Exam practice
mud to simulate prehistoric mud but it doesn't say anything
Questions 31-40
31 (the) Atlantic (Ocean)
32 (luxury) food (source)
Distraction Rabbits' 'fur' is mentioned but there is no suggestion
they were imported for the fur to be 'used for' something.
33 (in) gardens
Distraction 'nests' are what the ants make, not their 'habitat'
(which is what this column is about).
34 earthworm I earth worm
35 soil (condition)
Distraction 'natives', 'native species' and 'locals' are all
mentioned but the pests 'displace' these, they do not improve
them.
36 North(-)west I north(-)west
Distraction 'Scotland' and 'Iceland' are mentioned, but they are
names of countries so they cannot be the adjective in front of
'Europe'.
37 plant pots
Distraction 'ornamental shrubs' are mentioned but the flatworms
came in the earth in the pots, not the plants.
38 seaweed(s) I sea weed(s)
39 United States I USA
40 (new) competitors
READING PASSAGE 1
Exam practice
Questions 1-6
1 TRUE: The first paragraph says 'But Peter Falkingham has done
little of that for a while now' ('that' refers back to 'field workers
camped in the desert in the hot sun[= outdoor research]').
2 TRUE: The third paragraph talks about the model making
'several attempts': 'This, perhaps unsurprisingly, results almost
without fail in the animal falling on its face . So the computer
alters the activation pattern and tries again ... usually to similar
effect' (Sellers and Manning are mentioned in the previous
paragraph but there is nothing about a computer model).
3 FALSE: The text says speeds for humans on the computer model
matched what they can do in real life: 'And indeed, using the
same method for living animals (humans, emu and ostriches)
similar top speeds were achieved on the computer as in reality'.
4 NOT GIVEN: The sentence at the end of the third paragraph
says the Manchester team are 'confident in the results' (about
how dinosaurs moved) but there is no mention of some
palaeontologists expressing reservations.
5 FALSE: The fifth paragraph talks about modern-day trackers
being able to analyse the tracks of wild animals and the next
sentence compares this to analysing fossil tracks which is much
harder to do: 'But a fossil track poses a more considerable
challenge to interpret in the same way.'
6 NOT GIVEN: The sixth paragraph says Falkingham uses digital
about the research being inaccurate.
Questions 7-9
7 sail: 'There are also those who believe that the spines acted as a
support for a sail. Of these, ... and the other half think it was used
as a temperature-regulating device[= control body heat].'
Distraction 'hump' is wrong because it is thought it 'stored fat
and water', not that it controlled temperature.
8 narrow: You need an adjective to describe the shape or size of
the skull: 'The skull seems out of proportion with its thick, heavy
body because it is so narrow .. .'.
Distraction Its body is 'thick' and ' heavy' and its jaws are
'delicate and fine' .
9 Locomotion: 'It has a deep broad tail and powerful[= highly
developed] leg muscles to aid[= make easier] locomotion.'
Questions 10-13
The sixth paragraph is about Peter Falkingham's computer model
(title of flow-chart).
10 moisture: 'Falkingham uses computational techniques to
... and control the moisture content, consistency [= texture
and thickness], and other conditions to simulate the mud of
prehistoric times.'
11 stress: 'stress values[= levels of stress] can be extracted and
calculated [= measured] from inside it' .
12 ground: 'By running hundreds of these simulations
simultaneously[= multiple simulations] on supercomputers,
Falkingham can start to understand ... over a given kind of
ground.'
Distraction 'tracks' is wrong because it means the same as
'footprints'.
13 fossil tracks: 'researchers can make sense of fossil tracks with
greater confidence[= more accurate interpretation].' (Both words
are necessary here as 'tracks' could mean any tracks.)
READING PASSAGE 2
Exam practice
Questions 14-20
14 C: Paragraphs C and D mention insects. Paragraph C mentions
a specific insect- fruit flies: 'Meanwhile, a fruit fly, with a
brain containing only a fraction of the computing power, can
effortlessly navigate in three dimensions.'
Distraction Paragraph D is wrong because it talks about robots
copying insects but not about a particular insect.
15 D: Paragraph D mentions robots learning from their mistakes
[= bumping into things]: the text says ' ... the unorthodox idea
of tiny "insectoid" robots that learned to walk by bumping into
things instead of computing mathematically the precise position
of their feet'.
Distraction The other paragraphs all talk about robots learning
things and what they can't do but they don't mention them
'learning from their mistakes'.
Test 1 Key 175
16 8: Paragraph B mentions mathematicians and computer
scientists who are 'optimistic[= not put off]' about the
possibilities: the text says 'But a sizeable number of
mathematicians and computer scientists, who are specialists
in the area, [=many researchers] are optimistic about the
possibilities. To them it is only a matter of time[= will
eventually] before a thinking machine [=Artificial Intelligence]
walks out of the laboratory [= be developed]'.
Distraction The researchers[= scientists] in Paragraph A are
negative about the future. Paragraph D is about past research and
Paragraph E mentions people who believe AI will be developed
but they aren't 'many researchers'.
