Reading passage 1

A. It is the New Years Eve in Reality, Mexico, and the rebel kids are dancing. The band plays marimba music over the murmur of a generator; people make their own power in Reality. The dancers all Tojolabal Indians are like teenagers everywhere: They giggle and flirt and then dance together shyly, but in Reality some are militants, trained to carry arms for the rebellion. They are among several thousand Zapatistas, a group of rebels from all over the southern state of Chiapas that has helped focus the mood and may be the future of the huge, emerging nation of Mexico. B. Like their oddly named town, La Realidad, these kids are symbolic. Desperate, poor, reeling from setbacks but still determined to win their cause of land reform and representative government, they are like most of Mexico. And, like Mexico, they may appear to be just dancing, but actually they are poised, waiting for a momentous change. C. Tonight the people of La Realidad expect word from their charismatic leader, who wears a ski mask and bandoliers of bullets and calls himself Sub-commandant Marcos. Will there be more violence? Will there be peace? D. Across Mexico people are waiting. Driven by the decay of the old political order by the pressure of financial disaster, by modern links to the outside world, and by a gradual building of agitation at all levels, change seems inevitable. But its direction is unknown. Will there be economic collapse and civil war, as some fear, or is this tension a necessary prelude to the emergence of a revitalized Mexico ready to fulfill its promise as one of the great nations of the world? E. At the end of a hard century, Mexico is struggling. This country, 756,000 square miles of desert, forest, highlands, volcanoes, endless seashores, and trembling earth, populated by 95 million people, is classified the jargon of world economics as a developing nation*Mexicos people are poor they have a per capita income of $4,000, compared with $25,800 in the United State. In many places, including large parts of its cities, living conditions squalid. Drug trafficking is increasing. Pollution is legendary. Politics are in turmoil. And, through the country is a partner in a dramatic new experiment in tread, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Mexico has been battered by the recent devaluation of its currency. The gap between rich and poor is widening. The poor both the cramped residents of the teeming cities and the indigenous people of the forests- are growing restless. Even the relatively small middle class has conducted protests and work disruptions. Everyone, it seems, wants something new. F. THE AIR OVER MEXICO is as hot and turbulent as the land below. Ive spent a lot of time in it recently, flying my small Cessna from the bustling north to the old colonial heartland in the center, to the strife- torn jungles

of the south, learning about both the turbulence and the emergence of Mexico. G. My first view was of its human geography. The patterns people have left over the past 500 years of living and working on this land tell a single story: Across a geography shaped by fire, food, and blowing sand, Mexicans have woven a complicated tapestry of village, city, and farm vastly different from the disciplined landscape to the north of the border. In the U. S. and Canada, geometric boundaries make a checkerboard on the land that looks printed by machine. But in Mexico every field has its own shape and each road its unexpected curve. The landscape looks handmade. And when I landed here and found friends among the countrys warm people, I realized that if I was to comprehend todays Mexico, I must first understand the fundamental differences and unexpected strengths these patterns reveal. Source: National Geographic Questions You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1 to 14 which are based on Reading Passage 1 Questions 1 to 7 Reading Passage 1 has seven paragraphs A G. From the list of headings below, choose the most suitable heading for each paragraph. Write the appropriate numbers I ix in boxes 1 7 on your answer sheet.

i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix.

The New Years Eve in Reality. The expectation. The emergence of a revitalized Mexico. The turbulence and the emergence. The struggle for a better future. Mexico is struggling. 1 Paragraph A 2 Paragraph Its human geography.B 3 Paragraph C Enthusiasm gap. 4 Paragraph D 5 Paragraph E Waiting for a momentous 6 Paragraph F change. 7 Paragraph G

Questions 8 10 Choose the correct letters, A, B, C or D Write your answers in boxes 8 10 on your answer sheet. 8 Mexico is a complicated A.
B.

C. D.
9

Country with varied landscape. Tapestry of village, city, and farm. Tapestry of high rises. An uneven land of enthusiastic people.
The total area of Mexico is

A. B. C. D. 10 A. B. C. D.

765,000 675,000 756,000 746,000

square square square square

kilometres. miles. miles. miles.

The community that is growing restless in Mexico is The The The The rich. poor. middle class. lower class.

Questions 11 14 Complete each of the following statements (questions 11 14) with the best endings A G from the box below Write the appropriate letters A G in boxes 11 14 on your answer sheet.
11 La Realidad is

12 13
14

Mexicos per capita income is NAFTA stands for

Mexico is suffering for

A $ 25000. B Their peoples greed. C A town with an odd name. D $ 4000. E Their political messing up.
F North American Foreign Treaty Agreement.

