YDS English Reading practice test 2

1 - 6: For these questions, choose the best word or expression to fill the space.

1. Rather than trying to suppress distressing thoughts, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy teaches people to observe them calmly, an approach designed to lower the ---- of depression in those who have already recovered from earlier episodes.

A) affiliation

B) disclosure

C) compliance

D) recurrence

E) resemblance

2. Because the skeletons of reef-building corals accumulate only ----, damage caused by a single storm or careless anchoring can take several decades to repair.

A) incrementally

B) abruptly

C) reluctantly

D) lavishly

E) deliberately

3. In many medieval European towns, craft guilds sought to ---- the number of workshops permitted in each trade, thereby protecting their members' incomes from excessive competition.

A) emulate

B) commemorate

C) curtail

D) disperse

E) amplify

4. Although battery-powered cars of the early twentieth century were technically ----, their limited range and the scarcity of charging stations prevented them from competing commercially with petrol-powered vehicles.

A) obsolete

B) hazardous

C) negligible

D) indifferent

E) feasible

5. Farmers in arid regions increasingly rely on drip irrigation, a technique that delivers water directly to plant roots and thus minimises the ---- that occurs when water is sprayed over open fields.

A) precipitation

B) evaporation

C) germination

D) fermentation

E) circulation

6. Small businesses that ---- large debts during an economic downturn often struggle to recover, because rising interest payments leave them little money for wages or new investment.

A) pay off

B) turn down

C) run up

D) hand over

E) look into

7 - 16: For these questions, choose the best word(s) or expression(s) to fill the space(s).

7. By the time the new health declaration requirement for international flights took effect last month, most airlines ---- their check-in systems so that passengers who ---- the form online could be identified before boarding.

A) have already updated / will not complete

B) had already updated / had not completed

C) would update / do not complete

D) are updating / have not completed

E) will have updated / were not completing

8. The medieval stone bridge in the town centre ---- by last spring's flood if local engineers ---- its foundations only a few years earlier, a project many residents had considered unnecessary.

A) will be destroyed / do not reinforce

B) must have destroyed / have not reinforced

C) was destroyed / were not reinforcing

D) would have been destroyed / had not reinforced

E) might be destroying / would not reinforce

9. Ice cores ---- from deep beneath the Antarctic surface allow climatologists ---- how levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide changed over hundreds of thousands of years.

A) drilling / reconstructing

B) to drill / reconstruct

C) drilled / to reconstruct

D) having drilled / to have reconstructed

E) being drilled / reconstructed

10. Honeybee colonies depend heavily ---- the health of their foraging workers, so a sharp decline ---- the number of flowering plants nearby can quickly weaken an entire hive.

A) at / of

B) with / for

C) from / on

D) to / at

E) on / in

11. Linguists have long been interested ---- the way children raised in bilingual homes switch between languages, a skill that appears to develop largely independently ---- any formal instruction.

A) in / of

B) on / from

C) at / with

D) for / to

E) about / by

12. ---- original manuscripts are stored at a stable temperature and humidity, they can survive for many centuries, which is why archives often invest heavily in climate-controlled storage rooms.

A) Even though

B) Unless

C) As if

D) Provided that

E) Until

13. ---- electric cars produce no exhaust emissions while they are being driven, the manufacture of their batteries still requires considerable energy and the mining of scarce minerals.

A) Since

B) Although

C) Once

D) So that

E) Unless

14. ---- an invasive plant species has become established in a wetland, removing it completely is extremely difficult and expensive, so ecologists consider early detection to be essential.

A) Whereas

B) Before

C) As though

D) In case

E) Once

15. During the sixteenth century, demand for cheap printed pamphlets in European cities grew ---- rapidly ---- some urban workshops kept their presses running day and night to meet orders.

A) so / that

B) such / as

C) as / than

D) more / than

E) both / and

16. ---- the extreme pressure, near-freezing water and complete darkness of the deep ocean, a surprising variety of organisms thrive around hydrothermal vents on the sea floor.

A) Due to

B) Instead of

C) Despite

D) In addition to

E) Thanks to

17 - 21: For these questions, choose the best word or expression to fill the spaces in the passage.

Canned fish has long been valued as a cheap source of protein that can be stored for years without refrigeration, and in recent decades it has also become a fashionable item in delicatessens and on social media. Yet its growing popularity has placed considerable (17)---- on wild fish stocks. Several tuna populations have fallen sharply (18)---- industrial fleets that catch fish faster than the fish can reproduce. Modern vessels often use enormous purse-seine nets, which allow crews (19)---- whole schools of fish at once, also trapping turtles, sharks and young fish that have not yet bred. (20)---- environmental damage is often discussed, the human cost of the industry, which can be just as serious, receives far less attention. Much of the catch is taken by fleets fishing thousands of kilometres from home, where inspections are rare. Investigations have found that some crew members on such vessels are (21)---- to work long hours for little pay, and that some are not allowed to leave the ship for months at a time, even when they are ill.

17. (17)

A) emphasis

B) confidence

C) pressure

D) restriction

E) value

18. (18)

A) despite

B) instead of

C) apart from

D) due to

E) unlike

19. (19)

A) surrounding

B) to surround

C) having surrounded

D) surround

E) to be surrounded

20. (20)

A) Because

B) Unless

C) As if

D) Provided that

E) While

21. (21)

A) compelled

B) entitled

C) eager

D) qualified

E) privileged

22 - 26: For these questions, choose the best word or expression to fill the spaces in the passage.

When a light aircraft or private jet crashes, there are often no survivors or witnesses to describe what happened, so investigators must (22)---- the final minutes of the flight from physical and recorded evidence. Many small aircraft carry no flight data or cockpit voice recorders, so investigators depend (23)---- other sources: radar data, recordings of radio contact with air traffic control, and the wreckage itself. (24)---- the wreckage is scattered over a wide area, investigators may conclude that the aircraft broke up in the air rather than on hitting the ground. The fragments are often moved to a hangar, where investigators may spend months (25)---- thousands of them before they can identify where a mechanical or structural failure first began. These investigators do not decide who is legally responsible for a crash; liability is handled separately in other proceedings. Because the purpose of the inquiry is to prevent future accidents (26)---- to assign blame, its final report usually ends with safety recommendations, for example on aircraft maintenance or pilot training.

