FURTHER COMPREHENSION AND PRECIS PIECES

Transcription

1 FURTHER COMPREHENSION AND PRECIS PIECES (4) Code (222) By Dr. Ghada Abdel Kader & Dr. Sherine El Shoura 2010/2011 PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

2 FURTHER COMPREHENSION AND PRECIS PIECES ١ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

3 CONTENTS PAGE Introduction 3 1 Aeroplanes 7 2 The Best Age to be The Hero 15 4 A Day in London 18 5 Escape 22 6 Beware of the Bull An Ideal Holiday 30 8 National Heroes 34 9 Trees Radar 41 II The Underground in London Taxation Ships Sports and Games The Value of Education Travelling Cheaply The Value of Fear Women's Rights A Wet Afternoon Beginnings of Government in Europe A Quiet Holiday Freedom 88 ٢ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

4 23 A Lucky Escape Equal Pay for Equal Work Amusements My Hobby Memory Public Spirit Money 120 ٣ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

5 INTRODUCTION This book contains thirty pieces, most of them of a factual nature, which have been specially written for overseas students. The vocabulary, with a few exceptions, is that of A General Service List of English Words (WEST, Longmans), and the authors have tried to use each word only in ways which are given in this "List". In the choice of structures, the aim has been to avoid the rarer ones and to give as much practice as possible of commoner ones. The value of comprehension work in learning a foreign language is now widely recognized. In countries where a reading knowledge of English is the main aim, the most important thing is to train students to read the language rapidly with good comprehension. This cannot be done suddenly. Good foundations have first to be laid by using a carefully graded course. Then an intensive course of reading for speed and comprehension can be started, using texts which are still written within controlled English. Finally, full English can be used in a similar fashion. This book, like my previous one (Comprehension & Précis Pieces for Overseas Students, ٤ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

6 Longmans), is intended to help in the second step by providing texts written within limits which should be reached somewhere about the end of the Fourth Year of study. This book is rather more advanced than Comprehension & Précis Pieces, especially in thought content. It is not necessary to use all the questions provided in the book, nor to use all the questions on one piece at the same time. Some of the questions have deliberately been made more difficult than others on the same piece (the more difficult ones are marked ADV., for Advanced). Such questions may be left until later in the year. Some of them ask for a personal opinion instead of merely requiring the student to show that he understands what the writer has said. If the maximum benefit is to be obtained from this book, the instructions which head each question must be carefully followed, and failure to observe them must be penalised by the teacher. In the vocabulary questions, for instance, the words "of similar meaning to that in the context" are used. This means that the student must show that he knows the meaning in which the ٥ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

7 word is used in the piece, not 'merely one meaning that might be shown opposite it in a dictionary. Where a question requires one complete sentence for the answer, the teacher should insist that the sentence makes complete sense when taken by itself and that it shows what question it is an answer to. For instance, if the question is, "Why did Mr. Smith arrive late?", the answer should not be, "Because he missed his train", or "He did this because he missed his train", but "Mr. Smith arrived late because he missed his train". The teacher should also insist on only one sentence being in fact used, and he should make sure that only the information asked for in the question is given in the answer. Marks should be taken off for any extra information, even if it is correct. In the answers to these questions, it is often necessary to rearrange material to be found in the piece, so that the question can be answered clearly. Where a question requires a longer answer, and a limit is set to the number of words to be used, it is once more essential to make sure that the students give all the information asked for in the question and nothing more. The teacher should insist on the limit being strictly adhered to, as this is part of the exercise. ٦ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

8 It should not be thought that all the opinions expressed in the pieces are those of the authors of this book. The pieces have been written primarily with a linguistic aim, and a number of them are intended to test ability to follow argumentative writing, whether one happens to agree with the writer's opinion or not. Teachers may find certain of these pieces useful as a basis for discussion or debate. The approximate number of words in each piece is given at the end of it. For précis work, a piece should be reduced to within a third of the number of words it contains. ٧ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

