READING PASSAGE 1

Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
THE RISKINESS OF EVERYDAY LIFE
1 Taken any risks today? When you read that question, you probably thought about running
across a busy street, skydiving, or driving too fast. But the reality is that all of us have taken
dozens of risks in the last 24 hours—it’s just that they didn’t seem like it. For example, if you
took a shower, there was a risk of slipping and either breaking a bone or dying. A small risk, you
think, but how many times have you taken a shower? [1]
2 Jared Diamond, a professor of geography at the University of California, has been analyzing
this type of risk. As part of his research, he spent time in New Guinea, where he noticed that the
local people were very risk averse. For example, they refused to sleep under a dead tree,
despite the fact that it looked perfectly strong. Further investigation made their reasons clear:
There was a slight chance, perhaps a one in a thousand chance, that it would fall and kill them.
The odds were negligible, but upon further analysis, Diamond realized that trees did fall, and
that the people regularly slept under trees. If they did so a thousand times with a one in a
thousand chance of the tree falling, they could become part of the death statistics. His thoughts
turned to showers as a result of this insight. As a 75-year-old with a life expectancy of 90 years,
he calculated that he could expect to have more than 5,000 more showers in his life. If the
chances of having a fall were less than one in 5,000, he had better be extra careful! [2]
3 Diamond called this type of fear “constructive paranoia”—in other words, a useful fear of
something that would not usually make one fearful. It is an interesting notion, and one that
affects us all. After all, almost everything carries a risk, as statistics show. Many countries have
risks that are particular to them; for example, in Spain there is a statistical risk of being hit by a
plant, probably a geranium, falling from a balcony. [3]
4 There is, of course, a problem with constructive paranoia—at what point do we stop worrying
and start living? If everything has a risk involved, we are in danger of becoming so scared that
we would not leave our homes. Diamond is not in favor of such genuine paranoia. His point is
that we make poor decisions about risk, tending to believe, as a result of media coverage, that
some things are dangerous when they are in fact extremely low-risk. He cites the example of
plane crashes, which are spectacular but highly unlikely to affect us, compared to poor driving,
which carries a far higher risk, yet one that many people are happy to take. [4]
5 So, yes, we have taken risks today, inevitably. The world is a dangerous place. However, it
may not be plane crashes we should fear, but the stairs in our own home.
QUESTIONS 1 – 6:
Choose the best answer (A, B, C or D) for each of the following questions: 

1. What does the writer ask the reader to consider? Answer

A. whether to go skydiving
B. whether the reader has been at risk today
C. whether the reader doesn’t take enough risks
D. whether showers should not be taken

2. “Risk-averse” means __________. Answer

A. experiencing a lot of risk in life
B. not minding putting yourself at risk
C. not wanting to take risks
D. trying to understand daily risks

3. What does the shower example show? Answer

A. that a repeated daily risk means the overall chance of accident increases
B. that older people are more at risk from falling than younger ones
C. that people need to take fewer showers to cut the risk they pose
D. that bathrooms are the most dangerous place in the house

4. What point does the example about Spain make? Answer

A. Plants are very dangerous in public places.
B. Spain is a much riskier place overall than other countries.
C. No one was concerned about this type of risk in the past.
D. Different countries have different everyday risks.

5. What does Diamond believe to be a major factor in incorrect risk assessment? Answer

A. the way people drive carelessly on roads

B. the way accidents are reported in the media
C. the way most people do not like taking risks
D. the way most people do not mind flying

6. In which position marked [1], [2], [3] and [4] does the following sentence best belong? Answer

“This risk does not exist in countries that do not favor that type of decoration.”
A. [1]
B. [2]
C. [3]
D. [4]
QUESTIONS 7 – 11:
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS FROM THE PASSAGE in each blank.
7. Diamond, professor of geography, University of California New Guinea, noticed local people
wouldn’t sleep under Answer  with a small (approx. 1 in 1,000) chance of tree falling. 
8. Conclusion, this was a Answer  because the people often slept under trees,
so the probability of an accident would be high.
9. Observations led to a reassessment of common, everyday risks. Used the example of a
shower. He can expect to have more than 5,000 more showers in his life, so he needs to reduce
his risk of a fall to Answer  1 in 5,000.
10. Defines this as usefully fearing something common. Problem is this could lead to being
overly Answer .
11. We should Answer . risks appropriately making sure we don’t fear things that pose
very little danger, and that we do consider commonplace things that carry a risk when repeated
day in, day out.

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READING PASSAGE 2
Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
TRAFFIC
How to make traffic flow smoothly is a problem that city planners around the world struggle with
every day. Even when there is no construction or bad weather causing delays, major roads still
become congested with cars. Some optimists, however, think new technology will finally make
traffic move.

