REVISION FOR READING 4

A. SAMPLE TEST

TEST FORMAT
 Time allowance: 60 minutes
 Total number of questions: 40 (including 30 multiple-choice questions and 10 short-answer
questions)
NUMBER OF
SECTION SCORE
QUESTIONS
PART 1: Health & Lifestyle – MCQs 10 2.5 points
PART 2: Society & Nature – MCQs 10 2.5 points
PART 3: Science & Technology – MCQs 10 2.5 points
PART 4: Environment & Ecology – Short Answers 10 2.5 points

ANSWER SHEET – CODE ...

PART 1 (……/2.5 points) PART 3 (……/2.5 points)
1. 21.
2. 22.
3. 23.
4. 24.
5. 25.
6. 26.
7. 27.
8. 28.
9. 29.
10. 30.
PART 2 (……/2.5 points) PART 4 (……/2.5 points)
11. 31.
12. 32.
13. 33.
14. 34.
15. 35.
16. 36.
17. 37.
18. 38.
19. 39.
20. 40.

READING 4 – REVISION 1
 QUESTION PAPER – CODE 1
I. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
Potash (the old name for potassium carbonate) is one of the two alkalis (the other being soda, sodium
carbonate) that were used from remote antiquity in the making of glass, and from the early Middle Ages
in the making of soap: the former being the product of heating a mixture of alkali and sand, the latter a
product of alkali and vegetable oil. Their importance in the communities of colonial North America need
hardly be stressed. Potash and soda are not interchangeable for all purposes, but for glass-or soap-
making either would do. Soda was obtained largely from the ashes of certain Mediterranean Sea plants,
potash from those of inland vegetation. Hence potash was more familiar to the early European settlers of
the North American continent. The settlement at Jamestown in Virginia was in many ways a microcosm
of the economy of colonial North America, and potash was one of its first concerns. It was required for
the glassworks, the first factory in the British colonies, and was produced in sufficient quantity to permit
the inclusion of potash in the first cargo shipped out of James town. The second ship to arrive in the
settlement from England included among its passengers experts in potash making. The method of making
potash was simple enough. Logs was piled up and burned in the open, and the ashes collected. The ashes
were placed in a barrel with holes in the bottom, and water was poured over them. The solution draining
from the barrel was boiled down in iron kettles. The resulting mass was further heated to fuse the mass
into what was called potash. In North America, potash making quickly became an adjunct to the clearing
of land for agriculture, for it was estimated that as much as half the cost of clearing land could be
recovered by the sale of potash. Some potash was exported from Maine and New Hampshire in the
seventeenth century, but the market turned out to be mainly domestic, consisting mostly of shipments
from the northern to the southern colonies. For despite the beginning of the trade at Jamestown and such
encouragements as a series of acts to encourage the making of potash, beginning in 1707 in South
Carolina, the softwoods in the South proved to be poor sources of the substance.

1. What aspect of potash does the passage mainly discuss?

A. How it was made B. Its value as a product for export
C. How it differs from other alkalis D. Its importance in colonial North America

2. All of the following statements are true of both potash and soda EXCEPT ______.
A. They are alkalis. B. They are made from sea plants.
C. They are used in making soap. D. They are used in making glass.

3. The phrase "the latter" in the passage refers to ________.

A. alkali B. glass C. sand D. soap

4. The word "stressed" in the passage could be best replaced by ________.

A. defined B. emphasized C. adjusted D. mentioned

5. The word "interchangeable" in the passage is closest in meaning to _______.

A. convenient B. identifiable C. equivalent D. advantageous

6. It can be inferred from the passage that potash was more common than soda in colonial North
America because ________.
A. the materials needed for making soda were not readily available
B. making potash required less time than making soda

READING 4 – REVISION 2
C. potash was better than soda for making glass and soap
D. the colonial glassworks found soda more difficult to use

7. According to the passage, all of the following were needed for making potash EXCEPT _______.
A. wood B. fire C. sand D. water

8. The word "adjunct" in the passage is closest in meaning to ……

A. addition B. answer C. problem D. possibility

9. According to the passage, a major benefit of making potash was that …….
A. it could be exported to Europe in exchange for other goods
B. it helped finance the creation of farms
C. it could be made with a variety of materials
D. stimulated the development of new ways of glassmaking

10. According to the passage, the softwoods in the South posed which of the following problems for
southern settlers?
A. The softwoods were not very plentiful.
B. The softwoods could not be used to build houses.
C. The softwoods were not very marketable.
D. The softwoods were not very useful for making potash.

II. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) is a method of producing electricity developed from the
temperature difference that subsists between deep and shallow waters. It converts solar radiation to
electric power. The system uses the ocean’s natural thermal gradient to direct a power-producing cycle.
To produce a significant amount of power, the temperature between warm water on the surface and deep
cold water should differ by about 20 degrees Celsius. On average, 23 million square miles of tropical seas
absorb an amount of solar radiation equal in heat content to about 250 million barrels of oil. If less than
one tenth of this could be converted into electric power, it would provide more than 20 times the total
amount of electricity utilized in America on any given day.
Oceans are a huge renewable resource with the possibility of producing millions of watts of electric
power. Some experts think the cold, deep seawater that is used in the OTEC process is rich in nutrients
and, therefore, can be used to culture marine and plant life on shore or on land.
There are certain conditions which have to be met to enable OTEC to work. First, commercial OTEC
facilities must be located in an environment that is stable enough for efficient system operation. This
means that they must be built on land or submerged on the continental shelf. In addition, the natural ocean
thermal gradient necessary for OTEC operation is generally found between latitudes 20° N and 20° s. The
temperature of the surface water must differ from that of deep water and allowances should be made
for a wide-open space. Tropical islands meet the requirements for a wide space, so they are areas for
development: Land-based facilities offer advantages. For example, plants do not require extensive
maintenance, and they can be installed in sheltered areas, safe from storms and general bad weather.
Land- based sites allow OTEC plants to function with related industries.
Thermal energy from the ocean was first proposed as far back as 1881. However, it wasn’t until 1930 that
a system was built, producing 22kw of electricity. Another was constructed sometime later, but It was
destroyed by waves. In 1980, the U.S department of energy built a site for OTEC heat exchangers on
board a navy ship. Tests revealed that OTEC systems are able to function on slow moving ships and are
of little consequence to the surrounding marine environment.
READING 4 – REVISION 3
In 1981, Japan established a closed-cycle plant in the Pacific Ocean, producing 40,000 watts of
electricity: In May 1993, another 50,000 watts of electricity was produced. However, it was an
impractical energy source as the materials used were expensive. Currently, scientists are continuing to
develop more cost effective and open-cycle OTEC systems. An integrated OTEC system can help
create harmonious, self-sustaining island communities, independent of imported fossil fuels and
their associated costs.
Tidal energy is another form of ocean energy caused by the gravitational pull of the moon and sun, and
the rotation of the Earth. When tides come into shore, they can be trapped in reservoirs behind dams.
Then when the tide lowers, the water behind the dam can be released, functioning similarly to a
hydroelectric power plant. Tidal dams can change the tidal level In the local basin, affecting the
navigation. The prime disadvantage is th e effect a tidal station has on plants and animals. However, tidal
fences, which are also used to channel the energy of tides, have less environmental impact than traditional
sources of power such as fossil fuels or nuclear power, and are cheaper to install.
Turbines are devices with blades attached to a central rod that spin when a force hits the blades. [A] This
spinning motion is extremely practical. The first turbine used was the undershot waterwheel, probably
the oldest type of waterwheel dating back over 2,000 years. [B] Waterwheels and windmills were the first
turbines; their wooden blades captured the power of wind or rivers to lift water for Irrigation or to rotate
huge stones to grind grain. [C] It wasn’t until the 1880s, when the generator was first invented, that
people began using turbines to produce electricity. [D]

11. According to paragraph 1, OTEC uses what to produce power?

A. The wave energy stored in the Earth’s oceans B. The salt in the ocean
C. The seawater temperature differences D. The tropical oceans’ warm surface water

12. The word “absorb” in the passage is closest in meaning to

A. take in B. work together with C. reject D. make efficient

13. The word “converted” in the passage is closest in meaning to

A. consumed B. released C. used D. transformed

14. In paragraph 3, the author mentions “The temperature of the surface water” as an example of
_____.
A. the requirements for the perfect OTEC settlement
B. the specific requirements needed for OTEC to work
C. the careful calculations and considerations needed in OTEC
D. why water based programs are always superior to land-based ones

15. According to paragraph 5, what does the author say was the main problem with the closed cycle
plant in the Pacific Ocean?
A. It was damaged by the salt water.
B. It was environmentally damaging to the area.
C. It could not generate electricity without pollution.
D. The overall cost was far too high to be economically feasible.

