READING COMPREHENSION EXERCISES - Bồi dưỡng đội tuyển quốc gia

READING COMPREHENSION EXERCISES (Part 2) Passage 13
Computer provides more questions than answers
A The island of Antikythera lies 18 miles north of Crete, where the Aegean Sea meets the Mediterranean.
Currents there can make shipping treacherous – and one ship bound for ancient Rome never made it. The
ship that sank there was a giant cargo vessel measuring nearly 500 feet long. It came to rest about 200 feet
below the surface, where it stayed for more than 2,000 years until divers looking for sponges discovered
the wreck a little more than a century ago.
B Inside the hull were a number of bronze and marble statues. From the look of things, the ship seemed
to be carrying luxury items, probably made in various Greek islands and bound for wealthy patrons in the
growing Roman Empire. The statues were retrieved, along with a lot of other unimportant stuff, and stored.
Nine months later, an enterprising archaeologist cleared off a layer of organic material from one of the
pieces of junk and found that it looked like a gearwheel. It had inscriptions in Greek characters and seemed
to have something to do with astronomy.
C That piece of “junk” went on to become the most celebrated find from the shipwreck; it is displayed at
the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. Research has shown that the wheel was part of a device
so sophisticated that its complexity would not be matched for a thousand years – it was also the world’s
first known analogue computer. The device is so famous that an international conference organized in
Athens a couple of weeks ago had only one subject: the Antikythera Mechanism.
D Every discovery about the device has raised new questions. Who built the device, and for what
purpose? Why did the technology behind it disappear for the next thousand years? What does the device
tell us about ancient Greek culture? And does the marvelous construction, and the precise knowledge of
the movement of the sun and moon and Earth that it implies, tell us how the ancients grappled with ideas
about determinism and human destiny?
E “We have gear trains from the 9th century in Baghdad used for simpler displays of the solar and lunar
motions relative to one another – they use eight gears,” said François Charette, a historian of science in
Germany who wrote an editorial accompanying a new study of the mechanism two weeks ago in the journal
Nature. “In this case, we have more than 30 gears. To see it on a computer animation makes it mind-
boggling. There is no doubt it was a technological masterpiece.” F
The device was probably built between 100 and 140 BC, and the understanding of astronomy it displays
seems to have been based on knowledge developed by the Babylonians around 300-700 BC, said Mike
Edmunds, a professor of astrophysics at Cardiff University in Britain. He led a research team that
reconstructed what the gear mechanism would have looked like by using advanced three-dimensional-
imaging technology. The group also decoded a number of the inscriptions. The mechanism explores the
relationship between lunar months – the time it takes for the moon to cycle through its phases, say, full
moon to the full moon – and calendar years. The gears had to be cut precisely to reflect this complex
relationship; 19 calendar years equal 235 lunar months.
G By turning the gear mechanism, which included what Edmunds called a beautiful system of epicyclic
gears that factored in the elliptical orbit of the moon, a person could check what the sky would have looked
like on a date in the past, or how it would appear in the future. The mechanism was encased in a box with
doors in front and back covered with inscriptions – a sort of instruction manual. Inside the front door were
pointers indicating the date and the position of the sun, moon and zodiac, while opening the back door
revealed the relationship between calendar years and lunar months, and a mechanism to predict eclipses.
H “If they needed to know when eclipses would occur, and this related to the rising and setting of stars
and related them to dates and religious experiences, the mechanism would directly help,” said Yanis
Bitsakis, a physicist at the University of Athens who co-wrote the Nature paper. “It is a mechanical
computer. You turn the handle and you have a date on the front.” Building it would have been expensive
and required the interaction of astronomers, engineers, intellectuals and craftspeople. Charette said the
device overturned conventional ideas that the ancient Greeks were primarily ivory tower thinkers who did
not deign to muddy their hands with technical stuff. It is a reminder, he said, that while the study of history
often focuses on written texts, they can tell us only a fraction of what went on at a particular time. I
Imagine a future historian encountering philosophy texts written in our time - and an aircraft engine.
The books would tell that researcher what a few scholars were thinking today, but the engine would give
them a far better window into how technology influenced our everyday lives. Charette said it was unlikely
that the device was used by practitioners of astrology, then still in its infancy. More likely, he said, it was
bound for a mantelpiece in some rich Roman’s home. Given that astronomers of the time already knew
how to calculate the positions of the sun and the moon and to predict eclipses without the device, it would
have been the equivalent of a device built for a planetarium today – something to spur popular interest or
at least claim bragging rights. J
Why was the technology that went into the device lost? “The time this was built, the jackboot of Rome
was coming through,” Edmunds said. “The Romans were good at town planning and sanitation but were
not known for their interest in science.” The fact that the device was so complex, and that it was being
shipped with a number of other luxury items, tells Edmunds that it is very unlikely to have been the only
one over made. Its sophistication “is such that it can’t have been the only one,” Edmunds said. “There must
have been a tradition of making them. We’re always hopeful a better one will surface.” Indeed, he said, he
hopes that his study and the renewed interest in the Antikythera Mechanism will prompt second looks by
both amateurs and professionals around the world. “The archaeological world may look in their cupboards
and maybe say, ‘That isn’t a bit of rusty old metal in the cupboard.”
Questions 1-5: The Reading Passage has ten paragraphs A-J. Which paragraph contains the following information?
1. The content inside the wrecked ship
2. Ancient astronomers and craftsman might involve
3. The location of the Antikythera Mechanism
4. Details of how it was found
5. Appearance and structure of the mechanism
Questions 6-9: Complete the following summary of the paragraphs of Reading Passage, using NO MORE
THAN TWO WORDS from the Reading Passage for each answer.
An ancient huge sunk (6)……………………. was found accidentally by sponges searcher. The ship loaded
with (7)……………………. such as bronze and sculptures. However, an archaeologist found a junk similar
to a (8)……………………. which has Greek script on it. This inspiring and elaborated device was found
to be the first (9)……………………. in the world.
Questions 10-13: Use the information in the passage to match the people (listed A-C) with opinions or deeds below.
