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IELTS COURSE 1
PROGRESS TEST 4

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[Truy cập tab Tiếng Anh cho Tân sinh viên – Khóa: IELTS 5.0

READING PASSAGE 1

THE GULF STREAM AND GLOBAL WARMING

Labrador and London lie at about the same latitude, but Labrador is frigid and has only 30 miles of
paved roads while London is one of the major centers of civilization. Why do two places, equidistant
from the Arctic Circle, have such disparate climates? The Gulf Stream that flows by the British Isles
makes all the difference: Its warm waters make northwestern Europe so abundant with life that palm
trees can actually grow on the southern shores of England.

This life-giving Gulf Stream is warm, salty water, which travels along the surface of the Atlantic
Ocean from the Caribbean, along the east coast of the United States, and then veers toward Europe. In
the tropics, this water is warmed by the sun and becomes saltier because of the higher rate of
evaporation in the heat. The Gulf Stream divides as it travels, but the majority of the stream moves
north and east. As it travels past Europe, the Gulf Stream warms the atmosphere, and the prevailing
westerly winds bring the warmed air to all of northwestern Europe, making the area suitable for intense
agriculture. The Gulf Stream makes it possible for Europe to feed an increasingly large population.

After the Gulf Stream reaches southeast Greenland and western Iceland, much of the heat of the
stream is gone, and the colder, denser water then sinks. The bulk of the Gulf Stream is carried down
toward the ocean floor into as many as seven large vortices, called chimneys. They suck the Gulf
Stream waters down over a mile deep, where the water is then drawn into another dynamic ocean
current. Almost 2 miles below the surface, this cold water current flows in reverse, from the north
southward. When this cold water nears the equator, it is again pulled up from the bottom of the ocean
as the surface water is heated and starts its journey north. This upwelling brings with it minerals and
food from the detritus at the bottom of the ocean to refresh food supplies for fish and other marine
creatures.

This stream of water - the warm water traveling north along the surface and the cold water traveling
south along the floor - has become known as the Great Ocean Conveyor Belt. This flow of ocean

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currents has been extremely important in regulating the temperature of the globe and in making life
possible. These cur rents in the North Atlantic are part of the Great Conveyor Belt that flows through
all the oceans of the world. The least stable section of this global current is in the North Atlantic. The
Gulf Stream is the most unstable of all.

Predictions of the effects of global warming on the Gulf Stream are based on computer models,
which differ to some extent. But several important facts are known. South of Greenland, there used to
be as many as seven chimneys that pulled water from the Gulf Stream down toward the ocean floor. In
the last several years, only one remained, and then, in 2007, that one disappeared. The causes for the
demise of the chimneys may include the increase in fresh water from glacial melt. In recent winters,
glacial melt has released record amounts of fresh water into the oceans. As the North Atlantic waters,
including fresh water from rivers as well as the increased amount of glacial melt, mix with the Gulf
Stream, the salt water is diluted. Because fresh water is not as dense as salt water, it does not sink,
which impairs the natural mechanism for forming the chimneys. As the chimneys have disappeared, the
Gulf Stream has slowed. About 30 per cent of the water from the Gulf Stream that used to reach Europe
travels else where or is lost in the disintegration of the current, a loss of over six million tons of water flow
every second. Without a strong Gulf Stream, the slow, cold water of the lower part of the conveyor belt fails to
rise, which reduces the circulation of nutrients for marine life. The problem of warming then worsens: As less
surface water, which is full of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, siphons into the depths of the ocean, less
carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere, thus increasing global warming.

Ocean sediments and glacial cores show that there have been global swings in temperature in the
past. The last Ice Age, when much of North America and northern Europe were covered in glaciers 2
miles thick, occurred when the aver age temperature dropped about 5 degrees Celsius. That ice age
ended about 20,000 years ago. The last “Little Ice Age,” when the average temperature dropped only 1
to 2 degrees Celsius, occurred in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, hitting Europe hardest. At that
time, the Gulf Stream had slowed to about half its usual rate.

