Certificate of proficiency in the english language examination paper 2008

CERTIFICATE OF PROFICIENCY IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE EXAMINATION PAPER 2008 Centre Number Index Number Name MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING Certificate of Proficiency Examination Paper 2008 ENGLISH LANGUAGE 1127 Guide Paper October/November 2008 hours OFFICIAL PAPER READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST Write your Centre Number, Index Number and Name on this page Write in dark blue or black pen You may use a soft pencil for any rough working Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid Answer all questions You may not use dictionaries or other materials At the end of the examination, fasten all your work securely together EXAMINATION MATERIALS Examination materials contains separate papers, each paper representing a section of the test Each section will include its instructions Marking This document consists of 30 printed pages All the work must be handed in at the end of the test Paper / 200 Paper / 110 Paper / 90 Total / 400 TURN OVER BLANK PAGE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING Certificate of Proficiency Examination Paper 2008 ENGLISH LANGUAGE 1127/01 Paper – GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY October/November 2008 hours 30 minutes OFFICIAL PAPER READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST Complete your work in this paper Write in dark blue or black pen You may use a soft pencil for any rough working Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid Answer all questions You may not use dictionaries or other materials Each question in this paper is worth one mark Marking /200 This document consists of 14 printed pages All the work must be handed in at the end of the test TURN OVER Part For questions 1–7, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think has the underlined part pronounced differently from those of the same line Mark your answers by circling A, B, C or D A neighbourhood B moosewoods C uprooting D choosiness A slathering B interactivity C warranty D flattering A intelligentsia B integrate C integrity D intemperate A energising B merchandise C dealership D composers A biography B bioethics C biodiversity D bioscience A acceptance B cordially C basically D exceptional A seasonality B conservatory C honourable D discordant Part For questions 8–15, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think has the different stress pattern from the rest of the line Mark your answers by circling A, B, C or D A phenomena B philanthropic C philosophy D persistent A hypocrite B hypnotic C hypotenuse D hypocrisy 10 A unparalleled B universal C unavailable D unresolved 11 A extortionate B extraneous C extrovert D extremist 12 A draughtsmanship B drastically C dramatist D dramatics 13 A beetroot B befuddled C begrudgingly D beatifying 14 A aphorism B extremism C barbarism D feminism 15 A mayonnaise B intertwine C grammarian D counteract Part For questions 16–50, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think best completes each sentence Mark your answers by circling A, B, C or D 16 Once he has ……… combat skills, he will set out for battle A mastered 17 B impression C impact D force B imbued C integrated D initiated Mrs Johns told us to rehearse the ……… again just before the Speech and Prize Giving Ceremony itself A process 20 D revised The new boy was quickly ……… into the class for his friendliness A absorbed 19 C studied I can tell that she has a profound ……… on her husband – her words never failed to persuade him A power 18 B memorised B progress C procession I would be ……… grateful if you helped me with this matter D proceedings A delightedly 21 B uniformity C comparison D resemblance B punishment C retribution D penalty Smoke from cigarettes proves particularly detrimental ……… pregnant women A on 24 D immaculately Though his wrongdoings were intentional, he was let off with a light ……… A reckoning 23 C eternally The woman I saw at the supermarket bore a striking ……… to your mother, Ted A affinity 22 B perfectly B to C at D for ……… many communication companies are now able to offer radio and television broadcasts over the Internet A Advanced technology has enabled B Introducing advanced technology C Because the introduced of advanced technology D With the introduction of advanced technology 25 Ayn Rand, ……… novels deal with the nature of capitalism in a democracy, is often taught in introductory courses in economics A of many whose 26 27 A as America's greatest writer B was America's greatest writer C to have been America's greatest writer D America's greatest writer B outcome C onset D milestone B rehabilitate C predispose D incarcerate B intervention C encroachment D inception B popularise C pinpoint D unveil B innovative C buoyant D preeminent B pinpoint C differentiate D dedicate B emote C distinctive D tolerant As a lawyer, he should not make so many ……… statements in his cases B emblematic C climatic D contradictory Since its ……… in the late 1990s, the company’s growth has surpassed all expectation A inception 39 D attribute He is a very ……… individual, which is why I think he needs to relax a little A instrumental 38 C enable They are so similar, you would need an expert to ……… them A intense 37 B ensure The company’s sales have increased significantly after their ……… advertising campaign A trace 36 D literary The company expects all senior management at the convention when we ……… our new range of products A instrumental 35 C tolerant Without their direct ………, this company would have collapsed under all the current economic pressure A insulate 34 B contradictory Even with their persistent attempts to ……… him, his drug habit could never be shaken A improvisation 33 D dramatic His promotion to vice executive marked a distinctive ……… in his career A manipulate 32 C contradictory With the destruction caused by hurricane damage, the government needed to ……… some swift procedures A gesture 31 B permissive He was ……… towards her bad manners, but he could not accept her constant swearing A implement 30 D many of whose Winning him over was no difficulty as he already seemed ……… to our ideas A unsure 29 C whose of many Many modern critics of American literature have called Mark Twain, born Samuel Clemens, ……… A predisposed 28 B whose many of B improvisation He was ……… after finally being caught for bank fraud C outcome D distinction A incarcerated 40 B harassed C manipulated D released The Internet has become a significant ……… of communication A medium 41 B senate C pitch D syllabus She could not understand what he said because there was too much ……… on the phone A barter 42 B precipitation C morality D distortion If your goal is to earn a high grade, it is extremely ……… that you study every day A casual 43 B dense C reluctant D vital C