Đề thi thử Chọn học sinh giỏi quốc gia THPT năm 2019

CÙNG HỌC THI HSG MÔN TIẾNG ANH
KỲ THI HỌC SINH GIỎI QUỐC GIA THPT
ĐỀ THI THỬ SỐ 02 NĂM 2019 Môn thi: TIẾNG ANH
Thời gian thi:
180 phút (không kể thời gian giao đề) Ngày thi: TEST 2
Đề thi có 16 trang
* Thí sinh không được sử dụng tài liệu, kể cả từ điển
* Giám thị không giải thích gì thêm. I. LISTENING (50 POINTS)
Part 1. For questions 1-5, listen to a talk on temporary jobs available at a local ice cream factory and
complete the table with the missing information. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS taken from
the recording for each answer in the space provided. Position Salary Requirements/Duties Benefits A (1)________ job Take part in (2)________ Food taster £15.30
Possess satisfatory tasting skills (3)________
Deal with packaging and labelling Extra pay £8.45 Being (4)________ is crucial Prepare reports, manage the Proper training Office assistant (5)________ customer database
Part 2. For questions 6-10, listen to a report on five key global issues. What the speaker say about
each of the issues? Choose five answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-J, in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided.
A. Clashes between forces within a newly-formed country cause heavy death toll and looming starvation
B. Under a new zero-tolerance policy, children were forced to work in cages
C. A peace agreement was signed, ending years of civil war
D. The authority is reportedly detaining populations of an ethnic group in a bid to re-educate them
E. World powers help to resolve a civil conflict by backing Saudi Arabia’s campaign
F. An inhumane policy faced immense public opposition and political pressure
G. Military forces commit atrocities against a minority group, resulting in mass migration.
H. The government attacks a religious minority group in an effort to crack down on freedom of speech
I. Some countries place travel restrictions on civilians to prevent them from fleeing across borders
J. A civil conflict broke out, followed by military intervention from neighbouring countries. Global issues 6. China’s internment camps 7. Rohingya crisis 8. South Sudan’s civil war 9. Conflict in Yemen 10. U.S. family separation Your answers 6. 7. 8 9. 10. 1
Part 3. For questions 11-15, listen to a discussion on expectations in today’s job market and choose
the correct answer A, B, C, or D which fits best according to what your hear. Write your answers in
the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
11. How does Diane Webber view “job for life”?
A. She regrets the fact that this situation is no longer the norm.
B. She feels that many long-serving employees fail to make a useful contribution.
C. She believes that people should have challenged their employers’ motives more.
D. She wishes the workplace had been more secure in the past.
12. According to Diane, younger workers in today’s workplace
A. learn all the skills they need early on.
B. accept lateral moves if they are attractive.
C. expect to receive benefits right from the start.
D. change jobs regularly to achieve a higher level.
13. What does Diane say about continuity in companies?
A. It is desirable in both junior and senior management.
B. It is impossible to achieve in today’s more competitive environment.
C. It is unimportant, due to the greater emphasis on teamwork.
D. It is necessary, but only up to a point.
14. According to Diane, what is the actual benefit of higher levels of personnel movement? A. Higher levels of output. B. Better problem-solving. C. More creativity. D. Greater efficiency.
15. Diane considers that nowadays companies are at most risk from
A. run-of-the-mill employees who play safe.
B. successful high-fliers who quickly move on.
C. unreliable staff who lack commitment.
D. external advisors who have undue power. Your answers 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
Part 4. For questions 16-25, listen to a report on trends in technology in 2018 and supply the blanks
with the missing information. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS taken from the recording
for each answer in the space provided.
- The top ten (16)_______________________ are key trends that the enterprise cannot afford to ignore.
- Artificial intelligence and machine learning is a foundation component of all of the applications and
services and things in our world around us which lead us to the two (17)_________________________:
Intelligent apps and analytics and intelligent things. Think of intelligent user interface with things like (18) ______________________.