9 I AEROPLANES Man's natural home is the land, but many thousands of years ago he learnt how to travel on the sea-in fact boats are older than anything built for land transport. Travel on the sea was not a very difficult problem, * since wood, which can be found in most places near the sea, floats easily on water. But travel through the air was quite a different matter, since men knew of nothing which could at the same time float in the air and carry a man's weight. For centuries, therefore, flying remained only a dream. * In Ancient Greek times, there is the story of two men who escaped from an island by sticking wings made of feathers on to themselves with wax. (Unfortunately, we are told, one of them flew too near the sun, and the wax melted, so that he fell to his death in the sea.) Then we have the plans of Leonardo da Vinci, the Renaissance Italian artist and engineer, as a further example of Man's interest in flying. But it was not until rather recent times that the great dream became a fact. ٨ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

10 First, man made use of the fact that hot air rises to make a light balloon carry people up a short distance above the ground. Then gases lighter than air were used in place of hot air, and in the war between France and Prussia a balloon was used by a Frenchman to fly out of Paris when the Prussians were all round it. But balloons had the disadvantage of having to go wherever the wind blew them, so that one never knew where they would come down. It was not until the petrol engine was invented that this difficulty could be overcome. During the war, early. aeroplanes, made of wood and canvas and armed with an ordinary machine-gun each, were used by both sides. Great progress was made in knowledge about flying as a result of the needs of the war, so that the years between 1918 and the beginning of the Second World War in ] 939 saw an extraordinary development of aeroplanes, which increased greatly in size, strength, speed and safety. For thousands of years man dreamt what seemed impossible dreams about flying; and then suddenly, in the short space of fifty years, aeroplanes were invented and developed into one of the most important means of transport* and instruments of war, ٩ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

11 without which the atom-bomb might never have been thought of. (About 410 words.) QUESTIONS I. In the piece, five words are printed in italic. They are listed below and opposite each are three words or phrases. Only one of these gives the correct meaning as the word is used in the piece. Choose this word and write it down. (a) natural (b) floats (c) fell (d) lighter (e) progress wild, country, usual rises, remains on top, swims dropped, came, met less dark, less heavy, burning more easily superiority, advance, expedition 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: a very difficult problem remained only a dream one of the most important means of transport ١٠ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

12 3 Answer the following questions using short-form answers wherever possible. (a) Why did one of the Greeks who were trying to fly fall into the sea? (b) Who was Leonardo da Vinci? (c) What was a balloon used for during the war between France and Prussia in 1870? (d) What were the early planes made of? 4. Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) Why was it not difficult for men to be able to travel on the sea? (b) Why was it hard to discover how to travel through the air? (c) What was the disadvantage of flying in a balloon? (d) What reasons does the author give for the extraordinary development of aeroplanes between 1918 and 1939? ١١ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

13 2 THE BEST AGE TO BE How often one hears children wishing they were grown up, and old people wishing they were young again. Each age has its pleasures and its pains, and the happiest person is the one who enjoys what each age gives him without wasting his time in useless regrets. Childhood is a time when there are few responsibilities to make life difficult. If a child has good parents, he is fed, looked after and loved, whatever he may do. It is improbable* that he will ever again in his life be given so much without having to do anything in return. In addition, life is always presenting new things to the child-things that have lost their interest for older people because they are too well-known. A child finds pleasure in playing in the rain, or in the snow. His first visit to the seaside is a marvellous adventure. But a child has his pains: he is not so free to do as he wishes as he thinks older people are; he is continually being told not to do things, or being punished for what he has done wrong. His life is therefore not perfectly happy. ١٢ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

14 When the young man starts to earn his own living, he becomes free from the discipline of school and parents; but at the same time he is forced to accept responsibilities. He can no longer expect others to pay for his food, his clothes, and his room, but has to work if he wants to live comfortably. If he spends most of his time playing about in the way that he used to as a child, he will go hungry. And if he breaks the laws of society as he used to break the laws of his parents, he may go to prison. If, however, he works hard, keeps out of trouble and has good health, he can have the great happiness of seeing himself make steady progress in his Job and of building up for himself his own position in society.* Old age ago always been thought of as the worst age to.be; but It IS not necessary for the old to be unhappy. With old age should come wisdom and the ability to help others with advice wisely given. The old can have the Joy of seeing their children making progress in life; they can watch their grandchildren growing up around them; and, perhaps best of all, they can, if their life has been a useful one, feel the happiness of having come through the battle of life* safely and of having reached a time when they can he back and rest, leaving others to continue the fight. ١٣ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

