READING PASSAGE 1

Segway into the Future

Will the electric vehicle known as the Segway alter the ways that individuals get around? Dean Kamer, the
inventor of the Segway, believes that this revolutionary vehicle will someday substitute for the bicycles and
automobiles that now crowd our cities. When he introduced the Segway in 2001, he believed it would
change our lives.

Although the Segway uses up-to-the-minute technology, it looks very ordinary. The metal framework of
the Segway consists of a platform where an individual stands. Attached to the front of the platform is a tall
post with handles for the driver to hold. On each side of the platform is a wide, rubber wheel. Except for
these two wheels, there are no mechanical parts on the Segway. It has no engine, no brakes, no pedal
power, no gears, and no steering wheel.

Instead it uses a computer system that imitates the ability of humans to keep their balance.

This system seems to move to the driver’s thoughts. For example, when the driver thinks “Go forward’’,
the Segway moves forwards, and when the driver thinks, “Stop’’, it stops. The Segway is not
really responding to the driver’s thoughts, but to the tiny changes in balance that the driver makes as
he prepares his body to move forward or to stop. For example, when the driver thinks about
moving forward, he actually leans slightly forward, and when he thinks of stopping or slowing, the driver
leans slightly back.

The Segway is powered by batteries that allow it to travel about T7miles on one battery charge. It is
designed for short-range, low-speed operation. It has three speed settings. The slowest is the setting
for learning, with speeds of up to 6 miles per hour. Next is the sidewalk setting, with speeds of up to 9
miles , per hour. The highest setting allows the driver to travel up to 12.5 miles per hour in open, flat areas.

At all three speed settings, the Segway can go wherever a person can walk, both indoors and outdoors.

Workers who must walk a lot in their jobs might be the primary users of Segways. For example, police
officers could drive Segways to patrol city streets, and mail carriers could drive from house to house
to deliver letters and packages. Farmers could quickly inspect distant fields and bams, and rangers,
or parks. Security guards could protect neighborhoods or large buildings.

Any task requiring a lot of walking could be made easier. In cities, shoppers could leave their cars at home
and ride Segway from store to store. Also, people who cannot comfortably walk due to age, illness, or
injury could minimize their walking but still be able to go many places on a Segway.
Why is it, then, that our job sites, parks, and shopping centers have not been subsequently filled with
Segways since they were introduced in 2001? Why hasn’t the expected revolution taken place?
Studies have shown that Segways can help workers get more done in a shorter time. This saves
money. Engineers admire Segways as a technological marvel. 

Business, government agencies, and individuals, however, have been unwilling to accept the Segway. Yes,
there have been some successes. In a few cities, for example, mail carriers drive Segway on their routes,
and police officers patrol on Segways. San Francisco, California, and Florence, Italy, are among several
cities in the world that offer tours on Segways for a small fee. Occasionally you will see golfers riding
Segways around golf courses. Throughout the world more than 150 security agencies use Segways, and
China has recently entered the overseas market. These examples are encouraging, but can hardly be called
a revolution.

The primary reason seems to be that people have an inherent fear of doing something new. They fear others
will laugh at them for buying a “toy’’. They fear losing control of the vehicle. They fear being injured.
They fear not knowing the rules for using a Segway. They fear making people angry if they ride on the
sidewalk. All these fears and others have kept sales low.

The inventor explained why people have been slow to accept the Segway. He said, "We didn’t realize that
although technology moves very quickly, people’s mind-set changes very slowly.” Perhaps a hundred years
from now millions of people around the world will be riding Segways.

Questions 1-3
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2?
TRUE    if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE    if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1.  The Segway’s framework consists of a platform and a post with handles
2.  The driver can alter the direction of the Segway by leaning to the left or right
3. The Segway was primarily designed for student to make their travel much more comfortable

Questions 4-6
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
 
4. Why the Segway has been accepted as the most comfortable vehicle for the people with
moving problems?
A. they could leave their cars at home and ride Segway from store to store
B. could drive from house to house to deliver letters and packages 
C. could quickly inspect distant fields and barns, and rangers, or parks 
D. could minimize their walking.
 