16. Which of the following best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence?
Incorrect answer choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
A. The beauty of the OTEC system is that it allows islands to be self-sufficient.
B. The OTEC system could prove to lead the world in an age of co-dependency.
C. A completely autonomous, cost effective society could be created by the system.
D. The system could mean that societies are no longer dependent on fossil fuels.
READING 4 – REVISION 4
17. According to paragraph 6, which of the following is true of tidal energy?
A. It is derived from the hydrological climate cycle.
B. It is based on the small fluctuation of tide in a given area.
C. It has no environmental and ecological effects on local inhabitants.
D. It needs a barrage to convert tidal energy into electricity.

18. The word “practical” in the passage is closest in meaning to______ .

A. unnecessary B. swift C. useful D. sensitive

19. The following are all characteristics of the OTEC system EXCEPT_______ .
A. It seeks to harness the temperature difference.
B. It is not technically feasible for the production of base load electricity.
C. It can be practiced on slow moving ships.
D. It can create self-sufficient systems.

20. Look at the four squares [__] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the
passage.
It was turned by water flowing under the wheel and striking the boards.
Where would the sentence best fit?
A. [A] B. [B] C. [C] D. [D]

III. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
In 1969, a key milestone in space travel was reached when Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon. In 2001,
another landmark event took place when the first civilian traveled into space as a paying tourist. As a
teenager, Dennis Tito dreamed of visiting outer space. As a young man, he aspired to become an
astronaut and earned a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in aerospace engineering. However, Tito did not
have all the qualities necessary to become a professional astronaut; so instead, he went to work as a space
engineer in one of NASA’s laboratories for five years. Later, Tito set up his own financial investment
company and, eventually, he became a multi-millionaire. Later in life, the ex-rocket engineer, still
passionate about space travel, began looking into ways to make a trip into space.
In the early 1990s, the Soviet Space Agency was offering tickets for a visit to the Mir space station to
anyone who could afford it. Tito jumped at the chance for this once-in-a-lifetime experience. Due to
political and economic changes in the former Soviet Union, however, Tito’s trip was postponed and later,
Mir was decommissioned. In 2001, Tito’s dream was finally came true when he paid a rumored $20
million and took off aboard a SOYUZ rocket to deliver supplies to the International Space Station, a joint
venture between the space agencies of Japan, Canada, Europe, Russia, and the U.S.
In preparation for the trip, Tito trained at the Gagarin Cosmonauts Training Center at Star City in Russia.
There, he underwent eight months of physical fitness training, weightless simulations, and a variety of
other exercises to prepare him for space travel. Although the Russians believed that Tito was adequately
prepared for the trip, NASA thought otherwise. Dennis Tito had to sign an agreement with international
space officials taking financial responsibility for any equipment he damaged or broke on his trip. He was
also barred from entering any part of the space station owned by the U.S. unless escorted.
Although Tito made history and paved the way for the future of space tourism, factors such as cost, and
the amount of training required, stand in the way of space vacations becoming an option for most people
in the near future. In spite of this, Japanese and North American market data shows that there is definite
public interest in space travel. In a 1993 survey of 3,030 Japanese, 80 percent of those under the age of
forty said they would like to visit space at least once. Seventy percent of this group would pay up to three
month’s salary for the trip. In 1995, 1,020 households in North America were surveyed and of those, 60
percent were interested were under forty years of age. Just over 45 percent said they would pay up to
three month’s salary for the trip. In 1995, 1,020 households in North America were surveyed and of
those, 60 percent were interested were under forty years of age. Just over 45 percent said they would pay
three month’s salary, around 18 percent said they would pay six month’s salary, and nearly 11 percent
would pay a year’s salary. Two-thirds of those who want to visit space would like to do so several times.
READING 4 – REVISION 5
Since the nature of this type of travel makes it hazardous to humans, it would have to be restricted to
those who are physically fit and able to take responsibility for the risks involved.

21. According to the passage, what was the main event in 1969?
A. Scientist planned to travel to space. B. People started to concern space travel.
C. The dream of space travel became true. D. Neil Armstrong was ready for heading to the moon.

22. When did Dennis Tito dream of becoming an astronaut?

A. When he was at kindergarten. B. When he was at primary school.
C. When he was at his teen. D. When he was at university.

23. Dennis Tito made the first trip as a space tourist ______.
A. in the late 60s B. in the early 90s C. this century D. in the late 50s

24. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Dennis Tito’s journey into space marked the beginning of space tourism.
B. Space travel has become affordable for everyone due to technological advancements.
C. The development of space tourism is hindered by cost and physical requirements.
D. Dennis Tito’s trip to space was largely funded by the U.S. government.

25. What can be inferred about Dennis Tito's determination to travel to space?
A. Tito's journey into space was an easy process because he had all the necessary qualifications.
B. Tito was not discouraged by setbacks and continued to pursue his dream of space travel despite
challenges.
C. Tito believed that the cost of space travel would decrease significantly in the future.
D. Tito gave up on his dream of space travel after the Soviet Space Agency canceled his trip.

26. Which of the following describes NASA’s feelings about Tito’s trip into space?
A. extremely proud B. somewhat eager C. very concerned D. disappointed

27. What does the word "aspired" most nearly mean in the first paragraph?
A. Hoped for B. Dreamed of C. Intended to achieve D. Accepted

28. What does the phrase "jumped at the chance" most nearly mean in the second paragraph?
A. Ignored the opportunity B. Hesitated before taking the opportunity
C. Eagerly accepted the opportunity D. Missed the opportunity

29. What does the phrase "stand in the way of" most nearly mean in the context of the passage?
A. Help to make something happen B. Prevent something from happening
C. Encourage something to happen D. Delay something temporarily

30. Which of the following would probably prevent you from becoming a space tourist in the near
future?
A. health B. wealth C. youth D. age
IV. Read the passage and complete each sentence using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR

A NUMBER from the passage. Write your answers clearly on your answer sheet.
For all their great diversity of shapes and sizes, glaciers can be divided into two essential types: valley
glaciers, which flow downhill from mountains and are shaped by the constraints of topography, and ice
sheets, which flow outward in all directions from domelike centers of accumulated ice to cover vast
expanses of terrain. Whatever their type, most glaciers are remnants of great shrouds of ice that covered

READING 4 – REVISION 6
the earth eons ago. In a few of these glaciers the oldest ice is very ancient indeed; the age of parts of the
Antarctic sheet may exceed 500,000 years.
Glaciers are born in rocky wombs above the snow line, where there is sufficient winter snowfall and
summer cold for snow to survive the annual melting. The long gestation period of a glacier begins with
the accumulation and gradual transformation of snowflakes. Soon after they reach the ground, complex
snowflakes are reduced to compact, roughly spherical ice crystals, the basic components of a glacier. As
new layers of snow and ice, snow that survives the melting of the previous summer, accumulate, they
squeeze out most of the air (bubbles trapped within and between the crystals below. This process of
recrystallization continues throughout the life of the glacier.
The length of time required for the creation of glacier ice depends mainly upon the temperature and the
rate of snowfall. In Iceland, where snowfall is heavy and summer temperatures are high enough to
produce plenty of meltwater, glacier ice may come into being in a relatively short time—say, ten years. In
parts of Antarctica, where snowfall is scant and the ice remains well below its melting temperature year-
round, the process may require hundreds of years. The ice does not become a glacier until it moves under
its own weight, and it cannot move significantly until it reaches a critical thickness—the point at which
the weight of the piled-up layers overcomes the internal strength of the ice and the friction between the
ice and the ground. This critical thickness is about 60 feet. The fastest moving glaciers have been gauged
at not much more than two and a half miles per year, and some cover less than 1/100 inch in that same
amount of time. But no matter how infinitesimal the flow, movement is what distinguishes a glacier from
a mere mass of ice.
31. This passage mainly discusses two _______.
32. The word "restrictions" is closest in meaning to ________ in paragraph 1.
33. The author mention the Antarctic ice sheet in the first paragraph as it contains some of the
oldest ________ in existence.
34. In order to describe the development of glaciers, the author uses the analogy of ______.
35. The word "hunted" is closest in meaning to _______ in paragraph 2.
36. The word "notably" is closest in meaning to _______ in the last paragraph.
37. According to the passage, the characteristic that identifies a glacier is the ______ of the ice.
Key: movement
38. It can be inferred from the passage that what determines how quickly glacier ice forms are
temperature and ______.
39. The two main types of glaciers are valley glaciers and _______.
40. The critical thickness for ice to become a glacier is about _______.

