PRACTICE TEST 4

I. LISTENING (50 POINTS)

Part 1: You will hear a man and a woman talking about a new library. For questions 1-7, listen
and complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER
for each answer. (14 points)
NEW LIBRARY
New features
• a seating area with magazines
• an expanded section for books on 1. __________
• a new section on local history
• a community room that can be 2.__________ for meetings (also possible to study there)
• a new section of books for 3. __________
For younger children
• the next Science Club meeting: experiments using things from your kitchen
• Reading Challenge: read six books during the holidays
For adults
This Friday: a local author talks about a novel based on real crime called 4. __________
5. __________ is available on Tuesdays – no appointment is necessary
Free check of blood sugar and 6. ___________ levels (over 60s only)
Other information
The library shop sells wall-charts, cards and stamps
Free parking in the evening and 7. ___________

Part 2: For questions 8-15, listen to a man talking about hyper-parenting and complete the
sentences with a word or short phrase. (16 points)
Hyper-parenting
Cathy Hagner’s children have (8) __________, soccer and piano practice after school.
Hyper-parenting marks by rushing children from activity to activity to polish their (9) ___________
In hyper-parenting, raising the child to be the top of a field is more important goal than raising a
(10)__________ child.
Expectant mothers are told that they have to eat (11) __________.
More and more children are getting (12) __________ because they are so stressed and tired.
Parents worry that they are (13)________ their children if they don’t give them every opportunity.
Terri Apter has found that many teenagers can’t cope with freedom they have when they start college
because they lack (14)__________
Along with organizing extra-curricular activities for their children, parents should give them enough
time for (15)_______
Part 3: For questions 16-20, listen to a man giving a talk on bilingualism and decide whether the
following statements are True (T) or False (F). (10 points)
16.______It is common knowledge that the brain’s right hemisphere is responsible for social and
emotional processes.
17.______ According to one hypothesis, age makes no difference in acquiring a new language.
18.______ The frequent workout of brain increases chances of bilinguals developing Alzheimer’s or
dementia.
19.______ In the past, bilingualism was once believed to retard a child’s cognitive development.
20.______ Because switching between languages requires attention, it helps strengthen a very important
part of the brain.
Part 4: For questions 21-25, listen to a man talking about hobbies and choose the answer A, B, or
C which fits best according to what you hear. (10 points)
21. According to Simon, what can learn by knowing about people’s hobbies?
A. What kind of job they have
B. What kind of person they are
C. what kind of skills they have
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22. What do celebrities’ hobbies often have in common?
A. They take place outdoors.
B. They are connected with music.
C. They involve being part of a group.
23. What is unusual about the Dalai Lama?
A. He loves old movies
B. He collects vintage cars.
C. He is always mending things.
24. What does Bill Wyman get most pleasure from?
A. collecting antique jewelry
B. writing archeological books
C. looking for items of historical interest
25. Simon says that the hobbies of world leaders are often
A. dangerous
B. obsessive
C. embarrassing
III. READING (60 POINTS)
Part 1: Choose the correct answer A, B, C, or D which best fits each gap in the following passage.
(10 points)
Caving
Caving is an adventure sport that, quite literally, takes you to another world. But it's also quite a
well (1) _________ secret, enjoyed by a relatively small group of devoted enthusiasts. Caving (2)
_________ for a range of skills because it involves climbing, squeezing and squirming your way into
openings in the Earth's rocks to discover the many fascinating, sometimes very large and beautiful,
caverns that (3) _________ under the surface.
Despite its rather dangerous image, largely (4) _________ thanks to rather sensationalist
television programmes, the sport has an excellent safety (5) _________, so long as you go with a
qualified instructor or caving club. Wearing a helmet and waterproof clothing, you're privy to a hidden
world of stalagmites and stalactites, although you may have to (6) _________ through torrential
underground rivers and negotiate thunderous waterfalls in order to reach the most impressive spots.
The challenge of entering the unknown in the (7) _________ dark can be, let's (8) _________ it,
pretty terrifying, so it's as well to choose your location carefully. And there's also a conservation (9)
_________ behind the sport too because caves are a very (10) _________ environment that is easily
damaged. All cavers are encouraged to "take nothing but photographs and leave nothing but footprints"
1. A. cared B. held C. kept D. minded
2. A. demands B. calls C. asks D. requires
3. A. stay B. sit C. rest D. lie
4. A. accepted B. acquired C. assumed D. admitted
5. A. report B. history C. standard D. record
6. A. amble B. wade C. stroll D. hike
7. A. pitch B. utter C. full D. pure
8. A. own B. face C. confront D. grant
9. A. opinion B. message C. view D. notion
10. A. flimsy B. feeble C. fragile D. frail
Part 3: Read the passage below and choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best
according to the text. (10 points)
Thunderstorms, with their jagged bursts of lightning and roaring thunder, are actually one of
nature’s primary mechanisms for transferring heat from the surface of the earth into the atmosphere. A
thunderstorm starts when low-lying pockets of warm air from the surface of the earth begin to rise. The
pockets of warm air float upward through the air above that is both cooler and heavier. The rising
pockets cool as their pressure decreases, and their latent heat is released above the condensation line
through the formation of cumulus clouds.
What will happen with these clouds depends on the temperature of the atmosphere. In winter,
the air temperature differential between higher and lower altitudes is not extremely great, and the

