Mock Use of English and Reading 5

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Use of English Reading Mock Part 1

Use of English Reading Mock Part 2

Use of English Reading Mock Part 3

Use of English Reading Mock Part 4

Use of English Reading Mock Part 5

Use of English Reading Mock Part 6

Use of English Reading Mock Part 8

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Use of English Reading Mock Part 1

Part 1

For questions 1-8, read the text below and decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap. There is an example at the beginning (0). Mark your answers on the separate answer sheet.

Dressing for success

Whether you like it or not, when you go for a job interview your personal appearance will be judged as an (0) of who you are. Just from looking at you, the interviewer will start: 1 an opinion about your capabilities,

your attitude to work and how well you might, 2 their organisation.

The right image is one that helps the interviewer 3 you as one of their

team and 4 them that you could represent their company.

So, find: out about the company dress code prior to the interview, or see how people are dressed on their corporate website. However, even if you 5 the image right,

it may not 6 be remarked on.

The interviewer will just sense that you 'look right', and feel 7 to being convinced, that you are the right person for the job.

But if you get it wrong, it can be very difficult to 8 the negative impression you may already have made.

1 A shaping

B making

C creating

D forming

2 A put up with

B settle down to

C tit in with

D live up to

3 A visualise

B reflect

C observe

D foresee

4 A reassures

B clarifies

C encourages

D supports

5 A put

B get

C hit

D set

6 A significantly

B necessarily

C appropriately

D strictly

7 A open

B free

C alert

D aware

8 A overtake

B overthrow

C overdo

D overcome

Use of English Reading Mock Part 2

Part 2

For questions 9-16, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each gap. Use only one word in each gap. There is an example at the beginning (0). Write your answers IN CAPITAL LETTERS on the separate answer sheet.

How technology is helping people to talk

The term 'eye-gaze technology may (0) ... mean much to most people, but It can be life-: changing for anyone suffering from a severe speech problem. 9 been invited to try one such hi-tech communication aid,

I find 10 sitting staring at a computer screen.

As a journalist, this is nothing new for me 11 for the fact that this screen features a red dot. which tracks the movement of my eyes.

I start by looking at a letter from an on-screen keyboard. However, I could, 12 I wanted to,

select alternative screens 13 up of vocabulary and expressions, which, for experienced users,

would 14 doubt speed things up. The letter or word I've selected pops up at the top: of the screen, and slowly I build up my message. More speed would be good as this isn't a fast

way to communicate, 15 with the aid of predictive text.

After 16 seems like a long.
time, my phrase 'this is an amazing machine' is complete. I stare at the phrase and it comes back to me in a synthesised voice.

Use of English Reading Mock Part 3

Part 3

or questions 17-24. read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of some of the s to form a word that fits in the gap In the same line. There is an example at the beginning (0).
rte your answers IN CAPITAL LETTERS on the separate answer sheet

Two sleeps per night

Sometimes we wake up in the middle of the night and try (0) ... (DESPAIR) hard to get back to sleep, but instead we spend a really 17 (COMFORT) night tossing and turning until morning.

This situation could be 18 (SYMPTOM) of a stressful week. but it could also be because of a sleep pattern we have inherited.

Research shows that our ancestors, rather than enjoying an 19 (INTERRUPT) period of sleep at night, had two sleeps broken up by some time awake.

The eight-hours-a-night pattern that has become almost 20 (ESSENCE) to modern humans

has only been 21 (CUSTOM) in industrialised countries since the 19th century.

Then 22 (AFFORD) electricity was introduced, which resulted in a division between

night and day that became 23 (PROGRESS) blurred. What had until then been daytime activities could now be enjoyed after darkness, and as a result, we went to bed later.

We were therefore more tired, and this 24 (ABLE) us to sleep through the night. However, scientists believe that, ubconsciously, some people may still follow the old patterns and have a lengthy period of wakefulness during the night.

Use of English Reading Mock Part 4

Part 4

For questions 2540, complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the Orel sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between three and six words, including the word given. Here is an example (0). Write only the missing words IN CAPITAL LETTERS on the separate answer sheet.

