NEWS FEED: QUIZ 2

QUIZ 2

Passage I

SUDDEN OUTBREAK OF MEASLES LINKED TO VACCINE FEARS IN THE 1990S

July 20, 2013

Fears that vaccines cause autism (1) led to an explosion of measles cases this year in
southwest Wales, according to The Wall Street Journal. Between November and July, 1,219
people in southwest Wales (2) contracted the measles, compared with 105 cases in all of
Wales in 2011, according to the report.

The Journal links the (3) outbreak to a since-discredited 1998 study by the British doctor
Andrew Wakefield, who speculated about a (4) link between the vaccine for measles,
mumps, and rubella and the (5) growing number of autism cases. The study was (7) heavily
covered by the South Wales Evening Post, a local newspaper. By the end of 1998, the
number of 2-year-olds who received the vaccine (7) fell by 14 percent, compared with 2.4
percent in the rest of the country.

Choose the alternative that is closest in meaning to each underlined word in the passage.

1. a. approached b. sparked c. nabbed d. underwent

2. a. caught b. transmitted c. distributed d. gathered

3. a. epidemic b. diagnosis c. indication d. surveillance

4. a. consequence b. contention c. connection d. concern

5. a. vast b. receding c. momentous d. rising

6. a. publicized b. issued c. launched d. plunged

7. a. skyrocketed b. cut c. plummeted d. soared

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Choose the alternative that has the same meaning as the underlined word in each given sentence.

8. Fears that vaccines cause autism led to an explosion of measles cases this year in
southwest Wales…
a. These are cases of international islands divided between two or more countries.
b. Three murder cases were reopened and reinvestigated.
c. There are thousands of new cases of AIDS in Africa every year.
d. South Africa is an important supplier of wine cases.

9. The Journal links the outbreak to a 1998 study by the British doctor Andrew Wakefield,
who speculated about a link between the vaccine for measles and the growing number of
autism cases.
a. For elderly people, TV is a vital link to the outside world.
b. The two TV stations are joined by a satellite link.
c. She couldn’t help feeling that she was the weakest link on the team.
d. Police suspect there may be a link between the two murders.

Passage II

THE 10 WORST PASSWORD IDEAS

August 8, 2013

Recently, Google Apps (10) __________ a study of 2,000 people to learn more about their
methods for choosing account passwords. The research (11) __________ a worrying fact: most
people choose passwords based on readily available information. This means a surprising
number of accounts are (12)__________ to hacking with a few simple, educated guesses.

So, what are the most common passwords? The top 10 list is as follows:

• Pet names • A notable date, such as a wedding anniversary

• A family member’s birthday • Your child’s name
• Another family member’s name • Your birthplace
• A favorite holiday • Something related to your favorite sports team
• The name of a significant other • The word “Password”

Naturally, if you used any of these ten to construct your own passwords, then you should
probably take a moment to come up with something far more (13)__________. After all,
information such as birthdays, anniversaries and names can be easily (14) __________ using
Facebook.

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Choose the alternatives that best complete the passage.

10. a. prompted b. conducted c. determined d. committed

11. a. alleged b. regulated c. revealed d. rejected
12. a. hypocritical b. vulnerable c. precautionary d. resistant
13. a. secure b. ubiquitous c. tumultuous d. appealing
14. a. diminished b. inherited c. expended d. obtained

Choose the alternative that has the same meaning as the underlined word in each given sentence.

15. Recently, Google Apps … a study of 2,000 people to learn more about their methods for
choosing account passwords.
a. I paid the check into my savings account.
b. She gave the police a full account of the incident.
c. In January, the agency lost its Reebok account, and late last year it lost a chunk of its
Marriott business.
d. Right now, you can only create an Instagram account using our app on your iOS.

Choose the alternative that best completes each sentence.

