READING COMPREHENSION TEST NO 6 - Training Courses for National

Training Courses for National Team 2021- 2022, Tran Van Trung, MA – HaTinh High School for Gifted Students
READING COMPREHENSION TEST NO 6 (Time: 60 minutes) NAME:
………………………………………. SCORE: ………. /50 IELTS READING TEST NO 6
Putting the brakes on climate change
Are hydrogen cars the answer?
A. It is tempting to think that the conservation of coral reefs and rainforests is a separate issue from traffic
and air pollution. But it is not. Scientists are now confident that rapid changes in the Earth's climate are
already disrupting and altering many wildlife habitats. Pollution from vehicles is a big part of the problem.
B. The United Nation’s Climate Change Panel has estimated that the global average temperature rise
expected by the year 2100 could be as much as 6°C, causing forest fires and dieback on land and coral
bleaching in the ocean. Few species, if any, will be immune from the changes in temperature, rainfall and
sea levels. The panel believes that if such catastrophic temperature rises are to be avoided, the quantity of
greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide, being released into the atmosphere must be reduced. That
will depend on slowing the rate of deforestation and, more crucially, finding alternatives to coal, oil and
gas as our principal energy sources.
C. Technologies do exist to reduce or eliminate carbon dioxide as a waste product of our energy
consumption. Wind power and solar power are both spreading fast, but what are we doing about traffic?
Electric cars are one possible option, but their range and the time it takes to charge their batteries pose
serious limitations. However, the technology that shows the most potential to make cars climate-friendly
is fuel-cell technology. This was actually invented in the late nineteenth century, but because the world's (33)
motor industry put its effort into developing the combustion engine, it was never refined for mass
production. One of the first prototype fuel-cell powered vehicles has been built by the Ford Motor
Company. It is like a conventional car， only with better acceleration and a smoother ride. Ford
engineers expect to be able to produce a virtually silent vehicle in the future. (34)
D. So what’s the process involved – and is there a catch? Hydrogen goes into the fuel tank, producing
electricity. The only emission from the exhaust pipe is water. The fuel-cell is, in some ways similar to a (35)
battery, but unlike a battery it does not run down. As long as hydrogen and oxygen are supplied to the
cell, it will keep on generating electricity. Some cells work off methane and a few use liquid fuels such as
methanol, but fuel-ceils using hydrogen probably have the most potential. Furthermore, they need not be
limited to transport. Fuel-cells can be made in a huge range of size, small enough for portable computers (36)
or large enough for power stations. They have no moving parts and therefore need no oil. They just need
a supply of hydrogen. The big question, then, is where to get it from.
E. One source of hydrogen is water. But to exploit the abundant resource, electricity is needed, and if the
electricity is produced by a coal-fired power station or other fossil fuel, then the overall carbon reduction (37)
benefit of the fuel-cell disappears. Renewable sources, such as wind and solar power, do not produce
enough energy for it to be economically viable to use them in the 'manufacture' of hydrogen as a transport
fuel. Another source of hydrogen is, however, available and could provide a supply pending the
development of more efficient and cheaper renewable energy technologies. By splitting natural gas
(methane) into its constituent parts, hydrogen and carbon dioxide are produced. One way round the
problem of what to do with the carbon dioxide could be to store it back below ground – so-called
geological sequestration. Oil companies, such as Norway's Statoil, are experimenting with storing carbon
dioxide below ground in oil and gas wells.
F. With freak weather conditions, arguably caused by global warming, frequently in the headlines, the
urgent need to get fuel-cell vehicles will be available in most showrooms. Even now, fuel-cell buses are
operating in the US, while in Germany a courier company is planning to take delivery of fuel-cell-
powered vans in the near future. The fact that centrally-run fleets of buses and vans are the first fuel-cell
vehicles identifies another challenge – fuel distribution. The refueling facilities necessary to top up
hydrogen-powered vehicles are available only in a very few places at present. Public transport and
delivery firms are logical places to start, since their vehicles are operated from central depots.
G. Fuel-cell technology is being developed right across the automotive industry. This technology could
have a major impact in slowing down climate change, but further investment is needed if the industry –
and the world's wildlife – is to have a long-term future. (40) Questions 27-32
Choose the correct heading for paragraphs A-F from the list of headings below. List of Headings i
Action already taken by the United Nations ii Marketing the hydrogen car iii
Making the new technology available worldwide iv
Some negative predictions from one group of experts v
How the new vehicle technology works vi
The history of fuel-cell technology vii
A holistic view of climate change viii
Locating the essential ingredient ix Sustaining car manufacture 27 Paragraph A vii 28 Paragraph B iv 29 Paragraph C vi 30 Paragraph D v 31 Paragraph E ix 32 Paragraph F ii
Questions 33-36: Complete the sentences with NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage.