25 Do you mind if John joins us for the meeting? TO
Do you have us for the meeting?

26 Dan abandoned his studies at university because he was III. RESULTED
Dan's his studies at university.

27 As soon as the tennis players went onto the court, it started raining. HAD
No onto the court than It started raining.

28 'We'll have to postpone the meeting until next week, as a lot of people are on leave,' the manager said. OFF
The manager said the meeting until the following week, as a lot of people were on leave.

29 As visibility was getting worse and worse, Bob and Jane had to cut short their sailing trip. BUT
As visibility was getting worse and worse, Bob and Jane had cut short their sailing tri

30 Please tick this box if you don't want us to inform you about future events. RATHER
Please tick this box if you sent any information about future events.

Use of English Reading Mock Part 5

Part 5

You are going to read an article about travel. For questions 31-36, choose the answer (A, B. C or 1:14 which you think fits best according to the text. Mark your answers on the separate answer sheet.

SEEING THE WORLD

The taxi is late, and I get nervous. Once at the airport I'm thrown into the harsh lights of Terminal: B, running with my suitcase so I can wait in a long security line. My belt buckle sets off the meta4 detector, and my aftershave is confiscated. By now you can probably guess the punchline of this very! banal story: my flight has been cancelled due to bad weather. I will be stuck here for the next 21E1 minutes. my only consolation a plastic cup of coffee and the predictably tasteless sandwich. Then It will miss my connecting flight and wait, in a different city, with the same menu, for another plane. not the flying I mind - I will always be awed by the physics that gets a fat metal bird into the sky. The rest of the journey, however, will inevitably feel like a depressing lesson In the ills of modernity, fro the pre-dawn X-ray screening to the sad airport malls peddling rubbishy souvenirs. So why do we travel? Sometimes it's because we have to, but most travel isn't non-negotiablei (In recent years only 30% of trips over 100 kilometres were made for business.) Instead we travel] because we want to. because the annoyances are outweighed by the thrill of being someplace new.' Because we need a vacation, Because work Is stressful. Because home is boring. Because New york! is New York. Travel, in other words, is a basic human desire. We're a migratory species.

But here's my question: is this collective urge to travel still a worthwhile compulsion? Or is it like the taste for fatty; foods: one of those instincts we should have lost a long time ago? iI The good news is that pleasure is not the only advantage of travel. In fact, several new sciencel papers suggest that travel is essential for effective thinking. Of course it's not enough simply to jump] on a plane: if we want to experience the psychological benefits of travel, then we have to rethink] why we do it. An Englishman, for example, might take a short break in Paris so as not to think about] those troubles he's leaving behind. But here's the twist that tourist is actually most likely to solve! his stubbornest problems while sitting in a stylish Parisian cafe. Our thoughts are constrained by th familiar, and with a near-infinite number of things to think about, our brain spends most of its tim choosing what not to notice. As a result, imagination is traded for efficiency. Putting some spec between you and home, however, makes it easier to see something new in the old; the mundane is grasped from a slightly more abstract perspective. So while contemplating some delicious French pastry, we should be mulling over those domestic riddles we Just can't solve.

And that isn't the only psychological perk of travel. Recently researchers at business schools ii$ France and the USA have reported that students who had Ilved abroad were 20% more likely to solve a classic experiment, known as the Candle Task, than students who had never lived outside thee] birth country. In this task, subjects are given a candle, a cardboard box containing drawing pins, and some matches. They are told to attach the candle to a piece of corkboard on a wall so that it can burn property and no wax drips on to the floor. Nearly 90% of people either try to pin the candle directly to the board, or melt it with the matches so that it sticks to the board. Neither strategy works. Only a slim' minority of subjects come up with the solution, which involves attaching the candle to the cardboard box with wax and then pinning the box to the board. According to the researchers, the experienced of another culture gives us the open-mindedness to realise that a single thing can have multiple? meanings. Consider the act of leaving food on the plate: in some Oriental countries this is seen as at compliment, a signal that the host has provided enough to eat. But in many Western counties the:., same act is a subtle insult. an indication that the food wasn't good enough to finish. Such cultural contrasts mean that seasoned travellers are alive to ambiguity, and more willing to accept that there are different (and equally valid) ways of interpreting the world.

31 What is the writer's attitude towards flying in the first paragraph?

He is frustrated by the inefficiencies of air travel.

He is surprised by the poor standard of airport facilities.

He is anxious for the flight to be over as soon as possible.

He is resigned to the tediousness of the airport experience.

