PRACTICE TEST FOR NEC 2021-2022

A.LISTENING:
Part 1: For questions 1-10, listen to a piece of news and supply the blanks with the missing information.
Write NO MORE THAN FOUR WORDS taken from the recording for each answer in the space provided.
Xinhua, the state news agency, said the fall of Kabul marked the collapse of America's 1.
__INTERNATIONAL IMAGE AND CREDIBILITY__. On Twitter, Hu Xijin, the editor of a nationalistic state
newspaper, cited a joke circulating in China that the Taliban's takeover was smoother than the U.S. 2.
_PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION__.
"America's exit lowers 3. _STRATEGIC PRESSURE_ on China," says Zhu Yongbiao, an expert on
Afghanistan at China's Lanzhou University. "The situation has positives for China, but the negatives 4.
_OUTWEIGH_ the positives. What China could stand to gain is quite modest." China claims the group
encouraged Uyghurs inside China to engage in terrorist acts and trained fighters outside China. Chinese
authorities have built a sprawling network of 5. ____INTERNMENT CAMPS_____ and prisons in the Xinjiang
region to contain hundreds of thousands of ethnic Uyghurs, who Beijing claims are predisposed to terrorism.
The U.S. says the effort amounts to 6. _GENOCIDE_____. Afghanistan provides China with a potential path to
Iran and Turkey that avoids the Pacific Ocean, where the U.S. and its allies wield power. It also allows China to
7. __CIRCUMVENT__ Central Asian countries where Russia retains influence. What Beijing has offered the
Taliban so far is an open hand and a hint of 8. _LEGITIMACY__ "The Chinese state is just as happy to work
with a democracy as it is with an autocracy, and in this case, perhaps with a 9. __THEOCRACY__," says
Roberts. Still, Beijing has yet to officially recognize the Taliban as Afghanistan's new leaders. Until there's
more stability, as well as clarity about Afghanistan's future, China seems likely to remain 10. __ON THE
SIDELINES__.

Part 2: For questions 11-15, listen to a discussion between Belinda Phipps and Kate Andrews about Prime
Minister David Cameron's pledge to close the gender pay gap by making large businesses publish their pay
gap figures, and choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which fits best according to what you hear. Write your
answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
11. Belinda Phipps suggests that the Equal Pay Act
A. should be repealed by the government.
B. allows equal pay claims to be brought.
C. requires businesses to publish their pay gap figures.
D. is too outdated to exert any effect on the gender wage gap.

12. Why does Kate Andrews mention the data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS)?
A. To encourage women to opt out of the workforce
B. To highlight overall imbalance in favour of women
C. To make a point against the proposed legislation
D. To demonstrate as evidence of gender discrimination in the workplace

13. What puts female workers at a disadvantage compared with their male counterparts?
A. Inability to achieve a work-life balance
B. Unwillingness to stay focused on one career path
C. Mental strength to catch up after falling behind
D. Ineptitude to deal with the harsh realities of working life

14. Belinda Phipps and Kate Andrews agree that

A. whether to work overtime or not is of one’s own accord.
B. gender pay gap is the result of social beliefs rather than employer discrimination.
C. some women tend to be deprived of the right to make free choices related to their career.
D. forcing businesses to publish their pay gap figures cannot solve the issue of income inequality by gender.

