Section 1: Question 1-14

The Earth

A.  The Earth is the third planet from the Sun and it is the only planet known to have life on it. The Earth formed around 4.5 billion years ago. It is one of four rocky planets on the inside of the Solar System. The other three are Mercury, Venus, and Mars.

B.  The large mass of the Sun makes the Earth move around it, just as the mass of the Earth makes the Moon move around it. The Earth also turns round in space, so different parts face the Sun at different times. The Earth goes around the Sun once (one “year”) for every 365¼ times it turns all the way around (one “day”).

C.  The Moon goes around the Earth about every 27⅓ days, and reflects light from the Sun. As the Earth goes round the Sun at the same time, the changing light of the Moon takes about 29½ days to go from dark to bright to dark again. That is where the idea of “month” came from. However, now most months have 30 or 31 days so they fit into one year.

D.  The Earth is the only planet in our Solar System that has a large amount of liquid water. About 71% of the surface of the Earth is covered by oceans. Because of this, it is sometimes called the “Blue Planet”.

E.  Because of its water, the Earth is home to millions of species of plants and animals. The things that live on Earth have changed its surface greatly. For example, early cyanobacteria changed the air and gave it oxygen. The living part of the Earth’s surface is called the “biosphere”.

F.  The Earth is part of the eight planets and many thousands of small bodies that move around the Sun as its Solar System. The Solar System is moving through the Orion Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy now, and will be for about the next 10,000 years.

G.  The Earth is generally 150,000,000 kilometers or 93,000,000 miles away from the Sun (this distance is named an “Astronomical Unit”). The Earth moves along its way at an average speed of about 30 km or 19 mi a second. The Earth turns all the way around about 365¼ times in the time it takes for the Earth to go all the way around the Sun. To make up this extra bit of a day every year, an additional day is used every four years. This is named a “leap year”.

H.  The Moon goes around the Earth at an average distance of 400,000 kilometers (250,000 mi). It is locked to Earth so that it always has the same half facing the Earth; the other half is called the “dark side of the Moon”. It takes about 27⅓ days for the Moon to go all the way around the Earth but, because the Earth is moving around the Sun at the same time, it takes about 29½ days for the Moon to go from dark to bright to dark again. This is where the word “month” came from, even though most months now have 30 or 31 days.

Questions 1-6

Reading Passage “The Earth” has eight paragraphs A-H. Which paragraph contains the following information? 

Write the correct letter, A–H, in boxes 1–8 on your answer sheet.

1.  Earth’s natural satellite
2.  The distance between Earth and Sun
3.  General information about Earth
4.  Length of most months
5.  Another name for Earth
6.  The living part of the Earth’s surface

Questions 7-9

Complete the sentences below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 7-9 on your answer sheet.
7.  Apart from Earth, other rocky planets in our Solar Systems are Venus, Mars and …………………….
8. There are millions of ……………………. of plants and animals that inhabit Earth.
9. The dark side of the Moon is the side, which ……………………. faces Earth.

What to do in a fire?

Fire drills are a big part of being safe in school: They prepare you for what you need to do in case of a fire. But what if there was a fire where you live? Would you know what to do? Talking about fires can be scary because no one likes to think about people getting hurt or their things getting burned. But you can feel less worried if you are prepared.

It’s a good idea for families to talk about what they would do to escape a fire. Different families will have different strategies. Some kids live in one-story houses and other kids live in tall buildings. You’ll want to talk about escape plans and escape routes, so let’s start there.

Know Your Way Out
An escape plan can help every member of a family get out of a burning house. The idea is to get outside quickly and safely. Smoke from a fire can make it hard to see where things are, so it’s important to learn and remember the different ways out of your home. How many exits are there? How do you get to them from your room? It’s a good idea to have your family draw a map of the escape plan.

It’s possible one way out could be blocked by fire or smoke, so you’ll want to know where other ones are. And if you live in an apartment building, you’ll want to know the best way to the stairwell or other emergency exits.

Safety Steps
If you’re in a room with the door closed when the fire breaks out, you need to take a few extra steps:

    • Check to see if there’s heat or smoke coming through the cracks around the door. (You’re checking to see if there’s fire on the other side.)
    • If you see smoke coming under the door — don’t open the door!
    • If you don’t see smoke — touch the door. If the door is hot or very warm — don’t open the door!
    • If you don’t see smoke — and the door is not hot — then use your fingers to lightly touch the doorknob. If the doorknob is hot or very warm — don’t open the door!

If the doorknob feels cool, and you can’t see any smoke around the door, you can open the door very carefully and slowly. When you open the door, if you feel a burst of heat or smoke pours into the room, quickly shut the door and make sure it is really closed. If there’s no smoke or heat when you open the door, go toward your escape route exit.

