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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015

SESSION I

SECTION I – LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION (15 x 1 = 15 points)

Which of the following sentences best expresses the meaning in the given sentence?
1. The reduction in nutritional value of our diet over the last 70 years is the major cause of the notable rise of many
diseases.
A) There are a lot more cases of many diseases despite the nutritional foods that have come out in the last 70 years.
B) Primarily as a result of less nutritious diets during the last 70 years, many diseases have greatly increased in
number.
C) People have been eating foods with fewer vitamins and minerals for the past 70 years, which is why many diseases
have not been wiped out.
D) 70 years ago it was easy to find nutritious food, but now it is difficult to do so, and this has been the main factor for
the large increase in various diseases.
2. Over the last 70 years there has been a decrease in calorie intake among children, yet they are getting fatter due to
not exercising like children used to.
A) Having fewer calories in their diets has made today’s kids inactive, so they are much heavier than the children of 70
years ago.
B) Despite taking in fewer calories than the children of 70 years ago, today’s kids continue to become heavier as they
are less active.
C) Unlike the kids who lived 70 years ago, the children of today prefer unhealthy foods and refuse to exercise, so they
are gaining too much weight.
D) In the last 70 years, obesity has become a huge problem for children since they have gotten used to fattening foods
and little exercise.
3. Although eating habits are established during early childhood, it is never too late to change them.
A) Changing eating routines, even ones begun at a very young age, is possible later in life.
B) The earlier children start eating healthily, the more likely they are to enjoy good health as adults.
C) If children are not taught how to eat appropriately, eating well will be a struggle throughout their lives.
D) The way people eat is shaped before they are conscious of it, which means modifying such habits is always
extremely difficult.
4. The huge marketing industry encourages everyone to eat more since this generates profits for food manufacturers.
A) Getting people to consume more food results in more money for food companies, so these companies advertise
extensively.
B) Manufacturers introduce their foods through major ad campaigns, but this increases food costs and may result in
overeating.
C) Food makers focus on getting people to purchase more of their products and increasing profits rather than
producing quality products.
D) The better advertisements that food producers make, the more customers buy their products, but spending lots of
money on ads affects their profits.
5. Every major health association strongly supports a move to a more plant-based and less meat-based diet in order to
minimize heart disease and cancer.
A) All well-known health groups emphasize that a diet including both plants and meat is critical to reduce heart disease
and cancer.
B) Each health organization is hotly debating whether less meat and more plants in our diets would decrease heart
disease and cancer.
C) Respected medical organizations claim meat must be eliminated from our diets if we hope to have fewer cases of
heart disease and cancer.
D) The rate of heart disease and cancer can definitely be lowered by getting people to eat more plants and less meat,
according to all leading health organizations.

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

6. Some cities in Italy have launched the Cittaslow movement to encourage leisurely transportation alternatives such

as bikes and pedestrian zones and to promote local foods.
A) Initiated by some Italian cities, the Cittaslow movement aims to develop more relaxed forms of transport like walking
and biking as well as to support eating local dishes.
B) Through the Cittaslow movement they started, some Italian cities have benefited from an improved public
transportation system, more comfortable sidewalks and greater food choices.
C) Advertising slower transportation choices like going on foot or by bike and increasing the consumption of local foods
has brought about the Cittaslow movement, which was begun by various Italian cities.
D) The Cittaslow movement, which started in a few Italian cities, has spread to other cities that are improving slower
transportation options like biking and walking and gaining an appreciation for local dishes.

7. The biggest problem for a struggling community is the hopelessness that grows as people lose faith that anything
can change. 
A) If a community does not cooperate in a time of trouble, there is no hope that it will overcome its difficulties.
B) A community would not face difficult problems if the people living there had more self-confidence.
C) Nothing can get better in a struggling community unless its people realize how great a disaster it is facing.
D) The greatest barrier for a community experiencing difficulty is that its people give up the belief that things could
improve.

