Practice 3: true, false, not given. Read the following passage about the daily life of a philosopher.

For 27 years the philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer followed an identical routine. He rose every morning at seven and
had a bath but no breakfast; he drank a cup of strong coffee before sitting down at his desk and writing until noon. At
noon he ceased work for the day and spent half an hour practicing the flute, on which he became quite a skilled
performer. Then he went out for lunch at his favourite restaurant. After lunch he returned home and read until four, when
he left for his daily walk; he walked for two hours no matter what the weather. At six o’clock he visited the reading
room of the library and read The Times. In the evening he attended the theatre or a concert, after which he had dinner at
a hotel or restaurant. He got back home between nine and ten and went early to bed. He was willing to deviate from this
routine in order to receive visitors.
1. Schopenhauer got up at the same time every day.
2. He dedicated the whole day to his work.
3. He ate the same meal every evening.
4. Schopenhauer allowed nothing to interrupt his daily routine.

Practice 5:. Read the following passage about a study into 'sitting'. and answer true, false or not given.

The ease of our modern workday could come at the expense of our longevity. A new study of older women in the
American Journal of Preventive Medicine finds that sitting for long stretches of time increases the odds of an untimely
death. The more hours women in the study spent sitting at work, driving, lying on the couch watching TV, or engaged in
other leisurely pursuits, the greater their odds of dying early from all causes, including heart disease and cancer.
Even women who exercised regularly risked shortening their lifespan if most of their daily hours were sedentary ones.
“Even if you are doing the recommended amount of moderate to vigorous exercise, you will still have a higher risk of
mortality if you’re spending too many hours sitting,” says Dr. JoAnn Manson, one of the study’s authors. How much
sitting can you safely do in a day? In the study, women who were inactive for 11 or more hours a day fared the worst,
facing a 12% increase in premature death, but even lesser amounts of inactive time can cause problems. “Once you’re
sitting for more than 6 to 8 hours a day, that’s not likely to be good for you,” Dr. Manson says. You want to avoid
prolonged sitting and increase the amount of moderate or vigorous exercise you do each day, she adds.
1. The study looked at the effects of sitting on elderly women only.
2. A link was found between hours spent sitting and serious health problems.
3. The warnings about sitting do not apply to people who exercise regularly.
4. Less than 6 hours a day is a safe amount of sitting.
Practice 6: Read the following paragraph about 'minority languages'. and answer true, false or not given.
Minority languages are occasionally marginalised within nations for a number of reasons. These include the small
number of speakers, the decline in the number of speakers, and their occasional consideration as uncultured, primitive,
or simple dialects when compared to the dominant language. Support for minority languages is sometimes viewed as
supporting separatism. Immigrant minority languages are often also seen as a threat and as indicative of the non-
integration of these communities. Both perceived threats are based on the notion of the exclusion of the majority
language speakers. Often this is added to by political systems which do not provide support (such as education and
policing) in these languages.
1.Minority languages sometimes disappear.
2.Minority languages are simpler to learn than majority languages.
3.Minority languages are sometimes considered to be harmful.
Practice 7: Read the following passage about the performer Houdini. and answer true, false or not given.
Harry Houdini (1874 to 1926) was a Hungarian-American illusionist and stunt performer, noted for his sensational
escape acts. He first attracted attention as "Harry Handcuff Houdini" on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police
forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers,
straitjackets under water, and having to hold his breath inside a sealed milk can. In 1904, thousands watched as Houdini
tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London's Daily Mirror newspaper. Another stunt saw him
buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface. While many suspected that these escapes were faked,
Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake magicians and spiritualists. As President of the Society of American
Magicians, he was keen to uphold professional standards and expose fraudulent artists. He was also quick to sue anyone
who pirated his stunts.
1.Houdini was more successful in Europe than in America.
2.Many people were skeptical about Houdini’s escape acts.
3.He took legal action against those who tried to copy him
Practice 8: Read the following text and answer true, false or not given.
Coffee consumption has been shown to have minimal or no impact, positive or negative, on cancer development.
However, researchers involved in an ongoing 22-year study by the Harvard School of Public Health state that "the
overall balance of risks and benefits [of coffee consumption] are on the side of benefits." Other studies suggest coffee
consumption reduces the risk of being affected by Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, heart disease, diabetes