15. When the host cites possibilities about the promising future of women at work, Belinda Phipps
A. implies that these have insignificant impact on whether gender pay gap will continue to exist or not.
B. asserts that more rigorous action need to be taken to turn these possibilities into realities.
C. claims that such brighter prospects for women would be a turning point in the labor history.
D. contends that such possibilities are baseless and unreliable.
Part 3: Part 2. For questions 16-20, listen to a report on how China successfully landed its rover on Mars
and answer the questions. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS taken from the recording for each
answer in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
16. What challenge did the rover encounter before its touchdown on the Martian surface?
A treacherous descent
17. Besides parachute and rockets, what was used as a combination to carry out the mission to Mars?
A PROTECTIVE CAPSULE
18. What was Jurong?
A landing craft
19. In which field does this outstanding achievement consolidate the leading position of China?
Interplanetary exploration
20. What was the name of the U.S. rover which made a successful landing on Mars in February?
Perseverance
Part 4: : You will hear a radio report about Erik Weihenmayer, an adventurer. Complete the summary,
using the word or phrases you hear. Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each blank.
An American named Erik Weihenmayer standing out as an adventurer without the (1)…sense of sight …
explains how he faces those challenges in today’s “Great Big Story”. He said the most exciting part for him is in
fact the movement, not the (2)…summit … .
At 4 or 5, he was diagnosed with an (3)…incredibly rare … disease and he went blind, which he thought was a
(4…weird relief...ass the worst thing had happened. There was a (5)…recreational group… taking blind kids
rock climbing, which he thought he wouldn’t have as a blind person. 
When he got on to a rock face, he learned to do with his hands the things that (6)…sighted people… learn to do
with their eyes. When clipping a bolt to a carabineer, he felt it to make sure it was correctly clipped or
that carabineer was going to hold him. Unable to look up the rock to see the holds and plan a route, he could
only see as far as his hands, which he thought was (7)…breathtakingly … exciting. He loved the sound of
emptiness, which was meditative, very much like an (8)…inner mind sport … .
Being a blind climber is really hard and you just have to embrace that suffering. Blindness is just like all (9)…
adversities… which you got to use as a catalyst to push you in new directions. It’s the idea of (10)…turning bad
things … into good things, and it’s something he thinks we all could use.
B. LEXICO AND GRAMMAR (30 pts)
Part 1: For questions 1-10, choose the word or phrase that best completes each of the following sentences.
Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes.
1. Over half of the population of this earthquake-stricken area are living ______.
A. on the house B. on the tenterhooks C. on the breadline D. on the cards
2. At the scene of the disaster the Prince said some comforting words to the _____ relatives.
A. lamenting B. wailing C. complaining D. grieving
3. Tania was _____ after the accident and had to spend several weeks in bed.
A. injured B. incapacitated C. convalescent D. hampered
4. He will be sued for ______ of contract if he does not do what he promised.
A. fracture B. crack C. rupture D. breach
5. I'd been in ______pain with toothache all weekend and was desperate to find a dentist.
A. agonizing B. shooting C. excruciating D. maddening
6. The project has progressed in ______ and starts due to a constant change in funding.
A. wits B. bits C. fits D. sits
7. The contract will be ______ and void until signed and dated by both parties.
A. null B. nullified C. nought D. nil
8. It's as if that silly argument we had has driven a _______ between us and we've lost all our old closeness.
A. ledge B. beam C. plank D. wedge
9. I'm sure I was invited to join the committee as the _______ woman.
A. sample B. token C. representative D. coupon
10. The police asked him to give a _______ description of the accident that he had witnessed.
A. blow by blow B. word for word C. up and down D. in and out
11. The teacher was suspicious of the student's ___________ behaviour during the exam.
A. furtive B. candid C. cunning D. frivolous
12. Weapons that would have been ___________ twenty years before are now vulnerable and obsolete.
A. invincible B. inviolable C. insatiable D. insipid
13. The ___________ test of a good driver is whether he or she remains calm in an emergency.
A. atom B. acid C. silver D. rocket
14. In spite of an ___________ start, the English runner quickly speeded up and won the race.
A. ambiguous B. inauspicious C. inveterate D. invidious
15. Henry Ford did not start his operations by opening hundreds of factories in his first year but mighty
___________ from tiny acorns grow.
A. spruces B. pines C. oaks D. willows

