Test 1 (complete before class)

Passage 1: Growing of the Aging Society

GROWING OF THE AGING SOCIETY

A. American scientists say that the elderly are now healthier, happier and more
independent. The results of a study that has taken place over a 14-year period will
be released at the end of the month. The research will show that common health
disorders suffered by the elderly are affecting fewer people and happening after in
life.
B. Over the last 14 years, The National Long-term Health Care Survey has
gathered data from more than 20,000 males and females over the age of 65 about
their health and lifestyles. The group has analysed the results of data gathered in
1994 on conditions such as arthritis, high blood pressure and poor circulation;
these were the most common medical complaints for this age group. The results
show that these conditions are troubling a smaller proportion of people each year
and decreasing very quickly. Other diseases suffered by the elderly including
dementia, emphysema and arteriosclerosis are also affecting fewer people.
C. According to Kenneth Manton, a demographer from Duke University in North
Carolina, “the question of what should be considered normal ageing has really
changed.” He also mentioned that diseases suffered by many people around the age
of 65 in 1982 are now not occurring until people reach the age of 70-75.
D. It is clear that due to medical advances some diseases are not as prominent as
they used to be. However, there were also other factors influencing this change.
For instance, improvements in childhood nutrition in the first quarter of the
twentieth century gave many people a better start in life than was possible before.
E. The data also shows some negative changes in public health. The research
suggests that the
rise of respiratory conditions such as lung cancer and bronchitis may reflect
changing smoking habits and an increase in air pollution. Manton says that as we
have been exposed to worse and worse pollution, it is not surprising that some
people over the age of 60 are suffering as a result.
F. Manton also found that better-educated people are likely to live longer. For
instance, women of 65 with less than eight years of education are expected to live
to around 82. Those who studied more could be able to live seven years longer.
Whilst some of this can be attributed to better- educated people usually having a
higher income, Manton believes it is mainly because they pay closer attention to
their health.
G. Also, the survey estimated how independent people of 65 were and found a
striking trend. In the 1994 survey, almost 80% of them were able to complete
activities such as eating and dressing alone as well as handling difficult tasks, like
cooking and managing their financial affairs. This situation indicates an important
drop among disabled elderly people in the population. If 14 years ago, the apparent
trends in the US had continued, researchers believe that there would be one
million disabled elderly people in today’s population. Manton shows the trend
saved more than $200 billion for the US’s government’s Medicare system, and it
has suggested the elderly American population is less of a financial burden than
expected.
H. The growing number of independent elderly people is probably linked to the
huge increase in home medical aids. For instance, the research shows the use of
raising toilet seat covers and bath seats has increased by more than fifty per cent.
Also, these developments about health benefits are reported by the MacArthur
Foundation’s research group for successful ageing. It found the elderly who are
able to take care of themselves were more likely to stay healthy in their old age.
I. Retaining a certain level of daily physical activity may also help brain function,
according to Carl Cotman, a neuroscientist at the University of California at Irvine.
He found that rats exercising on
a treadmill have higher levels of a brain-derived neurotrophic factor in their brains.
He believes the hormone which holds neuron functions may prevent the active
human’s brain function from declining.
J. Teresa Seeman, a social epidemiologist at the University of Southern California
in Los Angeles, was conducting the same research. She found a line between self-
esteem and stress in people over 70. The elderly who do challenging activities such
as driving have more control of their mind and have a lower level of the stress
hormone cortisol in their brains. Chronically high levels of this hormone can cause
heart disease.
K. However, an independent life may have negative points. Seeman knew that the
elderly people that were living alone were able to retain higher levels of stress
hormones even when sleeping. The research indicates that elderly people are
happier if they can live an independent life but also acknowledge when they need
help.
L. Seeman says, “With many cases of research about ageing, these results help
common sense.” Also, the situations show that we may be ignoring some of the
simple factors. She mentions, “The sort of thing your grandmother always used to
talk to you about seems to be exactly right.”