- Think of intelligent actions so your applications themselves have improved (19)
________________________ and look at how AI improves the business intelligence and (20)
______________________ for end users.
- Think of that term AI not just as artificial intelligence and robotic things replacing people but think
(21)_______________________________ and assisting humans.
- Multiple intelligent things: (22) ________________________, robots and autonomous vehicles
working cooperatively together.
(23) ________________________ are the digital representations of the real-world things.
- The next trend is cloud to the edge. Edge computing and using the processing power at the edge of
these edge devices can act as (24) ________________________.
- We’ve got to think of this distributed computing environment and finally the last two trends are
looking at conversational systems and (25) ________________________. 2
II. LEXICO-GRAMMAR (20 POINTS)
Part 1. For questions 26-39, choose the correct answer A, B, C or D to each of the following
questions and write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
26. I'm about to start my long-planned swimming regime. But I've got really terrible cellulite, which makes me feel rather ______ . A. self-assured
B. self-centred C. self-conscious D. self-evident
27. ______ , we cleared the table and washed the dishes. A. Having the food eaten B. Eating the food C. Eaten the food D. The food eaten
28. I am putting my job ______ by giving you this information. A. on the point B. on the trot C. on the line D. on the verge
29. This horror film is not for people who are ______ and can not stand the sight of blood. A. sullen B. discreet C. squeamish D. callous
30. Our teacher tends to ______ certain subjects which she finds difficult to talk about A. boil down B. string along C. skate over D. track down
31. The return on your investment will come in ________ at first, but you'll see a more steady flow of income later. A. bits and bobs B. dribs and drabs C. fingers and thumbs D. bibs and tuckers
32. There is a big investigation ________, but I don't know when. A. in the offing B. off the peg C. on the blink D. over the hill
33. As I said before, the report will be released in the ________ of time. I can't estimate when that will be. A. rightness B. fullness C. greatness D. correctness
34. These fanatics are in ________ earnest when they say they want to destroy all forms of government. A. mortally B. fatally C. deadly D. gravely
35. That car accident seems to have scared Janet out of her ________ - she's still shaken by it. A. powers B. senses C. wits D. moods
36. At the end of her speech, she ________ a note of warning about the risks involved in the project. A. hit B. punched C. struck D. beat
37. Tickets are hard to come by but I'll do my ________ best to get you one. A. utmost B. level C. regular D. extreme
38. He is the ________ favourite to win the tournament of champions next week. A. all-out B. far-fetched C. odds-on D. well-earned
39. I hope the fact that Louise isn't coming won't ________ your enjoyment of the evening. A. scrap B. mar C. oust D. flout Your answers 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39.
Part 2. For questions 40-45, write the correct form of each bracketed word in the numbered space provided.
40. People in coastal area live mainly on the ______________, which allows them to earn a great deal
of money from the sea products. (CULTURE)
41. It was quite obvious that there had been a definite ______________ between her and her daughter-
in-law right from the beginning. (STRANGE)
42. Osteoarthritis is a(n) ______________ joint disease due to the wear and tear of joint cartilage. (GENERATE)
43. Although some hold out hope for a sea wall and land reclamation programme, it is admittedly
nothing more than a mere ______________. (STOP)
44. This book is ______________. You can find information about the varieties of plants around the world here. (EMBRACE)
45. Antiseptics and ______________ are widely used in hospital to kill the bacteria. (INFECT) Your answers 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 3 III. READING (50 POINTS)
Part 1. For questions 46-55, fill each of the following numbered blanks with ONE suitable word and
write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
Few inventions have had more scorn and praise (46)________ upon them at the same time than
television. And few have done so much to unite the world (47)________ one vast audience for news,
sport, information and entertainment. Television must be rated (48)________ printing as one of the
most significant inventions of all time in the field of communications. In just a few decades it has
(49)________ virtually every home in the developed world and an ever-increasing proportion of homes
in developing countries. It took over half a century from the first suggestion that television might be
(50)________ before the first flickering (51)_______ were produced in laboratories in Britain and
America. In 1926 John Logie Baird’s genius for publicity brought television to the (52)________ of a
British audience. It has since reached such (53)________ of success and (54)________ on such a pivotal
function that it is difficult to imagine a world (55)________ of this groundbreaking invention. Your answers 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55.