Part 2: For these questions, write the correct form of each bracketed word in the corresponding numbered
boxes.
THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD
Levels of illiteracy and (1. NUMBER ) __INUMERACY____ remain startlingly high in the developing world,
and continue to be so until the West provides or sponsors new education initiatives, preferably also getting
directly involved. A better education is a prerequisite should the (2. POVERTY) __IMPOVERISHED__masses
of Africa ever wish to hold any genuine hope of gaining their (3. EMANCIPATE )__EMANCIPATION__ from
the metaphorical shackles of poverty. Education initiatives for young people as well as life-long learning
programmes will also help to breach the gulf that separates the working classes from their ruling elite, a (4.
PRIVILEGE ) PRIVILEGED___ few who enjoy the ( 5. TRAP ) __TRAPPINGS____ of Western wealth and
the lifestyle that goes with it, while those in their midst are completely preoccupied with the daily struggle for
survival. Furthermore, we must promote a culture of (6. TOLERATE)__INTOLERANCE____ of corruption,
and help to create a new generation for whom education rather than a(n) (7. SCRUPLE)
_UNSCRUPULOUS____ nature will reap the true rewards. Education will also help to bridge another gap; that
of the cultural one which separates the West from its brethren in the developing world. The slums and shanty
towns are a hotbed of religious and political ( 8. EXTREME ) _EXTREMISM_____, but hopefully education
will serve to create a better sense of understanding between all the peoples of the world, ( 9. RESPECT )
__IRRESPECTIVE____ of background. And this will especially be the case if the education programmes
themselves are administered by Western professionals, who, in much the same way as they can teach a thing or
two to their counterparts in the developing world, have also, no doubt, much to learn from them in the process
as well. Cooperation between people from different cultures of the West and the developing world will also,
hopefully, help to reduce levels of prejudice, bigotry, xenophobia and racial tensions. And, last but not by any
means least, educating women will (10. POWER) __EMPOWER____ them to claim their rightful place in the
social hierarchy in up-to-now male-dominated cultures. Their aspirations can shift realistically higher, and
young female students can hope to go on to become tomorrow’s politicians, diplomats and political leaders, or
whatsoever they choose.
PART III: READING (60 pts.)
Part 1: For questions 11- 20, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each space. Use only
one word in each space. Write your answer in the corresponding numbered boxes.
It is not difficult to (11) _DISCOVER____ an unknown animal. Spend a day in the tropical forests of
South America, turning over logs, looking beneath bark, sitting through the moist litter of leaves, followed by
an evening shining a mercury lamp on a white screen, and one way and another you will (12) _SEE____
hundreds of different kinds of small creatures. Moths, caterpillars, spiders, long-nosed bugs, luminous beetles,
harmless butterflies (13) __SUCH___ as wasps, wasps shaped like ants, sticks that walk, leaves that open
wings and fly – the variety will be (14) __ENORMOUS__ and one of these creatures will almost certainly be
undescribed by science. The difficulty will be to find (15) _OUT__ who know enough about the groups
concerned to be able to single out the new one.
No one can say (16) __EXACTLY__ how many species of animals there are in these greenhouse-
humid dimly lit jungles. They contain the (17) _LARGEST__ and the most varied assemblage of animal and
plant life to be found anywhere on earth. Not only are there many categories of creatures – monkeys, rodents,
spiders, hummingbirds, butterflies, but most of those types (18) _INHABIT__ in many different (19)
_ENVIRONMENTS____ There are over forty different species of parrot, over seventy different monkeys,
three hundred hummingbirds and tens of thousands of butterflies. If you are not careful, you can even be (20)
__BITEN_ by a hundred different kinds of mosquito.
Part 2: For questions 21- 30, read the passage and choose the best answer A, B, C or D for each question.
Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes.
Researchers in the field of psychology have found that one of the best ways to make in
important decision, such as choosing a university to attend or a business to invest in,
involves the utilization of a decision worksheet. Psychologists who study optimization
compare the actual decisions made people to theoretical ideal decisions to see how
Line 5 similar they are. Proponents of the worksheet procedure believe that it will yield
optimal, that is, the best decisions. Although there are several variations on the exact
format that worksheets can take, they are all similar in their essential aspects.
Worksheets require defining the problem in a clear and concise way and then listing all
possible solutions to the problem. Next, the pertinent considerations that will be affected
Line 10 by each decision are listed, and the relative importance of each consideration or
consequence is determined. Each consideration is assigned a numerical value to reflect
its relative importance. A decision is mathematically calculated by adding these values
together. The alternative with the highest number of points emerges as the best decision.
Since the most important problems are multifaceted, there are several alternatives to
Line 15 choose from, each with unique advantages and disadvantages. One of the benefits of a
pencil and paper decision-making procedure is that it permits people to deal with more
variables than their minds can generally comprehend and remember. On the average,
people can keep about seven ideas in their minds at once. A worksheet can be especially
useful when the decision involves a large number of variables with complex
Line 20 relationships. A realistic example for many college students is the question "What will I
do after graduation?" A graduate might seek a position that offers specialized training,
pursue an advanced degree, or travel abroad for a year.
A decision-making worksheet begins with a succinct statement of the problem that will
also help to narrow it. It is important to be clear about the distinction between long-
Line 25 range and immediate goals because long-range goals often involve a different decision
from short-range ones. Focusing on long-range goals, a graduating student might revise
the question above to "What will I do after graduation that will lead to a successful
career?"
Line 30
21. What does the passage mainly discuss?
A. A tool to assist in making complex decisions.
B. A comparison of actual decisions and ideal decisions.
C. Research on how people make decisions.
D. Differences between long-range and short-range decision making.
22. The word "essential" in line 8 is closest in meaning to ______.
A. introductory B. changeable C. beneficial D. fundamental
23. Of the following steps, which occurs before the others in making a decision worksheet?
A. Listing the consequences of each solution.
 B. Calculating a numerical summary of each solution.
C. Deciding which consequences are most important.
D. Writing down all possible solutions.
24. According to decision-worksheet theory, an optimal decision is defined as one that
A. has the fewest variables to consider. B. uses the most decision worksheets.
C. has the most points assigned to it. D. is agreed to by the greatest number of people.
25. The author organizes paragraph 2 by _____.
A. describing a process B. classifying types of worksheet
C. providing historical background D. explaining a theory
26. The author states that "On the average, people can keep about seven ideas in their minds at once"
(paragraph 3) to explain that _____.
A. most decisions involve seven steps
B. human mental capacity has limitations
C. some people have difficulty making minor as well as major decisions
D. people can learn to keep more than seven ideas in their minds with practice
27. The word "succinct" in line 26 is closest in meaning to _____.
A. creative B. satisfactory C. personal D. concise
28. Which of the following terms is defined in the passage?
A. Proponents (para.1) B. Optimal (para.1)
C. Variables (para.3) D. Long-range goals (para.4)
29. The word "it" in line 27 refers to _____.
A. worksheet B. problem C. distinction D. decision
30. The word "revise" in line 30 is closest in meaning to _____.
A. ask B. explain C. change D. predict
Part 3: For questions 31- 36, choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i-ix, in boxes 31- 36 in the corresponding numbered space.
List of Headings