22. (22)

A) postpone

B) exaggerate

C) reconstruct

D) overlook

E) undermine

23. (23)

A) for

B) with

C) at

D) into

E) on

24. (24)

A) If

B) Unless

C) Although

D) As if

E) Until

25. (25)

A) to examine

B) examining

C) having examined

D) to have examined

E) examined

26. (26)

A) as well as

B) regardless of

C) such as

D) rather than

E) due to

27 - 36: For these questions, choose the best option to complete the given sentence.

27. Although high-ranking chimpanzees appear to take greater risks than their subordinates in experimental choice tasks, ----.

A) dominant individuals therefore tend to choose the uncertain option more often than others do

B) which suggests that social rank and willingness to gamble are linked in both species

C) it remains unclear whether their elevated status causes this boldness or simply results from it

D) this tendency is consistent with patterns observed among people who hold leadership positions

E) because subordinate animals usually avoid choices whose outcomes cannot be predicted in advance

28. ----, city planners are increasingly turning to green roofs as a relatively inexpensive way of cooling dense neighbourhoods.

A) Since summer temperatures in many large cities have risen noticeably over recent decades

B) Even though rooftop vegetation is known to lower surface temperatures considerably in summer

C) Once the first green roofs had been installed on public buildings in the city

D) So that roofs could support the additional weight of wet soil and plants

E) Unless building owners are willing to bear the long-term cost of maintaining the plants

29. Digitising fragile manuscripts allows scholars around the world to study them without handling the originals, ----.

A) so that the originals had been exposed to light and humidity far more often

B) although high-resolution images reduce the need for repeated handling of the documents

C) because the cost of scanning large collections remains a serious obstacle for many archives

D) but it cannot entirely replace the evidence provided by physical features such as ink and binding

E) unless the originals are kept in climate-controlled storage once they have been scanned

30. Unless volcanologists can detect subtle changes in ground deformation and gas emissions well in advance, ----.

A) eruptions are generally preceded by a series of small earthquakes beneath the volcano

B) authorities may not have enough time to evacuate communities living near an active volcano

C) satellite data have made monitoring remote volcanoes considerably cheaper in recent years

D) local residents would have been warned about the eruption several days earlier

E) they will be able to forecast eruptions with a reasonably high degree of accuracy

31. ----, many employees report that working from home blurs the boundary between their professional and private lives.

A) Because a separate home office helps staff keep work and family time clearly apart

B) Once companies had introduced hybrid schedules for most of their office staff

C) So that employees could spend more time with their families during the working week

D) Now that most remote employees work in a quiet, dedicated room of their own

E) While remote work frees people from long and tiring daily journeys to the office

32. Children who grow up speaking two languages may initially know fewer words in each language than their monolingual peers, ----.

A) since they tend to learn words in each language at the same rate as monolinguals

B) but their combined vocabulary across both languages is usually comparable to that of monolinguals

C) having been taught both languages long before they had started attending school

D) unless their parents consistently speak only one language to them at home

E) so that they will eventually be able to switch between languages with ease

33. ----, a large share of the food that is thrown away in wealthy countries is discarded by households rather than by farms or shops.

A) Because farmers often leave edible crops unharvested when market prices fall sharply

B) If consumers planned their meals and weekly shopping more carefully

C) So that households can save money on their monthly grocery bills

D) Although public criticism tends to focus on supermarkets that throw away unsold products

E) Once retailers had started selling imperfect fruit and vegetables at lower prices

34. Roman concrete has survived for nearly two thousand years in harsh marine environments, ----.

A) whereas many modern concrete structures begin to deteriorate within only a few decades

B) although it was specifically designed to withstand constant exposure to waves and salt

C) unless it had been exposed to repeated waves and salt over the centuries

D) because modern builders rarely have access to the volcanic ash that the Romans used

E) since the Romans had rarely used it for harbours, piers or sea walls

35. As long as volunteers follow standardised counting procedures and record their observations promptly, ----.

A) professional ornithologists have long questioned the value of observations made by amateurs

B) the number of people taking part in such projects has grown steadily online

C) their records would have been rejected by the researchers who analysed the surveys

D) the information they gather is likely to contain serious and unpredictable errors

E) the bird counts they collect can be reliable enough for use in scientific research

36. Coffeehouses in seventeenth-century London were often called ‘penny universities’ ----.

A) even though they gave visitors the chance to hear and debate the latest ideas

B) unless their customers had paid an annual fee to a recognised academic institution

C) because, for the price of a cup of coffee, customers could join discussions on news and science

D) so that most universities of the period stopped admitting students who paid fees

E) since conversation there was largely limited to trade and private business matters

37 - 42: For these questions, choose the most accurate Turkish translation of the sentences in English, and the most accurate English translation of the sentences in Turkish.

37. Although some artificial intelligence companies market their chatbots as safe and responsible products, their founders have repeatedly warned that the technology could pose serious risks if it develops faster than regulation.