Reading passage 2
A. Fashion is a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing. The more technical term, costume, has become so linked in the public eye with the term "fashion" that the more general term "costume" has in popular use mostly been relegated to special senses like fancy dress or masquerade wear, while the term "fashion" means clothing generally, and the study of it. For a broad cross-cultural look at clothing and its place in society, refer to the entries for clothing, costume and fabrics. The remainder of this article deals with clothing fashions in the Western world. B. Changes in costume often took place at times of economic or social change (such as in ancient Rome and the medieval Caliphate), but then a long period without major changes followed. This occurred in Moorish Spain from the 8th century, when the famous musician Ziryab introduced sophisticated clothing styles based on seasonal and daily timings from his native Baghdad and his own inspiration to Crdoba, Spain. Similar changes in fashion occurred in the Middle East from the 11th century, following the arrival of the Turks who introduced clothing styles from Central Asia and the Far East. C. The beginnings of the habit in Europe of continual and increasingly rapid change in clothing styles can be fairly reliably dated to the middle of the 14th century, to which Fernand Braudel date the start of Western fashion in clothing. The most dramatic manifestation was a sudden drastic shortening and tightening of the male over-garment, from calf-length to barely covering the buttocks, sometimes accompanied with stuffing on the chest to look bigger. This created the distinctive Western male outline of a tailored top worn over leggings or trousers. D. The pace of change accelerated considerably in the following century, and women and men's fashion, especially in the dressing and adorning of the hair, became equally complex and changing. Art historians are therefore able to use fashion in dating images with increasing confidence and precision, often within five years in the case of 15th century images. Initially changes in fashion led to a fragmentation of what had previously been very similar styles of dressing across the upper classes of Europe, and the development of distinctive national styles. These remained very different until a counter-movement in the 17th to 18th centuries imposed similar styles once again, mostly originating from Ancien Rgime France. Though the rich usually led fashion, the increasing affluence of early modern Europe led to the bourgeoisie and even peasants following trends at a distance sometimes uncomfortably close for the elites - a factor Braudel regards as one of the main motors of changing fashion.

E. Ten 16th century portraits of German or Italian gentlemen may show ten entirely different hats, and at this period national differences were at their most pronounced, as Albrecht Drer recorded in his actual or composite contrast of Nuremberg and Venetian fashions at the close of the 15th century (illustration, right). The "Spanish style" of the end of the century began the move back to synchronicity among upper-class Europeans, and after a struggle in the mid 17th century, French styles decisively took over leadership, a process completed in the 18th century. F. Though colours and patterns of textiles changed from year to year, the cut of a gentleman's coat and the length of his waistcoat, or the pattern to which a lady's dress was cut changed more slowly. Men's fashions largely derived from military models, and changes in a European male silhouette are galvanized in theatres of European war, where gentleman officers had opportunities to make notes of foreign styles: an example is the "Steinkirk" cravat or necktie. G. The pace of change picked up in the 1780s with the increased publication of French engravings that showed the latest Paris styles; though there had been distribution of dressed dolls from France as patterns since the 16th century, and Abraham Bosse had produced engravings of fashion from the 1620s. By 1800, all Western Europeans were dressing alike (or thought they were): local variation became first a sign of provincial culture, and then a badge of the conservative peasant. Questions You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 15 27 which are based on Reading Passage 2 Questions 15 19 Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2? In boxes 15 -19 in 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 15. Fashion refers to a genre of style and attitude. 16. Fashion moves in a cyclic manner from generations. 17. The "Spanish style" of the end of the century began the move back to synchronicity. 18. Art historians are able to use fashion in dating images with confidence and precision. 19. The beginnings of the habit in Europe of continual change in clothing styles can be dated to the 14th century.

Question 20 23

Look at the following persons (questions 20 23) and the list of statements below. Match each person to the correct statement. Write the correct letter A G in boxes 1 4 on your answer sheet. 20. Albrecht Drer 21. Art historians 22. Abraham Bosse 23. Fernand Braudel A Recorded in his actual or composite contrast of Nuremberg and Venetian fashions. B Able to use fashion in dating images. C Produced engravings of fashion from the 1620s. D Redefined the French fashion. E Works on the Victorian fashion.

