READING PRACTICE 2

(From various studying materials I collected)

I. The article below is about the American-Chinese chef Ken Hom. For questions
1–8 think of the word which best fits each gap. Use only one word in each gap.
(Source: Objective First Workbook)
KEN HOM
I started cooking in my uncle’s Chinese restaurant at the age of 11. At first, I
just washed the dishes, then chopped and sliced the vegetables. But as soon
(1)________ the chefs went (2)________ of the kitchen I’d try to copy the dishes I’d
seen them cook. The first dish I attempted to make was fried rice. It’s (2)________
difficult to mess up that anyone can cook it.
By the (3)________ I was 15 I was (4)________ up working 12-hour days in
the restaurant. So, I (5)________ up my mind to go to university to study History of
Art and only started cooking again in (6)________ to get some extra money.
My mission (7)________ always been to encourage people to eat less fat and
meat and more vegetables. Kids say they don’t eat vegetables, but they usually
haven’t had them stir-fried. Cooked (8)________ this they are delicious, healthy and
fun.

II. For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits
each gap. Use only one word in each gap.
(Source: Objective First Workbook)
Elisabeth Daborn, who works as a teacher and artist, re-enacts history with her
partner Kevin Cowley and their children. The adults spend most of their weekends
fighting. However, (1)________ is nothing personal! They both belong (2)________
Regia Anglorum, one of Britain;s two main Viking re-enactment societies. Elisabeth
explains their shared passion. ‘Kevin used to (3)________ keen on LARPing - Live
Action Role Play - but after (4)________ while, he decided he wanted something
more authentic. So he joined Regia. (5)________ specialism is the period 950 to
1066. I joined too, but because there’s (6)________ proof that Viking women fought,
I dress up as a man. Over the years, Regia’s been in many TV series and in a rock
video, (7)________ we had to row our longship and headbang at the same time. The
longship, (8)________ was built for the film Erik the Viking, is safe to use on rivers,
although I wouldn’t like to go out to sea on it!’

III. For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits
each gap. Use only one word in each gap.
(Source: Objective First Workbook)
A bad experience
Thank you for the photos you sent me of our holidays together. It was great to
remember (1)________ a good time we had, especially as I’ve not had a very happy
time (2)________ I got back. (3)________ you know, I’m a member of the city choir
and we meet every Wednesday to practise. Well, two weeks ago I went to the
rehearsal as usual. However, on the way to the bus stop a young woman stopped me
and asked me for directions to a local park. I thought it was rather strange as it was
already dark and the park (4)________ definitely be closed. Anyway, as I was telling
her she pushed me over and ran off with my handbag. I was (5)________ shocked I
didn’t know what to do. A few minutes later, although it felt (6)________ a few
hours, someone came along the street and saw me (7)________ the ground. They
were very helpful and took me to the local police station. I told the police what had
happened but they think there’s very (8)________ chance of my getting my bag back,
unfortunately.

IV. For questions 1-8. read the article below and decide which answer (A, B, C or
D) best fits each gap.
(Source: Objective First Workbook)
Space tourism: We have lift-off
People are predicting that space tourism could be a $700m industry by 2020.
Thousands of paying passengers a year could be flown as far as zero gravity and back,
for the most thrilling (1)________ of their lives. Tickets are on sale now at a
(2)________ $200,000, from the billionaire Richard Branson, whose Virgin Galactic
company has big plans for its six-passenger spacecraft.
In the meantime, a growing (4)________ of other business people are joining
the space race, (4)________ for the first time that there might actually be some money
to be made. Virgin Galactic has already (5)________ around $45m in deposits from
people wanting to travel into sob-orbital space. Why are they so (6)________ to do
this? One common reason given is that people want to feel the (7)________ of zero
gravity, and many also sa that they would like to (8)________ the curve of the Earth
from above.
1. A. lift B. sail C. flight D. drive
2. A. pure B. mere C. bare D. pale
3. A. amount B. sum C. figure D. number
4. A. advised B. influenced C. convinced D. impressed
5. A. taken B. kept C. borne D. held
6. A. irresponsible B. impatient C. irritated D. impossible
7. A. causes B. events C. issues D. effects
8. A. view B. look C. gaze D. watch

V. Read the following article about the environmental group Greenpeace and
decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap.
(Source: Objective First Workbook)
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an independent organization that campaigns to protect the
environment. It has approximately 4.5 million members worldwide in 158 countries,
300,000 of these in the United Kingdom. (1)________ in North America in 1971, it
has since opened offices round the world. As well as its campaigning (2)________, it
also has a charitable trust which (3)________ scientific research and undertakes
educational projects on environmental issues. Greenpeace (4)________ in non-violent
direct action. Activists draw public attention to serious threats to the environment.
(5)________ issues on which the organization is campaigning include the atmosphere
(Global warming), the (6)________ of the rainforests and toxic waste being emitted
from factories. Greenpeace is committed to the principles of political independence
and internationalism. By exposing (7)________ to the environment and in working to
(8)________ solutions, Greenpeace is really helping to save the planet.
1. A. Built B. Formed C. Invented D. Produced
2. A. work B. job C.occupation D. position
3. A. pays. B. funds C. rewards D. earns
4. A. accepts B. depends C. holds D. believes
5. A. Instant B. Current C. Immediate D. Next
6. A. ruin B. threats C. destruction D. downfall
7. A. warnings B. threats C. promises D. difficulties
8. A. find B. make C. set D. sort

VI. For questions 1-8. read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C or
D) best fits each gap.
(Source: Objective First Workbook)
The sonic tool that has shaped pop music
Imagine having a full orchestra crammed into your house. For a start, with so
many people, it would get very stuffy indeed. The patience of the (1)________ would
soon wear thin. Also, you would need earplugs for the percussion, and the brass
section would probably drink everything in your fridge. An acceptable alternative is
(2)________ by the sampler, a piece of equipment that records, edits and mixes a
wide variety of sounds electronically - the musical equivalent of a word processor.
The sampler can alter the length of sounds - for example, it can (3)________
down the human voice to create something very unusual. Another feature is that the
recorded sound can be (4)________ at any pitch - the woof of a small dog can be
(5)________ into a Bark prelude and fugue!
1980s ‘synth-pop’ (6)________ extensive use of the sampler. It was
customary to include orchestral ‘stabs’: a single, short (7)________ from an entire
symphony orchestra inside a tin box. Then hip-hop music (8)________ and people
started using the sampler for rhythm, stealing four bars of drumming off an old record
to provide the backbeat for a whole song. It could be said that the sampler is every
instrument and none, but it certainly gives endless possibilities to musicians
everywhere.
1. A. controller B. governor C. driver D. conductor
2. A. handled B. offered C. shown D. suggested
3. A. cut B. hold C. slow D. keep
4. A. carried B. gone C. played D. run
5. A. got B. turned C. exchanged D. set
6. A. did B. put C. drew D. made
7. A. note B. key C. sign D. remark
8. A. caused B. became C. happened D. produced