Part 2. For questions 56-68, read the following passage and do the tasks that follow. READING WARS
A. In many developed countries literacy skirts are under siege. This is true even in societies where
access to primary education is universal and governments invest heavily in education. New Zealand, for
example, was leading the world in literacy rates in 1970, but tumbled to thirteenth place in 2001 and
then again to twenty-fourth just a few years tater. Test scores in the USA also slumped ten percent
during the 1990s despite the country riding an economic boom for much of the decade. In some cases
these statistics reverse trends that were in motion for over a century and a half. The steady, gradual
expansion of literacy across social groups and classes was one of the greatest successes of the period of
industrialization that began in the mid-1850s.
B. This reversal of fortunes has lead to widespread contention over the pedagogy of teaching literacy.
What was once a dry and technical affair—the esoteric business of linguists and policy analysts—
rapidly escalated into a series of skirmishes that were played out in high-visibility forums: Newspapers
ran special features, columns and letters-to-the-editor on the literacy crisis; politicians successfully ran
their national campaigns on improving reading test scores; and parents had their say by joining Parent
Teacher Associations (PTAs) and lobby groups.
C. The arguments around reading pooled into two different classroom methodologies: constructivism
and behaviorism. The constructivist methodology grew from a holistic conception of knowledge
creation that understood reading and writing to be innate, humanistic and interpretative practices that
suffered when they were spliced and formalized within rigid doctrines, strict rules and universal skill-
sets. Constructivists associate words with meanings; each word might be thought of as a Chinese
ideogram. Students are encouraged to learn individual words and skip over and guess words they do not
understand, or learn to interpret those words by situating them within the lexical infrastructure of the
sentence and the story's wider narrative. These practices materialize as learning processes centered on
guided group reading and independent reading of high-quantity, culturally diverse literature or textual
composition that emphasises pupils conveying their own thoughts and feelings for real purposes such as
letters to pen pals or journal entries.
D．Behaviorism sees the pedagogial process in a less dialectical fashion—words are initially taught
not lexically, as vehicles to convey meaning, but rather sub-lexically, as a combination of features that
can be separated and learnt in a schematic process. The behaviorist approach does not focus on words at
all in the early stages of learning. Rather, it is centered on a universally applicable method of teaching
students to isolate graphemes and phonemes with the intention that students will eventually learn to
synthesize these individual parts and make sense of spoken words textually. In this way, individual 4
components are not equated with the strokes of a brush on a Chinese ideogram, but rather as the focal
pieces of interpretation—as in, for example, learning to read musical notations or Morse Code. Because
of its emphasis on universal rules, behaviorism is much more conducive to formal examination and the
consolidation of results across regions and countries. The ability to master language is considered to rest
in the acquisition of a set of skills that exist independently of individuals. Classroom learning is
therefore based upon the transmission of knowledge from tutor to student, rather than seen as an
internalized process that erupts within the students themselves.
E. So who comes out on top? It is not easy to say. Champions of behaviorism have claimed victory
because constructivist learning took over in the late 1980s, just before test scores on literacy began
sinking across the West. Constructivists, however, can make the valid claim that the behaviorist
approach has a heavy methodological bias towards testing and examination, and that test results do not
represent the ability of individuals to use and interpret language freely and creatively. Furthermore,
different socio-economic groups respond in different ways to each method. Those from wealthier
families tend to do well regardless of the method, but thrive on the constructivist approach implemented
in the 1990s. Children from poorer families, however, are better served by behaviorism. These outcomes
have ramped up levels of socio-economic based educational disparities in educational systems that have
pushed the constructivist method.