NB You may use any letter more than once A Yanis Bitsakis B Mike Edmunds C François Charette
10. More complicated than the previous device
11. Anticipate to find more Antikythera Mechanism in the future
12. Antikythera Mechanism was found related to the moon
13. Mechanism assisted ancient people to calculate the movement of stars. Passage 14. FAIR GAMES?
For seventeen days every four years the world is briefly arrested by the captivating, dizzying spectacle of
athleticism, ambition, pride and celebration on display at the Summer Olympic Games. After the last weary
spectators and competitors have returned home, however, host cities are often left awash in high debts and
costly infrastructure maintenance. The staggering expenses involved in a successful Olympic bid are often
assumed to be easily mitigated by tourist revenues and an increase in local employment, but more often
than not host cities are short changed and their taxpayers for generations to come are left settling the debt.
Olympic extravagances begin with the application process. Bidding alone will set most cities back about
$20 million, and while officially bidding only takes two years (for cities that make the shortlist), most cities
can expect to exhaust a decade working on their bid from the moment it is initiated to the announcement of
voting results from International Olympic Committee members. Aside from the financial costs of the bid
alone, the process ties up real estate in prized urban locations until the outcome is known. This can cost
local economies millions of dollars of lost revenue from private developers who could have made use of
the land, and can also mean that particular urban quarters lose their vitality due to the vacant lots. All of
this can be for nothing if a bidding city does not appease the whims of IOC members – private connections
and opinions on government conduct often hold sway (Chicago’s 2012 bid is thought to have been undercut
by tensions over U.S. foreign policy).
Bidding costs do not compare, however, to the exorbitant bills that come with hosting the Olympic Games
themselves. As is typical with large-scale, one-off projects, budgeting for the Olympics is a notoriously
formidable task. Los Angelinos have only recently finished paying off their budget-breaking 1984
Olympics; Montreal is still in debt for its 1976 Games (to add insult to injury, Canada is the only host
country to have failed to win a single gold medal during its own Olympics). The tradition of runaway
expenses has persisted in recent years. London Olympics managers have admitted that their 2012 costs may
increase ten times over their initial projections, leaving tax payers 20 billion pounds in the red.
Hosting the Olympics is often understood to be an excellent way to update a city’s sporting infrastructure.
The extensive demands of Olympic sports include aquatic complexes, equestrian circuits, shooting ranges,
beach volleyball courts, and, of course, an 80,000 seat athletic stadium. Yet these demands are typically
only necessary to accommodate a brief influx of athletes from around the world. Despite the enthusiasm
many populations initially have for the development of world-class sporting complexes in their home
towns, these complexes typically fall into disuse after the Olympic fervour has waned. Even Australia,
home to one of the world’s most sportive populations, has left its taxpayers footing a $32 million-a-year
bill for the maintenance of vacant facilities.
Another major concern is that when civic infrastructure developments are undertaken in preparation for
hosting the Olympics, these benefits accrue to a single metropolitan centre (with the exception of some
outlying areas that may get some revamped sports facilities). In countries with an expansive land mass, this
means vast swathes of the population miss out entirely. Furthermore, since the International Olympic
Committee favours prosperous “global” centres (the United Kingdom was told, after three failed bids from
its provincial cities, that only London stood any real chance at winning), the improvement of public
transport, roads and communication links tends to concentrate in places already well-equipped with world-
class infrastructures. Perpetually by-passing minor cities create a cycle of disenfranchisement: these cities
never get an injection of capital, they fail to become first-rate candidates, and they are constantly passed
over in favour of more secure choices.
Finally, there is no guarantee that the Olympics will be a popular success. The “feel good” factor that most
proponents of Olympic bids extol (and that was no doubt driving the 90 to 100 per cent approval rates of
Parisians and Londoners for their cities’ respective 2012 bids) can be an elusive phenomenon, and one that
is tied to that nation’s standing on the medal tables. This ephemeral thrill cannot compare to the years of
disruptive construction projects and security fears that go into preparing for an Olympic Games, nor the
decades of debt repayment that follow (Greece’s preparation for Athens 2004 famously deterred tourists
from visiting the country due to widespread unease about congestion and disruption).
There are feasible alternatives to the bloat, extravagance and wasteful spending that comes with a modern
Olympic Games. One option is to designate a permanent host city that would be redesigned or built from
scratch especially for the task. Another is to extend the duration of the Olympics so that it becomes a festival
of several months. Local businesses would enjoy the extra spending and congestion would ease
substantially as competitors and spectators come and go according to their specific interests. Neither the
“Olympic City” nor the extended length options really get to the heart of the issue, however. Stripping away
ritual and decorum in favour of concentrating on athletic rivalry would be preferable.
Failing that, the Olympics could simply be scrapped altogether. International competition could still be
maintained through world championships in each discipline. Most of these events are already held on non-
Olympic years anyway - the International Association of Athletics Federations, for example, has run a
biennial World Athletics Championship since 1983 after members decided that using the Olympics for their
championship was no longer sufficient. Events of this nature keep world-class competition alive without
requiring Olympic-sized expenses.
Questions 1-5: Complete each sentence with the correct ending, A-K, below.
1. Bids to become a host city
2. Personal relationships and political tensions
3. Cost estimates for the Olympic Games
4. Purpose-built sporting venues
5. Urban developments associated with the Olympics
A. often help smaller cities to develop basic infrastructure.
B. tend to occur in areas where they are least needed.
C. require profitable companies to be put out of business.
D. are often never used again once the Games are over.
E. can take up to ten years to complete.
F. also satisfy needs of local citizens for first-rate sports facilities.
G. is usually only successful when it is from a capital city.
H. are closely related to how people feel emotionally about the Olympics.
I. are known for being very inaccurate.
J. often underlie the decisions of International Olympic Committee members.
K. are holding back efforts to reform the Olympics.
Questions 6-12: Do the following statements agree with the information given in the Reading Passage? Write: TRUE
if the statement agrees with the information FALSE
if the statement contradicts the information NOT GIVEN
if there is no information on this
6. Residents of host cities have little use for the full range of Olympic facilities.
7. Australians have still not paid for the construction of Olympic sports facilities.
8. People far beyond the host city can expect to benefit from improved infrastructure.
9. It is difficult for small cities to win an Olympic bid.
10. When a city makes an Olympic bid, a majority of its citizens usually want it to win.
11. Whether or not people enjoy hosting the Olympics in their city depends on how athletes from their
country perform in Olympic events.
12. Fewer people than normal visited Greece during the run up to the Athens Olympics.
Questions 13 and 14: Choose TWO letters, A-E.
Which TWO of the following does the author propose as alternatives to the current Olympics?
