A relative difference

1.Palaeontologists have been digging in Africa´s sands in search of the missing link between humans and primates. Discovery this year of a fossil skull could be the first evidence of an enormous diversity of ape-like, human-like creatures that existed from five to ten million years ago. Perhaps, humans and chimpanzees might be the only survivors of an ancient burst of evolutionary activity.Actually, a mere 2% of our genes separate us from from two species of chimpanzees: at some point, as human beings have made our way up the evolutionary scale, becoming taller and less hairy as we travelled, we probably separated from our closest relatives. Nevertheless, the longer scientists study the daily existence of primates, their family life and their complex societies, the more it seems obvious that we are, in fact, the third chimpanzee. This similarity has led chimp expert Dr Jane Goodall to call for human rights to be extended to chimpanzees.In his book "What It Means To Be 98% Chimpanzee", anthropologist Jonathan Marks argues that the 2% gene difference gave humans the great leap forward of language, separating us significantly from monkeys. That seemingly small amount of genetic matter transported us from trees to urban jungle and transformed us from exhibits into zookeepers, but it does not seem to prevent us from literally killing our "cousins": development and destruction of their natural habitats, along with commercial hunting for food, have cut their numbers from two million chimpanzees at the turn of the last century to less than one-tenth of that now.

Are the following statements TRUE or FALSE? Copy the evidence from the text. No marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE.

Nobody thinks that monkeys should be treated like people. The population of chimpanzees has recently increased.

Find the words in the text that mean:

a) connection :

b) part of the skeleton which encloses the brain :

c) Jump ahead :

d) Apparently :

Rewrite the sentences with the words given.

a) He won't speak to you unless you ask him a question. If b) "You must do it at once", she said. She told me that c) The exercise is so difficult we can´t do it. The exercise is too d) Some policemen are investigating the crime. The crime

American obesity problem2."The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that about six out of ten Americans were Esther overweight or obese. Furthermore, the prevalence of obesity almost doubled from about 15 percent in 1980 to 27 percent in 1999. Dr. J. McGinnis said the current weight statistics predict future problems. "Obesity now will lead to a higher number of deaths from diabetes, heart disease, stroke and certain types of cancer, and increased prevalence of osteoarthritis."The CDC noted that most schools have vending machines or snack bars including foods that are largely nutrientpoor and calorie-rich. People are also less likely to cook for themselves these days. Roughly half of all meals are consumed outside the home and many of these are from fast foods. ?We have become year-by-year an increasingly sedentary society," McGinnis said. "People used to enjoy walking a half-mile or a quarter-mile but now they take the car to go across the street. And instead of walking or playing sports during free time, children sit in front of the TV or computer. These are unhealthy habits because their muscles are not moving and transportation has become so easy that children are driven everywhere."So educating the public about healthy nutrition and exercise is essential, the experts said. Healthy foods and more intense physical activity in schools are also important.

Are the following statements TRUE or FALSE? Copy the evidence from the text. No marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE. (?)

More than half of the American population has overweight problemsThere is a tendency to avoid cooking nowadaysMost meals are consumed outside the homeAccording to the experts, the physical activity program in American schools is appropriate for the obesity problem

Amphibian Decline Serves As Global Warning3.Nearly one in three species of frogs and toads in the world is under threat of extinction, according to the most comprehensive global study of amphibians ever conducted. The report

shows that 122 amphibian species have disappeared since 1980. The discovery, reported in the journal Science, is seen by researchers as an early warning of imminent environmental disaster. Amphibians act like "natural barometers" since their highly permeable skin makes them very sensitive to the effects of climate change and pollution. Any drastic change in the natural world is likely to affect them first. Over the past three years, scientists analysed the distribution and conservation status of all 5,743 known amphibian species. Of these, 1,856 -32 per cent- were threatened with extinction. In comparison, only 12 per cent of bird species and 23 per cent of all mammal species are considered to be endangered. The president of Conservation International, who co-led the research, said: "Amphibians are one of nature's best indicators of overall environmental health. Their catastrophic decline serves as a warning that we are in a period of significant environmental degradation." Amphibians were the first terrestrial vertebrates to colonise the land successfully about 350 million years ago. They have developed a remarkable diversity by adapting to many different aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Amphibians are present today in every continent except Antarctica, and can be found in almost all habitat types from dry, inhospitable deserts to lush tropical rainforests and temperate climates such as Britain's.