F. It is unlikely that either constructivism or behaviorism will be permanently sidelined from curricula
in the near future. Most teachers find it easier to incorporate aspects of each approach. Constructivism
may ultimately hold the trump card because of its proven success with pupils who come from families
where they are introduced to reading and writing in various forms from a young age—this process of
'living and learning' and immersing oneself in language is a sound principle. In a world rife with social
inequities, households with illiterate parents and a scarcity of funding for education, however, the
behaviorist approach may have the upper hand in teaching children to access the basic skills of literacy
quickly and efficiently, even if some linguistic creativity is crushed in the process.
Questions 56-62: There are six paragraphs marked A-F in the passage. In which paragraph is the
following mentioned? Write your answers in the corresponding numbered box provided.
56. A reason why constructivism might increase inequalities in society
57. Ways in which people debated the merits of different ways of teaching reading
58. A comparison between forms of communication that build meaning from isolated parts
59. Reasons why a method that is theoretically superior might not always work effectively in practice
60. An explanation of why measuring the success of different reading methods is difficult
61. An example of an activity that teachers might use to develop writing skills
62. Evidence of a national decline in reading standards Your answers 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62.
Questions 63-65: Which THREE of the following are features of constructivism? Choose THREE
letters, A-G. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered box provided.
A．Students learn best by working on their own.
B．People are naturally inclined to develop language abilities.
C．It is vital that a disciplined and regulated approach is used.
D．It is important that students understand every word they encounter.
E．Language is best learnt as a single, organic process.
F．Everyone learns to read and write in a similar manner.
G．Context can provide helpful cues to understanding words. Your answers 63. 64. 65.
Questions 66-68: Which THREE of the following are features of behaviorism? Choose THREE
letters, A-G. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered box provided. 5
A．The whole of a word is less important than its parts.
B．There is not a common set of conventions.
C．Students learn best by working on their own.
D．Meaning is created by connecting word fragments.
E．Linguistic capacities are built into people.
F．Students learn by receiving information from teachers.
G．It is difficult to judge how well students are doing collectively. Your answers 66. 67. 68.
Part 3. In the passage below, seven paragraphs have been removed. For questions 69-75, read the
passage and choose from the paragraphs A-H the one which fits each gap. There is ONE extra
paragraph which you do not need to use. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered box provided.
MERGING ART&SCIENCE: A FALSE PREMISE
The current vogue is for believing that art and science should be brought together. This obsession for
showing that art - particularly the visual arts - is similar to science in content and the creative processes
is bemusing. I detect in it an element of social snobbery - artists are envious of scientists and scientists
want to be thought of as artists. 69.
If Watson and Crick had not got the structure of DNA we know that Franklin and Klug would soon have
had it. Indeed simultaneous discovery is a common feature of science. If one could rerun the history of
science and start again it would have a different history but the end results would be the same: water
would be H2O and genes would code for proteins but the names would be different. 70.
Whatever the feelings of the scientist these are absent from the final understanding of a process. while
art is a personal creation and contains the personal views of the artist. And since science is a communal
process a scientist has to be very aware of what is known about the problem being investigated. There
are strict criteria about lack of contradiction and, of course, correspondence with reality. Science makes
progress, we build on the work of our current and earlier colleagues. To talk about progress in art makes
no sense, there is change but not progress. 71.
Thus, I cannot understand what is being referred to when there is reference to critical thinking in art. In
what sense can a painting be right or wrong? Anyone can have views about a painting and engage in art
discussions. Non-scientists can thrill to scientific ideas but to make meaningful comments about them,
and I exclude their application to technology, one actually has to have detailed knowledge; science
needs a much greater, and quite different, intellectual effort. 72.
It is very rare for referees to recommend acceptance without changes. This can be a complex procedure
but in general authors are grateful for the careful reading and criticism of their paper. Even so we reject 6
about half of all papers we receive. Paintings, however, are neither revised nor can be shown to be wrong. 73.