A. The Olympics should be cancelled in favour of individual competitions for each sport.
B. The Olympics should focus on ceremony rather than competition.
C. The Olympics should be held in the same city every time.
D. The Olympics should be held over a month rather than seventeen days.
E. The Olympics should be made smaller by getting rid of unnecessary and unpopular sports. Passage 15.
The world’s desire for plastic is dangerous
A A million plastic bottles are purchased around the world every minute and the number will jump
another 20% by 2021, creating an environmental crisis some campaigners predict will be as serious as
climate change. The demand, equivalent to about 20,000 bottles being bought every second, is driven by
an apparently insatiable desire for bottled water and the spread of a western, urbanised culture to China and the Asia Pacific region.
B More than 480 billion plastic drinking bottles were sold in 2016 across the world, up from about 300
billion a decade ago. If placed end to end, they would extend more than halfway to the sun. By 2021 this
will increase to 583.3 billion, according to the most up-to-date estimates.
C Most plastic bottles, which are used for soft drinks and water, are made from Pet plastic, which is
highly recyclable. But as their use grows rapidly across the globe, efforts to collect and recycle the bottles
to keep them from polluting the oceans, are failing to keep up. For instance, fewer than half of the bottles
bought in 2016 were collected for recycling and just 7% of those collected were turned into new bottles.
Instead most plastic bottles produced end up in rubbish dumps or in the ocean.
D Whilst the production of single use plastics has grown dramatically over the last 20 years, the systems
to contain, control, reuse and recycle them just haven’t kept pace. In the UK 38.5 million plastic bottles are
used every day - only just over half make it to recycling, while more than 16 million are put into rubbish
dumps, burnt or leak into the environment and oceans each day. “Plastic production is set to double in the
next 20 years and grow by 4 times that by 2050 so the time to act is now,” according to environmentalist.
There has been growing concern about the impact of plastics pollution in oceans around the world. Last
month scientists found nearly 18 tonnes of plastic on one of the world’s most remote islands, an uninhabited place in the South Pacific.
E The majority of plastic bottles used across the globe are for drinking water, according to Rosemary
Downey, head of packaging at Euromonitor and one of the world’s experts in plastic bottle production.
China is responsible for most of the increase in demand. The Chinese public’s consumption of bottled water
accounted for nearly a quarter of global demand, she said. “It is a critical country to understand when
examining global sales of plastic Pet bottles, and China’s requirement for plastic bottles continues to
expand,” said Downey. In 2015, consumers in China purchased 68.4 billion bottles of water and in 2016
this increased to 73.8 billion bottles, up 5.4 billion. “This increase is being driven by increased
urbanisation,” said Downey. “There is a desire for healthy living and there are ongoing concerns about
contamination of water and the quality of tap water, which all contribute to the increase in bottle water
use,” she said. India and Southeast Asia are also witnessing strong growth, which is bound to cause
problems in the future for the planet. F
Major drinks brands produce the greatest numbers of plastic bottles. Coca-Cola produces more than
100 billion single use plastic bottles every year – or 3,400 a second, according to analysis carried out by
Greenpeace after the company refused to publicly disclose its global plastic usage. The top six drinks
companies in the world use a combined average of just 6.6% of recycled Pet in their products, according to
Greenpeace. A third have no targets to increase their use of recycled plastic and none are aiming to use
100% across their global production.
G Plastic drinking bottles could be made out of 100% recycled plastic, known as RPet – and campaigners
are pressing big drinks companies to radically increase the amount of recycled plastic in their bottles. But
brands are hostile to using RPet for cosmetic reasons because they want their products in shiny, clear plastic.
The industry is also resisting any taxes or charges to reduce demand for single-use plastic bottles – like the
5p charge on plastic bags that is credited with reducing plastic bag use by 80%.
H Coca Cola said it was still considering requests from Greenpeace to publish its global plastics usage.
The company said: “Globally, we continue to increase the use of recycled plastic in countries where it is
feasible and permitted. We continue to increase the use of RPet in markets where it is feasible and approved
for regulatory food-grade use – 44 countries of the more than 200 we operate in.” Coca Cola agreed plastic
bottles could be made out of 100 per cent recycled plastic but there was nowhere near enough high quality
food grade plastic available on the scale that was needed to increase the quantity of RPet to that level. “So
if we are to increase the amount of recycled plastic in our bottles even further then a new approach is needed
to create a circular economy for plastic bottles,” Coca Cola said.
J Greenpeace said the big six drinks companies had to do more to increase the recycled content of their
plastic bottles. “During Greenpeace’s recent exploration of plastic pollution on remote Scottish coast, we
found plastic bottles nearly everywhere we went,” said Louisa Casson, oceans campaigner for Greenpeace.
“It’s clear that the soft drinks industry needs to reduce its plastic waste.”
Questions 15-20: Do the following statements agree with claims of the writer? Write: TRUE
if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer FALSE
if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer NOT GIVEN
if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
1. Experts say that plastic waste is worse than global warming.
2. Most bottles manufactured for drinking are made from plastic that can be easily recycled.
3. In Britain, only 20% of plastic bottles are recycled and the rest is reused or thrown out.
4. By 2020, China’s use of plastic bottles will be greater than the rest of the world.
5. Major drink companies only use a small percentage of recycled plastic in their bottles.
6. A leading environmental organisation says that the oceans will be filled with plastic if big business doesn’t act.
Questions 7-12: Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
7. Every second, approximately how many plastic bottles are purchased on the planet? A. twelve thousand B. twenty thousand C. fifteen million D. thirty-eight million
8. Most plastic bottles that aren’t recycled are _____. A. set fire to
B. put into boats at sea C. put into garbage tips D. sent to companies
9. The majority of plastic bottles are used for _____. A. storage B. drinking water C. recycling D. Coca Cola
10. What is the percentage of drinks companies who have no plans to use more recyclable plastic in their products? A. 6.6% B. 30% C. 33% D. 100%
11. According to the article, RPet is _____. A. a major drinks company
B. an expert in plastic bottle production
C. bottles made out of highly recyclable material D. bottles made out of 100% recycled plastic
12. Greenpeace thinks one way to reduce plastic waste is to _____. A. tax plastic manufactures B. clean the oceans
C. stop drinking bottled water D. use more recycled material Passage 16
Read the article and for questions 1-6, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.
We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts
and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate. We travel to bring what
little we can, in our ignorance and knowledge, to those parts of the globe whose riches are differently
dispersed. And we travel, in essence, to become young fools again – to slow time down and get taken in,
and lose ourselves. Travel is a wondrous thing that guides us toward a better balance of wisdom and
compassion – of seeing the world clearly, and yet feeling it truly. For seeing without feeling can be
uncaring; while feeling without seeing can be blind. Yet for me the first great joy of travelling is simply the
luxury of leaving all my beliefs and certainties at home, and seeing everything I thought I knew in a different
light, and from a crooked angle.