VII. You are going to read an extract from a magazine article about attitudes
towards reality TV. For questions 1-8, choose the answer (A, B, C or D which
you think fits best according to the text.
(Source: Successful FCE - 10 Practice Tests)
Today's university students have none of the fear of "Big Brother" that marked
their parents' generation. In fact, their fascination with the notion of watching and
being watched has fuelled a dramatic shift in entertainment programming and ushered
in the era of Reality Television.
Mark Andrejevic, an assistant professor of communication studies, says a
number of factors including technology and economy paved the way for the rise of
reality television, but none so much as a transformation of Americans' attitudes
towards surveillance.
As a graduate student at the University of Colorado in the mid- to late 1990s,
he studied the ways in which new technology allowed viewers to move from the role
of passive media consumers to active participants. "I was interested in the ways that
the promise of participation also became a means of monitoring people," he says. "All
over the Internet people were providing information about themselves that could be
used by marketers. Being watched became more and more economically productive."
Andrejevic believes that the interactivity of the Internet paved the way for
reality TV mania. He interviewed producers of early reality programmes such as
MTV's The Real World who said that they initially had a hard time finding people
willing to have their lives taped nearly 24 hours a day for several months. That was
1992. Now they hold auditions in college towns and thousands of young people form
lines snaking for blocks just for the chance to audition. "There are now more people
applying to The Real World each year than to Harvard," Andrejevic says.
The key to that success is connected to people's increasing comfort with levels
of surveillance that were once hated in American society. Andrejevic has attempted to
think about the ways in which reality TV reconfigures public attitudes about
surveillance. He says: "We're trained to make a split between private and public
surveillance - to be worried about government surveillance but not private, which is
entertainment or gathering information to serve us better. We're moving into a period
where that distinction starts to dissolve. Private surveillance is becoming so pervasive
that it's time to start worrying about it as a form of social control."
That viewers of reality programming don't worry about surveillance or social
control is testament to the power of television as a messenger. Andrejevic points out
that "The cast members on these shows are constantly talking about how great the
experience is and how much they have grown personally because of it. It connotes
honesty - you can't hide anything about yourself if you're on camera all day every day.
It becomes a form of therapy or almost a kind of extreme sport - how long can you
withstand allowing yourself to be videotaped?"
Viewers believe in the benefits cast members describe and crave that
opportunity for themselves. In this way, each programme becomes a kind of
advertisement for itself. Millions of university students watched The Real World and
then began clamouring for the opportunity to participate. The same is true for newer
programmes including Survivor, American Idol, Fear Factor and the like.
Andrejevic says he encourages his students to look beyond the characters and
the surface glamour of reality television and consider the broader issues of
surveillance, privacy, democracy, and technology that the shows present.
"I try to cure my students of the habit of watching reality TV uncritically," he
says. "The challenge of teaching popular culture is that students are trained to separate
the world of academics from the world of popular culture. They tend not to think of
that part of life using theories they have learned in class. There's a tendency with
students to say 'you're reading too much into it.' But TV is so powerful in conveying
messages about the world precisely because people don't think it's doing that. There's
something so vital about reality TV as a cultural form," he continues. "It's always
changing, moving so fast, continuously reinventing itself. It gloms on to cultural
trends. It's a good place to examine and inspect our culture."
1. What does the phrase “paved the way” mean in paragraph 2?
A. Invented.
B. Slowed down the progress of.
C. Get thing ready for.
D. Were influenced by.
2. New technologies helped viewer to
A. Passively enjoy the media.
B. Be economically productive.
C. Become active participants.
D. Consume more.
3. In the beginning, reality TV
A. Was more popular than a university.
B. couldn’t find people willing to be filmed.
C. Had university students lining up to audition.
D. Was not popular with students.
4. People consider public and private surveillance to be
A. Different things.
B. Equally harmless.
C. Carried out by the government.
D. A cause for concern.
5. Andrejevic wants people to realize that private surveillance can be
A. Persuasive.
B. To their advantage.
C. Used to sell products.
D. A form of social control.
6. Which of the following is NOT something that makes participation in reality
shows a good experience (According to the shows’ participants)?
A. It makes honesty unavoidable.
B. It can be a sort of therapy.
C. It is an opportunity to advertise.
D. It is like an extreme sport.
7. Students tend to
A. Ignore what their studies have taught them when watching reality TV.
B. Read too much into reality TV.
C. See beyond the glamour of reality TV.
D. Not want to participate in reality shows themselves.
8. What is Adrejevic’s attitude towards television?
A. It is a harmless and entertaining aspect of popular culture.
B. It is secretly controlled by the government.
C. It can provide an experience that everyone would benefit from.
D. It can teach us about our culture but we should use it cautiously.

