Practice 15

Multiple choice
1. I haven't decided yet whether to buy a second-hand car or a new one. I_________ it.
A. ‘m thinking about B. think about it C. 'm thinking of D. think of it
2. There was no one in the control room at all, _________ made me suspicious.
A. that B. the which C. the what D. which
3. What a coincidence this is! It's so strange that you _________ be staying in the same hotel as us.
A. should B. must C. ought to D. can
4. This sweater is made of _________ wool.
A. pure B. a pure C. some pure D. a piece of pure
5. For years, the government has been _________ corruption within its own party. It's time that that changed.
A. making a fat view of B. taking a blind look at C. taking a fat look at D. turning a blind eye to
6. After _________, one naturally wants to put one's feet up and relax.
A. a hard day's work B. the hard work of a day C. a hard-working day D. a day's hard working
7. House prices _________ dramatically in recent years.
A. rose B. were rising C. have risen D. are rising
8. The captain's magnificent performance _________ an example to the rest of the team.
A. gave B. set C. made D. laid
9. Not only _________ the accident, he later denied that he had been driving the car.
A. he failed in reporting B. did he fail to report C. was he failing in reporting D. he was failing to report
10. We need someone who is a good engineer as well as an efficient manager. In my opinion, this candidate is
_________.
A. neither B. none C. not one or other D. neither one nor other
11. The river has risen to _________ level for this time of year. I've never seen anything like it.
A. an extremely surprised B. an extremely astonished C. a surprisingly extreme D. an extremely surprising
12. Perhaps you'd like _________ dinner with me some evening?
A. to have B. having C. that you have D. our having
13. She has an unbelievable voice. Her singing is absolutely _________
A. out of this life B. beyond this world C. out of this world D. beyond this life
14. I didn't expect _________ you here. You've never accepted any of my invitations before.
A. seeing B. to see C. that I see D. my seeing
15. It's your own fault if you feel terrible this morning. You _________ so much last night.
A. shouldn't have eaten B. hadn't to eat C. wouldn't have eaten D. mightn't have eaten
16. What you are saying is very interesting, but it _________ to our situation.
A. is impertinent B. has no accordance C. has no relevance D. is uninvolved
17. Fiona, _________
A. as most B. like most C. like the most of the D. as the most of the
students, often works late.
18. I _________ endless problems with that car the whole ten years owned it.
A. had B. was having C. have had D. had had
19. _________ I want is to know your name.
A. All B. All what C. Whatever D. All whatever
20. It's not my fault! I can't _________ what happened. I mean, I wasn't even there when it occurred!
A. be blamed for B. blame for C. be blamed of D. be blamed by
21. Her meeting with the Dalai Lama was the _________ of her life. After that, nothing was the same for her.
A. turning point B. turning moment C. pointed moment D. critical turn
22. The old man is very ill. To be perfectly frank with you, I don't think he will live _________ the night.
Practice 15
A. during B. until all C. through D. while
23. A: Will you be home late tonight? - B: I'm afraid _________. The meeting won't start until 6.
A. so B. it's so C. of it D. that's it
24. Have you ever thought _________ to somewhere like Canada or Australia to start a new life?
A. on emigrating B. about emigrating C. in emigrating D. to emigrate
25. She took a course in telemarketing _________ improving her employment prospects.
A. with a view to B. with a regard to C. in respect of D. in consideration of
26. If it's all the same to you, I'd rather you _________ television while I'm reading. It's very distracting, you see.
A. aren't watching B. didn't watch C. won't watch D. wouldn't watch
Choose one word that fits into each blank.
1. Dominant interests often benefit most from _________ of governmental interference in business, since they are able
to take care of themselves if left alone.
A. intensification B. authorization C. centralization D. improvisation E. elimination
2. Kagan maintains that an infant’s reactions to its first stressful experiences are part of a natural process of
development, not harbingers of childhood unhappiness or _________ signs of adolescent anxiety.
A. prophetic B. normal C. monotonous D. virtual E. typical
3. An investigation that is _________ can occasionally yield new facts, even notable ones, but typically the appearance of
such facts is the result of a search in a definite direction.
A. timely B. unguided C. consistent D. uncomplicated E. subjective
4. It is (i)_________ that so many portrait paintings hang in art museums, since the subject matter seems to dictate a
status closer to pictures in the family photo- graph album than to high art. But perhaps it is the artistic skill with which
the portraits are painted that (ii)_________ their presence in art museums.
(Blank i) A. surprising B. understandable C. irrelevant
(Blank ii) D. challenges E. justifies F. changes
5. In stark contrast to his later (i)_________, Simpson was largely (ii)_________ politics during his college years, despite
the fact that the campus he attended was rife with political activity.