5 Why people have been slow to accept the Segway? 
A.  it wastes too much money 
B.  people have the various hinds of fears 
C. it was too hard to manage 
D.  people didn’t want to replace the existing vehicles
 
6 According to the point of view of the Dean Kamen, although technology moves very quickly, people’s
mindset changes very slowly, what he meant by this?
A. people cannot accept the innovation at once
B. because of people worldwide ride bicycles for transportation they cannot accept other hinds of vehicles
C. people have fears and thus cannot get accustomed with new forms of transportation
D. the ideas and attitudes with which a person approaches a situation cannot be quickly altered

Questions 7-14
Complete the sentences. Choose NO MORE THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Dean Kamer, the inventor of the Segway, believes that this revolutionary vehicle will replace all
conveyances we use today, and in 2001 he presented his innovation to the public. Even though the Segway
uses up the minimum energy, it has a very 7................... appearance. It has not engine, brakes, gears and
even 8.................. however, the attribute is that it has the 9..................with wide and rubber wheels.
Moreover, this invention is designed for the short-term destinations and works with 10................... As it
minimizes the moving time or energy, the Segway, particularly fits to those people who has an active
lifestyle such as 11.................., mail carriers; farmers, security guards and even those who have difficulties
because of their 12................... However, the inventor explains why people have difficulties in accepting
the Segway. He believes that the main reason for this is that people have an innate 13.................. of doing
innovations and because of that the people’s 14.................. always changes gradually, it is too hard to
accept the new invention for the short time.
READING PASSAGE 2: Autumn leaves

Canadian writer Jay Ingram investigates the mystery of why leaves turn red in the fall

A  One of the most captivating natural events of the year in many areas throughout North America is the
turning of the leaves in the fall. The colours are magnificent, but the question of exactly why some trees
turn yellow or orange, and others red or purple, is something which has long puzzled scientists.

B Summer leaves are green because they are full of chlorophyll, the molecule that captures sunlight
converts that energy into new building materials for the tree. As fall approaches in the northern
hemisphere, the amount of solar energy available declines considerably. For many trees – evergreen
conifers being an exception – the best strategy is to abandon photosynthesis* until the spring. So rather
than maintaining the now redundant leaves throughout the winter, the tree saves its precious resources and
discards them. But before letting its leaves go, the tree dismantles their chlorophyll molecules and ships
their valuable nitrogen back into the twigs. As chlorophyll is depleted, other colours that have been
dominated by it throughout the summer begin to be revealed. This unmasking explains the autumn colours
of yellow and orange, but not the brilliant reds and purples of trees such as the maple or sumac.

C The source of the red is widely known: it is created by anthocyanins, water-soluble plant pigments
reflecting the red to blue range of the visible spectrum. They belong to a class of sugar-based chemical
compounds also known as flavonoids. What’s puzzling is that anthocyanins are actually newly minted,
made in the leaves at the same time as the tree is preparing to drop them. But it is hard to make sense of the
manufacture of anthocyanins – why should a tree bother making new chemicals in its leaves when it’s
already scrambling to withdraw and preserve the ones already there?

D Some theories about anthocyanins have argued that they might act as a chemical defence against attacks
by insects or fungi, or that they might attract fruit-eating birds or increase a leafs tolerance to freezing.
However there are problems with each of these theories, including the fact that leaves are red for such a
relatively short period that the expense of energy needed to manufacture the anthocyanins would outweigh
any anti-fungal or anti-herbivore activity achieved.* photosynthesis: the production of new material from
sunlight, water and carbon dioxide.

E It has also been proposed that trees may produce vivid red colours to convince herbivorous insects that
they are healthy and robust and would be easily able to mount chemical defences against infestation. If
insects paid attention to such advertisements, they might be prompted to lay their eggs on a duller, and
presumably less resistant host. The flaw in this theory lies in the lack of proof to support it. No one has as
yet ascertained whether more robust trees sport the brightest leaves, or whether insects make choices
according to colour intensity.

F Perhaps the most plausible suggestion as to why leaves would go to the trouble of making anthocyanins
when they’re busy packing up for the winter is the theory known as the ‘light screen’ hypothesis. It sounds
paradoxical, because the idea behind this hypothesis is that the red pigment is made in autumn leaves to
protect chlorophyll, the light-absorbing chemical, from too much light. Why does chlorophyll need
protection when it is the natural world’s supreme light absorber? Why protect chlorophyll at a time when
the tree is breaking it down to salvage as much of it as possible?

