Reg. No.

Question Paper Code : 12342

B.E / B.TECH DEGREE EXAMINATION, NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2016

Second Semester
Common to all UG Programmes
15HS201– TECHNICAL ENGLISH II
(Regulations: Mepco – R2015)
Duration: 3 Hours Maximum Marks:100
Answer ALL Questions
PART A – (10  2 = 20 Marks)
1. Match the words in column A with their meanings in column B:
A B
a. woeful 1. immoral
b. inactive 2. mournful
c. nefarious 3. boring
d. dull 4. dormant
2. Make purpose expressions for the following using the hints given:
a. parachute - land slowly and safely from an aircraft.
b. fan - create a current of air.
c. MS office - prepare documents.
d. insulation tape - prevent electric shock.
3. Complete the following If conditional clauses:
a. If you sweat more in practice, you ------------ (bleed) less in battle.
b. Had I known the answer for this question, I---------- (present) it.
4. Frame two sentences using the given words as Noun and Verb each:
a. master b. necklace
5. Transform the following as directed:
a. The flood victims requested the minister to look into the matter at once. (into passive voice)
b. The washed clothes were hung on the line by me. (into active voice).

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6. Make Numerical Expressions for the following:
a. a key with seven levers.
b. a mobile installed with eighteen apps.
c. an image having 250 pixels.
d. a juice bottle of 1.5 litres.
7. Supply the blanks with suitable Comparative Adjectives:
a. Driving a cycle is ------ (difficult) than driving a car.
b. His eyes became ------ (red) than the blood.
c. IAS exam seems to be ------ (easy) than internal tests.
d. Human mind is ------- (beautiful) than any other thing in this world.
8. Supply the blanks with appropriate Homophones:
a. "homophones" is the ------- (compliment/complement) in the sentence "These are
homophones".
b. The ------ (crow/crew) demanded for more allowances.
c. The ------ (fridge/bridge) was constructed to make the traffic smooth.
d. My chauffeur applied the ------ (break/brake) immediately.
9. Combine the following sentences using cause and effect expressions as mentioned in brackets:
a. Safety is important. I wear seat belt. (as)
b. The signal is weak. She is doing cellphone samba. (due to)
10. Complete the following dialogue:
Stranger: Excuse me! Is ATM available in this campus?
Mepcoite (in a pleasing American Accent) : Ya! It’s
Stranger: I’m new to this place. ?
Mepcoite: Oh! Sure. I will take you there.
Stranger: By the by, Are you a PG student?
Mepcoite: No, Sir. I .
Stranger: Okay. And your English is excellent. How ?
Mepcoite: It’s very simple. We follow TIE policy.
Stranger: Wow! Really great.

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 PART B – (5  16 = 80 Marks)
11. a) i. List out a set of eight instructions to be followed while selecting a company to be
employed in. (8 Marks)
11. a) ii. You are invited to deliver a guest lecture at a National Conference on Women
Empowerment in Ooty for three days. Prepare a checklist for the same. (8 Marks)
OR
11. b) i. Make notes of the following and give a suitable title:
One of the things we do when we move from one term to the next is to clear out
our notes and papers from previous courses to make room for what is to come in
the next semester. If we have taken only sparse notes or no notes at all, this is
not a problem, but if you’re the kind who takes detailed notes and meticulously
files all the handouts, and in addition acquires all the recommended books, this
can be quite a task. How do you decide what you need and what you can
discard? The answer, of course, depends on the kind of degree / programme you
are pursuing.
Most programmes are designed in such a way that the knowledge and skills
gained in each semester or year build upon the previous one. So courses are
planned in a sequential fashion, the simple or foundational ones offered in the
first year, the intermediate ones in the second year and the advanced levels in the
final year. Our understanding of a particular subject deepens and the way we
engage with it becomes more complex as we progress across the course series.
But, we also assume that the information that we have been exposed to in one
semester / year is not needed for the next. After all, in school, we’re used to
giving away our textbooks to our juniors or our younger siblings when we move
on to the higher class.
When we come to college, however, books and notes serve a slightly different
function. Yes, they are aids to passing an examination and demonstrating our
mastery of the material in tests, but they also form the substance of the expertise
we are gaining. These days, some of us keep our notes in digital form and use e-
books, so the problem of clutter does not arise. But, if we’re still using paper
notes and “dead-tree” books, we may worry about not having enough shelf space
to accommodate all our stuff. So the natural urge is to junk everything as soon as
the exams are over and we are reasonably certain we won’t have to appear for a