The sovereign freedom of travelling comes from the fact that it whirls you around and turns you upside
down, and stands everything you took for granted on its head. If a diploma can famously be a passport (to
a journey through hard realism), then a passport can be a diploma (for a crash course in cultural relativism).
And the first lesson we learn on the road, whether we like it or not, is how provisional and provincial are
the things we imagine to be universal.
We travel, then, in part just to shake up our complacencies by seeing all the moral and political urgencies,
the life-and-death dilemmas, that we seldom have to face at home. Travel is the best way we have of
rescuing the humanity of places, and saving them from abstraction and ideology. And in the process, we
also get saved from abstraction ourselves, and come to see how much we can bring to the places we visit,
and how much we can become a kind of carrier pigeon transporting back and forth what every culture
needs. For in closed or impoverished places, like Pagan or Lhasa or Havana, we are the eyes and ears of
the people we meet, their only contact with the world outside. One of the challenges of travel, therefore, is
learning how to import – and export – dreams with tenderness.
By now, all of us have heard the old Marcel Proust line about how the real voyage of discovery consists
not in seeing new places but in seeing with new eyes. Yet one of the subtler beauties of travel is that it
enables you to bring new eyes to the people you encounter. Thus, even as holidays help you appreciate your
own home more – not least by seeing it through a distant admirer’s eyes – they help you bring newly
appreciative-distant-eyes to the places you visit. For many of us travel is a quest not just for the unknown,
but the unknowing; I, at least, travel in search of an innocent eye that can return me to a more innocent self.
I tend to believe more abroad than I do at home and I tend to be more easily excited abroad, and even kinder.
In that spirit, it’s vitally important to remember that all travel is a two-way transaction, a point intrinsic to
travel that we all too easily forget. For what we often ignore when we go abroad is that we are objects of
scrutiny as much as the people we scrutinise, and we are being consumed by the cultures we consume. At
the very least, we are objects of speculation (and even desire) who can seem as exotic to the people around us as they do to us.
Travel, at heart, is a kind of life-changing ritual. A desperate way for our modern secular selves to latch
onto some sense of spirituality that enriches us as people. A chance to share something meaningful with
others while keeping our minds mobile and awake. As Harvard philosopher George Santayana wrote,
“There is wisdom in turning as often as possible from the familiar to the unfamiliar; it keeps the mind
nimble; it kills prejudice, and it fosters humour.” Travel, in the end, is a heightened state of awareness, in
which we are receptive, undimmed by familiarity and ready to be transformed. That is why the best trips,
like the best adventures, never really end.
1. The author claims that the main pleasure of travelling is _____.
A. being able to let go of everything and experience new perspectives.
B. contributing to the lives of people in less developed countries than your own.
C. experiencing the thrill of throwing oneself into the moment.
D. understanding our place in the world in a global context.
2. In the third paragraph, what does the author say is an important responsibility of a traveller?
A. They must preserve the memory and goodness of the place they visit.
B. They should help promote the hopes and aspirations of those they meet.
C. They have to respect the social and cultural conditions of where they are.
D. They need to appreciate their unique status as a link to the wider world.
3. Why does the author mention Marcel Proust?
A. to expand further on his ideas
B. to provide a perfect example
C. to contrast it with other people’s opinions
D. to criticise his view on the topic
4. In paragraph five , the author believes that travel is _____.
A. an unequal enterprise that favours only the traveller
B. a reciprocal exchange that fascinates hosts as much as visitors
C. a risk to locals who the tourism industry exploits
D. a sector where issues are overlooked and conveniently ignored
5. The reference to ritual serves to illustrate _____.
A. the need to follow traditions while travelling
B. the power of religion in other parts of the world
C. the way that people use travel to fill a void in their lives
D. the degree of superstition practiced by travellers
6. Which best serves as the title for the passage? A. The Search for Wonder
B. Being a Responsible Traveller
C. How to Make a Wonderous Trip D. Mission of a Carrier Passage 17.
Do You Have True Friendships?
Think of your friends from the ones you spend considerable time with to those you just chat with on social
media. How many of them are really your friends? How many just offer artificial closeness? How can you tell the difference?
In his ethical masterpiece The Nicomachean Ethics, the eminent philosopher Aristotle turns his brilliant
mind to the problem of what true friendship actually is. Aristotle views the good life as requiring not only
virtue, an internal good that you are largely responsible for, but also external goods which facilitate virtue
and are enjoyable in themselves. Such things include being well-off financially, educated, reasonably
healthy, having decent luck and having good friends. The question of what a friend is therefore holds great importance for him.
As with all of Aristotle’s virtues friendship, or ‘philia’, as he calls it, is the midway point between two
vices. A lack of it leads to the vice of egoism and a detached coldness, while the person who is too friendly
with everyone is also vicious in their own way. Aristotle would agree that ‘The friend to all is a friend to
none’. To be a self-actualised person, in the Aristotelian sense, you need to master the art of genuine friendship.
He defines three sorts of friendship. The friendship of utility is the first. These friendships are those of the
materialist, based on what the two people involved can do for one another, and often have little to do with
the other individual as a person at all. Such friendships as this include offering hospitality or gifts for purely
selfish motivations. These friendships lack sincerity and can end rapidly, as soon as any possible use for the other person is gone.
The second is the friendship of pleasure. These are the friendships where you choose to associate with
someone based on enjoyment of a shared activity and the pursuit of fleeting pleasures and emotions. The
guy who you go to a football game with but would never be able to tolerate seeing anywhere else is this
kind of friend. Aristotle declares it to be an immature friendship of the young. This is, again, an often short-
lived friendship as people’s interests may vary, causing them to suddenly lose a connection. In both of these
friendships the other person is not being valued ‘in themselves’ but as a means to an end: pleasure in one
and some useful thing in the other. While these are listed as ‘lesser’ friendships due to the motive, Aristotle
is open to the idea of the final, and greatest, form of friendship finding its genesis in these categories.
The final category is true friendship. These are the people you bond with and like for themselves, the people
who push you to be a better person. The motivation is that you care for the person themselves and therefore
the relationship is much more stable than the previous two categories. These friendships are few and far
between because people who make the cut are hard to find. Aristotle laments the rarity of such friendships,
but notes they are possible between two virtuous people with empathy who can invest the energy and time needed to create such a bond.