8. Dudley Street in Boston’s poor Roxbury District seemed like an unlikely candidate to become a symbol for urban
renewal.
A) There were many streets in Boston that would be better to renovate than run-down Dudley Street in the Roxbury
District.
B) It was not reasonable for cities like Boston to spend so much money on poor neighborhoods such as Dudley Street
in the Roxbury District.
C) Few people thought that Dudley Street, located in the poor Roxbury District in Boston, would end up being an
example of successful city renewal.
D) The Roxbury District in Boston is one of the poorest in the city, so it was expected that the city would attempt a
restoration project in that neighborhood on Dudley Street.

9. A carbon water filter can remove dangerous contaminants from drinking water while retaining healthy mineral
deposits. 
A) Hazardous pollutants can be taken out of water using a carbon filter, but healthy mineral deposits are also lost.
B) Mineral deposits that the body needs as well as harmful substances are eliminated by a carbon water filter.
C) Carbon is unique among water filtering materials in that it does not filter out beneficial mineral deposits but stops
unhealthy ones.
D) A carbon water filter is able to get rid of harmful water pollutants yet let mineral deposits which are useful to the
body pass through.

10. Some water pipes still contain lead, which is poisonous when consumed, so 480,000 children develop learning
disabilities each year due to lead exposure.
A) Lead exposure brings about problems in learning, and 480,000 children, some of whom have consumed water
carried by lead pipes, are harmed by this substance annually.
B) Lead can damage the body if it is present in drinking water, and every year 480,000 children start to have learning
problems since they drink water coming from lead water pipes.
C) 480,000 children begin having problems learning every year as a result of their exposure to lead, which used to be
found in water pipes and would poison those who drank water from them.
D) Each year 480,000 children are exposed to lead because of drinking water coming from lead pipes, and many of
them cannot learn properly because of the effects of this dangerous metal.

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

11. The water supply and purification methods of the ancient Romans were largely neglected throughout Europe until
the 17th century.
A) By the 17th century, Europe was far ahead of ancient Rome in its ability to filter and distribute water.
B) In the 17th century, large portions of Europe finally surpassed ancient Rome’s ability to purify its water supply.
C) It was not until the 17th century that most of Europe started using ancient Roman techniques in providing clean
water.
D) Despite their great efforts, Europe was unable to improve on the methods ancient Roman had developed to clean
and transport water until the 17th century.

12. Rice is normally replanted every year, although in tropical areas it can produce a crop every year for 30 years.
A) For 30 years, tropical areas have produced the best rice crops, but it is raised as an annual plant in other places.
B) Despite being able to keep producing a crop for 30 years when grown in tropical regions, rice is typically raised to
produce only one harvest.
C) There is a tendency to raise rice for just one year, but over the last 30 years farmers in tropical areas have shown it
can produce multiple crops.
D) In spite of evidence from the last 30 years showing that rice can produce crops for years in tropical regions, it is still
most often grown for only one year.
13. For 1000 years, farmers have been planting Azolla, the mosquito fern, together with rice as it reduces water
evaporation in the rice field and blocks out competing plants.
A) Since approximately the year 1000, farmers have been aware that less water is lost and fewer rice plants grow
when Azolla is planted with rice.
B) Both Azolla and the mosquito fern began being planted with rice 1000 years ago since they stop water from
disappearing and other plants from growing.
C) Known as the mosquito fern, Azolla slows down water loss and prevents unwanted plants from growing, so it has
been planted with rice for the last 1000 years.
D) In their efforts to avoid water from escaping and to slow the growth of rice plants, agricultural workers have made
use of Azolla, also known as the mosquito fern, for 1000 years.
14. Every girl in China is told that she must eat all of the rice on her plate because otherwise each remaining grain of
rice will become a mark on the face of her future husband.
A) In China, it is said that each grain of rice left on a girl’s plate will result in a mark on the face of the man she marries
so she had better not leave any.
B) Unless a girl in China eats all the rice on her plate, she will make a married man get marks on his face, according to
a common Chinese saying.
C) It is reported that girls in China eat every grain of rice on their plates because they hope to avoid getting married to
a man who has marks on his face.
D) That a Chinese girl should eat every grain of rice found on her plate to keep her future husband from ending up with
marks on his face has been shown to be true.

