Name:
SECTION 1
READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on Question 1-14 which are based on Reading
Passage 1 below.
The Cacao: a Sweet History
A Chapter 1
Most people today think of chocolate as something sweet to eat or drink than can be easily
found in stores around the world. It might surprise you that chocolate was once highly
treasured. The tasty secret of the cacao (Kah Kow) tree was discovered 2,000 years ago in
the tropical rainforests of the Americas. The story of how chocolate grew from a local
Mesoamerican beverage into a global sweet encompasses many cultures and continents.
B Chapter 2
Historians believe the Maya people of Central America first learned to farm cacao plants
around two thousand years ago. The Maya took cacao trees from the rainforests and grew
them in their gardens. They cooked cacao seeds, the crushed them into a soft paste. They
mixed the paste with water and flavorful spices to make an unsweetened chocolate drink. The
Maya poured the chocolate drink back and forth between two containers so that the liquid
would have a layer of bubbles, or foam.
Cacao and chocolate were an important part of Maya culture. There are often images of cacao
plants on Maya buildings and art objects. Ruling families drank chocolate at special
ceremonies. And, even poorer members of the society could enjoy the drink once in a while.
Historians believe that cacao seeds were also used in marriage ceremonies as a sing of the
union between a husband and a wife.
The Aztec culture in current-day Mexico also prized chocolate. But, cacao plants could not grow
in the are where the Aztecs lived. So, they traded to get cacao. They even used cacao seeds as
a form of money to pay taxes. Chocolate also played a special role in both Maya and Aztec
royal and religious events. Priests presented cacao seeds and offerings to the gods and served
chocolate drinks during sacred ceremonies. Only the very wealthy in Aztec societies could
afford to drink chocolate because cacao was so valuable. The Aztec ruler Montezuma was
believed to drink fifty cups of chocolate every day. Some experts believe the word for
chocolate came from the Aztec word “xocolatl” which in the Nahuatl language means “bitter
water.” Others believe the word “chocolate” was created by combining Mayan and Nahuatl
words.
C Chapter 3
The explorer Christopher Columbus brought cacao seeds to Spain after his trip to Central
America in 1502. But it was the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes who understood that
chocolate could be a valuable investment. In 1519, Cortes arrived in current-day Mexico. He
believed the chocolate drink would become popular with Spaniards. After the Spanish soldiers
defeated the Aztec empire, they were able to seize the supplies of cacao and send them home.
Spain later began planting cacao in its colonies in the Americans in order to satisfy the large
demand for chocolate. The wealthy people of Spain first enjoyed a sweetened version of
chocolate drink. Later, the popularity of the drink spread throughout Europe. The English,
Dutch and French began to plant cacao trees in their own colonies. Chocolate remained a drink
that only wealthy people could afford to drink until the eighteenth century. During the period
known as the Industrial Revolution, new technologies helped make chocolate less costly to
produce.
D Chapter 4
Farmers grow cacao trees in many countries in Africa, Central and South America. The trees
grow in the shady areas of the rainforests near the Earth’s equator. But these trees can be
difficult to grow. They require an exact amount of water, warmth, soil and protection. After
about five years, cacao trees start producing large fruits called pods, which grow near the
trunk of the tree. The seeds inside the pods are harvested to make chocolate. There are
several kinds of cacao trees. Most of the world’s chocolate is made from the seed of the
forastero tree. But farmers can also grow criollo or trinitario cacao plants. Cacao trees grown
on farms are much more easily threatened by diseases and insects than wild trees. Growing
cacao is very hard work for farmers. They sell their harvest on a futures market. This means
that economic conditions beyond their control can affect the amount of money they will earn.
Today, chocolate industry officials, activists, and scientists are working with farmers. They are
trying to make sure that cacao can be grown in a way that is fair to the timers and safe for the
environment.
E Chapter 5
To become chocolate, cacao seeds go through a long production process in a factory.
Workers must sort, clean and cook the seeds. Then they break off the covering of the seeds
so that only the inside fruit, or nibs, remain. Workers crush the nibs into a soft substance
called chocolate liquor. This gets separated into cocoa solids and a fat called cocoa butter.
