Posted: 06 Jan 2017 08:42 AM PST Bull In A China Shop – Idiom Of The Day For IELTS Speaking. Definition: To be extremely clumsy Example: “Whenever Roy is in the kitchen he breaks something, so his mother say that he’s like a bull in a china shop!” “I never know what to sayat a funeral. I feel like a bull in a china shop, trampling on feelings without even meaning to.” “Lester felt like a bull in a china shop; reaching for an orange, he made several elaborate pyramids of fruit tumble down.“ Exercise: Choose the suitable idiom to complete the sentence below. ” Her living room, with its delicate furniture and knickknacks, made him feel like ____________________ “ A. a bull in china shop B. his bark is worse than his bite C. hit and run D. had chemistry Describe a first time you played a sport. Try to use this idiom in your speech. You should say: – What the sport was – When it happened – What did you do to play this sport And explain why you liked or disliked about this sport IELTS Speaking Part 1 Topic: Photography & Sample Answers Posted: 05 Jan 2017 11:14 PM PST PHOTOGRAPHY Do you like to take photographs? (Why?) Do you prefer to take photos yourself or to have other people take your photos? Why? How long have you liked taking photographs? What kind of photos do you like to take? Why? How (why) did you become interested in photograph? Do you prefer to take pictures of people or of scenery? How often do you take photographs? Who do you take photos of? How do you keep your photos? Do you keep your photographs on your computer? Do you frame (or have you framed) any of your photos? Do you prefer to send postcards to people or to send photos that you took yourself? (Why?) Sample Answers 1. Do you like to take photographs? Why? If it were 3 to 4 years ago the answer would be a big no. But now it has become one of my hobbies and I’m actually thinking of learning more about it. I had no idea what I can do with my iPhone until I learned to make use of its wonderful camera as well as some miracle apps. Unlike some people, I indeed want my photos to look unique, lively and a little bit professional. Vocabulary To make use of (v) to use someone or something for a particular purpose, especially one that brings a benefit to you 2. Do you prefer to take photos yourself or to have other people take your photos? Why? It would be way more comfortable taking photos myself, as I can see crystal-clear how ridiculous my face expression looks like or if there’s something on my hair or stuck between my teeth. And in case it’s a scenery photo, I can apply the techniques I’ve learned to produce stunning photos. Vocabulary Crystal-clear (adj) absolutely clear 3. How long have you liked taking photographs? Just recently. As a final year student, I no longer can spend hours on drawing, reading or singing. Only photography which is way more instant suits me now to document my life. And as I enjoy my life on this campus, for example the road I walk to school everyday, the sunset, the rainbow, the trees, photography is the best way to store my memories. Vocabulary Document one’s life (expression) record the detail of one’s life 4. In what situations do you take photographs? As I’ve mentioned, I snap a photo of anything that catches my eyes when I’m in a good mood. So I take photos when my friends and I hang out or when I participate in social activities of the university and meet amazing people. However, when it comes to practicing for professional photography, I prefer taking photos of scenery and foods. Vocabulary In a good mood (idiom) a cheerful, well-disposed state of mind When it comes to Sth/V-ing (adv) as for something; speaking about something 5. What kind of photos do you like to take? Why? Food and scenery are definitely my inspiration. I just can’t sit still when beautiful breakfasts and stunning landscape keep appearing on my Instagram everyday. What is more, it is my natural instinct that helps me to go find the simple uniqueness of my university, namely the sunset, the lake, the trees and flowers and show people how beautiful my university is. However, I’m not good at taking photos of people so actvities or street-life is not my style. Vocabulary Sit still (idiom) to remain seated Natural instinct (collocation) the way people or animals naturally react or behave, without having to think or learn 6. How (why) did you become interested in photography? The situation was quite all of a sudden. I posted some scenery photos I took on the spur of the moment on Instagram and received lots of compliments, even from those whom I’m not following. Then I realized I should develop this skill, you know, should take it seriously and keep up the good work. And the more I learn about it, the more passionate I become. Vocabulary On the spur of the moment (idiom) do without planning, suddenly All of a sudden (idiom) suddenly To keep up the good work (phrase) used to encourage SO for continuing what they are doing well 7. How often do you take photographs? Not too often I must say. Since I really don’t like posting boring photos with the same object all the time, so timing is everything. I believe my guts will know exactly when and how I should flick to produce high-quality photos. Vocabulary Guts (n) to be used in reference to a feeling or reaction based on an instinctive emotional response rather than considered thought. 