A) Yapay zekâ şirketlerinin hepsi sohbet robotlarını güvenli ve sorumlu ürünler olarak tanıtıyor olsa da kurucuları, teknoloji düzenlemelerin önüne geçecek hızda gelişirse ciddi riskler doğabileceği konusunda defalarca uyarıda bulunmuştur

B) Bazı yapay zekâ şirketleri sohbet robotlarını güvenli ve sorumlu ürünler olarak pazarladığından, bu şirketlerin kurucuları da teknolojinin düzenlemelerden hızlı gelişmesi hâlinde ciddi riskler oluşturabileceği yönünde birçok kez uyarı yapmıştır

C) Bazı yapay zekâ şirketlerinin sohbet robotlarını güvenli ve sorumlu ürünler olarak pazarlamasına rağmen bu şirketlerin kurucuları, teknolojinin düzenlemelerden daha hızlı gelişmesi durumunda ciddi riskler oluşturabileceği konusunda defalarca uyarıda bulunmuştur

D) Kimi yapay zekâ şirketleri sohbet robotlarını güvenli ve sorumlu ürünler diye pazarlıyor; ne var ki bu şirketlerin kurucuları, teknoloji düzenlemelerden hızlı geliştiği için şimdiden ciddi riskler doğurduğunu defalarca vurgulayarak uyarmıştır

E) Bazı yapay zekâ şirketlerinin kurucuları, şirketlerinin sohbet robotlarını güvenli ve sorumlu ürünler olarak pazarlamasına karşın, düzenlemeler teknolojiden daha hızlı gelişirse teknolojinin ciddi riskler oluşturabileceği konusunda defalarca uyarmıştır

38. Researchers who monitored rooftop gardens in several cities found that the gardens lowered indoor temperatures during the summer, but only in buildings whose roofs had been properly insulated beforehand.

A) Birkaç şehirdeki çatı bahçelerini gözlemleyen araştırmacıların bulgularına göre bu bahçeler yaz boyunca iç mekân sıcaklıklarını düşürmüştür; ne var ki bu etki yalnızca çatıları önceden uygun biçimde yalıtılmış binalarda görülmüştür

B) Araştırmacılar, birkaç şehirde izledikleri çatı bahçelerinin yaz aylarında iç mekân sıcaklıklarını düşürdüğünü, bu etkinin de en çok çatısı önceden iyi yalıtılmış binalarda ortaya çıktığını belirlemiştir

C) Birkaç şehirdeki çatı bahçelerini takip eden araştırmacılar, bu bahçelerin yazın iç sıcaklıkları yalnızca çatıları bahçelerden sonra düzgünce yalıtılan binalarda düşürdüğünü tespit etmiştir

D) Birkaç şehirde çatı bahçelerini izleyen araştırmacılar, bahçelerin yaz aylarında iç mekân sıcaklıklarını, çatılarını önceden kendilerinin düzgün bir şekilde yalıttığı binalarda düşürdüğünü, diğer binalarda ise böyle bir etki görülmediğini bulmuştur

E) Birkaç şehirdeki çatı bahçeleri üzerinde izleme yapan araştırmacılara göre bu bahçeler, yaz aylarında iç mekân sıcaklıklarını ancak çatısı önceden düzgünce yalıtılmış binalarda düşürebilecektir

39. Digitising historical archives not only protects fragile documents from further damage but also allows scholars who cannot travel to distant libraries to examine those documents in detail.

A) Tarihi arşivler dijitalleştirildiğinde hassas belgeler daha fazla zarar görmekten korunur ve bu sayede uzak kütüphanelere seyahat edemeyen akademisyenler bu belgeleri ayrıntılı olarak inceleyebilir

B) Tarihi arşivlerin dijitalleştirilmesi, hassas belgeleri daha fazla zarar görmekten korumanın yanı sıra uzak kütüphanelere gidebilecek durumdaki akademisyenlerin de bu belgeleri ayrıntılı olarak incelemesini sağlar

C) Tarihi arşivleri dijitalleştirmek, kırılgan belgeleri her türlü hasara karşı tümüyle korur; bunun yanında uzaktaki kütüphanelere seyahat etme imkânı olmayan akademisyenlere de bu belgeleri ayrıntılı inceleme olanağı verir

D) Uzak kütüphanelere seyahat edemeyen akademisyenler, tarihi arşivlerin dijitalleştirilmesiyle bu belgelere genel hatlarıyla göz atabilir; üstelik bu süreç hassas belgeleri daha fazla zarar görmekten de korur

E) Tarihi arşivlerin dijital ortama aktarılması hem kırılgan belgelerin daha fazla hasar görmesini önler hem de uzaktaki kütüphanelere gidemeyen akademisyenlerin bu belgeleri ayrıntılı biçimde incelemesini mümkün kılar

40. Mercan resiflerinin büyük bir kısmı yükselen deniz sıcaklıkları nedeniyle zarar görmüş olsa da bazı türlerin daha sıcak sulara uyum sağlayabildiği yeni araştırmalarla ortaya konmuştur.

A) Much of the coral reef population has been harmed by rising sea temperatures, which is why new studies have found that some species can adjust to warmer waters

B) New research has demonstrated that certain species are capable of adapting to warmer waters, even though rising sea temperatures have damaged a large part of coral reefs

C) While a large part of coral reefs has been damaged due to rising sea temperatures, new studies have revealed that the majority of species are able to adapt to warmer waters

D) Despite the damage that rising sea temperatures have caused to a large proportion of coral reefs, new research has shown that some species will be able to adapt to warmer waters in the future

E) New research has shown that some species can adapt to warmer seas, although rising sea temperatures might damage a large proportion of coral reefs

41. Belediyeler toplu taşıma ücretlerini düşürdüğünde özel araç kullanımı her zaman azalmaz, çünkü birçok kişi için asıl belirleyici etken ücret değil, seferlerin sıklığı ve güvenilirliğidir.

A) Private car use never falls when municipalities cut public transport fares, as the main deciding factor for many people is the frequency and reliability of services rather than the fare

B) Although many people are mainly guided by the frequency and reliability of services rather than by the fare, a reduction in public transport fares by municipalities does not always reduce private car use

C) Because what really determines the choice for many people is the fare, not how often and how reliably services run, a cut in public transport fares by municipalities does not always reduce private car use

D) Lower public transport fares introduced by municipalities do not always lead to less private car use, since what matters most to many people is not the price of a ticket but how frequent and reliable the services are

E) When municipalities reduce public transport fares, private car use does not always go down, because the key factor for many people is not the fare but the frequency of services

42. Çocukların ikinci bir dili erken yaşta öğrenmeye başlaması telaffuz açısından avantaj sağlayabilir; ancak dil bilgisindeki başarının, öğrenmeye başlama yaşından çok dile maruz kalma süresine bağlı olduğu düşünülmektedir.

