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Pick any day in the Piazza del Duomo in the Italian city of Pisa, and you will  undoubtedly spot a bunch of tourists posing for the same photo: hands outstretched towards the cathedral’s conspicuously tilting bell tower, as if they are supporting it with their sheer strength. The so-called Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of the most famous buildings in the world, although maybe not for the reasons its original architects would have wanted.  In 1173, construction began on a white marble bell tower for the cathedral complex in Pisa, located between the Arno and Serchio rivers in Tuscany, central Italy. By the time builders had finished the third of eight planned stories about five years later, the tower’s foundation had begun to settle unevenly on the ground beneath it, a dense mixture of clay, sand and shells. As a result, the structure had begun to tilt visibly toward the south. Shortly after that, war broke out between Pisa and Genoa, another Italian city-state, halting construction for nearly a century. This delay allowed the foundation to settle further, likely prevented the bell tower’s premature collapse.  When construction resumed, chief engineer Giovanni di Simone tried to compensate for the lean by adding extra masonry to the short side, but the additional weight caused the structure to tilt even further. The tower was officially completed around 1370, but its lean only increased over the next six centuries, becoming an integral part of the monument’s quirky appeal. Despite various attempts to reinforce it, Pisa’s tower continued to subside at a rate of some 0.05 inches per year, placing it in increasing danger of collapse. By 1990, it was leaning 5.5 degrees (or some 15 feet) from the perpendicular–the most extreme angle yet. That year, the monument was closed to visitors and the bells removed as engineers started extensive reparations to stabilize it. By siphoning earth from beneath and adding counterweights to the tower’s north end, they were able to reduce the lean to 13.5 feet, or 4.0 degrees from perpendicular. The straightening continued after the tower reopened in 2001, and in 2008 sensors showed the subsiding motion had stopped, after a total improvement of some 19 inches. Engineers now believe the Leaning Tower of Pisa will remain stable for some 200 years, barring an earthquake or other unpredictable disaster. 
2. The word “conspicuously” in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to _______

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The fresh data released by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE)  showed that unemployment rate in the month of October jumped to 8.5 per cent, which is the highest in over three years. A new academic research paper released by the Centre of Sustainable Employment also concluded that there has been a marked decline in total employment in India between 2011-12 and 2017-18, reported The Indian Express.  The research paper by Santosh Mehrotra and Jaiati K Parida stated as, "However, due to sharp increases in enrollment at every level of education over the noughties, it was expected that post -2012 total employment would increase, particularly in the non-farm sectors. But unfortunately, total employment during 2011-12 and 2017-18 declined by 9 million. The research further states that this happened for the first time in India’s history.  It is really ironical noting that Coimbatore Municipal Corporation posted a vacancy for 549 sanitary workers. What followed was that 7000 highly qualified applicants even some of them with engineering and graduate degrees applied for the job. The Corporation witnessed the overwhelming turnout of 7000 candidates. Similarly, few month back, Chennai witnessed an unusual event when around 4600 of youth sent their application for 14 posts like sweepers and sanitary workers. The applicants had professional qualification like B.Tech, M.Tech, Master of Business Administration.  Though the government constantly has been refuting the grim of job data but the facts and figures can’t be avoided any more. Therefore, now the government should take an initiative to overcome the high prevalence of unemployment and figure out the derivers of the job crisis. In this regard, it is worth to mention a book titled ‘Job crisis in India’ written by business journalist Raghavan Jagnnathan. The author in his book pointed out factors and reasons behind this decline of employment. He attributed that the absence of skills required in the highly technical nature of jobs is big factor. Another aspect of this is that in the majority of cases the skills or training acquired by the youths do not match or suit the core demand of the job. So at first the government must step up for reformation, innovation and renovation of the standard of the education in universities and colleges. 
8. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?

