is usually _____ courteous to strangers.
A. absolutely B. exceedingly C. somewhat D. utterly
22. Peter _____ endless cups of coffee when he’s working on a report.
A. is drinking B. is forever drinking C. is going to drink D. will drink
23. _____ is nocturnal creature(s).
A. An owl is a B. Owl is a C. The owl is a D. The owls are
24. You story is interesting and lively, but it contains several historical inaccuracies. For example, your hero
_____ have offered Miss Swinton shelter under his umbrella, as they weren’t invented until a hundred years
later.
A. couldn’t B. might not C. shouldn’t D. wouldn’t
25. That was _____ dinner you cooked for us last night!
A. a B. any C. one D. some
26. The boat heaved up and down _____ wildly most of the passengers felt ill.
A. so B. so much C. such D. very
27. If you _____ have to stay overnight in the hospital, I’ll bring you whatever you need.
A. may B. might C. should D. will
28. Look. Tom’s giving us the thumbs-up signal. It looks as though he _____ to find someone who can tell us
the way back to the motorway.
A. had been managing B. had managed C. has managed D. managed
29. On the whole, she’s easy to work for, but never arrive late for a meeting. _____ she will not tolerate.
A. Such B. That C. Those D. Which
30. What the new members have done is _____ their seats in the assembly.
A. take B. taken C. taking D. to take

III. GUIDED CLOZE

Read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap.

DR SEUSS

Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as ‘Dr Seuss’, began writing for children (1) _____ by chance. During
a long sea voyage in 1936, Seuss amused himself by (2) _____ together a nonsense poem to the rhythm of the
ship's engine. Later he illustrated the rhyme and published it as And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street. Source: www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/theodor-geisel
Many critics (3) _____ it as Seuss' best work.

A later book, McElligot's Pool, (4) _____ the first appearance of Seuss’ famous fantasy characters, and
Horton Hatches the Egg introduces an (5) _____ of morality. Seuss' reputation as a major children's writer was
sealed with the publication of The Cat in the Hat. This book uses easy-to-read words to tell the story of two
children alone at home on a rainy day. A cat wearing a tall hat arrives to entertain them, wrecking their house in
the (6) _____. The enthusiastic (7) _____ of this book delighted Seuss and led him to found Beginner Books, a
publishing company specialising in easy-to-read books for children. Some of his books have been made into
cartoons and one of them, How the Grinch stole Christmas, was also made into an ingenious and (8) _____
successful feature film starring Jim Carrey.

At one point in his career, Seuss (9) _____ gave up writing for children and (10) _____ his talents to
making documentary films. One of these attracted a great deal of attention and won an Academy Award.

1. A. fully B. quite C. extremely D. fairly

2. A. placing B. laying C. putting D. setting
3. A. look beyond B. look upon C. look through D. look towards
4. A. indicates B. shows C. means D. marks
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5. A. amount B. ingredient C. element D. item
6. A. practice B. method C. process D. action
7. A. reception B. welcome C. greeting D. admission
8. A. highly B. intensively C. strongly D. widely
9. A. shortly B. momentarily C. temporarily D. presently
10. A. assigned B. allocated C. donated D. devoted

IV. READING COMPREHENSION

READING PASSAGE 1
You are going to read an extract from a science magazine. Five paragraphs have been removed from the
extract. Choose from the paragraphs A–E the one which fits each gap (1–5). There is one extra paragraph
which you do not need to use.

A. Another detractor was psychologist Ed Seigel at
Elmhurst College, Illinois, who set out to disprove
the Mozart Effect. In his test, a subject lucks at two
letter Es, with one at a skewed angle to the other.
The greater the angle, the harder it is to decide
whether the letters are the same or different.
D. So he and his colleague Frances Rauscher used
part of a standard IQ test to see whether Mozart's
music could temporarily boost people's ability to
visualise shapes. In a 1995 study, they asked 79
students to work out what a paper would look like
if folded and then cut like a paper doily.

B. Even stronger support for Mozart's effect on the E. The first hint of the Mozart Effect emerged more
brain comes from other studies. He subjected 30 than a decade ago. In simulations by neurobiologist
rats lo 12 loan of the Sonata in D daily for over Gordon Shaw at the University of California at
two months. These rats ran a maze an average of Irvine, the way nerve cells were connected to one
27 per cent faster and with 37 per cent fewer errors another predisposed groups of cells to adopt certain
than 80 others. The study suggests a neurological specific firing patterns and rhythms. These natural
basis for the Mozart Effect. Some are still not patterns, he believes, form the basics of menial
convinced. activity. In 1988, Shaw and a student turned the
output of their simulations into sounds instead of a
C. For consistency almost all studies have used The conventional printout.
Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major (K 448), though
some have measured the effect from other music as F. The sequences repealing regularly every 20 to 30
well. ‘It can’t be just this composition, and not just seconds may trigger the strongest response in the
Mozart,’ says Rauscher. beam. And of all the music analysed, Mozart most
often peaks every 30 seconds. Results such as these
may help predict which pieces of music have the
strongest effect.
READING PASSAGE 2
Do the statements below agree with the information given in the passage? On your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the information in the text agrees with the statement
FALSE if the information in the text contradicts the statement
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

6. Books that are out of print are not covered by copyright law.
7. Amazon began by selling books online.
8. Microsoft signed a deal with the British Library on the same day as Google and Amazon made their
announcements.
9. Barnes and Noble published Riding the Bullet online.
10. The ability to sample a book online before buying it might help sales.