VIII. You are going to read a newspaper article about developments of global
importance in the last century. For questions 1-8, choose the answer (A, B, C or
D which you think fits best according to the text.
(Source: Successful FCE - 10 Practice Tests)
A Century of Change
The 20th century was a time of remarkable change. In less than one hundred
years, the population of our planet went from around 2 billion people to close to 6 -
that’s right; almost treble the number of people live in the world today as did ten or so
decades ago. And not only have our numbers exploded, but our lives have become
more intertwined than ever before. For most of human history, the different
communities which existed lived in their own very small worlds -worlds inside of a
bigger world they knew little about. The only world that mattered was the one you
could in your immediate surroundings. Compare that situation with today, when even
the poorest parts of sub-Saharan Africa can boast 43 television sets per thousand
people. The world view is no longer limited to the horizon; it stretches across the
planet. The global village is here. Now, let’s see how it came about.
 The lessons of two world wars in quick succession signalled the dawning of a
new age. Statesmen and women saw that the way forward lay in bringing the world
closer together. World War Three was to be avoided at all costs, they said. It was
believed that by making nations more interdependent the risk of conflict would be
lessened as it would be in nobody’s interest to go to war then.
That desire to see that nations of the world united gave birth to the U.N - the
United Nations. The idea of the U.N was to share power, responsibility and decision
making for world affairs equally between all the members of the new global village,
so it is the nearest thing we have ever had to a world government. The U.N brings
together officials from 185 member states. Their task is to preserve world peace and
prevent conflict, but the dream never quite became a reality as this body has very little
“real” power - it just does a lot of talking.
Not long after the United Nations was founded, Europe started to play with the
idea of uniting its own continent. After all, it was internal conflict there that had been
the main cause of both world wars. Then, in 1957, the idea took shape; it started as
the European coal and Steel Community with six member states. Today, we know it
as the E.U or the European Union - 27 countries, called member states, united in one
large free trade area and committed to supporting each other in order to make Europe
a safer, more secure and more prosperous place. 15 of those members have since gone
a step further and created a single currency. The system is hardly perfect, but at least
the members are working together and not trying to destroy each other anymore.
But, for all the political movement that took place in the last century, there
was a revolution more powerful and yet more simple, that changed the world as we
know it forever - and that was the dawn of the information age. First the television
brought people from opposite sides of the globe into contact; then the Internet was the
most powerful tool from uniting people in the last century, and the first to create a
truly global community.
Now we can communicate with people from different ‘tribes’ in an instant;
debate with them; learn from them; understand them; just chat with them if that’s all
we want. But for all the change, have we made the world any better? There’s still a
huge gap between the richest and the poorest nations; there’s still misunderstanding
and conflict. We may be closer; we may live in a global village; maybe we’re getting
there, but there’s still a lot more to do.
1. The number of people living in the world
A. Has almost trebled since a decade ago.
B. Has more than trebled in just under 100 years.
C. Has risen to more than 6 million.
D. Rose tremendously during the 20th century.
2. What does the writer mean by saying communities used to live in worlds inside
of a bigger world?
A. In the past people knew little about faraway places.
B. In the past people only cared about themselves.
C. Most people didn’t travel very much in the past.
D. Most people cared about what was happening in the bigger world.
3. What changed after the experience of two world wars?
A. Politicians felt determined to prevent another world war.
B. Information technology brought the world closer together.
C. Nobody was interested in conflict anymore.
D. Nations wanted to become more independent.
4. What is suggested about the United Nations?
A. It keeps the world peaceful and conflict-free.
B. It will become a global government.
C. It doesn’t have a lot of meaningful influence.
D. It is controlled by a few big powers.
5. What does the phrase ‘took shape’ mean in the context of paragraph 4, line
42?
A. Succeeded.
B. Developed.
C. Concluded.
D. Changed.
6. The E.U is now comprised of
A. 6 member states.
B. 15 member states.
C. 27 member states.
D. 15 member and 27 associate states.
7. The arrival of new technology and the information age
A. Seemed unimportant compared to the political changes taking place.
B. Had a strong impact on the opposite side of the globe.
C. Brought people together in a way that politicians could not.
D. Saw people use the Internet a lot in their living rooms.
8. What does the writer’s tone in the final paragraph suggest?
A. He is satisfied with what has been achieved.
B. He is critical and pessimistic about the future.
C. He is confused and upset.
D. He is realistic about the situation.

IX. You are going to read a newspaper article about different approaches to
education. For questions 1-8, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think
fits best according to the text.
(Source: Successful FCE - 10 Practice Tests)
Getting the best out of our children
There is a strange paradox to the success of the Asian education model. On the
one hand, class sizes are huge by Western standards with between 30 and 40 students
per class, in countries like Japan and Korea. On the other hand, school children in
developed Asian economies rank among the highest in the world for academic
achievement in the areas of science and mathematics, especially on standardised tests.
Meanwhile, British secondary school students fail to shine in conditions most
educational researchers would say are far more likely to help them succeed.
Why do Asian students seem to perform so well then? Is it their legnedary
discipline? Certainly, classroom management seems to be easier in places like Korea,
and perhaps lessons are more effective as a direct consequence. After all, we are only
too aware of the decline in discipline standards in our own school: belligerent and
disrespectful students appear to be the norm these days. Teachers in Britain seem
powerless to control what happens anymore. Surely this situation cannot create a very
effective learning environment, so perhaps the number of students is far less relevant
than is the manner in which they conduct themselves.
But there are other factors to consider, too. Korean students spend a lot more
time with their teachers. It seems logical to suggest, therefore, that they might form
stronger bonds and greater trust, and that Korean teachers, in understanding their
pupils better, might be able to offer them a more effective learning programme. Of
course, trust and understanding leads to greater respect as well, so Korean students are
probably less likely to ignore their teachers’ advice.
There is the home environment. The traditional family unit still remains
relatively intact in Korea. Few children come from broken homes, so there is a sense
of security, safety and trust both at home and at school. In Britain meanwhile, one in
every two marriages fails and divorce rates are sky high. Perhaps children struggle to
cope with unstable family conditions and their only way to express their frustration is
by misbehaving at school. Maybe all this delinquent behavior we re complaining
about is just a cry for help and a plea for attention.
But while the Japanese, Korean and Asian models generally do seem to
produce excellent results, the statistics don’t tell the whole truth. You see, behind
those great maths and science scores, there is a quite remarkable work ethic. Asian
students tend to put their education before literally everything else. They do very few
extracurricular activities and devote far more time to their studies than their British
peers. And this begs the question; is all that extra effort justified for a few extra
percentage points in some meaningless international student performance survey? So
Asian students are on average 305% better at maths than Britons - big deal! What is
their quality of like like? Remember; school days are supposed to be the best, are they
not?
There has been a lot of attention and praise given to these Asian models
and their “impressive” statistics of late. And without question, some of this praise is
justified, but it seems to be a case of two extremes in operation here. At one end, there
is the discipline and unbelievably hard work ethic of the Asian students – success in
education before all else. At the other end, British students at times appear careless
and extremely undisciplined by comparison, but at least they do have the free time to
enjoy their youth and explore their interests. Is either system better outright? Or is it
perhaps about time we stopped comparing and started trying to combine the best bits
of both, so that we can finally offer our students a balanced, worthwhile education?
We are not just dealing with statistics; never forget that every statistic is a little human
being somewhere who desperately needs our help and guidance - who deserves it.
1. What does the writer mean when he says there is a ‘paradox’ in the Asian
education model?
A. There are too many students in each class.
B. You would expect larger classes to get poorer results but they do not.
C. Class sizes are much smaller in other parts of the world.
D. Asian students outperform their peers in other countries.
2. British secondary school students
A. Have larger class sizes.
B. Fail at school more they succeed.
C. Do better on standardised tests.
D. Enjoy better classroom conditions.
3. What does the writer suggest might make lessons in Korean schools more
successful than in Britain?
A. Better teachers.
B. Better school Boards of Management.
C. More effective lesson planning.
D. Better discipline.
4. What does the writer mean when he says; 'perhaps the number of students is
far less relevant than is the manner in which they conduct themselves’?
A. Class size does not affect student performance.
B. Class size is important so maintaining control.
C. The way students behave might be more important than class size.
D. The way teachers conduct classes affects student performance.
5. The traditional family unit
A. Is more common in Korea than in Britain.
B. Is disappearing in Korea due to high divorce rates.
C. Is bad for children that come from broken homes.
D. Is unstable in Korea due to conditions in the home.
6. According to the writer, Asian students
A. Focus too much on recreational activities.
B. Don't have as good a work ethic as British ones.
C. Don't allow themselves much time to relax and have fun.
D. Make a big deal of their good results.
7. What are the two extremes' mentioned in the last paragraph?
A. Neglecting school and neglecting free time.
B. Good discipline and a hard work ethic.
C. Success and failure.
D. Carelessness and indiscipline
8. Based on what you have read, what do you think is the writer's opinion of the
two educational systems discussed?
A. The Asian system is clearly better.
B. The British system is too strict.
C. Neither system is perfect.
D. Both systems are quite satisfactory for different reasons.