The idea of creativity makes scientists want to be thought of as artists and vice versa and there may well
be something similar in all human creativity, but that it is particularly similar in scientists and artists is
without foundation. The similarity between art and science is even less than that between billiards and
rugby, both of which at least use a ball. 74.
It seems just poetic licence to suggest that this picture did much to convince European scientists that the
great mystery of life might be explained in terms of electrochemical forces. (Although it may be that Jan
Vermeer did indeed discover that more compelling illusions can be achieved through a kind of optical
illusion that makes special use of the perceptual system inside our brains, rather than through the details that reach our eyes). 75.
Art does not explain, but it broadens our experience in ways that are not clearly understood. I value it in
its own terms, but it has nothing to do with understanding how the world works. To pretend that it does
is to trivialise science and do nothing for art. We should stop pretending that the two disciplines are
similar, and instead rejoice in the very different ways that they enrich our culture.. The missing paragraphs:
A. What are the criteria used by the director of a gallery and his or her advisers when selecting for
exhibition? Is he or she like the editor of a science journal? No, for there is nothing in art like the peer
review so fundamental to science; there are no art critics, just art writers. As the editor of a scientific
journal, it is extremely rare that my personal view determines whether or not a paper gets published. My
role is to choose a good editorial board and to know to whom the papers to be reviewed should be sent.
B. Bringing visual artists and scientists together merely makes them feel elevated: it is not a scientific
experience. Although it must be said that science has had a strong influence on certain artists - in the
efforts to imitate nature and thus to develop perspective or in the area of new technologies - art has
contributed virtually nothing to science.
C. Then of the hundreds of thousands of papers published each year, few have a lifetime of more than
a few years. Most disappear with little if any trace. The original papers, with very rare exceptions, like
those of Einstein, are never part of scientific culture and they are not for sale. Science, unlike art, is not entertainment.
D. What intrigued me at the opening was how the exhibits were chosen. There is less of a problem
with well established artists such as Lucian Freud, Francis Bacon or Matisse. It is the very modern
works that present the problem.
E. How different from this are all the arts. No Shakespeare - no Hamlet; no Picasso - no Guernica .
Moreover a work of art is capable of many interpretations and has moral content. There is but one
correct scientific explanation for any set of observations and reliable scientific understanding has no 7
moral or ethical content; that is to say that the scientist does not allow his own reactions to come into play.
F. The Oxford University art historian Martin Kemp takes a very different view from mine here. He
claims that during the 'Scientific Revolution' some artists were able to play an active role in the dialogue
between seeing and knowing. He gives the fiery emissions of Joseph Wright's volcanoes painted in the
late eighteenth century as an example. Wright's painting of Vesuvius erupting may be dramatic but it owes nothing to geology..
G. Art is not constrained by reality. It cannot be shown to be wrong. And of all the arts, painting is the
one least related to science as it does not deal with complex ideas or explanations, is the easiest to
appreciate, and the response is often an emotional one. Ideas in the visual arts come from art critics and
historians, not the works themselves.
H. Science is about understanding how the world works, there being only one right description of any
observed phenomenon. Unlike the arts it is a collective endeavour in which the individual is ultimately
irrelevant - geniuses merely speed up discovery. Your answers 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75.
Part 4. For questions 76-85, read an extract from an article on the design of green building and
choose the answer A, B, C or D that fits best according to the text. Write your answers in the
corrresponding numbered boxes provided.
1) There has, in recent years, been an outpouring of information about the impact of buildings on the
natural environment; Information which explains and promotes green and sustainable construction
design, strives to convince others of its efficacy and warns of the dangers of ignoring the issue. Seldom
do these documents offer any advice to practitioners, such as those designing mechanical and electrical
systems for a building, on how to utilise this knowledge on a practical level.
