SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO KỲ THI CHỌN ĐỘI TUYỂN

HƯNG YÊN DỰ THI CHỌN HỌC SINH GIỎI CẤP QUỐC GIA
NĂM HỌC 2022 - 2023
MÔN: TIẾNG ANH
Thời gian: 180 phút (không kể thời gian giao đề)
ĐỀ THI CHÍNH THỨC
(Đề thi có 23 trang; Thí sinh làm bài ngay trên đề thi)
Ngày thi thứ nhất: 23/8/2022

Điểm bài thi Họ, tên giám khảo Số phách

Bằng số Bằng chữ Giám khảo số 1: (Do HĐ chấm thi ghi)

Giám khảo số 2:

 Thí sinh không được sử dụng tài liệu, kể cả từ điển.

 Giám thị không giải thích gì thêm.

SECTION 1: LISTENING (5 points)

There are 3 parts in this section. Each part will be played TWICE. Write your answers in
the corresponding numbered spaces provided below.

Part 1. You are going to listen to a conversation in which a man talking to a customer
who wants to hire a vehicle. For each question from 1 to 10, fill in each blank with NO
MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER.

Island Transport
Vehicles Costs Comments
Motor (1) $.............per day  fun to ride
Scooter  they provide helmets and (2)……………..
 don’t ride on (3)………………Road
Economy car $ 87.80 per day  four doors, five passengers
 can drive on all the roads and to
(4)……………for a swim
 no (5)……….…..in the Economy car

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E-bike (6) $...............per day  battery is not very (7)……………
 a quality bike with two good (8)…………..
 a map and (9)………….are provided
 no (10) ……………is needed

Your answers:
1. 2. 3. 4.
5. 6. 7. 8.
9. 10.

Part 2: For questions 11-15, listen to a radio interview with a travel writer called Marina
Vardy and choose the correct answer A, B, C or D which fits best according to what you
hear. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
11. What made Marina start traveling?
A. a sudden desire to overcome her fear of the sea
B. a difficult problem in the life she had at the time
C. an unexpected opportunity to escape a boring routine
D. a friend's wish for a traveling companion
12. What is Marina’s main reason for being happy about her decision to go on that first
journey?
A. It led to a successful career as an author.
B. It gave her a more positive outlook on life.
C. It offered her some exciting adventures.
D. It taught her to cope with difficulties.
13. What does Marina say is her greatest challenge?
A. feeling uncertain about the quality of her work
B. coping with some lack of support from her family
C. having to face danger for the sake of a story
D. finding things to write about that will interest her readers
14. Marina says that aspiring travel writers must ensure that they
A. work hard to make their writing style as good as they can.
B. try to make their readers experience strong emotions.
C. offer much more than an account of their own adventures.
D. keep their own grandmother in mind as they write.
15. What does Marina say she finds particularly rewarding about being a travel writer?

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 A. It has developed her powers of observation.
B. It offers her the chance to take revenge of unkind people.
C. It provides her with an adventurous lifestyle.
D. It gives her a satisfying psychological detachment.

Your answers:
11. 12. 13. 14. 15.

Part 3. Listen to a piece of news about a climatic event in Europe. For questions 16-25, fill
in each gap with NO MORE THAN FOUR WORDS from the recording. Write your
answers in the corresponding numbered spaces provided below.
16. In Europe, record-breaking heat waves have dried up rivers across the continent and sent
water reserves _______________________.
17. Scientists have warned these extreme conditions will likely to happen more often due to
_______________________.
18. Italy’s Po River would normally be _______________________ tourists but its drying
bed is now littered with empty boats.
19. Those living near Italy's longest river say the situation is _______________________.
20. Without this river to irrigate, farmers are warning of devastating consequences for the
region known as _______________________.
21. Spain is facing similarly dire conditions with _______________________ falling to their
lowest levels since 1995.
22. With scorching weather predicted to continue water supplies are set to only
_______________________.
23. In the UK, the river Thames has dried up for the first time since at least 1976
_______________________ and low rainfall.
24. In France, the sinking water levels in the Rhine are threatening not just fish but German
economy too as this river is _______________________.
25. The transportation of millions of tons of cargo is set to become impossible within days as
Europe’s drought _______________________.

Your answers:
16.

17.

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 18.

19.
20.

