READING PASSAGE 1

Fishbourne Roman Palace

Fishbourne Roman Palace is in the village of Fishbourne in West Sussex, England.
This large palace was built in the 1st century AD, around thirty years after the
Roman conquest of Britain ,on the site of Roman army grain stores which had
been established after the invasion, in the reign of the Roman Emperor Claudius in
43 AD. The rectangular palace was built around formal gardens, the northern half
of which have been reconstructed. There were extensive alterations in the
2nd and 3rd centuries AD, with many of the original black and white mosaic floors
being overlaid with more sophisticated coloured ones , including a perfectly
preserved mosaic of a dolphin in the north wing. More alterations were in
progress when the palace burnt down in around 270AD,after which it was
abandoned.
Local people had long believed that a Roman palace once existed in the area
.However, it was not until 1960 that the archaeologist Barry Cunliffe, of Oxford
University, first systematically excavated the site, after workmen had accidentally
uncovered a wall while they were laying a water main .The Roman villa excavated
by Cunliffe's team was so grand that it became known as Fishbourne Roman
Palace ,and a museum was erected to preserve some of the remains .This is
administered by the Sussex Archaeological Society.
In its day, the completed palace would have comprised four large wings with
colonnaded fronts. The north and east wings consisted of suites of private rooms
built around courtyards, with a monumental entrance in the middle of the east
wing. In the north-east corner there was an assembly hall. The west wing
contained state rooms, a large ceremonial reception room, and a gallery. The
south wing contained the owner’s private apartments. The palace included as
many as 50 mosaic floors, under-floor central heating and a bathhouse. In size,
Fishbourne Palace would have been approximately equivalent to some of the
great Roman palaces of Italy, and was by far the largest known Roman residence
north of the European Alps, at about 500 feet (150m)square. A team of volunteers
and professional archaeologists are involved in an ongoing archaeological
excavation on the site of nearby, possibly military, buildings.
The first buildings to be erected on the site were constructed in the early part of
the conquest in 43 AD. Later, two timber buildings were constructed, one with clay
and mortar floors and plaster walls, which appears to have been a house of some
comfort. These buildings were demolished in the 60s AD and replaced by a
substantial stone house, which included colonnades, and a bath suite. It has been
suggested that the palaces itself, incorporating the previous house in its south-
east corner, was constructed around 73-75 AD. However, Dr Miles Russell, of
Bournemouth University, reinterpreted the ground plan and the collection of
objects found and has suggested that, given the extremely close parallels with the
imperial palace of Domitian in Rome, its construction may more plausibly date to
after 92 AD.
With regard to who lived in Fishbourne Palace, there are a number of theories; for
example ,one proposed by Professor Cunliffe is that ,in its early phase, the palace
was the residence of Tiberius
Claudius Cogidubnus ,a local chieftain who supported the Romans ,and who may
have been installed as king of a number of territories following the first stage of
the conquest. Cogidubnus is known from a reference to his loyalty in Agricola, a
work by the Roman writer Tacitus, and from an inscription commemorating a
temple dedicated to the gods Neptune and Minerva found in the nearby city of
Chichester. Another theory is that it was built for Sallustius Lucullus, a Roman
governor of Britain of the late 1st century, who may have been the son of the
British prince Adminius. Two inscriptions recording the presence of Lucullus have
been found in Chichester, and the redating by Miles Russell of the palace was
designed for Lucullus, then it may have only been in use for a few years, as the
Roman historian Suetonius records that Lucullus was executed by the Emperor
Domitian in or shortly after 93 AD.
Additional theories suggest that either Verica, a British king of the Roman Empire
in the years preceding the Claudian invasion, was owner of the palace, or Tiberius
Claudius Catuarus , following the recent discovery of a gold ring belonging to him.
The palace outlasted the original owner, whoever he was, and was extensively re-
planned early in the 2nd century AD, and subdivided into a series of lesser
apartments. Further redevelopment was begun in the late 3rd century AD, but
these alterations were incomplete when the north wing was destroyed in a fire in
around 270 AD. The damage was too great repair, and the palace was abandoned
and later dismantled.
A modern museum had been built by the Sussex Archaeological Society,
incorporating most of the visible remains , including one wing of the palace. The
gardens have been re-planted using authentic plants from the Roman period.
Questions 1-6
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage
?
In boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet,write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1 Fishbourne Palace was the first structure to be built on its site.
2 Fishbourne Palace was renovated more than once
3 Fishbourne Palace was large in comparison with Roman palaces in Italy.
4 Research is continuing in the area clos to Fishbourne Palace.
5 Researches agree on the identity of the person for whom Fishbourne Palace
was constructed.
6 Fishbourne Palace was burnt down by local people.
Questions 7-13
Complete the notes below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for
each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 7-13 on your answer sheet.
Fishbourne Palace
Costruction
 The first buildings on the site contained food for the 7
 The palace building surrounded 8
 In the 2nd and 3rd centuries colour was added to the 9 of the palace.
Discovery
 The first part of the palace to the found was part of a 10
Possible inhabitants
 Congidubnus -he is named in several writings
 Sallustius Lucullu-he may have lived there until
approximately 11. AD
 Verica -a British king
 Catuarus-his 12 . was found there
Present Day
• A 13 . has been built on the site to help protect it.
READING PASSAGE 2
Insect decision-making