Core samples also show that the changes in temperature have been abrupt, not gradual. There would
be little time to prepare for the devastating changes resulting from the weakening of the Gulf Stream.
The good news is that in the winters of 2008 and 2009, one of the chimneys off southeastern Greenland
suddenly burst into action again, bringing the Gulf Stream waters down deep enough to be caught in
the conveyor and to keep the ocean currents in the North Atlantic flowing.

Questions 1 -7
Write the correct letter A, B, or C.
1. Labrador and London are similar in
A climate.
B distance from the North Pole.
C abundance of wildlife.

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2. Europe can support a large population because

A it has a lot of fresh water.
B it is at the proper latitude.
C it has a good climate for farming.
3. When the Gulf Stream reaches the North Atlantic, it sinks because
A it has become colder.
B it has become less salty.
C it is blown by the winds.
4. Ocean currents help make life on Earth possible because they
A enable marine life to travel.
B maintain suitable temperatures.
C regulate glacial melt.
5. In 2007, the number of vortices, or chimneys, that pulled the waters of the Gulf Stream down
toward the ocean floor was
A zero.
B one.
C seven.
6. During the most recent Little Ice Age,
A the Gulf Stream slowed down significantly.
B Europe was affected only slightly.
C glaciers covered much of North America.
7. In the past, climate change has happened
A at regular intervals.
B gradually over time.
C very quickly.

READING PASSAGE 2
POLLINATION

Plants have evolved a wide variety of methods to reproduce themselves. Some plants reproduce
asexually by splitting off new roots or bulbs (e.g., garlic, lilies) or even branches, stems, or leaves (e.g.,
mangroves, spider plants). Plants that repro duce asexually are essentially reproducing clones of
themselves. This is a simple and direct method of reproduction, producing new plants more quickly and
with less energy than plants using sexual reproduction. The majority of plants, however, reproduce
sexually. The advantages from an evolutionary perspective include more genetic variety and better
dispersal than the colonies of clones formed by asexual reproduction. In flowering plants, pollen (male)
grains are moved from the anther to the stigma, where the pollen fertilizes the ovaries (female),
resulting in seeds.

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A few flowering plants such as peas, beans, and tomatoes pollinate themselves, but more commonly,
pollination occurs between separate plants, either through pollen being borne by the wind (most
conifers and many grasses) or by pollinators, animal species that plants rely on to help move the pollen
from one plant to the ovaries of another. Most pollinators are insects, but some species of bird and bats
also play an important role.

Plants have evolved a variety of methods to entice pollinators to do their work. Many produce
nectar, a sugary substance that pollinators use as food. A well-known example is the honeybee, which
collects nectar as well as pollen for food. When a bee enters one flower, it brushes against the anther,
and pollen grains are picked up by the surface of its body. When the bee enters a second flower and
brushes against the stigma, some of that pollen comes in contact with the ovaries of the second plant,
thus fertilizing it, resulting in seeds that contain genetic material from the male gametes of the first
plant combined with the female reproductive organs of the second plant. Most bees, butterflies, and
moths, as well as certain species of bats and birds, are attracted to nectar-producing flowers.

Flowering plants have evolved a variety of methods for signaling their usefulness to pollinators or
for otherwise making their work easier. Butterflies are attracted to flowers that are open during the day,
are bright—typically red, yellow, or orange— and have a “landing platform.” In contrast, many moths
are active at night and thus are attracted to flowers that are pale or white, have a strong fragrance, but
also have broad areas to land on. Both butterflies and moths have long tongues and have co-evolved
with plants that have developed deep sources of nectar that are available only to certain species.
Hummingbirds are also attracted by color especially by bright reds, and flowers that attract these tiny
birds also have strong stems and are designed for pollen to be brushed on the hummingbirds’ heads as
they sip nectar.

Bees do not see red; thus, flowers that attract bees tend to be blue, yellow, purple, or other colors.
Many bee attractors also have nectar guides, which are spots near the center of each flower that reflect
ultraviolet light, making it easier for the bees to find the nectar. Bees are also attracted to flowers with a
mintlike or sweet smell. Snapdragons not only attract bees visually, they are adapted to appeal to
certain bee species: snapdragons have a landing platform that, if the bee is the correct weight, opens
allowing access to the nectar and pollen.