15 (About 350 words.) QUESTIONS I. The following words and phrases are printed above in italic. Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the passage. useless, responsibilities, adventure, discipline, playing about, wisdom, 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: it is improbable building up for himself his own position in society the battle of life 3 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) What kind of person is the happiest according to the author? (b) What things are mentioned that the child enjoys very much? (c) What may happen if the young man breaks the law? ١٤ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

16 (d) What are the pleasures of old people? 4. (ADV.) There are four paragraphs in this piece. Write down in a few words what each one IS about. ١٥ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

17 3 THE HERO "Fire! Fire I" What terrible words to hear when one wakes up in a strange house in the middle of the night! It was a large, old, wooden house-the sort that burns. beautifully-and my room was on the top floor. I jumped out of bed, * opened the door and stepped out into the passage. It was full of thick smoke. I began to run, but as I was still only half-awake, instead of going towards the stairs I went in the opposite direction. The smoke grew thicker and I could see flames all around. * The floor became hot under my bare feet. I found an open door and ran into a room to get to the window.* But before I could reach it, one of my feet caught in something soft and I fell down. The thing I had fallen over felt like a bundle of clothes, and I picked it up to protect my face from the smoke and heat. Just then the floor gave way under me and I crashed to the floor below with pieces of burning wood all around me. I saw a flaming doorway in front, put the bundle over my face and ran. My feet burned me terribly, but I got through. As I ١٦ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

18 reached the cold air outside, my bundle of clothes gave a thin cry. I nearly dropped it in my surprise. Then I saw a crowd gathered in the street. A woman in a night-dress and a borrowed man's coat screamed as she saw me and came running madly. "My baby! My baby!" she cried. The crowd cheered wildly as she took the smoke-blackened bundle out of my arms. I had some difficulty in recognizing her. She was the Mayor's wife, and I had saved her baby. I was a hero! (About 300 words.) QUESTIONS I. The following words and phrases are printed above in italic. Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the passage. beautifully, protect, gave way, got through, gathered, recognizing. 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: jumped out of bed I could see flames all around to get to the window ١٧ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

19 3 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) Why was it so terrible on this occasion to hear the cry of "Fire"? (b) Why did the writer not run straight to the stairs? (c) For what reason did he pick up the bundle he had fallen over? (d) Why did the crowd gathered in the street cheer when the writer came out? (e) Why was it difficult for him to recognize the mother of the baby? 4 Explain, in your own words, exactly how the writer escaped from his room. Be sure not to miss anything out. Do not use more than 80 words. ١٨ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

20 4 A DAY IN LONDON This morning the sun was shining, and I decided to begin seeing the sights of London. So I asked the manager of my hotel what I should see first, and he advised me to go to the Tower of London in the morning and to Westminster in the afternoon. I set off at about nine in the morning by the Underground train, and managed to get out at the right station.* I had to walk a short distance from the latter to the Tower, and found myself in a group of several other people, some of them foreigners like myself, who were also taking the opportunity of the fine weather to see something of London. We reached the entrance to the Tower, crossed a bridge and were met by a soldier in strange red and yellow clothes, with a big crown sewn on his chest, a flat black hat on his head and a long stick in his hand. I knew from books I had read that he was one of the "Beefeaters", the old soldiers dressed in clothes of long ago who guard the Tower. Our "Beefeater" took us round the Tower, and showed us the Crown jewels, which the King and Queen wear on special days; ١٩ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

21 the prisons in which famous people were kept long ago; and the places where some queens of England had their heads cut off. Listening to all these strange stories and seeing the old stones of the Tower, I could easily imagine the terrible things that had happened within those walls, and I left the Tower at lunch-time with a clearer idea of English history* than I had had before. In the afternoon I went out again, this time to see Westminster, with its bridge over the Thames, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. As I looked at these famous buildings, at the Abbey where kings and queens of England are crowned, at the tower of Big Ben, which is heard all over the world through the B.B.C., and at the Houses of Parliament, where history is made day after day,* I felt that I was at the heart of modern England, just as that morning I had been at the heart of English history when I was at the Tower. (About 380 words.) QUESTIONS I. The following words and phrases are printed above in italic. Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the passage. ٢٠ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

22 advised, set off, terrible, famous, at the heart of. 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: managed to get out at the right station with a clearer idea of English history day after day 3 Answer the following questions using short-form answers wherever possible. (a) What was the weather like on the day described in the piece? (b) How did the author travel to the Tower of London? (c) How is Big Ben heard all over the world? (d) What buildings did the writer see in the afternoon? 4 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) What does the author tell us about the group of people with whom he went round the Tower? (b) What did the "Beefeater" show them? ٢١ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