2) While the terms green and sustainable are often considered synonymous, in that they both symbolise
nature, green does not encompass all that is meant by sustainability, which can be defined as minimizing
the negative impacts of human activities on the natural environment, in particular those which have
long-term and irreversible effects. Some elements of green design may be sustainable too, for example
those which reduce energy usage and pollution, while others, such as ensuring internal air quality, may
be considered green despite having no influence on the ecological balance.
3) Although there are a good many advocates of ‘green’ construction in the architectural industry, able
to cite ample reasons why buildings should be designed in a sustainable way, not to mention a plethora
of architectural firms with experience in green design, this is not enough to make green construction
come into being. The driving force behind whether a building is constructed with minimal
environmental impact lies with the owner of the building; that is, the person financing the project. If the
owner considers green design unimportant, or of secondary importance, then more than likely, it will not be factored into the design.
4) The commissioning process plays a key role in ensuring the owner gets the building he wants, in
terms of design, costs and risk. At the predesign stage, the owner’s objectives, criteria and the type of
design envisaged are discussed and documented. This gives a design team a solid foundation on which
they can build their ideas, and also provides a specific benchmark against which individual elements,
such as costs, design and environmental impact can be judged.
5) Owners who skip the commissioning process, or fail to take ‘green’ issues into account when doing
so, often come a cropper once their building is up and running. Materials and equipment are installed 8
as planned, and, at first glance, appear to fulfil their purpose adequately. However, in time, the owner
realises that operational and maintenance costs are higher than necessary, and that the occupants are
dissatisfied with the results. These factors in turn lead to higher ownership costs as well as increased environmental impact.
6) In some cases, an owner may be aware of the latest trends in sustainable building design. He may
have done research into it himself, or he may have been informed of the merits of green design through
early discussion with professionals. However, firms should not take it as read that someone
commissioning a building already has a preconceived idea of how green he intends the structure to be.
Indeed, this initial interaction between owner and firm is the ideal time for a designer to outline and
promote the ways that green design can meet the client’s objectives, thus turning a project originally not
destined for green design into a potential candidate.
7) Typically, when considering whether or not to adopt a green approach, an owner will ask about
additional costs, return for investment and to what extent green design should be the limiting factor
governing decisions in the design process. (1) Many of these costs are incurred by the increased
cooperation between the various stakeholders, such as the owner, the design professionals, contractors
and end-users. (2) However, in green design, they must be involved from the outset, since green design
demands interaction between these disciplines. (3) This increased coordination clearly requires
additional expenditure. (4) A client may initially balk at these added fees, and may require further
convincing of the benefits if he is to proceed. It is up to the project team to gauge the extent to which a
client wants to get involved in a green design project and provide a commensurate service.
8) Of course, there may be financial advantage for the client in choosing a greener design. Case studies
cite examples of green/sustainable designs which have demonstrated lower costs for long-term
operation, ownership and even construction. Tax credits and rebates are usually available on a regional
basis for projects with sustainable design or low emissions, among others.