II. IELTS Reading passage 1: Growing of the Aging Society - Questions

1. QUESTION 1-6

Reading Passage 1 has twelve paragraphs, A-L.

Choose the correct heading for paragraphs B-G from the list of headings below.
List of Headings
I. Disorders strike much later in life.
II. Drawbacks in public health.
III. Longevity based on high education.
IV. The elderly people of today got better nutrition when they were children.
V. The elderly are becoming more well off.
VI. Most of independent people over 65 complete activities themselves.
VII. Diseases have decreased recently.
1. Paragraph B
2. Paragraph C
3. Paragraph D
4. Paragraph E
5. Paragraph F
6. Paragraph G
2. QUESTION 7-13

Do the following statements reflect the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 1?
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
7. Smoking habits are a crucial cause in some cancers.
8. The better-educated elderly people tend to live longer.
9. People over 65 can independently manage a variety of tasks.
10. Elderly people have overcome dementia as a result of home medical aids.
11. Continuing physical exercises is likely to assist digestive function.
12. People over 70 who still do challenging things such as driving are able to lower
their level of the hormone cortisol which is linked to heart disease.
13. Isolation may cause a higher level of stress hormones.
READING PASSAGE 2
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14-26 which are based on
Reading Passage 2 below.
Space Flight Tourism
Falcon 1’s successful launch on 28th of September was an outstanding
achievement for the fledgeling space tourism industry. When a rocket made by
Space X in Hawthorne, California, reached an orbit of 500 kilometres from the
Earth, it became possible for privately developed rocket too.
Two days after the launch, Virgin Galactic started a business with the US National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration which will be accepted by US scientists
as a way of researching climate change using a spacecraft.
No doubt the civilian space flight industry is an exciting area and this was apparent
at the International Aeronautical Congress in Glasgow last month. It displayed
slick promotional videos, and models of the “Nearly Ready” spacecraft in orbit to
the people who would be investing money in the project.
However, in spite of increasing confidence, it is also necessary to be cautious: can
a civilian spacecraft be safe like holiday airlines? Gerardine Goh, a lawyer at DLR,
the German Aerospace Centre in Bonn and a member of Germany’s delegation to
the UN’s Office of Outer Space Affairs reported that as it is not global, there need
to be enforceable regulations in place to guarantee the safety of a civilian
spacecraft. She said, “Ships should be equipped to be seaworthy, aircraft should be
equipped to be airworthy but there is no legislation in place to ensure that a
spacecraft is spaceworthy.”
At the International Association for the Advancement of Space Safety, Goh is
planning to press the UN to force civilian space operators to warrant which
spacecraft are designed and built to minimum safety standards. She says, “Mass
commercial space flight does not currently have international safety regulations.”
and “We deeply need a UN treaty which offers us this.”
One way companies are planning to transport tourists into space is with a “mother
ship”, an aircraft which carries a rocket at an altitude of 16 kilometres before
launching it, says Goh. “But with launching the aircraft, the ICAO’s air safety
standards only apply to the mother ship and the rocket capsule until they are
separated. After that, we do not have any safety standards for the capsule itself. It
is a critical problem.”
From 16 kilometres to the Karman line, the point of 100 kilometres up where space
is considered to start, the rocket will be travelling within a legal vacuum. Here,
lawyers cannot agree on whether it is a plane or a rocket. Some insist that if you
are in a well-equipped functioning rocket, more strict safety measures should try to
be incorporated into the spaceship’s design.
The other aspects of the UN’s 1967 treaty for outer space exploration may be
discussed again if civilian space flight turns out to be successful. For example,
countries must consider how to rescue and repatriate astronauts crashing or landing
in their land. Also, governments have to decide if the money generated by the
space flight industry will be enough to cover the cost of rescuing space tourists.