A. It has long been held that decision made collectively by large groups of
people are more likely to turn out to be accurate than decisions made by
individuals. The idea goes back to the 'jury theorem’ of Nicolas de Condorcet, an
18th-century French philosopher who was one of the first to apply mathematics
to the social sciences. Condorcet’s theory describes collective decisions, outlining
how democratic decisions tend to outperform dictatorial ones. If, for example,
each member of a jury has only partial information ,the majority decision is more
likely to be correct than a decision arrived at by a single juror. Moreover, the
probability of a correct decision increases with the size of the jury.
B. Now it is becoming clear that group decisions are also extremely valuable
for the success of social animals, such as ants ,bees .birds and dolphins .Bees
make collective decisions ,and they do it rather well, according to Christian List of
the London School of Economics ,who has studied group decision-making in
humans and animals. Researchers led by Dr List looked at colonies once the
original colony reaches a certain size. The queen goes off with about two-thirds of
the worker bees to live in a new home or nest, leaving a daughter queen in the old
nest with the remaining workers. Among the bees that depart are some that have
searched for and found some new nest sites, and reported back using a
characteristic body movement known as a 'waggle dance' to indicate to the other
bees the suitable places they have located. The longer the dance, the better the
site. After a while, other bees start to visit the sites signaled by their companions
to see for themselves and, on their return, also perform more waggle dances. The
process eventually leads to a consensus on the best site and the breakaway swarm
migrates. The decision is remarkably reliable ,with the bees choosing the best site
even when there are only small difference between alternative sites.
C. But exactly how do bees reach such a robust consensus? To find out ,Dr List
and his colleagues used a computer generated model of the decision-making
process. By experimenting with it they found that, when bees in the model were
very good at finding nesting sites but did not share their information, this
dramatically slowed down the migration .leaving the swarm homelss and
vulnerable .Conversely .bees in the model blindly following the waggle dances of
others without first checking. The researchers concluded that the ability of bees to
identify successfully and quickly the best site depends on both the bees
‘interdependence in communicating the whereabouts of the bees site, and their
independence in confirming this information for themselves.
D. Another situation in which collective decisions are taken occurs when
animals are either isolated from crucial sources of information or dominated by
other members of the group. José Halloy of the Free University of Brussels in
Belgium used robotic cockroaches to subvert the behaviour of living cockroaches
and control their decision-making process. In his experiment, the artificial bugs
were introduced to the live ones and soon became sufficiently socially integrated
that they were perceived by the real cockroaches as equals. By manipulating the
robots, which were in the minority, Halloy was able to persuade the living
cockroaches to choose an inappropriate shelter-even one which they had rejected
before being infiltrated by the robots.
E. The way insects put into effect collective decisions can be complex and as
important as the decisions themselves .At the University of Bristol, in the UK,
Nigel Franks and his colleagues studied how a species of ant establishes a new
nest. Franks and his associates reported how the insects reduce the problems
associated with making a necessarily swift choice. If the ants’ existing nest
become suddenly threatened, the insects choose certain ants to act as scouts to
find a new nest.
How quickly they accomplish the transfer to a new home depends not only on
how soon the best available site is found, but also on how quickly the migration
there can be achieved.
F. Once the suitable new nest is identified , the chosen ants begin to lead
others , which have made it to the new site or which may simply be in the vicinity,
back to the original threatened nest. In this way, those ants which are familiar
with the route can help transport ,for example ,the queen and young ants to the
new site, and simultaneously show the way to those ants which have been left
behind to guard the old nest. In this way moving processes are accomplished
faster and more efficiently. Thus the dynamics of collective decision-making are
closely related to the efficient implementation of those decisions .How this might
apply to choices that humans make is , as yet,unclear. But it does suggest, even for
humans ,the importance of recruiting dynamic leaders to a cause,because the
most important thing about collective decision-making ,as shown by these insect
experiments, is to get others to follow.
Questions 14-19
Reading Passage has six paragraphs,A-F
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i-vii, in boxes 14-19 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i The effect of man-made imitations on insects
ii The need to instruct additional insect guides
iii Signals used by certain insects to indicate a discovery
iv How urgency can affect the process of finding a new home
v The use of trained insects in testing scientific theories
vi The use of virtual scenarios in the study of insect behaviour
vii How the number of decision-makers affects the decision
14 Paragraph A