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Though overwhelmed by the news of the novel coronavirus outbreak, Munyaradzi Gurure, the 21-year-old student at Guangxi University of Finance and Economics from South Africa, has still stepped out to serve as a volunteer in the train station to help battle the epidemic.  “I’m well aware the situation of epidemic prevention and control is very severe,” he said. “Seeing that many people actively joined in the fight, I also wanted to do my part and volunteer at the station.” With the number of novel coronavirus cases continuing to rise both in and outside of China, Gurure’s family back in South Africa was very worried about his health, and hoped he would quit the volunteer job. “I told my parents China has taken a lot of strong quarantine measures and is actually safe,” he said. “I want to do whatever I can to prevent the spread of the infection. The country took really good care of me during the last three years.”  Working about four hours a day, Gurure either carries an 8-kilogram electric sprayer to disinfect the waiting room or checks passengers’ temperature as soon as they walk into the station. He also makes sure people are in good health and wearing masks at all times. Though it’s not easy work, Gurure came across many Chinese who are very surprised to see a foreign face, but then give a thumbs up and say “very good” to him in Chinese. Gurure’s foreign classmates found out about his volunteer job and sent messages saying “good job”, some showing interest in joining him to help curb the spread of the virus. 
4. The word “they” in paragraph 3 refers to _______

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Super Size Me is a 2004 film by Morgan Spurlock, in which he (1)____ his experiment to eat only McDonald’s fast food three times a day, every day, for thirty days. Spurlock made himself a short list of rules for the experiment, including an obligation to eat all of the three meals he ordered. He also had to ‘Super Size’, which means (2) ______ a giant portion every time the option was offered to him. He ended up vomiting after the first Super Size meal he finished, after taking nearly twenty minutes to consume it. After five days Spurlock put on almost 5kg, and he soon found himself feeling depressed, with no energy. The only thing that got rid of his headaches and made him feel better was another McDonald’s meal, so his doctors told him he was addicted. More seriously, around day twenty, he started experiencing heart (3)________ and one of the doctors detected liver problems. However, in spite of his doctor’s advice, Spurlock continued to the end of the month and achieved a total weight gain of 11kg. His body mass index also increased from a healthy 23.2 to an overweight 27. It took Spurlock fifteen months to recover (4)_______ his experiment and return to his original weight, but the film also had a wider impact. Just after its showing in 2004, McDonald’s phased out the Super Size option and healthier options like salads appeared on the menu. Unfortunately, McDonald’s denied the connection between the film and the changes, but it is interesting to note how closely they (5)________ with the release of the film 

Find mistake
What would be the most effect way of marketing our goods?

Each sentence has a mistake. Find it by choosing the letter A, B, C or D.

Watching television too much have adverse effects about children’s cognitive ability.

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Pollutants in the air aren’t always visible and come from many different sources. Smog hanging over cities is the most familiar and obvious form of air pollution. But there are different kinds of pollution - some visible, some invisible - that contribute to global warming. Generally any substance that people introduce into the atmosphere that has damaging effects on living things and the environment is considered air pollution. Carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, is the main pollutant that is warming Earth. Though living things emit carbon dioxide when they breathe, carbon dioxide is widely considered to be a pollutant when associated with cars, planes, power plants, and other human activities that involve the burning of fossil fuels such as gasoline and natural gas. In the past 150 years, such activities have pumped enough carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to raise its levels higher than they have been for hundreds of thousands of years. Other greenhouse gases include methane - which comes from such sources as swamps and gas emitted by livestock - and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which were used in refrigerants and aerosol propellants until they were banned because of their deteriorating effect on Earth’s ozone layer. Another pollutant associated with climate change is sulfur dioxide, a component of smog. Sulfur dioxide and closely related chemicals are known primarily as a cause of acid rain. But they also reflect light when released in the atmosphere, which keeps sunlight out and causes Earth to cool. Volcanic eruptions can spew massive amounts of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, sometimes causing cooling that lasts for years. In fact, volcanoes used to be the main source of atmospheric sulfur dioxide; today people are. Industrialized countries have worked to reduce levels of sulfur dioxide, smog, and smoke in order to improve people’s health. But a result, not predicted until recently, is that the lower sulfur dioxide levels may actually make global warming worse. Just as sulfur dioxide from volcanoes can cool the planet by blocking sunlight, cutting the amount of the compound in the atmosphere lets more sunlight through, warming the Earth. This effect is exaggerated when elevated levels of other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trap the additional heat.
2. What is the main origin of carbon dioxide in the air?

