Reading Practice Test 2 [C1]
October 25, 2022
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Question 1 of 25
1. Question
Part 1
– 8 questions –
For questions 1 – 8, read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap. There is an example at the beginning (0).
Mark your answers on the separate answer sheet.
Example:
0 A. straight B. common C. everyday D. conventional
___________________________________________________________________________________
Studying black bears
After years studying North America’s black bears in the (0) …….. way, wildlife biologist Luke Robertson felt no closer to understanding the creatures. He realised that he had to (1)……….. their trust. Abandoning scientific detachment, he took the daring step of forming relationships with the animals, bringing them food to gain their acceptance.
The (2) …….. this has given him into their behaviour has allowed him to dispel certain myths about bears. (3) …….. to popular belief, he contends that bears do not (4) …….. as much for fruit as previously supposed. He also (5) …….. claims that they are ferocious. He says that people should not be (6) by behaviour such as swatting paws on the ground, as this is a defensive, rather than an aggressive, act.
However, Robertson is no sentimentalist. After devoting years of his life to the bears, he is under no (7) …….. about their feelings for him. It is clear that their interest in him does not (8)………. beyond the food he brings.1.
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Question 2 of 25
2. Question
2.
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Question 3 of 25
3. Question
3.
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Question 4 of 25
4. Question
4.
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Question 5 of 25
5. Question
5.
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Question 6 of 25
6. Question
6.
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Question 7 of 25
7. Question
7.
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Question 8 of 25
8. Question
8.
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Question 9 of 25
9. Question
Part 2
– 8 questions –
For questions 9 – 16, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap. Use only one word in each gap. There is an example at the beginning (0).
___________________________________________________________________________________
Managing change
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Most people find change unsettling and difficult to adapt (0) …to… Many societies have experienced (9) rapid change in the early years of the 21st century that life can feel very daunting (10) times. Various commentators have (11) forward suggestions for coping with change on a personal level.
One suggestion involves thinking of three solutions to a problem, rather (12) two. Apparently, many people faced (13) change respond by considering two possible courses of action, but invariably tend to reject both of these. However, thinking instead of three potential solutions is a strategy which, according to research, provides a reliable way of finding a solution to the initial problem.
Another strategy advocates learning to avoid set patterns of routine behaviour. Something simple, (14) taking another route to work at (15) once a week, is seen as encouraging confidence in the face of uncertainty. (16) the simplicity of these ideas, they nevertheless help prepare people mentally to manage major change if necessary.
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Question 10 of 25
10. Question
Part 3
-8 questions-
For questions 17-24, read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of some lines to form a word that fits in the gap in the same line. There is an example at the beginning.
Example:
(0) UNUSUAL
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Turn a Hobby into a Business
It is not (0) …unusual…to make a hobby pay for itself even if initially you had no (17) (intend) of turning it into a business. For those looking to make a profit on their (18) (create) , these days an audience for products can range from the local to the truly global. Some (19) (hobby) begin by donating a piece of work to a charitable sale just to see how quickly and (20) (profit) it sells. Local shops can be the next outlet for items, often the step taken by those making things like hand-made greetings cards for instance. And for the truly ambitious, websites like eBay enable the hobbyist to reach a (21) (world) audience. As with any business idea, an honest (22) (appraise) should be undertaken regarding the demand for the work and the price the customer is prepared to pay in (23) (real) However, do not forget the degree of personal (24) (satisfy) as well.
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Question 11 of 25
11. Question
Part 4
– 6 questions –
For questions 25 – 30, complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between three and six words, including the word given. Here is an example (0).
Write only the missing words IN CAPITAL LETTERS on the separate answer sheet.
Example:
0 James would only speak to the head of department alone.
ON
James …….(o) INSISTED ON SPEAKING……..to the head of department alone.
25.
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My brother now earns far less than he did when he was younger.
NEARLY
My brother much now as he did when he was younger.
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Question 12 of 25
12. Question
26.
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They are demolishing the old bus station and replacing it with a new one.
PULLED
The old bus station is with a new one.
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Question 13 of 25
13. Question
27.
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The number of students now at university has reached an all-time high, apparently.