Blank (i) A. activism B. apathy C. affability
Blank (ii) D. devoted to E. indifferent to F. shaped by
Choose TWO options that fit into the blank and produce similar meaning.
6. As my eyesight began to _________, I spent a lot of time writing about it — both poems and “eye journals” —
describing what I saw as I looked out through damaged eyes.
A. deteriorate B. sharpen C. improve
D. decline E. recover F. adjust
7. The judge’s standing in the legal community, though shaken by phony allegations of wrongdoing, emerged, at long last,
_________ .
A. unqualified B. undiminished C. undecided
D. undamaged E. unresolved F. unprincipled
8. Modern agricultural practices have been extremely successful in increasing the productivity of major food crops, yet
despite heavy use of pesticides, _________ losses to diseases and insect pests are sustained each year.
A. incongruous B. reasonable C. significant
D. considerable E. equitable F. fortuitous
Reading
Question 1
A person who agrees to serve as mediator between two warring factions at the request of both abandons by so agreeing
the right to take sides later. To take sides at a later point would be to suggest that the earlier presumptive impartiality
was a sham.
Practice 15
1. The passage above emphasizes which of the following points about mediators?
A. They should try to form no opinions of their own about any issue that is related to the dispute.
B. They should not agree to serve unless they are committed to maintaining a stance of impartiality.
C. They should not agree to serve unless they are equally acceptable to all parties to a dispute.
D. They should feel free to take sides in the dispute right from the start, provided that they make their biases publicly
known.
E. They should reserve the right to abandon their impartiality so as not to be open to the charge of having been
deceitful.

Questions 2-5
Was Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) a great composer? On its face, the question seems absurd. One of the most gifted
prodigies in the history of music, he produced his first masterpiece at sixteen. From then on, he was recognized as an
artist of preternatural abilities, not only as a composer but also as a pianist and conductor. But Mendelssohn’s enduring
popularity has often been at odds — sometimes quite sharply — with his critical standing. Despite general
acknowledgment of his genius, there has been a noticeable reluctance to rank him with, say, Schumann or Brahms. As
Haggin put it, Mendelssohn, as a composer, was a “minor master . . . working on a small scale of emotion and texture.”
2. Select a sentence in the passage whose function is to indicate the range of Mendelssohn’s musical talents.
3. The passage suggests that anyone attempting to evaluate Mendelssohn’s career must confront which of the following
dichotomies?
A. The tension between Mendelssohn’s career as a composer and his career as a pianist and conductor
B. The contrast between Mendelssohn’s popularity and that of Schumann and Brahms
C. The discrepancy between Mendelssohn’s popularity and his standing among critics
D. The inconsistency between Mendelssohn’s reputation during his lifetime and his reputation since his death
E. The gap between Mendelssohn’s prodigious musical beginnings and his decline in later years
4. It can be inferred that the “reluctance” mentioned in the passage is being ascribed to
A. most composers since Mendelssohn B. Schumann and Brahms
C. the music-listening public D. music critics generally E. Haggin exclusively
5. The author mentions Schumann and Brahms primarily in order to
A. provide examples of composers who are often compared with Mendelssohn
B. identify certain composers who are more popular than Mendelssohn
C. identify composers whom Mendelssohn influenced
D. establish the milieu in which Mendelssohn worked
E. establish a standard of comparison for Mendelssohn as a composer

Questions 6-7
While most scholarship on women’s employment in the United States recognizes that the Second World War (1939–
1945) dramatically changed the role of women in the workforce, these studies also acknowledge that few women
remained in manufacturing jobs once men returned from the war. But in agriculture, unlike other industries where
women were viewed as temporary workers, women’s employment did not end with the war. Instead, the expansion of
agriculture and a steady decrease in the number of male farmworkers combined to cause the industry to hire more
women in the postwar years. Consequently, the 1950s saw a growing number of women engaged in farm labor, even
though rhetoric in the popular media called for the return of women to domestic life.
6. It can be inferred from the passage that the manufacturing and agricultural sectors in the United States following the
Second World War differed in which of the following respects?
A. The rate of expansion in each sector
B. The percentage of employees in each sector who were men
Practice 15
C. The trend in the wages of men employed in each sector
D. The attitude of the popular media toward the employment of women in each sector
E. The extent to which women in each sector were satisfied with their jobs
7. Which of the following statements about women’s employment in the United States during and after the Second
World War is most clearly supported by the passage?
A. Most women who joined the workforce during the Second World War wanted to return to domestic life when the war
ended.
B. The great majority of women who joined the workforce during the Second World War were employed in
manufacturing jobs.
C. The end of the Second World War was followed by a large-scale transfer of women workers from manufacturing to
agriculture.