G Chlorophyll, although exquisitely evolved to capture the energy of sunlight, can sometimes be
overwhelmed by it, especially in situations of drought, low temperatures, or nutrient deficiency. Moreover,
the problem of oversensitivity to light is even more acute in the fall, when the leaf is busy preparing for
winter by dismantling its internal machinery. The energy absorbed by the chlorophyll molecules of the
unstable autumn leaf is not immediately channelled into useful products and processes, as it would be in an
intact summer leaf. The weakened fall leaf then becomes vulnerable to the highly destructive effects of the
oxygen created by the excited chlorophyll molecules.

H Even if you had never suspected that this is what was going on when leaves turn red, there are clues out
there. One is straightforward: on many trees, the leaves that are the reddest are those on the side of the tree
which gets most sun. Not only that, but the red is brighter on the upper side of the leaf. It has also been
recognised for decades that the best conditions for intense red colours are dry, sunny days and coo nights,
conditions that nicely match those that make leaves susceptible to excess light. And finally, trees such as
maples usually get much redder the more north you travel in the northern hemisphere. It’s colder there,
they’re more stressed, their chlorophyll is more sensitive and it needs more sunblock.

I What is still not fully understood, however, is why some trees resort to producing red pigments while
others don’t bother, and simply reveal their orange or yellow hues. Do these trees have other means at their
disposal to prevent overexposure to light in autumn? Their story, though not as spectacular to the eye, will
surely turn out to be as subtle and as complex.

Questions 1-5

Reading Passage has nine paragraphs, A-l. Which paragraph contains the following information?

Write the correct letter, A-l, in boxes  1-5 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.
1. a description of the substance responsible for the red colouration of leaves
2. the reason why trees drop their leaves in autumn
3. some evidence to confirm a theory about the purpose of the red leaves
4. an explanation of the function of chlorophyll
5. a suggestion that the red colouration in leaves could serve as a warning signal

Questions 6-9

Complete the notes below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY  from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 6-9 on your answer sheet.

Why believe the ‘light screen’ hypothesis?

 The most vividly coloured red leaves are found on the side of the tree facing the 6. ...................
 The 7. ................... surfaces of leaves contain the most red pigment.

 Red leaves are most abundant when daytime weather conditions are 8. ................... and sunny.

 The intensity of the red colour of leaves increases as you go further 9. ...................

Questions 10-12

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?
In boxes 10-12  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

10. It is likely that the red pigments help to protect the leaf from freezing temperatures.
11. The ‘light screen’ hypothesis would initially seem to contradict what is known about chlorophyll. 
12. Leaves which turn colours other than red are more likely to be damaged by sunlight.

Questions 13

Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D. Write the correct letter in box 13 on your answer sheet.

A.  why conifers remain green in winter

B. how leaves turn orange and yellow in autumn
C. how herbivorous insects choose which trees to lay their eggs in
D. why anthocyanins are restricted to certain trees

READING PASAGE 3: The megafires of California

Drought, housing expansion, and oversupply of tinder make for bigger, hotter fires in the western United
States

Wildfires are becoming an increasing menace in the western United States, with Southern California being
the hardest hit area. There's a reason fire squads battling more frequent blazes in Southern California are
having such difficulty containing the flames, despite better preparedness than ever and decades of
experience fighting fires fanned by the ‘Santa Ana Winds’. The wildfires themselves, experts say, are
generally hotter, faster, and spread more erratically than in the past.

Megafires, also called ‘siege fires’, are the increasingly frequent blazes that burn 500,000 acres or more -
10 times the size of the average forest fire of 20 years ago. Some recent wildfires are among the biggest
ever in California in terms of acreage burned, according to state figures and news reports.

One explanation for the trend to more superhot fires is that the region, which usually has dry summers, has
had significantly below normal precipitation in many recent years. Another reason, experts say, is related to
the century- long policy of the US Forest Service to stop wildfires as quickly as possible.

The unintentional consequence has been to halt the natural eradication of underbrush, now the primary fuel
for megafires.