THE
The number of students now at university is been, apparently.
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Question 14 of 25
14. Question
28.
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I’m disappointed with the Fishers’ new album when I compare it to their previous one.
COMPARISON
I think the Fishers’ new album is their previous one.
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Question 15 of 25
15. Question
29.
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Anna got the job even though she didn’t have much experience in public relations.
SPITE
Anna got the job of experience in public relations.
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Question 16 of 25
16. Question
30.
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‘I must warn you how dangerous it is to cycle at night without any lights,’ said the police officer to Max.
DANGERS
Max received a at night without any lights from the police officer.
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Question 17 of 25
17. Question
Part 5
–6 questions–
Read the following article and then answer the question 31-36, by selecting the correct answer A, B, C, D.
HOME COMFORT
It was a lazy Sunday afternoon, the lull before the storm of Monday morning madness of alarm clocks, traffic jams and deadlines. The clock struck three and Rebecca’s elbow still rested on the arm of the tapestry-covered sofa. With her fingertips she began caressing the rough piping that ran along its seams. Simultaneously, the toes of her left foot moved back and forth across the edges of the sheepskin rug. This action Rebecca found comforting; it reminded her of being at home as a child when she used to sit in the family sitting room, her toes playing with the fringes of another kind of rug. Her mother would snap at her to stop it, so of course she did it all the more.
Rebecca had a sudden whiff of the glue that Katy was applying to make one of her artistic creations. Her daughter was seated on a cushion right in the middle of the room, looking like an island, surrounded by a sea of cardboard cut-offs, sequins, felt-tip pens, and pristine sheets of white A4 paper that she had disobediently pinched from her father’s study. She really should be working at the kitchen table, Rebecca thought, but I don’t have the appetite for the outburst that might happen if my genius-daughter-at-work is disturbed. Every three minutes and 50 seconds Katy got up to replay Kylie Minogue’s version of ‘The Locomotion’.
“Why don’t you listen to the CD all the way through, Katy?” her dad said, who was sprawled out on the other sofa. “You’d like the other songs as well.” “Nah, too boring.”
Rebecca glanced at David and then said, “I could do with something to perk me up.” Her words trailed off with a heavy sigh, and then a yawn. It was the first in a series of hints that she would like him to get up and make her a cup of tea.
On the lamp table next to the sofa, she noticed a letter that had been delivered a week ago, advertising exercises classes and a slimming club. She had kept it on the table as a reminder, or perhaps to conjure up the same kind of magical effect that people believe in when they splash out on membership to a fancy gym without going near the place more than once every two months.
“Have you seen this flyer?” she said to her husband. “Just the thought of going for a workout makes me want to go and lie down.” Once more she didn’t get a response. “Who’s going to make the tea then?” was her third and most blatant attempt to get a drink before she died of thirst.
He stood up. “I suppose it’s my turn. Again.” He went off into the kitchen while Rebecca, the victor, snuggled a bit further into the sofa. Charlie, who’d been asleep on the sheepskin rug, now started up with his own brand of baby chatter. He was attempting to cover the whole repertoire of vowel sounds this afternoon, like a singer performing warm-up exercises. Then, occasionally, he jammed his fingers into his mouth to make a sound approaching an elongated ‘w’.
He lay underneath a baby gym, which consisted of a tubular frame in patriotic colours of red, white and blue and a top bar, from which dangled two clowns, one on a swing and one in a position that Rebecca thought was called a pike. (It was a long time ago that she had achieved her gold star award in the trampoline.) Once Charlie made eye contact with Rebecca, his happy babbling began to turn into a grizzle.
“Does Charlie want feeding again?” Rebecca asked in the baby voice that irritated them all, herself included. She bent down to scoop her son up. “Mum, he doesn’t want feeding again. You’ve only just fed him,” Katy said. “I’ll try – just in case he’s hungry.” In the kitchen she warmed through the mush of potatoes and broccoli that Charlie liked and took it back through to be with Katy.