Civilian space flight companies are very aware of the risks in this field as they
have already had the experience of dealing with a tragedy. Unfortunately, three
engineers were killed and another three were severely injured in 2007, when
nitrous oxide rocket fuel suddenly exploded during fuel flow tests at a Scaled
Composites facility in Mojave, California. The company is establishing
WhiteKnightTwo, a carrier aircraft and SpaceShip Two, a six-seater rocket for
Virgin Galactic. The facility was regulated by California’s health and safety
regulator, and it has now modified its technology to decrease the risks.
However, space flight’s dangers are far from just fuel issues. According to Laurent
Gathier of Dassault Aviation developing the VSH of a rocketpowered sub-orbital
tourist space plane, other critical safety factors are with depressurization risks,
passengers close to the engine and the activities of flight trajectories including
cosmic ray shielding.
Civilian space companies should incorporate the safety features into their designs.
For instance, the VSH will equip an ejector seat for all tourists and staff. It is a
device for bailing out of the spacecraft with a default of 40,000 feet (12
kilometres).
Goh’s vision is essentially against the Federal Aviation Administration Office of
Commercial Space Transportation (AST) and does not have any schemes to
regulate civilian space flight safety until 2012. The Commercial Space Launch
Amendments Act of 2004 mentions that George Nield as AST chief said, the
civilian space flight regulation must not “stifle” the developing technologies with
inconvenient rules.
Before launching, a hands-off approach to civilian space flight could be quite
risky. Goh said, “A lack of safety standards and a lot of operational burdens will
leave a commercial space flight in the dangerous activity categories in terms of the
insurance.” It means insurance costs will be very high. Critics who are developing
safety standards also insist that the “at-your-own-risk” mentality that is applied to
risky sports like scuba-diving should also be applied to civilian space flight.
Questions 14-20
Complete the summary.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 14-20 on your answer sheet.
On 28 September the emerging space tourism industry was enormous. In
Hawthorne, California, a rocket was erected by 14…………………….. Climate
change was monitored by 15……………………… in US National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration using its spacecraft. In Glasgow, at the International
Aeronautical meeting, it is apparent that civilian space flight industry is growing,
as it showed the 16……………………. spacecraft which promised sub-orbital
flights. Although developing confirmation, non-regulation is clear to
guarantee 17………………………. A method for space business is cooperating
with a 18………………………. conveyable at 16 kilometres in the skies. From 16
kilometres to 100 kilometres’ travelling may be available, but lawyers definitely
cannot agree with whether it is a 19………………………. or a
rocket. 20………………………… need to be revisited if civilian space flight
proves successful.
Questions 21-26
Complete each sentence with the correct ending A-I below.
Write the correct letter A-I in boxes 21-26 on your answer sheet.
21 Civilian space flight companies
22 Laurent Gathier
23 VSH devised for a safety
24 AST chief George Nield
25 Insurance costs
26 Critics
A assisted some minimum safety standards may prevent that.
B emphasised a civilian space flight must not be under a severe regulation for
technical advancement.
C hardly need a reminder of the danger when considering past experiences.
D will protect a commercial space flight.
E try to develop a module of safety regulations applied to civilian space flight.
F made up for an ejector seat for tourists and the crew in case of a craft
emergency in the skies.
G indicated the main safety problems were with passengers’ proximity to the
powerful engine.
H believed that scuba-diving should be applied to civilian space flight.
I kept costs stratospheric.
READING PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27-40 which are based on
Reading Passage 3 below.
Doctor’s Rights and Drinks
New Yorker John Davin started his campaign for election to Congress on 26th of
September 1922. Actually, he was not a politician, but a doctor who practiced in a
local city for 40 years at the top of his profession. Davin and other doctors with the
same opinions were faced with the task of arguing their cases in front of the
people. Also, they made a new political party, the Medical Rights League, and
decided that Davin should run as a candidate for the coming election. What did
they want? Beer, or more precisely, a doctor who had the right to prescribe it.