i . The difficulties of talking about smells

ii . The role of smell in personal relationships
iii . Future studies into smell
iv . The relationship between the brain and the nose
v . The interpretation of smells as a factor in defining groups
vi . Why our sense of smell is not appreciate
vii . Smell is our superior sense
viii . The relationship between smell and feelings

31. Paragraph A ___viii___ 32. Paragraph D __i____

33. Paragraph B __ii____ 34. Paragraph E __iii____
35. Paragraph C ___vi___ 36. Paragraph F ___v___

THE MEANING AND POWER OF SMELL

The sense of smell, or olfaction, is powerful. Odours affect us on a physical, psychological and social level. For
the most part, however, we breathe in the aromas which surround us without being consciously aware of their
importance to us. It is only when the faculty of smell is impaired for some reason that we begin to realise the
essential role the sense of smell plays in our sense of well-being.
A. A survey conducted by Anthony Synott at Montreal’s Concordia University asked participants to comment
on how important smell was to them in their lives. It became apparent that smell can evoke strong emotional
response. A scent associated with a good experience can bring a rush of joy, while a foul odour or one
associated with a bad memory may make us grimace with disgust. Respondents to the survey noted that many
of their olfactory likes and dislikes were based on emotional associations. Such associations can be powerful
enough so that odours that we would generally label unpleasant become agreeable for particular individuals.
The perception of smell, therefore, consist not only of the odours themselves, but of the experiences and
emotions associated with them.

B. Odours are also essential cues in social bonding. One respondent to the survey believed that there is no true
emotional bonding without touching and smelling a loved one. In fact, infants recognise the odours of their
mothers soon after birth and adults con often indentify their children or spouses by scent. In one well-known
test, women and men were able to distinguish by smell alone clothing worn by their marriage partners from
similar clothing worn by other people. Most of the subjects would probably never have given much thought to
odour as a cue for indentifying family members before being involved in the test, but as the experiment
revealed, even when not consciously considered, smells register.

C. In spite of its importance to our emotional and sensory lives, smell is probably the most undervalued sense in
many cultures. The reason often given for the low regard in which smell is held is that, in comparison with its
importance among animals, the human sense of smell is feeble and undeveloped. While it is true that the
olfactory powers of humans are nothing like as fine as those possessed by certain animals, they are still
remarkably acute. Our noses are able to recognise thousands of smells, and to perceive odours which are present
only in extremely small quantities.