QUESTION PAPER – CODE 2

I. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
During the heyday of the railroads, when America’s rail system provided the bulk of the country’s
passenger and freight transportation, various types of railroad cars were in service to accomplish the
varied tasks handled by the railroads. One type of car that was not available for public use prior to the
Civil War, however, was a sleeping car; ideas for sleeping cars abounded at the time, but these ideas were
unworkable. It unfortunately took the death of a president to make the sleeping car a viable reality.
Cabinet–maker George M. Pullman had recognized the demand for sleeping cars and had worked on
developing experimental models of sleeping cars in the decade leading up to the Civil War. However, in
spite of the fact that he had made successful test runs on the Chicago and Alton Railroads with his
models, he was unable to sell his idea because his models were too wide and too high for existing train
READING 4 – REVISION 7
stations and bridges. In 1863, after spending time working as a storekeeper in a Colorado mining town, he
invested his savings of twenty thousand dollars, a huge fortune at that time and all the money that he had
in the world, in a luxurious sleeping car that he named the Pioneer. Pullman and friend Ben Field built the
Pioneer on the site of the present–day Chicago Union Station. For two years, however; the Pioneer sat on
a railroad siding, useless because it could not fit through train stations and over bridges.
Following President Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, the state of Illinois, Lincoln’s birthplace, wanted to
transport the presidential casket in the finest fashion possible. The Pullman Pioneer was the most elegant
car around; in order to make the Pullman part of the presidential funeral train in its run from Springfield
to Chicago, the state cut down station platforms and raised bridges in order to accommodate the luxurious
railway car. The Pullman car greatly impressed the funeral party, which included Lincoln’s successor as
president, General Ulysses S. Grant, and Grant later requested the Pioneer for a trip from Detroit to
Chicago. To satisfy Grant’s request for the Pioneer, the Michigan Central Railroad made improvements
on its line to accommodate the wide car, and soon other railroads followed. George Pullman founded the
Pullman Palace Car Company in partnership with financier Andrew Carnegie and eventually became a
millionaire.
Pullman cars were normally a dark “Pullman green”, although some were painted in the host railroad’s
colors. The cars carried individual names, but usually did not carry visible numbers. In the 1920s, the
Pullman Company went through a series of restructuring steps, which in the end resulted in a parent
company, Pullman Incorporated, controlling the Pullman Company (which owned and operated sleeping
cars) and the Pullman–Standard Car Manufacturing Company.

1. Which of the following best states the main idea of the passage?
A. America’s railroads used to provide much of the country’s transportation.
B. President Lincoln’s assassination in 1865 shocked the nation.
C. George Pullman was the only one to come up with the idea for a sleeping car.
D. Pullman’s idea for a sleeping car became workable after Lincoln’s death.

2. A ‘heyday’ in the first paragraph is most probably a ______.

A. time for harvest B. a period with low prices
C. a period of great success D. a type of railroad schedule

3. What is the meaning of the word "luxurious" as used in the second paragraph?
A. Basic and cheap B. Comfortable and expensive C. Old and broken D. Small and simple

4. What is the main idea of paragraph 2?

A. Pullman had been successful in selling his sleeping cars.
B. Though Pullman had been successful in test runs with his sleeping cars model; it could not be suitable
with the transportation in Chicago.
C. Pullman had recognized the demand for sleeping cars.
D. Pullman had invested much money on developing the sleeping cars.

5. What was the initial problem that made Pullman’s car unusable?
A. They were too large B. They were too expensive
C. They were too slow D. They were too unusual

6. What is stated in the passage about George Pullman?

A. He once had a job in a store B. He always lived in Chicago
C. He worked in a mine D. He saved money for his project

7. What does the word "restructuring" mean in the last paragraph?

A. Building new factories B. Painting old train cars
C. Changing the organization of the company D. Closing down all operations

READING 4 – REVISION 8
8. Why did the state of Illinois want to use the Pullman in Lincoln’s funeral train?
A. It was superior to other cars.
B. It was the only railroad car that could make it from Springfield to Chicago.
C. Ulysses S. Grant requested it.
D. The Pullman Palace Car Company was a major Illinois business.

9. It can be inferred from the passage that the Michigan Central Railroad ______.
A. was owned by George Pullman
B. controlled the railroad tracks between Detroit and Chicago
C. was the only railroad company to accommodate wider cars
D. was the sole manufacturer of the Pioneer

10. This passage would most likely be assigned in which of the following courses?
A. Engineering B. Political science C. Finance D. History

II. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
Symbiosis is a close ecological relationship between two dissimilar organisms. They assist each other
with feeding, defending, and reproducing. In symbiosis, at least one of the pair benefits from the
relationship. The other may be injured (parasitism), unaltered (commensalism), or may also benefit
(mutualism).
An interesting mutually dependent relationship exists between the pine and the pinon jay. Blue pinon jays
settle on the tops of pine trees and pick at the dark round seeds from the sticky cones. They store the
seeds in their throats, fly off and hide them somewhere, and then return to repeat the process again. It
seems the reproductive cycle of a pine jay corresponds with the ripening of the pine’s seed. Similarly,
the pine is dependent on the pinon jays for distribution of the seeds.
Seeds are stored in the bark of a tree or in the ground. Using their long bills, pinon jays plant and store
them for later consumption. Their throats can expand to hold a large number of seeds; one pinon jay has
been reported carrying 50 seeds in one trip. After they have planted the seeds, they return to eat them.
Using their bills like a woodpecker, they hammer the seed until the shell breaks. Any unrecovered nuts
are then grown into new trees. This fascinating relationship has been ongoing for thousands of years.
When both species benefit each other, this is called mutualism. An example of mutualism is a plant and
fungi. The fungus occupies the cortex cells of the secondary roots of the plant. This relationship is called
a “mycorrhiza.” It helps the plant absorb inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus from the soil. Some fungi
also produce antibiotics which may prevent the invasion of parasitic fungi and bacteria. Another example
of mutualism is pollination. Bees carry pollen from one plant to the next when they seek out plants for
nectar. They feed themselves on the nectar, and the plants reproduce after fertilization by the pollen from
other plants.
Mutualism can also bring together two very different organisms, for example, a buffalo and an ox bird.
These birds journey on the backs of African buffalo eating their parasites. The bird receives food, and the
buffalo is rid of irritating insects. There are also a number of fish that provide an excellent example of
mutualism. Known as “cleaner fish,” these fish get rid of parasites and dead skin found on other fish. The
best-known example is the “cleaner wrasse,” which dwells in the Pacific and Indian oceans. They clean
large predatory fish by eating tissue and parasites off their skin. This relationship provides food and
protection for the wrasse and several health benefits for the other fish.
The other two types of symbiosis, besides mutualism, are commensalism and parasitism. [A]
Commensalism refers to a symbiotic relationship where one organism eats the unused food of another.
[B] One benefits, but the other is not affected. Examples include the remora and the shark. The remora
attaches itself to the shark; when the shark feeds itself, the remora picks up scraps. [C] One example of
commensalism in humans is bacteria living in our intestines that feed on food in our gut. [D]
In parasitism, one organism benefits and the other is harmed. Parasites live off the body of other
organisms and receive nourishment from their tissues, while also inflicting damage on their hosts.
Plants are parasitized by bacteria, fungi, and a handful of other plants. Parasites cause harm by entering
the tissue of the host for their own nutritional benefit.
READING 4 – REVISION 9
None of these relationships are fixed, and it is likely that what starts as a parasitic relationship may
gradually evolve into a mutualistic one. For example, in 1966, amebas were discovered that had become
infected with bacteria. However, after five years, it was found that the core of the amebas had become
dependent on the bacteria; thus, parasitism had evolved into mutualism. Unfortunately, the inverse is also
possible; mutualistic associations may evolve into parasitic ones.

11. According to paragraph 2, what does the pinon jay do for the pine tree?
A. It gives the tree important nutrition
B. It provides a primary means of seed dissemination for pinon trees.
C. It keeps the tree from parasites.
D. It helps the tree produce larger seeds.