X. You are going to read a magazine article about people who become addicted
to using modern technology. For questions 1-6, choose the answer (A, B, C or
D) which you think fits best according to the text.
(Source: Compact First Workbook)
Tech addict: When you just can’t switch off
Scientists are only just beginning to study the effects of technology on our
health. But when does a passion for electronic devices turn into an addiction with
symptoms that include headaches and back pain? Rob sharp reports on a very
modern disease.
Have you ever interrupted an important occasion to send a text? Does the
thought of being cut off from all technology make you want to panic? Is your ideal
six-month break an extended period playing a video game in a windowless bedroom?
If so, then close down your broadband, leave your SIM at home and visit Capio
Nightingale Hospital in London, the captial’s first technology addiction center.
"If teenagers spend a lot of time on their own they run the risk of being
developmentally out of step with others of their age group," says Capio Nightingale's
consultant psychiatrist Dr Richard Graham. "It's a very young field of research, but
there is some evidence to suggest that teenagers who spend too much time on
Facebook miss out on key developmental steps and could feel immature. Extreme
cases can put people's education and employment at risk. Then there are the physical
aspects. You can have a poor diet, lose weight, not take care of yourself properly. If
teenagers are staying up all night they might turn to stimulants, like caffeine to stay
awake, and there is evidence that can increase anxiety in the long-term."
 Teenagers, necessarily, are a high-risk group, as are those who've had a
separation or been made redundant. But no one is free from its impact. Technology
experts talk the the story of the young Texan boy who developed repetitive strain
disorder from texting, or the couple who were building a "virtual baby" on the
Internet but forgot to look after their real-life offspring. Scientists believe that
handling phone calls, emails and other incoming messages all at the same time can
change how you think or behave. It reduces our ability to focus. Having Twitter, RSS,
Facebook, online chat and email all open makes us rely on our automatic reactions, in
the same way we respond to opportunities or threats in the wider world. This
stimulation brings about excitement, which can be addictive. It can also have deadly
consequences – which is why talking on your mobile phone while driving was banned
long ago in many countries.
"At the moment researches are trying to study the effects of high use of
technology such as video games during the early parts of people's lives," continues
Graham. "There are some key points when permanent connections are made inside the
brain. For example, if you have a minor eyesight problem and it is not dealt with in
the first five years of your life, part of the area of your brain switches off. It's a 'use it
or lose it' principle and it might be relevant to teenage technology addiction."
So how can you tell if you've got an addiction? Capio Nightingale has an
online quiz to test any technology dependence. Questions include: "Do you ignore and
avoid other work or activities to spend more time on-screen?". But isn’t that what
modern workers have to do?
It might not be much more than an excuse for wealthy parents to treat their
children's otherwise normal habits, but let this be a warning to you. Advances in
gaming are bringing social media into the physical word much more, and it's only set
to become a greater part of our day-to-day existence. Texting at the breakfast table is
just the beginning.
1. What does Dr Graham say about technology addiction in the second
paragraph?
A. There is still no proof that it can be harmful.
B. Those who suffer from it know it is a problem.
C. It has not actually been studied for very long.
D. Nearly all teenagers suffer from it to some extent.
2. According to Dr Graham, people who stay online for too long
A. Quickly find that they become extremely stressed.
B. Are often unable to go to sleep when they want to.
C. Can become fat owing to lack of physical exercise.
D. May eventually be in danger of losing their jobs.
3. The writer gives the example of the 'virtual baby' in the third paragraph to
show
A. How different kinds of people can become addicted to technology.
B. What can happen to people when they have recently lost their jobs.
C. How too much use of modern technology can make couples split up
D. That ever young children are at risk of becoming technology
addicts.
4. What is the effect of receiving information from several electronic sources
simultaneously?
A. You are likely to have a serious accident.
B. You find it hard to concentrate on one particular thing.
C. You might have a feeling of being threatened.
D. You will probably make better decisions.
5. According to Dr Graham, young people who spend a lot of time using
electronic devices may find that
A. They eventually lose the ability to play computer games well.
B. When they are adults they use technology even more often.
C. In certain respects their brains do not develop normally.
D. They become unable to see properly when they are older.
6. The writer ends the article by saying that in the future,
A. The effects of technology will be felt in more and more aspects of our daily lives.
B. Communicating by sending text messages will become increasingly popular.
C. most young people will eventually need treatment for technology addiction.
D. Only people from rich families will be able to afford the best computer games.