15. Although rice is native to Asia and certain parts of Africa, centuries of trade and exportation have made it
commonplace in many countries worldwide.
A) Bought and sold all over the world for a few hundred years, rice plants hardly resemble the original plants that were
grown in Asia and a few places in Africa.
B) Hundreds of years of developments have made the rice plant much stronger and enabled it to spread from Asia and
some areas of Africa to nearly all countries.
C) Because traders have been exporting rice for many hundreds of years, it is now found throughout the world though
it originally grew in just Asia and some parts of Africa.
D) It is amazing that rice, a plant first grown in Asia and a few parts of Africa, has been able to adapt itself to the
conditions of countries all over the world where it has been exported.
SECTION II – READING COMPREHENSION (30 x 1.5 = 45 points)
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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

Read each text and choose the best alternative that answers each question.

Text 1 Let Kids Be Free Online

I Today’s teens are desperate to find a space of their own, and they need a
place to attempt new things and make mistakes. In the past, teenagers spent more
time using bicycles, roller skates and skateboards, which are actually quite
dangerous. I still have scars on my knees from the accidents that occurred while I
was using them. Parks can also be dangerous; I broke my left arm falling off a swing.
Still, I am glad that my parents did not keep me trapped at home so that they could
protect me from every injury. The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said,
“Things which do not kill us make us stronger,” but most parents cannot handle it
when teenagers put this philosophy into practice. Today, social media has become the new field for the continuing feud
between restrictive parents and their freedom-loving kids.

II Spending more time indoors and less time hanging out with their friends than teens of a generation ago, today’s
teens have turned to social media and their mobile phones to gossip, flirt and socialize with their peers. What they do
online often mirrors what they would otherwise do if they had more time for face-to-face socializing. Social media and
smartphone apps have become so popular in recent years because teens need a place to call their own. They want the
freedom to explore their identity and the world around them. Instead of sneaking out of upstairs windows late at night
like kids used to do, they jump online. As teens spend more time online, parents become more and more fearful of the
Internet, imagining all the potential dangers that youth might face, from violent strangers and cruel peers to pictures and
words that could frighten them for the rest of their lives.

III Rather than helping teens develop strategies for negotiating social media and the potential risks of interacting
with others online, fearful parents have focused on tracking, monitoring and blocking. These tactics don’t help teens
develop the skills they need to manage complex social situations, assess risks or get help when they are in trouble.
Banning cell phones will not enable a teen who is in love to cope with the messy dynamics of sexting, that is, sending
text messages with sexual content. “Protecting” kids may feel like the right thing to do, but it impedes the learning that
teens need to do in a technology-filled world.

IV Having more restrictions is not the key to helping youth navigate contemporary digital life. Instead, it is freedom
plus communication. Urban theorist Jane Jacobs used to argue that the safest neighborhoods were those where more
community members took interest in and paid attention to what happened on the streets. Safety did not come from
surveillance cameras or keeping everyone indoors but from a community which was willing to watch out for one another
and to be helpful when people struggled. The same is true online. What makes a “digital street” safe is when teens and
adults collectively agree to open their eyes and pay attention, communicate and collaboratively negotiate difficult
situations. Teens need the freedom to wander the digital street, but they also need to know that caring adults are behind
them and supporting them wherever they go. The first step is to turn off the tracking software. Then ask the teens
around you what they are doing when they are online and why it is so important to them.

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

16. The author talks about her childhood in paragraph I in order to show that ----.
A) children listened to their parents more in the past
B) she and her parents had many disagreements
C) growing up has always involved risk
D) physical exercise is important for young people

17. The word feud in paragraph I could best be replaced by ----

A) entertainment
B) friendship
C) dishonesty
D) conflict

18. In paragraph II, one of the topics that the author discusses is ----.
A) the reasons why teens have less time to interact face to face
B) the reasons why social media and smartphones apps have become widespread among teens
C) the effects that the increased use of social media has had on teens
D) the effects of parents on teens’ Internet usage

19. The word impedes in paragraph III is closest in meaning to ----

A) practices
B) prevents
C) emphasizes
D) enables

20. In paragraph III, the author mentions that “tracking, monitoring and blocking” are ineffective because ----.
A) teens need to be building up their social skills by being involved in challenging situations
B) teens know how to avoid these things, and it is pointless to try using them
C) teens need technology to have the opportunity to develop romantic relationships
D) teens do not actually face as many risks as most people believe when they use technology