12. The word ‘corresponds’ in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.

A. matches B. includes C. exposes D. protects

13. According to paragraph 3, how does the blue pinon jay store the seeds for later?
A. By holding up to 50 in its mouth B. By burying them in the ground.
C. By protecting them in its nest D. By allowing them to develop into new trees

14. The word ‘It’ in the passage refers to ______.

A. bacteria B. mutualism C. mycorrhiza D. fungus

15. According to paragraph 5, what is an example of a mutual relationship?

A. An animal eating parasites from another B. An animal licking the body of another
C. An animal providing protection for another D. An animal keeping another awake and alert

16. The author mentions ‘the remora and the shark’ in the passage in order to ______.
A. explain the details behind a mutualist association
B. demonstrate a connection between an active parasite picker and host
C. show how one animal can benefit from the acts of another
D. give an example of one animal causing the suffering of another

17. Which of the following best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence?
Incorrect answer choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
A. There are many types of creatures that are very well developed and have the strength to support other
species.
B. Sometimes, the organisms supplying parasites are very harmful to their hosts.
C. Some animals are selfish and only cause damage to their hosts.
D. Organisms which must depend on others die easily because they are not strong.

18. The word ‘gradually’ in the passage is closest in meaning to _____.

A. slowly B. increasingly C. constantly D. rapidly

19. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT an example of mutualism?
A. A plant and its fungi B. Pollen transfer from one plant to another
C. The remora and the shark D. A buffalo and an ox bird

20. Look at the four squares [ ] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the
passage.
‘They are completely safe and may possibly help us, hence a commensalism relationship.’
Where would the sentence best fit?
A. [A] B. [B] C. [C] D. [D]

READING 4 – REVISION 10
III. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
Animals and higher-order plants depend on nitrogen that is present in soil as they cannot utilize free
nitrogen from the atmosphere. To enter living systems, nitrogen must be combined with oxygen or
hydrogen to form compounds such as ammonia or nitrates that plants are able to use. Nitrogen gas is
converted to ammonia fertilizer by a chemical process involving high pressure and high temperature. This
process is called nitrogen fixation. Martinus Willem Beijerinck discovered nitrogen fixation.
The nitrogen molecule is quite inert and breaking it apart requires a considerable amount of energy. There
are three processes that are responsible for most of the nitrogen fixation in the biosphere. They are
atmospheric fixation, biological fixation, and industrial fixation. Atmospheric fixation occurs through
lightning, forest fires, or even hot lava flows where energy breaks down nitrogen molecules and enables
their atoms to combine with oxygen in the air, thus forming nitrogen oxides. These liquefy in rain,
forming nitrates, that are then carried to earth.
In biological nitrogen fixation, the nitrogen is available to some species of microorganisms. Atmospheric
nitrogen is converted to ammonia by bacterial enzymes called nitrogenase. More than 90% of all nitrogen
fixation is affected by them. There are two kinds of nitrogen-fixing microorganisms: free-living (non-
symbiotic) bacteria and symbiotic bacteria. Microorganisms that fix nitrogen are called diazotrophs.
These need a chemical energy source if they are non-photosynthetic. However, if they are photosynthetic,
they can utilize light energy. The free-living diazotrophs supply little fixed nitrogen to agricultural crops,
whereas the symbiotic, nitrogen-fixing bacterias live close to plant roots and can obtain energy materials
from the plants.
The symbiotic, nitrogen-fixing bacteria invade the root hairs of plants. Here they multiply the formation
of root nodules, and enlargements of plant cells and bacteria in close proximity. Within the nodules, the
bacteria convert the free nitrogen to nitrates, which the plant makes use of for its development.
To make certain of sufficient nodule formation and the best possible growth of legumes (beans, clover,
peas, soybeans), seeds are usually inoculated, particularly in poor soils where bacteria is lacking. This
system is the most important for agriculture as many legumes are then able to grow vigorously
under nitrogen deficient conditions, contributing nitrogen to the farming system or as green
manure included in the soil. Legumes are also a significant source of protein primarily for the
developing world.
Industrial fixation takes place at a temperature of 600 degrees Celsius. In this method, atmospheric
nitrogen and hydrogen can be combined to form ammonia, which in turn can be used directly as a
fertilizer. It was during the early 19th century that the importance of fixed nitrogen to growing plants was
understood. Where people practiced intensive agriculture, demand arose for nitrogen compounds to
augment the natural supply present in the soil.
Around the same time, Chilean saltpeter was increasingly used to make gunpowder. This led to a global
search for natural deposits of this nitrogen compound. Toward the end of the 19th century, it was realized
that Chilean imports would not meet future demands, and, in the event of a major war, without the
Chilean supply, manufacturing sufficient weapons would not be possible.
[A] Several processes were then developed: directly combining oxygen with nitrogen, the reaction of
nitrogen with calcium carbide, and the direct combination of nitrogen with hydrogen. [B] Combining
oxygen and nitrogen was inefficient in its use of energy. Both were costly and the process was
abandoned. [C] It is named after Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch, who determined that nitrogen from the air
could be combined with nitrogen under enormously high pressures and fairly high temperatures in the
presence of an active mechanism to produce an extremely high quantity of ammonia. [D]
Germany heavily relied on this process during World War I, which led to a rapid expansion of the
construction of nitrogen plants in many other countries. This method is now one of the leading processes
of the chemical industry throughout the world.

21. According to paragraph 1, how much nitrogen molecules enter living organisms?
A. They must be converted to ammonia or nitrates
B. They must be combined with oxygen in the form of nitrate
C. They must be absorbed by the plant to furnish its nitrogen
D. They must be mixed with oxygen or hydrogen
READING 4 – REVISION 11
22. The phrase ‘breaks down’ in the passage is closest in meaning to _____.
A. destroys B. discontinues C. ceases D. decomposes

23. Which of the following can be inferred from paragraph 2 about nitrogen fixation?
A. Nature cannot make it occur by itself.
B. It is a process that does not necessarily require the influence of man.
C. The process needs perfect circumstances to happen.
D. Nitrogen is essential to all life on Earth.

24. According to paragraph 3, one factor needed for photosynthetic biological fixation is _____.
A. a light source B. the presence of ammonia
C. 90% rainfall for a week D. a chemical energy source

25. The word ‘affected’ in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.

A. driven B. influenced C. stopped D. changed

26. Why does the author mention ‘diazotrophs’ in the passage?

A. To explain the industrial process of nitrogen fixation
B. To show how a plant's roots are important for this process
C. To give an example of a living organism capable of fixing nitrogen.
D. To explain the impact of nitrogen on a microorganism

27. The word ‘invade’ in the passage is closest in meaning to _____.

A. attack B. defend C. occupy D. dominate

28. Which of the following best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence?
Incorrect answer choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
A. The ability to grow legumes with little nitrogen is highly valuable
B. Legumes do not need much nitrogen to develop and grow strong
C. The farming system makes huge demands on the nitrogen level in the ground
D. Agriculture creates a great need for legumes and their produce

29. According to paragraph 8, which of the following is characteristic of the Haber-Bosch process?
A. Producing low amounts of Ammonia B. Using extremely high pressures
C. Reducing the supply of nitrogen compounds D. Leading to widespread use during World War I

30. Look at the four squares [ ] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the
passage.
‘However, the Haber-Bosch process which created ammonia from nitrogen and hydrogen is the most
cost-effective nitrogen fixation process known.’
Where would the sentence best fit?
A. [A] B. [B] C. [C] D. [D]

IV. Read the passage and complete each sentence using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR

A NUMBER from the passage. Write your answers clearly on your answer sheet.
Since water is the basis of life, composing the greater part of the tissues of all living things, the crucial
problem of desert animals is to survive in a world where sources of flowing water are rare. And since
man’s inexorable necessity is to absorb large quantities of water at frequent intervals, he can scarcely
comprehend that many creatures of the desert pass their entire lives without a single drop.
Uncompromising as it is, the desert has not eliminated life but only those forms unable to withstand its
desiccating effects. No moist- skinned, water-loving animals can exist there. Few large animals are found.
READING 4 – REVISION 12
The giants of the North American desert are the deer, the coyote, and the bobcat. Since desert country is
open, it holds more swift-footed running and leaping creatures than the tangled forest. Its population is
largely nocturnal, silent, filled with reticence, and ruled by stealth. Yet they are not emaciated. Having
adapted to their austere environment, they are as healthy as animals anywhere else in the word.
The secret of their adjustment lies in the combination of behavior and physiology. None could survive if,
like mad dogs and Englishmen, they went out in the midday sun; many would die in a matter of minutes.
So most of them pass the burning hours asleep in cool, humid burrows underneath the ground, emerging
to hunt only by night. The surface of the sun-baked desert averages around 150 degrees, but 18 inches
down the temperature is only 60 degrees.
An example of a desert animal that has adapted to subterranean living and lack of water is the kangaroo
rat. Like many desert animals, kangaroo rats stay underground during the day. At night, they go outside to
look for food. As evening temperatures drop, moisture from the air forms on plants and seeds. They
absorb some of this moisture and kangaroo rats take in the life-giving water as they eat.
31. The word ‘larger’ is closest in meaning to _____ in the first paragraph.
32. The word ‘drying’ means _______ in paragraph 1.
33. According to paragraph 1, the main survival challenge for desert animals is ______ scarcity .
34. The word ‘underground’ in the passage is closest in meaning to the word ______ in paragraph
3.
35. The word ‘they’ in the passage refers to ______.
36. According to the passage all living things adjust to their ______.
37. It can be inferred from the passage ______, water loving animas cannot survive in the desert.
38. The adaptation that helps desert animals survive water scarcity is _______ behavior.
39. According to the passage, kangaroo rats search for food at ______.
40. In the last paragraph, the author says that kangaroo rats stay _______ during the day.