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temperature of the rising air mass drops more slowly. During these colder months, the atmosphere,
therefore, tends to remain rather stable. In summer, however, when there is a high accumulation of heat
near the earth’s surface, in direct contrast to the considerably colder air higher up, the temperature
differential between higher and lower altitudes is much more pronounced. As warm air rises in this type
of environment, the temperature drops much more rapidly than it does in winter; when the temperature
drops more than 4 degrees Fahrenheit per thousand feet of altitude, cumulus clouds aggregate into a
single massive cumulonimbus cloud, or thunderhead.
In isolation, a single thunderstorm is an impressive but fairly benign way for Mother Earth to
defuse trapped heat from her surface; thunderstorms, however, can appear in concert, and the resulting
show, while extremely impressive, can also prove extraordinarily destructive. When there is a large-
scale collision between cold air and warm air masses during the summer months, a squall line, or series
of thunderheads, may develop. It is common for a squall line to begin when an advancing cold front
meets up with and forces itself under a layer of warm and moist air, creating a line of thunderstorms that
races forward at speeds of approximately forty miles per hour. A squall line, which can be hundreds of
miles long and can contain fifty distinct thunderheads, is a magnificent force of nature with incredible
potential for destruction. Within the squall line, often near its southern end, can be found supercells,
long-lived rotating storms of exceptional strength that serve as the source of tornadoes.
1. The topic of the passage is ________.
A. the development of thunderstorms and squall lines
B. the devastating effects of tornadoes
C. cumulus and cumulonimbus clouds
D. the power of tornadoes
2. The word “mechanisms” in paragraph 1 is most likely ________.
A. machines B. motions C. methods D. materials
3. It can be inferred from the passage that, in summer, ________.
A. there is not a great temperature differential between higher and lower altitudes
B. the greater temperature differential between higher and lower altitudes makes thunderstorms more
likely to occur
C. there is not much cold air higher up in the atmosphere
D. the temperature of rising air drops more slowly than it does in winter
4. The word “benign” in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ________.
A. harmless B. beneficial C. ferocious D. spectacular
5. The expression “in concert” in paragraph 3 could best be replaced by ________.
A. as a chorus B. with other musicians
C. as a cluster D. in a performance
6. According to the passage, a “squall line” in paragraph 3 is ________.
A. a lengthy cold front B. a serious thunderstorm
C. a line of supercells D. a string of thunderheads
7. The word “itself” in paragraph 3 refers to ________.
A. a large-scale collision B. a squall line
C. an advancing cold front D. a layer of warm and moist air
8. All of the following are mentioned in the passage about supercells EXCEPT that they ________.
A. are of short duration B. have circling winds
C. have extraordinary power D. can give birth to tornadoes
9. This reading passage would most probably be assigned in which of the following courses?
A. Geography B. Meteorology
C. Marine Biology D. Chemistry
10. The paragraph following the passage most likely discusses ________.
A. the lightning and thunder associated with thunderstorms
B. various types of cloud formations
C. the forces that contribute to the formation of squall lines
D. the development of tornadoes within supercells
Part 4: Read the passage and do the tasks that follow. (20 points)