76. The writer’s main purpose is to:
A. explain to professionals how they can influence clients to choose greener designs.
B. explain the importance of green building design in reducing long-term damage to the environment
C. explain to owners commissioning a building why ignoring green issues is costly and dangerous.
D. explain to professionals why it is important to follow the correct procedures when a building is commissioned.
77. The examples of green and sustainable designs given in paragraph 2 show that:
A. designs must be sustainable in order for them to be described as green.
B. for the purposes of this paper, the terms green and sustainable have the same meaning.
C. some sustainable designs are green, while others are not.
D. some designs are termed green, even though they are not sustainable.
78. According to paragraph 3, the reason for the lack of green buildings being designed is that:
A. few firms have any experience in design and constructing buildings to a green design.
B. construction companies are unaware of the benefits of green and sustainable designs.
C. firms do not get to decide whether a building is to be constructed sustainably.
D. firms tend to convince clients that other factors are more important than sustainability.
79. In paragraph 4, what does the word ‘benchmark’ mean? A. standard B. target C. process D. comparision
80. Which of the following is NOT true about the commissioning process?
A. It is conducted before the building is designed.
B. It is a stage that all clients go through when constructing a building.
C. It is a step in the design procedure in which the client’s goals are identified.
D. It provides the firm with a measure of how well they did their job. 9
81. In paragraph 5, what does the phrase ‘come a cropper’ mean? A. experience misfortune B. change one’s mind C. notice the benefits D. make a selection
82. In paragraph 6, the writer implies that:
A. most clients enter the commissioning process with a clear idea of whether or not they want a green building.
B. designers are usually less concerned about green design than the clients are.
C. the commissioning process offers a perfect opportunity to bring up the subject of green design.
D. firms should avoid working with clients who reject green designs in their buildings.
83. Where in paragraph 7 does this sentence belong?
In a typical project, landscape architects and mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineers do not
become involved until a much later stage. A. (1) B. (2) C. (3) D. (4)
84. In paragraph 7, what does ‘balk at’ mean? A. display shock towards B. agree to pay C. question the reason for D. understand the need for
85. Green buildings are most likely to incur more expense than conventional buildings due to:
A. higher taxes incurred on sustainable buildings.
B. higher long-term operational costs.
C. the higher cost of green construction materials.
D. increased coordination between construction teams. Your answers 76. 77. 78. 79. 80. 81. 82. 83. 84. 85.
Part 5. The passage below consists of four paragraphs marked A, B, C and D. For questions 86-95,
read the passage and do the task that follows. Write your answers in the corrresponding numbered boxes provided. IT’S NOT FAIR
Do animals share our sense of unfairness over displays of greed?
A How often have you seen rich people take to the streets, shouting that they're earning too much?
Protesters are typically blue-collar workers yelling that the minimum wage has to go up, or that their
jobs shouldn't go overseas. Concern about fairness is always asymmetrical, stronger in the poor than the
rich. And the underlying emotions aren't as lofty as the ideal itself. Children become thoroughy
indignant at the slightest discrepancy in the size of their slice of pizza compared to their sibling's. Their
shouts of "That's not fair!" never transcend their own desires. We're all for fair play so long as it helps
us. There's even an old story about this, in which the owner of a vineyard rounded up labourers at
different times of the day. Early in the morning, he went out to find labourers, offering each 1 denarius.
But he offered the same to those hired later in the day. The workers hired first thing in the morning
expected to get more since they had worked through the heat of the day, yet the owner didn't feel he
owed them any more than he had originally promised.
B That this sense of unfairness may turn out to be quite ancient in evolutionary terms as well became
clear when graduate student Sarah Brosnan and I discovered it in monkeys. When testing pairs of
capuchin monkeys, we noticed how much they disliked seeing their partner get a better deal. We would
offer a pebble to one of the pair and then hold out a hand so that the monkey could give it back in 10
exchange for a cucumber slice. Alternating between them, both monkeys would happily barter 25 times
in a row. The atmosphere turned sour, however, as soon as we introduced inequity. One monkey would
still receive cucumber, while its partner now enjoyed grapes, a favourite food with monkeys. While that
monkey had no problem, the one still working for cucumber would lose interest. Worse, seeing its
partner with juicy grapes, this monkey would get agitated, hurl the pebbles out of the test chamber,
sometimes even those measly cucumber slices. A food normally devoured with gusto had become distasteful.
C There is a similarity here with the way we reject an unfair share of money. Where do these reactions
come from? They probably evolved in the service of cooperation. Caring about what others get may
seem petty and irrational, but in the long run it keeps one from being taken advantage of. Had we merely
mentioned emotions, such as "resentment" or "envy," our findings might have gone unnoticed. Now we
drew the interest of philosophers, anthropologists and economists, who almost choked on the monkey
comparison. As it happened, our study came out at the very time that there was a public outcry about the
multimillion dollar pay packages that are occasionally given out on Wall Street and elsewhere.