A) Children who start learning a second language early will definitely gain an advantage in pronunciation, but success in grammar is thought to depend on the length of exposure to the language more than on the starting age

B) Although an early start in a second language may help children with pronunciation, grammatical success is believed to depend more on how long learners are exposed to the language than on the age at which they start learning

C) An early start in learning a second language can benefit children's pronunciation; grammatical success, however, is considered to rely more on the starting age than on the amount of time spent exposed to the language

D) Beginning a second language at a young age may be an advantage for children in terms of pronunciation, but research has proven that achievement in grammar is determined less by the starting age than by the duration of exposure to the language

E) It is possible for children to gain a pronunciation advantage by starting a second language early, and it is therefore thought that grammatical success depends on how long they are exposed to the language rather than on when they begin

43 - 46: Answer these questions according to the passage below.

Although it resembles a single plant, a lichen is a partnership between a fungus and an alga. The fungus forms its body and holds moisture, while the alga produces sugars from sunlight. Because the fungus keeps its partner supplied with water, the alga continues working long after thin, sandy soil has dried, so lichens can carpet poor ground in boreal pine forests where most plants struggle. Lichens have no roots and draw nothing from nearby trees. The alga does need light, however, so ground lichens thrive in open, sunny pine stands, growing only a few millimetres a year. In winter, reindeer smell them under snow and dig down, gaining energy but little protein. Modern forestry favours dense, even-aged plantations that shade the forest floor, and before replanting, machines often turn over the soil, a process called scarification that rips lichen mats apart. Since lichen grows back so slowly, a damaged pasture may need decades to recover. Milder winters add another difficulty. Rain sometimes falls on snow and freezes into a crust too hard for reindeer hooves to break. The lichen beneath stays intact, but it is sealed off. Sámi herders know which pastures hold lichen in each season, recognise dangerous snow and ice, and use this experience in deciding where to move their reindeer. Researchers increasingly combine such observations with satellite images. Satellites map lichen mats across large areas but cannot detect ice beneath the snow surface, which herders notice, so each fills a gap left by the other. Yet such knowledge cannot restore pastures while logging continues unchanged.

43. According to the passage, the partnership between the fungus and the alga allows a lichen to ----.

A) take extra nutrients from nearby pine roots through the threads of the fungus

B) keep making sugars on dry, sandy ground, as the fungus holds the water the alga needs

C) thrive in the shade of dense pine stands, since the alga needs very little light

D) give reindeer a winter food that is rich in protein as well as energy

E) store water in the cells of the alga, leaving the fungus free to grow through dry summers

44. It is stated in the passage that the damage caused by soil scarification is serious because ----.

A) the cleared ground is quickly taken over by plants that reindeer cannot digest

B) it removes the older trees under which reindeer shelter during winter

C) it permanently prevents lichen from ever returning to the affected areas

D) lichen mats grow back so slowly that a pasture may need decades to recover

E) it causes layers of ice to form on the exposed soil in winter

45. It can be inferred from the passage that, when rain falls on snow and then freezes, ----.

A) the lichen beneath the ice is destroyed and has to regrow over many years

B) lichens begin to grow faster because of the extra moisture they receive

C) satellite images give herders an accurate picture of which pastures are usable

D) reindeer may struggle to feed even in pastures where lichen is plentiful

E) reindeer can usually reach the lichen if they keep digging at the frozen crust

46. Which of the following can be said about the author of the passage?

A) The author considers satellite mapping a more reliable guide to pastures than herders' observations

B) The author holds that grazing by reindeer adds substantially to the damage caused by forestry

C) The author suggests that warmer winters now threaten lichen more seriously than forestry does

D) The author values herders' knowledge mainly as a record of the past rather than a guide to present decisions

E) The author sees herders' knowledge as useful but insufficient without changes in forestry practice

47 - 50: Answer these questions according to the passage below.

When a film succeeds, audiences and critics usually credit its artistic vision to the director. Yet a large part of the producer's contribution is made long before the cameras roll and far from public view. It is typically the producer who develops the initial idea, reworks the script, selects the director and principal cast, raises the money and assembles the team that will make the film. That responsibility continues throughout filming and on into distribution. For independent producers, finance rarely comes from a single source. Public film funds cover only a portion of a budget, with the rest coming from broadcasters, distributors or private investors. International co-productions have therefore become a key tool for the independent sector, since they make it possible to combine support from several national funds. Each fund, however, sets its own terms, typically requiring that a share of the budget be spent, or crew be hired, in its own country, and a co-producer must meet all of them at once. Financiers and funding bodies base their decisions largely on what a producer has achieved before. Trust earned over time is what allows a producer to take a chance on a first-time or unconventional director whose project appears commercially uncertain, should the producer wish to. Seen in this light, choices about money, partners and projects are more than administrative. They decide which films are made at all, and often how they look. The familiar picture of cinema as a director's art is not wrong, but it may leave out much of the creative work behind it.