Chocolate makers have their own special recipes in which they combine chocolate liquor with
exact amounts of sugar, milk and cocoa fat. They finely crush this “crumb” mixture in order to
make it smooth. The mixture then goes through two more processes before it is shaped into a
mold form.
Chocolate making is a big business. The market value of the yearly cacao crop around the
world is more than five billion dollars. Chocolate is especially popular in Europe and the
United States. For example, in 2005, the United States bought 1.4 billion dollars worth of
cocoa products. Each year, Americans eat an average of more than five kilograms of chocolate
per person. Specialty shops that sell costly chocolates are also very popular. Many offer
chocolate lovers the chance to taste chocolates grown in different areas of the world.
Questions 1-5
Reading passage 1 has 5 chapters.
Which chapter contains the following information?
Write your answers in boxes 1-5 on your answer sheet
1 the part of cacao trees used to produce chocolate
2 average chocolate consumption by people in the US per person per year
3 risks faced by fanners in the cacao business
4 where the first sweetened chocolate drink appeared
5 how ancient American civilizations obtained cacao
Question 6-10
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1? In
boxes 6-10 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement is true
FALSE if the statement is false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage
6 use cacao and chocolate in ceremonies was restricted Maya royal families
7 The Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes invested in chocolate and chocolate drinks.
8 The forastero tree produces the best chocolate.
9 some parts in cacao seed are get rid of during chocolate process
10 Chocolate is welcomed more in some countries or continents than other parts
around the world.
Questions 11-14
The flow chart below shows the steps in chocolate making.
Complete the flow chart using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each
blank
Write your answers in boxes 11-14 on your answer sheet.
Cacao seeds
↓ sorting, cleaning and cooking ridding seeds of their 11 …………………..
Nibs
↓ crushing
12 ……………………….
↓ Add sugar, milk and 13 ………………..
↓ Crush finely then come into a shape in a 14 ……………….
chocolate
SECTION 2
READING PASSAGE 2: You should spend about 20 minutes on Question 15-27 which are based
on Reading Passage 2 below.
Cosmetics in Ancient Past
Since cosmetics and perfumes are still in wide use today, it is interesting to compare the
attitudes, customs and beliefs related to them in ancient times to those of our own day and
age. Cosmetics and perfumes have been popular since the dawn of civilization; it is shown by
the discovery of a great deal of pertinent archeological material, dating from the third
millennium BC. Mosaics, glass perfume flasks, stone vessels, ovens, cooking-pots, clay jars, etc.,
some inscribed by the hand of the artisan. Evidence also appears in the Bible and other
classical writings, where it is written that spices and perfumes were prestigious products
known throughout the ancient world and coveted by kings and princes. The written and
pictorial descriptions, as well as archaeological findings, all show how important body care and
aesthetic appearance were in the lives of the ancient people. The chain of evidence spans
many centuries, detailing the usage of cosmetics in various cultures from the earliest period of
recorded history.
In antiquity, however, at least in the onset, cosmetics served in religious ceremonies and for
healing purposes. Cosmetics were also connected with cultic worship and witchcraft: to
appease the various gods, fragrant ointments were applied to the statuary images and even to
their attendants. From this, in the course of time, developed the custom of personal use, to
enhance the beauty of the face and the body, and to conceal defects.
Perfumes and fragrant spices were precious commodities in antiquity, very much in
demand, and at times even exceeded silver and gold in value. Therefore, they were
luxury products, used mainly in the temples and in the homes of the noble and wealthy.
The Judean kings kept them in treasure houses (2 Kings 20:13). And the Queen of Sheba
brought to Solomon “camels laden with spices, gold in great quantity and precious
stones.” (1 Kings 10:2, 10). However, within time, the use of cosmetics became the
custom of that period. The use of cosmetics became widespread among the lower
classes as well as among the wealthy; in the same way they washed the body, so they
used to care for the body with substances that softened the skin and anoint it with
fragrant oils and ointments.