Perhaps the most ambitious project belongs to billionaire Elon Musk. Musk proposes a series of
underground tunnels that would transport vehicles around Los Angeles and other cities at high
speed. In Musk's plan, cars would be lowered onto moving sleds that would carry the vehicles
through tunnels to their destinations. Computers would control all movement and transfer cars
from one tunnel to another. Once a vehicle reached its destination, it would be raised to the
surface and continue its trip in a normal manner on surface roads. Musk claims that with such a
system in place, a trip in crowded Los Angeles that currently takes sixty minutes could be
completed in less than ten.

Musk's idea seems to have great potential. However, critics are quick to point out problems with
the plan, with the price tag being the first one. It is estimated that constructing just one mile (1.6
km) of tunnel would require at least one billion US dollars. To create a whole system of
underground tunnels would be an enormous financial burden for any city or government. In
addition, even if cities could afford such a system, many claim the tunnels would suffer from the
same problems as traditional roads.

In the past, building more roads and highways did not solve traffic problems in the way city
planners had hoped. Instead, as soon as more roads were constructed, more drivers appeared
and filled up the extra space. Those skeptical about Musk's plan say the same thing would
happen with the high-speed tunnels. Another issue would be so-called "choke-points." Most
traffic jams today occur where too many people are trying to get on or off the road at a single
narrow point. Like traditional highways, Musk's underground tubes would face the problem of
traffic jams at the entrances and exits. Without some major innovations, the high-speed tunnels
would have the same major bottlenecks.

Even though Musk's system of high-speed tunnels appears impractical, there is another modern
solution that may be possible in the near future. As any driver will admit, it is very frustrating that
many traffic jams have no clear cause. Cars simply slow down for a period of time before the
road opens up again and traffic returns to a normal speed. Traffic experts have discovered that
the main reason for this is that human drivers have difficulty maintaining something called
"flow."

If drivers always slowed down and sped up gradually, there would be fewer traffic jams.
However, this is not what happens in reality. Because drivers can only see a short distance
ahead, they tend to brake suddenly in response to changes in speed that occur a few cars in
front of them. This rapid braking ripples backward through the cars behind them, disturbing the
flow of traffic and leading to traffic jams.

Now, though, advances in driverless cars may make the problems of maintaining traffic flow a
thing of the past. Engineers are already experimenting with driverless cars that can
communicate with other such cars on the road, even cars far ahead of or behind the driver's
own vehicle. With a large number of "smart" cars in constant contact with each other, it will be
much easier to maintain a steady flow of traffic and greatly reduce the number of traffic jams.
Furthermore, in a driverless-car future in which computers are in control instead of easily-
distracted human drivers, it is expected that there would be many fewer crashes as well. This
would eliminate another major cause of traffic jams.

QUESTIONS 1 – 6: 
Choose the best answer (A, B, C or D) for each of the following questions: 

1. What is the best title for this passage? Answer

A. Elon Musk's Ideas for Improving Traffic
B. Possible Solutions to Traffic Problems
C. The Many Benefits of Driverless Cars
D. Possible Effects of Traffic Problems 

2. What point does the author make in paragraph 3? Answer

A. It is difficult to construct tunnels as long as roads.
B. Musk's plan would cost a huge amount of money.
C. Most cities have less money now than in the past.
D. Most cities have agreed to implement the plan. 

3. What is the author's main purpose in paragraph 4? Answer

A. To describe traffic habits in the cities
B. To define the meaning of key expressions such as "choke-points"
C. To suggest traffic may not move at high speeds through tunnels
D. To outline possible issues with the plan for underground tunnels

4. According to the author, what causes some traffic jams? Answer

A. The large number of slow cars with brake problems on the roads
B. The way drivers react to the actions of the drivers in front of them
C. The fact that drivers relax and drive slower when they feel "flow”
D. Drivers tend to drive slowly on the roads.

5. What benefit of driverless cars does the author mention in paragraph 7? Answer
A. Accidents would happen less often.
B. People would spend less time in cars.
D. Cars would consume less fuel.
D. Cars would travel faster.

6. What is the tone of the passage?Answer

A. outraged
B. judicial
D. informative
D. critical
QUESTIONS 7 – 10: 
Do the following statements agree with the information in the passage? Choose:

TRUE            if the statement is true according to the passage.

FALSE           if the statement contradicts the passage.
NOT GIVEN       if there is no information about this in the passage.

7. Roads become most congested during rush hours. Answer  

8. Musk's idea is for cars to drive at high speeds into tunnels. Answer  

9. If successful, Musk's plan would save travelers a lot of time. Answer  

10. The major cause of traffic jams is drivers find it challenging to remain in the same
flow. Answer