Three other factors contribute to the trend, they add. First is climate change, marked by a 1-degree
Fahrenheit rise in average yearly temperature across the western states. Second is fire seasons that on
average are 78 days longer than they were 20 years ago. Third is increased construction of homes in
wooded areas.

‘We are increasingly building our homes in fire-prone ecosystems,’ says Dominik Kulakowski, adjunct
professor of biology at Clark University Graduate School of Geography in Worcester, Massachusetts.
‘Doing that in many of the forests of the western US is like building homes on the side of an active
volcano.'

In California, where population growth has averaged more than 600,000 a year for at least a decade, more
residential housing is being built. ‘What once was open space is now residential homes providing fuel to
make fires burn with greater intensity,’ says Terry McHale of the California Department of Forestry
firefighters' union. ‘With so much dryness, so many communities to catch fire, so many fronts to fight, it
becomes an almost incredible job.'

That said, many experts give California high marks for making progress on preparedness in recent years,
after some of the largest fires in state history scorched thousands of acres, burned thousands of homes, and
killed numerous people. Stung in the past by criticism of bungling that allowed fires to spread when they
might have been contained, personnel are meeting the peculiar challenges of neighborhood - and canyon-
hopping fires better than previously, observers say.

State promises to provide more up-to-date engines, planes, and helicopters to fight fires have been fulfilled.
Firefighters’ unions that in the past complained of dilapidated equipment, old fire engines, and insufficient
blueprints for fire safety are now praising the state's commitment, noting that funding for firefighting has
increased, despite huge cuts in many other programs. ‘We are pleased that the current state administration
has been very proactive in its support of us, and [has] come through with budgetary support of the
infrastructure needs we have long sought,' says Mr. McHale of the firefighters’ union.

Besides providing money to upgrade the fire engines that must traverse the mammoth state and wind along
serpentine canyon roads, the state has invested in better command-and-control facilities as well as in the
strategies to run them. ‘In the fire sieges of earlier years, we found that other jurisdictions and states were
willing to offer mutual-aid help, but we were not able to communicate adequately with them,’ says Kim
Zagaris, chief of the state's Office of Emergency Services Fire and Rescue Branch.

After a commission examined and revamped communications procedures, the statewide response ‘has
become far more professional and responsive,’ he says. There is a sense among both government officials
and residents that the speed, dedication, and coordination of firefighters from several states and
jurisdictions are resulting in greater efficiency than in past ‘siege fire’ situations.

In recent years, the Southern California region has improved building codes, evacuation procedures, and
procurement of new technology. ‘I am extraordinarily impressed by the improvements we have witnessed,’
says Randy Jacobs, a Southern California- based lawyer who has had to evacuate both his home and
business to escape wildfires. ‘Notwithstanding all the damage that will continue to be caused by wildfires,
we will no longer suffer the loss of life endured in the past because of the fire prevention and firefighting
measures that have been put in place,’ he says.

Questions 1-6
Complete the notes below. Choose ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each
answer.
Write your answers in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet. 
 Wildfires 

• Characteristics of wildfires and wildfire conditions today compared to the past:

- occurrence: more frequent

- temperature: hotter
- speed: faster
- movement: 1. ...................... more unpredictably
- size of fires: 2. ...................... greater on average than two decades ago

• Reasons wildfires cause more damage today compared to the past:

- rainfall: 3. ...................... average

- more brush to act as 4. ......................

- increase in yearly temperature

- extended fire 5. ......................

- more building of 6. ...................... in vulnerable places 

Questions 7-13

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?

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. The amount of open space in California has diminished over the last ten years.

8. Many experts believe California has made little progress in readying itself to fight fires.

9. Personnel in the past have been criticised for mishandling fire containment.

10. California has replaced a range of firefighting tools.

11. More firefighters have been hired to improve fire-fighting capacity.

12. Citizens and government groups disapprove of the efforts of different states and agencies working
together.
13. Randy Jacobs believes that loss of life from fires will continue at the same levels, despite changes
made.