The Congress had legislated the law prohibiting the sale of alcohol in January
1920. The aim was to transform a nation of drinkers and gamblers into one of hard-
working, law-abiding, teetotal citizens. It was now illegal to sell or buy a drink that
included more than 0.5 per cent alcohol “for beverage purpose.” Only medical
alcohol was allowed, but the conditions were so strict. Doctors could prescribe
“liquor” when there was a “need to afford relief from a known ailment”. Patients
could not have more than a pint of liquor “within 10 days at any time”. Doctors
who needed to prescribe alcohol were approved for a permit. But the current law
said nothing about beer, traditional alcohol for ailments from anaemia to anthrax.
So, could they prescribe beer or not?
As doctors were requesting permission to prescribe beer, someone had to make a
decision. That person was Attorney General Mitchell Palmer, a staunch supporter
of Prohibition. To the delight of doctors and dismay of prohibitionists, he urged “it
was not the purpose of Congress to prohibit the use of liquor for non-beverage
usages.” The Congress accepted medicinal alcohol for non-beverage usages. It was
for “beer and other malt liquors.”
The Prohibitionists were very enraged. They had suspicions that doctors were in
league with the brewers and that their intentions were more to disrupt Prohibition
than for medicinal purposes. Although brandy and whisky might have some
medicinal advantages, in their view, beer was not needed at pharmacies.
Congressman Andrew Volstead, who drafted the National Prohibition Act,
criticized the decision saying “It is not a worthy argument that beer is medicine,”
“Everything in beer except the alcohol is similar to the bears that can be bought
without any prescription.” He immediately set up a supplementary bill that would
further restrict medicinal alcohol and ban “medical beer” altogether.
Now, it was the doctors’ turn to be infuriated. How dare politicians presume to tell
doctors what sort of things they could prescribe or how much. The merits of
medicinal alcohol were suddenly a topic of national debate. For a couple of
decades, doctors had been divided on the issue. Many insisted it was a treatment
for all manners of disease. Others removed a worthless remedy left from the past.
The American Medical Association (AMA), in 1917, denied the medicinal usage
of alcohol, “Its value in therapeutics as a tonic, stimulant or food has no scientific
basis.”
However, as Prohibition hit home, doctors’ enthusiasm for alcohol improved.
Articles admiring beer, wine and whisky spread among medical journals. One
doctor suggested champagne worked wonders in cases of scarlet fever. Beer was
warranted to treat sleeplessness. One of the US’s top doctors even insisted that
when children with diphtheria developed secondary infections, alcohol could save
them.
According to JAMA, the report said, “Impressive particularly was the sincerity of
the belief of a lot of physicians in the therapeutic effect of whisky within a limited
number of diseases.” “But equally impressive was the expressed belief of a limited
number of physicians of necessity within a lot of diseases.” The contents ran from
anaemia to uraemia, including influenza and indigestion, cancer, colds and heart
disease.

Questions 27-33
Do the following statements reflect the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 3?
In boxes 27-33 on your answer sheet, write
YES if the statement reflects the opinion of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the opinion of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
27 John Davin has been ready for the election to Congress.
28 The Medical Rights League was made to support the right to prescribe beer by
Davin and like-minded doctors.
29 It was illegal to sell or buy a beverage that contained over 0.5 per cent alcohol.
30 Congress only granted beer as medical alcohol.
31 As beer might have some benefit for medicinal use, it was in a pharmacy.
32 The American Medical Association (AMA) has funded a scientific basis.
33 If children have diphtheria, alcohol may cure them.
Questions 34-35
Choose the appropriate letters A-D and write them in boxes 34-35 on your answer
sheet.
34 In 1922, the reason John Davin began a campaign
A was against beer and other malt liquors.
B was to assert a doctor’s right to prescribe beer.
C was for the Medical Rights League’s duty.
D was to oppose strong-minded politicians.
35 In 1917, the American Medical Association (AMA)
A decided beer is a worthless remedy.
B declared beer has an effect as a tonic.
C decided beer won’t be any evidence of a medical basis.
D assisted a patient with cancer.
Questions 36-39
Complete the summary below.
