Summary Completion

In the IELTS Reading test, Summary Completion

questions typically appear towards the end of the
reading section. They require a combination of
skimming, scanning, and understanding the
context of the given text. Students will find this
question type challenging but manageable with
practice.
The main objective of this question type is to
assess the test taker's ability to comprehend and
synthesize information from a given passage. It
aims to evaluate the candidate's skill in
identifying key ideas, understanding the main
message, and filling in the missing information in
a coherent and accurate manner.
To excel in the Summary question type,
candidates should develop a strong a
combination of skimming, scanning, and
understanding the context of the given text. Also,
this is one of the question types that require
regular practice as this will in turn enhance
students' overall reading skills and familiarity with
the question format, boosting confidence and
performance on test day.

Strategies

01
1. Recognizing keywords & be ready for
paraphrasing in the passage: Look for
keywords or key phrases from the summary in
the passage. Scan for these terms to find the
 Strategy &
Action Plan
relevant information. Be flexible in recognizing
synonyms or paraphrased versions because this
is an important skill for this particular type as the
exact words used in the summary may not be
repeated in the passage, making it essential to
understand synonyms or alternative expressions.
Example in the Summary question: "Global
warming is accelerating."
Paraphrased Version in the Passage: "The
pace of climate change is increasing."

2. Information Spread Across the Passage:

Unlike other question types where information is
usually located in one specific part of the
passage, the information needed for summary
completion may be spread across different
paragraphs. This requires a comprehensive
understanding of the entire text.
Example in the Summary question: "The
history of ancient civilizations."
Spread Information in the Passage: "The rise
and fall of ancient civilizations can be traced
through archaeological discoveries, cultural
artifacts, and historical records found in
different regions of the world."

3. Understand the Context: Read the

02
sentences or paragraphs surrounding the gaps in
the summary. Understanding the context will help
you choose the most appropriate words or
phrases to complete the sentences. Use
skimming technique to help you.
 03
Practice skimming the following sentence: "Yet in 826, with only pegs
and wedges to keep his wooden structure upright, the master builder
Kobodaishi had no hesitation in sending his majestic Toji pagoda soaring
fifty-five metres into the sky - nearly half as high as the Kasumigaseki
skyscraper built some eleven centuries later."

4. Multiple Ideas in a Paragraph:

A paragraph in the passage may contain multiple ideas, and it might not be
immediately clear which part of the information is relevant to the summary.
Students need to carefully analyze the context to determine the most
appropriate answer.
Example in the Summary: "The benefits of exercise are many."
Multiple Ideas in the Passage: "While physical activity has numerous
advantages, such as improved cardiovascular health and weight
management, it is essential to consider individual fitness levels and
preferences."

5. Complex Sentences:
The information needed to complete the summary may be embedded in
complex sentences. Understanding the structure of these sentences is
crucial for extracting the correct meaning.
Example in the Summary question: "The impact of technology on
education is discussed."
Complex Sentence in the Passage: "Examining the multifaceted
influence of technological advancements on the educational landscape
reveals various dimensions."
 6. Watch for Grammatical Clues:
Pay attention to the grammatical structure of the sentences. This can provide
clues about the type of word (noun, verb, adjective, etc.) needed to complete
the summary accurately.
Example Summary Completion:
"The company's success can be attributed to its innovative _____."
Passage Excerpt:
"In the highly competitive market, the company distinguished itself through
its creative approaches and strategies, setting a new standard for industry
practices."

7. Manage Your Time Effectively:

Keep an eye on the time during the test. This one of the most difficult
question types, so be mindful of your time spent on a single question. If you
are unsure, make an educated guess and move on to ensure you have time
for the entire section.

04
 Mammoth Kill
What led to the disappearance of the giant mammals?
Kate Wong examines the theories

A Although it's hard to imagine in this age of urban

sprawl and automobiles, North America once belonged to Q14
huge, elephant-like mammoths, camels, bear-sized
beavers and other giant beasts, collectively known as
'megafauna .Some 11,000 years ago, however, these
large-bodied mammals - about 70 species in all-
disappeared. Their demise coincided roughly with the
arrival t humans in this on and dramatic climate change-
factors that have inspired several theories about the die
off. Yet despite decades of scientific investigation, the
exact cause remains a mystery. Now new findings offer
support to one of these controversial hypotheses: that
human hunting drove these huge "megafauna species to extinction. Q16