aspiring D aligned He is studying medicine because he is an ……… doctor A external 44 B utopian Pacifists are quite ……… to use violence to settle the matter A reluctant 45 B literal C relevant D parallel In certain situations, professors will ……… students an extended period of time to complete their assignments A grant 46 B retain C transform D portray I have to ……… a survey of senior citizens for a project in my marketing class A overload 47 B conduct C occur D convey I believe that if everyone is willing to pool ………, the project will be a success A potentials 48 B capabilities C resources D talents Being the one to make the first ……… strike, the army continued forcefully until they won the battle A enigmatic 49 B pre-emptive C showdown D rudimentary The species of hardwood is ……… in local rainforests, so many people have not seen it before A extinct 50 B extraordinary C uncommon D exotic After coming back from the camping trip, my brother ……… me with anecdotes of what happened during the trip A responded B rejoined C refreshed D regaled Part For questions 51–65, read the text below and look carefully at each line Some of the lines are correct, and some have a word that should not be there If a line is correct, put a tick (✓) in the column on the right If a line has a word which should not be there, underline the word and write it in the column on the right There are two examples (0 and 00) at the beginning TAKING BETTER PHOTOGRAPHS Like many people, I have had a camera for almost as long as I can 00 remember, and I have always enjoyed me taking photographs of my 51 family and friends, and places I have been visited Then, about a year 52 ago, I noticed that most of the photos I was so proud of which were in 53 fact all very similar to each other They all showed groups of people 54 standing by a famous building or some other attraction You hardly 55 couldn’t make out their faces clearly, and so it was difficult to get an 56 idea of how everybody had felt I was looking for a new hobby at the ✓  me s 57 time, and have decided that I would start taking photography more 58 seriously I thought it would be expensive, but, after reading a few 59 chapters of a book I borrowed from a friend, I last realised that I could 60 improve a great deal extra without spending a lot of money on new 61 equipment Soon, instead of just taking out the same old pictures, I was 62 photographing those trees, animals, people I didn’t know and so on 63 This soon made a real difference to the quality of my photographs as I 64 began to concentrate myself on getting the best picture possible I am 65 pleased with the results because I have achieved in such a short time Part For questions 66–90, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think is closest in meaning to the underlined part of each sentence Mark your answers by circling A, B, C or D 66 His loyalty to the cause is unparalleled A reverence 67 C intentionally D inevitably B magnitude C essence D grasp B blockage C hurdles D phenomena B render C evoke D subdue B prestige C scope D norms B repercussion C requisite D uniformity B formidable C diplomatic D cataclysmic He continued to impede their progress, even after he was cautioned A utilise 77 B relentlessly He played a crucial role in the campaign’s success A pivotal 76 D instrumental The board is considering making 10 years of experience a requirement for the position A determinant 75 C formidable The minister desired the position simply for the status associated with it A reverence 74 B diligent The police attempt to overpower the crowd resulted in a series of riots A retain 73 D unanimous The translators disagreed about the writer’s intention because of vagueness in the language used by the writer A ambiguity 72 C intangible Unfortunately, they were unaware of the extent of the damage A fortitude 71 B indispensable The prisoner was apparently unaffected by his unanimous conviction A seemingly 70 D innovation Mr Ryan was influential in having the bill passed by congress A legendary 69 C devotion This philosophy paper is extremely confusing with its abstract key concepts A subjective 68 B resolution B render C infuse D hinder As they were almost identical, we were unable to differentiate between the two A interpret B distinguish C designate D contemplate 78 They new slogan for our company must embody all that we stand for A encompass 79 B inaugurate B expended B acclaimed B pulmonary B descent D internship C mandatory D measly C multiple D deity Our group has to create a new plan of action for cleaning up the local ecosystem B dispel C accelerate D revolve Ancient religious practices continue to have a strong influence on modern ways of life B impact C inquisition D deterrent Use the pattern of crime statistics from the past five years to estimate the numbers for next year B supplement C revive D extrapolate The many limitations on the use of campus tennis courts seem to prevent me from playing there even just for ten minutes A rejections 90 C pamphlet Many ancient peoples believed a god controlled the weather A correspond 89 D enthusiastically It is compulsory for all freshman to enrol in Psychology 101 A misconception 88 C previously B prominence A devise 87 D incorporates Though a rare occurrence, an eclipse of the sun is a beautiful sight A garb 86 C consults B infinitely A hefty 85 D instrumental I did not exactly understand that theory the professor introduced in class yesterday A phenomenon 84 C formidable B disturbs A precisely 83 D discredited Modern Christianity includes many practices and beliefs borrowed from other faiths A suppresses 82 C subsidised At the end of the year, the most hardworking students are rewarded A diligent 81 D alleviate The government partially funded the student exchange program in order to improve international relations A infused 80 C condense B situations C restrictions D inquisitions It is important to talk to your professors about any problems you might have with the course load A reconcile to B converse with C reiterate for D deduce by Part For questions 91–100, fill in each gap with a suitable preposition or particle from the following box Each word can only be used once There are some words that need not be used Write your answers in the gap on over off down at beyond along in to into away against 91 The old teacher still adheres ………… teaching methods that she learnt 40 years ago 92 For many months now, the captives have been ………… hope of returning to their home country 93 I swear ……… my honour that I will not tell anyone of your whereabouts 94 Though he was caught red-handed, the man insisted that he was not ……… fault 95 After he broke the deal with the dug dealers, he went ……… fear of his life 96 The politician accused his team of briefing ……… him but without evidence, he was unable to anything about it 97 His blue eyes seemed to bore ……… on her, giving