21.
22.
23.

24.
25.

SECTION 2: LEXICO-GRAMMAR (3.0 POINTS)

Part 1. For questions 26-45, choose the correct answer A, B, C or D to each of the
following questions and write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes
provided. (2.0 pt)
26. The boy who was caught _____ candy or little toys many times but was never punished
by his mother grew up to be a thief.
A. snitching B. burgling C. ransacking D. pilfering
27. Some students attempted to _____ the teacher while the others prepared the surprise
birthday party for her.
A. stall B. haul C. swathe D. wane
28. Getting into the third round of 2022 World Cup is a real _____ for the Vietnam national
team.
A. coup B. deed C. epic D. crusade
29. The luxurious office accentuated the manager's position _______. It enhanced his power
and his sense of his own worth. Also, it made other people feel small.
A. on the pecking pole B. in the nibbling line
C. at the nipping post D. in the pecking order
30. Of course we all love a better-quality fridge, but for a low-income family like us, it’s
better to cut your _____ according to your cloth.
A. cloak B. coat C. clothes D. gloves
31. The number of people traveling by air has been growing _______.
A. by leaps and bounds B. from time to time
C. slow but sure D. by hook and crook

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32. My boyfriend refused to climb up the treetop with me because he doesn’t have a _____
for heights.
A. heart B. head C. soul D. foot
33. I have received many warnings about my studies recently and was threatened to be
grounded by my parents, another low grade this time will be _____ to me.
A. the last straw B. the final nail in the coffin
C. the parting shot D the drop in the bucket
34. I thought willpower was enough to take me to the finish line, but when my muscles got
sore and my body was exhausted, I knew I had _____.
A. hit the deck B. hit the sack C. hit the wall D. hit the roof
35. He was brought up in an educated family but hanging out with the street children has
turned him into a(n) _____ young man with bad manners.
A. uncouth B. profane C. impious D. stoic
36. Demand for the product is expected to peak five years from now and then to ____.
A. taper off B. fall down C. set back D. drift away
37. During the evening football match the stadium was illuminated by ____.
A. spotlights B. flashlights C. highlights D. floodlights
38. The noise from the unruly fans celebrating their team’s victory didn’t _____ until early in
the morning.
A. shut off B. give away C. let up D. fall over
39. The modification has been the ____ on the cake for both of us, for a lot of hard work has
gone in to the design and development of the course.
A. chilling B. cooling C. freezing D. icing
40. She expects the political experience gained in this election will stand her in good ____ in
her future career, which, she suggests, could include another campaign.
A. footing B. grounding C. precedent D. stead
41. Don’t be taken in by his lying, ______ words
A. slack B. scrupulous C. treacherous D. feeble
42. Following years of intense training, the accomplished athlete ______ the medal
triumphantly.
A. took off B. went off C. ran off D. carried off
43. Getting up at 8 o’clock was early by her ______
A. reasons B. standards C. limits D. levels
44. There’s nothing to ______ as it’s a general knowledge quiz.
A. come round to B. face up to C. swot up on D. come up with

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45. I had an ambition of getting the First prize in the National Contest, but I knew it was just
_____ in the sky.
A. pig B. star C. buffalo D. pie

Your answers:
26. 27. 28. 29. 30.
31. 32. 33. 34. 35.
36. 37. 38. 39. 40.
41. 42. 43. 44. 45.

Part 2. For questions 46-55, write the correct form of each bracketed word in the
numbered space provided. (1.0 pt)
46. The police had been on ………in our neighborhood for a week to collect evidence before
they arrested the drug dealer. (STAKE)
47. Meeting the first girl he loved after 8 years, old feelings ………… in the heart of the
married man. (FACE)
48. I later put my shoes back on because shells and gravel made walking …….. on the beach
uncomfortable for me. (FOOT)
49. Although the technique seems simple compared to those of modern days, paper produced
by Cai Lun was considered………..at that time. (GROUND)
50. The German recycling system provides a _____ against which schemes in other nations
can be measured. (BENCH)
51. The second time the player was shown the yellow card for his _____ actions during the
game, he was dismissed from the field. (SPORT)
52. The prevalence of illegal drug _____ in the Philippines is lower than the global average,
partly thanks to strict drug policies in this country. (TRAFFIC)
53. I think hibiscus will do poorly as a _____, given the fact that it is native to tropical
regions and adores full sun. (PLANT)
54. Imported coffee is having a difficult time trying to find a _____ in the Vietnamese
market Vietnam. (FOOT)
55. I don’t have the _____ to stay on a diet so the only way for me to lose weight is
exercising. (POWER)

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Your answers:
46. 47. 48. 49.