Luckily, the baby was actually ready for a feed, which meant that Rebecca not only saved face with her daughter, but showed that she had no need to feel guilty about sending her husband to make the tea. David walked back in the sitting room that very minute, her cup of Earl Grey with its delicate scent of bergamot wobbling in its saucer. In his other hand he clutched a large mug. Rebecca gave him a warning look that dared him not to put the cups down on the oak blanket box that served as their coffee table. Its surface was already scarred by two rings where hot drinks had been carelessly placed directly onto it.
“Thanks. You’re a treasure.” She settled down to feed Charlie, knowing that her tea would be the perfect temperature to drink in one go by the time he had had enough. “Where’s Katy got to?” David said, after a few minutes. The answer came from upstairs as they heard the sound of their older child passing through the curtain in the doorway of her bedroom. It was like those beaded curtains that used to be in fashion when Rebecca was a child, but instead of beads this one was formed from a dazzling collection of pink, purple and silver shimmering plastic squares. She couldn’t remember which one of them had named it the ‘jingle-jangler’ but it was very apt.
Questions
(31) Rebecca’s mood at the start of the story is…………….
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Question 18 of 25
18. Question
(32) What action does Rebecca take with her daughter?
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Question 19 of 25
19. Question
(33) What is Rebecca’s attitude to the letter lying on the table?
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Question 20 of 25
20. Question
(34) When David first leaves the sitting room, Rebecca is…………
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Question 21 of 25
21. Question
(35) Rebecca is worried when her husband brings in the drinks because…………..
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Question 22 of 25
22. Question
(36) The curtain referred to in Katy’s bedroom……………
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Question 23 of 25
23. Question
Part 6
– 4 questions –
You are going to read extracts from articles in which four academics discuss the contribution the arts
(music, painting, literature, etc.) make to society. For questions 37 – 40, choose from the academics
A – D. The academics may be chosen more than once.___________________________________________________________________________________
The Contribution of the Arts to Society
A Lana Esslett
The arts matter because they link society to its past, a people to its inherited store of ideas, images and words; yet the arts challenge those links in order to find ways of exploring new paths and ventures. I remain sceptical of claims that humanity’s love of the arts somehow reflects some inherent inclination, fundamental to the human race. However, exposure to and study of the arts does strengthen the individual and fosters independence in the face of the pressures of the mass, the characterless, the undifferentiated. And just as the sciences support the technology sector, the arts stimulate the growth of a creative sector in the economy. Yet, true as this is, it seems to me to miss the point. The value of the arts is not to be defined as if they were just another economic lever to be pulled. The arts can fail every measurable objective set by economists, yet retain their intrinsic value to humanity.
B Seth North
Without a doubt, the arts are at the very centre of society and innate in every human being. My personal, though admittedly controversial, belief is that the benefits to both individuals and society of studying science and technology, in preference to arts subjects, are vastly overrated. It must be said, however, that despite the claims frequently made for the civilising power of the arts, to my mind the obvious question arises: Why are people who are undeniably intolerant and selfish still capable of enjoying poetry or appreciating good music? For me, a more convincing argument in favour of the arts concerns their economic value. Needless to say, discovering how much the arts contribute to society in this way involves gathering a vast amount of data and then evaluating how much this affects the economy as a whole, which is by no means straightforward.
C Heather Charlton
It goes without saying that end-products of artistic endeavour can be seen as commodities which can be traded and exported, and so add to the wealth of individuals and societies. While this is undeniably a substantial argument in favour of the arts, we should not lose sight of those equally fundamental contributions they make which cannot be easily translated into measurable social and economic value. Anthropologists have never found a society without the arts in one form or another. They have concluded, and I have no reason not to concur, that humanity has a natural aesthetic sense which is biologically determined. It is by the exercise of this sense that we create works of art which symbolise social meanings and over time pass on values which help to give the community its sense of identity, and which contribute enormously to its self-respect.