READING PASSAGE 4: UK companies need more effective boards of directors

A After a number of serious failures of governance (that is, how they are managed at the highest level),
companies in Britain, as well as elsewhere, should consider radical changes to their directors’ roles. It is
clear that the role of a board director today is not an easy one. Following the 2008 financial meltdown,
which resulted in a deeper and more prolonged period of economic downturn than anyone expected, the
search for explanations in the many post-mortems of the crisis has meant blame has been spread far and
wide. Governments, regulators, central banks and auditors have all been in the frame. The role of bank
directors and management and their widely publicised failures have been extensively picked over and
examined in reports, inquiries and commentaries.

B The knock-on t of this scrutiny has been to make the governance of companies in general an issue of
intense public debate and has significantly increased the pressures on, and the responsibilities of, directors.
At the simplest and most practical level, the time involved in fulfilling the demands of a board directorship
has increased significantly, calling into question the effectiveness of the classic model of corporate
governance by part-time, independent non-executive directors. Where once a board schedule may have
consisted of between eight and ten meetings a year, in many companies the number of events requiring
board input and decisions has dramatically risen. Furthermore, the amount of reading and preparation
required for each meeting is increasing. Agendas can become overloaded and this can mean the time for
constructive debate must necessarily be restricted in favour of getting through the business.

C Often, board business is devolved to committees in order to cope with the workload, which may be more
efficient but can mean that the board as a whole is less involved in fully addressing some of the most
important issues. It is not uncommon for the audit committee meeting to last longer than the main board
meeting itself. Process may take the place of discussion and be at the expense of real collaboration, so that
boxes are ticked rather than issues tackled. D A radical solution, which may work for some very large
companies whose businesses are extensive and complex, is the professional board, whose members would
work up to three or four days a week, supported by their own dedicated staff and advisers. There are
obvious risks to this and it would be important to establish clear guidelines for such a board to ensure that it
did not step on the toes of management by becoming too engaged in the day-to-day running of the
company. Problems of recruitment, remuneration and independence could also arise and this structure
would not be appropriate for all companies. However, more professional and better-informed boards would
have been particularly appropriate for banks where the executives had access to information that part-time
non-executive directors lacked, leaving the latter unable to comprehend or anticipate the 2008 crash.

E One of the main criticisms of boards and their directors is that they do not focus sufficiently on longer-
term matters of strategy, sustainability and governance, but instead concentrate too much on short-term
financial metrics. Regulatory requirements and the structure of the market encourage this behaviour. The
tyranny of quarterly reporting can distort board decision-making, as directors have to ‘make the numbers’
every four months to meet the insatiable appetite of the market for more data. This serves to encourage the
trading methodology of a certain kind of investor who moves in and out of a stock without engaging in
constructive dialogue with the company about strategy or performance, and is simply seeking a short¬ term
financial gain. This effect has been made worse by the changing profile of investors due to the
globalisation of capital and the increasing use of automated trading systems. Corporate culture adapts and
management teams are largely incentivised to meet financial goals.

F Compensation for chief executives has become a combat zone where pitched battles between investors,
management and board members are fought, often behind closed doors but increasingly frequently in the
full glare of press attention. Many would argue that this is in the interest of transparency and good
governance as shareholders use their muscle in the area of pay to pressure boards to remove
underperforming chief executives. Their powers to vote down executive remuneration policies increased
when binding votes came into force. The chair of the remuneration committee can be an exposed and
lonely role, as Alison Carnwath, chair of Barclays Bank’s remuneration committee, found when she had to
resign, having been roundly criticised for trying to defend the enormous bonus to be paid to the chief
executive; the irony being that she was widely understood to have spoken out against it in the privacy of
the committee.

G The financial crisis stimulated a debate about the role and purpose of the company and a heightened
awareness of corporate ethics. Trust in the corporation has been eroded and academics such as Michael
Sandel, in his thoughtful and bestselling book What Money Can’t Buy, are questioning the morality of
capitalism and the market economy. Boards of companies in all sectors will need to widen their perspective
to encompass these issues and this may involve a realignment of corporate goals. We live in challenging
times.

