READING TEST 3

(Levels 3 – 5)
Time permitted: 60 minutes

Directions: In this section you will read FOUR different passages. Each one is followed
by 10 questions about it. For questions 1-40, you are to choose the best answer A, B, C or
D, to each question. Then, on your answer sheet, find the number of the question and fill
in the space that corresponds to the letter of the answer you have chosen. Answer all
questions following a passage on the basis of what is stated or implied in that passage.
You have 60 minutes to answer all the questions, including the time to transfer your
answers to the answer sheet.

PASSAGE 1 – Questions 1-10

Kolkata (previously known as Calcutta) is the famous capital of West Bengal in India
and the home of nearly 15 million people. The traffic jams and engine fumes begin early
in the morning with long lines of private cars, public buses, taxis, three-wheeled scooters
and pedicabs. There aren’t many alternatives. You can catch a train through the city or
take the underground but sooner or later you have to go on foot and walking in Kolkata is
a dangerous activity. As the drivers race towards pedestrians, they blow their horns. The
sound never stops from morning to night.
So when I crossed a small road on my first day in the city, I was surprised because I
heard a bell – not a horn. It was a tiny man pulling a rickshaw. He stopped and picked up
two children from the front door of their house and then, with great strength, pulled them
to school. For many people, the rickshaw is a symbol of Kolkata and they have many
advantages. When the traffic is bad, rickshaws find a way through the traffic. If you miss
your bus and there aren’t any taxis, you can always find a rickshaw in Kolkata. Rickshaws
are also very popular with local shoppers. The driver takes you from your house to the
market and waits for you. Then he loads all your purchases, drops you off outside your
home and helps you unload. No other type of public transport offers this kind of service.
You also see lots more people getting on and off rickshaws during the monsoon
season. That’s the period from June to September when Kolkata gets heavy rainfall.
Sometimes it rains for 48 hours without a break. In the older parts of the city, the roads
flood. The water can rise as high as people’s waists in the worst part. When it’s this bad,
anything with an engine is useless. But the rickshaw drivers never stop working, even with
water all around them.
But not everyone thinks rickshaws are a good thing. Some local officials and
politicians want to ban rickshaws on ‘humanitarian grounds’. They believe it is wrong for
one man to pull another person when there is modern transport in the city. However, there
is a problem with this plan. Many of the rickshaw drivers come from the countryside with
no job and no qualifications. The only job they can find in Kolkata is pulling a rickshaw. If
the city bans rickshaws, these men won’t have a job or income. So for the moment, the
people of Kolkata still go by rickshaw.
(rickshaw: a two-wheeled wooden cart, pulled by a person on foot, usually used in the
narrow streets of busy town centres)
1. Which word best describes Kolkata?
A. Noisy
B. Quiet
C. Clean
D. Safe
2. Which of the following could best replace the word “alternatives” in paragraph 1?
A. Opportunities
B. Options
C. Differences
D. Similarities
3. What is the main idea of paragraph 2?
A. Rickshaws have a lot of benefits
B. Rickshaw is the symbol of Kolkata.
C. Rickshaw is not popular in Kolkata.
D. Rickshaw drivers provide a lot of services.
4. The author was……………….when he saw a rickshaw and its driver.
A. aware
B. amazed
C. frightened
D. shocked
5. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT TRUE about rickshaws?
A. They are better in traffic jams.
B. They are good for shopping.
C. They always travel during the monsoons.
D. They are cheaper than other public transport.
6. The phrase “without a break” in paragraph 3 could be best replaced by…………
A. continuously.
B. moderately.
C. increasingly.
D. suddenly.
7. Why do some people want to ban rickshaws?
A. Because rickshaws cause pollution
B. Because rickshaws cause traffic jams
C. Because there is modern transport in the city
D. Because they think pulling rickshaws is cruel.
8. Why don’t local officials and politicians ban rickshaws?
A. There isn’t much employment for the drivers.
B. The tourists want them.
C. Local people need them in the monsoon season.
D. The drivers don’t want to go back to the countryside.
9. What is the best title for the reading passage?
A. Last days of the rickshaw
B. Transportations in Kolkata
C. Kolkata – The capital of West Bengal
D. Traffic jams in Kolkata
10. According to the passage, where do many rickshaw drivers come from?
A. Kolkata
B. The countryside
C. Bengal
D. Big cities