D Mike Konecki
Studies have long linked involvement in the arts to increased complexity of thinking and greater self-esteem. Nobody today, and rightly so in my view, would challenge the huge importance of maths and science as core disciplines. Nevertheless, sole emphasis on these in preference to the arts fails to promote the integrated left/right-brain thinking in students that the future increasingly demands, and on which a healthy economy now undoubtedly relies. More significantly, I believe that in an age of dull uniformity, the arts enable each person to express his or her uniqueness. Yet while these benefits are enormous, we participate in the arts because of an instinctive human need for inspiration, delight, joy. The arts are an enlightening and humanising force, encouraging us to come together with people whose beliefs and lives may be different from our own. They encourage us to listen and to celebrate what connects us, instead of retreating behind what drives us apart.
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Which academic
has a different view from North regarding the effect of the arts on behaviour towards others? (37)
has a different view from Konecki on the value of studying the arts compared to other (38)
academic subjects?expresses a different opinion to the others on whether the human species has a genetic (39)
predisposition towards the arts?expresses a similar view to Esslett on how the arts relate to demands to conform? (40)
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Question 24 of 25
24. Question
Part 7
-6 questions-
You are going to read an extract from a book on networking and public speaking skills. Six paragraphs have been removed from the extract. Choose from the paragraphs A – G the one which fits each gap (41 – 46). There is one extra paragraph which you do not need to use.
Paragraphs
A. The one thing I try to avoid is approaching two people who are in discussion. If you see two people talking together, they may be building a rapport and interruption may break that. Alternatively, they may be discussing business.
B. The easiest way to approach a group is to catch the eye of one of the participants and smile. Usually they should invite you to join them at the appropriate juncture.
C. The other advantage of this is that your companion, in introducing you, may well talk about how you’ve helped them, how great you are at what you do or praise you in another way that you would not have been able to do. This will awaken a greater interest in you from the new contact than may otherwise have been possible.
D. You can often find these people around a bar or buffet table (they’ve probably read the advice above!) or by the walls. Nervous people on their own seldom stand in the middle of a room unless they are milling around trying to pluck up the courage to approach someone. Often they will be admiring the art on the walls or the flora in the room, which gives you a nice topic with which to start a conversation.
E. When you do approach them, take care not to dive in aggressively but be empathetic to their nervous state. Ask them if they mind if you join them before introducing yourself, rather than running up asking “So, what do you do then?”
F. If you see a group of people talking, approach the group, but don’t butt in. Remember, as Susan Roane says in How to Work a Room, “There is a difference between including yourself in other people’s conversations and intruding on them.”
G. If their body language is ‘closed’, and they are facing each other, you should avoid interrupting them. If they are more ‘open’ and they are standing at an angle that leaves room for another party in the conversation, you are likely to be more welcome.
Questions
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Talking to Plants and Approaching Groups
In this book extract from “…and death came third!” Andy Lopata and Peter Roper show nervous business people how to network with panache.
At networking events, I will often look to start a conversation with people who are on their own. It is much easier than breaking into a group conversation and the chances are they won’t tell you to leave them alone and go away. Very few people go to networking events for solitude.
41.
When approaching these people you are already at an advantage because they will both respect your courage (which they have probably lacked) and be grateful that you’ve taken the time and effort to relieve them from their anxiety. They are probably just as nervous as everyone else, and they’ll be delighted to get into a conversation with you. You’ve rescued them from walking around, avoiding interrupting other people for fear of rejection.
42.
Having spoken to them, try not to leave them on their own again because you’ll just return them to the same state as you found them. Move on with them and introduce them to someone else.
43.
If someone is talking and you interrupt, or ask if you can join them, people will stop listening to the person who’s talking, and invite you into their group. That’s great for you but not so nice for the person who is talking. Stand just on the edge of the group and wait for the appropriate time.
44.
Alternatively, it may be that they’re talking about something in which you have an interest, in which case, when there’s an appropriate pause, you can just say, “Excuse me, I heard you mention so-and-so. Can I ask you a question? Are you involved in that?” And you’re in the conversation. Or it may just be that you have a pause, and you ask “May I join you?” But it’s always best to wait for the right pause in the conversation.
45.
While the guidelines above are important, you need to be aware of the body language of people talking to each other and networking events. Whether in couples or groups, people will always send very clear signals about approachability by the way they are standing.
46.
Reading this body language may mean that you are better advised approaching two people rather than a group.