READING PASSAGE 3
Questions 11–19. Choose the word or phrase (A, B, C or D) which best completes each statement.
11. The word “ensued” in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to _____.
A. argued B. combined C. resolved D. resulted
12. According to paragraph 2, what factor is responsible for the manatee’s inability to survive in cold water?
A. Its behaviour B. Its diet C. Its habitat D. Its size
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13. From the information in paragraph 3, what can be inferred about species recognized as endangered?
A. They are eligible for special treatment.
B. They have been the subject of laws for over 100 years.
C. They mostly inhabit the state of Florida.
D. They succeed in stabilizing their populations.
14. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in
paragraph 4?
A. More Florida manatees die as a result of boat collisions than die from any other single cause.
B. Researchers report that 90 percent of all known Florida manatee deaths have been the result of boat
collisions.
C. Watercraft collisions have led to more manatee deaths than any other cause, and most manatees possess
injuries from sure encounters.
D. While 90 percent of the Florida manatee population has been injured by watercraft, only 25 percent of
these incidents resulted in the death of the animal.
15. The word “detrimental” in paragraph 4 is closet in meaning to _____.
A. specialized B. confusing C. harmful D. evident
16. The word “it” in paragraph 5 refers to _____.
A. Florida B. increase C. population D. rise
17. According to the passage, which of the following statements most accurately reflects the author’s opinion
about the Florida manatee?
A. It has become a burden on the taxpayers of southern Florida.
B. It has recovered remarkably when compared to the 1980s.
C. It should be more fully protected from dangerous algae blooms.
D. It should receive further guardianship from humans in the future.
18. According to paragraph 6, which of the following is true about manatees?
A. They can be found in many regions of the world.
B. They are expected to migrate farther south.
C. They receive limited support from the public,
D. They benefit from tourism industry in Florida.
19. All of these are mentioned in the passage as threats to the Florida manatee EXCEPT _____.
A. submerged fishing equipment C. the spread of diseases
B. the loss of feeding grounds D. toxic water plants
Question 20. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most
important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas
that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passages. Only a THREE-CORRECT answer
is marked 1 point.
The manatee has always faced certain natural dangers in the waters around Florida, but in modern
times humans pose the greatest threat to the survival of the species.
20a. 20b. 20c.
A. Boating collisions are responsible for a quarter of D. Manatees were once able to travel to other regions
all Florida manatee deaths and inhibit the species’ of the United States, but now are confined to the
ability to multiply. areas around southern Florida.

B. Coastal development projects and population
runoff destroy marine environments that provide
manatees with the resources that are essential to
their survival.
C. Florida has a long history of promoting legal
protections for the manatee, beginning in 1893.
E. Money generated from tourism related to manatees
has helped pay for some of the conservation
programs that benefit the animals.
F. Though some organizations have taken a leading
role in protecting the manatee, others strongly
oppose the expansion of conservation measures.

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READING PASSAGE 1

THE MOZART EFFECT

Can listening to Mozart boost your brain power? It's a controversial theory that has sent classical ‘sharpen
your mind’ albums to the top of the best-seller charts but divided scientists. The latest research, however,
suggests that the so-called ‘Mozart Effect’ does profoundly affect the human brain.