47. According to the passage, much of a producer’s work on a film ----.

A) is done before shooting, after which the director takes over full responsibility for the film

B) is done before shooting, although the producer stays responsible through filming and distribution

C) is concentrated on financing, with little involvement in shaping the script or choosing the cast

D) is done during shooting, when the producer supervises the cast and crew on the set every day

E) begins once the director has been chosen and ends as soon as the budget has been raised

48. It is stated in the passage that international co-productions ----.

A) free producers from having to spend part of the budget in each country that provides funds

B) allow producers to apply the rules of a single funding country to the entire budget

C) commit producers to meeting the separate conditions attached by each national fund involved

D) require producers to hire most of the crew in the country that contributes the largest share

E) are used mainly by broadcasters and distributors rather than by independent producers

49. It can be inferred from the passage that a producer with a record of several successful films ----.

A) is more likely to receive public funding than private investment

B) has more room to back a first-time director whose project looks commercially risky

C) is required by funding bodies to support first-time or unconventional directors

D) tends to rely less on international co-productions than other producers

E) is generally expected to finance a larger share of each budget personally

50. Which of the following can be said about the author of the passage?

A) The author seems to think that producers’ influence over artistic choices is often overestimated

B) The author appears to regret that funding conditions now shape which films get made

C) The author suggests that producers should leave artistic decisions to directors

D) The author appears to believe that mixed funding makes independent films less distinctive

E) The author seems to regard the producer’s work as partly creative and insufficiently recognised

51 - 54: Answer these questions according to the passage below.

How did the system that shields our bodies from infection come into being? Even bacteria, organisms made of a single cell, carry enzymes that identify the DNA of attacking viruses and chop it up. Some kind of immune protection was in place long before the first animals appeared. All animals possess innate defences. These act quickly but treat a wide range of intruders in the same general way. A more targeted strategy emerged later, among vertebrates. This adaptive immunity depends on specialised white blood cells called lymphocytes, which single out particular invaders and keep a memory of them. The decisive step came about 500 million years ago, when the ancestors of jawed vertebrates harnessed a jumping gene, a mobile stretch of DNA that had lived somewhat like a parasite inside the genome. The element was put to work as machinery that cuts receptor genes into pieces and shuffles them together again. This allows lymphocytes to generate an enormous variety of receptors and antibodies. Jawless fish such as lampreys and hagfish tell a different story. They make no antibodies and lack the cutting machinery derived from the jumping gene. Yet their lymphocytes still display a remarkable diversity of receptors, built from different gene fragments, and each receptor recognises a particular invader. Their lineage split from that of jawed vertebrates before antibodies existed. Even in vertebrates, innate defences remain the body's first line of protection. Our own immune system is thus a layered archive of its history, in which ancient general defences still work alongside newer, more precise ones.

51. According to the passage, ----.

A) the earliest immune defences appeared only after animals had developed specialised blood cells

B) even single-celled organisms such as bacteria have ways of protecting themselves against viruses

C) bacteria acquired their antiviral defences from the animals they infect

D) bacteria rely on the same specialised white cells that animals use against infection

E) innate immunity first emerged in vertebrates as a response to bacterial infections

52. The underlined word ‘harnessed’ is closest in meaning to ----.

A) resisted

B) inherited

C) exploited

D) imitated

E) destroyed

53. It can be inferred from the passage that ----.

A) jawless fish such as lampreys depend entirely on innate defences because they lack antibodies

B) the receptor system of lampreys was the direct ancestor of the antibody system of jawed vertebrates

C) jawed vertebrates gave up their innate defences once antibodies had appeared

D) a defence system able to target specific invaders arose more than once during evolution

E) the gene-cutting machinery borrowed from a jumping gene is shared by all vertebrates, including lampreys

54. Which of the following could be the best title for the passage?

A) Why Lampreys Never Developed an Adaptive Immune System

B) How Vaccines Train the Body to Remember Invaders

C) The Gradual Decline of Innate Immunity in Vertebrates

D) Bacteria: The Main Threat to the First Animals

E) From Bacteria to Vertebrates: How Immune Defences Took Shape

55 - 58: Answer these questions according to the passage below.

On most Caribbean cruises, the ship has always doubled as the hotel. Passengers sleep in their cabins every night and spend only a few hours in each port. Many North Americans accept this arrangement, since reaching a departure port in Florida takes only a short flight. Europeans face a very different journey. Having spent most of a day crossing the Atlantic, many would rather sleep at least part of the time on land and linger on the beach than see the islands in brief afternoon visits, so a large share of them have chosen land-based holidays instead. One major cruise operator has begun investing heavily in beach resorts of its own close to Caribbean ports, and rivals are expected to follow. Guests can add several nights on land to their voyage. Since the company owns these properties, whatever passengers pay for rooms and meals ashore remains within its own business rather than flowing to independent island hotels. The company also argues that the resorts will relieve some of the pressure on crowded port towns, although these towns will continue to receive ship visits. The change could reshape island economies. A traveller who might once have booked a few nights at a local hotel before or after a cruise can now stay at a resort run by the cruise line, and some island observers worry about what this means for local businesses. Ultimately, success will depend on whether the resorts give Europeans the real stay on land they want or merely feel like an extension of the ship.

55. According to the passage, Caribbean cruises have traditionally appealed less to European travellers because ----.

A) the port towns they visit are often too crowded with other ship passengers to be enjoyed

B) hotels near the Caribbean departure ports are often fully booked by North American visitors

C) after a long flight, many want to spend some nights on land, not only on board

D) the beaches near the ports seem less attractive to them than those they can reach in Europe

E) many are reluctant to book a holiday in a region they know mainly from advertising

56. It is stated in the passage that one benefit the cruise operators claim for their new investment is that ----.

A) it allows the ships to stop calling at busy port towns altogether

B) it costs less to run than the cabins of a large ship

C) it draws North American passengers away from rival cruise lines

D) it frees cabins so that each ship can carry more passengers per voyage

E) it eases the pressure that large numbers of visitors place on crowded port towns

57. It can be inferred from the passage that ----.

A) cruise operators expect European passengers to spend less on board once the resorts open

B) independent hotels on the islands may earn less from cruise passengers than they would otherwise

C) other cruise operators have so far been reluctant to follow the first company's example

D) the resorts are likely to be most popular with passengers who live near the departure ports

E) European travellers mainly choose cruises for the time spent at sea rather than in port

58. Which of the following describes the main purpose of the passage?

A) To show that the operators' new strategy has already won over most European cruise passengers

B) To compare the holiday preferences of European and North American cruise passengers

C) To criticise cruise operators for taking business away from local island hotels

D) To explain why cruise operators are changing their business model and what effects this may have

E) To describe the facilities that the operators' new properties will offer cruise passengers

59 - 62: Answer these questions according to the passage below.