mellitus type 2, cirrhosis of the liver, and gout. A longitudinal study in 2009 showed that those who consumed a
moderate amount of coffee or tea (3–5 cups per day) at midlife were less likely to develop dementia and Alzheimer's
disease in late-life compared with those who drank little coffee or avoided it altogether.
1.Scientists have linked coffee consumption to accelerated cancer development.
2.Some scientists believe that the benefits of drinking coffee outweigh the drawbacks.
3.Recent research links coffee consumption with a reduced risk of some illnesses.
Practice 9: Read the following excerpt from a book review: and answer true, false or not given.
What constitutes the good life? What is the true value of money? Why do we work such long
hours merely to acquire greater wealth? These are some of the questions that many asked themselves when the financial
system crashed in 2008. This book tackles such questions headon. The authors begin with the great economist John
Maynard Keynes. In 1930, Keynes predicted that within a century people’s basic needs would be met, and no one would
have to work more than fifteen hours a week.
Clearly, he was wrong: though income has increased as he envisioned, our wants have seemingly gone unsatisfied, and
we continue to work long hours. The authors explain why Keynes was mistaken. Then, arguing from the premise that
economics is a moral science, they trace the concept of the good life from Aristotle to the present and show how our
lives over the last half century have strayed from that ideal. Finally, they issue a call to think anew about what really
matters in our lives and how to attain it.
1.Before 2008, people were less concerned about economics.
2.Keynes’ prediction about working hours was wide of the mark.
3.The book asks us to consider what is important in life.
Practice 10: The Paper Clip and answer true, false or not given.
According to the Early Office Museum, the first patent for a bent wire paper clip was awarded in the United States to
Samuel B. Fay, in 1867. This clip was originally intended primarily for attaching tickets to fabric, although the patent
recognized that it could be used to attach papers together. Although functional and practical, Fay's design along with the
50 other designs patented prior to 1899 are not considered reminiscent of the modern paper clip design known today.
The most common type of wire paper clip still in use, the Gem paper clip, was never patented, but it was most likely in
production in Britain in the early 1870s by "The Gem Manufacturing Company", according to the American expert on
technological innovations, Professor Henry J. Petroski.
1.Samuel B. Fay’s paper clip was only patented for one specific use.
2.Fay’s paper clip was not as practical as those we use today.
3.Nobody has a patent on the paper clip that most people use today.
Practice 11: Read the following text about sharks and answer true, false or not given.
Contrary to the common wisdom that sharks are instinct-driven "eating machines", recent studies have indicated that
many species possess powerful problem-solving skills, social skills and curiosity. The brain- to body-mass ratios of
sharks are similar to those of mammals and birds, and migration patterns in sharks may be even more complex than in
birds, with many sharks covering entire ocean basins. However, shark behaviour has only begun to be formally studied,
so there is much more to learn. A popular myth is that sharks are immune to disease and cancer; however, this remains
to be proven. The evidence that sharks are at least resistant to cancer and disease is mostly anecdotal and there have
been few, if any, scientific or statistical studies that show sharks to have heightened immunity to disease.
1.Research shows that sharks are more intelligent than most people think.
2.Relative to their body size, sharks have bigger brains than birds.
3.There is no real evidence proving that sharks are resistant to diseases.
Practice 12: Read the following passage about the scientist Michael Faraday. and answer true, false or not given.
Michael Faraday, (1791 - 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the fields of electromagnetism and
electrochemistry. Although Faraday received little formal education, he was one of the most influential scientists in
history, and historians of science refer to him as having been the best experimentalist in the history of science.
The young Michael Faraday, who was the third of four children, having only the most basic school education, had to
educate himself. At fourteen he became the apprentice to George Riebau, a local bookbinder and bookseller. During his
seven-year apprenticeship he read many books, including Isaac Watts' The Improvement of the Mind, and he
enthusiastically implemented the principles and suggestions contained therein. In 1812, at the age of twenty, and at the
end of his apprenticeship, Faraday attended lectures by the eminent English chemist Humphry Davy. Faraday
subsequently sent Davy a threehundred-page book based on notes that he had taken during these lectures. Davy's reply
was immediate, kind, and favourable. When one of the Royal Institution's assistants was sacked, Davy was asked to find
a replacement, and appointed Faraday as Chemical Assistant at the Royal Institution.
1.Many experts regard Faraday as the foremost experimentalist of all time.
2.Faraday educated himself by reading books that were recommended to him by George Riebau.
3.Faraday came to the attention of a famous chemist after he wrote a book based on the chemist's lectures.