QUESTION PAPER – CODE 3

I. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
In the 1930s, Chester F. Carlson was working in the patents department of a large electronics firm in New
York City. One of the major problems in his work was the length of time and expense involved in getting
patents copied; patents were lengthy legal documents, and the only ways to get them copied were to take
them to a typist or to a photographer. Either way of copying patents took a lot of time and cost a lot of
money.
He came up with the idea for a machine that would copy documents quickly and efficiently. He
researched the idea in the library and then worked over a three-year period on developing a machine that
used a light, an electrostatically charged plate, and powder to duplicate images on paper. The result of this
work was a machine that produced the first xerographic copy on October 22, 1938. He named the process
“Xerox,” which is derived from a word meaning “dry writing.”
Carlson felt that he had a good idea, one that would be extremely helpful in the business world. He tried
to sell his idea to a number of large corporations, but they were not terribly interested in his machine. He
was able to get some help in developing the machine from a nonprofit institute, and a few years later he
sold the process to a small family-owned company. This small company grew into the giant Xerox
Corporation, and both Carlson and Xerox became rather wealthy in the process.

1. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a problem that Carlson encountered in getting
patents copied?
A. The time needed for copying B. The expense of the copying
C. The length of the patents D. The dependability of the photographers

READING 4 – REVISION 13
2. The word ‘expense’ in the first paragraph is closest in meaning to
A. cost B. difficulty C. legality D. payment

3. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a component of the machine that Carlson
developed?
A. A light B. A charged plate C. Powder D. A typewriter

4. It can be inferred from the passage that Carlson began work on the machine in
A. 1930 B. 1935 C. 1938 D. 1941

5. The passage indicates that the large corporations that Carlson tried to sell his process to
A. were family owned B. were nonprofit institutions
C. helped to develop the process D. did not want to buy his machine

6. The word ‘giant’ in the passage could best be replaced by

A. monster B. tiny C. familiar D. huge

7. The word "corporations" in the sentence "He tried to sell his idea to a number of large
corporations" is closest in meaning to
A. ideas B. inventions C. companies D. machines

8. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Carlson became rich by working in a patents department.
B. Xerox machines were originally very expensive.
C. Carlson invented a new copying process that eventually led to the creation of a major corporation.
D. Large corporations are not always open to new ideas.

9. What can be inferred from the passage about the attitude of large corporations toward Carlson’s
invention?
A. They believed the invention was too expensive to produce.
B. They underestimated the usefulness of the invention.
C. They had already developed a similar technology.
D. They planned to support Carlson later on.

10. What date was the first xerographic copy produced?

A. In the 1930s B. October 22, 1938 C. After Carlson sold the process D. In 1941

II. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
The cinema did not emerge as a form of mass consumption until its technology evolved from the initial
“peepshow” format to the point where images were projected on a screen in a darkened theater. In the
peepshow format, a film was viewed through a small opening in a machine that was created for that
purpose. Thomas Edison’s peepshow device, the Kinetoscope, was introduced to the public in 1894. It
was designed for use in Kinetoscope parlors, or arcades, which contained only a few individual machines
and permitted only one customer to view a short, 50-foot film at any one time. The first Kinetoscope
parlors contained five machines. For the price of 25 cents (or 5 cents per machine), customers moved
from machine to machine to watch five different films (or, in the case of famous prizefights, successive
rounds of a single fight).
These Kinetoscope arcades were modeled on phonograph parlors, which had proven successful for
Edison several years earlier. In the phonograph parlors, customers listened to recordings through

READING 4 – REVISION 14
individual ear tubes, moving from one machine to the next to hear different recorded speeches or pieces
of music. The Kinetoscope parlors functioned in a similar way. Edison was more interested in the sale of
Kinetoscopes (for roughly $1,000 apiece) to these parlors than in the films that would be run in them
(which cost approximately $10 to $15 each). He refused to develop projection technology, reasoning
that if he made and sold projectors, then exhibitors would purchase only one machine-a projector-
from him instead of several.
Exhibitors, however, wanted to maximize their profits, which they could do more readily by projecting a
handful of films to hundreds of customers at a time (rather than one at a time) and by charging 25 to 50
cents admission. About a year after the opening of the first Kinetoscope parlor in 1894, showmen such as
Louis and Auguste Lumiere, Thomas Armat and Charles Francis Jenkins, and Orville and Woodville
Latham (with the assistance of Edison’s former assistant, William Dickson) perfected projection devices.
These early projection devices were used in vaudeville theaters, legitimate theaters, local town halls,
makeshift storefront theaters, fairgrounds, and amusement parks to show films to a mass audience.
With the advent of projection in 1895-1896, motion pictures became the ultimate form of mass
consumption. Previously, large audiences had viewed spectacles at the theater, where vaudeville, popular
dramas, musical and minstrel shows, classical plays, lectures, and slide-and-lantern shows had been
presented to several hundred spectators at a time. But the movies differed significantly from these other
forms of entertainment, which depended on either live performance or (in the case of the slide-and-lantern
shows) the active involvement of a master of ceremonies who assembled the final program.
Although early exhibitors regularly accompanied movies with live acts, the substance of the movies
themselves is mass-produced, prerecorded material that can easily be reproduced by theaters with little or
no active participation by the exhibitor. Even though early exhibitors shaped their film programs by
mixing films and other entertainments together in whichever way they thought would be most attractive
to audiences or by accompanying them with lectures, their creative control remained limited. What
audiences came to see was the technological marvel of the movies; the lifelike reproduction of the
commonplace motion of trains, of waves striking the shore, and of people walking in the street; and the
magic made possible by trick photography and the manipulation of the camera.
With the advent of projection, the viewer’s relationship with the image was no longer private, as it had
been with earlier peepshow devices such as the Kinetoscope and the Mutoscope, which was a similar
machine that reproduced motion by means of successive images on individual photographic cards instead
of on strips of celluloid. It suddenly became public-an experience that the viewer shared with dozens,
scores, and even hundreds of others. At the same time, the image that the spectator looked at expanded
from the minuscule peepshow dimensions of 1 or 2 inches (in height) to the life-size proportions of 6 or 9
feet.

11. According to paragraph 1, all of the following were true of viewing films in Kinetoscope parlors
EXCEPT:
A. One individual at a time viewed a film. B. Customers could view one film after another.
C. Prizefights were the most popular subjects for films. D. Each film was short.

12. What can be inferred about the Kinetoscope parlors?

A. They were designed to accommodate large crowds in a single viewing room.
B. They allowed each viewer to watch films privately and individually.

READING 4 – REVISION 15
C. They only showed prizefights to attract more customers.
D. They replaced theaters as the main form of entertainment.

13. The author discusses phonograph parlors in paragraph 2 in order to

A. explain Edison’s financial success
B. describe the model used to design kinetoscope parlors
C. contrast their popularity to that of kinetoscope parlors
D. illustrate how much more technologically advanced kinetoscope parlors were

14. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the bold sentence from
the passage?

“He refused to develop projection technology, reasoning that if he made and sold projectors, then
exhibitors would purchase only one machine-a projector-from him instead of several.”
A. Edison was more interested in developing a variety of machines than in developing a technology based
on only one.
B. Edison refused to work on projection technology because he did not think exhibitors would replace
their projectors with newer machines.
C. Edison did not want to develop projection technology because it limited the number of machines he
could sell.
D. Edison would not develop projection technology unless exhibitors agreed to purchase more than one
projector from him.