16. Currently, Mars seems to be the most __________ planet for human settlement.

a. active b. viable c. adaptive d. classified

17. He was so grateful to his sister because she lent him a hand when his business was about
to __________.

a. depose b. foreclose c. collapse d. conclude

18. To __________ the spread of the virus, researchers are figuring out how it __________
and develops drug resistance.

a. curb – mutates b. contain – contracts

c. diminish – detects d. suspend – violates

19. Although sibling __________ can arise for several reasons, brothers and sisters often
fight to get the __________ of parents or to show power or superiority over another child.

a. competition- association b. opponents – capability

c. rivalry – attention d. variants – determination

20. Not wanting to spread __________, Kimberly __________ her fear when she saw that a
man on her flight had an explosive under his shirt.

a. allegation – divulged b. panic – concealed

c. recession – revealed d. criminality – leaked

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Passage III

Read the article and answer the questions that follow.

_______________

Researchers from the University College London have found that commonly prescribed
antidepressant medication can affect people’s decision-making when choosing between
whether to act selfishly or selflessly.

In an experiment involving 175 healthy adults where participants had the power to both
administer and receive electric shocks, researchers sought to investigate how much pain
people were willing to inflict on either themselves or others in exchange for money.

Half the group were randomly selected to receive the serotonin-enhancing antidepressant
citalopram, while the other half were given a dopamine-booster, levodopa, used in treating
Parkinson’s. Each group receiving medication was then compared against a group that
received only a placebo.

The two medications had a marked impact on the dilemma facing the ‘decider’ group - the
participants given control over the electric shocks - essentially, how many shocks should they
inflict on themselves and another in order to maximize a cash reward, with more zaps
equaling a better financial return.

The researchers found that, among the deciders in the zapping experiment, those receiving a
dose of citalopram were willing to pay almost twice as much to prevent harm to themselves
or others when compared to a placebo group. In contrast, zappers on levodopa acted more
selfishly, displaying a preference for harming others for the cash reward.

“Our findings have __________ for potential lines of treatment for antisocial behavior, as
they help us to understand how serotonin and dopamine affect people’s willingness to harm
others for personal gain," said Molly Crockett, the lead author of the research. “We have
shown that commonly-prescribed psychiatric drugs influence moral decisions in healthy
people, raising important ethical questions about the use of such drugs.”

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Main idea
21. What would be the most appropriate title for the passage?

a. Antidepressants affect people’s moral decisions

b. How electric shocks reveal the dark side of humans
c. Cure for antisocial behavior found
d. Drugs can influence subjects’ behavior

Synonym
22. Which of the following is closest in meaning to ‘affect’ in paragraph 1?

a. improve
b. influence
c. reverse
d. change

Synonym
23. Which of the following is closest in meaning to ‘sought’ in paragraph 2?

a. searched
b. aimed
c. alleged
d. found

Negative detail
24. Which of the following is NOT true about Citalopram?

a. It boosts serotonin.
b. It is used to treat depression.
c. It is rarely prescribed.
d. It affected decision-making in a positive way in the experiment.

Reference
25. Which of the following excerpts contains the ‘dilemma’ referred to paragraph 4?

a. “…that commonly prescribed antidepressant medication can affect people’s decision-

making…” (paragraph 1)
b. “…participants had the power to both administer and receive electric shocks.” (paragraph 2)
c. “…how much pain people were willing to inflict on either themselves or others in
exchange for money.” (paragraph 2)
d. “Half the group were randomly selected to receive the serotonin-enhancing antidepressant
citalopram, while the other half were given a dopamine-booster, levodopa, used in treating
Parkinson’s.” (paragraph 3)

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Detail
26. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

a. The two medications had only little impact on decision-making.

b. The more shocks were delivered, the more money the decider got in return.
c. Levodopa is an antidepressant.
d. Only the subjects with Parkinson’s were given levodopa.

Detail
27. Which of the following is accurate about the impact of the medications?

a. Those given citalopram were more willing to harm people for money than those taking
placebo.
b. Those given placebo were more willing to harm people for money than those taking
levodopa
c. Those given levodopa were more willing to harm people for money than those given
placebo.
d. Those given placebo were less willing to harm people for money than those given
citalopram.

Cloze
28. Which of the following words best fits the blank in paragraph 6?

a. predictions
b. causes
c. hypotheses
d. implications

Meaning recognition
29. Which of the following sentences contains the same sense of ‘raise’ as used in paragraph 6?

a. With a shaky hand, he slowly raised the cup to his lips.

b. Monuments were raised in honor of the dead.
c. We raised the issue of working hours with the manager.
d. This seems strange to someone born and raised in the city.