32 The writer mentions business trips to make the point that

relatively few people travel out of necessity.

relatively few journeys are taken for pleasure.

the majority of people travel without a valid reason to do so.

the majority of journeys are made for the same few reasons.

33 What does the writer recommend in the third paragraph?

having a holiday so as to take a rest from everyday worries

going as far away as possible rather than spending holidays at home

taking full advantage of the cultural experiences that travel can offer

travelling in order to gain original insights into familiar situations

34 According to the writer, recent 'Candle Task' results suggest a link between living abroad and

practical skills

mental flexibility

determination to solve problems

confidence in one's own resourcefulness

35 The writer mentions leaving food on one's plate in order to highlight

the difficulties travellers face when interpreting cultural conventions.

the importance of behaving naturally in different contexts.

the wide variation in levels of politeness across the world.

the effect of exposure to foreign influences.

36 What would be a suitable subtitle for this article?

How to understand the mentality of different cultures

How to overcome the more inconvenient aspects of travel

How distance and difference can boost our creative thinking

How other places can change the way we perceive ourselves

Use of English Reading Mock Part 6

Part 6

You are going to read four reviews of a book entitled Why Translation Matters. For guestiond 37-40, choose from the reviews A-D. The reviews may be chosen more than once. Mark your answers on the separate answer sheet.

Why translation matters

Four reviewers give their opinions on translator Edith Grossman's book about her profession.

A In Why Translation Matters, Grossman discusses a number of complex issues. Is a translation merely) a reflection in a clouded looking glass that will never mirror the true original? Is a translator merely aj sophisticated tool, a human machine soon to be replaced by a computer program? She answers thesel and many other questions with a lyrical eloquence that Is graceful and Inspiring. In the process, we are) also shown detailed examples of her solutions to knotty problems; here we see her joy in discoveryi and doing, the best reasons for pursuing a true vocation. Such inner drive is indtspensable. becausel as she rightly says, 'Translation is a strange craft, generally appreciated by writers. undervalued byi. publishers, trivialised by the academic world, and practically ignored by reviewers.' And yet, choral literature exists, translation exists and it is a good thing that these issues should be explored.

B Books by translators are few and far between. This short book was originally given as a series of three] university lectures, and the ploys of a lecturer let down the writer: rhetorical questions, academic. jargon. Grossman's best thinking about translation, and her best defence of translation, will bet reflected in her translations themselves. It is on the rare occasions that she focuses on overcoming Mel challenges that her craft throws up that the book becomes more pleasurable to read. She vents hed frustration on the reader, and some of this is certainly justified: translators ask for very little - simply to be read, included in the cultural debate, understood - yet almost invariably fail to be given the crediti they are due. Translation, for all that it seems a technical matter, Is actually anything but. It's a model of reading so sympathetic and creative that the outcome is wholly original.

C There is a theory that all language is a form of translation, that we speak in order to translate the3 unknown into the known, the non-verbal Into the verbal. Edith Grossman draws upon this theory in her book, rightly suggesting, I believe, that the translation of a literary work from one language into another involves much the same creative process as that which provoked the originating author. and the end product therefore stands alone. After a rich career, she is eminently well-qualified to speak on behalf of literary translators everywhere. Nevertheless, the role of the translator is undoubtedly one of the most unappreciated and unacknowledged in the world of literature. Grossman's beautifully crafted book draws attention to this and may help to address the problem. It is accessible to the layperson and should be required reading on all university literature courses.

D Why Translation Matters by Edith Grossman is based on three lectures she gave at a university in the US. As an expert in her field, she has won several awards and would seem to have every reason to feel secure. if not serene. It seems inappropriate, therefore, that she should devote entire pages to criticising publishers and reviewers, in particular, for failing to give translators the respect they deserve. ; However small-minded these comments may look on the page. they do form a significant part of 1 Grossman's overall argument. which is that literature and translation are 'absolutely inseparable' and thus the translator is engaged in the very same activity as her author. and Is, indeed, a writer herself. The translator's version of the text, she maintains, is to be considered an original, too. Grossman's approach is non-theoretical, as she ranges discursively over the usual concerns raised by (chiefly literary) translation in this ultimately charming little book.