8. Do you prefer to take pictures of people or of scenery? I think I’m gonna go for taking scenery photos. As a beginner, the knowledge of human facial expression, the part that needs focus, the harmonization between them and their surroundings are a bit too advanced for me. I can’t really make the person in my photo become lively as I do with the scenery. Besides, looking at the beauty of nature and capturing it is kind of mind-purifying to me and is a good way to escape from the artificial world. So yeah, scenery is safer and more enjoyable. Vocabulary Mind-purifying (adj) make your mind naturally pure, free from negative thoughts 9. Who do you take photos of? Although I’m not good at taking photos of people, I do take selfies with new friends whom I meet when I participate in social activities. To me it’s more like a reminder or something to look back, reminding me that yeah, this time last year I went out, I met amazing people and had lots of fun. Vocabulary To look back (v) to think about a time or event in the past 10. How do you keep your photos? Printing the photos out, making an album or sticking them on the wall for decoration sound so common and also interesting. But I don’t think photos are worth that much time and budget, unless what I captured is apparently important to me, otherwise I only keep them in my iPhone. 11. Do you keep your photographs on your computer? I don’t think I need to do so. Firstly, because my memory is somewhat similar to goldfish memory, storing in different devices would drive me crazy. Plus, my iPhone has large memory storage so I think I won’t need computer for storage. Vocabulary Goldfish memory (n) SO who quickly forgets things 12. Are there any photos on the walls of your house? Since my parents love decorating our house, putting photos nicely on the walls of my house is an essential part of their decoration style. Some photos go with frame or plastic cover, some are sticked directly onto the wall in heart-shaped. However, it’s quite ridiculous for me to see myself grinning everywhere in the house so I told them to let me decorate my room on my own. Vocabulary To see one’s-self doing Sth (n) to have an eye on SO doing Sth On my own (adv) do Sth alone 13. Do you frame (or have you framed) any of your photos? Although I don’t usually print my photos out, I think I would store some photos of me with my high school friends or me with my family. And framing helps preventing scratching and is good for long-term storage, so this is probably a good alternative beside albums. 14. Do you prefer to send postcards to people or to send photos that you took yourself? (Why?) Firstly, the postcards are made of thicker paper, which makes it way more convenient for long-term storage as well as decoration. Secondly, the process of sending and receiving postcards appeared to be simpler and faster compared to photos. For those reasons I think I probably go with sending postcards. Launder – Word Of The Day For IELTS Posted: 05 Jan 2017 11:13 PM PST Launder – Word Of The Day For IELTS Speaking And Writing Launder /ˈlɔːndə/ (Verb) [transitive] Meaning: to put money which has been obtained illegally into legal businesses and bank accounts, so that you can hide it or use it Collocations: Launder money/ profits Money laundering Examples: He was jailed for laundering drug money. Jack worked with foreign banks to launder drug profit. Thompson began a six-year sentence for money laundering earlier this year. However, Mike was unable to spend the money and needed it laundered. Exercises: Try to use the word “launder” in your topic Talk about an article that you’ve read recently You can say: When you read it What was it about Was it a good or bad news And explain how you feel about the news. Sample Answer: I usually read a newspaper daily, especially in online newspapers, and I also enjoy reading some latest news in all over the world. There are lots of interesting, thought-provoking and intriguing articles that I often enjoy and today I would like to talk about one such article that I recently read from the daily website. It was about a fatal police shooting and how police prevent a pre-operation murdering plan. This stood at 1st of the most viewed news. The 28-year-old man who described as a “major drugs baron”; he laundered the profits from his drugs empire through his sale of high-performance cars was killed by police marksmen. I am a bit confused whether should I say it as a bad news or good. On the one hand, I am happy because the police have halted an illegal activity caused by a man. However, the