D
Facial treatment was highly developed and women devoted many hours to it. They used to
spread various scented creams on the face and to apply makeup in vivid and contrasting colors.
An Egyptian papyrus from the 16th century BC contains detailed recipes to remove blemishes,
wrinkles, and other signs of age. Greek and Roman women would cover their faces in the
evening with a “beauty mask” to remove blemishes, which consisted mainly of flour mixed
with fragrant spices, leaving it on their face all night. The next morning, they would wash it off
with asses’ milk. The very common creams used by women in the ancient Far East, particularly
important in the hot climate and prevalent in that area of the globe, were made up of oils and
aromatic scents. Sometimes the oil in these creams was extracted from olives, almonds,
gourds, sesame, or from trees and plants; but, for those of limited means, scented animal and
fish fats were commonly used.
Women in the ancient past commonly put colors around their eyes. Besides beautification, its
purpose was also medicinal as covering the sensitive skin of the lids with colored ointments
that prevented dryness and eye diseases: the eye-paint repelled the little flies that transmitted
eye inflammations. Egyptian women colored the upper eyelid black and the lower one green,
and painted the space between the upper lid and the eyebrow gray and blue. The women of
Mesopotamia favored yellows and reds. The use of kohl for painting the eyes is mentioned
three times in the Bible, always with disapproval by the sages (2 Kings, 9:30; Jeremiah 4:30;
Ezekiel 23:40). In contrast, Job named one of his daughters “Keren Happukh”- “horn of eye
paint” (Job 42:14)
F
Great importance was attached to the care for hair in ancient times. Long hair was always
considered a symbol of beauty, and kings, nobles and dignitaries grew their hair long and
kept it well-groomed and cared for. Women devoted much time to the style of the hair;
while no cutting, they would apply much care to it by arranging it skillfully in plaits and
“building it up” sometimes with the help of wigs. Egyptian women generally wore their hair
flowing down to their shoulders or even longer. In Mesopotamia, women cherished long
hair as a part of their beauty, and hair flowing down their backs in a thick plait and tied with
a ribbon is seen in art. Assyrian women wore their hair shorter, braiding and binding it in a
bun at the back. In Ancient Israel, brides would wear their hair long on the wedding day as a
sign of their virginity. Ordinary people and slaves, however, usually wore their hair short,
mainly for hygienic reasons, since they could not afford to invest in the kind of treatment
that long hair required.
From the Bible and Egyptian and Assyrian sources, as well as the words of classical authors, it
appears that the centers of the trade in aromatic resins and incense were located in the
kingdoms of Southern Arabia, and even as far as India, where some of these precious
aromatic plants were grown. “Dealers from Sheba and Rahmah dealt with you, offering the
choicest spices…” (Ezekiel 27:22). The Nabateans functioned as the important middlemen in
this trade; Palestine also served as a very important component, as the trade routes
crisscrossed the country. It is known that the Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut (15th century BC)
sent a royal expedition to the Land of Punt (Somalia) in order to bring back myrrh seedlings to
plant in her temple. In Assyrian records of tribute and spoils of war, perfumes and resins are
mentioned; the text from the time of Tukulti-Ninurta II (890-884 BC) refers to balls of myrrh
as part as part of the tribute brought to the Assyrian king by the Aramaean kings. The trade in
spices and perfumes is also mentioned in the Bible as written in Genesis (37:25-26), “Camels
carrying gum tragacanth and balm and myrrh”.
Questions 15-21
Reading Passage 2 has 7 paragraphs A-G
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write your answers in boxes 15-21 on your answer sheet.
15. recipes to conceal facial defects caused by aging
16. perfumes were presented to conquerors in war
17. long hair of girls had special meanings in marriage
18. evidence exists in abundance showing cosmetics use in ancient times
19. protecting eyes from fly-transmitted diseases
20. from witchcraft to beautification
21. more expensive than gold
Questions 22-27
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2. In
boxes 22-27 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement is true
FALSE if the statement is false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage
22. The written record for cosmetics and perfumes dates back to the third millennium
BC.
23. Since perfumes and spices were luxury products, their use was exclusive to the noble
and the wealthy.