23 (c) What helped the author to imagine the events that had taken place? 5 (ADV.) Imagine that you are spending a holiday in London. Write a short letter to your parents or a friend describing such a day as the writer had, but tell it in your own way. ٢٢ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

24 5 ESCAPE Our boat floated on, between walls of forest* too thick to allow us a view of the land we were passing through, though we knew from the map that our river must from time to time be passing through chains of hills which crossed the jungle plains. Nowhere did we find a place where we could have landed: where the jungle did not actually spread right down into the river, banks of soft mud prevented us going ashore. In any case, what would we have gained by landing? The country was full of snakes and other dangerous creatures, and the jungle so thick that one would be able to advance only slowly, cutting one's way with knives the whole way. So we stayed in the boat, hoping that when we reached the sea, a friendly fisherman would pick us up* and take us to civilization. We lived on fish, caught with a home-made net of string (we had no hooks), and any fruit and nuts we could pick up out of the water. As we had no fire, we had to eat everything, including the fish, raw. I had never tasted raw fish before, and I must say I did not much enjoy the experience: perhaps sea-fish which do not live in the mud are less tasteless.* After eating my ٢٣ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

25 raw fish, I lay back and dreamed of such things as fried chicken and rice, and ice-cream. In the never-ending damp heat of the jungle, ice-cream was a particularly frequent dream. As for water, there was a choice: we could drink the muddy river water, or die of thirst. We drank the water. Me-r who have just escaped what had appeared to be certain death lose all worries about such small things as diseases caused by dirty water. In fact, none of us suffered from any illness as a result. One day we passed another village, but fortunately nobody saw us. We did not wish to risk being taken prisoners a second time: we might not be so lucky as to escape* in a stolen boat again. (About 350 words.) QUESTIONS I. The following words are printed above in italic. Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the passage. chains, landing, experience, frequent, escaped, risk. ٢٤ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

26 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: walls of forest pick us up less tasteless we might not be so lucky as to escape 3 Answer the following questions using short-form answers wherever possible. (a) Why could the people in the boat not see the land they were passing through? (b) What did they live on? (c) Did any of them become ill through drinking the river water? (d) How had they obtained their boat? 4 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) Why were the people in the boat unable to land? (b) What did the writer often dream of? ٢٥ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

27 (c) Why did they drink the dirty river water? (d) What did they fear as they passed another village? 5 (ADV.) Explain, as clearly as you can, how these people came to be in the boat. Do not use more than 60 words. It is not necessary to make up facts: you are told sufficient in the piece. ٢٦ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

28 6 BEWARE OF THE BULL A friend and I had arranged to spend a whole Sunday taking a long walk in the country. We set off on an early train, each carrying a heavy bag filled with sandwiches, cakes, fruit and bottles of lemonade. I wondered how two people would be able to finish it all. Soon we had left behind the smoky air of the city and had reached the country station where our walk was to begin. We were lucky, because the sun was shining and there was a gentle breeze to make it just right for walking.* We decided to go on a walk called the Four Mile Square: it has four equal sides, each about four miles in length and on a map looks like a rough square. It is famous because each side passes through a different kind of country. We started off in high spirits along the first side, which followed a river, planning to have a swim and our first meal before we left it. Before long, we came to a gate near which ٢٧ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

29 there was a notice "Beware of the Bull". We were very annoyed. Our path ran through this field, and, as it was a public foot-path, the farmer had no right to put a dangerous animal in it. "Oh, but it's all right," my friend said. "The bull is tied up. Come on." I followed, because I could see for myself a strong rope tied to the ring in its nose at one end and round a large tree at the other. We felt very bold and walked nearer, waving a red handkerchief just to show that we weren't afraid. The bull began to walk towards us-and did not stop. "He seems to have a long rope."* I said, walking more quickly. The bull too was.walking more quickly. Then, at the same moment we both saw that the rope was broken, and without another word we began to run. We were half way across the field but it didn't take us long to reach the gate again. We jumped over, very much out of breath, and looked back to see the bull quietly examining a bag of food. "That was a clever trick of mine, wasn't it?" said my friend: "I dropped the food on purpose to draw away the bull's attention:' ٢٨ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