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Many scientists believe our love of sugar may actually be an addiction. When we eat or drink sugary foods, the sugar enters our blood and affects parts of our brain that make us feel good. Then the good feeling goes away, leaving us wanting more. All tasty foods do this, but sugar has a particularly strong effect. In this way, it is in fact an addictive drug, one that doctors recommend we all cut down on. “It seems like every time I study an illness and trace a path to the first cause, I find my way back to sugar,” says scientist Richard Johnson. One- third of adults worldwide have high blood pressure, and up to 347 million have diabetes. Why? "Sugar, we believe, is one of the culprits, if not the major culprit," says Johnson. Our bodies are designed to survive on very little sugar. Early humans often had very little food, so our bodies learned to be very efficient in storing sugar as fat. In this way, we had energy stored for when there was no food. But today, most people have more than enough. So the very thing that once saved us may now be killing us. So what is the solution? It’s obvious that we need to eat less sugar. The trouble is, in today’s world, it’s extremely difficult to avoid. From breakfast cereals to after-dinner desserts, our foods are increasingly filled with it. Some manufacturers even use sugar to replace taste in foods that are advertised as low in fat. But there are those who are fighting back against sugar. Many schools are replacing sugary desserts with healthier options like fruit. Other schools are growing their own food in gardens, or building facilities like walking tracks so students and others in the community can exercise. The battle has not yet been lost.  
3. What does the phrase "the very thing" in paragraph 3 refer to?

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The climate crisis is poised to deliver a severe blow to America’s most threatened animals, with a new study finding that almost every species considered endangered is vulnerable in some way to global heating. Of the 459 animal species listed as endangered by the US government, researchers found that all but one, or 99.8%, have characteristics that will make it difficult for them to adapt to rising temperatures. The California condor, once close to being completely wiped out, faces increased risk of contamination in hotter conditions. Key deer, found only in the Florida Keys, face losing habitat to the rising seas. Whole classes of animals including amphibians, mollusks and arthropods are sensitive to the greatest number of climate-related threats, such as changes in water quality, shifting seasons and harmful invasive species that move in as temperatures climb. Mammals, such as the north Atlantic right whale and Florida panther, also face increased hardships, albeit on fewer fronts than amphibians, mollusks and arthropods.  Despite the overwhelming peril faced by America’s endangered species due to the climate crisis, the report, published in Nature Climate Change, found a patchy response from the US government. Federal agencies consider just 64% of endangered species to be threatened by the climate crisis, while just 18% of listed species have protection plans in place. Astrid Caldas, a study co-author and a climate scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists said: “While agencies have increasingly listed climate change as a growing threat to species whose survival is already precarious, many have not translated this concern into tangible actions, meaning a significant protection gap still exists.” Nearly half of Australian species are threatened by the climate crisis, researchers have found. A spokesman for the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which oversees the endangered species list, said that while a species may be sensitive to changes in the climate, this sensitivity may not be so severe as to warrant being put on the list. “Our process for determining this looks at five factors: threats to a species’ habitat, overutilization, disease or predation, existing regulatory mechanisms, and other factors that may affect its continued existence,” he said. “Through this scientifically rigorous process we examine and account for the effects of climate change.  
5. The word “mechanisms” in paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to _______

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It’s probably the most painstaking, heart wrenching, and stress inducing test of dedication a marriage can face. But the reward at the end is pretty sweet. At the annual Wife Carrying World Championships in Sonkajärvi, Finland, male competitors race around a track hauling their female partners on their backs. Winner takes home his wife’s weight in beer. It’s no ordinary racetrack, either. Competitors must wade through a neck-deep pool of water, climb over hurdles, and run through pits of sand before crossing the finish line. While some participants don crazy costumes for the pre-race, the actual event is pretty straightlaced. Wives must weigh at least 49 kilograms (108 pounds). Any woman lighter than that is required to carry a heavy rucksack until she reaches this minimum. A participant who drops his wife will be penalized 15 seconds. But there is one catch: contestants don’t have to carry their own wives. A friend’s wife, stranger’s wife, or even a random grandmother will do – as long as she’s over 17. Contestants flock from 47 countries across the globe to show their stuff in this epic display of brute strength. This year, Finnish couple Taisto Miettinen and Kristiina Haapanen captured the title for the fourth consecutive year. The 46-year-old lawyer and his wife completed the 235-meter course in one minute and four seconds. Like any dedicated athlete, Miettinen reported that he’d been training for a while. “In last autumn, I started running in the track, one hundred, two hundred and four hundred meters,” Miettinen said in a post-race interview. He also practiced the course in ski boots to build leg strength. The competition, which began in 1992, is supposedly rooted in the legend of Ronkainen the Robber — a hardnosed gang leader who hazed potential members by making them lug sacks of grain or live pigs over a similar course. He and his comrades also made a habit of stealing women from neighboring villages as a nod to this practice, many men “steal” friends’ wives for the competition. If you want to compete but can’t make it to Finland, there’s a North American version of the contest held in October at Sunday River Resort in Maine. With 100-plus pounds of brewski on the line, you might want to tell your significant other to start shaping up.
7. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