PASSAGE 2 – Questions 11-20

The wicked queen in the tale of Snow White is famous for her rhetorical question:
“Mirror Mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?” But her dream of eternal youth
is an elusive one - as the years roll by the human body slowly but surely shrinks, sags and
droops as cells mutate and die. Hearing, mobility, mental agility, muscle and brain mass
all decline. The queen is on a trajectory common to most living organisms, apart, that is,
from a humble, often overlooked creature of the seashore - the sea anemone.
Usually the anemones didn't live long but in the right conditions it could have been a
very different story. “As far as we know, these are immortal animals,” says Dan Rokhsar,
professor of genetics at the University of California, Berkeley. “They don't have old age.
They live forever and proliferate, just getting bigger.” If you cut off their tentacles, they
grow new ones. Even if you cut off their mouths they grow new “heads.” As long as they
are not poisoned or eaten, as is often the case, they seem to go on and on.
Instead of ageing, anemones seem to stay young and fully functioning. "If I look at a
sea anemone today and compare it to a week later the same structure will be there but many
of the cells will have been replaced.” How it does this isn't clear. “We would love to be
able to find a gene or pathway that allows it to avoid ageing,” says Rokhsar. But he and his
team are still searching for that Holy Grail.
Even if they do find what they are looking for, would it shed any light on the human
ageing process? Actually, anemones are more similar to humans than many people realise.
"Sea anemones are the simplest animals we know of that have a nervous system - it's not
organised in the same way as ours, but they do have a network of neurones that allows
them to respond to stimuli and be very active predators," says Rokhsar. "Sea anemones
share a lot with us. We found a lot of similarities we had not seen when comparing humans
to fruit flies or nematodes," says Rokhsar. There are parallels in the way the genomes are
organised and the way the genes are structured, revealing a link that "goes back at least 700
million years".
But there are philosophical questions too. "To what extent is immortality for a sea
anemone and immortality for a human the same kind of thing?" asks Rokhsar. A sea
anemone simply lives in the moment. People, however have thoughts, memories and
consciousness that they want to retain. Keeping these bright and present in our regenerating
bodies may not be something the anemone can help with. "That," says Rokhsar, "is a much
taller order."
11. Why does the author mention the queen in Snow White?
A. To introduce sea anemones
B. To prove that she is wicked
C. To raise reader’s interest on the reading passage
D. To explain why she is famous
12. Which of the followings is closest in meaning to the word “decline” in paragraph
1?
A. increase
B. decrease
C. raise
D. remain
13. According to paragraph 2, anemones……
A. usually live long.
B. can grow back their heads and tentacles.
C. are different in stories.
D. need right conditions to live.
14. According to the Rokhsar, what would happen if anemones are not poisoned or
eaten?
A. Their heads get bigger.
 B. They live forever.
C. They grow new tentacles.
D. They go to live on another rock.
15. What does the word “Holy Grail” in paragraph 3 refer to?
A. A sacred cup
B. A new medicine
C. A way to stay young forever
D. A gene that anemone has?
16. What is the main idea of paragraph 4?
A. Anemones are similar to humans in many ways.
B. Many people realise that anemones can live forever.
C. Anemones may make humans stay young forever.
D. Sea anemones are active predators.
17. The word “parallels” in paragraph 4 could be best replaced by which of the
following?
A. Different
B. Similar
C. Same
D. Identical
18. According to the passage, how are anemones similar to human beings?
A. Both have similar genomes organization and genes structure
B. Both have a nervous system.
C. Both are active predators.
D. Both started to link with each other 700 million years ago.