15. The word readily paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to

A. frequently B. easily C. intelligently D. obviously

16. The word assistance in the passage can be replaced by

A. criticism B. leadership C. help D. approval

17. According to paragraph 4, how did the early movies differ from previous spectacles that were
presented to large audiences?
A. They were a more expensive form of entertainment. B. They were viewed by larger audiences.
C. They were more educational. D. They did not require live entertainers.

18. What is the main idea of the paragraph 5?

A. Early film exhibitors had complete creative control over movie presentations.
B. Audiences were mainly drawn to live acts rather than the films themselves.
C. Although exhibitors contributed to film presentation, the real appeal of early movies was their
technological novelty.
D. Trick photography and camera manipulation were rarely used in early movies.

19. The word advent in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to:
A. disappearance B. improvement C. arrival D. limitation

20. The word it in the last passage refers to

A. the advent of projection B. the viewer’s relationship with the image
C. a similar machine D. celluloid

III. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
Television has transformed politics in the United States by changing the way in which information is
disseminated, by altering political campaigns, and by changing citizen’s patterns of response to politics.
By giving citizens independent access to the candidates, television diminished the role of the political
READING 4 – REVISION 16
party in the selection of the major party candidates. By centering politics on the person of the candidate,
television accelerated the citizen's focus on character rather than issues.
Television has altered the forms of political communication as well. The messages on which most of us
rely are briefer than they once were. The stump speech, a political speech given by traveling politicians
and lasting 3/2 to 2 hours, which characterized nineteenth-century political discourse, has given way to
the 30-second advertisement and the 10 second "sound bite" in broadcast news. Increasingly the audience
for speeches is not that standing in front of the politician but rather the viewing audience who will hear
and see a snippet of the speech on the news.
In these abbreviated forms, much of what constituted the traditional political dis course of earlier ages has
been lost. In 15 or 30 seconds, a speaker cannot establish the historical context that shaped the issue in
question, cannot detail the probable causes of the problem, and cannot examine alternative proposals to
argue that one is preferable to others. In snippets, politicians assert but do not argue.
Because television is an intimate medium, speaking through it require a changed political style that was
more conversational, personal, and visual than that of the old-style stump speech. Reliance on television
means that increasingly our political world contains memorable pictures rather than memorable words.
Schools teach us to analyze words and print. However, in a word in which politics is increasingly visual,
informed citizenship requires a new set of skills.
Recognizing the power of television's pictures, politicians craft televisual, staged events, called
pseudo-event, designed to attract media coverage. Much of the political activity we see on television
news has been crafted by politicians, their speechwriters, and their public relations advisers for televised
consumption. Sound bites in news and answers to questions in debates increasingly sound like
advertisements.

21. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Citizens in the United States are now more informed about political issues because of television
coverage.
B. Citizens in the United States prefer to see politicians on television instead of in person.
C. Politics in the United States has become substantially more controversial since the introduction of
television.
D. Politics in the United States has been significantly changed by television.

22. The word disseminated in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ….

A. analysed B. discussed C. spread D. stored

23. It can be inferred that before the introduction of television, political parties ….
A. had more influence over the selection of political candidates
B. spent more money to promote their political candidates
C. attracted more members
D. received more money

24. The word accelerated in paragraph 1 can be replaced by

A. allowed B. increased C. required D. started

25. The author mentions the stump speech as an example of ….

A. an event created by politicians to attract media attention
B. an interactive discussion between two politicians

READING 4 – REVISION 17
C. a kind of political presentation typical of the nineteenth century
D. a style of speech common to televised political events

26. The word that in paragraph 2 refers to

A. audience B. broadcast news C. politician D. advertisement

27. According to the passage, as compared with televised speeches, traditional political discourse
was more successful at
A. allowing news coverage of political candidates
B. placing political issues within a historical context
C. making politics seem more intimate to citizens
D. providing detailed information about a candidate’s private behavior

28. The author states that politicians assert but do not argue in order to suggest that politicians
A. make claims without providing reasons for the claims
B. take stronger positions on issues than in the past
C. enjoy explaining the issue to broadcasters
D. dislike having to explain their own positions on issues to citizens

29. In paragraph 4, the word closest in meaning to reliance is

A. rejection B. dependence C. avoidance D. criticism

30. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the sentence of the last
paragraph?
“Recognizing the power of television's pictures, politicians craft televisual, staged events, called
pseudo-events, designed to attract media coverage.”
A. Politicians avoid television because it misrepresents their messages.
B. Politicians have learned to use television's visual influence by creating events aimed at getting press
attention.
C. Television broadcasters stage events with politicians to improve news ratings.
D. Political events on television are always spontaneous and not influenced by media planning.

IV. Read the passage and complete each sentence using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR

A NUMBER from the passage. Write your answers clearly on your answer sheet.
Anyone who has handled a fossilized bone knows that it is usually not exactly like its modern
counterpart, the most obvious difference being that it is often much heavier. Fossils often have the quality
of stone rather than of organic materials, and this has led to the use of the term “petrifaction” (to bring
about rock). The implication is that bone, and other tissues, have somehow been turned into stone, and
this is certainly the explanation given in some texts. But it is wrong interpretation; fossils are frequently
so dense because the pores and other spaces in the bone have become filled with minerals taken up from
the surrounding sediments. Some fossil bones have all the interstitial spaces filled with foreign minerals,
including the marrow cavity, if there is one, while others have taken up but little from their surroundings.
Probably all of the minerals deposited within the bone have been recrystallized from solution by the
action of water percolating thru them. The degree of mineralization appears to be determined by the
nature of the environment in which the bone was deposited and not by the antiquity of the bone. For
example, the black fossil bones that are so common in many parts of Florida are heavily mineralized, but
they are only about 20,000 years old, whereas many of the dinosaur bones from western Canada, which

READING 4 – REVISION 18
are about 75 million years old, are only partially filled in. Under optimum conditions the process of
mineralization probably takes thousands rather than millions of years, perhaps considerably less.
The amount of change that has occurred in fossil bone, even in bone as old as that of dinosaurs, is often
remarkably small. We are therefore usually able to see the microscopic structures of the bone, including
such fine details as the lacunae where the living bone cells once resided. The natural bone mineral, the
hydroxyapatite, is virtually unaltered too - it has the same crystal structure as that of modern bone.
Although nothing remains of the original collagen, some of its component amino acids are usually still
detectable, together with amino acids of the non-collagen proteins of bone.
31. The passage mainly discuss the composition of ______.
32. The word “version” is closest in meaning to ________ in the first sentence of paragraph 1.
33. Fossilized bone heavier than ordinary bone because spaces within the bone fill with _______
taken up from the surrounding sediments.
34. In paragraph 1, fossils are so dense because the pores and other spaces in the bone have become
filled with minerals taken up from the surrounding _______.
35. It can be inferred from the passage _______ process forms minerals in fossil bones?
36. The most important factors in determining the extent of mineralizationin fossil bones are the
nature of _______.
37. The author compare fossils found in western Canada to those found in Florida in order to prove
that a fossil’s age cannot be determined by the amount of ________.
38. The word “it” in the passage refers to ______.
39. The word “Amino acid” is closest in meaning to ______ in the last sentence of paragraph 2.
40. In paragraph 2, _______ is virtually unaltered too - it has the same crystal structure as that of
modern bone.

QUESTION PAPER – CODE 4

I. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
The spectacular aurora light displays that appear in Earth's atmosphere around the north and south
magnetic poles were once mysterious phenomena. Now, scientists have data from satellites and ground-
based observations from which we know that the aurora brilliance is an immense electrical discharge
similar to that occurring in a neon sign. To understand the cause of auroras, first picture the Earth
enclosed by its magnetosphere, a huge region created by the Earth's magnetic field. Outside the
magnetosphere, blasting toward the earth is the solar wind, a swiftly moving plasma of ionized gases with
its own magnetic field. Charged particles in this solar wind speed earthward along the solar wind’s
magnetic lines of force with a spiraling motion. The Earth's magnetosphere is a barrier to the solar winds,
and forces the charged particles of the solar wind to flow around the magnetosphere itself. But in the
Polar Regions, the magnetic lines of force of the Earth and of the solar wind bunch together. Here many
of the solar winds charged particles break through the magnetosphere and enter Earth's magnetic field.
They then spiral back and forth between the Earth's magnetic poles very rapidly. In the Polar Regions,
electrons from the solar wind ionize and excite the atoms and molecules of the upper atmosphere, causing
them to emit aurora radiations of visible light.
The colors of an aurora depend on the atoms emitting them. The dominant greenish white light comes
from low energy excitation of oxygen atoms. During huge magnetic storms oxygen atoms also undergo
READING 4 – REVISION 19
high energy excitation and emit a crimson light. Excited nitrogen atoms contribute bands of color varying
from blue to violet.
Viewed from outer space, auroras can be seen as dimly glowing belts wrapped around each of the Earth's
magnetic poles. Each aurora hangs like a curtain of light stretching over the Polar Regions and into the
higher latitudes. When the solar flares that result in magnetic storms and aurora activity are very intense,
aurora displays may extend as far as the southern regions of the United States. Studies of auroras have
given physicists new information about the behavior of plasmas, which has helped to explain the nature of
outer space and is being applied in attempts to harness energy from the fusion of atoms.

