You are going to read an extract from a novel. For questions 1-8, choose the answer А-D which you think fits best according to the text.
Miss Rita Cohen, a tiny, pale-skinned girl who looked half the age of Seymour's daughter, Marie, but claimed to be some six years older, came to his factor)' one day. She was dressed in overalls and ugly-big :hoes, and a bush of wiry hair framed her pretty face. She was so tiny, so young that he could barely believe that she was at the University of Pennsylvania, doing research into the leather industry in New Jersey for her Master's degree.
Three or four times a year someone either phoned Seymour or wrote to him to ask permission to sec his factory, and occasionally he would assist a student by answering questions over the phone or. if the student struck him as especially serious, by offering з brief tour.
Rita Cohen was nearly as small, he thought, as the children from Mane's third-year class, who'd been brought the 50 kilometres from their rural schoolhouse one day, all those years ago, so that Marie's daddy could show them how he made gloves, show them especially Marie's favourite spot, the laying-off table. where, at the end of the process, the men shaped and pressed each and every glove by pulling it carefully down over steam-heated brass hands. The hands were dangerously hot and they were shiny and they stuck straight up from the table in a row. thin-looking, like hands that had been flattened. As a little girl, Marie was captivated by their strangeness and called them the 'pancake hands'.
He heard Rita asking, 'How many pieces come in a shipment?' 'How many? Between twenty and twenty-five thousand.' She continued taking notes as she asked, 'They come direct to your shipping department?'
He liked finding that she was interested in every last detail. 'They come to the tannery. The tannery is a contractor. We buy the material and they make it into the right kind of leather for us to work with. My grandfather and father worked in the Unnery right here in town. So did I, for six months, when I started working in the business. Ever been inside a tannery?' 'Not yet.' "Well, you've got to go to a tannery if you're going to write about leather. I'll set that up for you if you'd like. They're primitive places. The technology has improved things, but what you'll see isn't that different from what you'd have seen hundreds ot years ago. Awful work. It's said to be the oldest industry of which remains have been found anywhere. Six-thousand-year-old relics of tanning found somewhere — Turkey, I believe. The first clothing was just skins that were tanned by smoking them. I told you it was an interesting subject once you get into it. My father is the leather scholar; he's the otic you should be talking to. Start my father off about gloves and he'll talk for two days. That's typical, by the way: glovemen love the trade and everything about it. Tell гас, have you ever seen anything being manufactured, Miss Cohen?' 'I can't say I have." 'Never seen anything made?' 'Saw my mother nuke a cake when I was a child.'
He laughed. She had made him laugh. An innocent with spirit, eager to learn. His daughter was easily 30cm taller than Rita Cohen, fair where she was dark, but otherwise Rita Cohen had begun to remind him of Marie. The good-natured intelligence that would just waft out of her and into the house when she came home from school, full of what she'd learned in class. How she remembered everything. Everything neatly taken down in her notebook and memorised overnight.
'I'll tell you what we're going to do. We're going to bring you right through the whole process. Come on. We're going to make you a pair of gloves and you're going to watch them being made from start to finish. What size do you wear?'
1 What was Seymour's first impression of Rita Cohen?
A
She reminded him of his daughter.
B
She was rather unattractive.
C
She did not look like a research student.
D
She hadn't given much thought to her appearance.
2 Seymour would show students round his factory if
A
he thought they were genuinely interested.
B
they telephoned for permission.
C
they wrote him an interesting letter.
D
their questions were hard to answer by phone.
3 What did Seymour's daughter like most about visiting the factory?
A
watching her father make gloves
B
helping to shape the gloves
C
making gloves for her schoolfriends
D
seeing the brass hands
4 The word 'shiny' in paragraph 3 describes
A
the look of the hands.
B
the size of the hands.
C
the feel of the hands.
D
the temperature of the hands.
5 What does 'that' in paragraph 5 refer to?
A
the tanner,' business
B
a visit to a tannery
C
writing about leather
D
working with leather
6 Seymour says that most tanneries today
A
have been running for over a hundred years.
B
are located in very old buildings.
C
are dependent on older workers.
D
still use traditional methods.