While Aristotle encourages us to seek the ‘pure’ friendship, he doesn’t necessarily think you are a bad
person for having friends of the previous two sorts. We all have them after all. The real problem is when
you fail to grasp that they are of the lower kind and make no effort to find better relationships. Aristotle
was explicit in his opinion; while friendships of virtue are rare and might take time to form, they offer
formidable benefits and greater resilience over time. In a world of hyper-connectivity and ever increasing
social interactions, the question of what friendship really is has never been more pertinent. The guidance
of Aristotle, with his views of differing relationships and the potential for improvement, is much needed in our modern world.
1. According to the passage, which of these elements is important to virtue?
A. understanding the difference between right and wrong
B. possessing a natural decency which comes from the heart
C. continuing a strict moral code that has been passed on to you
D. being receptive to positive influences around you
2. In paragraph 2 the writer suggests that _____.
A. those who attempt to please everyone ultimately satisfy nobody.
B. universal kindness bears rewards for all parties involved.
C. the desire to be popular motivates people to make unrealistic promises.
D. in friendships sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind.
3. Which word in paragraph 4 conveys the idea of how long a friendship might last? A. fleeting B. lesser C. short-lived D. immature
4. The phrase ‘make the cut’ in paragraph 5 is used to imply that virtuous friends _____. A. have high standards B. are quite rare to find
C. are inflexible in their beliefs
D. don’t easily accept others
5. What does they refer to in paragraph 6? A. pure forms of friendships
B. friendships from the first two categories C. friendships of pleasure D. friendships of utility Passage 18.
Think about it. Your brain is always ‘on.’ It takes care of your thoughts and movements, your breathing
and heartbeat, your senses – it works hard 24/7, even while you’re asleep. This means your brain requires
a constant supply of fuel. That ‘fuel’ comes from the foods you eat – and what’s in that fuel makes all the
difference. Put simply, what you eat directly affects the structure and function of your brain and, ultimately, your mood.
Like an expensive car, your brain functions best when it gets only premium fuel. Eating high- quality foods
that contain lots of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants nourishes the brain and protects it from oxidative
stress – the ‘waste’ (also known as free radicals) produced when the body uses oxygen, which can damage
cells. Unfortunately, just like an expensive car, your brain can be damaged if you ingest anything other than
premium fuel. If substances from ‘low- premium’ fuel (such as what you get from processed or refined
foods) get to the brain, it has little ability to get rid of them. Diets high in refined sugars, for example, are
harmful to the brain. In addition to worsening your body’s regulation of insulin, they also promote
inflammation and oxidative stress. Multiple studies have found a correlation between a diet high in refined
sugars and impaired brain function – and even a worsening of symptoms of mood disorders, such as depression.
It makes sense. If your brain is deprived of good-quality nutrition, or if free radicals or damaging
inflammatory cells are circulating within the brain’s enclosed space, further contributing to brain tissue
injury, consequences are to be expected. What’s interesting is that for many years, the medical field did not
fully acknowledge the connection between mood and food. Today, relatively new to academia, the
burgeoning field of nutritional psychiatry is finding there are correlations between what you eat, how you
feel and ultimately how you behave.
So how does the food you eat affect how you feel? Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps regulate sleep
and appetite, mediate moods and inhibit pain. Since about 95% of your serotonin is produced in your
gastrointestinal tract, and your gastrointestinal tract is lined with a hundred million nerve cells, or neurons,
it makes sense that the inner workings of your digestive system don’t just help you digest food but also
guide your emotions. What’s more, the function of these neurons – and the production of neurotransmitters
like serotonin – is influenced by the billions of ‘good’ bacteria that make up your intestinal microbiome.
These bacteria play an essential role in your health.
Evidence has shown that when people take probiotics (supplements containing the good bacteria), their
anxiety levels, perception of stress and mental outlook improve, compared with people who did not take
probiotics. Academics who have compared ‘traditional’ diets, like the Mediterranean diet, to modern
‘Western’ diets have observed that the risk of depression is 25% to 35% lower in those who eat a traditional
diet. Scientists account for this difference because these traditional diets tend to be high in vegetables,
fruits, unprocessed grains and fish and seafood, and to contain only modest amounts of lean meats and dairy.
This may sound implausible, but the notion that good bacteria in the gut not only influence digestion and
body processes but also mental well-being, is gaining traction amongst academics. The results so far have
been quite amazing, so go ahead and give a ‘clean’ diet a try. You might just be surprised at how good it makes you feel!
1. According to the text, the human brain _____.
A. drastically reduces its workload and functionality during deep sleep.
B. requires less sustenance than other more active organs like the heart.
C. is directly influenced by the quality of nutrition that the body receives.
D. is the only organ that functions at full capacity twenty-four hours a day.
2. The text states that free radicals _____.
A. cause inflammation in the brain
B. are created by poor nutrition C. use high levels of oxygen D. are harmful to the brain
3. Research about the impact of our diet focuses on _____.
A. the relationship between processed foods and mental health.
B. the potential harm of overusing vitamin and mineral supplements.
C. the impact harmful bacteria in our food has on our mood and behaviour.
D. the deterioration of the body’s natural ability to control insulin levels.
4. The word “burgeoning” in paragraph three can best be replaced by _____. A. blooming B surging C. developing D. budding
5. The intestinal microbiome _____.
A. consists of beneficial bacteria that are vital for the body
B. controls the production of neurotransmitters
C. breaks down and absorbs nutrients from food
D. inhibits the performance of neurons
6. In the text it is stated that traditional diets _____.
A. can incorporate modern alternatives with little detrimental effect
B. tend to lead to an increased consumption of high quality dairy products
C. can reduce propensity for depression and sadness
D. usually improve the ability to handle stress
7. According to the text, the idea that probiotics can boost mental processes is _____. A. increasingly accepted B widely criticised C. warmly welcomed D. surprisingly misunderstood
8. The text suggests that an improved diet _____.
A. could have unexpected impacts on your mood
B. will give a boost to your stamina and energy
C. dramatically affects the rate of digestion
D. should be focused solely around probiotic supplements
9. Which best serves as the title for the passage?
A. How Processed Foods Damage Human Brain B. Nutritional Psychiatry C. Mental Well-being D. The Role of Good Bacteria Passage 19. Biological Patents
The patenting on biological matter has become particularly awkward and publicly controversial in recent
times. The reason for this is that scientists are patenting life itself, though we should be careful about what
we mean by ‘life’. Many countries have allowed people to own and register plant varieties for decades.