Commentators couldn't resist contrasting human society with our monkeys, suggesting that we could
learn a thing or two from them.
D Our monkeys have not reached the point at which their sense of fairness stretches beyond egocentric
interests - for example, the one who gets the grape never levels the outcome by giving it to the other -
but in cooperative human societies, such as those in which men hunt large game, anthropologists have
found great sensitivity to equal distribution. Sometimes, successful hunters aren't even allowed to carve
up their own kill to prevent them from favouring their family. These cultures are keenly aware of the
risk that inequity poses to the social fabric of their society. Apes, as opposed to monkeys, may have an
inkling of this connection. High-ranking male chimpanzees, for example, sometimes break up fights
over food without taking any for themselves. During tests, a female received large amounts of milk and
raisins, but noticed her friends watching her from a short distance. After a while, she refused all
rewards. Looking at the experimenter, she kept gesturing to the others, until they were given a share of
the goodies. She was doing the smart thing. Apes think ahead, and if she had eaten her fill right in front
of the rest, there might have been repercussions when she rejoined them later in the day.
In which section does the writer mention Your answers:
A robust response to news of the writer’s research? 86.
One animal harbouring resentment towards another? 87.
An animal thinking of the consequences of their actions? 88.
Any unfairness provoking a strong and egocentric reaction? 89.
The animal behaviour shown not going as far as equivalent human behaviour? 90.
A sense of injustice from people having to cope with adverse conditions? 91.
A justification for the irrational sense of unfairness? 92.
An animal’s feeling of injustice leading to preposterous behaviour? 93.
Unfairness among humans being perceived by those who are less well-off? 94.
Examples of both humans and animals behaving with fairness? 95. IV. WRITING (60 points)
Part 1. Read the following extract and use your own words to summarise it. Your summary should be
between 100 and 120 words long.
The child who is too aggressive is usually revealing tow difficulties. Firstly, far from being too
confident, he is actually not confident enough of himself. Secondly, he has not learnt, or is afraid to
trust, the acceptable ways of getting what he wants and defending his rights. 11
Why the child lacks confidence may not be apparent. In a young child, a lack of confidence can be
readily understood. He has not yet had enough experience to know what he can do. An older child may
be bullying and aggressive because he is too strictly held down at home, or equally because he is too
laxly handled and has not been helped to self-control. Too much and too little parental authority often
have similar troubling effects on children of different temperaments.
The same may be said of the second difficulty the child reveals by his aggressive behavior. A young
child does not yet know that here are better ways than fighting. An older child may not have been given
much guidance, or through circumstances he may not have had much experience in getting along with
other children. When parents or other adults have not been on hand to teach and show children by their
example, or have been too protective of their children in the pre-school years, it may take both time and
experience for the children to learn to get along with others, once they are in school and on their own.
The child who is too aggressive needs his confidence build up in good and wholesome ways. His
boldness, his energy, his desire to lead and manage others can be directed into useful channels. At home
and in school, the aggressive child can be given more responsibility and more praise for his real achievements.
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Part 2. The tables below give information about sales of Fairtrade*-labelled coffee and bananas in
1999 and 2004 in five European countries. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the
main features, and make comparisons where relevant. You should write about 150 words.
*Fairtrade: a category of products for which farmers from developing countries have been paid an
officially agreed fair price.
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Part 3. Write an essay of 350 words on the following topic:
“We can usually learn much more from people whose views we share than from people whose
views contradict our own; disagreement can cause stress and inhibit learning .”
Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim and the
reasons on which that claim is based.
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....................................................................................................................................................................... 15 V. SPEAKING (20 POINTS)
It is important for children to learn the difference between right and wrong at an early age.
Punishment is necessary to help them learn this distinction.
To what extent do your agree or disagree with this opinion? What sort of punishment should
parents and teachers be allowed to use to teach good behaviour to children?
You have 5 minutes to sketch out what you are going to say. Your talking time should not exceed 5 minutes. 16