Which reviewer
expresses a different opinion from reviewer A regarding how well the book is written? 37

shares reviewer B's view on whether a translation can be considered to be a new work in its own right? 38

has a different view from the others on Grossman's complaints about attitudes to translators? 39

shares reviewer A's view of the way Grossman describes how she deals with difficulties when translating books? 40

Use of English Reading Mock Part 8

Part 8

You are going to read an article in which five people talk about careers in archaeology. For questions 47-56. choose from the books (A-E). Mark your answers on the separate answer sheet.

Careers in archaeology

A Jack Stone from The Archaeological Association e visibility of archaeology on TV and in the press as increased enormously in recent years. Whether his makes it an attractive career, given an economic limate in which young people understandably avow jobs with good salaries - not common in aeology - is debatable, but generally, its had a ive impact. Many archaeologists are hired by mall companies to work on excavations; these jobs e often interesting but don't tend to last more than few months at a time. Then, there are those who rk for government organisations. caring for the istorical environment. These jobs are more stable, ut there are fewer of them. Some people stay on at niversity doing research and teaching, and others o museum work. In my experience, most people go to archaeology with their feet firmly on the ground.

B Dr Paul Simpson, university lecturer 's probably what they see on film and Tv, but many pie assume that archaeology equals digging ig holes. While this is obviously an aspect of ur work, the bulk of what we do nowadays is ab-based. Few university programmes cover the rOund archaeology does Spanning sciences and umanities, it requires all sorts of skills, and in my epartment at least, we teach everything from human olution to the industrial revolution. The number of le wanting to study archaeology is regrettably I - tiny relative to history, for example. Potential salaries party explain this, but it's also down to misguided school teachers saying, 'Why not choose a safe subject like business?' Perhaps they forget it's perfectly feasible to study archaeology and then -ucceed in an unrelated career. Having said this. half the final-year students in my department stay in archaeology, and tend to be obsessive about it. There's something about telling stories based on evidence you've discovered - and knowing that it You hadn't discovered it. no-one would have - that cannot be experienced in any other field.

C Victoria Walker, postgraduate student I'm researching links between Roman civilisation • and Ireland 2.000 years ago, which I realise non-archaeologists might think somewhat obscure. I have a fantastic bunch of academics and students backing me up and there's a tremendous sense of being in it together. It's a challenging discipline, and one that because of the fieldwork particularly suits a hands-on person like me. Archaeology's wonderful even if you end up doing a completely different kind of job. With hindsight, I now see that the undergraduate course is as much about learning how to do things that can be used in other areas of life, like how to gather and interpret evidence. as it is about archaeology itself.

D Mark Anderson, field archaeologist My company excavates sites before big construction projects like roads and shopping centres get started on them. Some remains date back many thousands of years, others a couple of centuries; they might be castles, temples, small houses or even just ancient farmland. Over the years. however, I've worked extensively on wetland sites like marshes and river estuaries. This means I have unusual expertise and am in demand for digs in such locations. Much of our work is practical, but we also use imagination to figure out what the tiny fragments we dig up might mean. This, I feel, is something historians, with their access to masses of evidence, tend to miss out on. People say archaeology is a luxury - today's world has far greater problems to solve than investigating how ancient people lived. It's hard to argue with this, but our troubled globe is run by people seeking quick. short-term solutions, and a deeper, longer-term understanding of humanity's history, derived from archaeology. would surely enhance their thinking.

E Tina Cray, museum manager Even at university I was always more interested in the theoretical side of things than digging, but on graduating I assumed, like many others in my position, that excavation is what archaeology's all about. It took me a while to realise there were other paths to explore. I'm now part of a team that runs museums and heritage sites, and we provide a valuable, if underestimated, service to the community. There's the key role museums play in ensuring that knowledge of the past doesn't remain the preserve of a privileged minority. My team has also overseen an impressive rise in the number of tourists visiting museums and monuments, and this has stimulated local businesses and created jobs.

Which person
suggests that archaeology has a unique appeal? 47

describes how mutually supportive archaeologists tend to be? 48

criticises people who advise against studying archaeology? 49

points out the economic contribution that archaeology can make? 50

welcomes the media profile that archaeology now has? 51

points out that jobs in archaeology can often be short-term? 52

emphasises the commitment some archaeology students feel towards their subject? 53

mentions the value of an archaeological perspective on wider issues? 54

believes archaeologists often overlook job opportunities that exist for them? 55

mentions the appeal of studying a subject with a practical side to it? 56

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Part 7

You are going to read part of a review of a book about grass. Six paragraphs have been removed from the article. Choose from the paragraphs A-G the one which fits each gap (41-46). There is one extra paragraph which you do not need to use. Mark your answers on the separate answer sheet.