50. 51. 52. 53.

54. 55.

SECTION 3: READING (6.0 POINTS)

Part 1. For questions 56-65, fill each of the following numbered blanks with ONE suitable
word. (1.0 pt)

Little babies are not so innocent after all, it would seem. Infants as young as six
months, new research claims, are capable of lying to their doting parents, which they do
(56)________ crying when they are not truly (57)_________ pain or distress. They do it
simply to draw attention to themselves, but once they start receiving the loving hugs and
cuddles they so badly crave, the babies then do (58)________ best to prolong this reward by
offering fake smiles.
This has led to suggestions that human beings are 'born to lie' and that this is a unique
quality of our species. As someone who has devoted a lifetime to studying human and animal
behaviour, I have to report that this is actually (59)_________ from being the truth. Mankind
may be the most adept species at telling fibs, but we are far from alone.
A young chimpanzee in captivity, for example, is just as capable of 'lying', as I have
witnessed on many occasions, most commonly when human handlers, working with young
chimps, have to leave them alone. (60)________ human babies, the apes really hate being
left alone, and for this reason, their handlers, (61)_________ have become their 'family',
should ideally never be out of sight. Even though the handlers always do their best to avoid
going away for too long, some absence is unavoidable. In (62)__________ a situation, and as
soon as the young ape knows it is going to be left alone, it will start protesting vocally, and
these protests can be heard as the handler leaves the building. The screaming stops when the
door is slammed, (63)__________ at this point the ape knows that the handler can no longer
hear him. It has total control (64)_________ its crying and can switch it on and off whenever
it likes. The crying is actually a deliberate signal, rather than an uncontrollable outburst. But
(65)________ this is a case of "real" lying rather depends on how you look at it.

Your answers:
56. 57. 58. 59.

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 60. 61. 62. 63.
64. 65.

Part 2. For questions 66-75, read the passage and choose the best answer to each of the
questions. Write your answers (A, B, C or D) in the corresponding numbered boxes. (1.0
pt)
Continents and ocean basins represent the largest identifiable bodies on Earth. On the
solid portions of the planet, the second most prominent features are flat plains, elevated
plateaus, and large mountain ranges. In geography, the term “continent” refers to the surface
of continuous landmasses that together comprise about 29.2% of the planet’s surface. On the
other hand, another definition is prevalent in the general use of the term that deals with
extensive mainlands, such as Europe or Asia, that actually represent one very large landmass.
Although all continents are bounded by water bodies or high mountain ranges, isolated
mainlands, such as Greenland and India-Pakistan areas are called subcontinents. In some
circles, the distinction between continents and large islands lies almost exclusively in the size
of particular landmass.
The analysis of compression and tension in the earth’s crust has determined that
continental structures are composed of layers that underlie continental shelves. A great deal
of disagreement among geologists surrounds the issue of exactly how many layers underlie
each landmass because of their distinctive mineral and chemical composition. It is also quite
possible that the ocean floor rests on the top of unknown continents that have not yet been
explored. The continental crust is believed to have been formed by means of a chemical
reaction when lighter materials separated from heavier ones, thus settling at various levels
within the crust. Assisted by the measurements of the specifics within crust formations by
means of monitoring earthquakes, geologists can speculate that a chemical split occurred to
form the atmosphere, sea water, and the crust before it solidified many centuries ago.
Although each continent has its special features, all consist of various combinations of
components that include shields, mountain belts, intracratonic basins, margins, volcanic
plateaus, and blockvaulted belts. The basic differences among continents lie in the proportion
and the composition of these features relative to the continent size. Climatic zones have a
crucial effect on the weathering and formation of the surface features, soil erosion, soil
deposition, land formation, vegetation, and human activities.
Mountain belts are elongated narrow zones that have a characteristic folded sedimentary
organization of layers. They are typically produced during substantial crustal movements,
which generate faulting and mountain building. When continental margins collide, the rise of

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a marginal edge leads to the formation of large mountain ranges, as explained by the plate
tectonic theory. This process also accounts for the occurrence of mountain belts in ocean
basins and produces evidence for the ongoing continental plate evolution.