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 supplementary. You need to subject your notes through a process of filtering and
keep only the important things. Here’s a checklist that could help.
DISCARD IF:
The material is easily available on the web.
The information is of the kind that gets outdated quickly.
It deals with concepts that have nothing to do with your main subject.
It is not in good condition.
Your writing is messy and makes no sense to you!
It made no sense to you even when you were doing the course.
KEEP IF:
It includes many of your original ideas.
It has been preserved well and your notes are legible.
There is a clear link with the courses you are doing now.
It deals with abstract information that does not go out of date.
The books are not easy to find in the market. (8 Marks)
11. b) ii. Summarise the following passage, extracting the gist in two steps. Fail not to
give a suitable title:
The recent deluge in Chennai has left a grave impact on the city’s sentiments,
disturbing all businesses and industries alike. Real estate was the worst hit, with
prospective investors holding back their buying decisions in the wake of
crumbling civic infrastructure and depreciating housing prices. With plummeting
capital values, customer enquiries and sales volume post the floods; developers
are expected to further slash ‘ask’ prices in order to revive buyer interest.
The city that recorded an average capital growth of 2 per cent in the first three
quarters of 2015 plummeted to no growth in the last quarter of the year. Though
other factors such as deliberate withdrawal of any price increase by developers
restricted capital growth to null, the torrential rains played the key role in getting
the realty market to a standstill. Scepticism and uncertainty engulfed the
Chennai market with owners anticipating depreciation of their properties,
projects getting delayed and bookings getting cancelled.
Following the heavy downpour, there were cancellations of a lot of new and re-
sale bookings in some areas, bringing the entire realty sentiment in the city to a
grinding halt. Prospective buyers specifically were keen on avoiding ground

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 floor properties and those located in low lying areas of the city, resulting in
overall capital depreciation. All this is expected to stress the market in the first
two quarters of 2016 too.
Issues such as safety and security of new buildings needs to be addressed by the
developer community and the civic authorities. Also re-designing of houses to
make them resilient enough for natural calamities such as floods and earthquake
needs to be considered. Another trend being witnessed in the city post the
disaster is that old houses, those damaged by flood and those that managed to
survive, are being demolished and reconstructed anew.
The ones located in low-lying areas are also being renovated in order to be well
prepared for such calamities in the future. The tragedy seems to have jostled
both the civic bodies and general public alike and this might hopefully lead to
better and safer housing in the city. (8 Marks)

12. a) Our day-to-day life is dangerously an alarming and challenging one due to the
threat of corruption. Every single unit of the society must realise one's
responsibility to build a corruption-free world. It's time for the youth to play a
leading role to reset our life with Peace.
Attempt an essay in about 300 words highlighting the role of youth how they can
be an effective tool in eradicating corruption. (16 Marks)
OR
12. b) For anything and everything human beings are dependent on technology. We
live in a luxurious state where brooms are replaced by vacuum cleaners.
Unknowingly we get drifted away from Nature and the consequence will be
surely unimaginably serious.
Attempt an essay in about 300 words analysing the impacts of technology-based
life. (16 Marks)

13. a) People have started a new trend by sticking wall posters and erecting flex even
for petty reasons with no second-thinking. All walls are decorated with coloured
notices. But many of them are unnecessary, not suitable for children, and pose
threat to the passers-by.