Neutrinos are extremely common, yet very hard to observe. Vast numbers stream through everything, whole planets included, almost undisturbed, and only very rarely does one strike an atom. When this happens in ice, the collision produces a charged particle that emits a faint flash of bluish light. Detectors buried deep in the Antarctic ice sheet exploit this: there the ice is exceptionally transparent and completely dark, so the weak glow can travel far to light sensors lowered into deep holes. The detector is, however, constantly struck by particles created when cosmic rays hit the upper atmosphere, producing similar flashes from above. Here the planet itself acts as a filter. These atmospheric particles cannot cross the whole Earth, whereas neutrinos, arriving from any direction, pass straight through it. A particle rising through the ice, having come through the planet from the far side, is therefore very probably a neutrino. Because collisions are so rare, the detector must watch an enormous volume of ice, roughly a cubic kilometre, to record enough of them to study, and even then only a few useful events accumulate over months or years. Neutrinos that simply pass through emit no light. Magnetic fields in space bend the paths of charged cosmic particles, so their arrival direction says little about their origin. Neutrinos, being uncharged, travel in straight lines, so the light pattern in the ice points back towards their sources. The ice thus works as a telescope aimed at violent events in distant galaxies, and may reveal processes that ordinary light cannot.

59. According to the passage, the ice deep below the Antarctic surface is well suited to detecting neutrinos because ----.

A) its low temperature makes neutrinos far more likely to collide with atoms

B) it slows passing neutrinos down enough for sensors to record their paths

C) it is so clear and dark that faint flashes of light can reach distant sensors

D) its depth keeps particles created in the upper atmosphere away from the sensors

E) its great age allows scientists to measure how many neutrinos arrived in the past

60. It is stated in the passage that researchers pay particular attention to signals travelling upwards through the ice because ----.

A) particles that have crossed the entire planet are almost certainly neutrinos

B) light moving upwards travels further through the ice than light moving downwards

C) neutrinos from distant galaxies can only reach the Earth from below the detector

D) the sensors buried in the ice respond more strongly to light arriving from below

E) upward signals are much brighter and therefore easier to separate from background noise

61. It can be inferred from the passage that a detector using a much smaller volume of ice would ----.

A) record flashes more reliably, since the light would have less ice to cross before reaching the sensors

B) find it harder to tell neutrinos from atmospheric particles, since less ice would lie above it to block them

C) trace neutrinos to their sources more accurately, since magnetic fields would have less ice in which to bend their paths

D) need to collect data over a much longer period before it had enough collisions to study

E) record about the same number of collisions, since just as many neutrinos would still pass through it

62. Which of the following could be the best title for the passage?

A) Why Neutrinos Pass Through Matter Almost Unnoticed

B) Turning Ice into a Telescope: How Elusive Neutrinos Are Caught

C) How Sensors Were Lowered into the Antarctic Ice

D) The Many Ways Scientists Search for Particles from Space

E) What Neutrinos Have Revealed about Distant Galaxies

63 - 67: For these questions, choose the best option to complete the dialogue.

Owen: My media course is holding a retrospective of Hanna Wexler, the television and film producer who died last month at eighty-three. She was behind several hundred films and series. Selin: ---- Owen: Not on its own. She raised the money, picked the scripts and hired the directors in the first place. Without her, most of those films would never have been made at all. Selin: So the person whose name audiences hardly notice was the one holding every project together.

Laura: Have you heard? The company wants to cut back on office space, so from next month we're moving to shared desks. Kerem: That's a worry. I keep all my reference files at my desk, and I'd hate to lose it. Laura: ---- Kerem: What a relief! My team works here four days a week, so we'll be keeping our own desks after all.

Student: For my course project, I'd like to use air-quality readings from the low-cost sensors that volunteers have fixed to houses around my neighbourhood. Teacher: ---- Student: I've thought about that. There's an official monitoring station two streets away, so I'm going to compare its figures with the sensor readings over the same weeks. Teacher: Good. Explain that comparison clearly in your methods section, so readers know they can trust your results.

Elif: The council has changed its plans for our street. Instead of widening the pavement, they're planting a row of trees along it. Murat: Trees? I'm not convinced. Surely that money could go on something more practical. Elif: ---- Murat: Well, if that means lower electricity bills every summer, I suppose trees are practical after all.

Nadia: Since January, our agency has had machine translation produce the first draft of almost every document we handle. Tom: ---- Nadia: Not fewer, no. But the job itself is different now. Most of my day goes on checking and correcting those drafts rather than translating from scratch. Tom: Honestly, fixing someone else's mistakes all day sounds more exhausting than doing the translation yourself.

63. Owen and Selin talk about a film retrospective. Selin's first turn is missing.

A) Which of her films is being screened first, and will we need to book tickets in advance?

B) Why did she stop producing films so many years before the end of her life?

C) I know her name from the credits, but what does a producer actually do? Isn't the director the real creative force?

D) Were her films generally praised by critics, or were they dismissed as too commercial at the time?

E) Will any of the actors who worked with her be attending the screenings to talk about her career?

64. Laura and Kerem discuss a change to their office. Laura's second turn is missing.

A) Yes, and they are also reducing the budget for new laptops and office chairs this year

B) It applies to every department, but staff will still be able to book the same desk each day

C) Management says desks will simply go to whoever arrives first in the morning

D) The plan was announced at Monday's meeting, but nobody was given a chance to ask questions

E) Not for everyone. It only affects teams that come into the office fewer than three days a week

65. A student and a teacher discuss a course project. The Teacher's first turn is missing.

A) An interesting choice, but how will you show that readings from such inexpensive devices are accurate enough to rely on?