chilling shooting makes me feel scary and deeply regret his death. His family definitely suffered from this pain after the loss of their loved one. I have read numerous articles about terrorism, violence and the efforts of governments to combat terrorism. This article alerted us and then showed us our lack of awareness of the issue and then gave the hope of making positive changes. I felt like I have adopted a different perception about this triggering issue and felt the need to read more on the topic. The news helped me understand our immediate attention to a dire issue and how each of us can contribute to reducing the severity of this eminent problem. IELTS Reading Pratice Test 30 With Answers Posted: 05 Jan 2017 11:11 PM PST Section 1 You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13 which are based on Reading Passage 1 on pages 116 and 117. Groucho Marx Arthur Sheekman In a show-business career that spanned over seventy years, Groucho Marx successfully conquered every entertainment medium, becoming a star of the vaudeville stage, Broadway, motion pictures, radio and television. But, as the author of seven books, a play, two film screenplays and over one hundred magazine articles and essays, Groucho quietly conquered another medium, one in which he was as proud to work as any of the others. His writing is often overlooked in studies of his career, perhaps due to the quantity and variety of his other work. Throughout his literary career, Groucho was dogged by the incorrect and unfair assumption by many critics and even by his biographer that he used a ghost writer. Most Hollywood celebrities who wrote books had professional writers do the actual work. The fact that Groucho publicly stated on many occasions that he abhorred ghost writers is clouded by his relationship with Arthur Sheekman. Friends for many years, Groucho and Sheekman had an unusual literary relationship. They worked in collaboration and each offered the other editorial help. For a brief time in the early 1940s, Groucho fronted for Sheekman, who was having trouble selling his work. By thus lending his name to another writer’s work, Groucho subjected all of his literary endeavors to suspicion from critics who simply refused to believe that an entertainer could write. That some of Sheekman’s magazine pieces got into print under Groucho’s byline becomes apparent from reading the unedited correspondence between the two of them. The letters indicate that Groucho’s essays from this period fall into three categories: first, pieces written by Groucho with no input from Sheekman at all. In a July I, 1940, letter to Sheekman, Groucho asked, ‘Did you see that little piece wrote for Reader’s Digest? On March 17. 1941, he wrote, ‘My drool is coming out in next week’s Issue of This Week so cancel your subscription now.’ Clearly Sheekman could not have had anything to do with a piece that he was told to look for. The second and probably largest category of Groucho’s essays of this period consists of those written by Groucho and sent to Sheekman for editorial assistance. On July 20, 1940, Groucho wrote: Tm enclosing a copy of the piece I wrote. Probably another page or so is needed to complete it, but our starting date [for filming Go West ] came and I just haven’t had time to finish it. Let me know what you think of it and be honest because any other kind of opinion would be of no value to me. I won’t attempt to influence you by telling you the reactions I’ve already had, so for the love of God tell me the truth.’ Shortly thereafter, on October 10, Groucho wrote: ‘1 received your suggestions on my piece – I’m glad you liked It, If you did – you’re probably right about the beginning. I’ll do it over again.’ By the time Groucho wrote to Sheekman on July 25. 1942, it appears that some sort of financial arrangement had been made regarding Sheekman’s suggestions. On that date Groucho also wrote: Tm writing an unfunny piece on insomnia and I’ll send it in a week or so, I hope, for you to read – I’d like your opinion, proofread — correcting all the glaring illiteracies and, otherwise, do a fine polishing job.’ The remainder of Groucho’s essays from this period comprise the third category, Sheekman compositions with varying degrees of input from Groucho. The level of Groucho’s contributions to the articles in the third category ranges from actually suggesting the topic and drawing up an outline to simply rewriting a few paragraphs for the purpose of injecting his own style into the piece. In a July 10, 1940, letter Groucho wrote: ‘I think you ought to try another political piece – a campaign thing – for This Week or some other magazine. This will be an extremely hot topic for the next few months and I think you should take advantage of it. If you’ll write to me, I’ll try to jot down a few items that you could complain about.’ Presumably, the chain of events would continue with Sheekman sending an essay to Groucho for his approval and whatever rewrites were needed. On May 29, 1940, Groucho wrote, ‘Received your piece and looked it over.’ In these letters to Sheekman, Groucho always referred to a piece as either ‘my piece’ or ‘your piece’. The letter continued, ‘I thought the piece was good … and I’ll send it to Bye and see if he can sell it… I’ll just rewrite a couple of paragraphs in your piece – not that I can improve them, but perhaps they’ll sound a little more like me.’ Groucho was concerned enough about this arrangement to take the care to at least make the piece somewhat his own. Groucho really had no need for this entire enterprise. He gave the money to Sheekman and had no trouble getting his own work published. The principal reason for him submitting Sheekman’s work to magazines as his own was that it made Sheekman’s material easily marketable based on Groucho’s celebrity. Sheekman couldn’t have been altogether happy with the arrangement, but the reality was that he was periodically unemployed and the use of Groucho’s name brought in occasional paychecks. So it is not quite fair to call Sheekman Groucho’s ghost writer. A more apt description of their literary relationship at this time is that Groucho occasionally fronted for Sheekman and offered him the services of his literary agent, while each offered the other editorial advice. The reasons for some of their collaborative efforts not being credited as such remain unexplained, but Groucho was never shy about crediting his collaborators, and in every other case he did so. Questions 1-4 Do the following statements reflect the claims of the writer of Reading Passage 1 ? In boxes 1 -4 on your answer sheet ante YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this 1 Groucho’s work as a writer was sometimes better than his work in other media. 2 Groucho’s relationship with Sheekman cast doubt on his own abilities as a writer. 3 Money was occasionally a source of disagreement between Groucho and Sheekman. 4 Groucho occasionally regretted his involvement with Sheekman. Questions 5—8 Complete the notes below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 5-8 on your answer sheet. Groucho’s essays in the early 1940s Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Sheekman had 5……………. Sheekman provided 6……………… mostly 7…………………. Groucho added 8…………………… Look at the following statements (Questions 9-13) and the list of dates of letters sent by Groucho to Sheekman below. Match each statement with the letter it relates to.Questions 9-13 Write the correct letter A-Q in boxes 9-13 on your answer sheet. 9 Groucho referred to his own inadequacy with regard to use of language. 10 Groucho explained his reason for amending an essay. 11 Groucho agreed that part of an essay needed revising. 12 Groucho drew Sheekman’s attention to an essay soon to be published. 13 Groucho suggested that an essay should adopt a negative point of view. List of Letters Sent by Groucho to Sheekman A July 1, 1940 B March 17, 1941 C July 20, 1940 D October 10, 1940 E July 25, 1942 F July 10, 1940 G May 29, 1940 Section 2 You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14—26 which are based on Reading the passage beloww An Earth – Shaking discovery The discovery of sea floor spreading is earth-shaking, yet those responsible are forgotten, says Anna Grayson In 1963, a paper appeared in the journal Nature that radically changed the way we view this planet and its resources. Tts authors, Fred Vine and Drummond Matthews, did for the Earth sciences what Crick and Watson did for biology and Einstein did for physics, and new areas of scientific development are still emerging as a result. Yet both men are largely forgotten and unrecognised. What Vine and Matthews did was to provide proof that continents really do drift across the surface of the globe. This understanding profoundly affects the way we use the planet today – it directs the way we prospect for resources such as oil and minerals: it has enabled us to predict most volcanic eruptions and to understand patterns of earthquakes. Incredibly perhaps, an understanding of the mobile dynamic nature of the Earth is helping an understanding of long-term global climate changes. Despite the significance of their work, neither man received great honour or fame. The idea of continental drift was first proposed in a serious way by the German meteorologist Allred Wegener in 1915. People had noticed the neat jigsaw-like fit between South America and Africa, but Wegener found actual fossil evidence that the two continents were once joined. No one took him seriously; in fact he was ridiculed by most of the geological community. This was partly because, not being a geologist, he was perceived as an outsider. But the main reason for the hostility; according to Vine, was that Wegener was unable to come up with an explanation as to how whole continents could possibly move even an inch, let alone dance to the music of time around the globe. In the 1920s, the Scottish geologist