Are the following statements TRUE or FALSE? Copy the evidence from the text. No marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE.

Researchers consider that the disappearance of amphibians is a sign of ecological catastrophe in the near futureThe number of endangered birds is greater than that of amphibiansFind the words in the text that mean: (?)

a) complete :

b) because :

c) extreme :

d) exceptional :

Coetzee wins Nobel Prize4.The 2003 Nobel Prize for Literature was won by the South African novelist J. M. Coetzee. This is wonderful news. Coetzee, 63, is unquestionably among the greatest living writers in English.

The Nobel has often been misapplied. It evaded Tolstoy, Chekhov, Joyce, Kafka and Nabokov. It was won, on the other hand, by Bjorns tjerne Bjornson, José Echegaray, Rudolf Eucken and others now wholly forgotten. In many cases, the judges seem to have been influenced by political, rather than literary, factors. But in choosing Coetzee, the judges have got it right and ignored the fact that Coetzee has many things to say that do not sit comfortably with liberal political assumptions. His books deal with difficult, painful matters -betrayal, the abuse of power, the nature of evil, our cruel treatment of animals- and ultimately they express deep scepticism over whether or not any of us are capable of true empathy with others. Coetzee presents these unwelcome truths with a rigour and purity that cannot be ignored. Coetzee was born in Cape Town in 1940 and trained as a computer scientist, coming to London in the Sixties to work for IBM, a period recollected in a superb autobiographical novel. He then became a professor of literature in the United States, initially using his computing skills for verbal analysis of writers, before returning to Cape Town in the early Seventies, where he has continued to teach and publish literary criticism. His first fiction, Dusklands, was published in 1974, followed by In The Heart Of The Country and Waiting For Barbarians, which swiftly won him international recognition.

Are the following statements TRUE or FALSE? Copy the evidence from the text. No marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE.

Many years ago Tolstoy was awarded the Nobel Prize for literatureCoetzee has not yet written any book based on his life

Find the words in the text that mean: (?)

a) without a doubt:

b) completely :

c) ideas :

d) quickly :

Compulsive shopping - True or False5.A new illness, the Compulsive Buying Disorder, has been diagnosed. Its symptoms are frequent thoughts of shopping, experiencing senseless impulses to purchase unneeded items, and overspending to the extent that it harms relationships or job performance. A recent survey has found that one in twenty American adults buy things they may not even want or need. In today?s world of consumerism, where we are constantly bombarded by ads,

this is perhaps not unusual. But more surprising is a further finding that runs counter to the conventional and rather stereotyped view that compulsive buying is very much a "woman's disease": men are just as likely as women to suffer from compulsive buying. Gone seem to be the days when women dragged their bored men around shopping malls. Researchers say that the number of men who indulge in unnecessary shopping has rocketed. Experts claim that past trends and figures may have been unfairly distorted as male obsessive shoppers used to be more reluctant than women to recognize that they have a problem, admit it, and seek help. While women buy more clothing and products that improve appearance, men tend to focus more on gadgets and technical items and can become compulsive collectors. And help seems to be exactly what the doctor orders for any compulsive shopper who is usually not made any happier by his or her relentless buying. Doctors have concluded that this behaviour is a way for people to try to complete themselves. For some people, being complete is being impeccably dressed or having something new. Instead, medical practitioners encourage those seeking treatment to cultivate non-materialistic aspects of their lives.