B This belief resulted in the overkill model which emerged in the 1960s, when it was put forth by Paul S Q15
Martin of the University of Arizona. Since then, critics have charged that no archaeological remains exist
to support the idea that the first Americans hunted to the extent necessary to cause these extinctions,
But at the annual meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in Mexico City in October 1999,
specialist John Alroy of the University of California at Santa Barbara argued that in fact, hunting-driven
extinction is not only plausible, it was unavoidable. He has determined, using a computer simulation,
that even a very modest amount of hunting would have wiped out these animals.
Q24 C Assuming an initial human population of 100 people that grew no more than two per cent annually,
Alroy determined that, if each band of, say, 50 people killed 15 to 20 large animals a year, humans could
have eliminated the animal populations within 1 , 000 years. Large mammals in particular would have
been vulnerable to the pressure because they have longer gestation periods than smaller mammals and
their young require extended care. thoi thai nghen

D However, not everyone agrees with alroy’s assessment. For one thing, the results depend on
population size estimates for the extinct animals - estimates that are not necessarily reliable. But a more
Q21 specific criticism comes from mammal expert Ross DE Macphee of the American Museum of Natural
Q25 History in New York City, who points out that the relevant archaeological record contains barely a dozen
fossil
examples of stone points embedded in mammoth bones (and none,it should be noted, are known from
other megafaunal remains)-hardlly what one might expect if hunting drove these animals to extinction.
Furthermore, some of these species had a vast range, covering the whole continent-the Jefferson's
Ground Sloth, for example, lived as far north as the the Yukon and as far south as Mexico- which would
have made hunting them in numbers sufficient to cause their extinction rather unlikely,he says .

Q23 E Macphee agrees that humans most likely brought about these extinctions (as well as others around
the world that coincided with human arrival), but not directly Rather than through hunting,he suggests
that people may have introduced a deadly disease, perhaps through their dogs or accompanying vermin,
 which then spread wildly among the native species because of their low resistance to the new
introductions. Repeated outbreaks of a deadly disease could thus quickly drive them to the point of no
Q18 return. So far, Macphee does not have empirical evidence for this theory, and it will not be easy to come
by: such disease would kill far too quickly to leave its signature on the bones themselves. But he hopes
that analyses of tissue and DNA from the most recent animal remains will eventually reveal the microbes
responsible.

F The third explanation for what brought on this North American extinction does not involve human
mở ra 1 kỷ nguyên
beings. Instead, its proponents blame the loss on the climate. The Pleistocene epoch in question
Q19 witnessed considerable climate instability, explains Russell W Graham of the Denver Museum of Nature
and Science. As a result, their regular habitats disappeared, and species that had once formed
communities split apart. For some animals, this brought opportunity. For much of the megafauna,
however, the increasingly uniform terrain left them with shrinking geographical ranges-a death sentence
Q22 for large animals, which need correspondingly large ranges. Although these creatures managed to
maintain viable populations through most of the Pleistocene period, the final major climate fluctuation
pushed them over the edge, Graham says.

G For his part, Alroy is still convinced that human hunters were the destroyers of the giant animals. The
overkill model explains everything the disease and climate scenarios explain, he asserts, and in addition
makes accurate predictions about which species would eventually become extinct.

Quetions 14-20 Thong tin dan trai o ca bai, có thay doi vi tri 1 chut
Can ket hop vua làm summary vua lam matching
Complete the summary below. khong khong kip
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 14-20 on your answer sheet

Three theories have been put forward to explain the disappearance of the different species of large
mammals that inhabited 14North America 11,000 years ago. The 15overkill
………………………. ……………………….model Proposed around
kho A, B 50 years ago by Paul S Martin, 16 hunting
………………………. blames by people for mass extinction. Computer
calculations seem to support this explanation, but critics question the reliability of the figures they are
based on.

The second theory suggests that humans introduced a 17deadly diseasewhich wiped out the large thuc chung
……………………….
kho E mammals. However, so far this theory also lacks any 18empirical
……………………….evidence
. (observation or experience rather
climate instability than theory or pure logic.
The final theory suggests that this period experienced significant 19 ………………………. which eventually
kho F communities that some of the large mammals
led to the loss of habitat and to the division of the 20 ……………………….
had organized.
 Questions 21-26

Look at the allowing statements (Questions 21-26) and the list of people below.

Match each statement with the correct person, A, B or C.

Write the correct letter, A, B or C in boxes 21-20 on your answer sheet

NB You may use any letter more than once.

B 21 Too little evidence exists to support the hunting theory. (khổ D)

C 22 The bigger the animal, the bigger the territory it requires for survival. (khổ F)

B 23 Globally, humans have been indirectly responsible for the elimination of many species. (khổ E)

A 24 Population estimates can be used to understand how large mammals become extinct. (kho C)
B 25 Scientific examination of fossil remains may provide some proof for one of the theories.