24. In ancient Far East, fish fats were used as cream by woman from poor households.
25. The teachings in the Bible were repeatedly against the use of kohl for painting the eyes.
26. Long hair as a symbol of beauty was worn solely by women of ancient cultures
27. The Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut sent a royal expedition to Punt to establish a trade
route for myrrh
SECTION 3
READING PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20 minutes on Question 28-40 which are based on Reading
Passage 3 below.
The Secrets of Persuasion
A
Our mother may have told you the secret to getting what you ask for was to say please. The
reality is rather more surprising. Adam Dudding talks to a psychologist who has made a life’s
work from the science of persuasion. Some scientists peer at things through high-powered
microscopes. Others goad rats through mazes, or mix bubbling fluids in glass beakers. Robert
Cialdini, for his part, does curious things with towels, and believes that by doing so he is
discovering important insights into how society works.
Cialdini’s towel experiments (more of them later), are part of his research into how we
persuade others to say yes. He wants to know why some people have a knack for bending the
will of others, be it a telephone cold-caller talking to you about timeshares, or a parent whose
children are compliant even without threats of extreme violence. While he’s anxious not to be
seen as the man who’s written the bible for snake-oil salesmen, for decades the Arizona State
University social psychology professor has been creating systems for the principles and
methods of persuasion, and writing bestsellers about them. Some people seem to be born with
the skills; Cialdini’s claim is that by applying a little science, even those of us who aren’t should
be able to get our own way more often. “All my life I’ve been an easy mark for the
blandishment of salespeople and fundraisers and I’d always wondered why they could get me
to buy things I didn’t want and give to causes I hadn’t heard of,” says Cialdini on the phone
from London, where his is plugging his latest book.
He found that laboratory experiments on the psychology of persuasion were telling only part
of the story, so he began to research influence in the real world, enrolling in sales-training
programs: “I learnt how to sell automobiles from a lot, how to sell insurance from an office,
how to sell encyclopedias door to door.” He concluded there were six general “principles of
influence” and has since put them to the test under slightly more scientific conditions. Most
recently, that has meant messing about with towels. Many hotels leave a little card in each
bathroom asking guests to reuse towels and thus conserve water and electricity and reduce
pollution. Cialdini and his colleagues wanted to test the relative effectiveness of different
words on those cards. Would guests be motivated to co-operate simply because it would help
save the planet, or were other factors more compelling? To test this, the researchers changed
the card’s message from an environmental one to the simple (and truthful) statement that the
majority of guests at the hotel had reused their towel at least once. Guests given this message
were 26% more likely to reuse their towels than those given the old message. In Cialdini’s book
“Yes! 50 Secrets from the Science of Persuasion”, co-written with another social scientist and
a business consultant, he explains that guests were responding to the persuasive force of
“social proof”, the idea that our decisions are strongly influenced by what we believe other
people like us are doing.
So much for towels. Cialdini has also learnt a lot from confectionery. Yes! Cites the work of New
Jersey behavioural scientist David Strohmetz, who wanted to see how restaurant patrons
would respond to a ridiculously small favour from their food server, in the form of an after-
dinner chocolate for each diner. The secret, it seems, is in how you give the chocolate. When
the chocolates arrived in a heap with the bill, tips went up a miserly
3% compared to when no chocolate was given. But when the chocolates were dropped
individually in front of each diner, tips went up 14%. The scientific breakthrough, though, came
when the waitress gave each diner one chocolate, headed away from the table then doubled
back to give them one more each, as if such generosity had only just occurred to her. Tips
went up 23%. This is “reciprocity” in action: we want to return favours done to us, often
without bothering to calculate the relative value of what is being received and given.
Geeling Ng, operations manager at Auckland’s Soul Bar, says she’s never heard of Kiwi waiting
staff using such a cynical trick, not least because New Zealand tipping culture is so different
from that of the US: “If you did that in New Zealand, as diners were leaving they’d say ‘can we
have some more?” ‘ But she certainly understands the general principle of reciprocity. The
way to a diner’s heart is “to give them something they’re not expecting in the way of service.