Are these statements TRUE or FALSE? Justify your answers with the precise words or phrases from the text. (?)

According to the survey, women are more compulsive shoppers than menExperts believe that buying is a form of self-realization for compulsive shoppers

6."The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that about six out of ten Americans were Esther overweight or obese. Furthermore, the prevalence of obesity almost doubled from about 15 percent in 1980 to 27 percent in 1999. Dr. J. McGinnis said the current weight statistics predict future problems. "Obesity now will lead to a higher number of deaths from diabetes, heart disease, stroke and certain types of cancer, and increased prevalence of osteoarthritis."The CDC noted that most schools have vending machines or snack bars including foods that are largely nutrientpoor and calorie-rich. People are also less likely to cook for themselves these days.Roughly half of all meals are consumed outside the home and many of these are

from fast foods. ?We have become year-by-year an increasingly sedentary society," McGinnis said. "People used to enjoy walking a half-mile or a quarter-mile but now they take the car to go across the street. And instead of walking or playing sports during free time, children sit in front of the TV or computer. These are unhealthy habits because their muscles are not moving and transportation has become so easy that children are driven everywhere."So educating the public about healthy nutrition and exercise is essential, the experts said. Healthy foods and more intense physical activity in schools are also important.

Use of English: a) Give one opposite of CURRENT (adjective)

b) Give and adjective with the same root as PREDICT (verb)

c) Find in the text a synonym for MOSTLY (adverb)

d) Find in the text the word which has the following definition: ?Not physically active?

e) Turn the following sentences into the passive voice"Small children are eating too much fat in their meals nowadays."

f) Fill in the gap with the correct form of the verb in brackets

The doctor (bring) the most recent medical reports to yesterday´s meeting.

g) Complete the following sentences:?You could lose some weight if ?

h) Join the following sentences using an appropriate linker (do not use AND or BUT). Make changes if necessary. ?That man is very big. This seat may be too small for him.?

7.Some psychologists are worried about the psychological impact on those who undergo drastic cosmetic surgery ? and also on those who don't and, consequently, may feel inadequate. Although radical transformations are rare, some psychologists plan to investigate the surge in cosmetic procedures and whether these surgeries have any lasting psychological consequences. The number of cosmetic operations increased by 44 percent from 2003 to 2004, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Plastic surgeons conducted a record 11.9 million procedures last 5 year, both non-surgical (like Botox) and surgical (like breast augmentation or liposuction).

How do such practices affect patients psychologically? Social workers have made a recent analysis of 37 studies on patients' psychological and psychosocial functioning before and after cosmetic surgery . It sug gests positive outcomes in patients, including improvements in body image and possibly a quality-of-life increase too. But the same research ? published in April 2005 ? also found several elements of poor outcomes, especially for those who hold unrealistic 10 expectations or have a history of depression and anxiety. The researchers found that patients who are dissatisfied with surgery may request repeat procedures or experience depression and adjustment problems, social isolation, family problems, self-destructive behaviours and anger toward the surgeon and his or her staff.

Use of English:

a) Find in the text one word meaning ?a doctor whose job is to perform medical operations? (noun).

b) Give one opposite for AUGMENTATION (noun)

c) Find in the text a synonym for RESULT (noun)

d) Complete the series with another word of the same semantic group: : REQUEST, SOLICIT, IMPLORE, BEG,?

e) Join the following sentences using a relative pronoun. Make changes if necessary.Martin´s mother is Spanish. She speaks both Spanish and English fluently.Martin´s mother, is Spanish, speaks both Spanish and English fluently.f) Fill in the gap with the correct form of the verb in brackets:Someone (hit) me as I came into the room. g) Give a question for the underlined words:The Members of Parliament met the Prime Minister last Friday.

h) Use the words below to make a meaningful sentence. Use all and only the words in the boxes without changing the form. WHOLE WITH INFECTED THE HER SHE ENTHUSIASM CLASS