Choose ONE word from Reading Passage 3 for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 36-39 on your answer sheet.
Once prohibition affected homes, doctors stimulated interests
in 36………………………. Besides, as doctors affirmed the effects of alcohol,
beer was guaranteed to cure 37……………………… When children
with 38……………………… transferred dual-infections, alcohol could save them.
According to 39………………………, most physicians believed the effects of
therapeutic usage of whisky in the treatment of a limited number of diseases to be
remarkably impressive.
Question 40
Choose the appropriate letter A-D and write it in box 40 on your answer sheet.
This text is taken from
A a medical textbook for a beginner.
B a critical research of the scientific basis of a beverage.
C a magazine article about alcohol issues.
D a document against government prohibition.
Test 2 (in class)
READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13 which are based on
Reading Passage 1 below.
“For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the
pack.”
– Rudyard Kipling, The Law for the Wolves
A wolf pack is an extremely well-organised family group with a well-defined
social structure and a clear-cut code of conduct. Every wolf has a certain place and
function within the pack and every member has to do its fair share of the work. The
supreme leader is a very experienced wolf – the alpha – who has dominance over
the whole pack. It is the protector and decision-maker and directs the others as to
where, when and what to hunt. However, it does not lead the pack into the hunt, for
it is far too valuable to risk being injured or killed. That is the responsibility of the
beta wolf, who assumes second place in the hierarchy of the pack. The beta takes
on the role of enforcer – fighter or ‘tough guy’– big, strong and very aggressive. It
is both the disciplinarian of the pack and the alpha’s bodyguard.
The tester, a watchful and distrustful character, will alert the alpha if it encounters
anything suspicious while it is scouting around looking for signs of trouble. It is
also the quality controller, ensuring that the others are deserving of their place in
the pack. It does this by creating a situation that tests their bravery and courage, by
starting a fight, for instance. At the bottom of the social ladder is the omega wolf,
subordinate and submissive to all the others, but often playing the role of
peacemaker by intervening in an intra-pack squabble and defusing the situation by
clowning around. Whereas the tester may create conflict, the omega is more likely
to resolve it.
The rest of the pack is made up of mid- to low-ranking non-breeding adults and the
immature offspring of the alpha and its mate. The size of the group varies from
around six to ten members or more, depending on the abundance of food and
numbers of the wolf population in general.
Wolves have earned themselves an undeserved reputation for being ruthless
predators and a danger to humans and livestock. The wolf has been portrayed in
fairy tales and folklore as a very bad creature, killing any people and other animals
it encounters. However, the truth is that wolves only kill to eat, never kill more
than they need, and rarely attack humans unless their safety is threatened in some
way. It has been suggested that hybrid wolf-dogs or wolves suffering from rabies
are actually responsible for many of the historical offences as well as more recent
incidents.
Wolves hunt mainly at night. They usually seek out large herbivores, such as deer,
although they also eat smaller animals, such as beavers, hares and rodents, if these
are obtainable. Some wolves in western Canada are known to fish for salmon. The
alpha wolf picks out a specific animal in a large herd by the scent it leaves behind.
The prey is often a very young, old or injured animal in poor condition. The alpha
signals to its hunters which animal to take down and when to strike by using tail
movements and the scent from a gland at the tip of its spine above the tail.
Wolves kill to survive. Obviously, they need to eat to maintain strength and health
but the way they feast on the prey also reinforces social order. Every member of
the family has a designated spot at the carcass and the alpha directs them to their
places through various ear postures: moving an ear forward, flattening it back
against the head or swivelling it around. The alpha wolf eats the prized internal
organs while the beta is entitled to the muscle-meat of the rump and thigh, and the
omega and other low ranks are assigned the intestinal contents and less desirable
parts such as the backbone and ribs.
The rigid class structure in a wolf pack entails frequent displays of supremacy and
respect. When a higher-ranking wolf approaches, a lesser-ranking wolf must slow
down, lower itself, and pass to the side with head averted to show deference; or, in
an extreme act of passive submission, it may roll onto its back, exposing its throat
and belly. The dominant wolf stands over it, stiff-legged and tall, asserting its
superiority and its authority in the pack.