D. The increase in women’s employment that accompanied the Second World War was longer lasting in agriculture than
it was in manufacturing.
E. The popular media were more forceful in calling for women to join the workforce during the Second World War than
in calling for women to return to domestic life after the war.

Questions 8-9
Since the Hawaiian Islands have never been connected to other land masses, the great variety of plants in Hawaii must
be a result of the long-distance dispersal of seeds, a process that requires both a method of transport and an
equivalence between the ecology of the source area and that of the recipient area.
There is some dispute about the method of transport involved. Some biologists argue that ocean and air currents are
responsible for the transport of plant seeds to Hawaii. Yet the results of flotation experiments and the low temperatures
of air currents cast doubt on these hypotheses. More probable is bird transport, either externally, by accidental
attachment of the seeds to feathers, or internally, by the swallowing of fruit and subsequent excretion of the seeds.
While it is likely that fewer varieties of plant seeds have reached Hawaii externally than internally, more varieties are
known to be adapted to external than to internal transport.
8. The author of the passage is primarily concerned with
A. discussing different approaches biologists have taken to testing theories about the distribution of plants in Hawaii
B. discussing different theories about the transport of plant seeds to Hawaii
C. discussing the extent to which air currents are responsible for the dispersal of plant seeds to Hawaii
D. resolving a dispute about the adaptability of plant seeds to bird transport
E. resolving a dispute about the ability of birds to carry plant seeds long distances
9. The author mentions the results of flotation experiments on plant seeds most probably in order to
A. support the claim that the distribution of plants in Hawaii is the result of the long-distance dispersal of seeds
B. lend credibility to the thesis that air currents provide a method of transport for plant seeds to Hawaii
C. suggest that the long-distance dispersal of seeds is a process that requires long periods of time
D. challenge the claim that ocean currents are responsible for the transport of plant seeds to Hawaii
E. refute the claim that Hawaiian flora evolved independently from flora in other parts of the world
Cloze text
Indonesia’s Mount Marapi erupted again on Sunday, (1) spewing smoke and ash high into the air. The Marapi Volcano
Observation Post in West Sumatra province recorded an eruption with an ash (2) column about 1,300m (4,265ft) high
from its peak, followed by ash rain. Sprays of ash from the eruption were seen blanketing roads and vehicles in nearby
villages. At least 100 residents have been evacuated since Friday after Indonesian authorities raised the (3) alert level of
the volcano from Level 2 to Level 3, or the second-highest level, on Wednesday.
Marapi is known for sudden eruptions that are difficult to predict because they are not caused by a deep movement of
magma, which sets (4) off tremors that register on seismic monitors. Its eruption in early December shot thick ash as
Practice 15
high as 3km (more than 9,800ft) that killed 24 climbers and injured several others who were (5) caught by a surprise
weekend eruption.
About 1,400 people live on Marapi’s slopes in Rubai and Gobah Cumantiang, the nearest villages about 5 to 6km (3.1 to
3.7 miles) from the peak. Marapi has been active since an eruption in January last year that caused no (6) casualties. It is
among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific
“Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines (7) encircling the Pacific Basin.
1. A. spewing B. chundering C. expelling D. disgorging
2. A. mass B. billow C. column D. pillar
3. A. caution B. precaution C. warning D. alert
4. A. off B. on C. about D. up
5. A. arrested B. trapped C. caught D. taken
6. A. mortality B. losses C. casualties D. victims
7. A. encirciling B. circumscribing C. encompassing D. embracing
Should the media earn money from content they don’t own?
Although digital cameras and camera phones have made it easier to capture newsworthy events, it is social media that
have revolutionised citizen photography. With news regularly breaking on social (1) ………. , some journalists are now
turning to them as (2) ………. of images as fast-moving events occur.
Unfortunately, some reporters have published user-generated content (UGC) without permission. Despite official
guidance that images (3) ………. on social media can be used without permission if there are exceptional circumstances or
(4) public interest, debate continues about whether this is ethical.
With research (5) ………. that around one in ten people would film or photograph a news event, it is clear that UGC has a
major role to (6) ………. in the future of the media. However, if the media is to prevent its relationship with the public
from souring, steps must be (7) ………. to ensure that people are properly rewarded for their work and that permission is
always (8) ………. .
