Name : Lianda

Student ID : 191440119

Reading practice!

The small country of Bhutan in the Himalayan mountains is over one thousand years old. In the past it
was a poor country and not many people visited it. But nowadays, it is becoming more and more
popular with tourists. Medicine and health is improving and its economy is growing. King Jigme
SingyeWangchuck, the king of Bhutan until 2006, talked about his country’s ‘Gross National
Happiness’.

In other words, he thought happiness is the way to measure the country’s development. But how do
you measure happiness? Perhaps health is the best way because a famous doctor once said, ‘Happy
people generally don’t get sick.’ It’s also easy to measure how many people feel ill or unhealthy in a
country. For example, one survey says Iceland is the ‘healthiest country in the world’ because men
and women live a long time there, the air is very clean and there are more doctors available per person
than anywhere else in the world.

However, there was another survey of the happiest countries in the world and Iceland was not near the
top. The questions on this survey included: How much do you earn? How healthy are you? How safe
do you feel? After visiting 155 different countries, the researchers decided that Denmark feels happier
than other countries. So does happiness equal money and good health? Not according to the artist Erik
Krikortz. He feels that there are other ways of measuring happiness. Krikortz has a website and
visitors click on different happy or sad faces to comment on how well they sleep, their family and
friends, their level of stress, their inspiration and their physical activity. When you finish, his website
adds the results for each area and it gives you a final result for your happiness.

In his home city of Stockholm, Krikortz also shows the results of his survey as different coloured
lights on the side of a large building in the city. For example, red means the people of Stockholm are
very happy, green is OK and purple means many people are sad. ‘A lot of people look at the building
every day and see how “we” are,’ Krikortz says. The coloured lights are also useful if you feel like
visiting the city. For example, if the lights are red, you know the locals are feeling happy!

1. How did the King of Bhutan measure the country’s development?

a. by money
b. by health
c. by happiness
d. by wealth
e. by speed

2. Which is easier to measure?

a. Happiness
b. Health
c. Sickness and ill health
d. Money
e. Speed

3. Why was Iceland number one in a survey?

a. For its money
b. For its health
c. For its happiness
d. For its wealth
e. For its Speed

4. How did researchers measure happiness in 155 countries?

 a. with answers to questions
b. by looking at people’s faces
c. by measuring the number of sick people
d. by counting their wealth
e. by measuring their height

5. What do visitors to Krikortz’s website click on?

a. Questions
b. Faces
c. Numbers
d. Nominals
e. Velocity

6. How many categories does Krikortz have for measuring happiness?

a. One
b. Three
c. Five
d. Seven
e. Nine

7. What colour are the lights on the building when Stockholm is happy?
a. Red
b. Green
c. Purple
d. Pink
e. Blue
We believe the Earth is about 4.6 billion years old. At percent, we are forced to look to other bodies
in the solar system for hints as to what the early history of the Earth was like. Studies of our moon,
Mercury, Mars, and the large satellites of Jupiter and Saturn have provided ample evidence that all
these large celestial bodies had formed. This same bombardment must have affected Earth as well.
The lunar record indicates that the rate of impacts decreased to its present low level about 4 billion
years ago. On Earth, subsequent erosion and crustal motions have obliterated the craters that must
have formed during this epoch.
Scientists estimate the Earth’s age by measuring the ratios of various radioactive elements in rocks.
The oldest Earth’s rocks tested thus far are about 3 1/3 billion years old. But no one knows whether
these are oldest rocks on Earth. Tests on rocks from the moon and on meteorites show that these are
about 4.6 billion years old. Scientists believe that this is the true age of the solar system and probably
the true age of the Earth.
8. According to this passage, how do scientists estimate the age of the Earth
a. By measuring the ratios of radioactive elements in rocks
b. By examining fossils
c. By studying sunspots
d. By examining volcanic activity
e. By analysing the moon
f.
9. Which of the following processes led to the obliteration of the craters formed by the
bombardment of the Earth by the celestial bodies?
a. Volcanic activity
b. Solar radiation
c. Gravity activity
d. Crustal motions
e. Earthquake
10. According to the passage, why are scientists forced to look at other bodies in the solar system
to determine the early history of the Earth?
a. Human alteration of the Earth
b. Erosion and crustal motions
c. Solar flares
d. Deforestation and global warming
e. Eruption of volcanoes
The Answer

1. C
2. B
3. B
4. B
5. B
6. B
7. A
8. A
9. D
10. B