her quite an uncomfortable time in class 98 Somehow Sue always has something to hold ……… me and for that, I invariably have to what she wants 99 They are looking to buy ……… another insurance company, having been spurred on by their last success 100 Hardly had the spaceship blasted ……… when it collided with a meteor ascending at twenty-five thousand miles per hour Part For questions 101–110, match a verb in column A with a particle in column B to form a two-word verb to complete each gap Each word can only be used once Write your answers in the gap A B bring abide listen pass leave up on over back at cough go drink add fly by for out forth down 101 All tourists are to ……………… the rules of the country without fail 102 In the absence of financial support, the couple decided to ……………… rather than move after having their first baby 103 The idea ……………… by Mandy turned out to be the best idea we had had 104 As long as you are willing to provide the service, I am willing to ……………… the money 105 She ……………… her boyfriend out of rage after seeing him with another girl 106 Could you ……………… the phone while I am in the bath? 107 She ……………… on her word and told Lisa the secret 108 It seemed unfair to ……… Melinda ………, so we decided to let her tag along 109 He asked her for a glass of water and, out of thirst, ……… it ……… in one gulp 110 Dark clouds ……………… and I thought it was about to rain Part For questions 111–120, identify and correct the 10 errors in the following text Write your answers in the numbered box Question (0) has been done as an example Every year, earthquakes have been responsible for a large number of dead and a vast amount of destructions in various parts of the world Most of these damaged earthquakes occur either in a narrow belt which surrounds the Pacific Ocean or in a line which extends from Burma to the Alps in the Europe Some of the destruction is direct caused by the quake themselves An example of this was the collapse of buildings as the result of vibration Other damage results in landslides, tsunamis or major fires which are initiating by the quake have been ⇒ are Example Your answers 111 112 113 114 115 116 BLANK PAGE BLANK PAGE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING Certificate of Proficiency Examination Paper 2008 ENGLISH LANGUAGE 1127/02 Paper – READING COMPREHENSION October/November 2008 hours OFFICIAL PAPER READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST Complete your work in this paper Write in dark blue or black pen You may use a soft pencil for any rough working Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid Answer all questions You may not use dictionaries or other materials Each question in this paper is worth two marks Marking /110 This document consists of 10 printed pages All the work must be handed in at the end of the test TURN OVER Part For questions 1–14, read the passage below There are three different kinds of questions, each with its own instruction Carefully follow the instructions and complete your answers Write your answers as instructed SAVING LANGUAGE For the first time, linguists have put a price on language To save a language from extinction is not cheap—but more and more people are arguing that the alternative is the death of communities There is nothing unusual about a single language dying Communities have come and gone throughout history, and with them their language But what is happening today is extraordinary, judged by the standards of the past It is language extinction on a massive scale According to the best estimates, there are some 6,000 languages in the world Of these, about half are going to die out in the course of the next century: that is 3,000 languages in 1,200 months On average, there is a language dying out somewhere in the world every two weeks or so How we now? In the course of the past three or four decades, linguists all over the world have been gathering comparative data If they find a language with just a few speakers left, and nobody is bothering to pass the language on to the children, they conclude that language is bound to die soon And we have to draw the same conclusion if a language has less than 100 speakers It is not likely to last very long A 1999 survey shows that 97 percent of the world’s languages are spoken by just four percent of the people It is too late to anything to help many languages, where the speakers are too few or too old, and where the community is too busy just trying to survive to care about their language But many languages are not in such a serious position Often, where languages are seriously endangered, there are things that can be done to give new life to them It is called revitalisation Once a community realises that its language is in danger, it can start to introduce measures which can genuinely revitalise The community itself must want to save its language The culture of which it is a part must need to have a respect for minority languages There needs to be funding, to support courses, materials and teachers And there need to be linguists, to get on with the basic task of putting the language down on paper That is the bottom line: getting the language documented—recorded, analysed, written down People must be able to read and write if they and their language are to have a future in an increasingly computer-literate civilisation But can we save a few thousand languages, just like that? Yes, if the will and funding were available It is not cheap, getting linguists into the field, training local analysts, supporting the community with language resources and teachers, compiling grammars and dictionaries, writing materials for use in schools It takes time, lots of it, to revitalise an endangered language Conditions vary so much that it is difficult to generalise, but a figure of $100,000 a year per language cannot be far from the truth If we devoted that amount of effort over three years for each of 3,000 languages, we would be talking about some $900 million There are some famous cases which illustrate what can be done Welsh, alone among the Celtic languages, is not only stopping its steady decline towards extinction but showing signs of real growth Two Language Acts protect the status of Welsh now, and its presence is increasingly in evidence wherever you travel in Wales On the other side of the world, Maori in New Zealand has been maintained by a system of so-called ‘language nests’, first introduced in 1982 These are organisations that provide children under five with a domestic setting in which they are intensively exposed to the language The staff are all Maori speakers from the local community The hope is that the children will keep their Maori skills alive after leaving the nests, and that as they grow older they will in turn become role models to a new generation of young children There are cases like this all over the world And when the reviving