2

Exercise 4 Read the following text on the history of cupcakes and answer the questions on the opposite page.

While no one is quite certain where cupcakes came from, it is known that they made an appearance in the United States sometime in the 19th Century. Called Fairy Cakes in the United Kingdom, cupcakes revolutionized how cake was made and mothers across the land lauded the blessing. Prior to the introduction of the cupcake to the kitchens of America, cakes were made by weighing the ingredients. Cupcakes were made by measuring the ingredients for the first time. It has been suggested that this is perhaps where the term "cupcake" originated, since everything was measured in cups. Other origins of the name have also been offered, such as the fact they are baked in a cup but at one time, cupcakes were also called "number cakes". This name originated from the recipe, whereby it required "...once cup butter, two cups sugar, three cups flour, four eggs..." At one time, recipes called for cupcakes to be "...baked into little tins." Until the turn of the 20th century, cupcake pans were virtually unheard of forcing bakers to use more formidable cups for baking, unless they wanted to bake their small cakes into loaf form. Using hearth ovens, which needed longer cooking times for larger cakes, caused bakers to seek other ways to bake their cake and still have time to eat it. With the advent of the cupcake, not only were bakers able to achieve shorter cooking times, they were also able to change the way they prepared them once the baking part was finished. No longer did bakers need to create larger, heavier cakes. With the production of the cupcake, people could slake their desire for something small and sweet. Though cupcakes only recently developed an upsurge in popularity, causing a number of bakeries to specialize in just cupcakes, it was in 1919 when Hostess developed the precursor to the Hostess Chocolate Cupcake. The rich, creamy filling and chocolate icing was popular with consumers and a love affair was begun. Conveniently baked into a single serving, cupcakes provided a quick snack and permitted people to nibble on them whenever they wished. In addition, they were sinfully delicious to but their small size allowed them to feel good about not over eating. Cupcakes are now common in grocery store, pre-made and pre-iced. The baking aisle is filled with a large variety of cupcake papers, beginning with paper thin and progressing to a firm, rounded edge made of cardboard. So popular is the cupcake small artisan bakeries, creating nothing but cupcakes, have begun to spring up across the country. Selling for an average of $30 to $35 a dozen, they are dear, but if you want cupcakes that are head-turning, sometimes paying someone to decorate them in a unique or unusual way is the best way to go. A more recent trend, gaining in popularity, is cupcake towers in lieu of a more traditional wedding cake. Eating a cupcake can make you feel young again and with the variety of flavors and frostings that have progressed over the decades, there isn't an appetite or yen that can't be solved with a tasty cupcake.
Did You Know? If you want cupcakes fast, make a batch in advance and freeze them. Cupcakes freeze well and defrost quickly. Just set them out for an hour and then add frosting for a simple, quick dessert.

Hiriya School

0510/02/Gr.08

[Turn over]

Another name given to cupcakes

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Origin of the term cupcake

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Introduction of cupcake pans

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Features of cupcake liked by people

......................................................................................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................................................................................... .........................................................................................................................................................................

Average cost of a dozen of cupcakes .........................................................................................................................................................................

[8 marks]

Hiriya School

0510/02/Gr.08

[Turn over]

Exercise 5
Read the following text about laugh your way to health. Write a summary on the opposite page about the benefits of laughter. Your summary should be about 100 words. You should use your own words as far as possible. You will receive 6 marks for the content of your summary and up to 4 marks for the style and accuracy of your language.

Laugh Your Way to Health

In Jimmy Buffett's famous song, "Changes in Latitudes," a key line in the chorus is: "If we couldn't laugh, we would all go insane." This verse in this fun and somewhat philosophical song is supported by scientific research. Our mental health is positively enhanced by laughter. Using laughter as medicine is not a new concept. As early as the 14th Century, French surgeon Henri de Mondeville used humor therapy to aid recovery from surgery. He wrote: "Let the surgeon take care to regulate the whole regimen of the patient's life for joy and happiness, allowing his relatives and special friends to cheer him and by having someone tell him jokes." In the 1930s U.S. hospitals began to bring in clowns to cheer children hospitalized with polio. In 1972, the Gesundheit Institute was founded to bring "fun, friendship, and the joy of service back into health care." Norman Cousins calls laughter "internal jogging." Cousins had been diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, an experience that had led him to question Western medicine. Cousins found the treatments suggested by his doctors to be totally lacking, so he checked himself out of the hospital and checked into a hotel. From here on, he literally laughed himself back to health. He immersed himself in only funny movies and television shows. He enjoyed every one of the Charlie Chaplin movies, and watched "Candid Camera" episodes until his sides hurt, laughing. His illness disappeared. From this experience, he wrote an enlightening book, "Anatomy of an Illness." Solid scientific research demonstrates that laughter offers the following benefits: Lowering blood pressure, strengthening cardiovascular functions, reducing stress hormones, improving circulation and oxygenating the body by boosting the respiratory system. Triggering the release of endorphins, the body's natural painkillers and producing a general sense of well-being. Even anticipating laughter can enhance our biochemistry. In a novel experiment conducted at Loma Linda University, researchers studied a group of 16 healthy male volunteers. The participants were assigned to two groups. Blood was drawn from both groups four times during the event and three times afterward. The experiment group was told that they would be watching a humorous video. The control group was not. The findings were astounding. The experiment group showed not only a decrease in stress hormones but also an increase in beta-endorphins (chemicals that alleviate depression) and human growth hormone (which boosts immunity.) Interestingly, one activity can exercise both mind and body is a class called "laughter yoga." This trend has been active in India and China for years and is now part of a growing trend in the United States. The students are relearning something children already know instinctively -that laughter makes you feel better. Barb Fisher, a certified laughter yoga teacher, states that "kids laugh about 400 times a day and adults only about 15...Laughter is a gift that has been given to us to make us feel better." Laughter is proving to be a tool to protect ourselves from heart disease. Dr. Michael Miller, director of the Center for Preventive Cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical Center, sums up the benefits of laughter: "We don't know yet why laughing protects the heart, but we know that mental stress is associated with impairment of the endothelium, the protective barrier lining our blood vessels. This can cause a series of inflammatory reactions that lead to fat and cholesterol build-up in the coronary arteries and ultimately to a heart attack...The ability to laugh -- either naturally or as learned behavior may have important implications in societies such as the U.S. where heart disease remains the number one killer." Research into the positive effects of laughter is generating a global interest into humor and well-being. The Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor sites this official definition of Therapeutic Humor: "Any intervention that promotes health and wellness by stimulating a playful discovery, expression or appreciation of the absurdity or incongruity of life's situations...This intervention may enhance health or be used as a complementary treatment of illness to facilitate healing or coping, whether physical, emotional, cognitive, social or spiritual." "The most wasted of all days is one without laughter

Hiriya School

0510/02/Gr.08

[Turn over]

... [10 marks]

Hiriya School 0510/02/Gr.08 [Turn over]