C 26 Environmental changes negatively affected the social groupings of some large species

List of People

A John Alroy

B Ross D E Macphee

C Russell W Graham
 The Unselfish Gene
A psychologist gives his view on how humans became self-
centred

A There has long been a general assumption that human

beings are essentially selfish. We’re apparently ruthless, with
strong impulses to compete against each other for resources
and to accumulate power and possessions. If we are kind to
one another, it’s usually because we have ulterior motives. If
we are good, it's only because we have managed to control
and transcend our innate selfishness and brutality.

B This bleak view of human nature is closely associated with

the science writer Richard Dawkins, whose 1976 book The
Selfish Gene became popular because it fitted so well with-
and helped to justify - the competitive and individualistic
ethos that was so prevalent in late 20th-century societies.
Like many others, Dawkins justifies his views with reference to the field of evolutionary psychology.
Evolutionary psychology theorises that present-day human traits developed in prehistoric times, during
what is termed the 'environment of evolutionary adaptedness’.

C Prehistory is usually seen as a period of intense competition, when life was such a brutal battle that
only those with traits such as selfishness, aggression and ruthlessness survived. And because survival
depended on access to resources- such as rivers, forests and animals- there was bound to be conflict
between rival groups, which led to the development of traits such as racism and warfare. This seems
logical. But, in fact, the assumption on which this all rests- that prehistoric life was a desperate struggle
for survival- is false.

D It’s important to remember that in the prehistoric era, the world was very sparsely populated.
According to some estimates, around 15,000 years ago, the population of Europe was only 29,000, and
the population of the whole world was less than half a million. Humans at that time were hunter-
gatherers: people who lived by hunting wild animals and collecting wild plants. With such small
population densities, it seems unlikely that prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups had to compete against
each other for resources or had any need to develop ruthlessness and competitiveness, or to go to war.

E There is significant evidence to back this notion from contemporary hunter-gatherer groups, who live
in the same way as prehistoric humans did. As the anthropologist Bruce Knauft has remarked, hunter-
chủ nghĩa quân bình
Q31 gatherers are characterised by ‘extreme political and sexual egalitarianism’. Knauft has observed that
individuals in such groups don't accumulate property or possessions and have an ethical obligation to
share everything. They also have methods of preserving egalitarianism by ensuring that disparities of
Q32 status don't arise.

Q33 F The !Kung people of southern Africa, for example, swap arrows before going hunting and when an
Phải hiểu animal is killed, the acclaim does not go to the person who fired the arrow, but to the person the arrow
Q34 belongs to. And if a person becomes too domineering, the other members of the group ostracise them,
exiling the offender from society. Typically in such groups, men do not dictate what women do. Women
Q35 in hunter-gatherer groups worldwide often benefit from a high level of autonomy, being able to select
their own marriage partners, decide what work they do and work whenever they choose to. And if a
marriage breaks down, they have custody rights over their children.

G Many anthropologists believe that societies such as the !Kung were normal until a few thousand years
ago, when population growth led to the development of agriculture and a settled lifestyle. In view of the
above, there seems little reason to assume that traits such as racism, warfare and male domination
should have been selected by evolutionas they would have been of little benefit in the prehistoric era.
Individuals who behaved selfishly and ruthlessly would be less likely to survive, since they would have
been ostracised from their groups.

H It makes more sense, then, to see traits such as cooperation, egalitarianism, altruism and
peacefulness as innate characteristics of human beings. These were the traits that were prevalent in
human life for tens of thousands of years. So presumably these traits are still strong in us now.

I But if prehistoric life wasn’t really as brutal as has often been assumed, why do modern humans
behave so selfishly and ruthlessly? Perhaps these negative traits should be seen as a later development,
the result of environmental and psychological factors. Research has shown repeatedly that when the
natural habitats of primates such as apes and gorillas are disrupted, they tend to become more violent
and hierarchical.

J So, it could well be that the same thing has happened to us. I believe that the end of the hunter-
gatherer lifestyle and the advent of farming was connected to a psychological change that occurred in
some groups of people. There was a new sense of individuality and separateness, which led to a new
selfishness, and ultimately to hierarchical societies, patriarchy and warfare. At any rate, these negative
traits appear to have developed so recently that it doesn’t seem feasible to explain them in adaptive or
evolutionary terms.