1. A. networks B. complexes C. frames D. structures
2. A. bases B. sources C. roots D. springs
3. A. deposited B. planted C. imposed D. posted
4. A. sharp B. strong C. heavy D. fierce
5. A. indicating B. displaying C. presenting D. expressing
6. A. serve B. apply C. play D. face
7. A. climbed B. made C. walked D. taken
8. A. applied B. sought C. demanded D. searched
Gap fill
Harassment, alienation and depression: Life of students shouldering family dream of better future
India’s ‘cramming’ capital, where students (1) ………………. . intensive coaching for notoriously competitive college
entrance exams, has seen an unusually high number of suicides this year. Namita Singh travels to Kota to investigate the
cauldron of intense pressure (2) ………………. by young people striving for a stable career
(…) Jha says thoughts of the impending exam loom over every social (3) ………………. . “Every conversation is aimed at
weighing where the competition stands. When you even try to (4) ………………. up a conversation with someone, it
appears like you are intruding. You don’t form any intimate connection with anyone.
“When anyone talks to you here, it appears to be done only to exchange notes or to know how you are (5) ………………. in
the preparation for the exam. But no one wants to know how you are really doing. You cannot unburden yourself to
anyone. The conversation will only be for an ulterior (6) ………………..”
Kota-based psychiatrist Dr Surbhi Goyal says the lack of down time (7) ………………. has an impact on a student’s mental
health.Recreation time helps the brain focus. “Playing is beneficial because it is (8) rehauling the body, leading to the
Practice 15
release of happy chemicals… That is one of the major reasons why kids come here and don’t do well. Because the co-
curriculars that they were used to pursuing at home, suddenly come to a (9) ………………. here.”
The reasons why students put themselves through this ordeal are varied, but many come from families that would never
have been able to afford private (10) ………………. at home, and for whom the chance of a secure career means escaping
the (11) ………………. of poverty – as well as dragging up the living standards and reputation of their family as a whole. (12)
………………., particularly female students like Jha, know that there is only one alternative to a college place.
“They said if I don’t clear it this time, they will ask me to do a normal (secondary school) graduation and get me married.
(13) ………………. of the women in my family have left the house or have pursued further (14) ……………….. It is like we are
all being prepared for marriage, so we can (15) ………………. our husbands,” she says.
Word form
In the perpetual struggle against the exacerbation of poverty, a (1. CONCERT) ………………. panorama unfolds, revealing
the obstinate persistence of destitution despite assiduous endeavors by authorities. The ostensibly efficacious
stratagems deployed by governing bodies appear to falter in the face of the relentless vicissitudes of socio-economic
precarity. The recalcitrant (2. TRENCH) ………………. of impoverishment manifests as a labyrinthine quagmire, wherein the
ostensibly efficacious measures are seemingly subsumed by the (3. FARE) ………………. exigencies inherent to the socio-
economic fabric.
The intricacies of this socio-economic imbroglio are (4. PIN) ………………. by the obstinate interplay of systemic
inefficiencies and structural inequalities that obstinately perpetuate the pernicious cycle of poverty. Despite ostensibly
(5. INTEND) ………………. policies, an ontological disjuncture emerges between the intended ameliorative interventions
and the burgeoning exigencies that characterize the daily lives of the socioeconomically (6. MARGIN) ……………….. This
dissonance underscores the poignant reality that, far from being an episodic aberration, poverty has become a
pernicious ontological (7. CURRENT) ………………. that eludes facile rectification.
Moreover, the deleterious impact of (8. SEE) ………………. exigencies, such as global economic downturns and pandemics,
further compounds the conundrum of poverty amelioration. The intricately (9. WEAVE) ………………. tapestry of global
economic flux invariably disseminates reverberations into local socio-economic structures, creating an intricate web of
challenges that overwhelms extant attempts at poverty alleviation. The exigent imperative, therefore, lies in the (10.
CALIBRE) ………………. of extant policy paradigms to imbue them with a resilience that transcends the capricious
oscillations of global economic forces.
Rewrite the above passage in simple language
............................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................

Rewrite the following sentences

1. Many people thought that the call for one-day national strike was pure gesture politics. (DISMISSED)
-> The call ......................................................................................................................................... than gesture politics.
2. Receiving an encouragement medal didn’t make Thomas feel better because he only wanted to win. (CONSOLATION)
-> Receiving ..............................................................................................................................................mattered to her.
3. Although the students were trapped in the cave for a couple of days, they did not had any injuries. (WORSE)
-> The students ....................................................................................................................................... their experience.
4. She’s still young, but she has written four noticeable novels. (CREDIT)
-> Young ............................................................................................................................................................................ .
5.This is not the first time Lancome has openly disagreed with the commerce ministry. (SWORDS)
Practice 15
-> Lancome has ................................................................................................................................................................ .
6. The gardener must have arrived in the small hours to be able to finish this massive landscape. (ALMOST)
-> The gardener ................................................................................................................................................................. .
7. He is such a successful businessman that he has now become a case study. (AS)
-> His success .................................................................................................................................................................... .
8. My boyfriend and I often have different opinions on politics. (EYE)
-> When it.......................................................................................................................................................................... .