XI. Read the following passage below and complete the tasks that follow.
(Source: IELTS Trainer 2)
Wooden Buildings
Using wood as a construction material for large buildings is an ancient
practice. The 67-metre-high Sakyamuni Pagoda in China was constructed in 1056,
while Japan’s Höryü-ji Temple is even older, dating from the 7th or 8th century. That
these magnificent structures have survived for over a thousand years is evidence of
wood’s strength and durability as a building material. Still today, 80% of houses in
the USA are built of wood. In Australia the proportion is slightly smaller since stone
is also a popular choice, particularly in the southern states, while in New Zealand the
figure is more like 85%. Certainly, there are problems associated with wooden
constructions: wood can rot when exposed to water and is said to be a fire risk.
However, with modern technology these issues can be eliminated, which has led to a
dramatic renewal of interest in wood as a building material in recent years.
Today, architects and engineers recognize the potential of wood not only for
private homes but also for larger multi-storey offices and apartment blocks. In 2015, a
52.8-meter wooden tower block was constructed in Norway, then a world record for
an apartment block, but this was soon surpassed by a 53-meter student dormitory at
the University of British Columbia in Canada. Then came the 84-meter HoHo
building in Vienna, home to a hotel, offices and apartments. Although the HoHo
building has a concrete core, most of the structure, as well as the floors, are built of
wood. Many of these advances have been made possible by research at the Technical
Institute in Graz, Austria, where new engineering systems based on wood
construction have been pioneered.
A good example of these techniques is found at the Wood Innovation and
Design Centre at the University of Northern British Columbia, Canada. The first stage
in the construction of the building saw large planks of Douglas fir being fastened to
one another with glue, which these days can be stronger than nails or screws. This
produced large heavy sheets of wooden material; these became the basic structural
components for the building. These sheets then had to be precision-cut to create the
thousands of columns and beams necessary-the team employed lasers for this purpose.
Once the cutting work was complete, all the wooden components were taken to the
site for assembly. The building was constructed one storey at a time, layer upon layer,
not unlike the system used to make a large cake. Once the eighth and final storey was
completed, the building reached a height of 30 meters and became a notable landmark
in its neighbourhood. And, of course, one of the great advantages of wood comes at
the end of a building’s life, in around 100 years’ time. When the Wood Innovation
and Design Centre eventually has to be demolished, it will be possible for its principal
building material to be recycled, which is not usually practical with steel or concrete.
Other significant wooden buildings are to be found in locations around the
world. Perhaps not surprisingly, given that the Höryü-ji Temple may be the oldest
large wooden building in the world, Japanese engineers are at the forefront of this
process. One thing that has been learned from maintaining the Höryü-ji Temple over
many centuries is that it is often simpler to make major repairs to wooden structures
than to those made of concrete and steel. Until quite recently, regulations in Japan
have made the construction of very large wooden structures difficult. However, in
recognition of new technologies, these are being relaxed by the government, with the
result that ever more ambitious projects are being announced. Perhaps the most
radical example is the proposed Sumitomo Tower, a skyscraper of 70 storeys to be
built largely of wood in central Tokyo; its completion date is 2041.
Because wood is more flexible than steel, it has great potential in countries
prone to earthquakes, such as Japan and New Zealand. Engineers in New Zealand
believe that wood construction can significantly improve building safety in the event
of a natural disaster, as has been demonstrated at the new Wynn Williams House. The
wood has been left exposed inside the house to showcase how this type of
construction provides attractive interiors as well. Another advantage of wood is that it
is so light, particularly when compared to steel and concrete. In Australia, the benefits
of lightweight have been taken advantage of in the city of Melbourne, where a large
wooden library has been constructed directly beside the water, on land so soft that a
heavier building would have been impossible. Furthermore, wood is advantageous
even in extreme climates. In Finland, where winter temperatures can fall to -30°C,
wood provides all the load-bearing structures for the Puukuokka Block but also
guarantees excellent heat insulation as well.
As wood construction technologies continue to develop, it seems probable that
architects and engineers will dream up ever more uses for this practical, flexible, and
beautiful building material.
Questions 1-4
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?
In boxes 1-4 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1. More house are built of wood in Australia than in the USA.
2. There are solutions to the problems of building with wood.
3. Several different species of tree were used to construct the HoHo building.
4. Research at the Technical Institute in Graz improved wooden building
technology.
Questions 5-8
Complete the flow-chart below.
Write ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 5-8 on your answers sheet.
Building the Wood Innovation and Design Center
Wooden planks were joined together using (5)________ .

(6)________ were then used to cut this material accurately.

The wood was taken to the site.

The building was constructed in the same way a (7)________ is put together.

In about 100 year’s time, the wood can be (8)________.