Questions 31-35

Complete the summary below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 31-35 on your answer sheet. Khổ E, F

Contemporary Hunter-Gatherer Societies

Bruce Knauft’s research shows that contemporary hunter-gatherer societies tend to exhibit a high level
of 31egalitarianism
…………………….. in all areas of life. In these cultures, distributing resources fairly among all members
is a moral obligation. These societies also employ strategies to prevent differences in 32 status
……………………..
occurring: for example, the !Kung follow a custom whereby the credit for one person’s success at 33
hunting
…………………….. domineering
is given to another member of the group. Individuals who behave in a 34 ……………………..
manner are punished by being excluded from the group, and women have a considerable amount of 35
autonomy in choices regarding work and marriage.
……………………..
 The Analysis of Fear
Researchers are investigating the processes in
the brain that give rise to fear in animals. The
results may lead to new ways to treat human
anxiety.

A Over the years, the majority of people

acquire a range of skills for coping with
frightening situations. They will attempt to
placate a vexed teacher or boss and will shout
and run when chased by a hostile stranger. But
some individuals become overwhelmed in
circumstances others would consider only
minimally stressful: fear of ridicule might cause
them to shake uncontrollably when called on to speak in a group, or terror of strangers might lead them
to hide at home, unable to work or shop for groceries. Why do certain people fall prey to excessive fear?

B Ned H. Kalin and Steven E. Shelton at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are addressing this
problem by identifying specific brain processes that regulate fear and its associated behaviors. Despite
the availability of non-invasive computer imaging techniques, such information is still extremely difficult
to obtain in humans. Hence, they have turned their attention to another primate, the rhesus monkey.
These animals undergo many of the same physiological and psychological developmental stages that
humans do, but in a more compressed time span. As we gain more insight into the nature and operation
of neural circuits that modulate fear in monkeys, it should be possible to pinpoint the brain processes
that cause inordinate anxiety in people, and to devise new therapies to counteract it Effective
interventions would be particularly valuable if they were applied at an early age, as growing evidence
suggests overly fearful youngsters are at high risk of later emotional distress.

C When they began their studies two decades ago, Kalin and Shelton knew that they would first have to
find cues that elicit fear and identify behaviors that reflect different types of anxiety. With such
information in hand, they could then proceed to determine the age at which monkeys begin to match
defensive behaviors selectively to specific cues. Finally, by determining the parts of the brain that reach
maturity during the same time span, they could gain clues to the regions that underlie the regulation of
fear and fear-related behavior.

D The experiments were carried out at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Kalin and Shelton
discerned varied behaviors by exposing monkeys between six and 12 months old to three related
situations. In the alone condition, an animal was separated from its mother and left by itself in a cage for
ten minutes. In the no-eye-contact condition, a person stood motionless outside the cage and avoided
looking at the solitary infant. In the stare condition, a person was again present and motionless but,
assuming a neutral expression, peered directly at the animal. These positions are no more frightening
than those that primates encounter frequently in the wild, or those that human infants encounter every
time they are left at a day-care center.
Q35 E In the alone condition, most monkeys became very active and emitted frequent gentle 'coo' calls made
with pursed lips. More than 40 years ago it was deduced that when an infant monkey is separated from
Q34 its mother, it yearns to regain the closeness and security provided by nearness to the parent. These
responses help to draw the mother's attention. In contrast, in the more frightening no-eye-contact
Q32 situation, the monkeys reduced their activity greatly and sometimes froze for extended periods of time.
When an infant spots a potential predator, its goal shifts from attracting the mother to becoming
inconspicuous. Inhibiting motion and freezing are common attempts to achieve this in many species. If
the infant perceives that it has been detected, its aim shifts to warding off an attack. So the stare
Q31 condition evoked a third set of responses. The monkeys made several hostile gestures: barking (forcing
air from the abdomen through the vocal cords to emit a harsh, growl-like sound) and staring back.
Q33 Sometimes the animals mixed the threatening displays with submissive ones, such as fear grimaces,
which look something like wary grins, or grinding of teeth.

F Having identified three categories of defensive behaviors, Kalin and Shelton set about determining
when infant monkeys first begin to apply them effectively. Several lines of work had led them to surmise
that the ability to make such choices emerges when an infant is around two months old. To establish the
Q36 critical period of development, they examined four groups of infant monkeys ranging in age up to 12
weeks old. The babies were separated from their mothers, left to acclimatize to a cage, and then
exposed to the alone, no-eye-contact and stare conditions. All sessions were videotaped for analysis.
Q37 They found that the infants in the youngest group (no more than two weeks old) engaged in defensive
behaviors.But they lacked some motor control and seemed to act randomly, as if they had not noticed
Q38 the human beings that were present. Babies in the two intermediate-age groups had good motor
Q39 control, but their actions seemed unrelated to the test condition. Only animals in the oldest group (nine-
to 12-week olds) conducted themselves differently in each situation, and their reactions were both
Q40 appropriate and identical to those of mature monkeys. This finding meant motor control was not the
prime determinant of selective responding and that nine to 12 weeks is the critical age for the
appearance of a monkeys ability to adaptively modulate its defensive activity to meet changing
demands.