33 In the late nineteenth century, the car industry invested in the development of the ____________, combustion engine
rather than fuel-cell technology.
34 Ford engineers predict that they will eventually design an almost ______ silent _____ car.
35 While a fuel-cell lasts longer, some aspects of it are comparable to a _______ battery ____.
36 Fuel-cells can come in many sizes and can be used in power stations and in ___________ a
portable computers s well as in vehicles.
Questions 37-40: Do the following statements agree, with the information given in Reading Passage 3?
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
37 Using electricity produced by burning fossil fuels to access sources of hydrogen may increase the
positive effect of the fuel-cell. F
38 The oil company Statoil in Norway owns gas wells in other parts of the world. NG
39 Public transport is leading the way in the application of fuel-cell technology, NG
40 More funding is necessary to ensure the success of the fuel-cell vehicle industry. T
GAP –FILL READING TEST NO 6 SUMMER
The small, bright lawn stretched away smoothly to the big, bright sea. The turf was hemmed with an edge
of scarlet geranium and coleus, and cast-iron vases painted in a chocolate color, standing at intervals
along the winding path that led to the sea, looped their garlands of petunia and ivy geranium above the neatly raked gravel. 69.
A number of ladies in summer dresses and gentlemen in grey frock-coats and tall hats stood on the lawn
or sat upon the benches. Every now and then, a slender girl in starched muslin would step from the tent,
bow in hand, and speed her shaft at one of the targets, while the spectators interrupted their talk to watch the result. 70.
The Newbury Archery Club always held its August meeting at the Beauforts'. The sport, which had
hitherto known no rival but croquet, was beginning to be discarded in favor of lawn-tennis. However, the
latter game was still considered too rough and inelegant for social occasions, and as an opportunity to
show off pretty dresses and graceful attitudes, the bow and arrow held their own. 71.
In New York, during the previous winter, after he and May had settled down in the new, greenish-yellow
house with the bow-window and the Pompeian vestibule, he had dropped back with relief into the old
routine of the office. The renewal of his daily activities had served as a link with his former self. 72.
At the Century, he had found Winsett again, and at the Knickerbocker, the fashionable young men of his
own set. And what with hours dedicated to the law and those given to dining out or entertaining friends at
home, with an occasional evening at the opera or the theatre, the life he was living had still seemed a
fairly real and inevitable sort of business. 73.
But the Wellands always went to Newport, where they owned one of the square gaps on the cliffs, and
their son-in-law could adduce no good reason why he and May should not join them there. As Mrs.
Welland rather tartly pointed out, it was hardly worthwhile for May to have worn herself out trying on
summer clothes in Paris, if she was not to be allowed to wear them; and this argument was of a kind to
which Archer had as yet found no answer. 74.
It was not May's fault, poor dear. If, now and then, during their travels, they had fallen slightly out of
step, harmony had been restored by their return to conditions she was used to. He had always foreseen
that she would not disappoint him; and he had been right. No, the time and place had been perfect for his marriage. 75.
He could not say that he had been mistaken in his choice, for she fulfilled all that he had expected. It was
undoubtedly gratifying to be the husband of one of the handsomest and most popular young married
women in New York, especially when she was also one of the sweetest tempered and most reasonable of
wives; and Archer had not been insensible to such advantages.
A May herself could not understand his obscure reluctance to fall in with so reasonable and pleasant a
way of spending the summer. She reminded him that he had always liked Newport in his bachelor days,
and as this was indisputable, he could only profess that he was sure he was going to like it better than
ever now that they were to be there together. But as he stood on the Beaufort verandah and looked out on
the brightly peopled lawn, it came home to him with a shiver that he was not going to like it at all.
B In addition, there had been the pleasurable excitement of choosing a showy grey horse for May's
brougham (the Wellands had given the carriage). Then, there was the abiding occupation and interest of
arranging his new library, which, in spite of family doubts and disapproval, had been carried out as he
had dreamed, with a dark-embossed paper, an Eastlake book-case and “sincere” armchairs and tables.
C The next morning Archer scoured the town in vain for more yellow roses. In consequence of this
search, he arrived late at the office, perceived that his doing so made no difference whatever to any one,
and was filled with sudden exasperation at the elaborate futility of his life. Why should he not be, at that
moment, on the sands of St. Augustine with May Welland?
D Newland Archer, standing on the verandah of the Beaufort house, looked curiously down upon this
scene. On each side of the shiny painted steps, was a large, blue china flowerpot on a bright yellow china
stand. A spiky, green plant filled each pot, and below the verandah ran a wide border of blue hydrangeas
edged with more red geraniums. Behind him, the French windows of the drawing rooms through which
he had passed gave glimpses, between swaying lace curtains, of glassy parquet floors islanded with chintz
pouffes, dwarf armchairs, and velvet tables covered with trifles of silver.