Practice 15: last year's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. and answer true, false or not given.
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is making Americans think more about a clean energy future
– but not yet to the extent of having to pay for it, or to tackle climate change, one of the leading
US thinkers on global warming policy said yesterday. US citizens are "horrified" by the pollution in
the Gulf of Mexico, and are starting to think more about cleaner energy sources such as wind and
wave power, said Eileen Clausen, president of America's foremost climate think-tank, the
Washington-based Pew Center on Global Climate Change.
However, she said, when consumers are asked by pollsters if they would be willing to pay more for
such a future, they say no, and say the government should pay. Furthermore, Ms Clausen said, the
Gulf disaster was giving US energy policy "a nudge rather than a shift" in the direction of clean
energy, but it would probably not be enough to bring forward legislation to curb carbon emissions, at
least for the present.
1. The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was the result of a human error.
2. US citizens accept that they will need to pay for a clean energy future.
3. In spite of the disaster, the government is unlikely to introduce laws to reduce carbon emissions.
Practice 16: Read the following text and answer true, false or not given.
The killer whale, commonly referred to as the orca, and less commonly as the blackfish, is a toothed
whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family. Killer whales are found in all oceans, from the frigid
Arctic and Antarctic regions to tropical seas. As a species they have a diverse diet, although
individual populations often specialize in particular types of prey. Some feed exclusively on fish,
while others hunt marine mammals such as sea lions, seals, walruses and even large whales. Killer
whales are regarded as apex predators, lacking natural predators and preying on even large sharks.
Killer whales are highly social; some populations are composed of family groups which are the most
stable of any animal species. Their sophisticated hunting techniques and vocal behaviors, which are
often specific to a particular group and passed across generations, have been described as
manifestations of culture.
1.Killer whales are predominantly found in cold water areas.
2.Some killer whale groups only eat fish.
3.They may even eat large sharks.
4.Killer whales are able to pass on skills to their young.
Practice 17: the Stanford marshmallow experiment. and answer true, false or not given.
The Stanford marshmallow experiment was a study on deferred gratification. The experiment
was conducted in 1972 by psychologist Walter Mischel of Stanford University. It has been
repeated many times since, and the original study at Stanford is regarded as one of the most
successful experiments in the study of human behaviour. In the study, a marshmallow was
offered to each child. If the child could resist eating the marshmallow, he was promised two
instead of one. The scientists analysed how long each child resisted the temptation of eating
the marshmallow, and whether or not doing so had an effect on their future success. The results
provided researchers with great insight on the psychology of self control.
1. When repeated by other researchers, the experiment was less successful.
2. Children were offered a second marshmallow if they managed not to eat the first one.
3. Scientists found a correlation between resisting temptation and future success.
Practice 18: Read the text below about Issac Newton. and answer true, false or not given.
Sir Isaac Newton was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher,
alchemist, and theologian. His Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica (Latin for
"Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy"; usually called the Principia), published in
1687, is one of the most important scientific books ever written. It lays the groundwork for
most of classical mechanics.
Newton is considered by many scholars and members of the general public to be one of the most
influential people in human history. French mathematician Joseph-Louis Lagrange often said that
Newton was the greatest genius who ever lived. Newton himself had been rather more modest of his
own achievements, famously writing in a letter to Robert Hooke in February 1676: “If I have seen
further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”
1.Newton's Principia is recognised as a ground-breaking text in its field.
2.Many experts regard Newton as the greatest genius the world has seen.
3.Newton wrote that he had achieved everything without the help of others.
Practice 19: Read the following text about "green taxes" in Britain. and answer true, false or not given.
According to a survey, most Britons believe “green” taxes on 4×4s, plastic bags and other consumer
goods have been imposed to raise cash rather than change our behaviour, while two thirds of Britons
think the entire green agenda has been hijacked as a ploy to increase taxes. The UK is committed to
reducing carbon emissions by 60 per cent by 2050, a target that most experts believe will be difficult
to reach. The results of the poll by Opinium, a leading research company, indicate that maintaining
popular support for green policies may be a difficult act to pull off and attempts in the future to curb
car use and publicly fund investment in renewable resources will prove deeply unpopular.
The findings were released as the Prince of Wales yesterday called on Britain’s business leaders to
take “essential action” to make their firms more sustainable. Speaking in central London to some of
the country’s leading chief executives, Prince Charles said: “What more can I do but urge you, this
country’s business leaders, to take the essential action now to make your businesses more sustainable.
I’m exhausted with repeating that there really is no time to lose.”

1.Most Britons think that the Government wants to change people’s behaviour.
2.By the year 2050 the Government will have imposed higher green taxes.
3.The survey predicts that it will be difficult to change people’s dependence on cars.
4.The Prince of Wales believes that most businesses are not sustainable