B) Why not take the measurements yourself instead of depending on data collected by people you have never met?

C) How many volunteers are involved, and have they agreed to let their data appear in your project?

D) Have you considered focusing on noise pollution instead, since it is easier to measure in residential areas?

E) Will you compare air quality in your neighbourhood with the levels recorded in other cities in the region?

66. Elif and Murat discuss a council project on Elif's street. Elif's second turn is missing.

A) Residents voted for the trees at a public meeting, so the council had little choice in the matter

B) Trees absorb heavy rain, which should stop the basements on our street from flooding after storms

C) Houses on tree-lined streets usually sell for more, so property owners will benefit as well

D) Streets with plenty of shade stay noticeably cooler in summer, so people rely less on air conditioning

E) The trees will also block some of the traffic noise, which has been getting worse every year

67. Nadia and Tom talk about a change at Nadia's workplace. Tom's first turn is missing.

A) Which language pairs does the software handle best, and where does it still make serious errors?

B) Does that mean the agency will need fewer translators now that a machine does much of the work?

C) Are your clients told that a machine produced the first version of the documents they receive?

D) How much faster can a typical document be delivered now compared with before the change?

E) Was it the management or the translators themselves who first suggested introducing the software?

68 - 71: For these questions, choose the best rephrased form of the given sentence.

68. Although specialised isolation units for highly infectious diseases may treat only a handful of patients in a decade, hospitals must keep their staff trained continuously, since skills that are rarely used quickly deteriorate.

A) Hospitals keep the staff of specialised isolation units for highly infectious diseases continuously trained so that these units can treat more than a handful of patients each decade, as rarely used skills deteriorate quickly

B) Skills that are seldom put into practice decline rapidly, so hospitals have to train the staff of specialised isolation units for highly infectious diseases without interruption, even though such units may receive only a few patients over ten years

C) Specialised isolation units for highly infectious diseases treat only a handful of patients in a decade because hospitals keep their staff trained continuously, which prevents their skills from deteriorating

D) Unless specialised isolation units for highly infectious diseases treat more than a handful of patients in a decade, hospitals cannot keep their staff trained continuously, as rarely used skills deteriorate

E) Specialised isolation units for highly infectious diseases certainly treat very few patients, so the skills of their staff deteriorate quickly no matter how continuously hospitals train them

69. Had the printing press not lowered the cost of books so dramatically, literacy in early modern Europe would probably have remained confined to clergy and wealthy merchants for far longer.

A) The printing press lowered the cost of books dramatically, but literacy in early modern Europe nevertheless remained confined to clergy and wealthy merchants for a long time

B) If the printing press had lowered the cost of books more dramatically, literacy in early modern Europe would certainly have spread beyond clergy and wealthy merchants much sooner

C) Literacy in early modern Europe spread beyond clergy and wealthy merchants, which is why the printing press was able to lower the cost of books so dramatically

D) It was probably because the printing press made books far cheaper that literacy in early modern Europe spread beyond clergy and wealthy merchants sooner than it otherwise would have

E) Even though the printing press made books much cheaper, literacy in early modern Europe would probably have spread beyond clergy and wealthy merchants just as quickly without it

70. The more consumers rely on a single online platform for their purchases, the less able they become to judge whether the prices it offers are genuinely competitive.

A) Consumers who judge prices carefully tend to rely less on a single online platform, since they recognise that the prices it offers are not genuinely competitive

B) Consumers come to rely more heavily on a single online platform for their purchases because they are already unable to judge whether its prices are genuinely competitive

C) Relying on a single online platform for purchases makes consumers unable to judge prices only when the prices it offers are not genuinely competitive

D) The prices offered by a single online platform become less competitive the more consumers rely on it for their purchases

E) Increasing dependence on one online platform for purchases reduces consumers' ability to assess whether the prices there are really competitive

71. Unlike earlier surveys, which relied solely on aerial photographs, the new mapping project combines satellite data with fieldwork, allowing archaeologists to identify sites that vegetation had previously concealed.

A) By combining satellite data with fieldwork rather than depending only on aerial photographs as earlier surveys did, the new mapping project enables archaeologists to detect sites formerly hidden by vegetation

B) Like earlier surveys, the new mapping project relies on aerial photographs as well as satellite data and fieldwork, which allows archaeologists to identify sites hidden by vegetation

C) Earlier surveys relied solely on aerial photographs because vegetation concealed many sites, so the new mapping project combines satellite data with fieldwork instead

D) Although the new mapping project combines satellite data with fieldwork, archaeologists may still fail to identify sites that vegetation conceals, just as earlier surveys based on aerial photographs did

E) The new mapping project, which combines satellite data with fieldwork, will allow archaeologists to identify sites that vegetation conceals only if aerial photographs are also used, as in earlier surveys

72 - 75: For these questions, choose the best option to complete the missing part of the passage.

In Athens, Socrates made a habit of approaching fellow citizens who claimed expert knowledge, such as generals and politicians, and asking them to define notions like courage or justice. Their first answers were usually offered with confidence, yet Socrates would follow each one with further questions about its consequences. ---- This discovery, which his conversation partners often found humiliating, was for Socrates the starting point of wisdom rather than a failure. He regarded awareness of one's own ignorance as more valuable than false confidence, and this is why he held that a life which is never examined is not worth living.

Learners who divide their study into several sessions tend to retain material longer than those who spend the same hours in a single sitting. Between sessions, some of what was learnt fades, so each return to the material demands a real effort of recall. That effort feels unrewarding at the time, yet it appears to make memories more durable. A long uninterrupted session, on the other hand, runs smoothly because everything is still fresh, and this sense of ease makes it highly appealing. The paradox is that the sessions which feel most fluent may contribute least to lasting learning. ----

---- Such contact languages typically arise where speakers of several mother tongues must trade or work together but share no common language. Most of their words are borrowed from whichever language holds the greatest power in the situation, while their grammar is stripped down to a minimum. Things change, however, once children are raised with a pidgin as their first language. In their hands it tends to grow into a complete language with a stable and elaborate grammar, which linguists call a creole. Remarkably, this transformation may be completed within a single generation or two.