Arthur Holmes hypothesised that convection currents within the Earth ‘could become sufficiently vigorous to drag the two halves of the original continent apart! In the late 1950s, an American, Harry Hess, came up with the hypothesis that new sea floor is constantly being generated at the mid-ocean ridges by hot material rising in a convection current. But neither man could find evidence to prove it. It was no more than just a hunch that it had to be right, and a hunch is not enough for science. Vine had been fascinated by the apparent fit of the continents since the age of 14, and as a graduate student at Cambridge was assigned a project analysing one of The new magnetic surveys of the ocean floor. He found what he describes as parallel zebra swipes of normal and reversed magnetism’ around the mid-ocean ridge. Most significantly; these stripes were symmetrical either side of the ridge crests. There had to be a reason for this. The young Vine and his supervisor Matthews proposed that the magnetic stripes were caused by new ocean floor being formed as molten rock rose at the mid-ocean ridges and spread each side of the ridge. As the molten rock solidified, it became weakly magnetised parallel to the Earth’s magnetic field. U was just becoming recognised in the early 1960s that the Earths magnetic field flips every so often, so magnetic north becomes a magnetic south pole and visa versa. These flips in magnetic field were being recorded in the new sea floor. It was like a giant tape recording of the ocean floor’s history. As new sea floor was made, it pushed the last lot aside, widening the ocean and in turn pushing the continents either side further apart. In other words, they had discovered the mechanism driving drifting continents that was missing from Wegener’s work. The science of the Earth was never the same again. By the end of the 1960s, confirmation of global sea floor spreading led to plate tectonics – the view of the outside of the Earth comprising just a few rigid plates which are shunted about by growing sea floor. There was a realisation that mountains are formed when two plates collide, and that most volcanoes and earthquakes occur on the edges of these plates. All this was accepted as fact by all but a few diehard dinosaurs in the geological world. It is now in the impact of shifting continents on the global environment that Vine feels the most exciting and significant research lies: ‘The distribution of continents and the opening and closing of ocean gates between continents has had a profound effect on climates and has caused flips from Icehouse Earth to Green-house Earth.’ The recognition that the Earth’s hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere are all intimately linked with the drifting continents and the goings- on deep within the Earth has spawned the term ‘Earth Systems Science’. It is a great oak tree of science that has grown from the acorn of truth supplied by Vine and Matthews. The holistic approach of earth systems science is very much welcomed by Vine: Tm rather pleased that this has come together.’ He feels that the future for understanding the planet lies in an integrated approach to the sciences, rather than the isolated stance the geologists took throughout the 20th century: There was an incredible polarisation of science and I was caught between the boundaries. It was anathema to me – the whole of environmental science should be integrated. ’ Questions 14-1 7 Complete each sentence with the correct ending A-Q from the box below. Write the correct letter A-Q in boxes 14-17 on your answer sheet. 14 The work done by Vine and Matthews has had implications concerning 15 Wegener attempted to provide an explanation of 16 Wegener’s conclusions were greeted as 17 The theories presented by both Holmes and Hess concerned A matters that had not received much attention for some time. B something which could not possibly be true. C something misunderstood at first but later seen as a breakthrough. D matters beyond simply the movement of continents. E something that had already been observed. F something arrived at by intuition that could not be demonstrated. G matters requiring different research techniques Questions 18—22 Label the diagram below. THE DISCOVERIES OF VINE AND MATTHEWS The Ocean Floor ieltsmaterial.com - ielts reading practice test 30 Questions 23-26 Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 18-22 on your answer sheet. Answer the questions below using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 23-26 on your answer sheet. 23 What is the name of the theory concerning the structure of the Earth that developed from the demonstration of sea floor spreading? 24 According to Vine, what has the movement of continents had a big influence on? 25 What branch oi science has emerged as a result of the work done by Vine and Matthews? 