Questions 10-14

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Section “What to do in a fire?“?
In boxes 10–14 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 important to have a strategy before escaping the fire.
11.  You should mark different ways out of your home on the map.
12.  If you’re stuck in a room and see smoke coming from the other room, you should open the door and run to the exit.
13.  A hot door means you shouldn’t open it to escape.
14.  If you open the door and everything seems fine, go straight to the exit.

Section 2: Question 15-27

Advice for Employees

Safe computer use
Most people suffer no ill-effects from using VDUs (Visual Display Units) as they don’t give out harmful levels of radiation and rarely cause any kind of skin complaint. If you do suffer ill-effects, it may be because of the way you’re using the computer and this can be avoided by well-designed workstations. When working at a VDU, make sure you keep a good posture and that your eyes are level with the screen.

Under health and safety regulations your employer should look at VDU workstations, and reduce any risks by supplying any equipment considered necessary (e.g. a wrist rest). They should also provide health and safety training. This also applies if you’re working at home as an employee and using a VDU for a long period of time. There is no legal limit to how long you should work at a VDU, but under health and safety regulations you have the right to breaks from work using a VDU. This doesn’t have to be a rest break, just a different type of work. Guidance from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) suggests it’s better to take frequent short breaks but if your job means spending long periods at a VDU, for example as in the case of data input, then longer breaks from your workstation should be introduced.

If you’re disabled, your employer’s duty to make reasonable adjustments for you may mean that they will provide you with special computer equipment. You can also get advice and maybe help with paying for equipment from the local job centre.

Studies haven’t shown a link between VDU use and damage to eyesight, but if you feel that using a VDU screen is making your eyes tired, tell your employee safety representative. You have the right to a free eyesight test if you use a VDU a lot during work hours. If you’re prescribed glasses your company must pay for them, provided they’re required in your job.

If you have any health problems you think may be caused by your VDU, contact your line manager. He/she has a duty to consult you on health and safety issues that affect you, and should welcome early reporting of any issue.

Questions 15-19

Complete the sentences below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 10-14 on your answer sheet.

15. It is unusual to get a ……………………. as a result of using computers.
16. Employers may be required to provide you with items such as a ……………………. to use while at work.
17. If your job involves tasks such as ……………………. , the advice from the HSE may not apply.
18. Financial assistance in the case of special requirements may be available from the …………………….
19. Any concerns about the effect of using a VDU on your general well-being should be reported to ……………………. .

Job Opening

1. The Vitamin Shoppe: 1,946 part-time openings.
The Vitamin Shoppe is a New Jersey-based retailer of nutritional supplements. They also operate stores in Canada under the name “VitaPath”. The company provides approximately 8,000 different SKU’s of supplements through its retail stores and over 20,000 different SKU’s of supplements through its online retail websites.

Employee Review: “Good growth opportunities and stores opening all over the US all year ’round. Company based out of NJ, so more progressive policies on employment and benefits. Good vacation, health, and dental benefits. Payment is above average. Good policies on customer service interaction as well. Focus on Customer service vs. pushing products.”

2. Chipotle: 1,553 part-time openings.
Chipotle is known for its use of organic meats throughout its more than 1,500 restaurants, which are located in 45 states. Since having been founded in 1993, the chain has since exploded and now counts some 37,000 employees. It is a pioneer in the “fast casual” dining movement.

Employee Review: “The people I work with are awesome and the food is good. It pays my bills and makes me laugh. The schedule is super flexible but it’s a lot of work. If you’re looking for something easy and laid back, keep looking.”

3. Advantage Sales & Marketing: 1,742 part-time openings.
Advantage Sales & Marketing provides outsourced sales, merchandising, and marketing services to consumer goods and food product manufacturers and suppliers. Owning more than 65 offices in the US and Canada, ASM does merchandising for 1,200 clients — including Johnson & Johnson, Mars, Unilever, Energizer.

Employee Review: “Long lasting business, able to adapt to changes in the market. Well-thought-out schedule, and flexible time off for both vacation and illness.”

4. PSA Healthcare: 1,295 part-time openings.
PSA Healthcare, also known as Pediatric Services of America, provides comprehensive home health services through a branch of office across the United States. The company is headquartered in Atlanta, Ga.

Employee Review: “I love working one-on-one with the pediatric patient and their families. You have the time needed to give a great compassionate care! Office staff and supervisors are very good with both employees and clients. There is a lot of flexibility with staffing. I never received grief for requesting a day off.”

Questions 20-27

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
Write the correct letter in boxes 20–27 on your answer sheet.