D. Smell, however, is a highly elusive phenomenon. Odours, unlike colours, for instance, cannot be named in
many languages because the specific vocabulary simply doesn’t exist. ‘It smells like …,’ we have to say when
describing an odour, struggling to express our olfactory experience. Nor can odours be recorded: there is no
effective way to either capture or store them over time. In the realm of olfaction, we must make do with
descriptions and recollections. This has implications for olfactory research.

E. Most of the research on smell undertaken to date has been of a physical scientific nature. Significant
advances have been made in the understanding of the biological and chemical nature of olfaction, but many
fundamental questions have yet to be answered. Researchers have still to decide whether smell is one sense or
two – one responding to odours, and how smells can be measured objectively given the non- physical
components. Questions like these mean that interest in the psychology of smell is inevitably set to play an
increasingly important role for researchers.

F. However, smell is not simply a biological and psychology phenomenon. Smell is cultural, hence it is a social
and historical phenomenon. Odours are invested with cultural values: smells that are considered to be offensive
in some cultures may be perfectly acceptable in others. Therefore, our sense of smells is a means of, and model
for, interacting with the world. Different smells can provide us with intimate and emotionally charged
experience and the value that we attach to these experiences is interiorized by the members of society in a
deeply personal way. Importantly, our commonly held feelings about smells can help distinguish us from other
cultures. The study of the cultural history of smell is, therefore, in a very real sense, an investigation into the
essence of human culture.