21. According to paragraph IV, while researching urban areas Jane Jacobs found that ----.
A) the more people in a community watched out for each other, the more people struggled
B) the more surveillance cameras in a neighborhood, the more people stayed indoors
C) the more time people in a community spent online, the less people supported each other
D) the more people in a community watched their surroundings, the more secure it was

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

Text 2 Childhood Advertising and the Unconscious Mind

I Marketers have understood how to use psychology to sell products
for many years. Facing falling sales in the 1950s, the makers of Betty
Crocker’s cake mix turned to psychoanalysis for help. Wives apparently
felt guilty about making a cake by “just adding water” – it didn’t feel like
enough effort to earn their husband’s approval. So, what did
psychoanalysts suggest? Make the recipe just a little more complex by
requiring the addition of water and an egg. By adding the egg, the
housewives felt they had performed meaningful work.

II New studies have added interesting knowledge to our understanding of the psychological influences that
advertising can have. They show that the advertisements that we see as children may, in fact, stick around in our
memories and influence our decision making even decades later.

III Earlier studies had shown that children become progressively more critical about advertising as they age.
Researchers found that until they reach 13, most kids lack the cognitive skills and knowledge to carefully evaluate the
messages found in advertisements. As a result, advertising to young children was shown to be much more powerful
than advertising to older children or to adults, who are better able to evaluate advertisers’ claims.

IV In a recent
like Ronald McDonald (for McDonald restaurants) or Tony the Tiger (for Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes)
during the pre-teen period leads people to make biased decisions about the advertised product
decades later. To do this, they presented adults with different advertising images, some of which
were ones they would have been exposed to before 13 and others they would have seen for the first
time as adults. Importantly, the images were all linked with well-known products, so they were
equally familiar overall. After seeing a number of advertisements, the adult participants rated the
healthfulness of a number of foods as well as their positive and negative feelings towards the
brands.

V The researchers found that people form strong bonds with advertising characters that they met as young
children and that these bonds persist into adulthood. When adults were rating products that had been advertised to
them before the age of 13, they rated the product as significantly healthier. In other words, if you were exposed to lots of
Ronald McDonald ads as a young child, you may still have a bias toward McDonald’s food, such as viewing French fries
as a relatively healthy food. The authors note that many things might contribute to this effect. However, the studies
found evidence that one factor was particularly prominent. Heavy exposure to an advertised character as a child creates
strong positive feelings towards the brand which that character represented, and those feelings remain in the memory
for decades. The positive feelings can then be triggered by advertising to adults, making them “switch off” critical
processing that would otherwise lead them to question the products’ health benefits.

VI Fortunately, though, all hope is not lost. In a follow-up study, the

authors showed that simply knowing about this bias and being motivated to
make healthy choices can make people think more critically, leading to less
biased decisions about brands they were exposed to in their childhood. Those
are some “Gr-r-reat” ideas to consider tomorrow morning at the breakfast table.

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

22. The main idea of the text is that ----.

A) children and housewives are the ones who are most deeply affected by the psychology of advertising
B) if adults do not analyze their choices carefully, the advertisements they saw as children will influence them
C) advertisements directed at children under 13 should be forbidden as kids lack critical thinking skills
D) people’s diets have become significantly worse because they are exposed to so much advertising

23. The phrase stick around in paragraph II is closest in meaning to ----.

A) enhance
B) fail
C) remain
D) confuse

24. According to paragraph III, earlier research gave evidence that ----.
A) being exposed to advertising at an early age destroyed children’s ability to develop critical thinking skills
B) neither young children nor teenagers were able to evaluate whether advertisers’ claims were true
C) when children became teenagers, their ability to evaluate advertisements increased significantly
D) it was not until adulthood that critical thinking skills were developed enough to deal with advertisers’ messages

25. The phrase do this in paragraph IV refers to ----

A) testing the long-term effects of exposure to advertising characters before the age of 13
B) exposing people to certain advertising characters like Ronald McDonald or Tony the Tiger
C) leading people to make biased decisions
D) advertising a product decades later

26. The word prominent in paragraph V is closest in meaning to ----.

A) misleading
B) debatable
C) significant
D) hopeful

27. Which of the following statements can be understood from paragraph V?

A) Unlike young children, adults do not feel an emotional connection to characters in advertisements.
B) Some foods such as French fries are actually healthier than many people think.
C) It does not matter when adults are exposed to ads; the important factor is that ads create positive feelings.
D) Adults often do not carefully analyze ads which contain advertising characters from their childhood.