19. Which of the following best expresses meaning of the highlighted sentence in the
last paragraph?
A. Sea anemones may become extinct in the future.
B. A sea anemone does not have consciousness, thoughts, or memory.
C. Structure of sea anemones does not change with time.
D. Cells of anemones keep regenerating.
20. What does the word “these” in the last paragraph refer to?
A. Philosophical questions
B. Anemones
C. Thoughts, memories and consciousness
D. Our aged bodies

PASSAGE 3 – Questions 21-30

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre is a popular topic for people interested in theater and
history. However, the Global Theatre as we know it today is not the same building that was
used originally. In fact, the Globe was situated in many different places during its history.
When the rental agreement on the original location ended, one of the actors bought a
theater called Blackfriars, which was located in another part of town. However, many
complaints from neighbors and the town council led to a petition that requested that the
acting group move their company out of town. Upset with this news, the actors returned to
the original theater, took most of it apart, and then moved the materials across the Thames
river to Bankside, where they proceeded to construct the next version of the Globe.
This endeavor, though, did not go smoothly. The owner of the original Globe Theatre,
who had rented it to the actors, took the acting group to court. He wanted the actors to pay
the damage they had done to his building. In the end, however, the actors won the case and
continued to construct their “newly-acquired” theater. Later, the actors split their plays
between the original theater and the new Globe.
In 1612, the original Globe burned to the ground. How did this happen? Historians
believed that a cannon that was shot during a performance of the play Henry VIII started a
large fire. Yet, the Globe Theatre still survived. However, it was shut down by the Puritans
in 1642 and later destroyed during the English Civil War of 1643.
In May of 1997, Queen Elizabeth II officially opened a newly constructed version of
the Globe with a production of Henry V. [A] This is the Globe Theatre that people visit
today. The queen wanted the new theater to be much like the old one. [B] The new model
is very similar to the original theater. For instance, it is also a three-story building. Also, it
has seating for 1,500 people. [C] In its first season, the theater attracted 210, 000 people.
[D]
There are some important things to remember when visiting the Globe today. Since
the theater was reconstructed to be very similar to the original theater, some customer may
not find the seating or experience to be as comfortable as in a typical modern theater. For
example, plays are not canceled due to bad weather. Therefore, if the day is extremely hot
r if it is raining (remember, it is an outdoor theater), the play will continue as scheduled.
Secondly, there are many stairs that theater-goers must climb to get to and from their seats,
which can be very tiring for some. Finally, if you are watching the play from the “yard,”
you are not allowed to use an umbrella or even to sit down. Certainly, visiting the Globe
today promises visitors an exciting experience, much like visiting this theater hundreds of
years ago.
21. As it is used in paragraph 2, the word “part” is closest in meaning to….
A. role.
B. area.
C. dividing line.
D. piece.
22. The word “proceed” in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to….
A. continued.
B. began.
C. marched.
D.hurried.
23. The word “acquired” in paragraph 3 could be best replaced by which of the
following?
A. Stolen
B. Bought
C. Discovered
D. Obtained
24. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the
highlighted sentence in paragraph 4?
A. However, the effort to make a new Globe Theatre was expensive.
B. Consequently, the new theater project was never completed.
C. This effort, consequently, was too difficult to accomplish.
D. This project, however, was not easily accomplished.
25. In which year was the original Globe damaged by fire?
A. 1609
B. 1613
C. 1643
D.1997
26. Based on information in paragraph 4, what can be inferred about the Puritans?
A. They loved Shakespeare.
B. They lived in America.
C. They did not like plays.
D. They wore black clothes.
27. The word “its” in paragraph 5 refers to……..
A. the season.
B. the program.
C. the theater.
D.the play.
28. According to the passage, what is true of the original Globe Theatre?
A. It was not popular at first.
B. It had three levels.
C. It was in downtown London.
D. The tickets were not very expensive.
29. What does the word “their” in paragraph 6 refer to?
A. Stairs
B. Seats
C. Actors
D. Audience members
30. What is the purpose of this passage?
A. To inform people about Shakespeare
B. To tell people about the history of the Globe Theater
C. To talk about the theater in English
D. To describe acting in the 17th century
PASSAGE 4 – Questions 31-40
Holmes and Rahe developed the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) to
measure life change as a form of stress. (A) The scale assigns numerical values to 43 major
life events that are supposed to reflect the magnitude of the readjustment required by each
change. In responding to the scale, respondents are asked to indicate how often they
experienced any of these 43 events during a certain time period (typically, the past year).
The person then adds up the numbers associated with each event checked. (B)
The SRRS and similar scales have been used in thousands of studies by researchers
all over the world. (C) Overall, these studies have shown that people with higher scores on
the SRRS tend to be more vulnerable to many kinds of physical illness - and many types
of psychological problems as well. (D) More recently, however, experts have criticized this
research, citing problems with the methods used and raising questions about the meaning
of the findings.
First, the assumption that the SRRS measures change exclusively has been shown to
be inaccurate. We now have ample evidence that the desirability of events affects
adaptational outcomes more than the amount of change that they require. Thus, it seems
prudent to view the SRRS as a measure of diverse forms of stress, rather than as a measure
of change-related stress.
Second, the SRRS fails to take into account differences among people in their
subjective perception of how stressful an event is. For instance, while divorce may deserve
a stress value of 73 for most people, a particular person’s divorce might generate much less
stress and merit a value of only 25.
Third, many events listed on the SRRS and similar scales are highly ambiguous,
leading people to be inconsistent as to which events they report experiencing. For instance,
what qualifies as “trouble with the boss”? Should you check that because you’re sick and
tired of your supervisor? What constitutes a “change in living conditions”? Does your
purchase of a great new sound system qualify? The SRRS includes many “events” that are
described inadequately, producing considerable ambiguity about the meaning of one’s
response. Problems in recalling events over a period of a year also lead to inconsistent
responding on stress scales, thus lowering their reliability.
Fourth, the SRRS does not sample from the domain of stressful events very
thoroughly. Do the 43 events listed on the SRRS exhaust all the major stresses that people
typically experience? Studies designed to explore that question have found many
significant omissions.
Fifth, the correlation between SRRS scores and health outcomes may be inflated
because subjects’ neuroticism affects both their responses to stress scales and their self
reports of health problems. Neurotic individuals have a tendency to recall more stress than
others and to recall more symptoms of illness than others. These mean that some
correlations between high stress and high illness may simply reflect the effects of subjects’
neuroticism.
In the light of these problems, researchers have attempted to develop improved
versions of the SRRS. For example, the Life Experiences Survey (LES), assembled by
Irwin Sarason and colleagues, has become a widely used measure of stress in contemporary
research. The LES revises and builds on the SRRS survey in a variety of ways that correct,
at least in part, most of the problems just discussed.