Questions 31 - 35

Look at the following responses of monkeys (Questions 31-35) and the list of conditions below.

Match each response with the correct condition, A, B or C.

Write the correct letter, A, B or C, in boxes 31-35 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

C 31 aggressive facial expressions Khổ E

B 32 prolonged stillness
C 33 a combination of contradictory signals
A 34 appeals for maternal protection
A 35 the production of soft sounds
 List of Conditions

A the alone condition

B the no-eye-contact condition

C the stare condition

Questions 36 - 40

Complete the summary below.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 36-40 on your answer sheet. Kho F

Once they had identified three types of defensive behaviour, Kalin and Shelton grouped the monkeys
Age
according to their 36 …………………….. , in order to discover precisely when they were able to respond
appropriately to different fear-related cues. They videotaped their results and found that monkeys as
2 weeks old reacted to the cues but in a haphazard fashion. The researchers noted that
young as 37 ……………………..
they seemed to be unaware of the 38human beingswho were around them. Despite demonstrating 39
……………………..
good motor control , the monkeys in the middle groups failed to react in ways corresponding to the
…………………….
mature monkeys
experimental situation. The oldest group, however, reacted in the same way as 40 …………………….. and
the researchers concluded that monkeys are capable of selective responding between 9 and 12 weeks
old.
 Bai doc 2, ket hop dang matching & summary - combo kho & quen thuoc cua IELTS

A Unique Golden Textile

A two-man project to use spider silk is achieved after 4 years

A A rare textile made from the silk of more than a million wild
spiders has been on display at the American Museum of Natural
History in New York City. To produce this golden cloth, 70 people
spent four years collecting golden orb spiders from telephone poles
in Madagascar, while another dozen workers carefully extracted
about 80 feet of silk filament from each of the arachnids. The
resulting 11-foot by 4-foot textile is the only large piece of cloth
made from natural spider silk existing in the world today.

Q23 B Spider silk is very elastic and strong compared with steel or
Kevlar, said textile expert Silom Peers, who co-led the project.
Kevlar is a lightweight synthetic fabric which is chemically related to
nylon. It is very tough and durable and used in bullet-proof vest. Kevlar is also resistant to wear, tear, and
heat and has absolutely no melting point. But the tensile strength of spider silk is even greater than
Kevlar's aramid filaments, and greater than that of high-grade steel. Most importantly, spider silk is
extremely lightweight: a strand of spider silk long enough to circle the Earth would weigh less than 500
grams (18 oz). Spider silk is also especially ductile, able to stretch up to 140 per cent of its length without
breaking. It can hold its strength below-40c. This gives it a very high toughness, which equals that of
commercial fibers.

C Researchers have long been intrigued by the unique properties of spider silk. Unfortunately, spider silk
is extremely hard to mass produce. Unlike silk worms, which are easy to raise in captivity, spiders have a
habit of chomping off each other's heads when housed together. According to Peers, there's scientific
research going on all over the world right now trying to replicate the tensile properties of spider silk a
apply it to all sorts of areas in medicine and industry, but no one up until now has succeeded in
replicating 100 per cent of the properties of natural spider silk.

D Peers came up with the idea of weaving spider silk after learning about the French missionary Jacob
Paul Camboue, who worked with spiders in Madagascar during the 1880s and 1890s. Camboue built a
small, hand-driven machine to extract silk from up to 24 spiders at once, without harming them. The
spiders were temporarily restrainer their silk extracted, and then let go, Peers managed to build a replica
of this 24-spider silking machine that was used at the turn of the century, said Nicholas Godley, who co-
led the project with Peers. As an experiment, the pair collected an initial batch of about 20 spiders.
When we stuck them in the machine and started turning it, lo and behold, this beautiful gold-colored silk
started coming out', Godley said.

E But to make a textile of any significant size, the silk experts had to drastically scale up their plan.
Fourteen thousand spiders yield about an ounce of silk, Godley said, and the textile weighs about 2.6
pounds. The numbers are overwhelming. To get as much silk as they needed, Godley and Peers began
hiring dozens of spider handlers to collect wild arachnids and carefully harness them to the silk-
extraction machine. We had to find people who were willing to work with spiders, Godley said, because
they bite ‘By the end of the project, Godley and Peers extracted silk from more than 1million female
 golden orb spiders, which are abundant throughout Madagascar and known for the rich golden color of
their silk, Because the spiders only produce silk during the rainy season, workers collected all the spiders
between October and June. Then an additional 12 people used hand-powered machines to extract the
silk and where it into 96-filament thread. Once the spiders had been silked, they were released back into
the wild, where Godley said it takes them about a week to regenerate their skill. We can go back and re-
silk the same spiders, he said. It's like the gift that never stops giving.