Questions 1-6
Classify the following statements as referring to
A the alpha wolf
B the beta wolf
C the tester wolf
D the omega wolf
Write the correct letter, A, B, C or D in boxes 1–6 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once.
1 It is at the forefront of the pack when it makes a kill.
2 It tries to calm tensions and settle disputes between pack members.
3 It is the wolf in charge and maintains control over the pack.
4 It warns the leader of potential danger.
5 It protects the leader of the pack.
6 It sets up a trial to determine whether a wolf is worthy of its status in the pack.
Questions 7–13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage
1?
In boxes 7–13 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
7 Wolves are a constant danger to humans.
8 Crossbred wolves or sick wolves are most likely to blame for attacks on people.
9 Canadian wolves prefer to eat fish, namely salmon.
10 The wolf pack leader identifies a particular target for attack by its smell.
11 When wolves attack a herd, they go after the healthiest animal.
12 The piece of a dead animal that a wolf may eat depends on its status in the
pack.
13 A low-ranking wolf must show submission or the dominant wolf will attack it.
READING PASSAGE 2
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14-26 which are based on
Reading Passage 2 below.
Environmental medicine
– also called conservation medicine, ecological medicine, or medical geology –
A
In simple terms, environmental medicine deals with the interaction between human
and animal health and the environment. It concerns the adverse reactions that
people have on contact with or exposure to an environmental excitant 1. Ecological
health is its primary concern, especially emerging infectious diseases and
pathogens from insects, plants and vertebrate animals.
B
Practitioners of environmental medicine work in teams involving many other
specialists. As well as doctors, clinicians and medical researchers, there may be
marine and climate biologists, toxicologists, veterinarians, geospatial and
landscape analysts, even political scientists and economists. This is a very broad
approach to the rather simple concept that there are causes for all illnesses, and that
what we eat and drink or encounter in our surroundings has a direct impact on our
health.
C
Central to environmental medicine is the total load theory developed by the clinical
ecologist Theron Randolph, who postulated that illness occurs when the body’s
ability to detoxify environmental excitants has reached its capacity. His wide-
ranging perception of what makes up those stimuli includes chemical, physical,
biological and psychosocial factors. If a person with numerous and/or chronic
exposures to environmental chemicals suffers a psychological upset, for example,
this could overburden his immune system and result in actual physical illness. In
other words, disease is the product of multiple factors.
D
Another Randolph concept is that of individual susceptibility or the variability in
the response of individuals to toxic agents. Individuals may be susceptible to any
number of excitants but those exposed to the same risk factors do not necessarily
develop the same disease, due in large part to genetic predisposition; however, age,
gender, nutrition, emotional or physical stress, as well as the particular infectious
agents or chemicals and intensity of exposure, all contribute.
E
Adaptation is defined as the ability of an organism to adjust to gradually changing
circumstances of its existence, to survive and be successful in a particular
environment. Dr Randolph suggested that our bodies, designed for the Stone Age,
have not quite caught up with the modern age and consequently, many people
suffer diseases from maladaptation, or an inability to deal with some of the new
substances that are now part of our environment. He asserted that this could cause
exhaustion, irritability, depression, confusion and behavioural problems in
children. Numerous traditional medical practitioners, however, are very sceptical
of these assertions.
F
Looking at the environment and health together is a way of making distant and
nebulous notions, such as global warming, more immediate and important. Even a
slight rise in temperature, which the world is already experiencing, has immediate
effects. Mosquitoes can expand their range and feed on different migratory birds
than usual, resulting in these birds transferring a disease into other countries.
Suburban sprawl is seen as more than a socioeconomic problem for it brings an
immediate imbalance to the rural ecosystem, increasing population density so
people come into closer contact with disease-carrying rodents or other animals.