31. Based on information in paragraph 1 and 2, what can be inferred about a

person with a score of 30 on the SRRS?
A. A person with a higher score will experience less stress than this person will.
B. It is likely that this person has not suffered any major problems in the past year.
C. The amount of positive change is greater than that of a person with a score of 40.
D. This person has a greater probability to be ill than a person with a 20 score.
32. The word “they” in paragraph 3 refer to . . .
A. changes.
B. measures.
C. events.
D. outcomes.
33. The word “diverse” in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to . . .
A. necessary.
B. steady.
C. limited.
D. different.
34. In paragraph 4, the author uses divorce as an example to show ………
A. how most people respond to high stress situations in their lives.
B. the serious nature of a situation that is listed as a stressful event.
C. the subjective importance of a situation listed on the scale.
D. the numerical value for a stressful event on the SRRS.
35. In paragraph 5, how does the author demonstrate that the response events on
the SRRS are not consistent?
A. By asking questions that could be answered in more than one way
B. By giving examples of responses that are confusing
C. By comparing several ways to score the stress scales
D. By suggesting that people do not respond carefully
36. According to paragraph 7, why is the SRRS inappropriate for people with
neuroses?
A. They are ill more often, which affects their scores on the scale.
B. Their self-reporting on the scale is affected by their neuroses.
C. They tend to suffer more stress than people without neuroses.
D. Their response to stress will probably not be recorded on the scale.
37. The word “assembled” in the passage is closest in meaning to . . .
A. announced.
B. influenced.
C. arranged.
D. distributed.
38. According to the passage, which of the following is true about the SRRS as
compared with the LES?
A. The SRRS includes a space to write in personal events that have not been listed.
B. The SRRS features a section for specific populations such as students.
C. The SRRS assigns numbers to calculate the stress associated with events.
D. The SRRS has hints to help people recall events that happened over a year ago.
39. Which of the following statements most accurately reflects the author’s opinion
of the SRRS?
A. There are many problems associated with it.
B. It is superior to the LES.
C. It should be studied more carefully.
D. The scale is most useful for students.
40. Where could the following sentence best be added into the passage?
“This sum is an index of the amount of change-related stress the person has
recently experienced.”
Choose (A), (B), (C), or (D).
A. (A)
B. (B)
C. (C)