Pollinators play a major role in agriculture. While many staple crops such as rice, corn, canola, and
wheat are self-pollinating or pollinated by the wind, farmers are dependent on pollinator species for
many fruit, vegetable, nut, and seed crops. Over 30 percent of the world’s crops require the work of
pollinator species. Bees are the most "common agricultural pollinators, with crops including fruit trees
such as apples and cherries; vegetables such as squash, beans, tomatoes, and eggplant; flowering shrubs
and annual and perennial flowers; forage crops such as clover and alfalfa; and fiber crops such as
cotton. Other pollinators include midges (cocoa), wasps (figs), moths (yucca, papaya), butterflies

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(asters, daisies, marigolds), and even a few species of bats (agave, palms, durians) and humming birds
(fuchsia).

Recent declines in honeybees and in other pollinator species around the world have raised concerns
about future food production, and many scientists have called for increased study of the role of
pollinators, the agricultural and environ mental changes involved in the declines, as well as the
economic and environ mental effects and ways to prevent further declines.

Questions 8—12
Complete the summary using the list of words and phrases below.

The reproduction of plants occurs in different ways. Some plants send out new parts such as (8) ______
or bulbs. These grow into new plants, which are actually (9) _______ of the original plant. The
advantage of this form of reproduction is that it does not require a lot of (10) _____or energy. Many
(11) _____ reproduce themselves by forming seeds through the process of pollination. Some plants
pollinate themselves. Others rely on the (12) ______ or animals to carry the pollen from plant to plant.

A pollen
B flowering plants
C roots
D grains
E spider plants
F air
G copies
H fertilization
I time

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Questions 13-21
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the passage?

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

13. Honeybees eat both nectar and pollen.

14. If an attractive flower is very small, a butterfly will land on its leaves.
15. Moths are attracted by both color and scent.
16. Certain flowers have evolved to be pollinated by hummingbirds.
17. Special markings on a flower help bees to locate the nectar.
18. Bees rarely respond to scent.
19. Most grain crops are pollinated by insects.
20. Close to one third of the world’s harvest depends on animals for pollination.
21. Farmers in certain parts of the world have suffered economically because of the decline in the
honeybee population.

READING PASSAGE 3
HOW TO RUN A…

PUBLISHER AND AUTHOR DAVID HARVEY ON WHAT MAKES A GOOD

MANAGEMENT BOOK.

A Prior to the Second World War, all the management books ever written could be comfortably stacked on
a couple of shelves. Today, you would need a sizeable library, with plenty of room for expansion, to house
them. The last few decades have seen the stream of new titles swell into a flood. In 1975, 771 business
books were published. By 2000, the total for the year had risen to 3,203, and the trend continues.

B The growth in publishing activity has followed the rise and rise of management to the point where it
constitutes a mini-industry in its own right. In the USA alone, the book market is worth over $l billion.
Management consultancies, professional bodies and business schools were part of this new phenomenon,
all sharing at least one common need: to get into print. Nor were they the only aspiring authors. Inside
stories by and about business leaders balanced the more straight-laced textbooks by academics. How-to
books by practicing managers and business writers appeared on everything from making a presentation to
developing a business strategy. With this upsurge in output, it is not really surprising that the quality is
uneven.
C Few people are probably in a better position to evaluate the management canon than Carol Kennedy, a
business journalist and author of Guide to the Management Gurus, an overview of the world’s most
influential management thinkers and their works. She is also the books editor of The Director. Of course, it
is normally the best of the bunch that are reviewed in the pages of The Director. But from time to time,
Kennedy is moved to use The Director’s precious column inches to warn readers off certain books. Her
recent review of The Leader’s Edge summed up her irritation with authors who over-promise and under-
deliver. The banality of the treatment of core competencies for leaders, including the ‘competency of
paying attention’, was a conceit too far in the context of a leaden text. ‘Somewhere in this book,’ she
wrote, ‘there may be an idea worth reading and taking note of, but my own competency of paying attention

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ran out on page 31.’ Her opinion of a good proportion of the other books that never make it to the review
pages is even more terse. ‘Unreadable’ is her verdict.