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While trust in media as a whole may be at an all-time low, a new study by the EBU has shown the public’s trust in traditional media (broadcast and the written press) is actually on the rise. However, people’s trust in new media continues to fall: 61% of European countries distrust the internet while 97% have no faith in social networks. The EBU’s new report – Trust in Media 2018 – shows the figures illustrating the differences between people’s trust in traditional and new media. Broadcast media remain the most trusted forms of media with 59% of people tending to trust radio (equivalent to 2017) and 51% trusting TV in the EU (an increase of 1 percentage point on 2017). Trust in the written press has also slowly improved over the last 5 years and it is now trusted by 47% of EU citizens. At the same time, people’s trust in the internet and social media has been eroded by fake news, misinformation and disinformation. Only 34% of EU citizens trust the internet and a mere 20% now trust social networks (down from 36% and 21% respectively in 2017). Trust in Media 2018 is based on data published in the 88th Eurobarometer survey and gives an idea of European citizens’ perception of the trustworthiness of different types of media. The survey consists of approximately 1000 face-to-face interviews in the 33 countries covered by the study. The report shows how European citizens’ trust in broadcast media is closely connected with a free and independent press. The higher the level of trust in a country’s radio and TV, the higher press freedom in that country tends to be. There are also strong regional differences with the Nordics and Albania tending to trust traditional media the most while Eastern Europeans tend to trust social networks and the internet more. The EBU’s Head of Strategy and the Media Intelligence Service Roberto Suárez Candel said: “The results of our research show that good quality, impartial media is highly valued by the public. “Public service media play an important role in that and, together, our Members make an invaluable contribution to society. The role of our public service Members in upholding democratic values and supporting media freedom is clearly demonstrated by the results of our research.”  
4. The word “it” in paragraph 2 refers to _____.

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It is natural for young people to be critical of their parents at times and to blame them for most of the misunderstandings between them. They have always complained, more or less justly, that their parents are out of touch with modern ways; that they are possessive and dominant; that they do not trust their children to deal with crises; that they talk too much about certain problems, and that they have no sense of humor, at least in parent-child relationships. I think it is true that parents often underestimate their teenage children and also forget how they themselves felt when they were young. Young people often irritate their parents with their choices in clothes and hairstyles, in entertainers and music. This is not their motive. They feel cut off from the adult world into which they have not yet been accepted. So they create a culture and society of their own. Then, if it turns out that their music or entertainers of vocabulary or clothes or hairstyles irritate their parents, this gives them additional enjoyment. They feel they are superior, at least in a small way, and that they are leaders in style and taste. Sometimes you are resistant and proud because you do not want your parents to approve of what you do. If they approve, it looks as if you are betraying your own age group. But in that case, you are assuming that you are the underdog; you cannot win; but at least you keep your honor. This is a passive way of looking at things. It is natural enough after long years of childhood, when you were completely under your parents’ control. But it ignores the fact that you are now beginning to be responsible for yourself. If you plan to control your life, cooperation can be part of that plan. You can charm others, especially your parents, into doing things the way you want. You can impress others with your sense of responsibility and initiative, so that they will give you the authority to do what you want to do.  
5. Teenagers do not want their parents to approve of whatever they do because they _______