XII. Read the following passage and do the tasks that follow.
Earth’s lakes are under threat
Lake Poopo used to be Bolivia’s second largest lake. Situated in the Altiplano
Mountains at an altitude of around 3,700m, the lake in winter would cover an area of
some 2,700 square kilometres as it was fed by swollen rivers. With very little rainfall
during summer, this reduced to around 1,000, still a remarkable size. This was the
pattern in previous centuries, but in December 2015, satellites confirmed the reports
of local people that the lake had gone. While scientists had suspected that Poopo
would eventually run dry, they didn’t expect that this would occur for at least another
thousand years. The local mining industry had already contributed to the pollution of
the lake, but scientists believe global warming, drought and irrigation projects are all
responsible for its disappearance. Today the consequences of Lake Poopo’s
disappearance are dramatic; many people who lived in the villages around it have left,
since there are no more fish to be caught. Environmentalists also point to the fact that
the lake had been the stopover point for thousands of birds as they migrated to other
regions. Their numbers will certainly fall now the lake has gone.
Lake Poopo is not the only vast are of water to have disappeared. The Aral Sea
in Central Asia was once the world’s fourth largest lake but then it began to shrink in
the 1960s. As a shallow lake, it depended on rivers to keep its level up. But then water
from these rivers was diverted for irrigation purposes. Rice is a crop that needs huge
quantities of water to survive in desert areas. Fields planted with cotton also require a
regular supply. Now thee water level is so low that fishing has stopped altogether.
And it is not just the immediate are that is affected. Because the floor of the lake is
now exposed, the salt that lies there is often carried by the wind across a radius of 300
kilometres. This impacts on agriculture as it damages growing plants and is absorbed
by the soil.
For some lakes, the biggest threat is form climate change. On average, the
surface water of the world’s lakes has gone up in temperature by 0.34° C every ten
years since 1985. Lake Tanganyika in East Africa is a lake where this trend has been
observed, although it is by no means the most extreme example. This would be Lake
Fracksjon in Sweden, where an increase of 1.35° C per decade has been observed – a
figure which is estimated to rise. For Lake Tanganyika, however, the consequences
have been severe. Warming has disrupted its ecosystem, and fish numbers have
dropped sharply. In turn, this decline in fish stocks has impacted on families living in
villages and towns around the lake, since they have no other source of protein.
Furthermore, around 100,000 people depend on the fisheries established around the
Lake Tanganyika. These companies provide them with regular employment, without
which communities will not survive.
 In Iran, Lake Urmia’s waters have also been affected by unusually hot
summers, but dams and irrigation projects have also played a part. In the past, people
admired its beautiful green-blue colour. However, the water now has a red tint. The
reason for this is that bacteria quickly multiply in the warm waters of a shallow lake.
Now local communities are understandably concerned about the future. One of their
concerns is that Lake Urmia is no longer seen as a place where people can bathe to
improve their health. As a result, in the last decade, there has been a downturn in
tourism in the area, an industry many people depended on.
In some cases, it can be a challenge for scientist to predict outcomes for a lake
or to recognise the factors that threaten it. Take, for example, Lake Waiau in Hawaii,
a lake that was used in healing rituals by native Hawaiians. It is a fairly small lake,
approximately 100m across, with some variation as the water level rises and falls.
However, in early 2010, the lake began to decrease in size. By September 2013, it
could only be described as a pond. The cause of the lake’s decline has not yet been
established, but drought is among the suspects. Then there is Scott Lake in central
Florida. In June 2006 a massive sinkhole opened up beneath the lake – acting like a
plug hole in a bath. It only took two weeks for the water to drain away. Local
residents called meetings to decide what action to take, but in the end, nature took
care of the problem. Clay, sand and other fine material plugged the hole and the lake
started to fill with water again. Nevertheless, as geologists point out, sinkholes can
occur with some frequency in Florida so there is a chance that Scott Lake will drain
away again.
Questions 1-8
Complete the notes below.
Choose ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.
Disappearing and Damaged Lakes
 Lake Poopo
It covered about (1)________ square kilometres in the dry season.
It can no longer support people, fish or visiting (2)________.
 The Aral Sea
It has shrunk before water is used for crops such as (3)________ and rice.
(4)________ from the bottom of the lake affects an area of 300 kilometres.
 Lake Tanganyika
Families need to eat fish for its (5)________.
Fisheries give (6)________ to over 100,000 people.
 Lake Urmia
The colour has changed because (7)________ are increasing.
(8)________ has declined in the last ten years.
Questions 9-13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 9 – 13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
9. Scientists are surprised that Lake Poopo has disappeared so quickly.
10. Steps are being take to reduce the impact of mining on Lake Poopo.
11. Lake Fracksjon is the fastest warming lake in the world.
12. Researchers are certain about the reason for Lake Waiau’s disappearance.
13. Lake Scott’s rising water level has occurred as a result of rainfall.
XIII. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
(Source: Cambridge IELTS 14)
THE IMPORTANCE OF CHILDREN’S PLAY
Brick by brick, six-year-old Alice is building a magical kingdom. Imagining
fairy-tale turrets and fire-breathing dragons, wicked witches and gallant heroes, she’s
creating an enchanting world. Although she isn’t aware of it, this fantasy is helping
her take her first steps towards her capacity for creativity and so it will have important
repercussions in her adult life.
Minutes later, Alice has abandoned the kingdom in favour of playing schools
with her younger brother. When she bosses him around as his ‘teacher’, she’s
practising how to regulate her emotions through pretence. Later on, when they tire of
this and settle down with a board game, she’s learning about the need to follow rules
and take turns with a partner.
‘Play in all its rich variety is one of the highest achievements of the human
species,’ says Dr David Whitebread from the Faculty of Education at the University
of Cambridge, UK. ‘It underpins how we develop as intellectual, problem-solving
adults and is crucial to our success as a highly adaptable species.’
Recognising the importance of play is not new: over two millennia ago, the
Greek philosopher Plato extolled its virtues as a means of developing skills for adult
life, and ideas about play-based learning have been developing since the 19th century.
But we live in changing times, and Whitebread is mindful of a worldwide decline in
play, pointing out that over half the people in the world now live in cities. ‘The
opportunities for free play, which I experienced almost every day of my childhood,
are becoming increasingly scarce,’ he says. Outdoor play is curtailed by perceptions
of risk to do with traffic, as well as parents’ increased wish to protect their children
from being the victims of crime, and by the emphasis on ‘earlier is better’ which is
leading to greater competition in academic learning and schools.
International bodies like the United Nations and the European Union have
begun to develop policies concerned with children’s right to play, and to consider
implications for leisure facilities and educational programmes. But what they often
lack is the evidence to base policies on.
‘The type of play we are interested in is child-initiated, spontaneous and
unpredictable - but, as soon as you ask a five-year-old “to play”, then you as the
researcher have intervened,’ explains Dr Sara Baker. ‘And we want to know what the
long-term impact of play is. It’s a real challenge.’
Dr Jenny Gibson agrees, pointing out that although some of the steps in the
puzzle of how and why play is important have been looked at, there is very little data
on the impact it has on the child’s later life.
Now, thanks to the university’s new Centre for Research on Play in Education,
Development and Learning (PEDAL), Whitebread, Baker, Gibson and a team of
researchers hope to provide evidence on the role played by play in how a child
develops.
‘A strong possibility is that play supports the early development of children’s
self-control,’ explains Baker. ‘This is our ability to develop awareness of our own
thinking processes - it influences how effectively we go about undertaking
challenging activities.’
In a study carried out by Baker with toddlers and young pre-schoolers, she
found that children with greater self-control solved problems more quickly when
exploring an unfamiliar set-up requiring scientific reasoning. ‘This sort of evidence
makes us think that giving children the chance to play will make them more
successful problem-solvers in the long run.’
If playful experiences do facilitate this aspect of development, say the
researchers, it could be extremely significant for educational practices, because the
ability to self-regulate has been shown to be a key predictor of academic performance.
Gibson adds: ‘Playful behaviour is also an important indicator of healthy
social and emotional development. In my previous research, I investigated how
observing children at play can give us important clues about their well-being and can
even be useful in the diagnosis of neurodevelopmental disorders like autism.’
Whitebread’s recent research has involved developing a play-based approach
to supporting children’s writing. ‘Many primary school children find writing difficult,
but we showed in a previous study that a playful stimulus was far more effective than
an instructional one.’ Children wrote longer and better-structured stories when they
first played with dolls representing characters in the story. In the latest study, children
first created their story with Lego , with similar results. ‘Many teachers commented
that they had always previously had children saying they didn’t know what to write
about. With the Lego building, however, not a single child said this through the whole
year of the project.’
Whitebread, who directs PEDAL, trained as a primary school teacher in the
early 1970s, when, as he describes, ‘the teaching of young children was largely a
quiet backwater, untroubled by any serious intellectual debate or controversy.’ Now,
the landscape is very different, with hotly debated topics such as school starting age.
‘Somehow the importance of play has been lost in recent decades. It’s regarded as
something trivial, or even as something negative that contrasts with “work”. Let’s not
lose sight of its benefits, and the fundamental contributions it makes to human
achievements in the arts, sciences and technology. Let’s make sure children have a
rich diet of play experiences.’
Questions 1-8
Complete the notes below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 1-8 on your answer sheet.
Children’s play
Uses of children’s play
 Building a ‘magical kingdom’ may help develop (1)________.
 Board games involve (2)________ and turn-taking.
Recent changes affecting children’s play
 Populations of (3)________ have grown.
 opportunities for free play are limited due to
- Fear of (4)________.
- Fear of (5)________.
- Increased (6)________ in schools.
International policies on children’s play
 It is difficult to find (7)________ to support new policies
 Research needs to study the impact of play on the rest of the child’s (8)________.
Questions 9-13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 9-13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
9. Children with good self-control are known to be likely to do well at school later on.
10. The way a child plays may provide information about possible medical problems.
11. Playing with dolls was found to benefit girls’ writing more than boys’ writing.
12. Children had problems thinking up ideas when they first created the story with
Lego.
13. People nowadays regard children’s play as less significant than they did in the
past.