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Question 25 of 25
25. Question
Part 8
– 10 questions –
You are going to read an article by a psychologist about laughter. For questions 47 – 56, choose from the sections (A – D). The sections may be chosen more than once.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Why do people laugh?
Psychologist Robert Provine writes about why and when we laugh.
A
In 1962, what began as an isolated fit of laughter in a group of schoolgirls in Tanzania rapidly rose to epidemic proportions. Contagious laughter spread from one individual to the next and between communities. Fluctuating in intensity, the laughter epidemic lasted for around two and a half years and during this time at least 14 schools were closed and about 1,000 people afflicted. Laughter epidemics, big and small, are universal. Laughter yoga, an innovation of Madan Kataria of Mumbai, taps into contagious laughter for his Laughter Yoga clubs. Members gather in public places to engage in laughter exercises to energise the body and improve health. Kataria realised that only laughter is needed to stimulate laughter – no jokes are necessary. When we hear laughter, we become beasts of the herd, mindlessly laughing in turn, producing a behavioural chain reaction that sweeps through our group.
B
Laughter is a rich source of information about complex social relationships, if you know where to look. Learning to ‘read’ laughter is particularly valuable because laughter is involuntary and hard to fake, providing uncensored, honest accounts of what people really think about each other. It is a decidedly social signal. The social context of laughter was established by 72 student volunteers in my classes, who recorded their own laughter, its time of occurrence and social circumstance in small notebooks (laugh logbooks) during a one-week period. The sociality of laughter was striking. My logbook keepers laughed about 30 times more when they were around others than when they were alone – laughter almost disappeared among solitary subjects.
C
Further clues about the social context of laughter came from the surreptitious observation of 1,200 instances of conversational laughter among anonymous people in public places. My colleagues and I noted the gender of the speaker and audience (listener), whether the speaker or the audience laughed, and what was said immediately before laughter occurred. Contrary to expectation, most conversational laughter was not a response to jokes or humorous stories. Fewer than 20% of pre-laugh comments were remotely jokelike or humorous. Most laughter followed banal remarks such as ‘Are you sure?’ and ‘It was nice meeting you too.’ Mutual playfulness, in-group feeling and positive emotional tone – not comedy – mark the social settings of most naturally occurring laughter. Another counterintuitive discovery was that the average speaker laughs about 46% more often than the audience. This contrasts with the scenario in stand-up comedy – a type of comedy performance in which a non-laughing speaker presents jokes to a laughing audience. Comedy performance in general proves an inadequate model for everyday conversational laughter. Analyses that focus only on audience behaviour (a common approach) are obviously limited because they neglect the social nature of the laughing relationship.
D
Amazingly, we somehow navigate society, laughing at just the right times, while not consciously knowing what we are doing. In our sample of 1,200 laughter episodes, the speaker and the audience seldom interrupted the phrase structure of speech with a ha-ha. Thus, a speaker may say ‘You are wearing that? Ha-ha,’ but rarely ‘You are wearing… ha-ha… that?’ The occurrence of laughter during pauses, at the end of phrases, and before and after statements and questions suggests that a neurologically based process governs the placement of laughter. Speech is dominant over laughter because it has priority access to the single vocalisation channel, and laughter does not violate the integrity of phrase structure. Laughter in speech is similar to punctuation in written communication. If punctuation of speech by laughter seems unlikely, consider that breathing and coughing also punctuate speech. Better yet, why not test my theory of punctuation by examining the placement of laughter in conversation around you, focusing on the placement of ha-ha laughs. It’s a good thing that these competing actions are neurologically orchestrated. How complicated would our lives be if we had to plan when to breathe, talk and laugh.
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Which section
comments on which person laughs within a verbal exchange? 47.
uses a comparison with other physical functions to support an idea? 48.
gives reasons why understanding laughter supplies very useful insights? 49.
refers to someone who understood the self-perpetuating nature of laughter? 50.
cites a study that involved watching people without their knowledge? 51.
describes laughter having a detrimental effect? 52.
criticises other research for failing to consider a key function of laughter? 53.
explains that laughing does not usually take precedence over speaking? 54.
describes people observing themselves? 55.
encourages checking that a proposition is correct? 56.
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