66. What does this passage mainly discuss?

A. Continental drift and division B. Various definitions of the term “continent”
C. Continental structure and crust D. Scientific analyses of continental crusts
67. According to the passage, how do scientists define continents?
A.As masses of land without divisions B. As extensive bodies of land
C. As the largest identifiable features D. As surgical compositions and ranges
68. In paragraph one, the word ‘ bounded” is closest in meaning to______ .
A. covered B. convened C. delimited D. dominated
69. The author of the passage implies that the disagreement among scientists is based on the
fact that______.
A. each continent has several planes and shelves.
B. continents have various underlying layers of crust.
C. continents undergo compression and experience tension.
D. continents have different chemical makeup.
70. The word “specifics” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to______ .
A. specialities B. speculations C. exact details D. precise movements
71. The author of the passage implies that______.
A. it is not known exactly how the continental crust was formed
B. geologists have neglected the exploration of the ocean floor
C. scientists have concentrated on monitoring earthquakes
D. the earth’s atmosphere split into water and solids
72. According to the passage, what are the differences in the structure of continents?
A. The proportional size of continents to one another.
B. Ratios of major components and their comparative size.
C. The distinctive features of their elements.
D. Climatic zones and their effect on the surface features.
73. In paragraph four, the phrase “This process” refers to ______ .
A. continental collision B. mountain ranges
C. the rise of margins D. plate tectonic theory
74. The author of the passage implies that______.
A. the process of mountain formation has not been accounted for

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B. mountain ranges on the ocean floor lead to surface mountain building
C. faulting and continental margins are parts of plate edges
D. the process of continent formation has not been completed
75. The word “evidence” in paragraph four is closest in meaning to______ .
A. eventually B. confirmation C. exemplification D. challenge

Your answers:
66. 67. 68. 69. 70.
71. 72. 73. 74. 75.

Part 3. The passage below consists of five paragraphs marked A, B, C, D, and E. For
questions 76-85, match the information with a suitable paragraph (A-E). When more than
one answer is required, these may be given in any order. Write your answers in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided. (1.0 pt)

STARTING OVER
More and more people over fifty are starting up in business for themselves.
What are their reasons - and why are so many of them successful?
A When I was fifty-three, I was made redundant almost literally overnight when the
company I worked for was taken over by a multinational. The managing director called me
into his office the following Monday and told me I was no longer on the payroll. It was a
shock and I felt really depressed. I was also anxious about the future because we still had a
mortgage to pay off on our house, and my husband’s income couldn’t cover our hefty
monthly expenses. At the same time, I didn’t feel I was ready for retirement, and to be
honest, I was infuriated by the arrogance of the company, which appeared to believe I was
too old to be useful any longer. So I gave some serious thought to starting up a business of
my own. I’m an accountant, and for years I’d been advising friends about finances and
helping them sort out their books, so I knew there were plenty of small businesses out
there who would welcome the sort of services I could offer. The initial outlay for office
equipment was pretty low, all things considered. So I set up as a consultant to people who
want to branch out on their own, like me, and I find it extremely rewarding.
B About seven years ago, after being more or less forced to take early retirement, I looked
around for an occupation to fill up my days and eventually decided I’d set up a company
specialising in all- inclusive trips for retired people to domestic UK resorts. There seemed
to be a dearth of companies catering for the over sixties, which is ironic because they’re

