Text 5

A forgotten issue in urbanism is land use during the nighttime, with problems such
as noise and dirt, which could be improved with information from Twitter. At least this is
what Enrique and Vanessa Frias-Martinez believe, computer science researchers at
Telefonica Research and the University of Maryland (USA) respectively, who have
suggested using geolocalized tweets for urban planning and land use.
Enrique Frias-Martinez explained that geolocalized tweets can be a very useful
source of information for planning since it is an activity carried out by a large number of
people who provide information on where they are at a specific time and what they are
doing. The researcher points out that thanks to the increased use of smartphones, social
networks like Twitter and Facebook have made it possible to access and produce
information ubiquitously.
These networks generate tags with the event’s geolocation. The new technique
“automatically determines land uses in urban areas by grouping together geographical
regions with similar patterns of Twitter activity,” says the researcher. Using aggregate
activity of tweets, the Frias-Martinez siblings have studied land use in Manhattan, Madrid
and London. In the first two cases they identified four uses: residential, business, daytime
leisure (mainly parks and tourist areas) and nightlife areas. The study has determined
that, in Madrid, nighttime tweet activity is concentrated on weekends and in Manhattan,
on weekdays. On the other hand, London is characterized by its tweeting activity in
daytime leisure areas.

21. Which of the following is the main idea of the passage?

. (A)  Many people like to use geolocation tags on Twitter.
. (B)  Information from social networks can be accessed universally.
. (C)  Geolocalized tweets can be useful for urban planning.
. (D)  Complex patterns of Twitter activities can finally be identified.
. (E)  Problems concerning urbanism are often neglected and forgotten.

22. The author’s purpose in writing the passage is to ....

. (A)  compare Facebook and Twitter users in terms of geolocation tags.
. (B)  argue that social networks do not necessarily reflect users’ activities.
. (C)  persuade people to stop using geolocation tags to protect their privacy.
. (D)  inform the possible use of Twitter data for studying and planning land use.
. (E)  illustrate the urgency of solving various problems concerning urban planning.

23. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT TRUE about the study?
(A) It shows that people in London mostly tweet in daytime leisure areas.
(B) The focus of the study is land use in Manhattan, Madrid and London.
(C) Residential, business, daytime leisure and nightlife areas could be identified.
(D) Manhattan and Madrid’s nighttime tweet activities are concentrated differently.
(E) The researchers could identify four land uses in Manhattan, Madrid and London.
24. The tone of this passage is ....
(A) harsh (B) neutral (C) critical (D) didactic (E) satirical

25. This text would probably be found in ....

(A) a popular science magazine (B) a brochure(C) an academic journal(D) a newsletter
(E) a tabloid

Text 6
By 2050, there will be another two to three billion people on Earth, and the
planet’s population will consume twice as much food as now. For 50 years farmland has
grown at the cost of natural habitat and biodiversity, and already more than two-thirds of
agricultural land is either in use or protected.
As a result, we need to develop the technology to double the output of the 10-15
main calorie crops, particularly if we are to alleviate the burden on developing countries
of feeding a rapidly growing population, argues Jason Clay of the WWF in the journal
Nature. He makes some strategic suggestions – described as “food wedges” – for Africa,
the continent that faces the greatest challenge of increasing food production. Clay
believes the responsible use of genetics is one of the keys. Mapping the genomes of
staple food crops such as yams, plantains and cassava, and selecting useful genetic traits,
can both increase production and improve drought tolerance, disease resistance and
nutrient content.
Improving agricultural inputs and practices is also essential, he argues. It currently
takes one liter of water to produce one calorie of food. Even if we halved water use and
doubled production, food deficiency would still increase fourfold. Technologies already
exist to achieve this, but in Africa they have often not been taken up. Mulching, for
example, can help rebuild soil fertility and reduce water usage, and is suitable for use
even in household gardens, without need for high-tech tools.

26. What is the author’s main purpose in writing the passage?

. (A)  To classify the type of technology used for soil fertility.
. (B)  To inform the danger of population explosion in the future.
. (C)  To argue for the value of increased food production prospects.
. (D)  To explain the need for cassava as the main crop in the future.
. (E)  To persuade for the development of right technology for agriculture.