F Of course, spending four years to produce a single textile of spider silk isn't very practical for scientists
trying to study the properties of spider silk, or companies that want to manufacture the fabric for the
Q21 use as a biomedical product, or an alternative to Kevlar armor. Several groups have tried inserting spider
Q24 genes into bacteria or even cows and goats to produce silk, but so far, the attempts have been only
moderately successful. Part of the reason it's so hard to generate spider silk in the lab is that it starts out
Q25 as a liquid protein that's produced by a special gland in the spider's abdomen. Using their spinneret,
spiders apply force to rearrange the protein's molecular structure and transform it into solid silk. When
Q26 we talk about a spider spinning silk, we're talking about how the spider applies forces to produce a
transformation from liquid to solid, said spider silk expert Todd Blackledge of the University of Akron ,
Ohio, US, who was not involved in creating the textile. Scientists simply can't replicate the efficiency with
Q22 which a spider produces silk. Every year we're getting closer and closer to being able to mass-produce it,
but we're not there yet. For now, it seems we'll have to be content with one incredibly beautiful cloth,
graciously provided by more than a million spiders.

Questions 20-23

Look at the following statements (Questions 20-23) and the list of researchers below

Match each statement with the correct researcher, A ,B or C

Write the correct letter A, B or C in boxes 20-23 on your answer sheet

NB You may use any letter more than once

List of Researchers

A Simon Peers

B Nicholas Godley

C Todd Blackledge

20 It takes a tremendous number of spiders to make a small amount of silk B (kho E)

21 Scientists want to use the qualities of spider silk for medical purposes C (kho F)

22 Scientists are making some progress in their efforts to manufacture spider silk C (kho F)

23 Spider silk compares favourably to materials known for their strength A (kho B)
Questions 24-26

Complete the summary below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer

Write your answers in boxes 24-26 on your answer sheet Kho F

Producing Spider Silk in the Lab

Both scientists and manufacturers are interested in producing silk for many different purposes. Some
bacteria and some
researchers have tried to grow silk by introducing genetic material into 24 …………………
animals. But these experiments have been somewhat disappointing.

It is difficult to make spider silk in a lab setting because the silk comes from a liquid protein made in a 25
gland
………………… forces that turns this
inside the spiders body. When a spider spins silk, it causes a 26 …………………
liquid into solid silk Scientists cannot replicate this yet.
Preserving Antarctic
History
Protecting early buildings in Antarctica

A Few people conjuring up the ‘most

comfortable dwelling place imaginable’ are likely
to picture a wooden shelter on an island off the
coldest continent on Earth. But that’s how
Antartic explorer Robert Falcon Scott described
the hut at Cape Evans on Ross Island that was the
base for his 1910- 13 expedition. The hut is nestled below a small hill on a long stretch of black sand. In
2011, it looked like a building site, but now, seals lie on the ice in front of the newly restored structure
and sun reflects off the cliffs of the nearby glacier.

B The New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust (NZAHT) and its team of conservation workers recently
announced the completion of 10 years of intensive work to save three historic buildings on Ross Island.
As well as the hut at Cape Evans, it has worked on the Discovery Hut from Scott’s 1901-04 expedition at
Hut Point, and the hut at Cape Royds, built for Ernest Shackleton’s 1907-09 expedition. When work
began, many of the artefacts were temporarily removed while carpenters from the team of conservation
workers repaired the walls, floors and roof. In Scott’s ‘zone of command’ was the table where team
member Edward Wilson made his enduring biological and botanical illustrations. In a dark corner nearby,
Edward Atkinson had once incubated his moulds and parasites. Of particular interest is the small
workbench and array of test tubes, sample jars and Bunsen burner stands of biologist Edward Nelson, lit
by sunshine through a dusty window. This was where the young scientist preserved marine specimens as
part of his search for new species and an understanding of the Antarctic food chain.

C The NZAHT executive director Nigel Watson describes the three restored huts as fantastic remnants of
humans’first contact with the continent’. The idea for the birth of the conservation project, he says, ‘was
the fact that we were in great danger of losing them’. When the on-site work began in 2004, snow and
ice were building up around, under and sometimes inside the huts, damaging the structures and
threatening their contents. ‘We now have three buildings that are structurally sound and watertight with
a very different feel – they drier and lighter and the humidity is reduced. It’s a much better environment
for the collection.’

