PREPARATION TASKS

Vocabulary practice 1: Complete the sentences below using the verbs in the correct form.
Use each verb once only.
carry out endanger make offset promote seek
shape take test underlie

1. We generally __________
take it for granted that children will grow up with an understanding
of the world around them, but we do not consider how this comes out.
2. A considerable amount of research has been __________ carried out into how babies learn that an
object can still exist after it has disappeared.
3. Research usually involves first formulating a hypothesis and then __________ testing it.
4. Television programmes about children do a great to __________understanding
promote of their
needs.
5. When something strange happens, we try to find an explanation that will __________ make of
it.
6. Even after we have __________
sought explanations of mysterious occurrences, we may not
know their true cause.
7. Our genes and our environment help to __________ shape our personalities.
8. A lack of opportunity to explore as a child may __________
underlie a person’s weaknesses as an
adult.
9. Babies may be __________
endangered by their efforts to explore their surroundings.
10. The cost of childproofing a home may be __________ offset by the resulting reduction in
damage.
READING SKILL FOCUS
Task type: Multiple choice

Strategies
Some problems you may have when completing MCQs will be discussed in this course.
1. Being tricked by the examiner– examiners love to try and trick you with ‘distractors’.
2. Distractors are things that look like the correct answer but are actually incorrect. When
you locate the correct section in the reading text, there will appear to be two or three
plausible correct answers.
3. A very common trick is matching lots of keywords from the question options to parts of
the text. Just because there are lots of matching keywords doesn’t mean it is the correct
answer.
4. Also look at the context of the whole sentence and any qualifying words like most, all,
always, sometimes.
Then what you should do is…
1. Read the questions before you read the text.
2. You will often be able to eliminate 2 of the four answers and this leaves you with two
choices. Think about the difference in meaning between these two choices and this will
help you get the correct answers.
3. If you are unsure of what the difference is between two or three sentences, it can help
to rephrase them in your own words.
 EXCESSIVE DEMAND ON YOUNG PEOPLE
Being able to multitask is hailed by most people as a welcome skill, but not according to a recent
study which claims that young people between the ages of eight and eighteen of the so-called
“Generation M” are spending a considerable amount of their time in fruitless efforts as they
multitask. It argues that, in fact, these young people are frittering away as much as half of their
time again as they would if they performed the very same tasks one after the other.
Some young people are juggling an ever larger number of electronic devices as they study. At
the same time that they are working, young adults are also surfing on the Internet, or sending out
emails to their friends, and/or answering the telephone and listening to music on their iPods or on
another computer. As some new device comes along it too is added to the list rather than
replacing one of the existing devices.
Other research has indicated that this multitasking is even affecting the way families themselves
function as young people are two wrapped up in their own isolated worlds to interact with the other
people around them. They can no longer greet family members when they enter the house nor
can they eat at the family table.
All this electronic wizardry is supposedly also seriously affecting young people’s performance at
university and in the workplace. When asked about their perception of the impact of modern
gadgets on their performance of tasks, the overwhelming majority of young people have a
favourable response.
The response from the academic and business worlds was not quite as positive. The former feel
that multitasking with electronic gadgets by children affects later development of study skills,
resulting in a decline in the quality of writing, for example, because of the lack of concentration on
task completion. They feel that many undergraduates now urgently need remedial help with study
skills. Similarly, employers feel that young people entering the workforce need to be taught all
over again, as they have become deskilled.
While all this may be true, it must be borne in mind that more and more is expected of young
people nowadays; in fact, too much. Praise rather than criticism is due in respect of the way
today’s youth are able to cope despite what the older generation throw at them.
The list below gives some opinions about electronic gadgetry. Which THREE opinions are
mentioned by the writer of the text?
A. According to students, electronic gadgets are now an inevitable part of the university
landscape.
B. Academics feel multitasking with electronic gadgets affects children’s subsequent
acquisition of study skills.
C. Academics feel students are offered help with their writing and study skills.
D. Most young people see no problems related to using electronic gadgets.
E. Computers use at school fails to prepare students for academic life at university, according
to academics.
F. Employers feel that the use of electronic gadgets among children affects capacity to
perform in the work environment.
G. Employers think that overuse of computers, etc. definitely affects job prospects later in life.
READING EXAM PRACTICE

WHY DO WE EXPLORE SPACE?

Why should mankind explore space? Why should money, time and effort be spent exploring, investigating
and researching something with so few apparent benefits? Why should resources be spent on space rather
than on conditions and people on Earth? These are questions that, understandably, are very often asked.
Perhaps the best answer lies in our genetic makeup as human beings. What drove our distant ancestors
to move from the trees into the plains, and on into all possible areas and environments? It appears that we
are driven to ensure the success and continuation of not just our own genes, but of the species as a whole.
The wider the distribution of a species, the better its chance of survival. Perhaps the best reason for
exploring space is this genetic predisposition to expand wherever possible.
Nearly every successful civilisation has explored, because by doing so, any dangers in surrounding areas
can be identified and prepared for. These might be enemies in neighbouring cultures, physical features of
the area, a change in the area which might affect food supplies, or any number of other factors. They all
pose a real danger, and all can be made less threatening if certain preparations are made. Without
knowledge, we may be completely destroyed by the danger. With knowledge, we can lessen its effects.
Exploration also allows minerals and other potential resources to be located. Additional resources are
always beneficial when used wisely, and can increase our chances of survival. Even if we have no
immediate need of them, they will perhaps be useful later.
Resources may be more than physical assets. Knowledge or techniques acquired through exploration, or
preparing to explore, filter from the developers into society at large. The techniques may have medical
applications which can improve the length or quality of our lives. Techniques may be social, allowing
members of society better to understand those within or outside the culture. Better understanding may lead
to more efficient use of resources, or a reduction in competition for resources. We have already benefited
from other spin-offs, including improvements in earthquake prediction – which has saved many lives – in
satellites used for weather forecasting and in communications systems. Even non-stick saucepans and
mirrored sunglasses are by-products of technological developments in the space industry!
While many resources are spent on what seems a small return, the exploration of space allows creative,
brave and intelligent members of our species to focus on what may serve to save us. While space may hold
many wonders and explanations of how the universe was formed or how it works, it also holds dangers.
The chances of a large comet or asteroid hitting the Earth are small, but it could happen in time. Such
strikes in the past may account for the extinction of dinosaurs and other species. Human technology is
reaching the point where it might be able to detect the possibility of this happening, and enable us to
minimise the damage, or prevent it completely, allowing us as a species to avoid extinction. The danger
exists, but knowledge can help human beings to survive. Without the ability to reach out across space, the
chance to save ourselves might not exist.
In certain circumstances, life on Earth may become impossible: over-population or epidemics, for instance,
might eventually force us to find other places to live. While Earth is the only planet known to sustain life,
surely the adaptive ability of humans would allow us to inhabit other planets and moons. It is true that the
lifestyle would be different, but human life and cultures have adapted in the past and surely could in the
future.
The more a culture expands, the less chance there is that it will become extinct. Space allows us to expand
and succeed: for the sake of everyone on the Earth, now and in the future, space exploration is essential.
Questions 1-3
Choose THREE letters, A-F. Which THREE of the following reasons for exploring space are mentioned by
the writer?
A. It is natural for us to do so.
B. We may find new sources of food.
C. It will help us to prevent earthquakes.
D. It has side-effects that improve the quality of our lives.
E. It may enable us to find alternative homes.
F. We will discover whether other planets are inhabited.