language is associated with a degree of political autonomy, the growth can be especially striking, as shown by Faroese, spoken in the Faroe Islands, after the islanders received a measure of autonomy from Denmark In Switzerland, Romansch was facing a difficult situation, spoken in five very different dialects, with small and diminishing numbers, as young people left their community for work in the German-speaking cities The solution here was the creation in the 1980s of a unified written language for all these dialects Romansch Grischun, as it is now called, has official status in parts of Switzerland, and is being increasingly used in spoken form on radio and television A language can be brought back from the very brink of extinction The Ainu language of Japan, after many years of neglect and repression, had reached a stage where there were only eight fluent speakers left, all elderly However, new government policies brought fresh attitudes and a positive interest in survival Several ‘semi speakers’—people who had become unwilling to speak Ainu because of the negative attitudes by Japanese speakers—were prompted to become active speakers again There is fresh interest now and the language is more publicly available than it has been for years If good descriptions and materials are available, even extinct languages can be resurrected Kaurna, from South Australia, is an example This language had been extinct for about a century, but had been quite well documented So, when a strong movement grew for its revival, it was possible to reconstruct it The revised language is not the same as the original, of course It lacks the range that the original had, and much of the old vocabulary But it can nonetheless act as a badge of present-day identity for its people And as long as people continue to value it as a true marker of their identity, and are prepared to keep using it, it will develop new functions and new vocabulary, as any other living language would It is too soon to predict the future of these revived languages, but in some parts of the world they are attracting precisely the range of positive attitudes and grass roots support which are the preconditions for language survival In such unexpected but heart-warming ways might we see the grand total of languages in the world minimally increased For questions 1–5, decide whether the following statements agree with the views of the writer in the passage above In the numbered box, write Y if the statement agrees with the writer’s views, write N if the statement contradicts the writer’s views, write NG if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about the statement The rate at which languages are becoming extinct has increased Research on the subject of language extinction began in the 1990s In order to survive, a language needs to be spoken by more than 100 people Certain parts of the world are more vulnerable than others to language extinction Saving language is the major concern of any small community whose language is under threat Your answers For questions 6–8, the list below gives some of the factors that are necessary to assist the revitalisation of a language within a community Which three of the following factors are mentioned by the writer of the text? Circle the letters that represent them A The existence of related languages B Support from the indigenous population C Books tracing the historical development of the language D On-the-spot help from language experts E A range of speakers of different ages F Formal education procedures G A common purpose for which the language is required For questions 9–14, match the language A–F from the box below with the statements below which describe how the language was saved Write your answers in the numbered box Language A Welsh D Romansch B Maori E Ainu C Faroese F Kaurna The region in which the language was spoken gained increased independence 10 People were encouraged to view the language with less prejudice 11 Language immersion programmes were set up for sectors of the population 12 A merger of different varieties of the language took place 13 Written samples of the language permitted its revitalisation Your answers 10 11 12 13 Part For questions 14–24, read the passage below There are two different kinds of questions, each with its own instruction Carefully follow the instructions and complete your answers Write your answers as instructed FEMINISM IN BRITAIN AND THE US The issue of equality for women in British society first attracted national attention in the early 20th century, when the suffragettes won for women the right to vote In the 1960s feminism became the subject of intense debate when the women’s liberation movement encouraged women to reject their traditional supporting role and to demand equal status and equal rights with men in areas such as employment and pay Since then, the gender gap between the sexes has been reduced The Equal Pay Act of 1970, for instance, made it illegal for women to be paid less than men for doing the same work, and in 1975 the Sex Discrimination Act aimed to prevent either sex having an unfair advantage when applying for jobs In the same year the Equal Opportunities Commission was set up to help people claim their rights to equal treatment and to publish research and statistics to show where improvements in opportunities for women need to be made Women now have much better employment opportunities, though they still tend to get less wellpaid jobs than men, and very few are appointed to top jobs in industry In the US the movement that is often called the “first wave of feminism” began in the mid 1800s Susan B Anthony worked for the right to vote, Margaret Sanger wanted to provide women with the means of contraception so that they could decide whether or not to have children, and Elizabeth Blackwell, who had to fight for the chance to become a doctor, wanted women to have greater opportunities to study Many feminists were interested in other social issues The second wave of feminism began in the 1960s Women like Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem became associated with the fight to get equal rights and opportunities for women under the law An important issue was the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), which was intended to change the Constitution Although the ERA was not passed, there was progress in other areas It became illegal for employers, schools, clubs, etc to discriminate against women But women still find it hard to advance beyond a certain point in their careers, the so-called glass ceiling that prevents them from having high-level jobs Many women also face the problem of the second shift, i.e the household chores In the 1980s, feminism became less prevalent in the US and there was less interest in solving the remaining problems, such as the fact that most women still earn much less than