Questions 24 27 Complete the following statements with the correct alternative from the box. Write the correct letter A F in boxes 24 27 on your answer sheet. 24. 25. 26. 27. Ten 16th century portraits of German or Italian gentlemen The pace of change picked up The most dramatic manifestation was a sudden drastic Initially changes in fashion led to

A A unification. B In the 1780s. C In the 1680s. D Shortening and tightening of the male overgarment. E A fragmentation. Reading Passage 3 A. IN FRANCE workers angry about pension reforms have blockaded fuel refineries, causing 4,000 petrol stations to run dry. The Netherlands recently elected minority government depends for survival on support from a Muslim-baiting populist. Economies across Europe are struggling to cope with sluggish growth, lacerating budget cuts and the after-effects of borrowing binges. But there is an exception to the gloomy European rule.

B. No big developed country has come out of the global recession looking stronger than Germany has. The economy minister, Rainer Brderle, boasts of an XL upswing. Exports are booming and unemployment is expected to fall to levels last seen in the early 1990s. The government is a stable, though sometimes fractious, coalition of three mainstream parties. The shrillest protest is aimed at a huge new railway project in Stuttgart. Amid the truculence and turmoil around it, Germany appears an oasis of tranquillity. C. To many of its friends and neighbours, though, the paragon is a disappointment. Its sharp-elbowed behaviour during the near-collapse of the euro earlier this year heightened concerns about Germanys role in the world that have been stirring ever since unification 20 years ago. Speeches, seminars and scholarly articles by nervous Germans and Germany-watchers are a booming cottage industry. D. A recent essay published by Bruegel, a Brussels think-tank, explains why Germany fell out of love with Europe. Another, from the European Council on Foreign Relations, alleges that Germany is going global alone. Jrgen Habermas, Germanys most distinguished living philosopher, accuses his country of pursuing an inward-looking national policy. How can you not ask Germany questions about its vision of the future of Europe? wonders Jacques Delors, who was president of the European Commission when the Berlin Wall fell. Even a pacific and prosperous Germany causes international angst. E. The German question never dies. Instead, like a flu virus, it mutates. On the eve of unification some European leaders worried that it would resume killer form. Weve beaten the Germans twice and now theyre back, said Margaret Thatcher, Britains prime minister. Such fears now look comical. But even todays mild strain causes aches and pains, which afflict different regions in different ways. Americas symptoms are mild. Central Europe seems to have acquired immunity. After unification 85% of Poles looked upon Germany as a threat, recalls Eugeniusz Smolar of the Centre for International Relations in Warsaw. Now just a fifth do. It is among Germanys long-standing west and south European partners that the German question feels debilitating, and where a dangerous flare-up still seems a possibility. Germanys answer to the question matters not only to them. It will shape Europe, and therefore the world. F. Germans have not forgotten that their country was the author of the horrors of the 1930s and 1940s but, says Renate Kocher of Allensbach, a polling firm, they want to draw a line under the past. That does not mean ignoring its lessons or neglecting to teach them to the next generation. A new exhibition on Hitler and the Germans at the German Historical Museum in Berlin is drawing blockbuster crowds. But Germans are no longer so ready to be put on the moral defensive or to view the

Nazi era as the defining episode of their past. Even non-Germans seem willing to move on. G. Recent books like Germania and The German Genius suggest that English-language publishing may be entering a post-swastika phase. Germany still atones but now also preaches, usually on the evils of debt, the importance of nurturing industry and the superiority of long-term thinking in enterprise. Others are disposed to listen. Everyone orients himself towards Germany, says John Kornblum, a former American ambassador. Source: The Guardian Questions You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 28 40 which are based on Reading Passage 3. Questions 28 32 The passage has seven paragraphs labelled AG. Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter A-G in boxes 28-32 on your answer sheet. NB: You may use any letter more than once. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. Workers are angry about pension reforms. Germany was the author of the horrors of the 1930s and 1940s. On the eve of unification some European leaders worried that it would resume killer form. Amid the truculence and turmoil around it, Germany appears an oasis of tranquillity. The German question, like a flu virus, mutates.

Questions 33 36 Complete the sentences below with words taken from Reading Passage 3. Use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 33-36 on your answer sheet.

33. 34. 35. 36.

A new exhibition on Hitler and the Germans at the German Historical Museum in Berlin is . Germanys answer to the question matters . Jrgen Habermas is Germanys most distinguished . Even a pacific and prosperous Germany causes .

Questions 37 40 Complete the summary of the paragraphs A C below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 37-40 on your answer sheet.

Countries around Europe are finding it hard to 37 . No big developed country has come out of the global recession looking 38 Germany appears 39 . To many of its friends and neighbours 40 ..