E Archer looked down with wonder at the familiar spectacle. It surprised him that life should be going on
in the old way when his own reactions to it had so completely changed. It was Newport that had first
brought home to him the extent of the change.
F Archer had married (as most young men did) because he had met a perfectly charming girl at the
moment when a series of rather aimless sentimental adventures were ending in premature disgust; and she
had represented peace, stability, comradeship, and the steadying sense of an inescapable duty.
G Half-way between the edge of the cliff and the square wooden house (which was also chocolate-
colored, but with the tin roof of the verandah striped in yellow and brown to represent an awning), two
large targets had been placed against a background of shrubbery. On the other side of the lawn, facing the
targets, was pitched a real tent, with benches and garden seats about it.
H Newport, on the other hand, represented the escape from duty into an atmosphere of unmitigated
holiday-making. Archer had tried to persuade May to spend the summer on a remote island off the coast
of Maine (called, appropriately enough, Mount Desert) where a few hardy Bostonians and Philadelphians
were camping in native cottages, and whence came reports of enchanting scenery and a wild, almost
trapper-like existence amid woods and waters.
MULTIPLE- CHOICE READING TEST NO 6
You are going to read an extract from an article about pain. For questions 45 - 50, choose the answer
(A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text. SHARING PAIN
Much as humans can feel pain,' they can be incredibly insensitive to the potential suffering of other life
forms. Witness the scorn held by those with high thresholds of pain for those who are less fortunately
equipped. There are those who assert that suffering is a burden unique to the human race, whereas, on the
other side of the debate, there are those who contend that all life forms, whether free from the soil or
attached to it, can experience discomfort, if not agony.
Amongst the mainstream attitudes, between these two extremes, it is interesting to note that our ability to
attribute feelings to other species discriminates against more alien species in favor of those that share (45)
more characteristics with us. For instance, there are several welfare organizations that look out for the
interests of various mammals, particularly common household pets, but have you ever been asked to
support a society that protects the cockroaches trying to scratch a living in our kitchens?
Even to those with a limited grasp of scientific principles, it follows that creatures with a brain attached to
a spinal cord have, like us, the prerequisites for registering pain and all the consequences that involves.
What is more, the fact that research on rat brains has afforded us a wealth of knowledge about human
emotions can only support the notion that animals also experience emotions. While some of these
observations may be obvious to pet owners and others who have day-to-day contact with animals, actual
scientific knowledge of the distress experienced by animals has been improved through monitoring blood
chemistry changes that animals undergo when they are being hunted. (46)
It is easier for many of us to dismiss the concept of pain in species that we don't consider to be part of our
closely shared environment. For example, many of those who shudder at the thought of cuddly seal pups
being clubbed to death have no qualms about fishing. After all, fishing is just a relaxing sport and they
never hear fish screaming, even when fighting with a hook caught firmly in their flesh. But from the (47)
zoological point of view it can not be denied that, like humans, fish have a brain, spinal cord and nervous
system. Like rats, fish have also been shown to be capable of learning in controlled situations. What is
more, they, like us, have the capacity to produce their own pain killers. Would this not suggest that they too feel pain?
In comparison to fish, there are other orders of animal life that are even further removed from us in terms
of their lack of similarity to mammals. Take crustaceans, for example. Crabs, lobsters and suchlike have a
hard outer shell for protection and do not share a skeletal structure similar to ours. Although many people
do not think of them as suffering pain in the way that we do, there are plenty of us who would not feel (48)
happy about cooking them in the recommended manner, presumably because we do feel that they are.
capable of suffering. As every chef knows, they must be cooked by being dropped live into boiling water
in order to avoid the flesh becoming poisonous. Some cooks prefer to freeze them alive shortly before
cooking them, or opt for an instant execution with one blow of a butcher's cleaver.
At least we don't hear fruit screaming while we peel it, or encounter vegetables sweating heavily as they
are brought closer to the chopping board or a pan full of boiling water, Perhaps this is why a vegetarian
lifestyle commends itself to some. But does this mean that plants are totally insensitive? An experiment
carried out in the 1960s by a former CIA interrogation expert might suggest otherwise. In this
experiment, plants were linked to a form of lie detector which registered changes in electrical
conductivity in the leaves when the plants were exposed to stress. The event which triggered the stress
was the experimenter dropping live shrimps into boiling water, No such results were registered when the
experiment was repeated with shrimps that were already dead.
However, to equate this response with pain does not fit in with our understanding of the role of the
nervous system in experiencing pain, since there is no nervous system involved in these cases. Obviously,
a plant may be distressed in some way if it is deprived of water, sunlight or nutrients, but it is a different thing to label this as pain.
45 In the opening paragraph, the writer suggests that__________.
A all living creatures experience pain.
B humans are unique in feeling pain.
C household pets feel more pain than cockroaches. D humans care more about the pain of certain animals.