men Although there is still discrimination, the principle that it should not exist is widely accepted For questions 14–19, decide whether the following statements agree with the information given in the passage above In the numbered box, write T if the statement is correct, write F if the statement contradicts the given information, write NG if it is impossible to say the statement is correct or not 14 The movement of feminism began in the US earlier than in Britain 15 It was in the beginning of the 20th century that the issue of equality for women was remitted in Britain 16 Margaret Sanger was prompted to make widespread birth control methods by her prior experience as a nurse 17 Thanks to the movement, women are now at ease to reach the peak of their careers 18 The Equal Rights Amendment was not sanctioned by the government 19 Feminists have effectively obliterated every last notion of sexism Your answers 14 15 16 17 18 19 For questions 20–24, choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D) to each question by circling A, B, C or D 20 21 22 23 In the late 20th century, some information about feminism in Britain was issued by ……… A the Equal Rights Amendment B the Equal Pay Act of 1970 C the Equal Opportunities Commission D the Sex Discrimination Act The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) ……… A was not officially approved B changed the US Constitution C was brought into force in the 1960s D supported employers, schools and clubs The phrase “gender gap” in paragraph refers to ……… A the visible space between men and women B the difference in status between men and women C the social distance between the two sexes D the social relationship between the two sexes It can be inferred from the passage that ……… A the belief that sex discrimination should not exist is not popular in the US B women in Britain and the US still fight for their equal status and equal rights C the British government did not approve of the women’s liberation movement D women not have better employment opportunities despite their great efforts 24 The word “prevalent” as used in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to the term ……… A meliorated B conquerable C sweeping D motivational Part For questions 25–39, read the passage below There are four different kinds of questions, each with its own instruction Carefully follow the instructions and complete your answers Write your answers as instructed A STONE AGE APPROACH TO EXERCISE Forget those long arduous sessions in the gym If you want to stay fighting fit, try a modern Stone Age workout instead Art De Vany is 62, but physical fitness tests three years ago showed he had the body of a 32-year-old Although De Vany is sceptical of such assessments, he knows he is in good shape His former career as a professional baseball player may have something to with it, but he attributes his physical prowess to an exercise regime inspired by the lifestyle of our Palaeolithic ancestors De Vany’s advice to the modern exercise freak is to cut duration and frequency, and increase intensity “Our muscle fibre composition reveals that we are adapted to extreme intensity of effort,” says De Vany, a professor of economics at the Institute for Mathematical Behavioural Sciences at the University of California, Irvine His approach to fitness combines Darwinian thinking with his interest in chaos theory and complex systems This new science, which De Vany calls evolutionary fitness, is part of growing efforts to understand how the human body has been shaped by evolution, and to use this knowledge to improve our health and fitness Proponents believe the key lies in the lifestyle of our hunter-gatherer ancestors because, they say, the vast majority of the human genome is still adapted to an ancient rhythm of life which swung between intense periods of activity and long stretches of inertia Across the Palaeolithic—which covers the period between 2.6 million and 10 000 years ago—prey animals were large, fleet of foot, or both For men, this would have meant lots of walking or jogging to find herds, dramatic sprints, jumps and turns, perhaps violent struggles, and long walks home carrying kill Women may not have had such intense exercise, but they would have spent many hours walking to sources of water or food, digging up tubers, and carrying children If modern hunter-gatherers are anything to go by, men may have hunted for up to four days a week and travelled 15 kilometres or more on each trip Women may have gathered food every two or three days There would also have been plenty of other regular physical activities for both sexes such as skinning animals and tool making, and probably dancing Our ancestors must have evolved cardiovascular, metabolic and thermoregulatory systems capable of sustaining high-level aerobic exertion under the hot African sun, according to Loren Cordain of the Human Performance Laboratory at Colorado State University And given that the Palaeolithic ended only an evolutionary blink of an eye ago, we ignore its legacy at our peril Cordain and his colleagues point out that in today’s developed societies, inactivity is associated with diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease Contemporary hunter-gatherer societies rarely experience these modern killers, they say This is where De Vany’s exercise ideas come in “The primary objectives for any exercise and diet programme must be to counter hyperinsulinaemia (chronically elevated insulin) and hypoexertion (wasting of the body's lean mass through inactivity),” he writes in his forthcoming book about evolutionary exercise Exercise and diet are linked For example, says De Vany, our appetite control mechanisms work best when our activity mimics that of our ancestors But he feels that most modern exercise regimes are not hitting the mark De Vany views the body as nonlinear and dynamic and says exercise should mix order and chaos—structure and novelty Too much endurance training is harmful “Chronic aerobic exercise overstrains the heart, reducing the chaotic variation in heart rate which is essential to health,” he says Likewise, most weight training is governed too much by routine and is too time-consuming He gives his own workout a chaotic character with ascending weights and descending repetitions To these brief but intense gym workouts he adds a wide variety of other activities that vary randomly in intensity and duration These include Rollerblading, bicycling, walking, sprinting, tennis, basketball, power walking, hitting softballs and trekking with a grandson on his shoulders He also argues that most people not train the right muscles for that ultimately attractive—and adaptive—quality of symmetry “Symmetry is a reliable evolutionary clue to health,” he says “Tumours and pathologies produce gross asymmetries, and our love of symmetry reflects the reproductive success of our