17 D: The text says ' He changed the course of research when he
explored the unorthodox idea of tiny "insectoid" robots ... Today
many of the descendants of Brooks' insectoid robots are on Mars
gathering data for NASA ... For all their successes in mimicking
the behaviour of insects, however ... '.
Distraction In Paragraph C, robots are mentioned which had
' limited' success but the reference is to the past (whereas the
approach in Paragraph Dis still having some success on Mars).
18 A: Paragraph A says ' Physicist Roger Penrose of Oxford
University and others [=some academics] believe that machines
are physically incapable of human thought [= doubt the
possibility of creating Artificial Intelligence]' .
Distraction Paragraphs B, E and F talk about creating Artificial
Intelligence in the future as something very possible, not
something that is in doubt; Paragraph D says that there are
problems creating Artificial Intelligence but it talks about partial
successes.
19 F : Paragraph F says 'There is no universal consensus
[= generally accepted agreement] as to ... , in human terms, what
consciousness means [= what our brains do]'.
Distraction Paragraph B says 'the basic laws of intelligence
remain a mystery ' (there is no mention of a lack of agreement).
20 C : The text says that humans learn by extending what we already
know but 'Robots know only what has been programmed into
them'.
Distraction Paragraph D is about robots being unable to copy
the behaviour patterns of higher mammals[= humans] rather
than about them extending their own intelligence.
Questions 21-23
21 D: Colin McGinn says Artificial Intelligence 'is like sheep trying
to do complicated psychoanalysis. They just don't have the
conceptual equipment ... '.
Distraction A is wrong because although McGinn mentions
psychoanalysis, he is using it as an example of how intelligent
humans are compared to machines (he is not referring to
feelings).
22 C: Marvin Minsky says 'But then we started to try to make
machines that could answer questions about simple children's
stories. There's no machine today that can do that'.
Distraction B is wrong because although Minsky talks about
different parts of the brain, he doesn't say that different kinds of
people use different parts.
176 Test 1 Key
23 A: Hans Moravec says 'Without emotions to guide them, [brain-
damaged people] debate endlessly over their options ... as robots
become more intelligent and are able to make choices, they could
likewise become paralysed with indecision. To aid them, robots
of the future might need to have emotions hardwired into their
brains '.
Distraction E is wrong because Moravec says robots will be
programmed to feel fear but doesn't mention whether people
should be frightened of them or not.
Questions 24-26
Suggested words to underline: early robots; 'top-down' approach;
unable to recognise; Rodney Brooks; collecting information
The summary is about the second half of Paragraph B, and
Paragraphs C and D.
'Prototype robots' (in Paragraph C) tells you that part of the text is
about early robots.
'Weaknesses' in the summary means 'shortcomings' which is in
Paragraph C. The previous paragraph mentions the 'top-down
approach' so you need to read that as well.
24 disc: 'top-down approach' is at the end of Paragraph B so that
is where the answer is (the instructions allow only one word per
gap, so 'single disc' is not correct).
Distraction ' computer' is wrong because the disc is put into the
robot. The computer is used to program the disc.
25 patterns: Paragraph C says ' Our brains, like the fruit fly's,
unconsciously recognise what we see by performing countless
calculations. This unconscious awareness of patterns is exactly
what computers are missing.'
Distraction 'what we see' doesn 't make sense and is more
than one word; ' common sense ' is wrong because you can 't
' recognise' common sense; it is also two words.
26 Mars: Paragraph D says 'Today many of the descendants of
Brooks' insectoid robots[= robots similar to those invented by
Brooks] are on Mars gathering data[= collecting information]
for NASA' .
Distraction 'NASA' is wrong because that is where the
information is sent, not where the robots are.
READING PASSAGE 3
Exam practice
Questions 27-32
27 YES: The first paragraph refers to the ideas: 'By 2050 only a
small number [= a handful of] languages will be flourishing [=
almost all humans will speak one of a handful of megalanguages
(mega= big)].'
28 NO : The words 'too limited' suggest an attitude towards the
work ['efforts '= what they have done] of the Australian linguists.
This implies they should have done more, so it is critical of
them: the writer is positive about Australian linguists ' work, not
critical, saying they 'achieved a great deal in terms of preserving
traditional languages', and adds that the ' initiative' by the
Australian government 'has resulted in good documentation of
most ... Aboriginal languages'.
29 YES: 'the use of technology' in the text is digital recording
and storage, and internet and mobile phone technologies. The
writer men.tions these methods, as an example of what he says
rn the previOus sentence: 'there is growing evidence that not all
approaches to the preservation of languages will be particularly
helpful [= unsatisfactory] ' . He then describes how these
technologies encourage an unsatisfactory method of research:
'the "quick dash" style of recording trip . .. That's not quite what
some endangered-language specialists have been seeking for
more than 30 years ... Michael Krauss ... has often complained
that linguists are playing with non-essentials while most of their
raw data is disappearing'. NOTE It s important to read all round
the relevant part of the text when y ou are looking for the answer.