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Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452, in the small Tuscan town of Vinci,  near Florence. Leonardo was the son of a wealthy Florentine public official and a peasant woman. In the mid- 1460s, the family settled in Florence, where Leonardo was given the best education that Florence could offer. He rapidly advanced socially and intellectually. He was handsome, persuasive in conversation and a fine musician and improviser. About in 1466, he apprenticed as a studio boy to Andrea Del Verrocchio. In Verrocchio’s workshop, Leonardo was introduced to many activities, from the painting of altarpieces and panel pictures to the creation of large sculptural projects. In 1472, he was entered in the painter’s guild of Florence, and in 1476, he was still mentioned as Verrocchio’s assistant. In Verrocchio’s Baptism of Christ, the kneeling angel at the left of the painting is by Leonardo.  In 1478, Leonardo became an independent master. His first commission, to paint an altarpiece for the chapel of the Palazzo Vecchino, the Florentine town hall, was never executed. His first large painting, The Adoration of the Magi, left unfinished, was ordered in 1481 for the Monastery of San Donato a Scopeto, Florence. Other works ascribed to his youth are the so-called Benois Madonna, the portrait Ginerva de’ Benci, and the unfinished Saint Jerome.  In 1482, Leonardo’s career moved into high gear when he entered the service of the duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza, having written the duke an astonishing letter in which he stated that he could build portable bridges; that he knew the techniques of constructing bombardments and of making cannons; that he could build ships as well as armored vehicles, catapults, and other war machines; and that he could execute sculpture in marble, bronze, and clay. He served as a principal engineer in the duke’s numerous military enterprises and was so active also as an architect. In addition, he assisted the Italian mathematician Luca Pacioli in the celebrated work Divina Proportione.  Evidence indicates that Leonardo had apprentices and pupils in Milan, for whom he probably wrote the various texts later compiled as Treatise on Painting. The most important of his own paintings during the early Milan period was The Virgin of the Rocks, two versions of which exist; he worked on the compositions for a long time, as was his custom, seemingly unwilling to finish what he had begun.  From 1495 to 1496, Leonardo labored on his masterpiece, The Last Super, a mural in the refectory of the Monastery of Santa Maria Delle Grazie, Milan. Unfortunately, his experimental use of oil on dry plaster was technically unsound, and by 1500 its deterioration had begun. Since 1726 attempts have been made, unsuccessfully, to restore it; a concerted restoration and conservation program, making use of the latest technology, was begun in 1977 and is reversing some of the damage. Although much of the original surface is gone, the majesty of the composition and the penetrating characterization of the figures give a fleeting vision of its vanished splendor.  During his long stay in Milan, Leonardo also produced other paintings and drawings, most of which have been lost theater designs, architectural drawings, and models for the dome of Milan Cathedral. His largest commission was for a colossal bronze monument to Francesco Sforza, father of Ludovico, in the courtyard of Castello Sforzesco. In December 1499, however, the Sforza family was driven from Milan by French forces; Leonardo left the statue unfinished and he returned to Florence in 1500.
3. The word “catapults” in paragraph 3 is probably __________

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While light at night can be beneficial, neutral, or damaging for individual species, its presence invariably disturbs ecosystems. For example, some species of spiders avoid lit areas, while other species are happy to build their spider web directly on a lamp post. Since lamp posts attract many flying insects, the spiders that don’t mind light gain an advantage over the spiders that avoid it. Light pollution poses a serious threat in particular to nocturnal wildlife, having negative impacts on plant and animal physiology. It can confuse animal navigation, alter competitive interactions, change predator-prey relations, and cause physiological harm. The rhythm of life is orchestrated by the natural patterns of light and dark, so disruption to these patterns impacts the ecological dynamics. Studies suggest that light pollution around lakes prevents zooplankton, such as Daphnia, from eating surface algae, causing algal blooms that can kill off the lakes’ plants and lower water quality. Light pollution may also affect ecosystems in other ways. For example, scientists have documented that night time light may interfere with the ability of moths and other nocturnal insects to navigate. Night-blooming flowers that depend on moths for pollination may be affected by night lighting, as there is no replacement pollinator that would not be affected by the artificial light. This can lead to species decline of plants that are unable to reproduce, and change an area’s long term ecology. Reducing light pollution implies many things, such as reducing sky glow, reducing glare, reducing light trespass, and reducing clutter. The method for best reducing light pollution, therefore, depends on exactly what the problem is in any given instance. Adjusting the type of lights used, so that the light waves emitted are those that are likely to cause severe light pollution problems  
2. All of the following impact the ecological dynamics EXCEPT ______________

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions:
Foot racing is a popular activity in the United States. It is seen not only as a competitive sport but also as a way to exercise, to enjoy the camaraderie of like-minded people, and to donate money to a good cause. Though serious runners may spend months training to compete, other runners and walkers might not train at all. Those not competing to win might run in an effort to beat their own time or simply to enjoy the fun and exercise. People of all ages, from those of less than one year (who may be pushed in strollers) to those in their eighties, enter into this sport. The races are held on city streets, on college campuses, through parks, and in suburban areas, and they are commonly 5 to 10 kilometers in length.
The largest foot race in the world is the 12-kilometer Bay to Breakers race that is held in San Francisco every spring. This race begins on the east side of the city near San Francisco Bay and ends on the west side at the Pacific Ocean. There may be 80,000 or more people running in this race through the streets and hills of San Francisco. In the front are the serious runners who compete to win and who might finish in as little as 34 minutes. Behind them are the thousands who take several hours to finish. In the back of the race are those who dress in costumes and come just for fun. One year there was a group of men who dressed like Elvis Presley, and another group consisted of firefighters who were tied together in a long line and who were carrying a fire hose. There was even a bridal party, in which the bride was dressed in a long white gown and the groom wore a tuxedo. The bride and groom threw flowers to bystanders, and they were actually married at some point along the route.