ancestors, who were sensitive to these clues.” He strives for the X-look —a symmetrical balance of mass in the shoulder girdle, upper chest and back, the calves and lower quads, two of the four large muscles at the front of the thighs This also makes men look taller, he adds, “another reliable evolutionary clue that women use to find good genes” The hunter-gatherer lifestyle indicates that women should exercise only a little less intensely than men, says De Vany “Women are opportunistic hunters who go after small game when they come across it They also climb trees to capture honey and snare birds And have you ever seen how much work it is to dig out a deep tuber?” Women benefit enormously from strength work, he says It increases their bone density and they get and stay leaner by building muscle mass “Today's women are so weak [compared with their female ancestors].” Of course, people vary De Vany acknowledges that our ancestors were adapted to a variety of terrains and climates Cordain points out that genetic differences between populations lead to different physical strengths East Africans, for example, seem to be better endurance runners, West Africans better sprinters But human genetic similarity greatly outweighs the variations For questions 25–29, decide whether the following statements agree with the information given in the passage above In the numbered box, write T if the statement is correct, write F if the statement contradicts the given information, write NG if it is impossible to say the statement is correct or not 25 Our Palaeolithic ancestors were constantly active 26 Female exercise programme should vary according to the shape of the individual 27 Geographical features have played a role in human physical development 28 The importance of genetic differences in deciding on an exercise programme is minimal Your answers 25 26 27 28 For questions 29–31, write the letters A–G in the numbered boxes to show the three points that the writer highlight when discussing the lifestyle of our Palaeolithic ancestors A The difficulties involved in finding food B Their size compared to that of modern man C The sudden movements required during their daily activities D The aggressive nature of their negotiations with others E The fact that life was equally energetic for both sexes F The predictable frequency of physical activity G The long distances between neighbours’ homes Your answers 29 30 31 For questions 32–34, choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D) to each question by circling A, B, C or D 32 33 34 What you learn about Art De Vany in the first paragraph? A He frequently tests his health B He works as a professional sports player C He is older than he appears to be D He believes he has inherited a strong body In the second paragraph, De Vany recommends that people should ……… A exercise less frequently B exercise harder but for less time C give their muscles more time to recover from exercise D learn more about how the human body reacts to exercise Cordain compares modern hunter-gatherer societies to Palaeolithic societies in terms of their ……… A ability to withstand high temperature B resistance to certain fatal illnesses C healthy mix of work and leisure activities D refusal to change their way of life For questions 35–39, using no more than three words for each question (with the inclusion of two-mark questions), answer the following questions Write your answers in the provided space 35 What term does De Vany use to describe his approach to physical exercise? 36 – 37 What two opposing factors does De Vany say an exercise programme should include? 38 Which type of activity does De Vany criticise as being harmful? 39 Which type of exercise does De Vany practise on a regular basis? Part For questions 40–46, you are going to read an extract from a book on architecture and society Seven paragraphs have been removed from the extract Choose the paragraphs A–H the one which fits each gap There is one extra paragraph which you not need to use Write your answers in the gap DISPOSABLE BUILDINGS? Look at a building, any building What can it tell you? Most people would agree that the architecture of a certain period reflects the taste and style of that period 40 Today’s architecture landmarks tend to be more secular than religious For our present purpose, however, it is less important to know who commissioned a building than to look at it carefully So, look around at today’s buildings: what you see? You see old shapes and garish colours that jar Seeing one modern building does very little to prepare you for the next one; there is little or no uniformity 41 In the larger scheme of things, though, these differences are minor, and we can safely say that uniformity of appearance is one of the things that differentiates between the buildings of the past and those of the present Another important difference, and one so obvious that it may seem to go without saying, is that modern buildings not look like old buildings, (unless they are built in imitation, like neoClassical architecture, for example) 42 This is more than a comment on the quality of the respective building materials The Pyramids were built to last; the Millennium Dome most assuredly was not Of course this is not to say that the intention for modern structures is that they should last a certain amount of time and then fall down—a kind of disposable building However, it is true to say that they seem to be designed and built with only the very immediate future in mind 43 The people of the past, on the other hand, looked ahead It is clear that they wanted their buildings to be there for future generations This is corroborated by the fact that, in countries where the climate allows it, they planted trees Think about it: planting a tree, especially one that will some day grow to be very big, is the ultimate in altruistic behaviour When you plant an oak sapling, you know very well that you will not see the tree that it will become 44 There is a third element in today’s way of thinking that is particularly relevant to architecture, and that is the aesthetic element This is a difficult area to deal with because it is extremely subjective Beauty is, indeed, very often in the eye of the beholder; we all know what we like, and we all like different things Even allowing for this, however, most people would probably agree that ‘beautiful’ is not the word they would use to describe the majority of modern building 45 With most modern buildings, we certainly get one I say this with total objectivity I believe that it can be a very positive thing to be confronted with something completely different, even something that is a bit shocking It provokes a reaction It makes us think All art changes as time goes by, and architecture in all its varied manifestations is a form of art 46 The result of all this has been that we have learnt a