28. In paragraph VI, the writer states that ----.

A) a healthy breakfast is one effective way to help people increase their critical thinking skills
B) awareness of the effects of advert characters from childhood limits their impact on adult decision making
C) adults should limit children’s exposure to ads so that they can make better decisions as adults
D) adults need to forget the food advertisements from their childhood to make healthier dietary choices

E)

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

Text 3 From Toilet to Tap: Getting Used to Recycled Waste Water

I After the third year of California's worst drought in a century, the state's reservoirs are at record low levels.
Agriculture has been affected, and some small communities can only provide water every other day. However, business
is booming for California's Orange County Water District (OCWD) due to a pioneering wastewater treatment facility that
recycles used water, including sewage, and returns it to the drinking water supply. The plant has expanded production
from 70 to 100 million gallons per day. As the OCWD output is mixed with the main groundwater supply, it reaches over
70% of the area’s residents.
II The facility is among the oldest and largest of its type in the world and is a model
solution for a global problem. The UN warns that half the world’s population will face
water scarcity by 2030 due to climate change and population growth. If large scale
shortages take place, they will threaten food production and cause a health crisis
because of increased exposure to unsanitary water, which already kills millions each year
through waterborne diseases such as cholera and diarrhea.
III The introduction of systems like OCWD’s has been difficult, however. Their treatment facility began recycling
water in the 1970s but only started contributing to the drinking supply in 2008, after a comprehensive education
campaign to allay public fears. "We're finally seeing widespread acceptance of these technologies," OCWD General
Manager Mike Markus said. "As the shortages become more extreme and water supplies are cut, it has raised
awareness that we need to find alternative resources."
IV The recycling process works through a three-step treatment. The first is microfiltration of waste water to remove
solids, oils and bacteria. Next, the resulting liquid goes through reverse osmosis, pushing it through a fine plastic
membrane that filters out viruses and pharmaceuticals. The water is then treated with UV light to remove any remaining
organic compounds. It must pass strict quality control tests before being distributed to households. The OCWD says the
water, in fact, exceeds all government drinking water standards.
V One of the world's earliest water recycling plants, in Windhoek, Namibia, has been in operation since 1968.
Over half of the Sub-Saharan African population faces water insecurity, and the greatest health risk, diarrhea, kills over
a million people each year in the west part of the region. But research shows that this problem occurs at much lower
rates for people whose drinking water is supplied by the Windhoek plant than for those whose water is provided through
conventional treatment centers. "Standards are strict there," says Benedito Braga, President of the World Water
Council. "The quality of the water it produces from sewage is as good as the tap water in any city in the developed
world."
VI Good public relations are the key to increased use of this water, as it is often rejected due to negative public
reaction to the concept. This was clearly shown in the Australian city of Toowoomba in 2006 when the group "Citizens
Against Drinking Sewage" defeated plans to introduce recycled water sources because there were said to be health
risks. But Australia also provides an example of how much attitudes can change. After a three-year educational
campaign, the city of Perth started providing 20% of its drinking water from waste water, and 76% of the public
supported this project. Dr. Carol Nemeroff of the University of South Maine, has studied reactions to recycled waste
water. She says, "Most people have strong feelings of dislike. Physical cues like billboards and TV ads showing fresh,
clear water seem to be the most effective methods to help people get over them." She adds that necessity can also be a
key factor: "If you're desperate, you'll try anything for survival."
VII If costs continue to fall and public acceptance continues to grow, waste water will help overcome the projected
water scarcities of this century. The World Water Council predicts that recycled sewage water will be a normal source of
drinking water in cities around the world within 30 years since the technology and most of the infrastructure are already
in use. It's now up to us to get used to it.