30 "No," I cried, "it was not clever! I dropped mine-accidentally. " (About 400 words.) QUESTIONS I. The following words and phrases are printed above in italic. Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the passage. set off, lucky, before long, annoyed, ran, bold, looked back, examining, accidentally. 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: just right for walking the farmer had no right he seems to have a long rope 3 Answer the following questions using short-form answers wherever possible. (a) What were their bags filled with? (b) How far would it be round the Four Mile, Square? (c) What did they do to show that they weren't afraid? (d) Which way did they run? ٢٩ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

31 4 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words 16 as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) Why does the writer say they were lucky? (b) What did the friends plan to do before they left the first side of the walk? (c) Why were they not afraid to go into the field where they could see the bull? (d) When did they start to run? 5 (ADV.) Explain the friend's trick and why he thought it was clever, and why the writer thought it was not. Do not use more than 60 words. ٣٠ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

32 7 AN IDEAL HOLIDAY Of course, what is an ideal holiday for one person may be a very unpleasant one for another. The sportsman likes a kind of holiday which his lazy friend would find worse than his daily work; while the lazy man's ideal holiday would leave the sportsman quite unsatisfied. If I were allowed to choose my own holiday, I would have no doubts*: I would go on a voyage in a modern passenger ship with a swimming bath. Even if my sportsman friend and my lazy friend came with me, they would both be happy: one would have plenty of games, swimming and dancing; the other could sit in a comfortable chair all day, looking at the sea and drinking lemonade or beer. In a ship, one can do as one likes,* when one likes. If one day I find an interesting book in the ship's library, I can spend the whole day reading it, and nobody will stop me. Perhaps the next day I shall want some exercise. Well, then I can play games with other passengers until I am hot and sweating and ready for a bath. I can go and sleep in my cabin at any time of the day or night, I can get cheap drinks ٣١ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

33 during most of the day, and I can eat as I like, choosing among a variety of foods. But what I like even more about a sea voyage is the chance to meet new and interesting people from many countries. What other kind of holiday gives us such a chance? Freed from all the duties* of life at home, we can talk, play games, swim, drink and dance with our new friends. They can tell us about their own countries, their daily lives and amusements, their hopes and their fears. And in return we can tell them all about ourselves. But perhaps the greatest pleasure of a sea holiday is coming to new ports in strange lands, and going ashore for a few hours to see strange places, eat strange foods and hear a strange language talked around us. Whenever I think of my ideal holiday, it is the picture of a mysterious foreign city that comes to my mind. (About 370 words.) ٣٢ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

34 QUESTIONS I. The following words are printed above in italic. Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the passage. ideal, worse, exercise, variety, chance, strange. 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: I would have no doubts one can do as one likes freed from all duties. 3 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) What does the writer say the sportsman would feel about the lazy man's holiday? (b) What are we told about the food and drink on a modern passenger ship? (c) What does the author discuss with his new friends? (d) What picture comes into the writer's mind when he thinks of the ideal holiday? ٣٣ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

35 4 State briefly, using not more than 90 words, the reasons the author gives for choosing to take his holiday on a modem passenger ship. ٣٤ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

36 8 NATIONAL HEROES Most nations have a hero who is remembered for his great deeds, either in saving his country from enemies, or in bringing order, by his wise rule, to a land which had previously been in disorder. An English hero of this kind is King Alfred, called "the Great" because he did both these things while he was king, at the time when England was being attacked by Danish tribes. He was a brave fighter and a great leader of men in battle so that, although he had only a small army, he was able to defeat the attackers soon after he became king. He was a great organiser," respected as the English ruler who first built ships to defend the island against enemies by sea. He was also a good man who preferred peace to war, and he encouraged learning in his kingdom by translating foreign books into English and sending them all over England. Many heroes are remembered only for their famous deeds and those which are not heroic have been forgotten. But the story most often told about Alfred is certainly not heroic. He was escaping after one of the early battles against the Danes in ٣٥ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

37 which his army had been defeated. Alone and dressed in borrowed clothes." he asked a poor man's wife for shelter in her cottage. She was baking some cakes at the fire and, as she wished to go out, she asked the stranger to stay and watch her cakes. She reminded him to turn them so that they would not burn. But the king spent the time thinking of plans to defeat the enemy and bring peace to his unfortunate people, with the result that he did not notice the cakes although he was looking at the fire. When the housewife returned she found that they were very burnt. Since she did not recognise the stranger as her king, she was very angry with him for being so careless as to allow her cakes to spoil. Yet this story, re-told to English children ever since," helps them to remember King Alfred the Great although he lived so long ago. They remember him first as the man who burnt the cakes and then as the national hero whose bravery and wisdom brought peace and honour to his native land. (About 360 words.) ٣٦ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

