10/40
Academic Reading Practice Test 1
INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE TESTING SYSTEM
Candidate Name:
Candidate Number:
Additional materials
• Sample Answer sheet for Reading
• Practice Test 1 – Answers
Time:
60 minutes
Instructions to candidates:
• Do not open this question paper until you are told to do so.
• Write your name and candidate number in the space at the top of this page.
• Read the instructions for each part of the paper carefully.
• Answer all the questions.
• Write your answer on the answer sheet. Use a pencil.
• You must complete the answer sheet within the time limit.
• At the end of the test, hand in both this question paper and your answer sheet.
Information for candidates:
• There are 40 questions on this paper.
• Each question carries one mark.
PRACTICE TEST 1 1
READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1–13, which are based on Reading
Passage 1 on pages 3 and 4.
Questions 1–5
Reading Passage 1 has eight paragraphs, A–H.
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i–x, in boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i A healthier option
ii Asian countries know best
iii Fast food companies go healthy
iv A growing business
v Importance of good eating habits
vi Mixed messages
vii A return to dairy products
viii Healthy becomes unhealthy
ix Allergies to dairy unhealthy (fast food) becomes healthy
x Concern over negative
i 1 Paragraph C
vii 2 Paragraph D viii
x 3 Paragraph E v
v 4 Paragraph G x
viii 5 Paragraph H iii
PRACTICE TEST 1 2
Good for you or not good for you? That is the question.
A return to dairy products
A At no time in history has the world’s population ever been so well-informed about
nutrition and health. Consumers in the developed world are constantly bombarded with
advertising messages which promote the health benefits of a wide range of food
products. However, they are also exposed to the constant promotion of junk food as
well. Fast food companies have become sensitive to the criticisms they face over the
potential damage their food causes and have begun to vigorously defend the nutritional
value of the meals they serve. With this constant flow of messages – often contradictory
– how are today’s consumers supposed to determine precisely what is healthy to eat?
B According to nutritionist Susan McCaskill, many people today intend to eat healthily, but
have become confused about how to do so. “It is not just that the traditional definitions
of a healthy diet have changed, though this is certainly significant. Many grew up being
told that the more milk you drank, the healthier you would be. Then dairy foods became
‘bad’ in the eyes of many health professionals and many people sought alternatives to it.
Now these alternatives are coming under the same sort of criticism.”
C The alternative McCaskill is referring to is soya milk. A generation of consumers who
were labelled allergic to cow’s milk products embraced soya substitutes enthusiastically.
In fact, the soya bean itself was promoted as a kind of miracle food overall. Claims were
made it had the potential to not only provide all the protein required for a healthy diet,
but that it could prevent heart disease and cancer. Slogans such as “It’s Soy Good for
you...” began to appear in nutritional advice columns.
D Now suddenly you can find messages on health-related websites claiming “It’s not soy
good” and even “It’s SOY bad for you.” A generation of health-conscious eaters who
previously abandoned milk products for soy are now worried and confused. The same
negative
chemicals (known as isoflavones) in soya beans which were claimed to fight cancer and aspects
other diseases are now listed as the cause of some cancers, and are also implicated in
hormonal problems and thyroid gland disorders. Dr David Steinman of the Eastern
Sydney University Medical School considers the praise of soya products in many
alternative health circles to be without scientific foundation. “Soya proponents suggest
we look to the health statistics of Asian countries as proof of the benefits of soy. When
we look closely at the countries where soya products are consumed regularly, it is clear
that though they are widely used, they are also eaten in very moderate quantities. Many
people seeking a healthy diet today are eating ten times that much soy, particularly
through drinking vast amounts of soya milk and eating other non-traditional foods such
as soya-based ice-cream.”
E Susan McCaskill considers the latest negative publicity about soy to be exaggerated,
but she admits that it does raise some very relevant questions. “It still appears to me
that soya beans have many notable nutritional benefits to offer, but the key thing here is
moderation. What frequently happens now is that people go from eating much too much
of one thing to eating too much of something else.”
PRACTICE TEST 1 3
the + adj = the poor, the rich
admit
F Both McCaskill and Steinman concede that the recent soya controversy is just one
example of how food fashions are confusing the health-conscious today. Red meat has
often been blamed for high rates of heart disease and other health problems, then has
been praised for its high iron content. Carbohydrate rich foods such as pasta, rice and
potatoes have been promoted since the seventies as healthy staples of our diet, and
then recently have received the blame for the growing numbers of people who are
seriously overweight.