Deforestation also displaces feral animals that may then infect domesticated
animals, which enter the food chain and transmit the disease to people. These kinds
of connections are fundamental to environmental medicine and the threat of
zoonotic disease looms larger.
G
Zoonoses, diseases of animals transmissible to humans, are a huge concern.
Different types of pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, cause
zoonoses. Every year, millions of people worldwide get sick because of foodborne
bacteria such as salmonella and campylobacter, which cause fever, diarrhoea and
abdominal pain. Tens of thousands of people die from the rabies virus after being
bitten by rabid animals like dogs and bats. Viral zoonoses like avian influenza
(bird flu), swine flu (H1N1 virus) and Ebola are on the increase with more
frequent, often uncontainable, outbreaks. Some animals (particularly domestic
pets) pass on fungal infections to humans. Parasitic infection usually occurs when
people come into contact with food or water contaminated by animals that are
infected with parasites like cryptosporidium, trichinella, or worms.
H
As the human population of the planet increases, encroaching further on animal
domains and causing ecological change, inter-professional cooperation is crucial to
meet the challenges of dealing with the effects of climate change, emergent cross-
species pathogens, rising toxicity in air, water and soil, and uncontrolled
development and urbanisation. This can only happen if additional government
funds are channelled into the study and practice of environmental medicine.
———————–
1
an excitant is a substance which causes a physiological or behavioural response in
a person

Questions 14-19
Reading Passage 2 has eight paragraphs, A–H.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A–H, in boxes 14–19 on your answer sheet.
14 an explanation of how population expansion exposes humans to disease
15 the idea that each person can react differently to the same risk factors
16 types of disease-causing agents that move between species
17 examples of professionals working in the sphere of environmental medicine
18 a definition of environmental medicine
19 how ill health results from an accumulation of environmental stressors
Questions 20–26
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 20–26 on your answer sheet.
20 According to Dr Randolph, people get sick because of ……………….. – in
other words, a failure to adjust to the modern environment.
21 Vague, far-off concepts like global warming are made more urgent when
……………….. are studied together.
22 Rising temperatures result in more widespread distribution of disease because
some insects are able to …………………
23 Large-scale removal of trees forces wildlife from their habitat and brings them
into contact with …………………
24 Uncontrollable …………………. of zoonotic viruses are becoming more
numerous.
25 Collaboration between many disciplines is needed to confront the problems of
urban development, pollution, …………………. and new pathogens.
26 Environmental medicine should receive more ………..……….. to help it meet
future demands.
READING PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27-40 which are based on
Reading Passage 3 below.
Television and Sport
when the medium becomes the stadium
A
The relationship between television and sports is not widely thought of as
problematic. For many people, television is a simple medium through which sports
can be played, replayed, slowed down, and of course conveniently transmitted live
to homes across the planet. What is often overlooked, however, is how television
networks have reshaped the very foundations of an industry that they claim only to
document. Major television stations immediately seized the revenue-generating
prospects of televising sports and this has changed everything, from how they are
played to who has a chance to watch them.
B
Before television, for example, live matches could only be viewed in person. For
the majority of fans, who were unable to afford tickets to the top-flight matches, or
to travel the long distances required to see them, the only option was to attend a
local game instead, where the stakes were much lower. As a result, thriving social
networks and sporting communities formed around the efforts of teams in the third
and fourth divisions and below. With the advent of live TV, however, premier
matches suddenly became affordable and accessible to hundreds of millions of new
viewers. This shift in viewing patterns vacuumed out the support base of local
clubs, many of which ultimately folded.
C
For those on the more prosperous side of this shift in viewing behaviour, however,
the financial rewards are substantial. Television assisted in derailing long-held
concerns in many sports about whether athletes should remain amateurs or ‘go
pro’, and replaced this system with a new paradigm where nearly all athletes are
free to pursue stardom and to make money from their sporting prowess. For the last
few decades, top-level sports men and women have signed lucrative endorsement
deals and sponsorship contracts, turning many into multi-millionaires and also
allowing them to focus full-time on what really drives them. That they can do all
this without harming their prospects at the Olympic Games and other major
competitions is a significant benefit for these athletes.