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 the ones who often have the leisure and the income to take advantage of opportunities for
travel. I'd say someone like me has certain advantages when it comes to setting up in
business. I spent years running a travel agency and I know a lot of people in the industry.
They have been great, offering advice as well as concrete help. At first, there was a lot of
work involved and I had to travel around the country a great deal making new contacts,
but now I don’t have to be away from home very often at all. I enjoy what I do, especially
because I’ve always worked with people, and without the daily contact I’d go mad!
C Three years ago I decided I’d had enough of being a teacher, so I retired and started a
pottery business. Now we’ve got a fair-sized factory, and we’re about to expand into
glassware as well. Most of the people who work for me are more or less my generation. I
find they tend to be more loyal; they don’t rush off if they think they can see a better
prospect elsewhere. It’s also good for the economy when some of these older workers
return to employment. It seems to me that people who start up businesses at my age are
realistic: they don’t aim to be millionaires, and they are less inclined to take unnecessary
risks. So I’d guess that fewer businesses started by older people go bust in the first few
years. As for me, I must admit I miss teaching at times, but we now have a few
apprentices, and working with them is rather like being a teacher in some ways. Of course,
running a business is a responsibility, especially since I know the people who work for me
rely on the income from their jobs, but it’s also a very stimulating, challenging experience.
D When I left the company I’d been with for twenty- five years, they gave me a rather good
retirement package, which meant I had a reasonable amount of cash to invest in my own
company. It was something I’d longed to do for years. I’ve always been a keen gardener,
you see, so I started a landscape gardening company. All the physical work involved
means I'm fitter than I have been for years! One thing that did surprise me at the start was
how much official paperwork I have to deal with. It’s exhausting filling in all those forms,
but apart from that, I find the work itself rewarding. As for the future, who knows?
Obviously, I wouldn’t want to be travelling around the country and working outdoors as
much when I’m over seventy, although on the other hand, I firmly believe that working
has kept me active and alert, so why should I give it up until I really have to?
E My career was in accounting, and I knew that there was shortly going to be a change in the
way self- employed people fill in tax returns. So when I was made redundant, I thought it
would be a good idea to produce software showing people exactly how to go about it, and
that was the first item my company put on the market. With my experience it was
relatively easy to come up with the material - I wrote it all myself - and then I got together
with a software producer to make the CD-ROMs. My wife’s first reaction was that I

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 should try something completely different from what I’d been doing all my working life,
but I figured I’d be better off sticking to what I know. Things are going well, although I’ve
deliberately not tried to expand the business - it can be stressful for a boss when a
company expands fast, and I prefer to take things easy and enjoy what I do. Of course,
there have been some tricky moments, but I can honestly say I’ve never regretted starting
my own firm. I’m sure I wouldn’t have had the nerve to do it when I was younger, but I’m
very glad I did.

In which section is the following mentioned? Your answers

the unexpected demands of the business. 76.
an established network of business contacts 77.
a prejudicial assessment of a person's value 78.
79.
the cost of setting up a business
80.
the confidence that comes with maturity 81.
plans to branch out 82.
a product that aims to help people fill in official forms 83.
the fact that few companies cater for a certain group of people 84.
the advantage of employing older people 85.

Part 4. Read the following passage and do the tasks that follow. (1.95 pt)
Television and Sport
when the medium becomes the stadium
A. The relationship between television and sports is not widely thought of as problematic.
For many people, television is a simple medium through which sports can be played,
replayed, slowed down, and of course conveniently transmitted live to homes across the
planet. What is often overlooked, however, is how television networks have reshaped the
very foundations of an industry that they claim only to document. Major television stations
immediately seized the revenue-generating prospects of televising sports and this has
changed everything, from how they are played to who has a chance to watch them.

B. Before television, for example, live matches could only be viewed in person. For the
majority of fans, who were unable to afford tickets to the top-flight matches, or to travel the
long distances required to see them, the only option was to attend a local game instead,
where the stakes were much lower. As a result, thriving social networks and sporting

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communities formed around the efforts of teams in the third and fourth divisions and below.
With the advent of live TV, however, premier matches suddenly became affordable and
accessible to hundreds of millions of new viewers. This shift in viewing patterns vacuumed
out the support base of local clubs, many of which ultimately folded.

C. For those on the more prosperous side of this shift in viewing behaviour, however, the
financial rewards are substantial. Television assisted in derailing long-held concerns in many
sports about whether athletes should remain amateurs or ‘go pro’, and replaced this system
with a new paradigm where nearly all athletes are free to pursue stardom and to make money
from their sporting prowess. For the last few decades, top-level sports men and women have
signed lucrative endorsement deals and sponsorship contracts, turning many into multi-
millionaires and also allowing them to focus full-time on what really drives them. That they
can do all this without harming their prospects at the Olympic Games and other major
competitions is a significant benefit for these athletes.