G Dr Steinman echoes the words of McCaskill on one key point - moderation is the most
significant factor in any healthy diet. However, he fears that modern obsessions with
perfect food habits can simply leave people so discouraged that they give up
completely. “If you rush to a new diet because you’ve been told your old one was bad,
then find the new one has its own critics, what do you do next? I worry that many will
simply stop thinking about healthy eating habits and head to the nearest fast food
outlet.”
H It is certainly undeniable that the fast food industry is booming. Whether this is because
of confused and discouraged eaters of health food is difficult to determine. What is
clear, however, is that advertisers are working harder and harder to influence the
world’s eating habits, and that the needs of both health enthusiasts and fast food
customers are now coming together: the fastest growing customer base in many major
fast food chains is now people attracted by their new “healthy choices.” The question
remains: who will decide in the end precisely what a healthy choice is?
PRACTICE TEST 1 4
Questions 6–10
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 6–10 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
not given 6 Fast food companies admit that the food they serve is unhealthy. False
true 7 Soy products have been proven to stop certain illnesses. False without scientific foundation
true 8 Some health-conscious people are overconsuming certain foods.
true 9 One health expert worries that frustration might stop people maintaining a good diet.
false 10 Fast food advertising will increasingly influence what people think is healthy. NG
vegetables
Questions 11–13
Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.
Write the correct letter in boxes 11–13 on your answer sheet.
confused
A 11 People are unsure about what is considered healthy because
A dairy foods are now considered unhealthy. B
B the healthier replacements to unhealthy foods are being criticised.
C junk food is promoted as being healthy.
D healthy foods are no longer available.
A 12 According to the article, soya can be considered healthy because
A it has been found to be a miracle food.
B it doesn’t promote allergies as dairy products do. C
C healthy people in Asia eat it in average amounts.
D it can prevent serious illnesses.
A 13 The main reason for the increase in fast food customers is
A the option of healthier food.
B effective advertising.
C confusion about healthy food choices.
D people giving up trying to eat healthy food.
PRACTICE TEST 1 5
READING PASSAGE 2
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14–26, which are based on Reading
Passage 2 on pages 6 and 7.
The Panama Canal
A The Panama Canal is an artificial waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific
Oceans. It is a major conduit for maritime trade. Prior to its opening in 1914, ships
travelling between the east and west coasts of the United States had been obliged to
round Cape Horn at the tip of South America. Passage through the canal shortens this
voyage by around 15,000 kilometres. The Panama Canal is still dwarfed by the world’s
other great artificial waterway, the Suez Canal, which measures 193 kilometres from one
end to the other. The Panama Canal is 111 kilometres shorter than its counterpart in
Egypt, at 82 kilometres.
B The Panama Canal uses locks to lift ships up to Gatun Lake, an artificial lake that was
created to reduce the amount of excavation required to build the canal, and then lower
them back down to sea level at the other end. A ship takes an average of 25 hours to
negotiate the canal from one end to the other, though this includes waiting time. Once
tolls have been paid and important papers inspected by officials, a ship can begin its
transit of the canal itself, which usually takes around 10 hours. Smaller craft are
permitted to move through the locks unassisted, but larger ones must at this point be
attached to locomotives that run along tracks on the walls of the lock. These serve to
keep the vessel centred in the lock and prevent any contact with the lock itself. Local
pilots with extensive experience navigating the canal board the vessel and slowly move
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it forward into the first chamber. The locks essentially function like elevators. The first
chamber is sealed off by closing the lock gates behind the ship, and operators then
allow water to flow in. The adjacent chamber supplies this water, which raises the level
of the ship, allowing it to move forward. The system relies not on machinery but gravity
to move water from one chamber to the next. This process continues until the ships
reaches the level of Gatun Lake, and is then repeated in reverse at the other end.
C The first attempt to construct a canal through the then-Colombian province of Panama
began in 1881 when the Colombian government granted a concession to a privately
owned French company. Under the leadership of Ferdinand de Lesseps, the company
was able to raise capital from small investors because of de Lesseps’ previous success
building the Suez Canal in Egypt. Even though the Panama Canal only needed to be half
the length of the Suez Canal, the project was significantly more challenging. The French
eventually abandoned the project in 1889, by which time around 22,000 workers had
lost their lives.