27. Paragraphs 1 and 2 are related in that paragraph 1 ....

(A)  discusses population impacts; paragraph 2 offers technological solutions
(B)  sets the challenging situation; paragraph 2 is on the need of technology
(C)  explains population growth; paragraph 2 develops areas of agriculture
(D)  exposes the impacts of agriculture; paragraph 2 restores the damage
(E)  outline the population growth; paragraph 2 says its consequences
28. The word “they” in ‘... but in Africa they have often not been taken up.’ (line 14)
refers to ....
(A) technologies
(B) food deficiency
(C) agricultural inputs
(D) double production
(E) household gardens

29. All of the following attempts are potential to increase food production in the future
except ....
(A)  sequencing the right genomes of staple crops
(B)  conducting careful, attentive selection of main crops
(C)  maximizing the use of technology to the crop output
(D) compost making with chemical fertilizers in combination
(E) cultivating the likely genetic traits of main crop elements

30. The author views that food production producers in the future should ....
(A) consider the environmental aspects
(B) focus on the availability of water supply
(C) always be based on new staple crops
(D) relieve a burden for developing countries
(E) incorporate technology to maximize output

Text 7
Passage A
Soaring carbon emissions from a meat-hungry developing world could be cut back
substantially by improving animal breeds and feed, according to a study. It is estimated
that livestock farming contributes 18-51 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gas
emissions. Demand for livestock products is predicted to double by 2050 as a result of
growing populations, urbanizations, and better income in the developing world, which
will cause emissions to rise.
The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science,
suggests that 12 per cent of the total livestock-related emissions in 2030 could easily be
curtailed with simple improvements in production. These include: switching to more
nutritious pasture grasses; supplementing livestock diets based on grass with small
amounts of crop residues or grains; restoring degraded grazing lands; growing trees that
trap carbon while producing leaves that livestock could eat; and adopting more
productive breeds.
“Organizations from the West; especially the World Watch Institute, have
continued to blame livestock- keeping for being one of the major polluters of the world,
yet livestock keeping’s positives by far outweigh the negatives,” said Mario Herrera, co-
author of the paper and a senior scientist at International Livestock Research Institute.
Passage B
Livestock farmers in developing countries have relatively small environmental
footprint and their animals provide them with food, income and transport for their crops,
said John Byron. “What these farmers need are technological options and economic
incentives that help them intensify their production in sustainable ways,” he added.
Steinfeld, coordinator of the Livestock, Environment and Development Initiative
at the Food and Agriculture Organization, said: “If one were able to connect this to
smallholder development by making poor farmers benefit through the possibility of
carbon offsets and carbon markets, that would indeed create a win-win situation where
one would have socioeconomic benefits, targeting poor people, while reducing the carbon
‘hoof print’ i.e. the carbon footprint of livestock”.
Improving livestock production should be done to improve livelihoods and not just
for climate reasons, said Kirtana Chandrasekaran, food campaigner for Friends of the
Earth. She added that intensive agriculture also contributes to biodiversity loss so “it’s
very dangerous” just to look at lowering emissions when there’s a whole host of other
factors affecting improvement in livestock farming”.

31. Which of following statements can be hypothetically figured out based on the
information in these two texts?

(A) The increase in population, urbanization, and earnings leads to the higher demand for
livestock consumption, and thus the higher carbon emissions.

(B) The significant increase in greenhouse gas emissions is due to changes in people’s
lifestyles and activities, including the higher demand for livestock products.

(C) Desirable livestock farming is parallel with reduction of greenhouse gas emissions,
improvement of biodiversity, and better socioeconomic quality of the poor.

(D) Whatever the technological attempts are made to improve livestock production to
meet the people’s demand, higher carbon emissions will constantly increase.

(E) Although it affects positively the poor’s socioeconomic status, livestock farming
activities negatively influence biodiversity as well as global climate condition.