1. What does the passage mainly discuss?

A. The methods used to observe auroras from outer space.
B. The formation and appearance of auroras around the Earth's poles
C. The factors that cause the variety of colors in auroras.
D. The periodic variation in the display of auroras.

2. The word phenomena in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ….

A. ideas B. stars C. events D. colors

3. The word picture paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ….

A. frame B. imagine C. describe D. explain

4. Why does the passage describe the magnetosphere as a barrier?

A. Its position makes it difficult to be observed from Earth.
B. It prevents particles from the solar wind from easily entering Earth's atmosphere.
C. It increases the speed of particles from the solar wind.
D. It is strongest in the polar regions.

5. The word them in paragraph 1 refers to ….

A. polar regions B. electrons C. atoms and molecules D. aurora radiations

6. According to the passage, which color appears most frequently in an aurora display?
A. Greenish-white B. Crimson C. Blue D. Violet

7. The word emit paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to

A. change from B. connect with C. add to D. give off

8. Auroras may be seen in the southern regions of the United States when
A. magnetic storms do not affect Earth B. solar flares are very intense
C. the speed of the solar wind is reduced D. the excitation of atoms is low

9. Which of the following statements about scientists' understanding of auroras does the passage
imply?
A. Before advances in technology, including satellites, scientists knew little about auroras.
B. New knowledge about the fusion of atoms allowed scientists to learn more about auroras.
C. Scientists cannot explain the cause of the different colors in auroras.
D. Until scientists learn more about plasma physics, little knowledge about auroras will be available.

10. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the bold sentence?
“Viewed from outer space, auroras can be seen as dimly glowing belts wrapped around each of the
Earth's magnetic poles.”
A. Auroras appear as bright rings circling the equator when seen from space.

READING 4 – REVISION 20
B. Auroras form glowing lines above the Earth's atmosphere, visible in outer space.
C. From space, auroras appear as faint bands of light surrounding the Earth's magnetic poles.
D. From outer space, auroras look like thick clouds of light floating near the Earth's poles.

II. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
Sometimes people worry about the germs that they come into contact with daily. In fact, most people
would be surprised to learn just how many microbes actually inhabit a human’s body at any given time,
in addition to the larger visitors that come around occasionally. Such natural species that regularly come
into contact with our bodies include mites, lice, yeast, and fungus, just to name a few. We are, in fact, an
ecosystem much like a rain forest is to the natural flora and fauna that call it home.
Lice, or nits, are particularly horrible to even think about. To learn that one’s child has been found in
school with head lice can cause trauma and shame. People think that having lice is a symptom of being
unclean, although one can be infected by contact with somebody else who has them. Although lice are not
that common in general circles, children can easily acquire them just because of their close contact with
other children at school or play. Some large cities host high-priced nit pickers who make a living
removing head lice from children.
Mites on the human body are much more common, and cleanliness does not eliminate the chance of
having them. They are also microscopic, so they are invisible to the naked eye. There are a number of
different species of mites, two of which have the human face as their natural habitat, particularly the skin
of the forehead. Others are very content among human hair, living among the follicles of the eyelashes,
eyebrows, and scalp hair.
Not all such inhabitants are harmful. In fact, even the annoying mite lives on dead skin cells, actually
doing us a favor by removing them. The dreaded dust mite, for example, blamed for causing allergies,
removes dead skin from bed coverings. And harmless bacteria often keep potentially harmful bacteria
from being able to survive. So people should not try to eliminate mites from their bodies, although some
have tried. Some sufferers of obsessive/compulsive disorder have scrubbed themselves raw trying to
eliminate all scavengers from their bodies, only to damage their skin, and all to no avail.
Certain types of yeast also regularly live on the human body, sometimes causing annoyances. One
common type lives on the oil produced in the skin of the face or scalp, causing a condition known as
pityriasis versicolor, which is a scaling and discoloration of the skin.
Ailments such as athlete’s foot are caused by a fungus that grows in warm, moist conditions. To avoid
them or avoid a recurrence, patients are encouraged keep their feet dry and cool, which of course may not
be easy, depending on one’s work or personal habits. Ringworm is also a fungus acquired by contact with
keratin-rich soil in many parts of the world.
Besides the tiny inhabitants, we are also regularly harassed by insects that feed off of our bodies, like
mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas, which sometimes deposit harmful illnesses at the same time they probe the
skin for the blood on which they live. Mosquitoes have been known to cause malaria and yellow fever as
well as encephalitis. Fleas have transmitted bubonic plague, and ticks have caused lime disease.
Just like a river, an ocean, a rain forest, or any other ecological wonder in which numerous species
survive, feeding upon other inhabitants, our bodies are natural providers of nutrition and life for various
small and microscopic species.

11. The word “inhabit” in the second sentence is closest in meaning to _________.
A. escape B. feed on C. live in D. abuse

READING 4 – REVISION 21
12. The author’s main point is _________.
A. to describe how the human body is host to a number of different harmful and harmless inhabitants and
visitors.
B. to describe the dangerous ailments that can result from insects and microbes.
C. to warn people about the dangers of being attacked by small life forms.
D. to describe how to rid oneself of bacteria and insects.

13. The author infers that lice and mites are different in that _________.
A. lice are not harmful, but mites are.
B. mites live only on the skin, and lice live only in the hair.
C. mites are treatable, and lice are not.
D. mites are totally unavoidable, while lice may be avoidable.

14. The word “shame” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to _________.
A. anger B. embarrassment C. disbelief D. contentment

15. The word “their” in the second paragraph refers to _________.

A. lice’s B. schools’ C. circles’ D. children’s

16. The word “Others” in the third paragraph refers to _________.

A. foreheads B. follicles C. mite species D. habitats

17. The author indicates that lice are also known as _________.
A. yeast B. nits C. microbes D. ticks

18. The author indicates that a nitpicker is _________.

A. somebody who removes lice professionally B. somebody who is afraid of mites
C. a doctor who treats patients for infection D. somebody who has been bitten by a tick

19. The author infers that _________.

A. being host to insects and microbes is unwise B. one can avoid infestation by microbes
C. insects are the cause of microbial infestation D. being host to insects and microbes is inevitable

20. What does the author mean by the statement “Not all such inhabitants are harmful” at the
beginning of the fourth paragraph?
A. Mites are the same as yeast. B. Some mites eat other harmful mites.
C. Mites actually are beneficial because they remove dead skin particles from the body and habitat.
D. The diseases mites carry do not pass to humans.