America took the lead, starting with the 1930 Plant Patent Act, followed by Germany and other European
countries. Britain passed its Plant Varieties and Seeds Act in 1964, when it awarded a full monopoly right
to the owner of any plant that can be shown to be novel, distinct, uniform and stable. The test of novelty is
much looser than that required for an industrial patent (who knows what plants may be growing in the
wild?). So, a plant qualifies for protection even if it has a history of growing wild as long as it has not been
sold commercially for more than four years.
At the same time, patenting a seed or a plant for agricultural purposes was regarded as being no different
from patenting a chemical or biological recipe for pharmaceutical purposes. This notion was particularly
welcome for Western farmers and horticulturalists who were eager to increase yields as their own costs
grew (especially farm wages) and foreign imports from low-wage countries undercut their prices. They
were also keen to grow new varieties that could be harvested and brought to market a few weeks earlier.
So, the huge investments in faster-growing and more disease-resistant seeds over the past fifty years might
not have been made if the seed companies had not been able to protect their work.
Over that period the number of applications for plant and genetic patents has increased rapidly.
Technological advances in biotechnology have extended scientists’ ability to exploit biological matter from
whole plants into their various components; from whole animals to parts of animals; and from animals to
humans. Developments in DNA and in cell technology have allowed scientists to identify, nurture and
remix cells so that they can create living material. The identification of the human genome, which contains
the genes that control the "design’ of each human, will also require a property contract.
But should the genome be public property in the same way as the knowledge of blood types is? Or should
it be private property? In 1952, the American Supreme Court famously said, ‘Anything under the sun that
is made by man is patentable.’ Since then, its position has shifted. In Diamond v. Chakrabarty in 1980, it
was asked to rule on a patent application by Anand Chakrabarty for a genetically modified bacterial
microorganism designed to gobble up oil spills at sea. It decided to shift the dividing line to between the
product of nature, whether living or not, and human-made inventions which may, of course, be living, and
it approved the patent. In 1987, the US Patent Office issued new guidelines which stated that all bio-
organisms except humans could be patented.
The Patent Office later issued a patent to Harvard University for an experimental mouse known as
Oncomouse, into which an oncogene had been inserted for the purpose of medical research. The European
Patent Office, after initially demurring, did likewise. It said Oncomouse was such a considerable
manipulation of genetic material as to be new and unique. It was protested on ethical grounds that the mice
would suffer during the research, but the EPO decided that the benefit to society outweighed the loss to the
mouse; a neat variation on the ‘property contract’ that balances the creator’s reward against the social gain.
This rapid shift over seven years was a breath-taking expansion of private property and a massive change
in attitude towards the ownership of life.
Another odd case that reinterpreted the property contract against our common instincts occurred when a
Californian University medical centre managed to own and patent the cell line found in a spleen taken from
a patient, John Moore, who had hairy-cell leukaemia. The doctors had discovered that Moore’s T-
Iymphocytes were extremely rare and of great medical value. Without informing him, they carried out
intensive tests that ended with the removal of his spleen. The cells were indeed as valuable as expected,
generating products worth hundreds of millions of dollars. When Moore discovered how the university had
privatised his cells, and made huge profits, he sued, but he lost. The Supreme Court of California decided
that we do not have an exclusive right to ownership of our cells after they have left our body.
1. Under the 1964 Act, one requirement that qualified a plant for a patent was that it _____.
A. had been developed as a result of commercial exploitation
B. had been discovered in the wild fewer than four years earlier
C. exhibited characteristics that distinguished it from other plants
D. had no prior history of being used in an industrial process
2. Why were Western farmers keen to raise production levels in the 1960s?
A. Their overheads were making them less competitive.
B. The market price of their products had been reduced.
C. Disease that could destroy their crops was becoming rife.
D. Fast-growing weeds were making their harvest less lucrative.
3. The writer suggests that advances in biotechnology _____.
A. have allowed scientists to conduct their experiments more precisely
B. are dependent on the financial rewards they can generate
C. will ultimately lead to the introduction of designer babies
D. may be considered unethical if they involve exploitation
4. The shift in position of the US Supreme Court in 1980 meant that _____.
A. any biological organism could be patented.
B. knowledge of how DNA functions was patentable.
C. patents were no longer restricted to inanimate things.
D. tinkering with cells from living creatures was immoral.
5. The European Patent Office ruling on Oncomouse _____.
A. was never in doubt because Harvard University was involved.
B. became open to interpretation by experts in property laws.
C. totally disregarded the moral issues related to the case.
D. highlighted the emphasis on the greater good in legal decisions.
6. Which saying is most appropriate to the verdict handed down in the case involving John Moore?
A. Property has its duties as well as its rights.
B. No person’s property is safe while legislature is in session.
C. If something is worth money, it is worth possessing.
D. Possession is nine-tenths of the law. Passage 20. What is Creativity?
The easiest way to determine what constitutes creativity is to consider what is missing from some of the
current, popular definitions. In management literature, and in popular discourse, creativity has two principal
aspects. First, creativity is all about novelty or difference – a deviation from conventional tools and
perspectives. Secondly, it requires that creative individuals be given the freedom to express their individual
talent or vision. These two themes, individualism and innovation, are rooted in a Western philosophical
tradition which has reinforced a one-sided and destructive stereotype of creativity and creative people.
What this conflation of creativity with individualism and innovation does is to disconnect creative thinking
from the contexts and systems that give their innovations and talents meaning and value. It also perpetuates
the notion that the creative industries can be set aside from ‘ordinary’ industries as a unique sphere of
activity, as if creativity were the privilege of a few officially designated businesses and missing from everywhere else.
Psychological definitions of creativity generally contain two distinct components. In the first place,
creativity requires that we make or think something new, or a new combination of existing elements. This
is the element of novelty or innovation. However, mere novelty is not enough. To be creative, an idea must
also be useful or valuable. This second part of the definition is reflected in the emphasis on ‘problem-
solving’ in psychological creativity tests and in the argument that creative ideas must demonstrate ‘fitness for purpose’.