D The United States formally took control of the canal property in 1904. This was following
the passage of the Spooner Act by Congress in 1902, which authorised the purchase of
the French company’s assets and construction of the canal, provided that a treaty could
be negotiated with Colombia. When treaty negotiations broke down, Panama, with the
backing of the United States, declared its independence, which allowed the Hay–Bunau-
Varilla Treaty to be negotiated between the United States and Panama. As a newly
established republic, Panama was seeking the protection of the United States, which
the United States was willing to guarantee in exchange for control of a 16-kilometre
strip across the Isthmus of Panama. The United States also agreed to pay Panama an
initial sum of $10 million, as well as a $250,000 annuity that would begin nine years after
the opening of the canal.
PRACTICE TEST 1 6
E There were challenges during construction, but the Americans made solid progress, and
the canal was finally opened to traffic in 1914. The United States retained sole control of
the canal and the surrounding Panama Canal Zone until the signing of the Torrijos–
Carter Treaties in 1977. These treaties provided for the handover of the canal to
Panama, which would not be completely realised until 1999. The canal was initially
administered by the Panama Canal Commission, a joint US–Panama agency set up to
manage the canal in the intervening years. The canal is now administered by the
Panama Canal Authority, which was set up in 1997 in preparation for the handover.
F Despite having enjoyed a privileged position for many years, the Panama Canal is facing
increasing competition from other routes. Much of this competition comes from the
Suez Canal, which, despite being half a world away, is often seen as a viable alternative
route for cargo being transported from Asia to the US East Coast. This is partly because
of its lower tolls, but also because it can more easily accommodate larger ships. As a
sea-level canal, locks were not needed and construction was more straightforward,
which meant they were able to build a relatively wide canal to accommodate fully laden
ships up to 50 metres wide. The Panama Canal could originally handle ships with a width
of up to 32.31 metres, but in order to retain the market share it was losing to other
routes, including the Suez Canal, a project to build a third set of locks was begun in
2007. Completed in 2015, these locks now allow ships up to 51.25 metres wide to pass
through the canal, but the maximum vessel height remains unchanged at 57.91 metres
due to the need to fit under the Bridge of the Americas, which spans the Pacific
entrance to the canal.
PRACTICE TEST 1 7
Questions 14–19
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each
answer.
Write your answers in boxes 14–19 on your answer sheet.
14 The Panama Canal is long.
15 Gatun Lake was created so that less would be needed.
16 Water is transferred between the lock chambers using .
17 Ferdinand de Lesseps’ company was funded by .
18 Under the terms of the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty, Panama received financial
compensation and .
19 Panama gained full control of the Panama Canal in .
PRACTICE TEST 1 8
Questions 20–23
Complete the flow-chart below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 20–23 on your answer sheet.
Navigating the locks
Documents are checked and 20 are collected.
Expert 21 take control of the ship.
If the ship is large, 22 are used to stop it from hitting the lock walls.
The ship enters the first chamber and the lock gates are closed.
Water from the 23 is used to lift up the ship.
The ship enters the next chamber.
Questions 24–26
Complete the table below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each
answer.
Write your answers in the boxes 24–26 on your answer sheet.
Canal Type of canal Current maximum ship width
Suez 24 \ 25 \
Panama Lock 26 \
PRACTICE TEST 1 9
READING PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27–40, which are based on Reading
Passage 3 on pages 10 and 11.
Sensory Overload
A Are you suffering from a feeling of annoyance? Does life seem to get more and more
irritating all the time? Do you struggle day to day just to stay calm and clear-headed in
the face of more and more frustrating experiences? If your answer to these questions is
“YES,” you are not alone. In fact, you are part of a growing trend that demonstrates the
significance of the small events which annoy us on a day to day basis.
B According to psychologist Maurice Penman, inhabitants of today’s modern cities face a
far more aggressive range of sensory experiences than ever before. “It is not simply that
the pace of life is faster in today’s world, or that people are under more pressure at
work. Of course, both those things are true. But today people are exposed to a greater
number of both visual and auditory stimuli. Basically, this means we are being asked to
both look at and listen to far more than we ever have been before."