The main purpose of this passage is to     .

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Environment is the first casualty for increase in pollution whether in air or water. The increase in the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere leads to smog which can restrict sunlight from reaching the earth. Thus, preventing plants in the process of photosynthesis. Gases like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide can cause acid rain. Water pollution in terms of oil spill may lead to death of several wildlife species. Moreover, the decrease in quality of air leads to several respiratory problems including asthma or lung cancer. Chest pain, congestion, throat inflammation, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease are some of diseases that can be causes by air pollution. Water pollution occurs due to contamination of water and may pose skin related problems including skin irritations and rashes. Similarly, noise pollution leads to hearing loss, stress and sleep disturbance. Additionally, the emission of greenhouse gases particularly CO2 is leading to global warming. Every other day new industries are being set up, new vehicles come on roads and trees are cut to make way for new homes. All of them, in direct or indirect way lead to increase on CO2 in the environment. The increase in CO2 leads to melting of polar ice caps which increases the sea level and pose danger for the people living near coastal areas. It should be reminded that ozone layer is the thin shield high up in the sky that stops ultra violet rays from reaching the earth. As a result of human activities, chemicals, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), were released into the atmosphere which contributed to the depletion of ozone layer. Last but not least, due to constant use of insecticides and pesticides, the soil may become infertile. Plants may not be able to grow properly. Various forms of chemicals produced from industrial waste in releases into the flowing water which also affects the quality of soil. In conclusion, pollution not only affects humans by destroying their respiratory, cardiovascular and neurological systems; it also affects the nature, plants, fruits, vegetables, rivers, ponds, forests, animals, etc, on which they are highly dependent for survival. It is crucial to control pollution as the nature, wildlife and human life are precious gifts to the mankind. 
1. What prevents plants from receiving sunlight?

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A new method for analyzing DNA collected from waterways which can help identify endangered bird species has been developed with the help of researchers from The University of Western Australia. The DNA analysis method developed also with researchers from Charles Darwin University and the Northern Territory’s Department of Environment and Natural Resources provides a new way of understanding the distribution of endangered birds by analyzing DNA collected in the waterways where they drink. The research, which will be published in Endangered Species Research Journal, offers new possibilities to support conservation efforts and increase understanding of birds that are scarce and otherwise hard to capture data on. The team developed a probe to locate DNA in water samples of the critically endangered Gouldian Finch (Erythrura gouldiae), a rainbowcolored grassfinch endemic to the savanna woodlands of northern Australia. UWA Professor Simon Jarman from the School of Biological Sciences said the researchers thought it would be hard to detect bird DNA in tropical conditions where the rate of DNA breakdown was high. “We were also sampling from pools where the water was not flowing and there was a lot of sediment and algal and bacterial growth,” Professor Jarman said. “However we were really pleased to get reliable bird detections from our methods showing DNA can be used to detect many species from the poles to the equator.” Professor Jarman said the Gouldian Finch was a beautiful and iconic species that was endangered due to habitat loss from being hunted extensively. "The DNA method will help to map where the finches are currently found with great accuracy, which will help persuade people to conserve the areas where they live," he said.  
4. According to paragraph 3, why did Professor Simon Jarman describe the investigated area?