The excitement started six years ago when researchers 3

reported that people scored better on a standard IQ test
after listening to Mozart. But last summer, this The milliseconds it takes the subject to make that
“Mozart Effect” suffered a setback when several judgement are a precise measure of spatial reasoning.
sceptics repeated the original study but failed to find To Seigel’s surprise, subjects who took the test after
any improvement. This is not the end of the story, listening to Mozart did significantly better. ‘It was as
though. A closer look shows that Mozart's music does though they had practised the test,’ he says. ‘Now we
have a profound effect on the brain, though no one yet have another way to measure the Mozart Effect.’
knows why.
4
1
The researchers don’t know why it works or which
To their surprise, the rhythmic patterns sounded like other pieces might. They wondered whether the music
baroque, new age, or Eastern music. If brains activity of Mozart’s contemporary Johann Christian Bach
can sound like music, Shaw wondered, might we learn would work, or even something by a 20-century
to understand the neutral grammar by working composer such as Igor Stravinsky. Critics take issue
backwards and watching how the brain responds to with this vagueness about which type of music is best.
music? They say that someone has to define what specific
musical elements are required.
2
Studies yet to be published my shed some light on the
After taking the test, one group of students sat in subject. At the University of Illinois Medical Center,
silence for 10 minutes. Another group listened to a neurologist John Hughes and a musicologist colleague
Mozart piano sonata, while a third group heard either a have analysed hundreds of compositions by Mozart,
taped story or minimalist, repetitive music. Then they Chopin and 55 other composers. They devised a scale
all took the test again. The Mozart group correctly that scores how often the music’s loudness rises and
predicted 62 per cent more shapes on the second test, falls in sequences of 10 seconds or longer. Minimalist
while the ‘silent’ group improved by 14 per cent and music by the composer Philip Glass and pop tunes
the third group by just 11 per cent. It is this experiment scored among the lowest, with Mozart scoring two to
which has drawn so much criticism. Harvard three times higher.
psychologist Christopher Chabris looked at results
from 16 studies hunting for the Mozart Effect, 5
involving 714 subjects.
However, a more important findings is that, in a five-
When he analysed all the studies as a group, he found year study with children, it was found that keyboard
no benefit from listening to Mozart. He felt some music training improves skills that require mental
people did better because of what psychologists call imagery – and after two years of lessons, the effect
‘enjoyment arousal’ – music improves people’s mood, doesn’t wear off. In other words, a childhood rich in
so they perform better. But the critics are only seeing music may have lasting benefits.
part of the story says Lois Hetland of Harvard. Chabris
summarised only experiments that compared Mozart by Gary Kliewer, Ashland, Oregon. New Scientist, Issue 2211, 1999
against silence, not against other compositions.
Hetland tested 1,014 subjects. She found that Mozart
listeners outperformed other groups more often than
could be explained by chance.

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READING PASSAGE 2

A LIBRARY AT YOUR FINGERTIPS

Big technology companies have pledged to make many thousands of books available online. The
commercial prospects look shaky, but this new front in the battle between the world’s leading internet
portals will yield a valuable resource for all.

A few years ago, at the height of the dotcom boom, it was widely assumed that a publishing revolution, in
which the printed word would be supplanted by the computer screen, was just around the corner. It wasn't: for
many, there is still little to match the joy of cracking the spine of a good book and settling down for an hour or
two of reading. But a recent flurry of activity by big technology companies – including Google, Amazon,
Microsoft and Yahoo! – suggests that the dream of bringing books online is still very much alive.

The digitising of thousands of volumes of print is not without controversy. On Thursday November 3rd,
Google, the world's most popular search engine, posted a first installment of books on Google Print, an
initiative first mooted a year ago. This collaborative effort between Google and several of the world's leading
research libraries aims to make many thousands of books available to be searched and read online free of
charge. Although the books included so far are not covered by copyright, the plan has attracted the ire of
publishers.

Five large book firms are suing Google for violating copyright on material that it has scanned and, although
out of print, is still protected by law. Google has said that it will only publish short extracts from material under
copyright unless given express permission to publish more, but publishers are unconvinced. Ironically, many
publishers are collaborating with Google on a separate venture, Google Print Publisher, which aims to give
readers an online taste of books that are commercially available. The searchable collection of extracts and book
information is intended to tempt readers to buy the complete books online or in print form.

Not to be outdone, Amazon, the world's largest online retailer, has unveiled plans for its own foray into the
mass e-book market. The firm, which began ten years ago as an online book retailer, now sells a vast array of
goods. No doubt piqued that Google, a relative newcomer, should impinge upon its central territory, Amazon
revealed on Thursday that it would introduce two new services. Amazon Pages will allow customers to search
for key terms in selected books and then buy and read online whatever part they wish, from individual pages to
chapters or complete works. Amazon Upgrade will give customers online access to books they have already
purchased as hard copies. Customers are likely to have to pay around five cents a page, with the bulk going to
the publisher.

Microsoft, too, has joined the online-book bandwagon. At the end of October, the software giant said it
would spend around $200m to digitise texts, starting with 150,000 that are in the public domain, to avoid legal
problems. It will do so in collaboration with the Open Content Alliance, a consortium of libraries and
universities. (Yahoo! has pledged to make 18,000 books available online in conjunction with the same
organisation.) And on Thursday, coincidentally the same day as Google and Amazon announced their
initiatives, Microsoft released details of a deal with the British Library, the country's main reference library, to
digitise some 25m pages; these will be made available through MSN Book Search, which will be launched next
year.

These companies are hoping for a return to the levels of interest in e-books seen when Stephen King, a
bestselling horror writer, published “Riding the Bullet” exclusively on the internet in 2000. Half a million
copies were downloaded in the first 48 hours after publication. But this proved to be a high-water mark rather
than a taste of things to come. While buyers were reluctant to sit in front of a computer screen to read the latest
novels, dedicated e-book-reading gadgets failed to catch on. Barnes and Noble, a leading American bookshop
chain, began selling e-books with fanfare in 2000 but quietly pulled the plug in 2003 as interest faded.