Inference
30. Why is this study important?

a. It is the first study to investigate the link between psychiatric drugs and moral judgment.
b. Its results may make drug prescription more accurate and prevent errors.
c. The findings may lead to treatment for antisocial behavior.
d. It confirms the hypothesis that morality is independent from how someone is raised and taught.

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Meaning recognition
Choose the alternative that has the same meaning as the underlined word in each given sentence.

31. Cut the tomatoes and cucumbers into thin slices.

a. The road was covered with a thin layer of ice.
b. He was tall and thin, with long blond hair.
c. If the sauce is too thin, you can reduce it further on medium heat.
d. The other team won by a thin margin.

32. They danced around the bonfire.

a. The whole project will probably cost around 30 million baht.
b. Her father was not around when she was growing up.
c. She wore a beautiful scarf around her neck.
d. The earth goes around the sun.

33. My ancestors rest in a Chinese cemetery in Chonburi.

a. He likes to rest his head on my shoulder.
b. If you’re tired, we can stop and rest for a while before we move on.
c. The woman apologized, and the man refused to let the matter rest.
d. May he rest in peace.

34. The Prime Minister must take a firm stand against extremists in his party.
a. He adjusted the microphone stand to his height.
b. There’s a taxi stand in front of the department store.
c. I couldn’t vote for them because of their stand on social issues.
d. We ate at the ice cream stand in front of the building and got a really bad stomachache.

35. Educational level has a direct effect on income.

a. Weight increases in direct proportion to mass.
b. Thai people can be offended by questions or answers that are too direct.
c. Companies have closed as a direct result of the new law.
d. Plant in a shady position away from direct sunlight.

Sentence interpretation
Choose the alternative that best completes each statement.

36. A boy who is too dependent on his friends __________.

a. pays little attention to them
b. is too bossy with them
c. won’t make a decision without asking them

37. When children in a family are involved in making an important decision, they
__________.
a. are not asked what they think
b. are asked what they think
c. are told to leave the room

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38. If you are feeling so sick that you think you might collapse, you would probably __________.
a. go to work
b. call a doctor
c. invite friends to dinner

39. If you like to isolate yourself when you study, you might __________.
a. find a quiet spot in the library, away from everyone else
b. take your books so you can study on a crowded bus
c. invite your friends over to study with you

40. If you want to save money, you should resist __________.

a. working overtime
b. going shopping at the mall
c. playing basketball

Sentence completion
Choose the alternative that is closest in meaning to each underlined word.

41. Juggling two balls is easy enough, but juggling three or more is a greater __________.
a. function
b. distribution
c. challenge
d. arrangement

42. __________ eating during the holiday season can cause a sudden weight gain.
a. Momentous
b. Excessive
c. Significant
d. Daunting

43. Bullying is not __________ here, so if your children exhibit bullying behavior, they will
be expelled immediately.
a. released
b. suspended
c. denounced
d. tolerated

44. My brother must have excellent study skills; he was able to __________ an A average
throughout high school while holding a part-time job.
a. afford
b. issue
c. withdraw
d. maintain

45. If you __________ a gas leak, leave the house immediately and call for help.
a. detect
b. spark
c. conduct
d. divulge

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Translation
Translate the following sentences into English, using the words given in brackets.

46. ถ้าเธอปล่อยให้คนเอาเปรียบ คนก็จะเอาเปรียบเธอ

[ take advantage of ]

__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________

47. น่ าเสียดายหน้าตาไม่ใช่เครื่องวัดความสาเร็จ

[ looks indicator of ]

__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________

48. งูอนาคอนด้าสามารถกินสัตว์ทต
่ี วั ใหญ่กว่าตัวเองสองเท่าได้
[ capable of twice ]

__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________

49. ผูส
้ มัครงานหลายคนถูกบริษทั นี้ปฏิเสธเพียงเพราะเป็ นผูห้ ญิงข้ามเพศ
[ applicant reject transgender women ]

__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________

50. ความผิดเดียวทีเ่ ขากระทาคือยังรักแฟนเก่าของเขาอยู่

[ crime commit ex-boyfriend/girlfriend ]

__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________