15 Paragraph B

16 Paragraph C

17 Paragraph D

18 Paragraph E

19 Paragraph F

Questions 20-23
Look at the following findings (Questions 20-23) and the list of academics below.
Match each finding with the correct academic, A-D
Write the correct letter, A-D, in boxes 20-23 on your answer sheet.
NB you may use any letter more than once.
20 Certain members can influence the rest of the group to alter a previous
decision.

21 Individual verification of a proposed choice is important for successful

decision outcome.

22 The more individuals taking part in a decision, the better the decision will be.

23 The decision-making process of certain insects produces excellent results

even when fine distinctions are required.
 List of Academics
A Nicolas de Condorcet
B Christian List and colleagues
C José Halloy
D Nigel Franks and colleagues
Questions 24-26
Complete the summary below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 24-26 on your answer sheet.

A study of insect decision-making

A Bristol University study looked at how insects make decisions when their home
has been 24
The ants in the experiment relied on the use of individuals called 25
new nest and efficiently direct the others to go there. The study concluded that
the effective implementation of the ants' decision meant that the insects could
change homes quickly. The study emphasized the necessity, for people well as
insects,of having active 26. in order to execute decisions successfully.

READING PASSAGE 3

Fear of the Unknown

A. American companies fear that innovation is the secret of success-and that they
cannot innovate
In the small Umagic office in midtown Manhattan, a team of 30 computer
programmers are working on setting up websites that will allow subscribers to
feed in details about themselves and their problems and to receive advice from
‘virtual’ versions of personalities regarded as experts in their fields: for example, a
well-known dietician, a celebrity fitness trainer, a psychologist well known in the
media for here work on parent-child relationships . Umagic Systems is a young
firm and it’s hard to predict how far they’ll go .hl ten years’ time, consulting a
computer about your diet problems might seem natural or it might seem absurd.
But the company and others like it are beginning to seriously worry large
American firms, who see such half-crazy new and innovative ideas as a threat to
their own future success.

B.Innovation has become a major concern of American management. Firms have

found that it is increasingly difficult to redesign existing products or to produce
them more economically. The stars of American business tend today to be
innovators such as Amazon (the internet bookstore) and Wal-Mart (the
supermarket chain) which have produced completely new ideas or products that
have changed their industries. Over the past 15 years, the firms which have
achieved the greatest profits have been the ones which have had the most
innovations. But such profits aren’t easy to come by .One of the reasons for the
increasing number of mergers between companies is a desperate search for new
ideas. And a fortune is spent nowadays on identifying and protecting intellectual
property: other people’s ideas.

C.According to the Pasadena-based Patent & License Exchange in the United

States , trading in intangible assets such as intellectual property rose from$15
billion in 1990 to $ 100 billion in 1998,with an increasing proportion of the
rewards going to small firms and individuals.

D.And therein lies the terror for big companies : that innovation seems to work
best outside them. Many of the large established companies have been struggling
to come up with new products recently.' In the management of creativity ,size is
your enemy,’ argues Peter Chemin ,who runs Fox TV and film empire for News
Corporation. "One person managing 20 movies is never going to be as involved as
one doing five movies .'He has thus tried to break down the studio into smaller
units ,even at the risk of incurring higher costs.

E.It is easier for ideas to develop outside big firms these days. In the past, if a
clever scientist had an idea he wanted to commercialise ,he would take it first to a
big company. Now, with the banks encouraging individuals to set up new
businesses through offering special loans, innovators are more likely to set up on
their own. Umagic has already raised $5 million and is about to raise $25 million
more. Even in capital-intensive businesses such as pharmaceuticals, entrepreneurs
can conduct profitable, early- stage research,selling out to the big firms when they
reach expensive,risky clinical trials.
F.Some giants, including General Electric and Cisco, have been remarkably
successful at buying up and integrating scores of small companies. But many
others worry about the prices they have to pay and the difficulty in keeping hold
of the people who dreamt up the ideas . Everybody would like to develop more
ideas in-house. Procter & Gamble is now changing the entire direction of its
business from global expansion to product development; one of its new aims is to
get innovations accepted across the company .Elsewhere ,the search for
innovation had led to a craze for ' intrapreneurship ’ -giving more power to
individuals in the company and setting up internal ideas -factories so that talents
staff will not leave.