Cities are often noticeably warmer than the countryside around them, a phenomenon known as the urban heat island. During the day, asphalt, concrete and dark roofs soak up sunlight, and after sunset they give back the stored heat only gradually, while nearby fields and woodland cool down quickly. ---- As a result, residents may get little relief from the heat during the hours when they would normally sleep. Planners have therefore begun to experiment with lighter surfaces, trees and planted roofs, all of which help to keep the built environment cooler.

72. Choose the best option to complete the missing part of the passage about Socrates' method of questioning.

A) Socrates left no writings of his own, and most of what we know about him comes from his students, above all Plato

B) Athens in the fifth century BCE was a city in which public argument in the assembly and the courts was part of everyday civic life

C) Under his persistent questioning, they usually discovered that their definitions contradicted other things they firmly believed

D) Some modern thinkers argue that his method still offers a model for how ordinary people might examine their own lives

E) In 399 BCE an Athenian jury sentenced him to death on charges of impiety and corrupting the young

73. Choose the best option to complete the missing part of the passage about spreading study sessions over time.

A) Cramming, by contrast, is widely recognised by students themselves as one of the least effective ways to prepare for an examination

B) Sleep also plays an important part in consolidating information that has been learnt during the day

C) The benefit of spacing was first described in the late nineteenth century in experiments on memorising lists of meaningless syllables

D) A fluent reading, after all, is usually a sign that a text has been clearly written and well organised

E) Learners who judge their progress by how easy revision feels may therefore be drawn to precisely the strategy that serves them worst

74. Choose the best option to complete the missing part of the passage about how pidgins and creoles develop.

A) A pidgin is a simplified means of communication that develops when groups who share no language need to deal with one another regularly

B) Creoles are now spoken as first languages by millions of people in the Caribbean, West Africa and the Pacific

C) Linguists have long debated whether all human languages share a common underlying grammar

D) Many speakers have regarded their creole as a broken form of a colonial language, a view that linguists reject

E) Acquiring a foreign language as an adult is generally harder than acquiring one in early childhood

75. Choose the best option to complete the missing part of the passage about the urban heat island.

A) Trees cool their surroundings both by providing shade and by releasing water vapour through their leaves

B) Some cities also generate heat directly through traffic, air-conditioning units and industry

C) Cities in colder regions may even benefit from this additional warmth during the winter months

D) This is why the gap between urban and rural temperatures is often greatest at night rather than in the afternoon

E) Measuring the effect is difficult, since weather stations are often located at airports outside city centres

76 - 80: For these questions, choose the irrelevant sentence in the passage.

(I) On many rail networks, dispatchers still pass certain instructions to drivers by radio, particularly when disruption has thrown the regular timetable into disorder. (II) Such messages tend to be brief, since the driver has to absorb them while remaining in control of a train in motion. (III) On numerous routes, high-speed lines have allowed rail to compete successfully with short-haul flights for passengers. (IV) Brevity, however, comes at a price, as a word like “normal” may suggest the usual line speed to one listener and an ordinary, careful pace to another. (V) For this reason, safety specialists advise that instructions should contain an exact figure or a named rule and that the driver should then repeat the whole message back.

(I) Street trees help to cool cities, both by casting shade and by releasing water vapour through their leaves. (II) On a summer afternoon, a pavement lying beneath a dense canopy can feel markedly cooler than a stretch of exposed asphalt nearby. (III) How strong this effect is, though, depends on the species and on the spread of the canopy, and a newly planted sapling may provide little shade for many years. (IV) Consequently, urban planners are increasingly inclined to protect mature trees instead of felling them and planting young replacements. (V) In many cities, residents can also use online maps to report fallen branches or broken paving stones to the local council.

(I) When two languages come into contact, words borrowed from one are generally reshaped to fit the sound system of the other. (II) Some linguists devote their entire careers to recording endangered languages before the last people who speak them have died. (III) For example, speakers may add vowels to break up clusters of consonants that their own language does not permit at the start or end of a word. (IV) Over several generations, words adapted in this way frequently cease to be perceived as foreign at all. (V) Eventually, it may be only historians of the language who can still tell where such words originally came from.

(I) In many towns of medieval Europe, young people acquired a trade by serving an apprenticeship that could last for several years. (II) The apprentice normally lived in the master’s household, receiving board and lodging rather than a wage. (III) In return, the master was obliged to pass on every skill of the craft and was often responsible for supervising the young person’s behaviour as well. (IV) Guilds also set rules on the prices and quality of goods that could be sold in the town market. (V) When the training came to an end, the apprentice might be required to produce a piece of work for the guild to judge before being allowed to work for wages as a journeyman.

(I) Octopuses are able to alter both the colour and the texture of their skin in a fraction of a second. (II) This is possible because their skin contains thousands of cells filled with pigment, each of which is controlled directly by the nervous system. (III) Octopuses kept in captivity have also been observed solving puzzles, such as unscrewing the lids of jars to get at the food inside. (IV) Strikingly, many species appear to have no colour vision, which makes it puzzling that they can blend into their surroundings so effectively. (V) One proposal is that light-sensitive proteins in the skin itself may play a part, although this explanation remains a matter of debate.

76. Choose the irrelevant sentence in the passage.

A) I

B) II

C) III

D) IV

E) V

77. Choose the irrelevant sentence in the passage.

A) I

B) II

C) III

D) IV

E) V

78. Choose the irrelevant sentence in the passage.

A) I

B) II

C) III

D) IV

E) V

79. Choose the irrelevant sentence in the passage.

A) I

B) II

C) III

D) IV

E) V

80. Choose the irrelevant sentence in the passage.

A) I

B) II

C) III

D) IV

E) V