D. The effects of television extend further, however, and in many instances have led to
changes in sporting codes themselves. Prior to televised coverage of the Winter Olympics,
for example, figure skating involved a component in which skaters drew ‘figures’ in the ice,
which were later evaluated for the precision of their shapes. This component translated
poorly to the small screen, as viewers found the whole procedure, including the judging of
minute scratches on ice, to be monotonous and dull. Ultimately, figures were scrapped in
favour of a short programme featuring more telegenic twists and jumps. Other sports are
awash with similar regulatory shifts – passing the ball back to the goalkeeper was banned in
football after gameplay at the 1990 World Cup was deemed overly defensive by television
viewers.

E. In addition to insinuating changes into sporting regulation, television also tends to favour
some individual sports over others. Some events, such as the Tour de France, appear to
benefit: on television it can be viewed in its entirety, whereas on-site enthusiasts will only
witness a tiny part of the spectacle. Wrestling, perhaps due to an image problem that repelled
younger (and highly prized) television viewers, was scheduled for removal from the 2020
Olympic Games despite being a founding sport and a fixture of the Olympics since 708 BC.
Only after a fervent outcry from supporters was that decision overturned.

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F. Another change in the sporting landscape that television has triggered is the framing of
sports not merely in terms of the level of skill and athleticism involved, but as personal
narratives of triumph, shame and redemption on the part of individual competitors. This is
made easier and more convincing through the power of close-up camera shots, profiles and
commentary shown during extended build-ups to live events. It also attracts television
audiences – particularly women – who may be less interested in the intricacies of the sport
than they are in broader ‘human interest’ stories. As a result, many viewers are now more
familiar with the private agonies of famous athletes than with their record scores or matchday
tactics.

G. And what about the effects of male television viewership? Certainly, men have always
been willing to watch male athletes at the top of their game, but female athletes participating
in the same sports have typically attracted far less interest and, as a result, have suffered
greatly reduced exposure on television. Those sports where women can draw the crowds –
beach volleyball, for example – are often those where female participants are encouraged to
dress and behave in ways oriented specifically toward a male demographic.

H. Does all this suggest the influence of television on sports has been overwhelmingly
negative? The answer will almost certainly depend on who among the various stakeholders is
asked. For all those who have lost out – lower-league teams, athletes whose sports lack a
certain visual appeal – there are numerous others who have benefitted enormously from the
partnership between television and sports, and whose livelihoods now depend on it.

For question 86-92, choose the correct heading for paragraphs A–H from the list of
headings below. ). Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.

List of Headings
i Gender bias in televised sport
ii More money-making opportunities
iii Mixed views on TV’s role in sports
iv Tickets to top matches too expensive
v A common misperception
vi Personal stories become the focus
vii Sports people become stars
viii Rules changed to please viewers

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ix Lower-level teams lose out
x Skill levels improve
xi TV appeal influences sports’ success
86. Paragraph B
87. Paragraph C
88. Paragraph D
89. Paragraph E
90. Paragraph F
91. Paragraph G
92. Paragraph H

For question 93 – 96, decide whether the following statements are (T), False (F) or Not
Given (NG). Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
write
YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

93. Television networks were slow to recognise opportunities to make money from televised
sport.
94. The average sports fan travelled a long way to watch matches before live television
broadcasts.
95. Television has reduced the significance of an athlete’s amateur status.
96. The best athletes are now more interested in financial success rather than sporting
achievement.

For questions 97–98, complete the notes below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS
from the passage for each answer). Write your answers in the corresponding numbered
boxes provided.
Effect of television on individual sports

Ice skating – viewers find ‘figures’ boring so they are replaced with a 97………………..
Back-passing banned in football. Tour de France great for TV, but wrestling initially
dropped from Olympic Games due to 98……………….. Beach volleyball aimed at men.

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Your answers:
86. 87. 88. 89. 90.

91. 92. 93. 94. 95.

96. 97. 98.

Part 5. In the passage below, seven paragraphs have been removed. For questions 99-105,
read the passage and choose from paragraphs A-H the one which best fits each gap. There
is ONE extra paragraph which you do not need to use. Write your answers in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided. (1.05 pt)

The man who proved that everyone is good at Maths

The French academic Marc Chemillier has shown that humans have remarkable innate skills
with numbers. Reporter Alex Duval Smith accompanies him to Madagascar to see this at first
hand.