20. Which offer has the most part-time openings?
A. Chipotle

B. PSA Healthcare    

C. The Vitamin Shoppe

D. Advantage Sales & Marketing

21. Which of these companies operate both in USA and Canada?
A. The Vitamin Shoppe and Advantage Sales & Marketing
B. PSA Healthcare and Advantage Sales & Marketing
C. Chipotle and PSA Healthcare
D. PSA Healthcare and The Vitamin Shoppe

22. Which company was founded in 1993?
A. The Vitamin Shoppe

B. Advantage Sales & Marketing

C. PSA Healthcare

D. Chipotle

23. The main office of which company is situated in Atlanta?
A. The Vitamin Shoppe

B. PSA Healthcare

C. Chipotle

D. Advantage Sales & Marketing

24. VitaPath is the other name of which company?
A. PSA Healthcare

B. Chipotle

C. The Vitamin Shoppe

D. Advantage Sales & Marketing

25. Which review doesn’t mention a comfortable timetable?
A. Chipotle

B. Advantage Sales & Marketing  

C. The Vitamin Shoppe

D. PSA Healthcare

26. Which company is described as a long lasting business?
A. PSA Healthcare

B. Advantage Sales & Marketing
C. Universal Protection Service

D. Chipotle

27. Organic meat is used by what company?
A. Chipotle

B. The Vitamin Shoppe
C. Advantage Sales & Marketing

D. None of them

Section 3: Question 28-40

The end of the silver screen?

Cinema technology has remained much the same for over a century, so when will it go digital? Kevin Hilton views the projections.

A.  Cinema is full of contradictions. It is high-tech and old-fashioned at the same time. Today’s films are full of digital sound and computer-generated special effects. Yet they are still stored on celluloid film, the basis of which is more than 100 years old. They are also displayed with projectors and screens that seem to belong to our great-grandparents’ generation.

B.  Now that we are in the second century of cinema, there are moves to bring the medium right up to date. This will involve revolutionising not just how films are made but also how they are distributed and presented. The aim is not only to produce and prepare films digitally but to be able to send them to movie theatres by digital, electronic means. High-resolution digital projectors would then show the film. Supporters say this will make considerable savings at all stages of this chain, particularly for distribution.

C.  With such a major technological revolution on the horizon, it seems strange that the industry is still not sure what to call itself. This may appear a minor point, but the choices, ‘digital’ cinema and ‘electronic’ cinema (e-cinema), suggest different approaches to, and aspects of, the business. Digital cinema refers to the physical capture of images; e-cinema covers the whole chain, from production through post-production (editing, addition of special effects and construction of soundtrack) to distribution and projection.

D.  And what about the effects of the new medium? The main selling point of digital cinema is the high resolution and sharpness of the final image. But those who support the old-fashioned approach to film point to the celluloid medium’s quality of warmth. A recurring criticism of video is that it may be too good: uncomfortably real, rather like looking through an open window. In 1989, the director of the first full-length American digital high-definition movie admitted that the picture had a ‘stark, strange reality to it’.

E.  Even the money-saving aspect of e-cinema is doubted. One expert says that existing cinemas will have to show the new material and not all of them will readily or rapidly furnish themselves with the right equipment. ‘E-cinema is seen as a way of saving money because print costs a lot,’ he says. Thus for that to work, cinemas have to be showing the films because cinemas are the engine that drives the film industry.’

F.  This view has prompted some pro-digital entrepreneurs to take a slightly different approach. HD Thames is looking at reinventing the existing cinema market, moving towards e-theatre, which would use digital video and projection to present plays, musicals and some sporting events to the public. This is not that different from the large-screen TV system that was set up in New York in 1930, and John Logie Baird’s experiments with TV in the late 1920s and early 30s.

Questions 28-33

The Reading Passage “The end of the silver screen?” has six paragraphs A–F. Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below. Write numbers, i-ix, in boxes 28-33 on your answer sheet.

Questions 34-38

Complete the summary below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 34-38 on your answer sheet.

There are big changes ahead for cinema if digital production takes place and the industry no longer uses (34) ……………. and gets rid of the old-fashioned (35) ……………. and used to show movies. The main advantage is likely to be that the final image will be clearer. However, some people argue that the digital picture will lack (36) ……………..In addition, digital production will only reduce costs if cinemas are willing to buy new (37) …………….. As a result, experiments with what is called (38) ‘……………’ may mark a change in the whole entertainment industry.

Questions 39 and 40

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D. Write letters A-D in boxes 39 and 40 on your answer sheet.

39.  What does e-cinema concept cover?
A)  physical capture of images

B)  displaying cinemas with projectors
C)  from production to distribution and projection

D)  distributing cinemas electronically

40.  the e-theatre concept would involve –
A) broadcasting live sporting events

B)  up to date theatrical performance
C) digital capture of image

D) the use digital video and projection