7 What does Seymour admire about his father?
A
his educational background
B
his knowledge of history
C
his enthusiasm for the business
D
his skill as a glovemaker
8 When she was a schoolgirl, Marie
A
made her parents laugh.
B
was intelligent but lazy.
C
easily forgot what she had learned.
D
was hard-working and keen.
YOUR ANSWER TASK 1
#
A
B
C
D
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
TASK 2
You are going to read a newspaper article about human beings getting taller. Seven sentences have been removed from the article. Choose from the sentences A-H the one which fits each gap (9-15). There is one extra sentence which you do not need to use.
A
We must have some programmed upper limit.
B
As they benefit from the changes in agriculture, people expect to have this wide variety of foods available.
C
In fact, we arc returning to what we were like as cavemen.
D
This poor diet has had a disastrous effect on human health and physique.
E
Since the climate warmed, we appear to have got slightly thinner and smaller, even when properly fed.
F
Nevertheless, from then on agriculture spread because a piece of fanned land could support ten times the number of people who had previously lived off it as hunter-gatherers.
G
One research study found t.nat they based their diet on 85 different wild plants, for example.
H
Heights may have risen, but the world has not moved on, it seems.
It's true - we're all getting too big for our boots
Chris Greener was fourteen when he told his careers teacher he wanted to join the navy when he left school. What do you want to be?' asked the teacher. 'The flagpole on a ship?" The teacher had a point - because Chris, though still only fourteen, was already almost two metres tall. Today, at 228 cm. he is Britain's tallest man.
Every decade, the average height of people in Europe grows another centimetre. Every year, more and more truly big people are born. Intriguingly. this does not mean humanity is producing a new super race. 9_____ Only now arc we losing the effects
of generations of poor diet with dramatic effects. 'We are only now beginning to fulfil our proper potential.' says paleontologist Professor Chris Stringer. 'We are becoming Cro-Magnons again - the people who lived on this planet 40,000 years ago."
For most of human history, our ancestors got their food from a wide variety оf sources: women gathered herbs, fruits and berries, while men supplemented these with occasional kills of animals (a way of life still adopted by the world's few remaining tribes of hunter-gatherers). 10_____ Then about 9,000 years ago, agriculture was invented with devastating consequences. Most of the planet's green places have been gradually taken over by farmers, with the result that just three carbohydrate-rich plants wheat, rice and maize - provide more than half of the calories consumed by the human race today.
11_____ Over the centuries we have lived on soups, porridges and breads that have left us underfed and underdeveloped. In one study in Ohio. scientists discovered that when they began to grow corn, healthy hunter-gatherers were turned into sickly, underweight farmers. Tooth decay increased, as did diseases. Far from being one of the blessings of the New World, corn was a public health disaster. according to some anthropologists.
12_____ The fact that most people relying on this system are poorly nourished and stunted has only recently been tackled, even by the world's wealthier nations. Only in Europe, the US and Japan are diets again reflecting the richness of our ancestors' diets.
As a result, the average man in the US is now 179 cm, in Holland 180 cm, and in Japan 177 cm. It is a welcome trend, though not without its own problems. 13_____ A standard bed-length has remained at 190 cm since 1860. Even worse, leg-room in planes and trains seems to have shrunk rather than grown, while clothes manufacturers are constantly having to revise their range of products.
The question is: where will it all end? We cannot grow for ever 14_____ But what is it? According to Robert Fogel, of Chicago University, it could be as much as 193 cm - and we are likely to reach it some lime this century.
However, scientists add one note of qualification. Individuals may be growing taller because of improved nutrition, but as a species we are actually shrinking. During the last ice age, 10,000 years ago, members of the human race were slightly rounder and taller - an evolutionary response to the cold. (Large, round bodies are best at keeping in heat.) 15_____ And as the planet continues to heat up. we may shrink even further. In other words, the growth of human beings could be offset by global warming.
YOUR ANSWER TASK 2
#
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
TASK 3
You are going to read an article about guidebooks to London For questions 16-30, choose from the guidebooks A-F. The guidebooks may be chosen more than once. When more than one answer is required, these may be given in any order.
Of which guidebook(s) is the following stated?
16
It is frequently revised.
17
It is quite expensive.