9. It's about time you started working hard. (CRACKING)
-> I'd sooner ..................................................................................................................................................................... .
10. Your empty promises won't make any impression on her. (ICE)
-> The empty ................................................................................................................................................................... .
11. My mom was just about to remember her used-to-be sworn enermy name, but just couldn't get it. (TONGUE)
→ My ................................................................................................................................................................................ .
12. The students listened eagerly and attentively to their idol’s speech. (WHAT)
-> The students were all .................................................................................................................................................... .
13. Anthony was always using my dictionary without asking me. (FREE)
→ It was a .......................................................................................................................................................................... .
14. People from all over the world come to see the scared relics of Buddha in this temple. (FAR)
-> People come ................................................................................................................................................................. .
Idioms
1. I know he tends to exaggerate, so l take everything he tells me with a pinch of salt.
2. He's so thick-skinned that I don't think he’d notice if you called him an idiot to his face.
3. Did it show that I was bored during the meeting? I tried to act as if I was interested.
4. Her father made quite a scene when she came home two hours later than she was supposed to.
5. Unless they let their daughter play with other children more, I don't think she'll ever come out of her shell.
6. I'll sleep on it and give you my decision tomorrow.
7. After having a terrible day at work, it was the last straw when her car broke down on the way home.
8. The mugger who gave the police the slip wasn't apprehended until a week later.
9. Paul is the spitting image of his father – even his mannerisms are the same.
10. Could you tell me your surname one more time? I'm afraid l've got a memory like a sieve.
11. Laura's parents assured her that they would not stand in her way if she wanted to become a pilot, and that in fact
they would help her in any way they could.
12. Arresting that woman was a long shot as there was so little evidence against her, but in the end she turned out to be
the ringleader.
13. By pulling a few strings, my friend who works at the airline managed to get us a ticket on the next flight.
14. I can't stay awake a moment longer - I'm going to hit the sack.
15. Although her friend asked her not to tell anyone about her secret wedding plans, she spilled the beans and soon
everyone knew.
Prepositions
1. Mark was saved ………….. drowning by the heroic action of his brother.
2. The board of diectors is meeting today to appoint a replacement ………….. the retiring chairman.
3. He was ery solicitous ………….. our comfort and made every effort to ensure we had a pleasant journey.
4. We'd better go out for dinner: the food we have in the house isn't sufficient ………….. the six of us.
5. When the dam broke, a surge………….. water rushed down the mountain.
6. I was smitten ………….. regret as soon as I had made the unkind comment.
7. I can't pay the electricity bill until next week because I'm very short ………….. money right now.
Practice 15
8. The manager was not sympathetic ………….. their request for a non-smoking area.
9. Ho colleagues intend to supporther ………….. her fight against discrimination in in workplace.
10. They're bringing out a sequel ………….. this television series next summer.
11. I don't understand what the teacher said about electromagnetic, because she only skated ………….. it.
12. Melanie lost consciousness and was hooked ………….. a life support machine.
13. Certainly if the volunteering spot was offered me, I'd grasp ………….. the chance.
14. He's always begging ………….. at the last minute.
15. Her English has come ………….. in leaps and bounds this year.
16. His behaviour does rather savour ………….. hypocrisy.
17. She flipped ………... the magazine looking for the fashion column.
18. We had it drummed ………….. us that we should never talk to strangers.
19. Traffic in the town has dropped ………….. since the bypass opened.
20. The new cushions nicely set ………….. the pale green of the chair covers.
21. I usually turn ………….. at about midnight.
22. As she was talking, he suddenly broke ………….., saying, " That's a lie"
23. The soldiers fell ………….. the villagers and seized all their weapons
24. She tried to laugh ………….. their remarks, but I could see she was hurt.
25. A: These letters need posting. - B: I'll see...about Tothem later.
Reading
The end of print may take some time
Peter Preston
Transition. It’s a pleasant word and a calming concept. Change may frighten some and challenge others. But transition
means going surely and sweetly from somewhere present to somewhere future. Unless, that is, it is newspapers’
‘transition’ to the online world, an uncertain and highly uncomfortable process – because, frankly, it may not be a
process at all.
1.
All of which may well be true, depending on timing, demography, geography and more. After all, everyone – from web
academics to print analysts – says so. Yet pause for a while and count a few little things that don’t quite fit.
2.
As for news and current affairs magazines – which you’d expect to find in the eye of the digital storm – they had a 5.4%
increase to report. In short, on both sides of the Atlantic, although some magazine areas went down,many showed rapid
growth.
3.
Yet, when booksellers examined the value of the physical books they sold over the last six months, they found it just 0.4%
down. Screen or paper, then? It wasn’t one or the other: it was both.