D As well as heritage carpenters, the NZAHT team on Ross Island has included experts in textile, paper
and metal conservation: in total, 62 experts from 11 countries have visited Antarctica to work on the
project, often spending a whole summer on site, sleeping in tents and popping 25km back to Scott Base
for the occasional shower It became known as the most exciting conservation project in the world, says
Watson, so tt attracted top heritage conservation talent.’

E Some of the most exciting discoveries were three intact crates of ‘Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt
Whisky’ found encased in ice beneath Shackleton’s hut, a paper notebook that belonged to surgeon,
zoologist and photographer George Murray Levick found buried in dirt at Cape Evans and a small box of
22 cellulose nitrate negatives waiting to be developed into photographs found in Herbert Ponting’s
darkroom. But most of the 18,202 items catalogued and conserved arc more mundane: food, tools,
clothing and other personal items that were not precious enough to be taken home on the return
voyages.

F The NZAHT team’s conservation treatments involved thorough cleaning, followed by chemical
treatment to help slow, or even reverse, the deterioration. Metal items would go through corrosion
removal, followed by a chemical stabilisation treatment, then application of an oxygen and moisture
barrier to prevent further corrosion. Treatment of paper items often involved washing to remove
harmful acids and salts and to help reinforce the fibres so that in some cases the paper was even
stronger than before.

G As a result of the project, the NZAHT has become the world leader in coldclimate heritage
conservation and its members have been interviewed for numerous television documentaries and radio
reports. The Ross Island huts are the jewels in the crown’, says Watson, but there arc other historic
buildings needing attention. With logistics support from Antarctica New Zealand, programme managers
Al Fastier and Lizzie Meek will be part of a small team heading to Cape Adare, an exposed site more than
700km north of Scott Base. The two Cape Adare huts, remnants of an 1898- 1900 British expedition, ‘are
not only the first buildings on the continent’, says Watson, but also ‘the only example of humanity’s first
buildings on any continent on Earth’.

H The three-year restoration efTort will involve construction repairs and the removal, conservation and
return of about 1100 objects. Compared with the hut sites on Ross Island, which are relatively sheltered,
Cape Adare is ‘a very remote and challenging place to work in’, says Watson. It’s set among the world’s
biggest colony of Adelie penguins on an exposed spit of land, and it is important that they don’t
interrupt the functioning of the colony in any way while they are there. Lizzie Meek looks forward to the
challenge. ‘But I’m also looking forward to going back to the Ross Island huts and seeing them with fresh
eyes. After so many years of working on them, to be able to step inside and look around to see what we
have accomplished will be amazing.

I If you can find your way to Antarctica, you11 need a permit to visit any of these huts, which are each in
an Antarctic Specially Protected Area. But there’s an easier way to see them without making the long
journey: the trust has partnered with Google to offer Street View walkthroughs of each of the dwellings,
available via Google Earth or through the NZAHT’s website.

Questions 14- 19

Reading Passage 2 has nine paragraphs, A-I. Which paragraph contains the following information?

Wnte the correct tetter, A-l, in boxes 14-19 on your answer sheet.

14 a reason the early explorers left some objects behind

15 an explanation of how to see the huts without travelog to Antarctica

16 reference to the fact that Robert Falcon Scott enjoyed the time he spent living in the hut

17 reference to how the Ross Island project has received attention from the media
 18 the reason the trust decided to begin conservation work at Ross Island

19 a description of the process for preserving paper

Questions 24-26

Complete the summary below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer. Kho G, H & I
Write your answers in boxes 24-26 on your answer sheet.
Tu khoa o kho G
Cape Adare
so sánh
Cape Adare is located several hundred kilometres north of Scott’s hut. The huts on Cape Adare are not as
sheltered as those on Ross Island and the workers have to be careful not to disturb the group of 25
Kho H 24 …………………
penguins living nearby. Visitors to Antartica must have a 26 …………………
Kho H ………………… permit to see the restored huts.
Kho I
Flower Power
A Why do we give people flowers? To offer condolence to
those who are grieving. To celebrate. To woo. To ask for
forgiveness. We all know intuitively that there is something
psychologically powerful about giving flowers; in fact, few
objects provoke such a universal emotional response. In the
US alone, the flower industry is now worth about $5bn a
year - which suggests that, at the very least, they service a
compelling human need.