XIV. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
(Source: Cambridge IELTS 18)
Urban farming
In Paris, urban farmers are trying a soil-free approach to agriculture that
uses less space and fewer resources. Could it help cities face the threats to our food
supplies?
On top of a striking new exhibition hall in southern Paris, the world’s largest
urban rooftop farm has started to bear fruit. Strawberries that are small, intensely
flavoured and resplendently red sprout abundantly from large plastic tubes. Peer
inside and you see the tubes are completely hollow, the roots of dozens of strawberry
plants dangling down inside them. From identical vertical tubes nearby burst row
upon row of lettuces; near those are aromatic herbs, such as basil, sage and
peppermint. Opposite, in narrow, horizontal trays packed not with soil but with
coconut fibre, grow cherry tomatoes, shiny aubergines and brightly coloured chards.
Pascal Hardy, an engineer and sustainable development consultant, began
experimenting with vertical farming and aeroponic growing towers — as the soil-free
plastic tubes are known — on his Paris apartment block roof five years ago. The
urban rooftop space above the exhibition hall is somewhat bigger: 14,000 square
metres and almost exactly the size of a couple of football pitches. Already, the team
of young urban farmers who tend it have picked, in one day, 3,000 lettuces and 150
punnets of strawberries. When the remaining two thirds of the vast open area are in
production, 20 staff will harvest up to 1,000 kg of perhaps 35 different varieties of
fruit and vegetables, every day. ‘We’re not ever, obviously, going to feed the whole
city this way, cautions Hardy. ‘In the urban environment you’re working with very
significant practical constraints, clearly, on what you can do and where. But if enough
unused space can be developed like this, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t
eventually target maybe between 5% and 10% of consumption.’
Perhaps most significantly, however, this is a real-life showcase for the work
of Hardy’s flourishing urban agriculture consultancy, Agripolis, which is currently
fielding enquiries from around the world to design, build and equip a new breed of
soil-free inner-city farm. ‘The method’s advantages are many, he says. ‘First, I don’t
much like the fact that most of the fruit and vegetables we eat have been treated with
something like 17 different pesticides, or that the intensive farming techniques that
produced them are such huge generators of greenhouse gases. I don’t much like the
fact, either, that they’ve travelled an average of 2,000 refrigerated kilometres to my
plate, that their quality is so poor, because the varieties are selected for their capacity
to withstand such substantial journeys, or that 80% of the price I pay goes to
wholesalers and transport companies, not the producers.’
Produce grown using this soil-free method, on the other hand — which relies
solely on a small quantity of water, enriched with organic nutrients, pumped around a
closed circuit of pipes, towers and trays — is ‘produced up here, and sold locally, just
down there. It barely travels at all, Hardy says. ‘You can select crop varieties for their
flavour, not their resistance to the transport and storage chain, and you can pick thern
when they’re really at their best, and not before.’ No soil is exhausted, and the water
that gently showers the plants’ roots every 12 minutes is recycled, so the method uses
90% less water than a classic intensive farm for the same yield.
Urban farming is not, of course, a new phenomenon. Inner-city agriculture is
booming from Shanghai to Detroit and Tokyo to Bangkok. Strawberries are being
grown in disused shipping containers, mushrooms in underground
carparks. Aeroponic farming, he says, is ‘virtuous’. The equipment weighs little, can
be installed on almost any flat surface and is cheap to buy: roughly £100 to £150 per
square metre. It is cheap to run, too, consuming a tiny fraction of the electricity used
by some techniques.
Produce grown this way typically sells at prices that, while generally higher
than those of classic intensive agriculture, are lower than soil-based organic
growers. There are limits to what farmers can grow this way, of course, and much of
the produce is suited to the summer months. ‘Root vegetables we cannot do, at least
not yet,’ he says. ‘Radishes are OK, but carrots, potatoes, that kind of thing — the
roots are simply too long. Fruit trees are obviously not an option. And beans tend to
take up a lot of space for not much return.’ Nevertheless, urban farming of the kind
being practised in Paris is one part of a bigger and fast-changing picture that is
bringing food production closer to our lives.
Questions 1–4
Complete the table below
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer. Write your answers
in boxes 4- 7 on your answer sheet.
Intensive farming versus aeroponic urban farming
Growth Selection Sale
• Quality not good
• Wide range • Varieties of fruits and • (3)________ receive
Intensive
of (1)________ used vegetables chosen that very little of overall
farming
• Techniques pollute air can survive income
long (2)________.
• No soil used
• Produce chosen
Aeroponic • Nutrients added to
because of
Urban farming water, which is
its (4)________
recycled
Questions 5–10
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 8–13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
5. Urban farming can take place above or below
6. Some of the equipment used in aeroponic farming can be made by hand.
7. Urban farming relies more on electricity than some other types of
8. Fruit and vegetables grown on an aeroponic urban farm are cheaper than
traditionally grown organic
9. Most produce can be grown on an aeroponic urban farm at any time of the
10. Beans take longer to grow on an urban farm than other
XV. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
(Source: ieltsonlinetest.com)
Learning to walk
These days the feet of a typical city dweller rarely encounter terrain any more
uneven than a crack in the pavement. While that may not seem like a problem, it turns
out that by flattening our urban environment we have put ourselves at risk of a
surprising number of chronic illnesses and disabilities. Fortunately, the commercial
market has come to the rescue with a choice of products. Research into the idea that
flat floors could be detrimental to our health was pioneered back in the late 1960s in
Long Beach, California. Podiatrist Charles Brantingham and physiologist Bruce
Beekman were concerned with the growing epidemic of high blood pressure, varicose
veins and deep-vein thromboses and reckoned they might be linked to the uniformity
of the surfaces that we tend to stand and walk on.
The trouble, they believed, was that walking continuously on flat floors,
sidewalks and streets concentrates forces on just a few areas of the foot. As a result,
these surfaces are likely to be far more conducive to chronic stress syndromes than
natural surfaces, where the foot meets the ground in a wide variety of orientations.
They understood that the anatomy of the foot parallels that of the human hand - each
having 26 bones, 33 joints and more than 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments - and
that modern lifestyles waste all this potential flexibility.
Brantingham and Beekman became convinced that the damage could be
rectified by making people wobble. To test their ideas, they got 65 factory workers to
try standing on a variable terrain floor - spongy mats with varying degrees of
resistance across the surface. This modest irregularity allowed the soles of the
volunteers' feet to deviate slightly from the horizontal each time they shifted position.
As the researchers hoped, this simple intervention made a huge difference, within a
few weeks. Even if people were wobbling slightly, it activated a host of muscles in
their legs, which in turn helped pump blood back to their hearts. The muscle action
prevented the pooling of blood in their feet and legs, reducing the stress on the heart
and circulation. Yet decades later, the flooring of the world's largest workplaces
remains relentlessly smooth. Earlier this year, however, the idea was revived when
other researchers in the US announced findings from a similar experiment with people
over 60. John Fisher and colleagues at the Oregon Research Institute in Eugene
designed a mat intended to replicate the effect of walking on cobblestones*.
In tests funded by the National Institute of Aging, they got some 50 adults to
walk on the toots in their bare feet for less than an hour, three times a week. After 16
weeks, these people showed marked improvements in mobility, and even a significant
reduction in blood pressure. People in a control group who walked on ordinary floors
also improved but not as dramatically. The mats are now available for purchase and
production is being scaled up. Even so, demand could exceed supply if this foot
stimulating activity really is a 'useful nonpharmacological approach for preventing or
controlling hypertension of older adults, as the researchers believe. They are not alone
in recognising the benefits of cobblestones. Reflexologists have long advocated
walking on textured surfaces to stimulate so-called 'acupoints' on the soles of the feet.
They believe that pressure applied to particular spots on the foot connects directly to
particular organs of the body and somehow enhances their function. In China, spas,
apartment blocks and even factories promote their cobblestone paths as healthful
amenities. Fisher admits he got the concept from regular visits to the country. Here,
city dwellers take daily walks along cobbled paths for five or ten minutes, perhaps
several times a day, to improve their health. The idea is now taking off in Europe too.
 People in Germany, Austria and Switzerland can now visit 'barefoot parks' and
walk along 'paths of the senses - with mud, logs, stone and moss underfoot. And it is
not difficult to construct your own path with simple everyday objects such as stones
or bamboo poles. But if none of these solutions appeal, there is another option. A new
shoe on the market claims to transform flat, hard, artificial surfaces into something
like uneven ground. 'These shoes have an unbelievable effect,' says Benno Nigg, an
exercise scientist at Calgary University in Canada.
Known as the Masai Barefoot Technology, the shoes have rounded soles that
cause you to rock slightly when you stand still, exercising the small muscles around
the ankle that are responsible for stability. Forces in the joint are reduced, putting less
strain on the system, Nigg claims.
Some of these options may not appeal to all consumers and there is a far
simpler alternative.
If the urban environment is detrimental to our health, then it is obvious where
we should turn. A weekend or even a few hours spent in the countryside could help
alleviate a sufferer's aches and pains, and would require only the spending of time.
However, for many modern citizens, the countryside is not as accessible as it once
was and is in fact a dwindling resource. Our concrete cities are growing at a terrifying
rate - perhaps at the same rate as our health problems.
Questions 1–5
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1. Brantingham and Beekman were the first researchers to investigate the relationship
between health problems and flat floors.
2. The subjects in Fisher's control group experienced a decline in their physical
condition.
3. The manufacturers are increasing the number of cobblestone mats they are making.
4. Fisher based his ideas on what he saw during an overseas trip.
5. The Masai Barefoot Technology shoes are made to fit people of all ages.
Questions 6-11
Complete the summary below
Choose one word only from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 6-11 on your answer sheet.
In their research, Brantingham and Beekman looked at the complex physical (
6)_______ of the foot and noted that the surfaces of modem environments restrict
its movement. They invented a mat which they tried out on factory workers.
Whenever the workers walked on it, the different levels of (7)_______ in the mat
would encourage greater muscle action. In turn, this lessened the effect of (
8)_______ on the cardiovascular system.
Similar research was undertaken by John Fisher and colleagues in Oregon. As
a result of their findings, they decided to market cobblestone mats to the elderly as a
means of dealing with (9)_______ . Reflexologists claim that by manipulating
specific parts of the feet, the performance of certain (10)_______ will also
improve. Finally, Benno Nigg at Calgary University believes that specially shaped (
11)_______ on shoes should give health benefits.
*ANSWERS:
I. The article below is about the American-Chinese chef Ken Hom. For questions
1–8 think of the word which best fits each gap. Use only one word in each gap.
1. As
2. So
3. Time
4. Up
5. Made
6. Order
7. Has
8. Like