Both these criteria are to some extent dependent on context. Novelty is always relative, as an idea might be
new to the person who conceives it, but as soon as this idea is expressed, it becomes clear that other people
have got there first. After all, we have all had our temporary moments of brilliance. Margaret Boden
distinguishes between these two levels of innovation as ‘P-creativity’ – that which is new to the individual
– and ‘H-creativity’ – that which is new to the world. From a psychological perspective, the processes
which lie behind these forms of innovation are essentially the same, but the outcomes have very different
values. A personal breakthrough might impress friends and family, but it is of extremely limited interest or
value to anybody else. For an idea to be innovative in business or art, it must deviate from the historically
established norms and conventions, not just from our own personal history.
Once we introduce the factor of context, we usher in a second step in the creative process, beyond the
original idea, and a second set of criteria. The idea or innovation must be tested against its external contest.
In order to meet the criteria required under patent law, innovation must represent a significant ‘inventive
step’ beyond what is already known or done in the field, and must make possible a new application or
technique in practice. Similarly, for an idea to be protected under copyright law, it must be the result of
individual skill, and be expressed or ‘fixed’ in concrete, tangible form. Simply carrying an idea in our head,
and then claiming retrospectively that we had the idea before anyone else is not defensible in law. The gap
between having an idea and making it tangible or expressive is a painful one; the laborious development
and application of the germinal idea is encompassed in the legal definition of intellectual property rights.
It also recurs in creativity theory with the idea of creativity as a sequence encompassing different thinking styles.
The next stage or criterion in the creative process is that our idea has value or meaning. Our innovation
must be useful. Under US patent law, an innovative device or process must have ‘utility’. The second half
of the definition is more contentious than the first because value and usefulness are much more difficult to
demonstrate. Again, context is key. Useful or valuable to whom, and for what? Some psychological studies
resort to a definition of value as defined by a panel of experts within the appropriate field, so that Picasso’s
painting is ‘creative’ because art experts and art historians tell us so. In a business context, the value of an
idea is likely to be measured against a specific set of criteria – did the innovation deliver on the brief? A
brilliant advertisement which fails to sell the product is not, according to definition, creative, because it
does not solve the client’s problem. Of course, the copywriter may argue that the client was asking the
wrong question, so again the value of creativity in business, like the value of a work of art, becomes a matter for debate.
1. The popular definition of creativity suggests that _____.
A. novel ideas may be used to benefit the minority
B. people in the West tend to adopt innovation more readily
C. oppression stifles an individual’s ability to be creative
D. managerial staff are incapable of breaking with convention
2. One of the criticisms the writer levels at the popular definitions of creativity is that they _____.
A. portray creativity as an independent entity
B. support a stereotypical view of how creative people develop their talent
C. limit the credit given to creativity in problem-solving exercises
D. are biased against certain types of creative individuals
3. A solution to a personal problem will probably not be widely adopted because _____.
A. it is likely to be similar to one found by someone else
B. it may involve psychological traits that are considered unusual
C. it is seldom derived from the so-called ‘spark of genius’
D. it has been reached by taking into account only subjective factors
4. An idea will not gain copyright protection if it _____.
A. cannot be used by society as a whole
B. has not been recorded or expressed in some form
C. has only one practical application
D. has not been formulated in a limited context
5. The dismissal of an innovation as not being creative may be unjustified when _____.
A. it can be proved that experts have shown bias in their decision
B. large sums of money are involved in determining its value
C. the creator has been improperly briefed
D. there is difficulty in assessing its precise use
6. It can be inferred from the extract that _____.
A. the creative process must follow a set of strict guidelines
B. there are so many types of creativity that they cannot be documented
C. truly creative minds are few and far between
D. a universal definition of creativity is proving elusive Passage 21
You are going to read part of an article about about an alternative energy form. For questions 1-6, choose
the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text. Tree Energy
Renewable energy is a key focus of most nations’ energy programmes today, and with countries like
Portugal and Costa Rica leading the way in disproving those naysayers who claimed that it would never be
sufficiently reliable or commercially viable to provide power on a grand scale, it has received even more
attention of late. As the level of interest peaks, innovative new ways of generating renewable energy are
also being explored. Of course, wind energy has been around for a very long time now; however,
researchers in Iowa have been examining it from a different perspective outside the box of late and they
may yet prove that it is possible to reinvent the wheel, so to speak – or the turbine – after all.
Inspired by the rustle of the leaves in the trees on a casual stroll one day, it occurred to one Iowan scientist
called Eric Henderson that it might be possible to harness low-to-ground wind energy in a way that
traditional wind turbines simply cannot, by replicating the conditions he observed. Indeed, the idea became
something of an obsession and he grappled with the notion for some time, researching in-depth the shapes,
dynamics and oscillations of tree leaves with the help of two colleagues he recruited from his university.
Together, they conceived of the concept of a faux forest, where artificial trees replace woody ones and
harness the unexploited energy potential of low-level winds.
However, the concept proved far more complex in actuality than in principle, demanding the application of
very advanced physics. As their research continued, the scientists encountered the expected obstacle of
reliability; wind is not, after all, guaranteed and weather conditions are highly inconsistent, To maximise
conversion rates, the scientists’ faux trees would, therefore, have to resemble their natural cousins.
However, they also soon identified a phenomenon known as parasitic capacitance as acting on the energy
conveyed to the leaves. This is something akin to a leech sucking the lifeblood out of its hapless victim
because while, in theory, wind-induced leave oscillation can generate a lot of energy, much of this is lost
through various parasitic effects, such as the leaves wiggling in different directions.
Since the identification of this and other problems, researchers have worked relentlessly to try to overcome
them, but, though they have made tangible progress, the road to commercial application is still a long one.
However, just as they have unearthed unforeseen complications, so, too, have they identified additional
means of harnessing energy from faux trees. For instance, another research group is looking to broaden the
scope of exploitation and increase the capacitive potential of faux trees by focusing on solar and heat energy
as well as wind. The technology and science is somewhat lagging at the moment, though, and until it catches
up, faux trees look set to remain little more than a novel concept for now.
Besides, question marks must remain for reasons other than practicality and commercial viability, too; after
all, the supposed attraction of renewable energy is that it is cleaner and greener, yet this is another assertion
that is heatedly debated. For instance, wind turbines, while providing clean energy in one sense represent
an unacceptable visual blot on the landscape to many, particularly as they tend to be most suited to
placement in remote areas of natural beauty, necessitated by the fact that wind speeds and conditions simply
are not conducive elsewhere – remote locations are, by default, very raw and wild. Additionally, the
infrastructure required to construct turbines can permanently alter the dynamics of the surrounding natural
habitat and ecosystem, particularly when transport systems must be built. Indeed, nature itself must make
way for this type of technology to be erected and the impact on the local habitat can, therefore, be very
significant. Would forests of artificial trees, then, be any less invasive and damaging to the natural world?