B Recent studies at the Department of Psychology at

Rutgers State University of New Jersey investigated claims that flowers are unique among living
organisms in their ability to induce profound changes in our emotional state. As the first part of their
research, the Rutgers team visited 150 women in their homes. Each was presented with a variety of gifts
such as flowers, fruit or sweets. The women were unaware that the study was about the effects of the
flowers on their emotions. They were told that it was a study about their daily moods, and that they
would receive a gift in return for taking part. Following the presentation of the gift, those receiving
flowers were assessed as displaying a much more positive mood than those who got other gifts, and this
effect lasted for several days. After receiving flowers, they were also more willing to answer questions
concerning their social circle and intimate conversations with friends and family. The results suggest that
flowers influence our secondary socio-emotional behaviours, as well as having a strong effect on our
immediate emotional expression.

C In the second study, the psychologists observed participants being handed single flowers, or
alternative gifts, in a constrained and stressful situation - inside an elevator. Contrary to predictions
regarding gender differences, both men and women presented with flowers were more likely to smile, to
stand closer and to initiate conversation. Several subjects who were given the alternative gift then learnt
that flowers were also being handed out, and returned to the elevator and demanded a flower.The
scientists used elevators for this study precisely because the most typical behaviour in sparsely occupied
elevators ts for people to retreat to opposite comers. The subjects who received flowers, however,
closed up that space to a considerable extent - indicating that the flowers not only induced a strong
positive mood, but brought a significant affiliation among people who had never previously met.

D The third study involved regularly sending flowers to a selected sample of men and women. The
researchers found not only a profound elevation of mood, but also reliable improvements in other
measures of cognitive function, like memory. In this series of experiments, some participants produced
such extraordinary emotional displays that the psychologists were totally unprepared for them. Subjects
gave spontaneous hugs and kisses to the people who delivered the flowers, and sent invitations to the
psychologists to come to their homes for refreshments.

E Various evolutionary hypotheses attempt to explain the remarkably powerful psychological effect of
flowers. One is that our aesthetic preferences for fertile locations and growing things stem from
prehistory, when these clues in our environment could mean the difference between starvation and
survival. We may have become hardwired to respond positively to flowers because for early man, finding
them in a particular location predicted future food supplies and possibly a better place to rear children.
Yet the flaw in this argument is that the showy flowers which humans seem to find most visually
attractive are generally found those plants which yield no edible products.

F The Rutgers psychologists’ findings show that the various physical attributes of flowers combine to
directly affect our emotions through multi-channel interactions. We have evolved preferences for the
particular colours, textures, patterned symmetries and specific floral odours which influence our moods.
Indeed, previous research has established that popular perfumes, which often have a floral ‘top-note’,
will actually reduce depression. The origins of these inclinations may well be as the evolutionary theories
suggest: the patterned symmetries of flowers can be detected easily as a recognisable signal within a
wide variety of visual arrays, and a response to certain colour tones is important in finding ripe fruit
against a leafy background. But, claim the Rutgers team, these preferences have long been separated
from their primary evolutionary use, and become rewarding to us more generally. Thus plants with
preferred colours, shapes and odours- despite having no other products - would therefore be protected
and dispersed.

G The Rutgers study suggests that flowers may have actually evolved to exploit their peculiar impact on
humans. The team's theory proposes a plant-human co-evolution, or even domestication, based on the
intense emotional rewards that flowers provide. The idea that flowering plants, with no known food or
other basic survival value to man, have co-evolved with us by exploiting an emotional niche instead, is
very much like the scenario presented for the evolution of dogs. Flowers may be the plant equivalent of
'companion animals'. If this is true, then there is a very real sense in which, when you next give flowers,
they are using you just as much as you are using them.

Questions 34-37

Classify the following statements as referring to

A the first study

B the second study

C the third study

Write the correct letter, A, B or C, in boxes 34-37 on your answer sheet.

34 The study focused on participants’ short-term reaction to receiving flowers.

35 Participants were deliberately misled as to the aim of the study.

36 Receiving flowers had a notable effect on participants' mental capacities.

37 Male and female responses were more uniform than expected.

Questions 38 - 40
Kho E, o giua bai
Complete the summary of paragraph E below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from paragraph E for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 38-40 on your answer sheet. Dua vao tu nay de xac dinh vi tri trong bai doc

A possible explanation for the appeal of flowers

It has been suggested that our intense response to flowers originates in prehistoric times. The presence
food
of flowers might indicate a potential source of 38 …………………….. in a particular location, and primitive
children
humans would search for such signs when looking for a suitable site to raise their 39 …………………….. . The
interpretation of these signs was essential for the survival of our ancestors. However, the problem with
this idea is that the plants producing the most attractive flowers do not usually have fruit which is 40
edible
…………………….. .