For questions 37- 39, choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D. Write your answers in the corresponding
numbered boxes. .
37. According to the introduction, we become aware of the importance of smell when
A. We discover a new smell
B. we experience a powerful smell
C. our ability to smell is damaged.
D. we are surrounded by odours.
38.  The experiment described in paragraph B 
 A. shows how we make use of smell without realizing it.
B. demonstrates that family member have is learnt
C. proves that a sense of smell is learnt
D. compares the sense of smell in males and females. 
39. What does the writer suggest about the study of smell in the atmosphere in paragraph E?  A. The
measurement of smell is becoming more accurate.
B. Researchers believe smell is a purely physical reaction
C. Most smells are inoffensive.
D. Smell is yet to be defined.
For questions 40- 43, complete the sentence below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY FROM the passage for the
each answer. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes.
40. Tests have shown that odours can help people recognize the _CLOTHING__ belong to their husbands and
wives.
41. Certain linguistic groups may have difficulty have difficulty describing smell because they lack the
appropriate _VOCABULARY____.
42. The sense of smell may involve response to __CHEMICALS___ which do not smell, in addition to obvious
odours.
43. Odours regarded as unpleasant in certain __CULTURES___ are not regarded as unpleasant in others.
PART 4 : You are going to read an extract from a book about the history of the US. For questions 1-6,
choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text. In the exam you will mark
your answers on a separate answer sheet. 
Progressives in the US
The United States had reached a point, in the closing years of the 19th century, when radical improvements in
its political, social and economic arrangements were so plainly necessary that they were actually attempted, and
therefore may be called inevitable. Women and men, young and middle-aged, rich, poor and in-between, West,
South and North, all acknowledged the necessity and had some hand in shaping the improvements. It was an
epoch very much to the American taste, for it seemed a proof that faith in progress, and particularly in the
potential for progress in America was justified. The word 'progressive' had long been a favourite in common
speech; now it became attached to a political party, a movement, an era. It remains a curiously empty word, but
historians will never be able to do without it. And after all due reservations have been made, it would be
churlish to deny that the United States did in many respects move forward during this period, did begin to tackle
a good many serious problems intelligently. It is a moderately encouraging story. 
Big business made itself felt at every stage in the progressive story, and not by any means as a purely
reactionary force. All the same, it would be a mistake to suppose that business, however profoundly it had
shaped and now coloured the day-to-day operations of American life, was the key to progressivism. Nor could
the industrial working class, however active, muster the power necessary to dominate the epoch. That privilege
belonged to the new middle class. 
This class had emerged as, numerically, the chief beneficiary of the great transformation of American society.
America's rapid development under the impact of industrialism and urbanisation implied an equally rapidly
developing need for professional services. The need for a new order was generally felt, and implied the
recruitment and training of new men, and new women, to administer it. Society was now rich enough to pay for
their services. Hence in the last decades of the 19th century there was a mushroom growth among the
professions. Doctors and lawyers, of course; but also engineers, dentists, professors, journalists, social workers,
architects. This was the age of the expert; he was given a free hand, such as he has seldom enjoyed since. Each
new technical marvel - the telephone, the phonograph, the motor-car, the aeroplane - increased the faith that
there was a sound technical answer to every problem, even to the problem of government. When a devastating
hurricane and flood wrecked the port of Galveston, Texas, in 1901, the local businessmen proclaimed the
regular authorities incompetent to handle the task of reconstruction and handed the city's government over to a
commission of experts - a pattern that was to be widely followed in the next few years. 
This may stand very well for what was happening generally. The new class, conscious of its power and
numbers, was anxious to get hold of American society and remake it according to plan. All round were
problems that needed solving - crime, disease, bad housing, political corruption - and the new class thought it
knew what to do about them. Just as the experts themselves had taken advantage of a society open to the rise of
the talented, so they wanted their disadvantaged fellow-citizens to rise also. And this democratic individualistic
ideology made it seem perfectly legitimate to bid for political power, that is,for votes: to go down into that
arena was simply to carry out one's civic duty. Motives did not need to be examined too closely, since they were
self-evidently virtuous. What was new, and important at least to the experts, was the tool-kit they brought to
their tasks: their improved spanners, so to speak. The new middle class set out to apply their spanners to such
various contraptions as the state and city machines of the old political parties, and the new urban wastelands. 
Behind the zeal of these technocrats lay an older tradition, betrayed in the word they used to describe the
philanthropic centres they established in the slums, 'settlements': to them the cities were wildernesses, the
inhabitants alien savages and the new settlers were bringers both of superior techniques and superior ideas, like
the settlers of old. It is thus possible to see in the very approach of these progressives certain limitations, a
certain inexperience, which were likely to impede their quest. They were mostly of old American stock, brought
up on the old pieties, which their new expertise only veneered. The progressives were too conservative in their
instincts, too parochial in their outlook, ever to propose, let alone carry out, fundamental changes in the
American system. 
1 What does the writer say about the word 'progressive' in the first paragraph? 
A It should only be used with regard to this period in the US.
B No other word has been generally adopted to describe this period in the US.
C It was sometimes used inappropriately during this period in the US. 
D No other word could have united diverse people during this period in the US. 
2 What does the writer say about big business during this period? 
A It ensured that the industrial working class was lacking in power.
B It paid too little attention to the importance of the new middle class.
C It was beginning to have too great an impact on everyday life in the US. 
D It played a significant part in the development of progressivism.
3 The writer says that the 'mushroom growth' among the professions 
A was expected to be only a short-term phenomenon.
B resulted from a desire among professionals for greater freedom.
C was a natural consequence of other changes at the time. 
D resulted from fears among Americans about changes in their society.
4 The writer uses events in Galveston to illustrate 
A the high regard in which specialists were held during that period.
B problems which had never been dealt with satisfactorily before.
C the speed at which solutions were found during that period. 
D disagreements caused by the desire for technical solutions.
5 The writer says that when members of the new class tried to get political power, 
A they sometimes underestimated the social problems of the time.
B people made assumptions about their reasons for doing so.
C they tended to overestimate the potential of their fellow citizens. 
D people had realistic expectations of what they could achieve.
6 According to the writer, the use of the word 'settlements' reveals 
A the insincerity of some of the progressives concerning social problems.
B the misunderstandings behind some of the progressives' beliefs.
C the confusion that surrounded the progressives' approach to problems.
D the similarities between the progressives and previous generations. 

Part 5: For questions 1-10, you will read an article about various birds in Britain and choose from the birds
(A-D). The birds may be chosen more than once. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. .

Of which birds are the following stated?

 On a number of occasions, fears concerning it have been expressed. 1

Its population growth is a reflection of how tough it is 2

It is known for following a routine 3

Its situation was improved by an initiative that has been referred to as unique 4
There is statistical evidence to support the view that it is a very popular bird 5
It can easily identified by its outline 6
A common perception of its has proved inaccurate 7
Growth in its number has been much more gradual than desired 8
There is reason to believe that its progress in a particular region will be maintained 9
Measures taken in the running of a certain type of countryside have assisted in the 10
growth of it population

WINGED WINNERS AND LOSERS

Birds in Britain come under scrutiny in a massive new study, Birds Britannica. A record of the avian
community in the 21st century, it reveals a continually evolving pattern. Mark Cocker, the principal author of
the tome, selects some cases.