C However, Penman is quick to point out that many of the things which are contributing to
these problems are also the same things many of us value. A greater sense of irritation
is the price we pay for the convenience of the Internet and mobile phones. “Mobile
phones are a very significant example to consider. There is no doubt that they are useful
in a multitude of ways, and most people do not want to go back to the days before
them. But at the same time, mobile phones have almost completely destroyed a sense
of quiet public space. There was a time when you could rely on public transport being
relatively quiet, a place to think about the events of the day on the way home. Now a
bus or a train carriage can feel like being locked in a busy office.”
D The increase in sensory demands is not just due to the use of mobile phones.
Advertisers are reaching out to potential consumers more aggressively than ever. News
services are now broadcast on buses and at train platforms. Family meals are frequently
interrupted by telephone canvassers and email users are often forced to deal with an
avalanche of unsolicited promotional messages, or “SPAM”. One could easily imagine
that our children and their children may have to guard their homes from an
overwhelming amount of annoyance.
PRACTICE TEST 1 10
E While it is difficult to deny the growth in these increasingly annoying events in our day,
is there actually any real significance to these facts? Penman argues: “There is no doubt
that on the surface, this increase of stimuli in our day simply appears to be a matter of
minor annoyance. But when we look closely, we can see that this has the potential to
significantly affect our psychological health.” He goes on to explain that if exposure to
these irritations is frequent and prolonged, very subtly our stress levels begin to rise. As
they do, we find there is a compound effect. Stress from the minor episodes in the day
starts to increase our feeling of pressure when faced with major challenges at work. We
are increasingly carrying a greater and greater stress load, with opportunities to relax
and unwind more and more restricted. Penman points out that even though we all
sometimes crave stimulation, we have become so obsessed with it in the twenty-first
century that it has now become almost impossible to avoid. Shops increasingly feel the
need to play loud, thumping rock or techno music. Advertising becomes more and more
energetically aggressive all the time. This, Penman maintains, prevents us from dealing
with our daily stress and eliminating it from our systems. He adds: “You really do need to
get right out of the city and into a quiet space now, though most of us are too busy to
do that very often.”
F It might be easy for critics to dismiss the annoying experience of too many mobile
phones on the bus, or any of the other stimuli Maurice Penman cites. However, it is the
failure to eliminate stress which leads to potentially fatal consequences. If these daily
distractions are contributing seriously to our stress levels, then Penman has identified a
significant danger. We now know that stress truly is a killer, and has been implicated in
the rise of depression, heart disease and even weight problems, as it increases
hormones in the body which stimulate the appetite for fattening carbohydrate-rich
foods.
G There is no denying that Maurice Penn's main arguments are compelling. It seems that
stress has become so prevalent that people are getting stressed about their levels of
stress. But what are we supposed to do? He suggests we do everything we can to go
within ourselves and try to maintain a sense of personal peace and space. He
recommends the use of meditation and relaxation tapes, exercise at the end of the day
whenever possible and greater emphasis on fun. Unfortunately, Maurice Penman had no
suggestions for those of us who find meditation frustrating, or who get annoyed at
relaxation tapes. He had no recommendations for days when you can’t find any
equipment you need in the gym, or find yourself irritated at those around you who keep
saying you need to have more fun.
PRACTICE TEST 1 11
Questions 27–33
Reading Passage 3 has 8 paragraphs, A–H.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A–H, in boxes 27–33 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once.
harmful
C 27 an example of how a place has changed due to modern conveniences
E 28 physical effects of stress F
B 29 a recommendation of how to deal with modern-day pressures and over-stimulation E
A 30 an explanation of sensory overload and today’s irritations that cause stress B
G31 an assertion about people’s level of stress
minor annoyance
D32 a reason why small amounts of stress can feel greater E
H33 a prediction about growing irritations and interruptions to our personal space D
Questions 34–37
Complete the summary below.
Choose NO MORE THAN FOUR WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 34–37 on your answer sheet.
People in today’s world are faced with much more 34 visual and auditory stimulation
than they used to be. On a daily basis, our modern conveniences represent small but
significant 35 useful , which contribute to increasing levels of stress.
Psychologist Maurice Penman suggests that because people 36 from
time to time, we are now in a world where we can’t escape it. However, we must escape it
and relax or there could possibly be 37 .
Questions 38–40
Answer the questions below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in the boxes 38–40 on your answer sheet.
38 What word is used to describe how advertising has become? aggressive
fattening food
39 What does stress make you want to eat?
40 What does Penman believe people should place more importance on in order to relieve
stress? fun
PRACTICE TEST 1 12