lot about cultures of past eras What will be left behind after us? If we believe that the past has any value or anything to teach us, and if we believe that we bring the past with us into the future, this view has not been reflected in our architecture The generations of the future will not benefit from us the way we have benefited from the generations of the past A The fact remains, though, that up to present day, all art forms have been made to last Paintings and sculptures without number—as well as buildings—bear witness to this The people of the past always wanted to build buildings that would pass the test of time They must have wanted something of themselves to live on into the future, probably for all sorts of reasons, bad as well as good E Why is this? Is it because of the eye of the beholder? Or is it simply because we not require buildings to be beautiful any more? Perhaps beauty has become architecturally superfluous, or just plain old-fashioned It could be that the idea of beauty is too sentimental and sugary for us Maybe the modern psyche demands something more stimulating and less easy than beauty Maybe we want a challenge B For architecture, patronage has always been important While this method of financing a work of art is as old as the idea of art itself, it gathered huge momentum during the Renaissance During this period, wealthy and powerful families vied with each other in the creation of the beautiful and the different It was a way of buying into the immortality of the artist and architect F C Personally, I have yet to see a modern building that has worn well, that does not have leaks or damp stains or bits of its outer structure falling off It is hard to believe that any edifice built in the last fifty years or so is not like this or, if it is not, will not soon be These days, we not seem to care about what will happen to our buildings: once they serve our purpose and that of our children, that seems to be enough for us Ancient buildings of the same era, on the other hand, resemble each other Take the example of the Gothic cathedral To the non-specialists, one Gothic cathedral looks much like the next; if you have seen one, you have seen them all This view is correct, in the sense that there is a uniformity of style in every Gothic cathedral ever built It takes the enthusiast to spot and appreciate the myriad details and differences G In contrast to this, today’s tree-planting activity is largely commercial, influenced strongly by the thought of immediate gain Trees are planted that will grow quickly and can be cut down in a relatively short space of time The analogy between tree planting and the construction of buildings is a good one Our attitude in both these areas shows thinking that is essentially short-term and typical of today’s society; we want everything immediately and, where possible, we want it to generate money H Buildings, however, tell us considerably more than that They give us a deep insight into the mind and culture of the people responsible for their construction All buildings have a purpose of some sort or other, usually determined by the person responsible for commissioning them Throughout the course of history, buildings have generally been constructed at the instigation of the rich and/or the powerful—the products of politics, religion, or both D However, neither of these differences really tells us a lot about the people who built them, apart from what they wanted buildings to look like and the fact that they wanted their buildings to resemble each other Now, take a look at some old buildings The fact that you can see them at all, the fact that they are still standing, is the key to the past We not know how long today’s architectural heritage will last, but the chances are that it will not withstand the test of time Part For questions 47–55, read the following passages and answer the questions that follow Write your answers in the provided space Use only the corresponding letters A BARBIE WITH SHELLY SHOPPING FUN £20 Getting two dolls in one packet was the ultimate value-for-money principle applied by our young testers to this "Shoppin' Fun" ensemble, which features buxom Barbie and her baby sister Shelly in a supermarket setting A mechanism causes Shelly to bounce up and down on the seat of her supermarket trolley as it is pushed and, in a nice twist, a magnet on Shelly's hand enables her to pick up tiny cereal and cookie packets The irony was lost on Alice, who declared Shelly's behaviour to be "just like a real baby" All in all, this perfect image of consumerism in miniature was a major hit with the girls, who also heaped praise on Barbie's short skirt, cooed over Shelly's bottle and dummy and "took a great deal of interest in her nappy." They voted it the winner - even though their parents felt "Workin' Out" Barbie was better value in terms of cost versus hours of distraction B WORKIN' OUT BARBIE £12 Not yet in the shops but bound to be popular, "Workin' Out" Barbie was the favourite with Rebecca, mostly due to her trendy outfit in sickly pink and super-long blonde hair On the plastic accessories front, she also has a matching personal stereo, dumbbells and water bottle Barbie is fully articulated, has suction pads on her feet and comes with a full-size music tape, so little girls can hold her hands and dance with her Rebecca quickly disappeared into another room with the Barbie and tape to some serious exercising She loved the fact that the doll can the splits and her arms bend and stretch C PET DOCTOR BARBIE £20 In a puzzling, but too frequent demonstration of the generation gap, "Pet Doctor Barbie" - this year s hot new launch which benefits the RSPCA , appealed greatly to the testers parents, but not especially to the children The package includes plastic dog bones, pet bowls, pet basket stethoscope, medical clipboard, bandages, grooming brush, doctor's bag and, most importantly, dog and cat Her leggings even have paw prints on them Alice thought it was pretty silly having a brush for the animals when they were made of hard plastic Barbie's arms were thought to have too little movement As usual, Emily liked Barbie's hair, which is long and silky, if not ethnically correct in the black version sampled Meanwhile, the adults laughed themselves silly over the meowing mouse and barking bone buttons in the pet basket D KEN AND BROTHER TOMMY £15 "Hair is a very important factor when choosing dolls - part of the lasting appeal of glamour dolls is the ability to their hair and dress them up after the gimmicks have lost their novelty," mused Rebecca Jones's mother in her report about Barbie's male friend, now produced in tandem with his baby brother, Tommy The New Man caring and sharing theme made no impact on the testers, it seemed; they were appalled by Ken's hair, since it felt as if it had gel on it The accessories in this packet include