D
The effects of television extend further, however, and in many instances have led
to changes in sporting codes themselves. Prior to televised coverage of the Winter
Olympics, for example, figure skating involved a component in which skaters drew
‘figures’ in the ice, which were later evaluated for the precision of their shapes.
This component translated poorly to the small screen, as viewers found the whole
procedure, including the judging of minute scratches on ice, to be monotonous and
dull. Ultimately, figures were scrapped in favour of a short programme featuring
more telegenic twists and jumps. Other sports are awash with similar regulatory
shifts – passing the ball back to the goalkeeper was banned in football after
gameplay at the 1990 World Cup was deemed overly defensive by television
viewers.
E
In addition to insinuating changes into sporting regulation, television also tends to
favour some individual sports over others. Some events, such as the Tour de
France, appear to benefit: on television it can be viewed in its entirety, whereas on-
site enthusiasts will only witness a tiny part of the spectacle. Wrestling, perhaps
due to an image problem that repelled younger (and highly prized) television
viewers, was scheduled for removal from the 2020 Olympic Games despite being a
founding sport and a fixture of the Olympics since 708 BC. Only after a fervent
outcry from supporters was that decision overturned.
F
Another change in the sporting landscape that television has triggered is the
framing of sports not merely in terms of the level of skill and athleticism involved,
but as personal narratives of triumph, shame and redemption on the part of
individual competitors. This is made easier and more convincing through the
power of close-up camera shots, profiles and commentary shown during extended
build-ups to live events. It also attracts television audiences – particularly women –
who may be less interested in the intricacies of the sport than they are in broader
‘human interest’ stories. As a result, many viewers are now more familiar with the
private agonies of famous athletes than with their record scores or matchday
tactics.
G
And what about the effects of male television viewership? Certainly, men have
always been willing to watch male athletes at the top of their game, but female
athletes participating in the same sports have typically attracted far less interest
and, as a result, have suffered greatly reduced exposure on television. Those sports
where women can draw the crowds – beach volleyball, for example – are often
those where female participants are encouraged to dress and behave in ways
oriented specifically toward a male demographic.
H
Does all this suggest the influence of television on sports has been overwhelmingly
negative? The answer will almost certainly depend on who among the various
stakeholders is asked. For all those who have lost out – lower-league teams,
athletes whose sports lack a certain visual appeal – there are numerous others who
have benefitted enormously from the partnership between television and sports,
and whose livelihoods now depend on it.

Questions 27-33
Reading Passage 3 has eight paragraphs, A–H.
Choose the correct heading for paragraphs A–H from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i–xi, in boxes 27–33 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i Gender bias in televised sport
ii More money-making opportunities
iii Mixed views on TV’s role in sports
iv Tickets to top matches too expensive
v A common misperception
vi Personal stories become the focus
vii Sports people become stars
viii Rules changed to please viewers
ix Lower-level teams lose out
x Skill levels improve
xi TV appeal influences sports’ success
27 Paragraph B
28 Paragraph C
29 Paragraph D
30 Paragraph E
31 Paragraph F
32 Paragraph G
33 Paragraph H
Questions 34–37
Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage
3?
In boxes 34–37 on your answer sheet, write
YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
34 Television networks were slow to recognise opportunities to make money
from televised sport.
35 The average sports fan travelled a long way to watch matches before live
television broadcasts.
36 Television has reduced the significance of an athlete’s amateur status.
37 The best athletes are now more interested in financial success rather than
sporting achievement.
Questions 38–40
Complete the notes below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 38–40 on your answer sheet.
Effect of television on individual sports
 Ice skating – viewers find ‘figures’ boring so they are replaced with
a 38………………..
 Back-passing banned in football.
 Tour de France great for TV, but wrestling initially dropped from Olympic
Games due to 39………………..
 Beach volleyball aimed at 40………………..