A. Red Kite
The red kite's recent rise from a mere handful to several thousands is among the great stories of modern
conservation. Testimony to its flagship status is a recent Royal Society for the Protection of Birds poll which
ranked it with the golden eagle and song thrush in the nation's list of favourite birds.
The dramatic spread has hinged on a reintroduction scheme at six sites in England and Scotland using kites
originally taken from Spain and Sweden. The English releases began in the Chilterns in 1989 and when these
had achieved a healthy population, subsequent introductions were made in Northamptonshire and Yorkshire
using mainly English birds. The Scottish releases in the 1980s and 1990s have resulted in populations totalling
more than 50 pairs. Altogether there are now about 3,000 kites in Britain.
The formation of a "Kite committee" by members of the British Ornithologists Club in 1903 was central to the
bird's recovery. It endured for 90 years and has been described as being "without parallel in the annals of bird
protection anywhere in the world".

B. Dartford Warbler
This highly-attractive bird is confined to just five Western European countries as well as the north African
littoral, and has the smallest world range of any of our breeding birds. It is also a highly sedentary bird and a
major cause of decline is its great susceptibility to the cold. The worst case occurred in the two successive hard
winters of 1961 and 1962 when the numbers fell from 450 pairs to just 10.
Memories of this calamitous decrease, coupled with the bird's own tiny size and seeming delicacy, have
cemented our sense of an overarching vulnerability. It is one of the best British examples where a species' local
rarity has been assumed to equal almost constitutional weakness. Typical of our pessimism was a 1960s
prediction that its breeding range would be virtually restricted to the New Forest "in the foreseeable future".
There was a similar anxiety in the proposal to trap large numbers ahead of severe winter weather so that they
could be safely released the following spring.
All the caution is perfectly understandable as an expression of our protective instincts towards a much-loved
bird. Yet it sits oddly with the warbler's continuing rise and expansion to a population of 1,925 pairs by the year
2000. It has undoubtedly been helped by mild winters as well as the intensive management and protection of
England's lowland heath. Yet the Dartford Warbler's recent history illustrates how easy it is to underestimate the
resilience of a small rare bird.
C. White-tailed Eagle
It is difficult to judge which is the more exciting conservation achievement - the reintroduction of this
magnificent bird or of red kites. By wingspan and weight, this the largest eagle in Europe and one of the biggest
of all birds in Britain. However, if the species itself is on a grand scale, the size of the reintroduced population is
tiny and the pace of increase agonizingly slow. Almost 30 years after the species was first released, there are
just 23 pairs holding territory, and from 17 occupied eyries in 2001, no more than 11 young fledged.
The project involved a remarkable team effort by various UK environmental groups, as well as the Norwegian
conservationists who organized the capture of the donated birds. Between 1975 and 1985, they released 82
eagles (39 males and 43 females) from a special holding area on the Inner Herbridean island of Rhum. Eight
were later recovered dead, but in 1983 came the first breeding attempt.
Two years later, a pair of white-tailed eagles produced the first British-born chick in 69 years and every
subsequent breeding season has seen a small incremental improvement. There is now an established breeding
nucleus spread between the islands of Skye and Mull as well as the adjacent mainland, and their recent history
suggests that the white-tailed eagle's increase will continue throughout north-west Scotland.

D. Spotted Flycatcher
Even the greatest fans of this lovely bird, with its mouse-grey upper parts and whitish breast and belly, would
have to admit that it is rather drab. They have no more than a thin, squeaky, small song. However, spotted flys
compensate with enormous character.
The birds are instantly recognizable because of their large-headed, top-heavy shape that is distinctive even in
silhouette, and by the habit of returning to the same perch after their agile, twisting, aerial sallies for insects.
They are adept at catching large species such as day-flying moths, butterflies, bees and wasps, whose stings
they remove by thrashing the victim against the perch. Their specialized diet means that they are among the
latest spring migrants to return and are now in serious decline because of half a century of pesticide use. In the
past 25 years, their numbers have declined by almost 80 per cent, but they are still sufficiently numerous
(155,000 pairs) to be familiar and are often birds of large gardens, churchyards or around farm buildings.