26 Which word does Vine use to describe the way in which he believes study of the Earth should be conducted ? Section 3 You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 28—40 which are based on Reading Passage 3 on pages 124 arid 125. Think happy It’s no joke: even scientists at the Royal Society are now taking the search for the source of happiness very seriously. A What would Sir Isaac Newton have made of it? There he was, painted in oils, gazing down at one of the strangest meetings that the Royal Society, Britain’s most august scientific body, has ever held. If Newton had flashed a huge grin, it would have been completely appropriate, for beneath him last week a two- day conference was unfolding on a booming new field of science: investigating what makes people happy. Distinguished professors strode up to the podium, including one eminent neurologist armed with videos of women giggling at comedy films; another was a social scientist brandishing statistics on national cheerfulness. Hundreds of other researchers sat scribbling notes on how to produce more smiles. B The decision by the Royal Society to pick ‘the science of wellbeing’ from hundreds of applications for conferences on other topics is no laughing matter. It means that the investigation of what makes people happy is being taken very seriously indeed. ‘Many philosophies and religions have studied this subject, but scientifically it has been ignored,’ said Dr Nick Baylis, a Cambridge University psychologist and one of the conference organisers. ‘For the Royal Society to give us its countenance is vital, because that states that what we are doing deserves to be acknowledged and Investigated by the best scientific minds.’ C At first sight, the mission of Baylis – and the growing number of other scientists working on happiness research – appears fanciful. They want to deploy scientifically rigorous methods to determine why some people are lastingly happy while others tend to misery. Then they envisage spreading the secret of happiness across the globe and, in short, increasing the sum of human happiness. ‘If someone is happy, they are more popular and also healthier, they live longer and are more productive at work. So it is very much worth having’ he says. D Baylis, the only ‘positive psychology’ lecturer in Britain, knows that the aims of happiness research might sound woolly, so he is at pains to distance himself from the brigades of non- academic self-help gurus. He refers to ‘life satisfaction’ and ‘wellbeing’ and emphasises that his work, and that of others at the conference, is grounded in solid research. So what have the scientists discovered – has a theory of happiness been defined yet? E According to Professor Martin Sellgman, probably the world’s leading figure in this field, happiness could be but a train ride – and a couple of questionnaires – away. It was Seligman, a psychologist from Pennsylvania University, who kick-started the happiness science movement with a speech he made as President of the American Psychological Association (APA). Why, asked Seligman, shocking delegates at an APA conference, does science only investigate suffering? Why not look into what steps increase happiness, even for those who are not depressed, rather than simply seek to assuage pain? For a less well- known scientist, the speech could have spelt the end of a career, but instead Seligman landedfunding of almost £18m to follow his hunch. He has been in regular contact with hundreds of other researchers and practising psychologists around the world, all the while conducting polls and devising strategies for increasing happiness. F His findings have led him to believe that there are three main types of happiness. First, there is ‘the pleasant life’ – the kind of happiness we usually gain from sensual pleasures such as eating and drinking or watching a good film. Seligman blames Hollywood and the advertising industry for encouraging the rest of us, wrongly as he sees it, to believe that lasting happiness is to be found that way. Second, ị there is ‘the good life’, which comes from enjoying something we are good or talented at. The key to this, Seligman believes, lies in identifying our strengths and then taking part in an activity that uses them. Third, there is ‘the meaningful life’. The most lasting happiness, Seligman says, comes from finding something you believe in and then putting your strengths at its service. People who are good at communicating with others might thus find long-lasting happiness through becoming involved in politics or voluntary work, while a rock star wanting to save the world might find it in organising a charity concert. G Achieving ‘the good life’ and ‘the meaningful life’ is the secret of lasting happiness, Seligman says. For anybody unsure of how to proceed, he has an intriguing idea. To embark on the road to happiness, he suggests that you need a pen, some paper and, depending on your location, a railway ticket. First, identify a person to whom you feel a deep debt of gratitude but have never thanked properly. Next, write