4.
And even within Europe, different countries have different stories to tell. There’s Britain, with a 10.8% drop in recent
years (and a 19.6% fall for quality papers), but in Germany the decline has only been 7% all round – with a mere 0.8%
lost to quality titles. And France shows only a 3.1% fall (0.8% at the quality end of the market).
5.
Already 360 US papers – including most of the biggest and best – have built paywalls around their products. However,
the best way of attracting a paying readership appears to be a deal that offers the print copy and digital access as some
kind of joint package.
6.
Practice 15
Of course this huge difference isn’t good news for newspaper companies, as maintaining both an active website and an
active print edition is difficult, complex and expensive. But newspaper brands still have much of their high profile in print;
adrift on the web, the job of just being noticed becomes far harder
A. In other words, print is also a crucial tool in selling internet subscriptions. And its advertising rates raise between
nine and ten times more money than online.
B. Tales like these of young people abandoning newspaper- reading are wildly exaggerated. Turn to the latest National
Readership Survey figures and you’ll find nearly 5,000,000 people aged between 15 and 35 following the main national
dailies.
C. Such varying national trends may well reflect a situation far more complicated than the prophets of digital
revolution assume. America’s media analysts used to argue that booming online advertising revenues would pay for
change and, along with lower production costs, make online newspapers a natural success. But now, with digital
advertisements on newspaper sites actually dropping back, such assumptions seem like history.
D. One is the magazine world, both in the UK and in the US. It ought to be collapsing, wrecked by the move to the
tablets which fit existing magazine page sizes so perfectly. But, in fact, the rate of decline in magazine purchasing is
relatively small, with subscriptions holding up strongly and advertising remarkably solid.
E. But surely (you say) it is bound to happen eventually. Everybody knows that print newspaper sales are plummeting
while visits to the same papers’ websites keep on soaring. Just look at the latest print circulation figures. The Daily
Telegraph, The Guardian and many of the rest are down overall between 8% and 10% year-on- year, but their websites
go ever higher.
F. You can discover a similar phenomenon when it comes to books. Kindle and similar e-readers are booming, with
sales up massively this year. The apparent first step of transition couldn’t be clearer.
G. So if sales in that area have fallen so little, perhaps the crisis mostly affects newspapers? Yet again, though, the
messages are oddly mixed. The latest survey of trends by the World Association of Newspapers shows that global
circulation rose 1.1% last year (to 512 million copies a day). Sales in the West dropped back but Asia more than made up
the difference.

Which writer
1. takes a similar view to writer A on the likely impact of voluntary work on local people’s lives? ……….
2. expresses a different view from the others on why people do international voluntary work? ……….
3. has the same opinion as writer A about the possible long-term effects on the volunteers? ……….
4. shares writer C’s concern about who the volunteers tend to be? ……….
VOLUNTEER TOURISM
Expert A. It is hard to argue that the actual contribution to development amounts to a great deal directly. Whilst
volunteer tourists can get involved in building homes or schools, they have usually paid a significant fee for the
opportunity to be involved in this work: money that, if donated to a local community directly, could potentially pay for a
greater amount of labour than the individual volunteer could ever hope to provide. This is especially so in the case of gap
years, in which the level of technical skill or professional experience required of volunteers is negligible. Hence, it is
unsurprising that many academic studies allude to the moral issue of whether gap year volunteering is principally
motivated by altruism – a desire to benefit the society visited – or whether young people aim to generate ‘cultural
capital’ which benefits them in their careers. However, the projects may play a role in developing people who will, in the
course of their careers and lives, act ethically in favour of those less well-off.
Expert B. Volunteering may lead to greater international understanding; enhanced ability to solve conflicts;
widespread and democratic participation in global affairs through global civic society organisations; and growth of
international social networks among ordinary people. In this scenario, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, an
outcome where benefits accrue to volunteers and host communities, and contribute to the global greater good.
However, if volunteering is largely limited to individuals of means from wealthier areas of the world, it may give these
Practice 15
privileged volunteers an international perspective, and a career boost, but it will do little for people and communities
who currently lack access to international voluntary work. Those who volunteer will continue to reap its benefits, using
host organisations and host communities as a rung on the ladder of personal advancement.
Expert C. At its worst, international volunteering can be imperialist, paternalistic charity, volunteer tourism, or a self-
serving quest for career and personal development on the part of well-off Westerners. Or it can be straightforward
provision of technical assistance for international development. At its best, international volunteering brings benefits
(and costs) to individual volunteers and the organisations within which they work, at the same time as providing the
space for an exchange of technical skills, knowledge, and cross-cultural experience in developing communities. Most
significantly, volunteering can raise awareness of, and a lifelong commitment to combating, existing unequal power
relations and deep-seated causes of poverty, injustice, and unsustainable development.