The market for e-books is growing again, though from a tiny base. According to the International Digital
Publishing Forum, which collates figures from many of the world's top publishers, in the third quarter of 2004
(the latest available figures) worldwide sales were 25% higher than the year before. Unfortunately, this only

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amounted to a paltry $3.2m split between 23 publishers in an industry that made sales worth over $100 billion
that year.

Both retailers and publishers reckon they will eventually be able to persuade consumers to do a lot more of
their reading on the web. Some even hope they can become to online books what Apple's iTunes is to online
music. But there are crucial differences between downloading fiction and downloading funk. Online music was
driven from the bottom up: illegal file-sharing services became wildly popular, and legal firms later took over
when the pirates were forced (by a wave of lawsuits) to retreat; the legal providers are confident that more and
more consumers will pay small sums for music rather than remain beyond the law. And the iPod music player
and its like have proved a fashionable and popular new way to listen to songs. The book world has no
equivalent.

So the commercial prospects for sellers of online books do not yet look very bright. But they may get a lift
from some novel innovations. The ability to download mere parts of books could help, for instance: sections of
manuals, textbooks or cookery books may tempt some customers; students may wish to download the relevant
sections of course books; or readers may want a taste of a book that they subsequently buy in hard copy. The
ability to download reading matter onto increasingly ubiquitous hand-held electronic devices and 3G phones
may further encourage uptake. In Japan, the value of e-books (mainly manga comic books) delivered to mobile
phones has jumped, though it will be worth only around ¥6 billion ($51m) in 2005, according to estimates.

Portal wars

Though the prospects for this latest incarnation of the e-book are unclear, Google, Amazon and the others
may see it as a useful weapon in the wider war to dominate the internet. In the quest for visitors, and the
advertising revenues they bring, the big portals have rolled out inducement after inducement, from instant
messaging, e-mail and web telephony to picture-sharing, games and a host of other new services. By adding yet
another feature, they hope to win business from each other – or at least ensure they don't lose it.

The business of parting consumers from their cash for online books may not prove the money-spinner that
Amazon and Google hope for. But this round of the battle between the tech giants will have the happy outcome
of allowing the study and enjoyment of a vast pool of written material, much of which would otherwise prove
hard to access or difficult to find. Though it may not much change our reading habits, its existence will prove a
boon.
Source: www.economist.com/node/5130451

READING PASSAGE 3

PROTECTING THE FLORIDA MANATEE

1 With an average length of ten feet and a weight of 1,200 pounds, the large, slow-moving Florida
manatee is perhaps the most distinctive marine mammal of the southeastern United States. Found
predominantly in the oceans, rivers, and estuaries around southern Florida in the cooler months, manatees
frequently travel as far west as Texas and as far north as Virginia during the summer. They have been
inhabitants of these marine environments for 45 million years. In recent times, however, the manatee has
become an endangered species, and an intense debate has ensued over some of the measures implemented
to protect its survival.

2 The Florida manatee faces numerous threats from both natural and human-generated causes. The most
immediate survival needs for manatees are warm water and an adequate source of food. The animals will
suffer if either of these necessities cannot be found. For example, in water below 68 degrees Fahrenheit, a
manatee's large body cannot convert food into energy fast enough to keep the animal warm, and it will most
likely die. Sometimes, entire groups of manatees perish when they are caught too far north at the time of a
sudden cold spell. Two other potentially lethal hazards are blooms of poisonous marine algae arid
catastrophic weather events such as hurricanes.

3 Despite their sensitivity to these natural conditions, the biggest threats to the survival of the manatee
come from human activities. One major concern is the loss of habitat due to increases in land development

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 and the introduction of pollutants to the environment. Manatees' access to seagrass, their main food source,
and warm water during the winter is limited in this way, forcing them into more northern areas where they
are less likely to find the resources they need to survive. They can also be severely harmed by discarded
fishing lines and nets, and, more significantly, frequently die after being hit by watercraft. In addition,
general harassment by individual humans has led to many manatee deaths. The state of Florida has been
passing laws to safeguard manatees from such threats since 1893. The animal's listing as an endangered
species in 1967 led to the creation of several protected wildlife areas in Florida, and conservationists are
hoping to both expand the existing areas and establish new protection zones.

4 The primary activity which such zones seek to control is boating. Collisions with are the leading cause
of death for the Florida manatee, accounting for 25 percent of all recorded mortalities, and some research
has found that as many as 90 percent of observed Florida manatees bear scars from run-ins with boat
propellers. More disturbingly, these incidents are responsible for the most deaths of adult manatees of
reproductive age. This is detrimental to the overall population, because it affects the manatees best able to
multiply the species. Current and proposed protected areas either place speed limits on boat travel or ban the
use of marine motor vehicles altogether.