38 QUESTIONS I. The following words are printed above in italic. Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the passage. deeds, defeat, preferred, escaping, notice, recognise. 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece.. a great orgainser, dressed in borrowed clothes, ever since. 3 Answer the following questions using short form answers wherever possible. (a) When did King Alfred beat the Danes? (b) How had he got the clothes that he wore during his escape? (c) What did he forget to do in the cottage? (d) Why didn't the woman watch the cakes herself? 4 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as ٣٧ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

39 possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) What were the two things that caused people to call King Alfred "the Great"? (b) Why did King Alfred ask for shelter in a poor cottage? (c) Why were the cakes burnt? (d) Why did the woman not recognise Alfred as her king? 5. (ADV.) State, in your own words as far as possible, what the reader learns about the character of King Alfred from this piece. ٣٨ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

40 9 TREES Trees are useful to Man in three very important ways: they provide him with wood and other products; they give him shade; and they help to prevent drought and floods. Unfortunately, in many parts of the world, Man has not realized that the third of these services is the most important. In his eagerness to draw quick profit* from the trees, he has cut them down in large numbers, only to find that with them he has lost the best friends he had. Two thousand years ago a rich and powerful country cut down its trees to build warships, with which to gain itself an empire. It gained the empire but, without its trees, its soil became hard and poor. When the empire fell to pieces, the home country found itself faced by floods and starvation. * Even where a government realizes the importance of a plentiful supply of trees, it is difficult for it to persuade the villager to see this. The villager wants wood to cook his food with; and he can ٣٩ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

41 earn money by making charcoal or selling wood to the townsman. He is usually too lazy or too careless to plant and look after new trees. So, unless the government has a good system of control, or can educate the people, the forests slowly disappear. This does not only mean that the Villagers' sons and grandsons have fewer trees. The results are even more serious: for where there are trees their roots break the soil up-allowing the rain to sink in-and also bind the soil, thus preventing its being washed away easily; but where there are no trees, the rain falls on hard ground and flows away on the surface, causing floods and carrying away with it the rich top-soil, in which crops grow so well. When all the top-soil is gone, nothing remains but worthless desert.* (About 310 words.) QUESTIONS I. Choose SIX of the following words and give for each another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the piece: products gain disappear realized poor serious services importance worthless ٤٠ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

42 2. Explain briefly what you understand by the following phrases, marked * in the piece: to draw quick profit the country found itself faced by floods and starvation nothing remains but desert 3 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) What is the most important service of trees to man? (b) What did the country mentioned in the third paragraph gain and what did it lose, by cutting down its trees? (c) Why does a villager cut down trees? (d) What happens to land in the end after all the trees are cut down? 4. Explain clearly in your own words the effects trees have on the soil, and the result of taking them away. You should not use more than 50 words. ٤١ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

43 10 RADAR When we are travelling along in a ship or an aeroplane at night or in fog, we are much happier if we know that the captain of the ship, or the pilot of the plane, knows where rocks or mountain tops are, so that he can keep away from them. Until the Second World War, travellers could never have this feeling of safety, because there was no way of "seeing" dangers through fog and cloud. But now there is "radar", a wonderful wartime invention, which has saved the lives of many thousands, both in war and in peace. Radar is not too difficult a thing for the ordinary man in the street to understand. All of us have heard echoes: we speak in a large hall or before a wall of rock, and our voices come back to us, echoed by the hard substance which they hit, just as light is reflected by a mirror, or a ball is thrown back by the wall it has hit. Scientists know the speed at which sound travels, so they can measure the distance of a wall of rock by making a loud sound and seeing how long it takes to reach the wall and return to the place from which it started. For example, at the same ٤٢ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