a "special baby carrier pack" which takes Tommy, his bottle, rattle, dummy, nappy and baby lotion on Ken s back The testers thought Tommy was rather "cute", but were concerned that he was only wearing dungarees with no shirt underneath and that his dummy was too large, covering half of his face The fact that Tommy can wave did not impress the testers E SINDY SKATER £4.90 Alas, Britain's answer to Barbie did not score well in our trial Evidently more cheaply produced, "Sindy Skater" has the obligatory long hair, but is adorned only in a pink, sparkly tutu "Her bodice is painted on!" said Rebecca They soon discovered that her hair and boots could not be removed either "She's no good", was the unanimous verdict F BASEBALL CAP CINDY £3.50 Emily Buckett immediately fell in love with the "Baseball Cap Sindy", which Rebecca and Alice attributed to her age For once, the doll itself is the accessory, capable, with the help of ankle straps, of assuming several acrobatic positions on the cap wearer's head Rebecca and Alice "wouldn’t be seen dead wearing it." Emily wouldn’t take it off The older two lost interest altogether when they discovered Sindy was made of foam and therefore not a real doll The mothers declared this Sindy to be more of a clothing item than a toy and wondered how long any child would want to wear a doll on their head? G ACTION MAN SPORT EXTREME £10.99 Action Man, parents will be glad to know, has been updated His jaw is now squarer, his cheekbones more sculpted and his flock hair has metamorphosed into a sleek, painted, plastic style with two locks falling over one eyebrow, "as they would whenever he does something heroic," a spokesman from the manufacturer said firmly His new character is sport oriented, which is why he has "super active limbs~, according to the packaging Our testers were not taken in "He's a toy man who fights," David said "He has bendy legs and arms for kicking and punching." He also comes equipped with designer shades, a 9mm automatic pistol and suction pad for climbing rocky terrain He does not come with a shirt, presumably this is intended to allow the consumer to appreciate his very muscular torso In response to the politically leading question, "Would he still be a good Action Man without a proper gun?" the boys answered (somewhat uneasily) "Yes." William was impressed with the way his sun-glasses stayed on Only later did the children notice a scar on Action Man s cheek "Brilliant," said David Adam voted Action Man the winner, even though Batman "is just as good, but Action Man is bigger." H ROCKETPAK BATMAN AND AIR STRIKE ROBIN £6.99 each Never mind the Batmobile - Batman and Robin now come with any number of more complex, bellicose accessories In our samples, Batman "flies" about with the aid of a rocket backpack, while Robin has an airship and peg-on bomb At first, Batman s "lovely velvet" cape was thought a great accessory, but it was soon discarded for the better performance of his rocket engines Our testers also took pleasure in holding the backpack themselves "for shooting Robin's accessories were more difficult to assemble, and David Jones s mother said: "The rocket engines took a bit of manipulating for a six year old - they re afraid of breaking them if they re too forceful." The boys were not the least bit interested in Robin's windswept hair The packaging of Air Strike Robin enticingly shows how he can be joined up with Turbo Surge Batman to form "a high-tech team with double the powerful capacity to conquer Gotham City's most diabolical villains!" But the fact that this device wasn't in the pack was noticed immediately by the children Only later, when David discovered that Batman has holes in his feet and that he could hitch a ride on Robin's airship, was all forgiven 47 Which of the mentioned toys is politically correct? 48 Which of the mentioned toys was designed by Britain? 49 Which of the mentioned toys has some illogical accessories? 50 Which of the mentioned toys acts like a naughty baby? 51 Which of the mentioned toys attracted adults more than children? 52 Which of the mentioned toys was considered likely to be played with longest? 53 Which of the mentioned toys is a symbol of the way of life of an affluent society? 54 Which of the mentioned toys was likely to catch cold? 55 Which of the mentioned toys was least popular? MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING Certificate of Proficiency Examination Paper 2008 ENGLISH LANGUAGE 1127/03 Paper – WRITING October/November 2008 hour 30 minutes OFFICIAL PAPER READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST Complete your work in this paper Write in dark blue or black pen You may use a soft pencil for any rough working Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid Answer all questions You may not use dictionaries or other materials The first question is worth 30 marks The second question is worth 60 marks Marking /90 This paper consists of printed pages All the work must be handed in at the end of the test TURN OVER Part For questions 1–30, you are advised to write between 250 and 300 words to respond to the following information You should read your information carefully and plan your answer before beginning to write You had just been dismissed and you were leaving the school when you saw five students gather outside the school gate You saw three of your classmates and two other students shouting and pushing one another You were surprised to see your classmates as they were in their uniform but did not attend school that day You tried to stop the fight but was unsuccessful You found out what had happened from one of the boys who was there before you Two of your classmates involved are notorious for misbehaving and are often reprimanded by the teachers for their actions The other boy is a model student who excels in his studies and is a favourite among the teachers Write a report for your class teacher describing in detail what had happened including what you saw and heard You must write about all the five students that were involved and the role played by each one of them Include also how you attempted to stop the students from fighting, and how the episode ended eventually Part For questions 31–90, you are advised to write at least 400 words on one of the following topics At the head of your composition, write the number (1–6) of the topic that you have chosen Integrity Write about an occasion when you brought the latest electronic gadget and regretted the decision It has been said that music is therapeutic Do you agree? How have your behaviours and ways of thinking been affected by your peers? “Doubt the sun doth move, doubt truth to be a liar, but never doubt I love.” How you understand the quoted line? Write an original story that begins with the sentence: “It was winter—always winter, not any other seasons—that breathed fresh life into me…”