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 Assume you are the secretary of your colony. Make out a detailed Report to the
District Collector categorizing the evil effects of this practice, along with your
recommendations that would be helpful to solve this issue. (16 Marks)
OR
13. b) Attempt an essay on Report Writing, bringing out various types and the
characteristic features of it. (16 Marks)

14. a) Assume yourself to be a Mechanical Engineering graduate. You desire to be

employed in Mahindra Motors. Prepare a job application letter with Resume.
Invent other necessary details. (16 Marks)
OR
14. b) i. List out a set of eight recommendations to be followed to prevent accidents on
roads. (8 Marks)
14. b) ii. Assume yourself the HOD of a department. You observe the students litter the
classrooms with rubbish things such as plastic bags, papers, cans etc. Prepare a
Memo emphasizing the importance of cleanliness and highlighting the
disciplinary action in order to admonish the students. (8 Marks)

15. a) Read the text carefully and answer all the questions that follow:
The noughties use of the Internet and web-based multimedia resources
revolutionised the field of higher education. NPTEL (National Programme for
Technology Enhanced Learning), a joint venture of the IITs and IISc, funded by
the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, is a
significant addition to this domain. Phase I of NPTEL was launched in 2003, and
the objective was to provide e-learning through free online web and video
courses.
NPTEL is the world’s largest curriculum-based science and engineering content
repository with hundreds of courses in video formats, many of which are
subtitled and transcribed. A distinct feature is that every course is peer-reviewed
in order to ensure that it maintains a standard. All these videos are currently
available in three formats for free downloads: flv, mp4 and 3gp.
It was in 2008 the first MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) course was
developed by George Siemens and Stephen Downes. The concept became so

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popular that the New York Times called 2012 the “year of MOOC.” Today,
MOOC has become widespread as a valuable medium for online learning.
The IITs’ foray into MOOC (the term was coined by Dave Cormier of
University of Prince Edward Island) began in 2014, under the web-based
services scheme of NPTEL, with almost 40 courses completed and over 20
ongoing courses. Unlike all other MOOCs, NPTEL offers proctored exams and
certificates.
The NPTEL-MOOC is open for free registration. Lectures can be viewed on
youtube, and participants can watch the lectures at their convenience. Each
course runs for a specific duration, at the end of which proctored exams are
conducted at different cities. All successful candidates get an NPTEL certificate.
Aysha Iqbal, one of the course providers said, "My personal experience with
NPTEL-MOOC has been quite enriching. Among the many NPTEL courses I
have offered, the two very recent ones include Literary Theory and Criticism and
Film Appreciation, with a duration of twenty hours each. Participants included
literature/media students and faculty from across the country, along with
freelance filmmakers and writers.
While the former courses encompassed the entire spectrum of literary theory and
criticism starting from Plato till date; the latter focused on traditions in Indian
and world cinema".
(A) Choose the response that best reflects the meaning of the text: (6x1=6)
(i) NPTEL was started in ------------
(a) 2014 (b) 2012 (c) 2003 (d) 2004
(ii) The New York Times declared 2012 a ------
(a) year of NTPEL (b) year of NAAC
(c) year of MOOC (d) year of NPTEL
(iii) The lectures are available in ---- video formats.
(a) 2 (b) 3 (c) 4 (d) 5
(iv) Aysha Iqbal is the ----------
(a) founder of NPTEL
(b) developer of MOOC
(c) course provider
(d) beneficiary of NPTEL

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(v) The participants can watch the video lectures -------
(a) only on holidays (b) only on specified days
(c) only on weekdays (d) any time
(vi) The quality of NPTEL course is authenticated by ----
(a) subtitled videos (b) proctored exams
(c) widespread campaigns (d) long lectures
(B) State whether the following statements are true or false: (6x1=6)
The Ministry of Human Resource Development supports NPTEL financially.
i. The Ministry of Human Resource Development supports NPTEL
financially.
ii. NPTEL is solely a method of class room learning.
iii. NPTEL scarcely offers any course in video formats.
iv. The standard of the NPTEL course is ensured by peer –reviewing.
v. NPTEL courses are available only on payment.
vi. The course Film Appreciation focuses on the traditions in Indian cinema
exclusively.
(C) Choose the response which best matches with the meaning of the word
given: (4x1=4)
(i) repository
(a) responsibility (b) storehouse
(c) respectfully (d) powerhouse
(ii) encompassed
(a) enticed (b) covered
(c) emptied (d) emulated
(iii) domain
(a) doily (b) doldrums
(c) fondant (d) field
(iv) freelance
(a) one who produces films
(b) one who browses internet
(c) one who attends a course (16 Marks)
(d) one who acts independently

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