44 time as the noise is made (perhaps with a car horn) a special watch, which can measure time very accurately, is started. As soon as the echo comes back, the watch is stopped, and it is found that the sound has taken 20 seconds to go and return. We know that the speed of sound is about I mile in 5 seconds. So we know that the noise of our car horn has covered 4 miles, two miles from us to the rock, and two from the rock back to us. The rock, then, must be two miles away. But sound travels too slowly and cannot go far enough to be useful over long distances or when something is moving very fast. It is therefore no use to an aeroplane, or to a ship which wants to discover a small enemy ten miles away. Now, it has been known for many years that wireless waves travel at very great speed: it takes them less than four seconds to go from the earth to the moon and back. But the difficult thing is to measure the time they take to go a certain distance. If they take less than two seconds to reach the moon, you can imagine that you would not be able to measure (with a watch or a clock) how long they take to go from a ship to the shore, or from an aeroplane to a mountain near it. Radar was made possible by the use of a thing called a "cathode-ray tube" which ٤٣ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

45 can measure millionths of a second. With this tube, we can "see" things at a great distance, and it shows us how far away they are, in which direction they lie, and what movements they are making. On the radar screen we can "see" all around us. The captain of a ship can find his way between rocks and other ships, and the soldiers guarding a town can see enemy aeroplanes hundreds of miles away, and follow them as they approach, perhaps from many different directions at once. That is radar, one of the wonders of modern science, which is making travel and trade between the nations easier and safer. (About 580 words.) QUESTIONS I. Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) If we are travelling in a plane, what does the writer say makes us much happier? (b) What examples of different kinds of echoes does the writer give? ٤٤ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

46 (c) Why cannot sound be used for finding distances from an aeroplane? (d) How did the "cathode-ray tube" make radar possible? (e) What information is radar able to give us? 2. In the example of scientists measuring the distance of a rock, explain exactly how they found it was two miles away. Do not use more than 60 words. 3. (ADV.) How can radar make "travel and trade between the nations easier and safer", as the author says it does? ٤٥ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

47 11 THE UNDERGROUND IN LONDON In a very big city, in which millions of people live and work, fast, frequent means of transport* are of the greatest importance. In London, where most people live long distances from their work, all offices, factories and schools would have to close if the buses, the trains and the Underground stopped work. Originally the London Underground had steam trains which were not very different from other English trains, except that they went along in big holes under the ground in order to keep away from the crowded city above their heads. They could get from one place to another faster under the ground than above it, because there were no buses, trams, carriages and people on foot to get in their way the whole time. Steam trains used coal, however, which filled the underground stations with terrible smoke. As a result, the old engines were taken away, and electric ones put in their place. Now the London Underground is very clean, and the electric trains make faster runs possible. As the traffic on the roads above has also become greater and greater, the time. which one saves by going ٤٦ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

48 by Underground instead of by bus has increased year after year.* Taxis are usually faster, but they are very much more expensive. At every Underground station there are maps of all the Underground lines in London, so that it is easy to see how to get to wherever one wants to go. Each station has its name written up clearly and in large letters several times, so that one can see when one comes to where one must get out. At some stations one can change to a different underground line, and in some places, such as Piccadilly, there are actually three lines crossing each other. So that there should not be accidents, * the trains on the different lines are not on the same level. To change trains, one has to go up or down some stairs to a new level. It would be tiring to have to walk up these stairs, so the stairs are made to move themselves, and all that the passengers have to do is to stand and be carried up or down to where they wish. In fact, everything is done to make the Underground fast and efficient. (About 385 words.) ٤٧ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

49 QUESTIONS I. For each of the following words write a separate sentence of your own to illustrate its meaning. originally, crowded, faster, clearly, efficient. 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: means of transport increased year after year so that there should not be accidents 3. Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) Why would all offices, factories and schools have to close if the Underground stopped working? (b) Why can these trains travel quicker than the traffic above ground? (c) Why were the original Underground stations not clean? (d) What does the writer say about travel by taxi commpared with travel by Underground? ٤٨ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

50 4 Explain what is done to make it both easy and safe for people to travel on the London Underground. You should not use more than 75 words. ٤٩ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

51 12 TAXATION Everyone knows that taxation is necessary in a modern state: without it, it would not be possible to pay the soldiers and policemen who protect us; nor the workers in government offices who look after our health, our food, our water, and all the other things that we cannot do for ourselves; nor also the ministers and members of parliament who govern the country for us. By means of taxation, we pay for things that we need just as much as we need somewhere to live and something to eat. But though everyone knows that taxation is necessary, different people have different ideas about how taxation should be arranged. Should each person have to pay a certain amount of money to the government each year? Or should there be a tax on things that people buy and sell? If the first kind of taxation is used, should everyone pay the same tax, whether he is rich or poor? If the second kind of tax is preferred, should everything be taxed equally? ٥٠ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