46 Research into pain__________.
A uses blood chemistry analysis. B is inconclusive. C has been conducted on rats.
D has given information to hunters.
47 According to the writer, fish__________.
A have been proven to experience pain.
B suffer less, when caught, than hunted foxes do. C have excellent memories.
D have similarities with humans.
48 What is the issue concerning lobsters?
A whether to become a vegetarian B whether to freeze them C how to kill them humanely D how to cook them
49 The writer seems to suggest that plants__________. A also feel pain.
B react to stress in the environment.
C only respond when shrimps are boiled alive.
D control alterations in their electrical conductivity.
50 The writer gives the impression that, on the issue of causing pain to animals, he is__________. A objective. B ironical C sensitive. D disbelieving.
MULTIPLE- MATCHING TEST NO 6
Unleashing Your Inner Genius
Creative people reveal how they find inspiration A. Sally Jones, playwright
I'm a very aural person; as soon as I hear a lyric or phrase, I'm transported to a particular time and place.
When I was writing my play Body Parts, I listened to Love Her Madly by the American rock band The
Doors, which seemed to suggest a lot about the characters' relationship with each other. A line from one (91)
of their songs even made it into the play's plotline. I'm also very fidgety and seem to work best when my
hands are occupied with something other than what I'm thinking about. During rehearsals, for example, I
find myself drawing little pictures or symbols that are somehow connected to the play. Then I'll look back
at my doodles, and random snatches of dialogue for another play will occur to me. Another thing I do is
to go to the forest near my house to think through a character or situation. It works every time.
B. Rachael Carter, ballet dancer
(89) Ideas sit inside me for a while, before they emerge. When I'm preparing for a particular character, I keep
looking for ideas about her wherever I can – in film, theatre, music, and in watching other ballet
companies. When I first danced the French ballet Giselle, I found the Danish director Lars von Trier's
film Dancer in the Dark incredibly inspiring. It was so dark, and it felt just like a modern-day version of
the ballet – it brought the part alive for me. I believe that to be truly inspired, you must learn to trust your
instinct. In my profession, I feel that you shouldn’t over-rehearse a part, or you'll find you get bored with (95)
it. Of course, hard work is important, but a good, technically correct performance without instinct will never be magical.
C. Sarah Kent, musician
(87) For me, the image of the tortured artist is a myth – you don't need to be miserable to write songs. In fact,
if I am feeling down, the last thing I want to do is write; although it's important sometimes just to sit
(92) down and get on with it, however you're feeling. Your creativity is like a tap: if you don't use it, it gets
clogged up. One of the most difficult things about writing music is the sheer number of distractions.
When you're writing, you have to be very disciplined, to the point of being impolite: turn off your phone
and avoid seeing other people. Another thing you have to deal with is that small voice that tells us we're (90)
rubbish. We need to know how to silence it. I try to avoid listening to records but other musicians while
I’m writing something – comparing myself to others often makes me think, “Why do I bother?”.
D. Margaret McCall, singer-songwriter
I definitely don't have rules – I'm pretty disorganized. In fact, I often have to guilt-trip myself into sitting
down to write. It is so easy to let your life get filled up with other stuff – going to the bank, looking after
the baby. These things do come through in my songwriting, though. Most of my songs are defined by a (93)
sense of loneliness, of isolation, that I get from spending a lot of time on my own. When I first moved to
New York, I used to go to concerts every night. Now that I'm a songwriter myself, I find watching other
musicians can be frustrating – I want to be the one up there performing. But every so often I see someone
who inspires me to try something different. I go home thinking: "I should really try something like that." E. Judith Keane, artist
I ‘ve learned not to wait for a good idea to come to me. It’s best to start by realizing an average idea – (94)
remember, no one has to see it. If I hadn't made the works I'm ashamed of, the ones I'm proud of probably
wouldn't exist. Also remember that hard work isn't always productive. I think of the brain as a field lying (86)
fallow; keep harvesting and the crops won't mature. Not restricting yourself to your own medium is also
important. It is just as possible to be inspired by a filmmaker, fashion designer, writer or friend as by
another artist. Cross-pollination makes for an interesting outcome. Finally, don't be afraid to scrap all
your hard work and planning and do it differently at the last minute. (88) Which person Your answers:
says that creative people need periods of mental inactivity? 86. E
says a commonly held belief about creativity is mistaken? 87. C
encourages creative people to make spontaneous decisions where necessary? 88. E
says that finding inspiration is a gradual process? 89. B
says creative people need to contain their sense of insecurity? 90. C
mentions making direct use of part of someone else’s work? 91. A
mentions the need to persevere regardless of one’s mood? 92. C
says some of the themes in her work reflect the situation she finds herself in? 93. D
finds value in creating what she regards as substandard pieces of work? 94. E
discusses the benefits of limiting the preparation time for a piece of work? 95. B The end