18
Its appearance is similar to other books by the same publisher.
19
It contains some errors.
20
It is reasonably priced.
21
It shows great enthusiasm for the city.
22
It has always been produced with a particular market in mind.
23
It is written by people who have all the latest information.
24
It is written in a friendly style.
25
It is written in a friendly style.
26
It is part of the first series of its kind to be published.
27
It omits some sights which should be included.
28
It contains more information than other guides.
29
sIt might appeal to London residents.
30
Its information about places to eat is enjoyable to read.
London Guidebooks
Visitors to London, which has so much to offer, need all the help they can get. Alastair Bickley takes his pick of the capital's guidebooks.
Guidebook A
Informal and familiar in tone, this valuable book has much to offer. Produced by the same people who put together London's principal listings magazine, this is right up to date with what's happening in the city - very much its home ground. It is concise enough to cater for those staying for just a couple of days, yet covers all areas of interest to visitors in an admirably condensed and approachable way. On balance, this is the single most handy book to have with you in London.
Guidebook B
This book is beautifully illustrated, with cutaway diagrams of buildings and bird's-eye-view itineraries rather than plain maps. This is a model of the clear, professional design that is the recognisable trademark of this series. Its coverage of the main sights is strong, and visually it's a real treat - a delight to own as a practical guide. It's a bit pricey but well worth a look when you visit the bookshop.
Guidebook C
Probably the best-suited for a longish stay in the city. This guide surpasses its competitors in its sheer depth of knowledge and in the detail it provides. It's particularly handy for the thorough stroller with plenty of time on his or her hands, covering virtually every building or monument of any interest - and with well-drawn maps of each area. Its coverage of all types of restaurants, which encourages you to go out and try them, can also be appreciated from the comfort of your armchair.
Guidebook D
It is astonishing - and perhaps the greatest tribute one can pay to London as a city - that it's possible to have a high-quality holiday there and scarcely spend anything on admission charges. In this guide, the obvious bargains (National Gallery, British Museum, etc.) are almost lost among an impressive range of places which cost nothing to visit. It should pay more attention to the numerous wonderful churches in the City of London but otherwise this is a must for the seriously budget-conscious or the Londoner who is looking for something different (like me). The book itself isn't quite free, but at ?4.95 you have to admit it's not far off it.
Guidebook E
This is the latest in the longest-standing series of budget guides and, unlike its competitors, it is still definitely aimed at young backpackers. Its description of the sights is less detailed than most and the accuracy of some of the information is surprisingly poor for such a regularly updated publication. However, it manages to cram in everything of significance, and is strongly weighted towards practicalities and entertainment.
Guidebook F
Here is a guide which comes with a distinct personality rather than following the style of the series to which it belongs. It is chatty, companionable, opinionated, crammed full of history and anecdotes as well as practical information. I can best describe the experience (for that's what it is) of reading this book as follows: imagine arriving in town and being taken in hand by a local who is determined to show you the best of everything and to give you the benefit of their considerable experience of a city for which they obviously hold a passion. It's a real delight.
YOUR ANSWER TASK 3
#
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
TASK 4
For questions 31-42, read the text below and decide which answer А-D best fits each gap.
Under the city streets
While skyscraper offices and elegant apartment blocks remain the public face of most major cities, these cities also have a mass of secret tunnels and hidden pipes below ground which keep everything working. This other world exists, forgotten or neglected by all but a tiny (31)_____ of engineers and historians.
For example, there are more than 150 kilometres of rivers under the streets of London. Most have been (32)_____ over and, sadly, all that (33)_____ is their names. Perhaps the greatest (34)_____ to the city is the River Fleet, a (35)_____ great river which previously had beautiful houses on its (36)_____ . It now goes underground in the north of the city and ((37)_____ into the River Thames by Blackfriars Bridge.
The London Underground (38)_____ 1,000 kilometres of underground railway track winding under the capital and more than 100 stations below street level. Along some underground railway lines, commuters can sometimes catch a (39)_____ glimpse of the platforms of more than 40 closed stations which have been left under the city. (40)_____ some are used as film sets, most (41)_____ forgotten. Some have had their entrances on the street turned into restaurants and shops, but most entrances have been (42)_____ down.