52 In most countries, a direct tax on persons, which is called income tax, exists. It is arranged in such a way that the poorest people pay nothing, and the percentage of tax grows greater as the taxpayer's income grows. In England, for example, the tax on the richest people goes up as high as ninety-five per cent I But countries with direct taxation nearly always have indirect taxation too. Many things imported into the country have to pay taxes or 'duties'. Of course, it is the men and women who buy these imported things in the shops who really have to pay the duties, in the form of higher prices. In some countries, too, there is a tax on things sold in the shops. If the most necessary things are taxed, a lot of money is collected, but the poor people suffer most. If unnecessary things like jewels and fur coats are taxed, less money is obtained, but the tax is fairer, as the rich pay it. Probably this last kind of indirect tax, together with a direct tax on incomes which is low for the poor and high for the rich, is the best arrangement. (About 370 words.) QUESTIONS ٥١ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

53 I. Choose SIX of the following words or phrases and give 'for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that in the context. state Should income protect arranged imported look after preferred fairer 2. Distinguish between each of the following pairs of words: (a) Soldiers and policemen; (b) ministers and members of Parliament; (c) taxes and duties. 3. Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) Who has to be paid out of the taxes? (b) How is income tax arranged? (c) Who has to pay the duties that are collected on imported goods? (d) Why is it fairer if unnecessary things are taxed? ٥٢ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

54 4. Explain the differences between direct and indirect taxes, and the effects they have on rich people and poor people. Do not use more than 50 words. ٥٣ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

55 13 SHIPS The person who can see a ship without some feeling of excitement must have very little imagination. Even the idea of leaving the solid land on which most of us were born and brought up, and going out on to the ever-moving waters must rouse in us all some feelings of strangeness. We may remember stories of terrible storms, with waves as high as mountains; and of people from ships which have sunk spending weeks in small boats hundreds of miles from land. But we have also heard of the joy of travelling over calm seas under blue skies, and of the unforgettable excitement of coming, one fine morning, to a new and beautiful land which we have seen only in pictures before. But ships are not, of course, made chiefly for pleasure: their biggest use is in carrying goods from country to country. If ships did not exist, the British Government would be quite unable* to feed the people in the British Isles. Aeroplanes are much too expensive, and there are not enough of them to feed even a small country like England. Trains cannot cross seas, and even if they could, the amount of goods they can carry ٥٤ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

56 cannot be compared with* the amount that ships can. In fact, ships can carry more goods than any other means of transport, and can do so more cheaply; but, on the other hand, they are slower than trains or aeroplanes. This slowness means that travellers who want to get somewhere in a hurry and who have not got too much luggage now usually prefer to fly rather than to go by ship. But even for passengers, ships have the advantage of being cheaper* than trains or aeroplanes, and also much more comfortable, so that if you want a restful, not too expensive voyage, the ship will suit you best. Ships have played a very important part in history by making it possible to discover more and more distant parts of our world. Columbus used a ship to discover America about 450 years ago. And even now, ships are used for exploring the Antarctic, It would, in fact, not be too much to say* that ships have for thousands of years played one of the most important parts in shaping society. (About 380 words.) ٥٥ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

57 QUESTIONS I. Choose SIX of the following words or phrases and give for each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that in the context. excitement unforgettable suit solid chiefly exploring rouse in a hurry shaping 2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in the piece: quite unable cannot be compared with have the advantage of being cheaper it would not be too much to say 3 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the information in the piece. (a) What does the writer say we must all feel at the idea of going to sea? (b) What stories may we remember of unpleasant experiiences at sea? ٥٦ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version

58 (c) What have we heard about pleasant ones? (d) What is the most important use of ships? (e) Why cannot aeroplanes be used to carryall the goods from abroad that England needs? (f) Who prefers to fly rather than go by sea? (g) How have ships played an important part in history? 4- (ADV.) In one paragraph describe the advantages of sea travel that the writer gives compared with other means. In the next paragraph, describe the disadvantages. In a third paragraph, say which method you would prefer and why. ٥٧ PDF created with pdffactory Pro trial version