5 These conservationist measures have angered the region’s boating and fishing communities, who see no
need for such restrictions. Members of these groups argue that existing regulations are more than adequate,
and that manatee populations are on the rise and are no longer in danger. Indeed, successive surveys from
the 1980s to the present have tallied larger and larger numbers of manatees living around Florida. However,
this increase may be due as much to advances in surveying techniques, which simply enable counters to find
more manatees, as it is to an actual rise in the population. Other allegations that have become points of
contention, such as the suggestions that expanded refuge zones will devalue property, raise taxes, or hurt the
regional economy, have so far proved to be unfounded.
6 As awareness about the plight of the Florida manatee spreads, the majority of the public chooses to
support efforts to protect the creatures. The manatee is now a recognized symbol of Florida’s wildlife and
has become well known throughout the world. Companies offering tourists the opportunity to view
manatees in the wild are growing in popularity. Though no one denies that the endangered Florida manatee
still faces many challenges; with the help of conservationists and other concerned members of the public, it
can hopefully continue to overcome them.
* Every effort has been made to find the source and contact copyright holders to obtain their permission for the use of copyright material. We will, if
notified, be happy to rectify any errors or omissions and include any such rectifications in future editions.

B. WRITTEN TEST
I. OPEN CLOZE
Read the passages below and think of the word which best fits each space. Use only ONE word in each
space.

PASSAGE 1

In (1) __________ of the efforts of the media in recent years to disillusion us, the general picture which the
ordinary public has of the ‘author’ is of somebody sitting hunched at a typewriter in solitude in a garret or some
other place away from (2) __________ eyes. And not just that, but ‘royalties’, that name given historically to
the financial rewards of the writing profession, (3) __________ seem to be more than just ‘wages’ or ‘a salary’.
And (4) __________ that’s just (5) __________ royalties are: they are certainly not the ‘bonus’ that my children
always imagined them to be when they arrived from a publisher. My fault for not educating them properly, I
suppose, but the receipt of a royal cheque would always bring with it appeals from the children (6) __________
extras, which they brought of as something akin (7) __________ Christmas or birthday presents: it certainly
wasn’t money that needed to be apportioned in the same way as others apportion their wages or salary. Indeed,
(8) __________ I not learned very early on in my writing career to see royalties as my ‘salary’ and apportion
(9) __________ carefully – much more carefully than any other people, since they are an irregular form of
income – I would long ago have been in (10) __________ financial straits!

an extract from The Times (10.12.85)

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PASSAGE 2

HOW TO WRITE A BLOCKBUSTER

If you have ever finished reading the latest blockbuster and thought that you could have done better,
consider (1) __________ the following techniques.

Before you settle (2) __________ your subject (3) __________, be canny and examine the current market.
If period dramas are (4) __________ a comeback, for example, consider that genre but with a unique (5)
__________. Start by looking around you – in newspapers, on TV – for stories and characters. Choose a genre
and topic you feel comfortable with. Thorough research will add to the strength and depth of your writing and
help you gain more confidence. Read relevant history books, biographies and travelogues to immerse (6)
__________ in your chosen period and setting.

Once you have formulated your characters, possible storylines and locations, start to (7) __________ out
rough dialogues and scenes. Only then should you set (8) __________ writing the novel. Once the novel is
completed, you must find an agent. Many leading publishers will only consider submissions via an established
agent and will largely ignore unsolicited books. Again, research is the key. Look for an agent that (9)
__________ your genre and style. Finally, do not forget that the book has to be marketed once it is published,
so you, the author, will become one of the novel’s Unique Selling Points. It helps if you and the book have a
good story (10) __________ you too.
adapted from How to Write a Blockbuster in The Guardian (27.3.99)

II. WORD FORMATION

Read the text and the sentences below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of some of the lines to form
a word that fits in the space in the same line.

Forget nuclear weapons and global warming; nemesis lurks around the corner and he is wearing
a quite different guise. The robots are coming and soon there will be nowhere to hide. Computers
are developing at such (1) __________ speed that they will shortly spawn a race of intelligent NECK
androids, more fear that Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator, which will ultimately (2) SLAVE
__________ the world. We, by then a subjugated people, will face extinction – or if we play our
cards right, a future as dumb but cute forms of pet.

Researchers in (3) __________ intelligence at major centres of learning inform us that within ART
the next few decades they will have created robots that are head and shoulders above humans. If
computers are the next step in evolution, they will quite probably follow the law of survival of the
fittest. And when robots are the most intelligent beings on the planet, it doesn't take much brainwork
to work out that they will end up in the diving seat. Science fiction writers have also, for decades,
fed their readers a similar diet. Stories abound of robots running amok and (4) __________ their PERIL
human benefactors. It is certainly a fact that by the end of the decade the Japanese will have
developed a machine as intelligent as a cat. And no real barrier exists to creating ever more
sophisticated robots with the ability to improve on their own design. Already researchers have
achieved a (5) __________ by creating miniature varieties that learn from each other and exhibit BREAK
new behaviour.
adapted from an article by S. Connor in The Sunday Times