Maths is simple. But to discover this requires travelling to the ends of the earth where an
illiterate, chain-smoking fortune teller lives in a room with a double bed and a beehive. As
the sun rises over the hut belonging to Raoke, a 70-year-old witch doctor, a highly pitched
din heralds bee rush hour. The insects he keeps shuttle madly in and out through the window.
This bizarre setting, near nowhere in the harsh cactus savannah of southern Madagascar, is
where a leading French academic, Marc Chemillier, has achieved an extraordinary pairing of
modern science and illiterate intuition.

99.

Mr. Chemillier argues that children should be encouraged to do maths before they learn to
read and write. "There is a strong link between counting and the number of fingers on our
hands. Maths becomes complicated only when you abandon basic measures in nature, like
the foot or the inch, or even the acre, which is the area that two bulls can plough in a day."

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100.

With a low table covered in pieces of wood – each of which has a particular medicinal virtue
– Raoke sits on his straw mat and chants as he runs his fingers through a bag of shiny, dark
brown tree seeds. "There were about 600 seeds in the bag to begin with but I have lost a
few," he says. "They come from the fane tree and were selected for me many years ago. The
fane from the valley of Tsivoanino produces some seeds that lie and others that tell the truth
so it is very important to test each seed. I paid a specialist to do that," said the father of six.

101.

From this selection of wood pieces before him, Raoke can mix concoctions to cure ailments,
banish evil spirits and restore friendships. A basic session with the seeds costs 10,000 ariary
(£3), then a price is discussed for the cure. It seems there is nothing Raoke cannot achieve for
the top price of one or two zebus – Malagasy beef cattle that cost about £300 each –
though some remedies are available for the price of a sheep.

102.

Given the thousands of plant species in Madagascar that are still undiscovered by mainstream
medicine, it is entirely possible that Raoke holds the key to several miracle cures. But Mr.
Chemillier is not interested in the pharmacopaeic aspect of the fortune teller’s work.

103.

The startling reality of the situation is explained to me. Raoke can produce 65,536 grids with
his seeds – Mr Chemillier has them all in his computer now. ‘But we still need to do more
work to understand his mental capacity for obtaining the combinations of single seeds and
pairs,’ he says.

104.

Over the years, Mr. Chemillier has earned respect from Raoke and other Malagasy fortune
tellers. ‘Initially they thought France had sent me to steal their work in an attempt to become
the world’s most powerful fortune teller. But once I was able to share grids with them that

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had been through my computer program, we established a relationship of trust,’ says Mr.
Chemillier

105.

When not consulting clients, the diminutive fortune teller spends hours with his seeds, laying
them in different formations and copying the dots down in pencil. Those grids have value
and Raoke sells them to other fortune tellers. He is indeed a most remarkable man, and the
full value of his work is, one suspects, something that even Chemillier may take years to
fathom.

Missing paragraphs:

A This is indeed impressive. The way in which Raoke poses questions over the seeds
requires the same faculties for mental speculation as might be displayed by a winner of the
Fields Medal, which is the top award any mathematician can aspire to, according to Mr.
Chemillier.

B Indeed, I can see it is the lack of memory and computer aids that helps keep Raoke’s mind
sharp. In the developed world people are over-reliant on calculators, dictionaries, documents.
And also the developed world is wrong to ignore the basic human connection with numbers
that goes back to using the fingers on your hands and relating them to the environment
around you.

C In his book, Les Mathématiques Naturelles, the director of studies at EHESS (School for
Advanced Studies in Social Sciences) argues that mathematics is not only simple, it is
‘rooted in human, sensorial intuition’. And he believes that Madagascar’s population, which
remains relatively untouched by outside influences, can help him to prove this.

D ‘A white man came from Réunion with a stomach ailment that the hospitals in France
could not cure. I gave him a powder to drink in a liquid. He vomited and then he was cured,’
says Raoke.

E Raoke duly felt able to reveal that a divine power shows him how to position the seeds. He
does not understand why ‘Monsieur Marc’, and now this other visiting white person, keeps

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asking him why he lays the seeds in a certain way. Yet it is clear from a stack of grimy
copybooks he keeps under his bed that he is kept very busy indeed as a receiver of divine
messages.