G.And yet innovation does not happen just because the chief executive wills it.
Indeed ,it is extremely difficult to come up with new ideas year in, year out,
especially brilliant ones. Underneath all experts' diagrams , lists and charts ,most
of the available answers seem to focus on two strengths that are difficult to
impose: a culture that looks for new ideas, and leaders who know which ones to
back. Companies have to discredit the widespread view that jobs working on new
products are for ‘those who can't cope in the real business'. They have to change
the culture by introducing hard incentives, such as giving more generous bonuses
to those who come up with successful new ideas and, particularly ,not punishing
those whose experiments fail.

H.Will all this reorganization and culture tweaking make big firms more creative?
David Post, the founder of Umagic, isn't so sure:’ He also recalls with glee the
looks of total incomprehension when he tried to sell his 'virtual experts ' idea
three years ago to firms such IBM , though ,as he cheerfully adds,’ of course, they
could have been right'. Apparently, innovation -unlike diet,fitness and parenting -is
one area where a computer cannot tell you what to do.
Questions 27-33
Reading Passage has eight paragraphs A-H.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A-H, in boxes 27-33 on your answer sheet.
NB you may use any letter more than once.
27 the methods some companies use to try to keep their most creative
employees
28 a new way of getting help with your personal difficulties
29 how much investment goes into safeguarding the ideas of individuals
30 two examples of companies which have succeeded through being innovative
31 how some innovators manage to avoid spending large sums of money
on testing out their ideas
32 a commonly held opinion about product designers that needs to be
proved wrong
33 the target of one large company that has changed its business focus
Questions 34-37
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?
In boxes 34-37 on your answer sheet,write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
34 Umagic Systems is an example of a new innovative company.
35 Amazon and Wal-Mart have exchanged successful ideas on innovation.
36 Using financial rewards to encourage innovation is an outdated practice.
37 IBM failed to understand David Post's 'virtual experts’ idea.

Questions 38-40
Choose the correct letter, A,B,C or D
Write the correct letter in boxes 12-14 on your answer sheet.
38. What point does the writer make about intellectual property?
A It can be lost when firms merge.
B It tends to belong to companies rather than individuals.
C It is valued more than it used to be.
D It is not usually owned by small companies.
39. Peter Chemin is an example of someone who has realized that
A large companies are less innovative than small ones.
B other businesses are more innovative than the film business,
C his employees need more experience of innovation.
D he is the best person to encourage innovation.
40. In conclusion, the writer suggests that
A computer-based industries cannot be innovative.
B big firms are right to be cautious about innovation,
C small firms should not worry about early failures.
D innovation will always involve some uncertainty.
1. FALSE (Đoạn 1, “The rectangular palace was built around formal gardens, the
northern half of which have been reconstructed.”)
2. TRUE (Đoạn
3. TRUE (Đoạn 3, “In size, Fishbourne Palace would have been approximately
equivalent to some of the great Roman palaces of Italy, and was by far the largest
known Roman residence north of the European Alps, at about 500 feet (150m2)
4. TRUE (Đoạn 3, “A team of volunteers and professional archaeologists are
involved in an ongoing archaeological excavation on the site of nearby, possibly
military, buildings.”)
5. FALSE (Đoạn 5, “With regard to who lived in Fishbourne Palace, there are a
number of theories;”)
6. NOT GIVEN (Không có thông tin)
7. Roman army (Đoạn 1, “This large palace was built in the 1st century AD, around
thirty years after the Roman conquest of Britain, on the site of Roman army grain
stores…”)
8. Gardens (Đoạn 1, “The rectangular palace was built around formal gardens, the
northern half of which have been reconstructed.”)
9. Floors (Đoạn 1, “…with many of the original black and white
mosaic floors being overlaid with more sophisticated coloured ones”)
10. Wall (Đoạn 2, “…first systematically excavated the site, after workmen had
accidentally uncovered a wall while they were laying a water main.”)
11. 93 (Đoạn 5, “as the Roman historian Suetonius records that Lucullus was
executed by the Emperor Domitian in or shortly after 93 AD.”)
12. Gold ring (Đoạn 6, “…following the recent discovery of a gold ring belonging to
him.”)
13. Modern museum (Đoạn 7, “A modern museum had been built by the Sussex
Archaeological Society…’)
14. vii
15. iii
16. vi
17. i
18.iv
19.ii
20.C
21.B
22.A
23.B
24. threatened
25. scouts
26. leaders
27. F
28.A
29.C
30.B
31.E
32.G
33.F
34. TRUE
35. NOT GIVEN
36. FALSE
37. TRUE
38. C
39. A
40. D