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The reading passage has seven paragraphs, A–G. Choose the correct heading for paragraphs C–
G from the list of headings below.
The US City and the Natural Environment
A. While cities and their metropolitan areas have always interacted with and shaped the natural
environment, it is only recently that historians have begun to consider this relationship. During our own
time, the tension between natural and urbanized areas has increased, as the spread of metropolitan
populations and urban land uses has reshaped and destroyed natural landscapes and environments.
B. The relationship between the city and the natural environment has actually been circular, with
cities having massive effects on the natural environment, while the natural environment, in turn, has
profoundly shaped urban configurations. Urban history is filled with stories about how city dwellers
contended with the forces of nature that threatened their lives. Nature not only caused many of the
annoyances of daily urban life, such as bad weather and pests, but it also gave rise to natural disasters
and catastrophes such as floods, fires, and earthquakes. In order to protect themselves and their
settlements against the forces of nature, cities built many defences including flood walls and dams,
earthquake-resistant buildings, and storage places for food and water. At times, such protective steps
sheltered urbanites against the worst natural furies, but often their own actions – such as building under
the shadow of volcanoes, or in earthquake-prone zones – exposed them to danger from natural hazards.
C. City populations require food, water, fuel, and construction materials, while urban industries
need natural materials for production purposes. In order to fulfill these needs, urbanites increasingly had
to reach far beyond their boundaries. In the nineteenth century, for instance, the demands of city
dwellers for food produced rings of garden farms around cities. In the twentieth century, as urban
populations increased, the demand for food drove the rise of large factory farms. Cities also require
fresh water supplies in order to exist – engineers built waterworks, dug wells deeper and deeper into the
earth looking for groundwater, and dammed and diverted rivers to obtain water supplies for domestic
and industrial uses. In the process of obtaining water from distant locales, cities often transformed them,
making deserts where there had been fertile agricultural areas.
D. Urbanites had to seek locations to dispose of the wastes they produced. Initially, they placed
wastes on sites within the city, polluting the air, land, and water with industrial and domestic effluents.
As cities grew larger, they disposed of their wastes by transporting them to more distant locations.
Thus, cities constructed sewerage systems for domestic wastes. They usually discharged the sewage
into neighbouring waterways, often polluting the water supply of downstream cities.
The air and the land also became dumps for waste disposal. In the late nineteenth century, coal
became the preferred fuel for industrial, transportation, and domestic use. But while providing an
inexpensive and plentiful energy supply, coal was also very dirty. The cities that used it suffered from
air contamination and reduced sunlight, while the cleaning tasks of householders were greatly
increased.
E. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, reformers began demanding urban
environmental cleanups and public health improvements. Women's groups often took the lead in
agitating for clean air and clean water, showing a greater concern than men in regard to quality of life
and health-related issues. The replacement of the horse, first by electric trolleys and then by the car,
brought about substantial improvements in street and air sanitation. The movements demanding clean
air, however, and reduction of waterway pollution were largely unsuccessful. On balance, urban
sanitary conditions were probably somewhat better in the 1920s than in the late nineteenth century, but
the cost of improvement often was the exploitation of urban hinterlands for water supplies, increased
downstream water pollution, and growing automobile congestion and pollution.
F. In the decades after the 1940s, city environments suffered from heavy pollution as they
sought to cope with increased automobile usage, pollution from industrial production, new varieties of
chemical pesticides and the wastes of an increasingly consumer-oriented economy. Cleaner fuels and
smoke control laws largely freed cities during the 1940s and 1950s of the dense smoke that they had
previously suffered from. Improved urban air quality resulted largely from the substitution of natural
gas and oil for coal and the replacement of the steam locomotive by the diesel-electric. However, great
increases in automobile usage in some larger cities produced the new phenomenon of smog, and air
pollution replaced smoke as a major concern.

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 G. During these decades, the suburban out-migration, which had begun in the nineteenth century
with commuter trains and streetcars and accelerated because of the availability and convenience of the
automobile, now increased to a torrent, putting major strains on the formerly rural and undeveloped
metropolitan fringes. To a great extent, suburban layouts ignored environmental considerations, making
little provision for open space, producing endless rows of resource-consuming and fertilizer-dependent
lawns, contaminating groundwater through leaking septic tanks, and absorbing excessive amounts of
fresh water and energy. The growth of the outer city since the 1970s reflected a continued preference on
the part of many people in the western world for space-intensive single-family houses surrounded by
lawns, for private automobiles over public transit, and for the development of previously untouched
areas. Without better planning for land use and environmental protection, urban life will, as it has in the
past, continue to damage and stress the natural environment.
Questions 1-5
Reading Passage has seven sections, A-G. Choose the correct heading for each section from the list of
headings below. There are more headings than sections.