F To make his point, Mr. Chemillier chose to charge up his laptop computer, leave Paris and
do the rounds of fortune tellers on the Indian Ocean island because its uninfluenced natural
biodiversity also extends to its human population. Divinatory geomancy – reading random
patterns, or sikidy to use the local word – is what Raoke does, when not attending to his
insects.

G He is, after all, a mathematician, not a scientist. ‘Raoke is an expert in a reflexive view of
maths of which we have lost sight in the West,’ he says. ‘Even armed with my computer
program, I do not fully comprehend Raoke’s capacities for mental arithmetic.’

H Raoke proceeds from explanation to demonstration, pouring a random number on to his

mat, then picking them up singly or in twos and laying them in a grid from right to left. Each
horizontal gridline has a name – son, livestock, woman or enemy – and each vertical one has
a name, too: chief, zebu (cattle), brother and earth. Whether one or two seeds lie at the
intersection of two gridlines determines the subject’s fortune and informs Raoke as to the
cure required, and its price

Your answers
99. 100. 101. 102.

103. 104. 105.

SECTION 4: WRITING (6.0 POINTS)

Part 1. Read the following extract and use your own words to summarise it. Your summary
should be between 100 and 120 words. (1.0 pt)
The Huron-Wendat (often called ‘The Wendat’), are one of the ‘First Nation’ peoples of
Canada, who have lived in North America for thousands of years. Before 1600, they
numbered about 20,000 to 25,000 people, but between 1634 and 1642 they were reduced to
about 9,000 by diseases brought to Canada by European settlers and traders. The Wendat
lived in 18 to 25 villages, and some villages had up to 3,500 people.
We meet Natacha, a Wendat guide, who shows us around the re-creation of a historical
village in the reservation of Wendake near Quebec City. In the past, Natacha explains, the
Wendat lived in wooden structures known as longhouses, which were up to 90 metres long.

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Several families lived in each house and slept on raised wooden platforms, which they made
comfortable with bear skins. The lower part of the longhouse was used for storage.
Older women were the heads of their families and made all the family decisions. Before any
marriage could take place, there would be a trial period when the man came to live with the
woman’s family for three weeks to make sure he would fit in. He brought the family gifts
and, if the trial period did not work out, the family still kept the presents they had received.
The Wendat originally lived around a great lake that is now known as Lake Huron. The men
were master boatbuilders who used wood from elm and birch trees to make canoes for
hunting and fishing. They travelled by canoe to trade any surplus from their hunting and
fishing expeditions. When the French arrived in the 17th century, the Wendat traded their
furs with them.
The Wendat were also skilled farmers and grew about eighty per cent of what they ate.
Beans, corn, and squash were grown, and these three crops were called ‘The Three Sisters’.
Corn was planted in the centre as it provided a structure for the beans to climb up. The beans
added nitrogen to the soil, which helped the plants to thrive. Squash were planted around the
outside to stop weeds growing and their prickly leaves kept pests away.
Natacha tells us that living creatures were greatly respected. Animals and fish provided an
important food source, and their body parts were used to help the Wendat survive and thrive.
When animals were killed, tools were made from their claws, furs became blankets, and
holes in canoes were blocked by bear grease.
As well as being practical and resourceful, the Wendat believed in clear communication. On
ceremonial occasions when many people gathered together, a wooden stick was passed
around the group. It was called a ‘talking stick’ because you were allowed to speak only
when you held it. Natacha tells us that it was an effective method for keeping order at special
events. The stick was sacred to the Wendat and was blessed before use with the smoke of
sacred herbs and other plants: sage, cedar, sweetgrass, and tobacco. They decorated the stick
with the parts of animals considered to be wise communicators. Geese bones were used, for
instance, because these birds make clear calls.
Today the Wendat population is less than 3,000. They live a modern lifestyle and speak
French as a first language. A third of the population live in Wendake.

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Part 2.The bar chart below shows the percentage of government spending on roads and
transport in 4 countries in the years 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant. You should write about 150 words. (2.0 pt)

Percentage of government spending on road and transport (1990 -

2005)
30

25

20
Percentage

1990

15 1995
2000
10
2005
5

0
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Part 3.Write an essay of 350 words on the following topic:
Many people believe that it is easier to have a healthy lifestyle in the countryside. Other
believe that there are health benefits to living in cities. Discuss both views and give your
own opinion. (3.0 pt)
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