III. Read the passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question. Write the
corresponding letter on your answer sheet.
Louis Pasteur was arguably the greatest biologist of the 19th century. His immense contributions were
among the most varied and beneficial in the field of science and industry. Pasteur’s methods of
conducting experiments illustrated brilliance, which started when he studied the crystal structure. He
observed that tartrate, when created in a laboratory, was optically inactive. This is different from the
tartrate from grapes because the artificial tartrate is composed of two optically asymmetric crystals.
Pasteur succeeded in unraveling the asymmetric crystals from each other and showed that each regained
optical activity.
He then theorized that living organisms only produce molecules that are of one specific objective and that
these molecules are active at all times. This experiment contradicted ‘Mitscherlich’ who had observed
only a single type of crystal. Later in his career, Pasteur was approached by the parent of one of his
READING 4 – REVISION 22
students, regarding a contamination problem in alcoholic fermentation. At the time, fermentation leading
to the making of wine, or beer was thought to be a simple breakdown of sugar to the favored molecules.
Yeast cells were believed to be either a useful ingredient in maintaining or simply a product of
fermentation.
The manufacturers of alcohol were having economic problems related to fermentation. Wine would
suddenly turn sour or into vinegar, or the quality and taste of beer would suddenly change. Therefore, the
producers would have to start anew. Pasteur proved that yeast was an organism which did not necessitate
oxygen for fermentation to occur. This proved to Justin Von Liebig, who had upheld that fermentation
was purely chemical, that he was incorrect.
Pasteur was able to prove that the yeast was responsible for forming alcohol from sugar and that
contaminating microorganisms turned the fermentations sour. Over the years, he segregated the
organisms that were responsible for normal and abnormal fermentations when producing wine or beer. He
demonstrated that if he heated them to mild temperatures, this would kill the microorganisms and prevent
souring. This was a major discovery and Pasteur showed brewers how to refine the right organisms for
good beer. He proposed that heating milk to a high temperature before bottling it would prevent souring.
This is now known as pasteurization.
All this had given Pasteur an iconic status throughout the world. After his research on fermentation, he
refuted the principle of spontaneous generation. The theory that maggots, beetles and microbes could
arise spontaneously from matter had always been a matter of speculation. Pasteur carried out ingenious
experiments wiping out every argument in favor of spontaneous generation. In his famous experiment
using the ‘swan neck flask’, fermented juice was put in a flask and after sterilization, the neck was
heated, (this resembled the neck of a swan). The end of the neck was then sealed. If the flask was opened
by pinching off the end of the neck, air would enter but dust would get trapped on the inside of the neck
which was wet. The fluid, however, would still be germ free. If the flask was tipped over allowing the
juice to touch the inside of the neck, microorganisms would grow instantly.
Pasteur’s work with silkworm parasites and germs led to the proposal of the germ theory of disease. After
visiting the hospital wards, he became more aware of the infections being spread by physicians
from sick patients to the healthy patients. He compelled doctors to disinfect their instruments by
boiling and steaming them. Surgeons were told to wash then hands and use disinfectant. At the time,
countries were suffering from anthrax, which is a disease that affects cattle. He believed it was possible
that If the animals were intentionally infected with a very mild case of the disease, this may be enough to
prevent them from getting the disease later on. To prove this, he needed to test his theory on live animals.
[A] They recovered and, when placed with cattle that did have the disease, they remained immune. [B]
Pasteur’s last major research success was the development of a vaccine against rabies. [C] Institutes were
built and people were treated for the disease in them. Pasteur was a national hero in France. [D] He died
in 1895 and was given a state funeral.

21. The word “inactive” in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.

A. motionless B. occupied C. dangerous D. reactive

22. According to paragraph 2, what evidence contradicted the previous beliefs of ‘Mitscherlich’?
A. Proof of the process of fermentation B. Molecules being active at all times
C. Observed only a single type of crystal D. Molecules produce all living organisms

23. According to Pasteur’s experiments, what did he prove to be true?

A. The wine would change to vinegar because of fermentation.
B. Microorganisms were present in all alcoholic drinks.
READING 4 – REVISION 23
C. Yeast was an organism that did not need oxygen to work.
D. The fermentation was a purely chemical process.

24. The word “necessitate” in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.

A. facilitate B. require C. produce D. consume

25. According to paragraph 5, what did Pasteur publicly refute?

A. That fermentation contributed to spontaneous generation
B. That bottle-neck glasses can keep things germ-free
C. That maggots can form suddenly from matter without warning
D. That flies were created from the maggots on dead meat

26. Why does the author describe Pasteur’s ‘swan neck flask’ experiment in the passage?
A. To explain the method of scientific experimentation
B. To demonstrate the correct way to do a scientific experiment
C. To show how microbes contribute to spontaneous generation
D. To illustrate exactly how Pasteur determined his findings

27. The word “ingenious” in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.

A. original B. tremendous C. controlled D. significant

28. Which of the following best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence?
Incorrect answer choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
A. Most patients became sick from being infected by doctors in the emergency room.
B. Hospital wards had become dirty and dangerous places due to the lack of proper training and space.
C. Pasteur learned that infections could be transmitted to healthy patients from dirty, non-sterile
instruments doctors had used on previous patients.
D. Healthy patients could become infected by sick people, simply by the shake of a hand or sharing a
drink.

29. According to the passage, which method was NOT used in Pasteur’s experiments?
A. Sealed bottles under observation B. Disinfection of materials and instruments
C. Heating to mild temperatures
D. Going into animal experimentation known to be scientifically unsound

30. Look at the four squares [ ] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the
passage.
‘Pasteur was successful in producing a safe version of anthrax bacteria which he then injected into
a population of cows.’
Where would the sentence best fit?
A. [A] B. [B] C. [C] D. [D]
IV. Read the passage and complete each sentence using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR

A NUMBER from the passage. Write your answers clearly on your answer sheet.
Earth has several distinct layers; the outermost of these is the crust, which has an inconsistent thickness of
35- 70 km in the continents and 5- 10 km in the ocean basins. The second layer is known as the mantle,
which is about 2900 kms thick, and divided into an upper and lower mantle. Most of Earth’s internal heat
is situated here. The upper mantle has an area known as the low- velocity zone, where secondary waves
decrease rapidly and then gradually increase. The last layer is the core. This is a thick ball of iron and
nickel divided into two layers, the inner core and the outer core.

READING 4 – REVISION 24
The inner core is solid, whereas the outer core is so hot that the metal is always molten. However,
because the force at the inner core is so immense, it cannot melt. Due to Earth’s rotation, the outer core
spins around the inner core, which causes the Earth’s magnetism. The inner core consists of iron, nickel
and other elements, probably a mix of carbon, oxygen, sulphur, silicon, and potassium. The temperature is
extremely high, and due to pressure, the core is solid. Because the outer core is liquid, mainly consisting
of iron, nickel and about 10% oxygen and sulphur, here the temperature is not as high.
Both the outer and inner cores together create the Earth’s magnetism. The core has a huge influence on
Earth. Because it is so hot, it radiates a natural heat to the upper layers, setting off a current of heat, which
in turn causes the movement of the tectonic plates. Because of Earth’s rotation, the outer core spins, but
the inner core does not because it is solid. This provides a sort of dynamo effect and causes the Earth’s
magnetic force.
A seismic wave is a wave that travels through Earth; it is often the result of a tectonic earthquake. There
are two kinds of seismic waves, “body waves” and “surface waves.” Other waves do exist, but are of little
importance. Body waves travel through the center of Earth, following ray paths which are bent by the
unstable density and stiffness of Earth’s interior. These differ according to temperature, phase, and
structure. Body waves send out the first tremors of an earthquake as well as any later ones.
There are two kinds of body waves, “primary” and “secondary” waves. Primary waves are compression
waves, meaning the ground is alternately compressed and expanded in the direction of propagation. These
waves can travel slightly faster through solids than secondary waves can, and are also able to travel
through any type of material. Through air, they take the form of sound waves and so travel at the speed of
sound.
Primary waves, when created by an earthquake, are less destructive than sound waves due to their minor
amplitudes. Secondary waves are tilted waves; in other words, the ground is shifted vertically in the
direction of transmission. Here, the ground moves from one side to the other. Secondary waves ‘are only
able to travel through solids, not liquids or gases, and thus are unable to travel through Earth’s core.
Primary waves are faster than secondary waves. Primary and secondary waves are usually produced by
earthquakes and volcanoes. However, they can also be produced by people using explosives or large
machinery.
Surface waves are comparable to water waves traveling just under Earth’s surface. They travel at slower
speeds than body waves. Surface waves can be the most devastating type of seismic wave due to their low
frequency, long duration, and large amplitude. In theory, they are understood as a system which relates to
primary and secondary waves.
The moment an earthquake occurs, seismographs try to record its primary and secondary waves, but often
they cannot detect the secondary waves of a distant earthquake. This may be due to the fact that
secondary waves are unable to pass through liquids. This information about wave travel helps scientists
determine the internal structure of the planet.
31. According to paragraph 1, Earth's main layers are _______.
32. The word “immeasurable” is closest in meaning to______ in paragraph 2.
33. It can be inferred from the last paragraph wave travel differences help scientists learn about
Earth’s _______.
34. According to paragraph 3, the reason for tectonic plate movement is the convection of heat from
the _______.
35. The author mention “a tectonic earthquake” in the passage to demonstrate the effect of _______
on the Earth
36. The word “period” is closest in meaning to ______ in paragraph 4.
READING 4 – REVISION 25
37. In paragraph 5, primary waves take _______ when travelling through air.
38. It can be inferred from the passage that the author most likely believes heat from the ______
about earthquakes in the world.
39. According to paragraph 6, three characteristics make surface waves most devastating are: Low
frequency, long duration, and _______.
40. The word “productive” is closest in meaning to ______ in paragraph 7.

READING 4 – REVISION 26