A But it's not just institutions that incur Harvey's anger, the phasing out of grass has also compounded the greenhouse effect. Grasslands take carbon from the atmosphere and lock it safely in the soil. They are far more effective at doing this than tropical rain forests, and Harvey contends that a return to grass-based husbandry would crucially alleviate global warming.

B Its presence is a result of the clearing of forest land to make way for crops and pasture. While many deplore this development it is the end result of the need to supply cheap food.

C With this system, cattle graze on fields consisting just of grass, known as pastures. After four years these are ploughed up and planted with food crops. At the same time, other fields on the same farm will now have been exhausted by food production, so they are returned to pasture again.

D The result is depressingly predictable - all these substances damage the soil and destroy its wildlife, from micro-organisms up to earthworms, insects and small mammals. The landscape falls silent. E Farming of this kind is now virtually obsolete in the country, largely because farm subsidies encourage farmers to abandon crop rotation based on grass and to rely on chemical fertilisers instead.

F At first, yields of these crops were huge, drawing on organic matter in the topsoil accumulated over centuries. But in the next 30 years, they fell by three-quarters. Then came the 'high' winds of the 1930s, when the degraded soil literally blew away. G This particular specks spread with frightening speed in the 20th century By 1984, the total area of species-rich grassland remaining in the country was just 3% of what it had been in 1930, and the destruction is continuing to the present day.

The Story of Grass

John Carey reviews The Forgiveness of Nature; The Story of Grass by Graham Harvey

There is no doubting the radical importance of Graham Ham?, message_ FIi cart is that grass is unique among the wodds plants not just in its arctic-to-equator adaptability and species diversity but in the power of its elaborate root system to enrich soil with useful =bon compounds. The method of land management that turns this to advantage it mixed crop and cattle fanning wing crop rotation.

This traditional, nature-based farming practice received a boost in the 17th century, when it was discovered that fertility was enormously increased if the pasture incorporated clover flowers; since clover has the ability to convert nitrogen front the atmosphere into soluble soil nitrates. In the century and a half to 1850, grain yields and animal products doubled because of the clover revolution, and British farming was able to feed an extra seven million people as the industrial revolution spurred population growth.

Then these incentives were introduced in the last quarter of the 20th century, farmers scrambled to get rid of their tank., plough up their pastures, and turn their farms into various kinds of cereal monoculture, with fields full of single crops. These need heavy applications of chemicals to maintain yields The high levels of artificial nitrogen that result make the crops susceptible to disease particularly mildew, which have to be countered with ye more chemicals in the form of fungicides.

Intensive agriculture has had a similar effect on hay meadows These used to flourish in Britain, and their mix of grasses supported the evolution of a rich diversity of animals and birds. Covering grassland with artificial fertiliser reverses this process. It allows one or two fast-growing varieties to eliminate the others, together with the wildlife they supported, producing monotonous acres of rye-grass.

in Harvey's view, British agriculture seems little more than an elaborate means of transferring money from the taxpayer to the pockets of the agrochemical industry, and laying waste the countryside in the process. The more intensive the farm, the more its owner can claim public subsidy The European Uniods common agricultural 1 policy does not escape his attention. It has, in his opinion, outlawed the traditional mixed farm, since it requires farmers to choose between intensive crop or i intensive cattle production.

Harvey mss the story of British agriculture alongside the uory of the American prairies - flat grasslands without Dees Again the hero is grass, and the villains are well-meaning Eunters with no undemanding of ecology. The earliest American settlers, in the 17th century, saw no use for the prairies and labelle them desert. In fact, although arid. they were a rids and defiant ecosystem. supporting vast herds of bison which, at their peak, equalled in weight the entire current human population of north America. In three genstadons, all this was wiped out. 'The bison were slaughtered, and the prairies plouglad up for wheat and maize.

Now the prairies have to be dosed with artificial fertiliser and pesticides, and the government spends millions of dollars on irrigation. It is a depressing picture which minors the story arrests the Atlantis-.