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

29. In paragraph I, which of the following is NOT mentioned as an effect of the current drought in California?
A) Insufficient water for crops
B) Water cuts in some areas
C) Lower quality drinking water
D) Increased business for OCWD
30. Paragraph II states that ----.
A) many water recycling plants are now as big as the one in California
B) climate change and a lack of water may affect population growth by 2030
C) the use of recycled water should be limited to food production
D) water that is not sanitary already leads to millions of deaths each year
31. The word allay in paragraph III is closest in meaning to ----.
A) reduce
B) update
C) debate
D) research
32. According to paragraph IV, the third step in the treatment process is to ----.
A) push waste water through a fine plastic membrane
B) treat waste water with UV light
C) pass strict quality control tests
D) receive OCWD approval that it exceeds government drinking water standards
33. Paragraph V points out that the recycled water plant in Windhoek, Namibia ----.
A) has solved the problem of water insecurity in Sub-Saharan Africa
B) has decreased deaths due to diarrhea to less than one million
C) has helped reduce the cases of diarrhea in the area where its water is distributed
D) had to provide water to conventional treatment centers due to water shortages
34. The word there in paragraph V refers to ----.
A) conventional water treatment centers
B) the Windhoek water recycling plant
C) the west part of Sub-Saharan Africa
D) Sub-Saharan Africa
35. From paragraph VI, it is clear that the author believes ----.
A) drinking recycled water would have caused more diseases in the city of Toowoomba
B) the group "Citizens Against Drinking Sewage" were unable to achieve their goals
C) Perth should be supplying more than 20% of its water from recycled sources
D) the campaign regarding recycled waste water in Perth strongly influenced public opinion there
36. The word them in paragraph VI refers to ----.
A) most people
B) strong feelings of dislike
C) physical cues
D) the most effective methods
37. Which of the following is TRUE according to the article?
A) More than half of the residents of the OCWD now drink some recycled waste water.
B) The quality of the water the OCWD produced increased significantly in 2008.
C) The technology to make recycled waste water safe to drink came out in the 1970s.
D) Recycled sewer water will be a typical source of drinking water in 30 years if technology improves.

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

Text 4 SRI
I Sumant Kumar was overjoyed when he harvested his rice last year. There
had been good rains in his village of Darveshpura in northeast India, and he hoped
to improve on the four tonnes per hectare that he had usually managed to harvest.
But even Kumar was shocked when his crop was weighed on the old village
scales. Using only animal waste for fertiliser and no herbicides, Kumar had grown
an astonishing 22.4 tonnes of rice on just one hectare of land, which was a world
record. He beat the scientists at the International Rice Research Institute and even
the big European and American seed companies. Many other farmers in nearby
villages also claimed to have doubled or tripled their usual crops.

II However, Indian government officials didn't believe the farmers at first and accused them of cheating. The
record was not confirmed until the Minister of Agriculture, a rice farmer himself, came to the village and personally
inspected Kumar's crop. After that this village, where animal waste is still dried on the walls of houses and then used to
cook food and where electricity has not yet reached most homes, started receiving national attention. Kumar became a
hero and was asked to speak to the Indian parliament. So far the village has only been rewarded with a new bridge,
which is still under construction, but more changes have been promised. Kumar and his neighbors have become
unlikely heroes in an area where nearly half the families live in poverty.

III What happened in Darveshpura is exciting for development experts. The main reason for the increased crops is
due to a simple planting method called System of Root Intensification (SRI), which has dramatically increased crops of
wheat, potatoes, tomatoes and other plants. For rice, instead of planting three-week-old rice plants together in groups of
three or four, as most rice farmers around the world do, the Darveshpura farmers raise only half as many seeds and
then transplant rice plants into fields when they are much younger. Additionally, they space single plants at 25cm
intervals in a grid pattern, keep the soil much drier, and carefully work the soil around the plants to allow air to reach the
roots. The concept that "less is more" has been introduced to hundreds of villages in India in the past three years.