II. For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits
each gap. Use only one word in each gap.
1. It/this
2. To
3. Be
4. A
5. Whose
6. No
7. Where/when
8. Which

III. For questions 1-8, read the text below and think of the word which best fits
each gap. Use only one word in each gap.
1. What
2. Since
3. As
4. Would
5. So
6. Like
7. On
8. Little

IV. For questions 1-8. read the article below and decide which answer (A, B, C or
D) best fits each gap.
1. C
2. B
3. D
4. C
5. A
6. B
7. D
8. A

V. Read the following article about the environmental group Greenpeace and
decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap.
1. B
2. A
3. B
4. D
5. B
6. C
7. B
8. A

VI. For questions 1-8. read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C or
D) best fits each gap.
1. D
2. B
3. C
4. C
5. B
6. D
7. A
8. C

VII. You are going to read an extract from a magazine article about attitudes
towards reality TV. For questions 1-8, choose the answer (A, B, C or D which
you think fits best according to the text.
1. C
2. C
3. B
4. A
5. D
6. C
7. A
8. D

VIII. You are going to read a newspaper article about developments of global
importance in the last century. For questions 1-8, choose the answer (A, B, C or
D which you think fits best according to the text.
1. D
2. A
3. A
4. C
5. B
6. C
7. C
8. D

IX. You are going to read a newspaper article about different approaches to
education. For questions 1-8, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think
fits best according to the text.
1. B
2. C
3. D
4. C
5. A
6. C
7. A
8. C

X. You are going to read a magazine article about people who become addicted
to using modern technology. For questions 1-6, choose the answer (A, B, C or
D) which you think fits best according to the text.
1. C
2. D
3. A
4. B
5. C
6. A

XI. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
1. FALSE
2. TRUE
3. NOT GIVEN
4. TRUE
5. Glue
6. Lasers
7. Cake
8. Recycled

XII. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
1. 1000
2. Birds
3. Cotton
4. Salt
5. Protein
6. Employment
7. Bacteria
8. Tourism
9. TRUE
10. NOT GIVEN
11. TRUE
12. FALSE
13. NOT GIVEN

XIII. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
1. Creativity
2. Rules
3. Cities
4. Traffic
5. Crime
6. Competition
7. Evidence
8. Life
9. TRUE
10. TRUE
11. NOT GIVEN
12. FALSE
13. TRUE

XIV. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
1. Pesticides
2. Journeys
3. Producers
4. Flavor
5. TRUE
6. NOT GIVEN
7. FALSE
8. TRUE
9. FALSE
10. NOT GIVEN

XV. Read the following passage and complete the tasks that follow.
1. TRUE
2. FALSE
3. TRUE
4. TRUE
5. NOT GIVEN
6. Anatomy
7. Resistance
8. Stress
9. Hypertension
10. Organs
11. Soles