30 NOT GIVEN: ' overshadowed' implies that Chomsky's political
views have been more important or better known than his
academic work. Although he refers to both, the writer does not
compare Chomsky's political views with his academic work in
terms of their importance or fame: 'Chomsky ... has been the
great man of theoretical linguistics for far longer than he has
been known as a political commentator'; there is no suggestion
that one has ' overshadowed' the other.
31 YES: ' documentary linguists observe . .. Such work calls for
persistent[= long-term] funding[= financial support]' .
32 NO: The writer tells us about Chomsky 's attitude to disappearing
languages ('He has recently begun to speak in support of
language preservation'), but he does not suggest Chomsky is
'too emotional ' about it. In fact he thinks Chomsky's reasons are
'unsentimental', which means the opposite.
Questions 33-36
33 D: 'Worried about the loss of rainforests and the ozone layer?
Well, neither of those is doing any worse than a large majority of
the 6,000 to 7,000 languages that remain in use on Earth.'
Distraction A: The writer doesn 't dismiss concern about
environmental issues as unfounded; B: He doesn 't say anything
about the attitudes of academics in relation to 'the loss of
rainforests and the ozone layer'; C: The text talks about different
kinds of linguists but not academics in other subjects.
34 A: In the second paragraph Evans says 'speakers become less
able to express the wealth of knowledge that has filled ancestors '
lives with meaning [= ideas are part of their culture]'.
Distraction B: Evans suggests that the lost language has a better
vocabulary for the landscape than the creole, but he does not
mention speakers of a creole not understanding older members
of the community; C: The 'few words' are mentioned to illustrate
how the range of vocabulary in the creole is poorer than the
original language, not that it is clearer or more concise; D: The
writer doesn't mention accessing practical information.
35 C : In the third paragraph the writer says ' language-loss hotspots
such as West Africa and South America'. (The metaphor
'hotspot' can mean somewhere where there is a lot of activity, so
a ' language-loss hotspot' is a place experiencing severe problems
with language loss.)
Distraction A: The text refers to the training of linguists in
England as well as these places; it doesn't mention the language
used by linguists in these countries; B: Austin, who heads the
programme, is Australian, but 'programme' implies other trainers
as well, whose nationality is not mentioned. Therefore we don't
know that the linguists were all trained by Australians; D: The
fact that 'many documentary linguists ' have been trained there
does not tell us how many undocumented languages there are.
36 A: The fourth paragraph says 'Michael Krauss ... has often
complained that linguists are playing with non-essentials
[= technologies] while most of their raw data is disappearing' .
Distraction B: Krauss is one of the ' endangered-language
specialists' who do not think this use of technology is what is
needed; C: It is the 'raw data' that is declining. Krauss's opinion
about the numbers of people interested in studying linguistics is
not mentioned; D: Krauss's opinion about funding in universities
is not mentioned.
Questions 37-40
37 C: Austin is mentioned in both paragraph three and paragraph
seven. Only paragraph seven describes Austin's beliefs about
language. 'Austin and Co.' means Austin and others like him.
(Used like this, 'and Co.' is an informal expression.) Paragraph
seven says that 'Austin and Co. are in no doubt that .. . languages
are unique, even if they ... have common underlying features' .
Distraction A: This makes grammatical sense, but ' every'
language is not 'in danger'; B, D, G: These endings fit
grammatically, but are not mentioned in the text.
38 A: The seventh paragraph says that Evans talks about language
communities which may ' oppose efforts to preserve' their
languages. Because they are described as ' endangered' we know
that they are 'in danger of disappearing' .
Distraction D: The communities described believe that retaining
their languages may actually have disadvantages. 'They may
have given up using the language with their children, believing
they will benefit from speaking a more widely understood
one'; G: It is not realising 'what is involved' , it is the people's
existing attitude to their language; B, C, E, F: These endings fit
grammatically, but are not mentioned in the text.
39 F : The opposite of 'practical ' in this context is 'theoretical ',
and the text mentions the 'emphasis on theory' . There are two
options which mention theory (B) or theoretical linguistics (F)
[prevalence = widespread influence I popularity I dominance].
The eighth paragraph says 'Plenty of students continue to be
drawn to the intellectual thrill of linguistics field work'.
Distraction A: Field work is not ' in danger of disappearing'
even if students ' enthusiasm is gradually worn down; B: carrnot
be the correct answer because 'the linguistics profession's
emphasis on theory gradually wears down the enthusiasm of
linguists who work in communities' ; G: It is not realising 'what
is involved' [harsh and even hazardous places] that 'wears down
the enthusiasm' , it is the 'emphasis on theory'; C, D, E: These
endings fit grammatically, but do not make sense.
40 B: The eighth paragraph says 'Chomsky .. . believes that good
descriptive work requires thorough theoretical understanding
[= a strong basis in theory]' .
Distraction A: There is no mention of field work being in
danger of disappearing; E: He does not mention ' drawbacks '·
F: Chomsky's view about this is not mentioned in the text· '
D: This works grammatically, but Chomsky 's ' interests ar~
mostly theoretical' , not ' practical ' .