Questions 1-7
Reading Passage has seven paragraphs, A-G. Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list
of headings below. Write the correct number, i-viii, in boxes 1-7  on your answer sheet.
1. Paragraph A 5.  Paragraph E
2.  Paragraph B 6. Paragraph F
3. Paragraph C 7.  Paragraph G
4.  Paragraph D

  List of Headings

i Disputes over financial arrangements regarding senior managers

ii The impact on companies of being subjected to close examination

iii The possible need for fundamental change in every area of business

iv  Many external bodies being held responsible for problems

v The falling number of board members with broad enough experience

vi A risk that not all directors take part in solving major problems

vii Boards not looking far enough ahead

viii A proposal to change the way the board operates

Question 8-11
Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage?
In boxes 8-11  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
8.   Close scrutiny of the behaviour of boards has increased since the economic downturn.

9.   Banks have been mismanaged to a greater extent than other businesses.

10.  Board meetings normally continue for as long as necessary to debate matters in full.

11.  Using a committee structure would ensure that board members are fully informed about significant
issues.

Questions 12-14

Complete the sentences below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 12-14 on your answer sheet.

12   Before 2008, non-executive directors were at a disadvantage because of their lack of .................

13    Boards tend to place too much emphasis on................... considerations that are only of short-term
relevance.

14   On certain matters, such as pay, the board may have to accept the views of.................

IELTS READING 5: The Lost City

An explorer’s encounter with the ruined city of Machu Picchu, the most famous icon of the Inca
civilisation

A When the US explorer and academic Hiram Bingham arrived in South America in 1911, he was ready
for what was to be the greatest achievement of his life: the exploration of the remote hinterland to the west
of Cusco, the old capital of the Inca empire in the Andes mountains of Peru. His goal was to locate the
remains of a city called Vitcos, the last capital of the Inca civilisation.

Cusco lies on a high plateau at an elevation of more than 3,000 metres, and Bingham’s plan was to descend
from this plateau along the valley of the Urubamba river, which takes a circuitous route down to the
Amazon and passes through an area of dramatic canyons and mountain ranges.

B When Bingham and his team set off down the Urubamba in late July, they had an advantage over
travellers who had preceded them: a track had recently been blasted down the valley canyon to enable
rubber to be brought up by mules from the jungle. Almost all previous travellers had left the river at
Ollantaytambo and taken a high pass across the mountains to rejoin the river lower down, thereby cutting a
substantial corner, but also therefore never passing through the area around Machu Picchu.

C On 24 July they were a few days into their descent of the valley. The day began slowly, with Bingham
trying to arrange sufficient mules for the next stage of the trek. His companions showed no interest in
accompanying him up the nearby hill to see some ruins that a local farmer, Melchor Arteaga, had told them
about the night before. The morning was dull and damp, and Bingham also seems to have been less than
keen on the prospect of climbing the hill. In his book Lost City of the Incas, he relates that he made the
ascent without having the least expectation that he would find anything at the top.

D Bingham writes about the approach in vivid style in his book. First, as he climbs up the hill, he describes
the ever-present possibility of deadly snakes, ‘capable of making considerable springs when in pursuit of
their prey’; not that he sees any. Then there’s a sense of mounting discovery as he comes across great
sweeps of terraces, then a mausoleum, followed by monumental staircases and, finally, the grand
ceremonial buildings of Machu Picchu. 'It seemed like an unbelievable dream the sight held me spellbound
’, he wrote.
E We should remember, however, that Lost City of the Incas is a work of hindsight, not written until 1948,
many years after his journey. His journal entries of the time reveal a much more gradual appreciation of his
achievement. He spent the afternoon at the ruins noting down the dimensions of some of the buildings, then
descended and rejoined his companions, to whom he seems to have said little about his discovery. At this
stage, Bingham didn’t realise the extent or the importance of the site, nor did he realise what use he could
make of the discovery.

F However, soon after returning it occurred to him that he could make a name for himself from this
discovery. When he came to write the National Geographic magazine article that broke the story to the
world in April 1913, he knew he had to produce a big idea.

He wondered whether it could have been the birthplace of the very first Inca, Manco the Great, and
whether it could also have been what chroniclers described as ‘the last city of the Incas’. This term refers to
Vilcabamba the settlement where the Incas had fled from Spanish invaders in the 1530s. Bingham made
desperate attempts to prove this belief for nearly 40 years. Sadly, his vision of the site as both the
beginning and end of the Inca civilisation, while a magnificent one, is inaccurate. We now know, that
Vilcabamba actually lies 65 kilometres away in the depths of the jungle.