32. Thetexts following ideas reflect opinions in the two texts, EXCEPT ....
(A)  Better management in livestock farming links to less gas emissions.
(B)  Better life quality should also result from improved livestock farming.
(C)  Sustainable livestock farming potentially leads to low carbon emissions.
(D)  In spite of its carbon emissions, livestock farming gives more advantages.
(E)  Livestock industries have affected greenhouse gas emissions significantly.

33. It can be concluded from the two texts that cattle productions are considered
‘successful’ if they ....
(A) contribute more to economic benefits for the humans’ livelihood.
(B) address reduction of carbon emissions, biodiversity and better quality of life.
(C) result from provisions of appropriate technology and economic motivations.
(D) are controlled from the side of economic and technological management.
(E) consider both technology and natural factors affecting livestock farming.

34. The argument for livestock farming in the first text differs significantly from that in
the second text, in that the first text deals with ....
(A) seven minor topics; the second three minor ones.
(B) three major topics; the second five major ones.
(C) one general topic; the second two minor ones.
(D) two major topics; the second three major ones.
(E) eight minor topics; the second six minor ones.

35. The theme of these two texts would most likely be ....
(A)  research for better livestock farming
(B)  livestock farming and carbon emissions
(C)  livestock as a top source of air pollution.
(D)  arguments for sustainable livestock farming
(E)  cutting carbon emissions in livestock farming

Text 8

Scientists are as obsessed with the question of why the super old survive and
thrive, as Ponce de Leon was to find the Fountain of Youth. They want to understand
why the Japanese islands of Okinawa are home to the world’s largest population of
centenarians, with almost 600 of its 1.3 million inhabitants living into their second
century --many of them active and looking decades younger than their actual years. Like
weekend visitors on the summer ferry to Martha’s Vineyard, scientists and sociologists
block the boats to Sardinia and Nova Scotia, Canada, to see why those craggy locales
hide vast clusters of the super old.

As well as studying these populations intensively to unlock their secrets, scientists

have also taken a hard look at the very old in the U.S., most notably in the New England
Centenarian Study, led by Dr. Thomas Perls, a geriatrician at Boston University. While
the very old are happy to offer homespun explanations for their longevity - ”I never took
a drink”, “I drank a shot of whiskey every day” - experts are trying to unravel and
understand the biological factors that allow some people to reach 100 while others drop
off in their 70s or 80s. Researchers are particularly interested in determining which
factors allow up to 30% of those who reach 100 to do so in sufficient mental and physical
health: a whopping 90% of centenarians, according to Perls, remain functionally
independent up to age 92.

It is pretty obvious even to nonscientists that how you get there depends partly on
the genes you are born with, the partly on lifestyle-what and how much you eat, where
you live and what types of stress and trauma you experience. How much depends on each
factor, though, was unknown until Swedish scientists tackled the problem in 1998. They
did it by looking at the only set of people who share genes but not lifestyle: identical
twins who were separated at birth and reared apart. If genes were most important, you
would expect the twins to die at about the same age. In fact, they do no, and the average
difference convinced the scientists that only about 20% to 30% of how long we live is
genetically determined. The dominant factor is lifestyle.

36. What is the topic of the text above?

(A) Survival.
(B) Youth.
(C) Long-life span.
(D) Old age.
(E) Health secrets.

37. Which of the following best expresses the main idea of the text?
(A)  The population of the elderly people is increasing.
(B)  Elderly people cluster in particular parts of the world.
(C)  Biological factors influence mental and physical health.
(D)  Genes and life styles are essential for a long- life span.
(E)  Several biological factors are at work affecting life span.

39. How is the information of the last paragraph in the text organized?
. (A)  Each question is provided with an illustration.
. (B)  Scientific questions are followed by studies.
. (C)  Each study is followed by research findings.
. (D)  Scientific questions are presented from general to specific.
. (E)  Three related questions are followed by one finding.

40. According to the information in the passage people may ....

. (A)  reach an old age if their parents do so
. (B)  reach old age if they keep a healthy life style
. (C)  reach old age if they are brought up separately from their siblings.
. (D)  not reach old age unless they live in areas where it is prevalent.
. (E)  fail to reach an old age unless they are mentally healthy