6. The game was much __________ when both teams scored with five minutes of each other. (LIFE)
7. There has been a __________ just outside Crewe, and many people are feared dead. (RAIL)
8. The car rolled down a railway __________ and hit a tree. (BANK)
9. One of the unexpected __________ of the course was the forming of some really close friendships. (SPIN)
10. Are you doing this on purpose just to __________ me? (FURIOUS)

Chose the suitable word given the box and supply its correct form to complete the text below.

adult nominate pass sign tort

dose paradox sanity spoon wreck

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 The perception is growing that in the presentation of news on the radio and television to say nothing of
newspapers pure information comes second to a synthetic version of it, transmitted through a (11) __________
mist of emotion and pathos. The facts about a plane crash or an earthquake give way to the sobbing reactions of
the bereaved. ‘How do you feel?’ has taken the place of ‘What happened?’ The reporter becomes not just an
observer but a participant, holding back the tears as he combs through the (12) __________. A politician’s
announcement is screened out as reactions are eagerly sought by an instant ‘vox pop’.

The trend, and it is undoubtedly there, arouses strong feelings among an older generation which sees it as
condescending and unnecessary, assuming the lowest common (13) __________ on the part of the viewer; it is
(14) __________ news for couch potatoes. It is, however, defended equally strongly by anxious editors and
producers who believe that a younger generation is simply switching off news altogether; better that they
should watch something informative, goes the argument, than hop to the rival channel’s game show.

A series of debates under the label Culture Wars, at the Edinburgh Book Festival, posed the question
‘Dumbing down or wising up?’, the question mark at the end suggesting that we might in fact be discovering a
better means of communication in a technological age. It extended the issue from television to newspapers and
publishing where a burgeoning army of commentators seemed to have (15) __________ the old adage about
facts being sacred and comment free to the journalistic dustbin.

We cannot, surely, complain about a lack of accurate information when this generation has greater access to
(16) __________, up-to-date news than any previous age. It is poured out on 24-hour television channels, e-
mail and the Internet in such quantities that we are in danger of (17) __________ on it. Background data on
almost every story you read or view is instantly available. Newspapers now have to offer an online service of
high quality, otherwise they will simply be (18) __________.

But news on the Internet has one central flaw; it is unedited and unrestricted. It offers no context no means
of assessing its value. (19) __________, the more raw data is available to readers and viewers, the more they
need clear, objective presentation, comment and evaluation.

If the media talks down to its audience or presents a blurred and (20) __________ version of events, it gives
them nothing to go on, no room to reach their own judgement, no baseline from which to form their own
opinions. And that is the ultimate condescension.
from an article by M. Linklater in The Times

III. ERROR IDENTIFICATION

Identify 10 errors in the following passage and correct them.

THE HILLS ARE ALIVE WITH THE SOUND OF MUSIC

For the past eight years, many of the world’s leading classical musicians have gathered together in
Switzerland’s most glitzy ski resort to play, to teach and socialise. If this was all, it would be the ultimate
classical music insiders’ club. But the attraction of Verbier, its charm and relevance, is that it is also home for
three weeks to more than 100 young musicians from 31 countries, starried-eye about meeting the masters and
getting a crashing course at the highest possible level. Conductors of the world’s top orchestras are off hand to
get the young musicians into shape, coaxing fine performances of so daunting challenges as Mahler’s Third
Symphony and Brahms’ First Symphony.

Verbier is the creation of the Swede, Martin Engstroem, who for many years was a leading agent. He
wanted to run his own festival and, having some of the best contacts of the business, it was not hard to find a
Swiss ski report to look for a summer boost, rich villa owners keen to open their houses to musical celebrities
and stars used to being indulgent. Engstroem is the most relaxed and charming of men, but in his way he is a
dictator. The music heard at Verbier tends to be of his classical taste with barely a note of the contemporary.

IV. SENTENCE TRANSFORMATION

For each sentence below, write a new sentence as similar as possible in meaning to the original sentence,
using the words given: these words must not be altered in any way.

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1. Fancy you and I taking after my mother!
TO
What a ...........................................................................................................................................................

2. I had been planning to see the latest blockbuster. Not long after that my friends told me that it was terrible.
LED
Barely ...........................................................................................................................................................

3. We regret to inform you that your application has been rejected.

TURNED
Much .............................................................................................................................................................

4. If he hadn’t interrupted her, she would have told me to say exactly what I thought.
SORELY
Were ..............................................................................................................................................................

5. We’re likely to escape from the smoke-filled house before we die.

NICK
There is .........................................................................................................................................................

6. It socks my grandmother when seeing people seem to be criticising the police quite a lot nowadays.
COMING
It comes .........................................................................................................................................................

7. In a very direct way, Jean and Bob are downright stingy with their money!
WHAT
To put it .........................................................................................................................................................

8. I assumed without asking that the film would let us down.

A
I took .............................................................................................................................................................