List of Headings
i. Legislation brings temporary improvements Example:
ii. The increasing speed of suburban development Paragraph A iii
iii. A new area of academic interest 1. Paragraph B _______
iv. The impact of environmental extremes on city planning 2. Paragraph C _______
v. The first campaigns for environmental change 3. Paragraph D _______
vi. Building cities in earthquake zones 4. Paragraph E _______
vii. The effect of global warming on cities 5. Paragraph F _______
viii. Adapting areas surrounding cities to provide resources Paragraph G ii
ix. Removing the unwanted by-products of city life
x. Providing health information for city dwellers

Questions 7-10:
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage? Write:
TRUE if the statement is true according to the passage
FALSE if the statement is false according to the passage
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage
6. In the nineteenth century, water was brought into the desert to create productive farming land.
7. Women were often the strongest campaigners for environmental reform.
8. Reducing urban air and water pollution in the early twentieth century was extremely expensive.
9. The introduction of the car led to increased suburban development.
10. Suburban lifestyles in many western nations fail to take account of environmental protection.
Part 5: The passage below consists of five paragraphs (A-E), identify in which section A–E each of
the following is mentioned. Write ONE letter A–E in the corresponding numbered space
provided. Each letter may be used more than once.
Which person reads a book which _____
1._____ was set in an Oriental country?
2._____ finished in an unrealistic way?
3._____ had characters that the reader could sympathize with?
4._____ is well-known and was written a long time ago?
5._____ contained two stories?
6._____ was not set in the past?
7._____ was historically accurate?
8._____ made the reader cry?
9._____ contained insignificant details?
10.____ has a well-known scene?
A
Sundance by Teresa Wilson
Kerry:
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I really don't know why this book is so popular. I mean, I suppose it is going to appeal to young girls
who want danger and romance, but I found this book really tedious. For a start, the characters were
really unconvincing. The author went out of her way to add lots of details about the characters, but I
found these details really pointless. I thought that some of the facts she presented about the main
characters would become significant in some way later in the novel, but they didn't. They were just
worthless bits of information. I also was disappointed that, although this book is meant to be about kids
at high school, the writer seems to have no recollection at all about what it's like to be 17. The main
character thought and acted like a 32-year-old. It just wasn't believable. I'm not saying Teresa Wilson is
a bad writer. She can obviously string words together and come up with a story that is appealing to a
large number of people, but she lacks anything original. There is no flair. It just uses the same sort of
language as you can see in many other mediocre novels.
B
Wild Ways by Margery Emerson
Liz:
I have to say that I won't forget this book for a long time. I was hooked from the very first chapter. The
devastating story affected me so much that I don't know if I'll ever feel the same again. I was close to
tears on several occasions. I've got images in my brain now that I don't think will ever leave me. It's
incredibly well-researched and, although it is fiction, is based on shocking real-life events. I learned an
awful lot about things that went on that I never knew before. Margaret Emerson has a brilliant way with
words and I really felt real empathy towards the characters, although I was sometimes irritated by the
choices they made. However, the parallel story, the part that is set in the present, is not quite so good. I
found myself just flicking through that part so that I could get back to 1940s Paris.
C
Orchid by Henry Rathbone
Imogen:
This is a delightful novel full of wonderful imagery, a paints a remarkable picture of life in a distant
time and a far-away place. If you're looking to learn about Eastern culture in great detail, then this is
probably not the book for you, as the writer skims over most of the more complicated aspects of the
country's etiquette. The historical aspects are also not covered in much depth. However, I wonder
whether this was the writer's intention. By doing this, he symbolise the superficiality of the girl's life.
She, like the book, is beautiful and eager to please, but remains too distant from us, the readers, to teach
us much. Although I loved the book and read it in one sitting, the ending was a bit of a disappointment.
A story which involves so much turmoil, in a place where the future is uncertain,
should not have a happy-ever-after fairy-tale ending.
D
High Hills by Mary Holland
Hannah:
I read this book for a literature class. I know it's a classic, and I did try to like it, but I just didn't get into
it. I kept persevering, hoping that I'd start to enjoy it, but no such luck. The famous scene out on the
moors was definitely the best bit of the book, but even that I found ridiculous when it is clearly
supposed to be passionate. As I approached the end of the book, I figured there must be some kind of
moral to the story, something that I would learn from the experience of trudging through seven hundred
long pages, but there was nothing worthwhile. I don't know why the literary world sees this book as
such a masterpiece. The characters are portrayed as being intelligent, but they do such stupid things!
And as for it being a love story - marrying someone you don't love and then being abused by them - that
doesn't spell love to me.

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