G One question that has perplexed visitors, historians and archaeologists alike ever since Bingham, is why
the site seems to have been abandoned before the Spanish Conquest. There are no references to it by any of
the Spanish chroniclers - and if they had known of its existence so close to Cusco they would certainly
have come in search of gold.

An idea which has gained wide acceptance over the past few years is that Machu Picchu was a moya, a
country estate built by an Inca emperor to escape the cold winters of Cusco, where the elite could enjoy
monumental architecture and spectacular views. Furthermore, the particular architecture of Machu Picchu
suggests that it was constructed at the time of the greatest of all the Incas, the emperor Pachacuti (1438-71).
By custom, Pachacuti’s descendants built other similar estates for their own use, and so Machu Picchu
would have been abandoned after his death, some 50 years before the Spanish Conquest.

Questions 1-7
Reading Passage has seven paragraphs, A-G. Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list
of headings below. Write the correct number, i-viii, in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet.
1.  Paragraph A 5.  Paragraph E
2.  Paragraph B 6.  Paragraph F
3.  Paragraph C 7.  Paragraph G
4.  Paragraph D
   List of Headings

i Different accounts of the same journey

ii Bingham gains support

iii A common belief

iv The aim of the trip

v A dramatic description

vi A new route

vii Bingham publishes his theory

viii Bingham’s lack of enthusiasm

Questions 8-11
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?

In boxes 8-11  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

8.  Bingham went to South America in search of an Inca city.

9.  Bingham chose a particular route down the Urubamba valley because it was the most common route
used by travellers.

10.   Bingham understood the significance of Machu Picchu as soon as he saw it.

11.   Bingham returned to Machu Picchu in order to find evidence to support his theory.

Questions 12-13

Complete the sentences below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 12-13 on your answer sheet.

12    The track that took Bingham down the Urubamba valley had been created for the transportation
of .................

13    Bingham found out about the ruins of Machu Picchu from a ................... in the Urubamba valley.

READING PASSAGE 6: The Impact of the Potato

A The potato was first cultivated in South America between three and seven thousand years ago, though
scientists believe they may have grown wild in the region as long as 13,000 years ago. The genetic patterns
of potato distribution indicate that the potato probably originated in the mountainous west-central region
of the continent.

B Early Spanish chroniclers who misused the Indian word batata (sweet potato) as the name for the potato
noted the importance of the tuber to the Incan Empire. The Incas had learned to preserve the potato for
storage by dehydrating and mashing potatoes into a substance called Chuchu could be stored in a room for
up to 10 years, providing excellent insurance against possible crop failures. As well as using the food as a
staple crop,  the Incas thought potatoes made childbirth easier and used it to treat injuries.

C The Spanish conquistadors first encountered the potato when they arrived in Peru in 1532 in search of
gold, and noted Inca miners eating chuchu. At the time the Spaniards failed to realize that the potato
represented a far more important treasure than either silver or gold, but they did gradually begin to use
potatoes as basic rations aboard their ships. After the arrival of the potato in Spain in 1570，a few Spanish
farmers began to cultivate them on a small scale, mostly as food for livestock.

D Throughout Europe, potatoes were regarded with suspicion, distaste and fear. Generally considered to be
unfit for human consumption, they were used only as animal fodder and sustenance for the starving. In
northern Europe, potatoes were primarily grown in botanical gardens as an exotic novelty. Even peasants
refused to eat from a plant that produced ugly, misshapen tubers and that had come from a heathen
civilization. Some felt that the potato plant’s resemblance to plants in the nightshade family hinted that it
was the creation of witches or devils.