9. Though I don’t like his style, I went to see his presentation after all because my teacher advised me to do so.
WELL
Averse ...........................................................................................................................................................

10. I never imagined she could behave like that as she’s normally very calm.
KEEPING
At ..................................................................................................................................................................

V. WRITING TASKS (for National Examination)

TASK 1. Read the following passage, then summarise in 50–100 words that the passage says about the effect
of the advent of the motor car on the life of the village in which the author was brought up.

The last days of my childhood were also the last villages like ships in the empty landscapes and the
days of the village. I belonged to that generation which
long walking distances between them; of white narrow
saw, by chance, the end of a thousand years’ life. The roads, rutted by hooves and cart-wheels, innocent of
change came late on our Costwold valley, didn’t really oil or petrol, down which people passed rarely, and
show itself till the late 1920’s; I was twelve by then,almost never for pleasure, and the horse was the fastest
but during that handful of years I witnessed the whole thing moving. Man and horse were all the power we
thing happen. had – abetted by levers and pulleys. But the horse was
king, and almost everything grew around him: fodder,
Myself, my family, my generation, were born in a smithies, stables, paddocks, distances, and the rhythms
world of silence; a world of hard work and necessary of our days. His eight miles an hour was the limit of
patience, of backs bent to the ground, hands massaging our movements, as it had been since the days of the
the crops, of waiting on weather and growth; of

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Romans. That eight miles an hour was life and death, wagonette to Stroud twice a week. The carriage held
the size of our world, our prison. six, and the fare was twopence, but most people
preferred to walk. Mr West, from Sheepscomble, ran a
This was what we were born to, and all we knew at cart every day, and would carry your parcels for a
first. Then, to the scream of the horse, the change penny. But most of us still did the journey on foot,
began. The brass-lamped motor-car came coughing up heads down to the wet Welsh winds, ignoring the
the road, followed by the clamorous charabanc; the carters – whom we thought extortionate – and
solid-tyred bus climbed the dusty hills and more spending a long hard day at our shopping.
people came and went. Chickens and dogs were the
early sacrifices, falling demented beneath the wheels. Bu the car-shying horses with their rolling eyes
The old folk, too, had strokes and seizures, faced by gave signs of the hysteria to come. Soon the village
speeds beyond comprehension. Then scarlet motor- would break, dissolve, and scatter, become no more
bikes, the size of five-barred gates, began to appear in than a place for pensioners. It had a few years left, the
the village, on which our youths roared like rockets up last of its thousand, and they passed almost our
the two-minute hills, then spent weeks making repairs knowing. They passed quickly, painlessly, in motor-
and adjustments. bike jaunts, in the shadows of the new picture-palace,
in quick trips to Gloucester (once a foreign city) to
These appearances did not immediately alter our gape at the jazzy shops. Yet right to the end, like the
lives; the cars were freaks and rarely seen, the motor- false strength that precedes death, the old life seemed
bikes mostly in pieces, we used the charabancs only as lusty as ever.
once a year, and our buses at first were experiments. from Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee
Meanwhile Lew Ayres, wearing a bowler-hat, ran his

TASK 2. The chart below show the amount of waste produced by UK industries over a four-year period, the
level of investment in waste disposal and the total number of complaints to local councils regarding
environmental damage for the same period.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where
relevant. Write at least 150 words.

TASK 3. Write an essay of at least 250 words to express your opinion on the following topic:

The increase of technology in the kitchen has changed the way we eat for the worse, and it is
poorer families who suffer.

C. LISTENING (for National Examination)

TASK 1. You are doing some research into energy and the environment. You hear a radio talk in which an
environmentalist describes carrying out an “Energy Audit” to calculate his own energy use and its effects on
the environment. Listen to the talk and choose the word or phrase which best completes the sentence.

1. Before doing the energy audit, he _____.

A. assumed that his activities did little harm
B. gave little thought to the consequences of his actions
C. knew his lifestyle was environmentally friendly
D. realised that he wasn’t doing enough

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2. He was hesitant about doing the energy audit because he _____.
A. didn’t fully understand the technology C. was afraid of what he might discover
B. thought the results might not be accurate D. wasn’t sure how easy it would be
3. When he looked into his own home energy use, he _____.
A. couldn’t find the necessary information C. left out his consumption of oil, coal and wood
B. didn’t completely understand his bills D. spent too much time calculating it
4. In terms of travelling he _____.
A. fears there may be one particular problem C. occasionally commutes to work by train
B. has a car of his own but rarely uses it D. often uses water-borne transport
5. His air travel over the previous year _____.
A. consisted of two return trips C. was difficult to calculate
B. was an unpleasant experience D. was necessary for his work
6. Energy use by industry and commerce _____.
A. is a category most people may not be aware of C. makes up about half of his energy use
B. is supported by ordinary people D. seems to be growing every day
7. His first reaction to the results of the audit is one of _____.
A. confusion B. disbelief C. disillusionment D. guilt
8. Without the air travel, his carbon total would be _____.
A. about average C. quite acceptable
B. nearly halved D. slightly less disastrous
9. The 2.5 tonne personal carbon target proposed by the Climate Information Network _____.
A. is much higher than a sustainable level C. should not be taken too seriously
B. may be achievable with slight lifestyle changes D. teaches us a worrying lesson
10. The main point made by the speaker is that _____.
A. energy audits would be too worrying for most people
B. environmentalists do not practise what they preach
C. his own lifestyle is less harmful than most people’s
D. nearly everyone faces making big changes in lifestyle