Expert D. Volunteer tourism seems to fit well with the growth of life strategies to help others. Such limited strategies,
aimed at a humble ‘making a difference’, can appear positive and attractive in an anti-political climate. The personal
element appears positive – it bypasses big government and eschews big business. Yet it also bypasses the democratic
imperative of representative government and reduces development to individual acts of charity, most often ones that
seek to work around rather than transform the situations of poor, rural societies. Cynicism at the act of volunteering is
certainly misplaced. The act of volunteer tourism may involve only simple, commendable charity. However, where
volunteer tourism is talked up as sustainable development and the marketing of the gap-year companies merges into
development thinking, this is symptomatic of a degradation of the discourse of development. The politics of volunteer
tourism represents a retreat from a social understanding of global inequalities and the poverty lived by so many in the
developing word.

Now everyone is connected, is this the death of conversation?

As our meeting places fall silent, save for tapping on screens, it seems we have mistaken connection for the real thing
Simon Jenkins
I first noticed it in a restaurant. The place was oddly quiet, and at one table a group sat with their heads bowed, their
eyes hooded and their hands in their laps. I then realised that every one, whatever their age group, was gazing at a
handheld phone or tablet. People strolled in the street outside likewise, with arms at right angles, necks bent and heads
in awkward postures. Mothers with babies were doing it. Students in groups were doing it. The scene resembled
something from an old science- fiction film. There was no conversation.
Every visit to California convinces me that the digital revolution is over, by which I mean it is won. Everyone is
connected. The New York Times last week declared the death of conversation. While mobile phones may at last be falling
victim to considerate behaviour, this is largely because even talk is considered too intimate a contact. No such bar applies
to emailing, texting, messaging, posting and tweeting. It is ubiquitous, the ultimate connectivity, the brain wired full-time
to infinity.
The MIT professor and psychologist Sherry Turkle claims that her students are close to mastering the art of
maintaining eye contact with a person while texting someone else. It is like an organist playing different tunes with hands
and feet. To Turkle, these people are ‘alone together ... a tribe of one’. Anyone with 3,000 Facebook friends has none.
The audience in many theatres now sit, row on row, with lit machines in their laps, looking to the stage occasionally
but mostly scrolling and tapping away. The same happens at meetings and lectures, in coffee bars and on jogging tracks.
Psychologists have identified this as ‘fear of conversation’, and have come up with the term ‘conversational avoidance
devices’ for headphones.
In consequence, there is now a booming demand for online ‘conversation’ with robots and artificial voices. Mobiles
come loaded with customised ‘boyfriends’ or ‘girlfriends’. People sign up with computerised dating advisors, even claim
to fall in love with their on-board GPS guides. A robot seal can be picked up in online stores to sit and listen to elderly
individuals talk, tilting its head and blinking in sympathy.
Practice 15
In his Conversation: A History of a Declining Art, Stephen Miller notes that public discourse is now dominated by ill-
tempered disagreement, by ‘intersecting monologues’. Anger and lack of restraint are treated as assets in public debate,
in place of a willingness to listen and adjust one’s point of view. Politics thus becomes a platform of rival angers.
American politicians are ever more polarised, reduced to conveying a genuine hatred for each other.
All that said, the death of conversation has been announced as often as that of the book. As far back as the 18th
century, the literary figure Samuel Johnson worried that the decline of political conversation would lead to violent civil
disorder. Writing 70 years ago, George Orwell concluded that ‘the trend of the age was away from creative communal
amusements and toward solitary mechanical ones’. Somehow we have muddled through.
The ‘post-digital’ phenomenon, the craving for live experience, is showing a remarkable vigour. The US is a place of
ever greater congregation and migration, to parks, beaches and restaurants, to concerts, rock festivals, ball games.
Common interest groups, springing up across the country, desperately seek escape from the digital dictatorship, using
Facebook and Twitter not as destinations but as route maps to meet up with real people.
Somewhere in this cultural mix I am convinced the desire for friendship will preserve the qualities essential for a
civilised life, qualities of politeness, listening and courtesy. Those obsessed with fashionable connectivity and personal
avoidance are not escaping reality. They may be unaware of it but deep down they, too, still want someone to talk to.