IV SRI's origins go back to the 1980s in Madagascar where Henri de Laulanie, a French priest in the Catholic
Church with agricultural expertise, observed the way villagers grew rice in the uplands. Although it was de Laulanie who
first reported the method in an agricultural journal, an American, Professor Norman Uphoff of Cornell University, has
been primarily responsible for publicising it. For 40 years now, says Uphoff, science has been obsessed with improving
seeds and using artificial fertilisers: "It's been all genes and artificial fertilisers, but there has been little talk of managing
crops. Corporations say, 'We can genetically modify a plant,' and they work hard to get a 5-10% increase. They have
tried to make agriculture an industrial enterprise but have forgotten its biological roots."

V However, not everyone is as impressed as Uphoff. Some scientists complain there is insufficient evidence that
SRI increases crops. "SRI is just a set of management practices, many of which have been known for years and are
commonly used," says Achim Dobermann, director for research at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).
"Scientifically speaking, I don't see any miracle. When people have evaluated SRI principles independently, the result
has often been quite different from what has been reported by those who are promoting it. Most scientists have had
difficulty duplicating the huge gains some farmers claim."

VI Nevertheless, Uphoff estimates there are now 4-5 million farmers using SRI worldwide, and governments in
China, India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam are encouraging its use. Also, last month Nobel prize-
winning economist Joseph Stiglitz visited Darveshpura and told the villagers they were "better than scientists". Such
support has led to greater credibility for SRI. Meanwhile, Kumar and 100,000 other SRI farmers around Darveshpura
are preparing their next rice crop. Transplanting the young rice plants from the nursery beds to the fields is back-
breaking work, but their confidence and optimism in the future is sky high.

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ITU/SFL PROFICIENCY EXAM January 6, 2015
SESSION I

38. What is the main idea of the article?

A) The Indian government has helped develop SRI, a new farming method which greatly increases rice crops.
B) Although some people question its success, many others claim SRI is an effective method of increasing crops.
C) There is intense competition to increase rice crops between producers of SRI rice and the large seed companies.
D) The SRI method of growing rice has changed little since it was first discovered and publicized in the 1980s.

39. According to paragraph I, Sumant Kumar ----.

A) was expecting an even larger rice crop than he harvested
B) was not as successful as some of the other farmers in his area
C) grew more than five times the amount of rice than he normally did
D) did not trust the village scales where his rice was weighed

40. In paragraph II, it is implied that ----.

A) the Minister of Agriculture was never fully convinced that Kumar had a record rice crop
B) daily life in Kumar’s village has changed little despite the publicity it received
C) Kumar did not want to speak in front of India’s parliament
D) there is no longer much poverty in Kumar’s village

41. Which of the following statements is FALSE about the System of Root Intensification (SRI) planting method
discussed in paragraph III?
A) By only changing the planting technique, this method leads to significantly improved crops for many plants.
B) Rice plants are planted further apart than they are in traditional methods.
C) Rice plants are placed in fields earlier than they are in most other rice-growing methods.
D) While planting rice, the soil around the plants is disturbed as little as possible to protect the plant roots.

42. What does the author mean by the “less is more” concept in paragraph III?
A) Fewer seeds are used, but in the end more rice is grown.
B) The harvest is usually less, but in the end more profit is made due to using fewer seeds.
C) A smaller area is planted, but in the end more rice is grown by planting seeds closer together.
D) Fewer farmers are needed, but in the end more rice is grown due to the easier planting method.

43. The word it in paragraph IV refers to ----.

A) Madagascar
B) agricultural expertise
C) the way villagers grew rice in the uplands
D) an agricultural journal

44. According to paragraphs IV and V, ----

A) Norman Uphoff criticizes the focus on better seeds and fertilisers while the director of IRRI is doubtful of SRI claims
B) the director of IRRI claims SRI is ineffective and people like Norman Uphoff promote it for their own financial gain
C) SRI experts are now working with researchers from IRRI to prove that their planting method is effective
D) farmers are in a difficult position because neither the SRI method or IRRI has enabled them to grow larger crops

45. The word credibility in paragraph VI could best be replaced by ----.

A) criticism
B) management
C) independence
D) trustworthiness

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