TASK 2. Later you hear a radio interview in which the presenter, Terry Davis, is talking to Dr Elizabeth
Jones, an expert on climate. Listen to the interview and complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN
THREE WORDS and/or A NUMBER.

CLIMATE CHANGE

11. Climate refers to a ...................................................................................... ; weather varies from day to day.

12. Climate is ................................................................................................................................ than weather.
13. Scientists can now ....................................................................................... , which helps future projections.
14. Climate has been quite ........................................................................................... for the past 10,000 years.
15. A lot of ...................................................... (e.g. coastal cities) are now more vulnerable to climate changes.
16. In the late 70s: new equipment was developed to calculate the ...................................................................... .
There have been very small variations over last 20 years.
17. Most warming in 20th century was caused by increased emissions of .......................... produced by humans.
18. Small temperature changes may cause .......................................................................................................... .
19. For example, there is only ....................................................... difference between the last Ice Age and now.
20. Evidence of change: melting glaciers, early springs, less snow on mountains, more frequent ........................ .
21. Oceans and forests absorb some carbon dioxide but burning fossil fuels produces ........................................ .
22. Carbon dioxide levels are now at their highest for ........................................................................................ .
23. It can take up to ............................................................ for carbon dioxide to be removed from atmosphere.
24. The word ..................................................................................................... can be defined in various ways.
25. One study suggests emissions at a level of 450 parts per million will be necessary to avoid .......................... .
TASK 3. Listen to a piece of news from CNN about “Experiment in Ecoliving” and complete the summary
below with the missing information. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS and/or A NUMBER taken
from the recording for each answer in the spaces provided.

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 EXPERIMENT IN ECOLIVING
The (26) __________ of 10 new carbon-neutral homes, tucked away on the newly named Greenwatt Way,
was built in 2010 by energy firm Scottish and Southern Energy, or SSE. Ross Easton from SSE recharges his
electric Mini while taking the CNN reporter around the show home. Normally, all the kit would be (27)
__________ but they are being left on display. The equipment is what the house is using; but it’s also
generating electricity and putting it back onto the (28) __________.

Generating extra energy is one way toward zero net emissions; cutting energy use is the biggest way. The
house has extra-thick walls; (29) __________; low-energy LED TVs; thinner baths using less water. After being
used, the bath water (30) __________ the toilets. Also, unusual in Britain, there are no wall-to-wall carpets on
the main floor. Instead, stone floors are used because they absorb heat during the day and release it at night.
Even in cloudy Britain, Greenwatt Way is complete with solar panels, along with one biomass boiler, shared by
all 10 homes, tucked away in the community’s own self-contained energy center.

In addition to normal family setup, there’s a radiator in the whole house, which brings about the biggest
challenge. In the summer, the homes are going to overheat because they are so airtight. Polish-born resident
Robert Burzynski, also a (31) __________ from the local university, and his family are looking forward to their
first summer here. In their experience, buildings are often very tight and have (32) __________, but they also
have a lot of (33) __________ inside, and there is a (34) __________. However, after six months living in this
eco- house, there are no signs of such things. Mr Robert also stresses that his family is living as they like to,
with the heat higher than other families might like.

That’s the point of this experiment. The experiment needs to get such real results, and there is no point in
putting in people and told them: “We’re (35) __________, we are going to use less energy anyway.” The energy
company will spend two years collecting the data here and a third year analyzing it. As for the contemporary
residents, they say they don’t know how long they’ll be living here, but some say it’ll be hard to move on to
another properties that are less fuel-efficient.

D. SPEAKING (for National Examination)

1. Describe an academic subject that interests you, and explain why you find the subject interesting. Include
details and examples to support your explanation.
2. Do you agree or disagree with the following statements? “Parents are the best teachers.” Use specific
reasons and examples to support your answer.
3. It has been said, “Not everything that is learned is contained in books.” Compare and contrast knowledge
gained from experience with knowledge gained from books. In your opinion, which source is more
important? Why?
4. Nowadays food has become easier to prepare. Has this change improved the way people live? Use specific
reasons and examples to support your answer.
5. People attend college or university for many different reasons (for example, new experiences, career
preparation, increased knowledge, etc.). Why do you think people attend college or university? Use specific
reasons and examples to support your answer.

THAT IS THE END OF THE TEST

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