1. The writer believes the main reason for the decreasing use of mobile phones is
A. the realisation that it is bad manners to use them in public places.
B. an overall reduction in the use of electronic devices for communication.
C. the fact that people are increasingly reluctant to speak to one another.
D. a general feeling that they are rapidly becoming obsolete technology.
2. According to Sherry Turkle, certain people nowadays are
A. determined to return to a more traditional form of social structure.
B. electronically connected but isolated from genuine human interaction.
C. incapable of forming true friendships except through social media.
D. more skillful at communicating with others via music than in words.
3. The writer uses the example of the ‘seal’ to show
A. how far the technology of artificial intelligence has progressed.
B. that electronic companions are regarded as non-threatening.
C. how robots can help those unable to find a romantic partner.
D. the negative impact of internet search engines on conversation.
4. What point is made in the sixth paragraph about the current nature of public discussion?
A. Speakers are expected to behave aggressively towards each other.
B. Political parties are becoming increasingly extreme in their views.
C. The behaviour of public figures reflects lower standards in society.
D. Fewer people dare to contradict the opinions of other speakers.
5. The writer mentions ‘the book’ as
A. an example of something else that people wrongly predicted would disappear.
B. the basis of the theory that people would soon stop talking to each other.
C. a way of introducing the works of famous writers from earlier centuries.
D. the source of information about the current state of political debate in the USA.
6. What point does the writer make in the final paragraph?
A. Nobody can escape the negative effects of the digital revolution.
B. Some traditional human values are eventually bound to disappear.
C. Everybody needs human contact whether they realise it or not.
D. Only those who remain polite and courteous will have friends.
Practice 15
Which athlete makes the following statements?
1. The average runner is likely to suffer at least one injury every twelve months. ………
2. There is no evidence that doing other sports helps runners avoid injury. ………
3. Building up muscle can help prevent injury. ………
4. Stretching prior to running has no beneficial effects. ………
5. At the beginning of a training programme, don’t try to do too much too soon. ………
6. The kind of surface you run on makes little difference to the risk of injury. ………
7. Avoid speeding up right at the end of a run. ………
8. It is advisable to do some gentle exercise just after you finish running. ………
9. The biggest risk comes from not having adequate breaks from training. ………
10. Pain does not always mean you must stop training immediately. ………
Athlete A. Wearing the correct running shoes is essential if injury is to be avoided. However, the shock transmitted
through the body when running on different types of ground hardly varies at all, as the athlete subconsciously adjusts
the stiffness of their leg according to whether their foot is about to land on tarmac, track or grass. Even so, it makes
sense to reduce the degree of foot impact, and therefore the danger of stress injuries, by diversifying one’s general
fitness training. This could include cycling and swimming, while weight training has a role to play in this respect by
strengthening the body and thereby improving posture and balance. Needless to say, such training should cease at the
slightest sign of any discomfort.
Athlete B. Pain, of course, can be a warning sign of impending injury, and many coaching manuals warn of the dire
consequences should an athlete be so foolish as to try to run through it. In severe cases that warning undoubtedly makes
sense, but I would take issue with it regarding milder conditions such as muscle soreness that are an inevitable by-
product of a hard workout. To minimise post-training discomfort, I’d always make a point of doing a little cooling- down
work such as stretching. It also makes sense to cross-train, to strike a balance between running and other disciplines like
cycling and rowing, both of which have the advantage of providing relief from the constant pavement pounding which
must surely have a harmful effect on marathon runners, above all.
Athlete C. Research shows that the key to preventing injuries occurring is to learn how to run injury-free rather than
cross-train, which in fact involves practising movement patterns that have nothing at all in common with running. In
some cases, such as weightlifting, cross-training activities can actually cause other kinds of damage that can set a
runner’s training programme back weeks or even months. Conventional wisdom also has it that pre-exercise stretching
lowers the risk, whereas studies comparing the incidence of lower-limb injuries among those who stretch before training
and those who don’t show no difference whatsoever. Stretching at other times, such as in the evening, does seem to
reduce injury risk, although there are probably more effective ways of doing so, for instance by habitually training on soft
surfaces.
Athlete D. As a runner, the odds are against you remaining injury-free for a full year, and those odds shorten
dramatically if you fail to allow sufficient time for your body to recover between sessions, whether they be workouts,
training or racing. Second only to that as a risk factor is being over-ambitious in terms of what you can reasonably hope
to achieve when taking up serious running. Everyone likes to win and there’s no harm in finishing a race strongly, but try
to progress step by step at first. At the first sign of any pain or discomfort, take note of what your body is telling you and
stop running straightaway.
Athlete E. Over the two and a half years I’ve been running, I’ve only had one physical problem severe enough to force
a reduction in training, which from what I can gather is about average. To be blunt, I’ve never really seen the point of so-
called preventative measures such as gradually increasing running speeds when you’re starting out, or taking regular
breaks from training. I suppose the only exceptions are stretching, which everyone seems to agree is essential, and
maintaining an even pace while running, on the grounds that finishing strongly may feel empowering, but that is
precisely when your running is at its most erratic and your muscles are at their most susceptible to strains and tears.