E In meat-loving England, farmers and urban workers regarded potatoes with extreme distaste. In 1662, the
Royal Society recommended the cultivation of the tuber to the English government and the nation, but this
recommendation had little impact. Potatoes did not become a staple until, during the food shortages
associated with the Revolutionary Wars, the English government began to officially encourage potato
cultivation. In 1795, the Board of Agriculture issued a pamphlet entitled “Hints Respecting the Culture and
Use of Potatoes” ； this was followed shortly by pro-potato editorials and potato recipes in The Times.
Gradually, the lower classes began to follow the lead of the upper classes.
F A similar pattern emerged across the English Channel in the Netherlands, Belgium and France. While the
potato slowly gained ground in eastern France (where it was often the only crop remaining after marauding
soldiers plundered wheat fields and vineyards), it did not achieve widespread acceptance until the late
1700s. The peasants remained suspicious, in spite of a 1771 paper from the Facult de Paris testifying that
the potato was not harmful but beneficial. The people began to overcome their distaste when the plant
received the royal seal of approval: Louis XVI began to sport a potato flower in his buttonhole, and Marie-
Antoinette wore the purple potato blossom in her hair.

G Frederick the Great of Prussia saw the potato’s potential to help feed his nation and lower the price of
bread, but faced the challenge of overcoming the people’s prejudice against the plant. When he issued a
1774 order for his subjects to grow potatoes as protection against famine, the town of Kolberg replied:
“The things have neither smell nor taste, not even the dogs will eat them, so what use are they to us?”
Trying a less direct approach to encourage his subjects to begin planting potatoes, Frederick used a bit of
reverse psychology: he planted a royal field of potato plants and stationed a heavy guard to protect this
field from thieves. Nearby peasants naturally assumed that anything worth guarding was worth stealing,
and so snuck into the field and snatched the plants for their home gardens. Of course, this was entirely in
line with Frederick’s wishes.

H Historians debate whether the potato was primarily a cause or an effect of the huge population boom in
industrial-era England and Wales. Prior to 1800 ， the English diet had consisted primarily of meat,
supplemented by bread, butter and cheese. Few vegetables were consumed, most vegetables being regarded
as nutritionally worthless and potentially harmful. This view began to change gradually in the late 1700s.
The Industrial Revolution was drawing an ever increasing percentage of the populace into crowded cities,
where only the richest could afford homes with ovens or coal storage rooms, and people were working 12-
16 hour days which left them with little time or energy to prepare food. High yielding, easily prepared
potato crops were the obvious solution to England’s food problems.

I Whereas most of their neighbors regarded the potato with suspicion and had to be persuaded to use it by
the upper classes, the Irish peasantry embraced the tuber more passionately than anyone since the Incas.
The potato was well suited to the Irish the soil and climate, and its high yield suited the most important
concern of most Irish farmers: to feed their families.

J The most dramatic example of the potato’s potential to alter population patterns occurred in Ireland,
where the potato had become a staple by 1800. The Irish population doubled to eight million between 1780
and 1841，this without any significant expansion of industry or reform of agricultural techniques beyond
the widespread cultivation of the potato. Though Irish landholding practices were primitive in comparison
with those of England, the potato’s high yields allowed even the poorest farmers to produce more healthy
food than they needed with scarcely any investment or hard labor. Even children could easily plant, harvest
and cook potatoes, which of course required no threshing, curing or grinding. The abundance provided by
potatoes greatly decreased infant mortality and encouraged early marriage.

Questions 1-5

Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in Reading Passage 1?

In boxes 1-5  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

1. The early Spanish called potato as the Incan name ‘Chuchu’

2. The purposes of Spanish coming to Peru were to find out potatoes

3. The Spanish believed that the potato has the same nutrients as other vegetables

4. Peasants at that time did not like to eat potatoes because they were ugly

5. The popularity of potatoes in the UK was due to food shortages during the war

Questions 6-13

Complete the sentences below with  NO MORE THAN ONE WORD from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 6-13 on your answer sheet. 

6. In France, people started to overcome their disgusting about potatoes because the King put a
potato ................. in his button hole.
7. Frederick realized the potential of potato but he had to handle the ................. against potatoes from
ordinary people.
8. The King of Prussia adopted some ................. psychology to make people accept potatoes.
9. Before 1800，the English people preferred eating ................. with bread, butter and cheese.
10. The obvious way to deal with England food problems were high yielding potato .................

11. The Irish................. and climate suited potatoes well.

12. Between 1780 and 1841, based on the ................. of the potatoes, the Irish population doubled to eight
million.
13. The potato’s high yields help the poorest farmers to produce more healthy food almost
without .................