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In the 1960s, it took pop and rock groups one or two days to record other their songs. Nowadays, it can take months and months. Many rock groups begin by recording only one instrument, for example, the voice. Then they record (1)________ instruments – electric piano, synthesizer, guitars, drums and so on. Next, they might use a computer to add special effects. Finally, they ‘mix’ all the instruments until they get the sound that they want. This means that a CD or cassette will always sound very different from a (2) ______ concert. Music engineers have developed a new computer programme that will change the future of music. A computer can analyze a singer’s voice. Then if you give the computer the (3)_________ and music of a song, the computer can ‘sing’ it in that voice. This means that a singer only needs to record one song and the computer can then sing other songs in the singer’s own voice. Singers can sing new songs many years after they have died. Most of us listen to music for pleasure, but for the record companies, music is a product, the same as soap powder. (4)___________ a record company finds a new group (or ‘band’), they first try to develop the band’s ‘profile’. They will try to create an ‘image’ for the band that they think will attract young people. Instead of allowing the band’s full artistic freedom, they will often (5)_______ the band what they should wear, what they should say and how they should sing and play. In recent year, many rock groups have started their own record companies because they say that the big companies are too commercial

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Rachel Carson was born in 1907 in Springdale, Pennsylvania. She studied biology in college and zoology at Johns Hopkins University, where she received her master's degree in 1933. In 1936, she was hired by the US Fish and wildlife service, where she worked most of her life. Carson's first book, Under the Sea Wind, was published in 1941. It received excellent reviews, but sales were poor until it was reissued in 1952. In that year, she published The Sea Around Us, which provided a fascinating look beneath the ocean's surface, emphasizing human history as well as geology and marine biology. Her language had a poetic quality. Carson consulted no less than 1,000 printed sources. She had voluminous correspondence and frequent discussions with experts in the field. However, she always realized the limitations of her non-technical readers. In 1962, Carson published Silence Spring, a book that sparked considerable controversy. It proved how much harm was done by the uncontrolled, reckless use of insecticides. She detailed how they poison the food supply of animals, kill birds, and contaminate human food. At that time, spokes men for the chemical industry mounted personal attacks against Carson and issued propaganda to indicate that her findings were flawed. However, her work was vindicated by a 1963 report of the President's Science Advisory Committee.
1. The passage mainly discusses Rachel Carson's work:

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Carols were first sung in Europe thousands of years ago, but these were not Christmas Carols. They were pagan songs, sung at the Winter Solstice celebrations as people danced round stone circles. Carols used to be written and sung during all four seasons, but only the tradition of singing them at Christmas has really survived. Early Christians took over the pagan solstice celebrations for Christmas and gave people Christian songs to sing instead of pagan ones. However, not many people liked them as they were all written and sung in Latin, a language that the normal people couldn’t understand. This was changed by St. Francis of Assisi when, in 1223, he started his Nativity Plays in Italy. The people in the plays sang songs or ‘canticles’ that told the story during the plays. Sometimes, the choruses of these new carols were in Latin; but normally they were all in a language that the people watching the play could understand and join in! The new carols spread to France, Spain, Germany and other European countries. The earliest carol, like this, was written in 1410. Sadly only a very small fragment of it still exists. Most Carols from this time and the Elizabethan period are untrue stories, very loosely based on the Christmas story, about the holy family and were seen as entertaining rather than religious songs. They were usually sung in homes rather than in churches! Traveling singers or Minstrels started singing these carols and the words were changed for the local people wherever they were traveling. Before carol singing in public became popular, there were sometimes official carol singers called ‘Waits’. These were bands of people led by important local leaders who had the only power in the towns and villages to take money from the public. Also, at this time, many orchestras and choirs were being set up in the cities of England and people wanted Christmas songs to sing, so carols once again became popular. New carols services were created and became popular, as did the custom of singing carols in the streets. Both of these customs are still popular today! One of the most popular types of Carols services are Carols by Candlelight services. At this service, the church is only lit by candlelight and it feels very Christmassy! Carols by Candlelight services are held in
countries all over the world.
2. The word “them” in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to _______

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Our eyes are the window to our soul, so the saying goes, but they’re also a window into our health. Picking up eye problems early can significantly (1) ____ the chance of sight loss.  Several programs are looking at how to combine existing medical knowledge about our eyes with AI (Artificial Intelligence) tools.  Google DeepMind has teamed up with Moorfields Eye Hospital in London to work on (2) ____ two major conditions that cause sight loss: diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular (3) ____ (AMD). Together, these eye diseases affect more than 625,000 people in the UK and over 100 million people worldwide.  Algorithms have been trained using thousands of eye scans, then set to work detecting potential issues, allowing doctors (4) ____ the right course of action in a fraction of the time it would normally take and with a greater degree of certainty. DeepMind says that 300,000 UK patients a year could be helped (5) ____ the system is given the go ahead for general use following the completion of clinical trials