It might be something as small as leaving a mint on their plate, or it might be remembering
that last time they were in they wanted their water with no ice and no lemon. “In America it
would translate in to an instant tip. In New Zealand it translates into a huge smile and thank
you.” And no doubt, return visits.
THE FIVE PRINCIPLES OF PERSUASION
Reciprocity: People want to give back to those who have given to them. The trick here is to get
in first. That’s why charities put a crummy pen inside a mailout, and why smiling women in
supermarkets hand out dollops of free food. Scarcity: People want more of things they can
have less of. Advertisers ruthlessly exploit scarcity (“limit four per customer”, “sale must end
soon”), and Cialdini suggests parents do too: “Kids want things that are less available, so say
‘this is an unusual opportunity; you can only have this for a certain time’.”
Authority: We trust people who know what they’re talking about. So inform people honestly
of your credentials before you set out to influence them. “You’d be surprised how many
people fail to do that,” says Cialdini. “They feel it’s impolite to talk about their expertise.” In
one study, therapists whose patients wouldn’t do their exercises were advised to display
their qualification certificates prominently. They did, and experienced an immediate leap in
patient compliance.
H
Commitment/consistency: We want to act in a way that is consistent with the commitments
we have already made. Exploit this to get a higher sign-up rate when soliciting charitable
donations. First ask workmates if they think they will sponsor you on your egg-and-spoon
marathon. Later, return with the sponsorship form to those who said yes and remind them of
their earlier commitment.
Linking: We say yes more often to people we like. Obvious enough, but reasons for “linking”
can be weird. In one study, people were sent survey forms and asked to return them to a
named researcher. When the researcher gave a fake name resembling that of the subject (eg,
Cynthia Johnson is sent a survey by “Cindy Johansen”), surveys were twice as likely to be
completed. We favour people who resemble us, even if the resemblance is as minor as the
sound of their name.
J
Social proof: We decide what to do by looking around to see what others just like us are doing.
Useful for parents, says Cialdini. “Find groups of children who are behaving in a way that you
would like your child to, because the child looks to the side, rather than at you.” More
perniciously, social proof is the force underpinning the competitive materialism of “keeping up
with the Joneses”
Questions 28-31
Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.
28. The main purpose of Cialdini’s research of writing is to
A. explain the reason way researcher should investigate in person
B. explore the secret that why some people become the famous sales person
C. help people to sale products
D. prove maybe there is a science in the psychology of persuasion
29. Which of statement is CORRECT according to Cialdini’s research methodology
A. he checked data in a lot of latest books
B. he conducted this experiment in laboratory
C. he interviewed and contract with many sales people
D. he made lot phone calls collecting what he wants to know
30. Which of the following is CORRECT according to towel experiment in the passage?
A. Different hotel guests act in a different response
B. Most guests act by idea of environment preservation
C. more customers tend to cooperate as the message requires than simply act
environmentally
D. people tend to follow the hotel’s original message more
31. Which of the following is CORRECT according to the candy shop experiment in the
passage?
A. Presenting way affects diner’s tips
B. Regular customer gives tips more than irregulars
C. People give tips only when offered chocolate
D. Chocolate with bill got higher tips
Questions 32-35
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 3. In
boxes 32-35 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement is true
FALSE if the statement is false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage
32. Robert Cialdini experienced “principles of influence” himself in realistic life.
33. Principle of persuasion has different types in different countries.
34. In New Zealand, people tend to give tips to attendants after being served a
chocolate.
35. Elder generation of New Zealand is easily attracted by extra service of restaurants by
principle of reciprocity.
Questions 36-40
Use the information in the passage to match the category (listed A-E) with correct
description below.
Write the appropriate letters A-E in boxes 36-40 on answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once.
1. Reciprocity of scarcity
2. Authority
3. previous comment
4. Linking
36 Some expert may reveal qualification in front of clients.
37 Parents tend to say something that other kids are doing the same.
38 Advertisers ruthlessly exploit the limitation of chances.
39 Use a familiar name in a survey.
40 Ask colleagues to offer a helping hand