Besides, it is doubtful even if so that they would be any less of an eyesore.
1. What have researchers been doing recently according to the first paragraph?
A. showing that wind is a viable energy form
B. proving people who criticise renewable energy wrong
C. experimenting with different shapes of wind turbines
D. exploring innovative new ways to harness wind energy
2. What is fundamentally different about Henderson’s idea for harnessing wind energy according to the second paragraph?
A. it aims to use natural trees to replace traditional wind turbines
B. it aims to use living trees to naturally harness energy
C. it aims to exploit a source of wind energy turbines cannot
D. it aims to exploit low-to-ground wind energy using tradi-tional turbines
3. What unforeseen problem did the scientists encounter according to the third paragraph?
A. their faux trees could be infested by a parasite
B. much of the potential wind energy generated is unusable
C. their tree turbines would not look much like natural trees
D. leeches would attack the tree leaves
4. What does the fourth paragraph suggest about the potential of tree energy?
A. scientists are close to solving the problems they have found
B. future technological advances may make it more viable
C. three viable means of exploitation now exist thanks to new technology
D. tittle progress has been made on solving the problems identified
5. Why does the author discuss present wind energy systems in the last paragraph?
A. to illustrate problems tree energy could resolve
B. to highlight the importance of such clean, renewable energy
C. to highlight further issues with tree energy that will need consideration
D. to suggest that tree energy is superior to them
6. What can we infer is the author’s position on tree energy?
A. even if it becomes commercially viable questions still remain to be answered
B. it is only a matter of time before tree energy is widely used
C. it is highly unlikely tree energy will ever become commercially viable
D. existing renewable energy sources are more environmentally friendly Passage 22
You are going to read part of an article about love and relationships. For questions 1-6, choose the answer
(A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text. True Love
Love is a force of nature as unpredictable and potent as a rising storm; when it hits you, it sweeps you off
your feet with such intensity that you can barely right yourself and withstand its unrelenting power. It draws
you with tornadic force towards euphoria. Just a moment’s eye contact is enough to fire your senses into a
blaze of passion. One glance and you know she is the one. Forever more, you will devote yourself entirely
to the otherworldly apparition of perfection that has somehow materialised before you, selflessly and
unconditionally committed to her happiness. After all, could there be a purer cause? Now you are
completely insane. Forgive the intervention, but this love is an animal quite so rare as to be status critical
on the endangered species list. All credit to.Hollywood and its brethren for fabricating and propagating this
grand facetious notion, and my apologies for the stereotypical gender depiction.
However, let’s call a spade a spade; this is nothing other than a manifestation of desire, or, to put it more
kindly, attraction; a sensation which, of course, is not to be dismissed, having both its merits and its part to
play in the initial stages of relationship development; however, the danger when we allow ourselves to be
duped by the Hollywood depiction of love is that the bar of our expectations is set so high as to all but
guarantee three faults and disqualification from the contest. Perhaps it is useful to continue with the storm
analogy a while, though, for what follows this initial burst of passion and impulse may indeed be the blissful
calm and perfection of the eye of the tempest; however, the moment is but fleeting and trailing the eye is a
long tail that is arduous to navigate and endure.
Running with the storm analogy, the real storm here is not one in a teacup by any means, though, because
when we buy into the media’s fairy-tale portrait of love, we set ourselves off down the road to perpetual
misery. If we believe that when we find the one’ our certitude will be so great as to produce an undeniable
sense of knowingness and bliss, then the moment doubts start to creep in or cracks start to emerge in the
relationship, we feel a diminished sense of compatibility with our match and throw it all away before we’ve
really even given it a chance to work.
Although the bitter taste of reality presented here so far might sound a touch depressing to some, personally,
I find the notion that true love is reached through hard work – and not simply fate- bestowed – refreshing,
and I am far from a blind optimist. After all, it means we don’t have to leave it to chance, which should
give us cause for hope. It means that if we encounter problems in our relationship, we can take comfort in
the notion that, when we are prepared to work through them, there is light at the end of the tunnel. We are the masters of our fate.
Let me put it this way: if you pilot the love plane for long enough, you will indubitably encounter storms
and turbulence from time to time, and there is no predicting when they may happen. However, the more
often you fly and the more familiar you become with your crew and the route, the more likely you will be
able to navigate through the problems safely, so the impact of the turbulence should lessen over time.
Furthermore, there will also be, guaranteed, pure heavenly moments when the clouds disperse and you are
soaring as through perfection. These moments of magic make the challenges worthwhile. On the other
hand, if you press the ejector button prematurely, you will never know such experiences. What’s more, you
might endanger yourself and you must surely abandon any other persons on the plane. Note, though, that I
said prematurely. Sadly in life, not everything can work out as planned, but we must at least give it a
fighting chance and be sure we have done our best.
1. What is the writer’s main reason for using evocative language in the first paragraph?
A. to convey the intensity of the emotion of love
B. to criticise the influence of the media
C. to highlight the rarity of true love
D. to highlight a form of gender bias
2. Why does the writer use the example of a storm in the second paragraph?
A. to show that initial attraction has no relatedness to love
B. to highlight the dangers of acting on desire
C. to imply that a lasting relationship is full of challenges
D. to suggest that love is a temporary emotion
3. What does the writer mean when he refers to a storm in a teacup?
A. the effect the media has is very serious
B. the media’s influence should not be overestimated
C. feelings of hurt do not last very long
D. we make too much fuss about relationships
4. Why does the writer not find the sober view of love he depicts discouraging?
A. because love is a tottery anyway
B. because he is optimistic by nature
C. because it means we control our own destiny
D. because we can learn from failed relationships
5. What does the writer really mean when he talks about ejecting from the plane prematurely?
A. unless you work at a relationship, you wilt never experience the joys it can bring
B. it is more dangerous to leave a relationship than to try to work on it
C. wait until things are calm and you have a clear head before making big decisions
D. even when a relationship fails, it is not the end of the world
6. What best sums up the writer’s thoughts on love and relationships?
A. he believes that even healthy relationships have their ups and downs
B. he believes that love is not a very realistic concept and people should settle for less
C. he is a true romantic who believes in love at first sight
D. he is against people abandoning relationships in all but the most extreme circumstances