D Simon Caulkin, contributing editor of the Observer’s management page and former editor of
Management Today, has formed a similar opinion. A lot is pretty depressing, unimpressive stuff.’ Caulkin
is philosophical about the inevitability of finding so much dross. Business books, he says, ‘range from total
drivel to the ambitious stuff. Although the confusing thing is that the really ambitious stuff can sometimes
be drivel.’ Which leaves the question open as to why the subject of management is such a literary
wasteland. There are some possible explanations.

E Despite the attempts of Frederick Taylor, the early twentieth-century founder of scientific management,
to establish a solid, rule-based foundation for the practice, management has come to be seen as just as
much an art as a science. Once psychologists like Abraham Maslow, behavioralists and social
anthropologists persuaded business to look at management from a human perspective, the topic became
more multidimensional and complex. Add to that the requirement for management to reflect the changing
demands of the times, the impact of information technology and other factors, and it is easy to understand
why management is in a permanent state of confusion. There is a constant requirement for reinterpretation,
innovation and creative thinking: Caulkin’s ambitious stuff. For their part, publishers continue to dream
about finding the next big management idea, a topic given an airing in Kennedy’s book. The Next Big
Idea.

F Indirectly, it tracks one of the phenomena of the past 20 years or so: the management blockbusters which
work wonders for publishers’ profits and transform authors’ careers. Peters and Waterman’s In Search of
Excellence: Lessons from America’s Best-Run Companies achieved spectacular success. So did Michael
Hammer and James Champy’s book. Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business
Revolution. Yet the early euphoria with which such books are greeted tends to wear off as the basis for the
claims starts to look less than solid. In the case of In Search of Excellence, it was the rapid reversal of
fortunes that turned several of the exemplar companies into basket cases. For Hammer’s and Champy’s
readers, disillusion dawned with the realization that their slash-and-burn prescription for reviving corporate
fortunes caused more problems than it solved.

G Yet one of the virtues of these books is that they could be understood. There is a whole class of
management texts that fail this basic test. ‘Some management books are stuffed with jargon,’ says
Kennedy. ‘Consultants are among the worst offenders.’ She believes there is a simple reason for this flight
from plain English. ’They all use this jargon because they can’t think clearly. It disguises the paucity of
thought.’

H By contrast, the management thinkers who have stood the test of time articulate their ideas in plain
English. Peter Drucker, widely regarded as the doyen of management thinkers, has written a steady stream
of influential books over half a century. ‘Drucker writes beautiful, dear prose.’ says Kennedy, ‘and his
thoughts come through.’ He is among the handful of writers whose work, she believes, transcends the
specific interests of the management community. Caulkin also agrees that Drucker reaches out to a wider
readership. ‘What you get is a sense of the larger cultural background,’ he says. ‘That’s what you miss in
so much management writing.’ Charles Handy, perhaps the most successful UK business writer to
command an international audience, is another rare example of a writer with a message for the wider
world.

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Questions 22—23
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

22. What does the writer say about the increase in the number of management books published?
A It took the publishing industry by surprise.
B It is likely to continue.
C It has produced more profit than other areas of publishing.
D It could have been foreseen.
23. What does the writer say about the genre of management books?
A It includes some books that cover topics of little relevance to anyone.
B It contains a greater proportion of practical than theoretical books.
C All sorts of people have felt that they should be represented in it.
D The best books in the genre are written by business people.

Questions 24-29
Reading Passage 1 has eight paragraphs A-H.
Which paragraph contains the following information?

24. reasons for the deserved success of some books

25. reasons why managers feel the need for advice
26. a belief that management books are highly likely to be very poor
27. a reference to books nor considered worth reviewing
28. an example of a group of people who write particularly poor books

Questions 29-34
Look at the statements (Questions 29-34) and the list of books below.
Match each statement with the book it relates to.
NB You may use any letter more than once.

29. It examines the success of books in the genre.

30. Statements made in it were later proved incorrect.
31. It tails to live up to claims made about it.
32. Advice given in it is seen to be actually harmful.
33. It examines the theories of those who have developed management thinking
34. It states die obvious in an unappealing way.

List of Books

A Guide to the Management Gurus

B The Leader’s Edge
C The Next Big Idea
D In Search of Excellence
E Reengineering the Corporation

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