a 300-word essay outlining how important the help was and how much you appreciate it. Then tell them you need to visit, without saying what for, turn up at their house and read them the essay. The result: tears, hugs and deeper, longer-lasting happiness, apparently, than would come from any amount of champagne. H Sceptics may insist that science will always remain a clumsy way of investigating and propagating happiness and say that such things are better handled by artists, writers and musicians – if they can be handled at all. And not everybody at the conference was positive about the emerging science. Lewis Wolpert, professor of biology as applied to medicine at University College London, who has written a bestseller about his battle with depression, said: ‘If you were really totally happy, I’d be very suspicious. I think you wouldn’t do anything, you’d just sort of sit there in a treacle of happiness. There’s a whole world out there, and unless you have a bit of discomfort, you’ll never actually do anything.’ Questions 27-30 Complete the sentences below with words taken from Reading Passage 3. Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 27-30 on your answer sheet. 27 At the conference, research into happiness was referred to as the………………… 28 Baylis and others intend to use……………………. to find out what makes people happy or unhappy. 29 Baylis gives classes on the subject of………………………. 30 Baylis says he should not be categorised among the ………………………who do not have academic credentials. Questions 31-36 Complete the summary below using words from the box. Write your answers in boxes 31-36 on your answer sheet. Seligman’s categories of happiness Seligman’s first type of happiness involves the enjoyment of pleasures such as 31 ………………… He believes that people should not be under the 32…………………. that such things lead to happiness that is not just temporary. His second type is related to 33……………………………………………… Identification of this should lead to 34………. and the result is ‘the good life’. His third type involves having a strong 35 ……….. and doing something about it for the benefit…………………………. of others. This, according to Seligman, leads to happiness that has some 36…………….…. confidence thrill ability ego exaggeration Entertainment perseverance theory7 permanence concept incentive illusion celebration leadership conviction leadership effort participation encouragement support Questions 37—40 Reading Passage 3 has eight: paragraphs labelled A-H Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter A-H in boxes 37-40 on your answer sheet. 37 a view that complete happiness may not be a desirable goal 38 a reference to the potential wider outcomes of conducting research into happiness 39 an implication of the fact that the conference was held at all 40 a statement concerning the possible outcome of expressing a certain view in public ANSWER KEY FOR IELTS READING PRACTICE TEST Question 1-4 1 Answer: NOT GIVEN Note 1st paragraph: We are told that Groucho was ‘as proud’ of his work as a writer as he was of his work in other media, and that not enough attention is paid to his writing because he was so good at his other work, but we are not told whether or not some of his writing was better than some of his other work. 2 Answer: YES Note 2nd paragraph: We are told at the end of the paragraph that, because they sometimes pretended that Sheekman’s work had been written by Groucho, some critics suspected that Groucho had not written any of the things that had his name on them. Critics were caused to believe that he wasn’t a good enough writer to have written these things. 3 Answer: NO Note Last paragraph: We are told that Groucho gave the money for articles Sheekman had worked on to Sheekman, and that this money was useful to Sheekman because he was ‘periodically unemployed’. It is therefore clear that they did not disagree about money. Groucho was happy to give it and Sheekman needed it. 4 Answer: NOT GIVEN Note Last paragraph: At the end of the paragraph, we are told it is strange that Groucho did not include Sheekman’s name on some of the things they had produced together, because he usually put collaborators’ names on things they had worked on with him. However, we do not know why he left Sheekman’s name out or whether or not this was because he sometimes regretted the arrangement – it is a mystery. Questions 5-8 5 Answer: no input Note 3th paragraph: ‘The letters indicate … at all’. In the first category, the essays were written by Groucho alone. 6 Answer: editorial assistance Note 4′th paragraph, V- sentence: In the second category, Groucho wrote the essays and sent them to Sheekman for him to make comments and suggest changes. 7 Answer: Sheekman compositions Note 5th paragraph, V sentence: In the third category, Sheekman wrote most of each essay and Groucho made contributions to them of various kinds. 8 Answer: his own style Note 5th paragraph, 2nd sentence: For some pieces in the third category, Groucho rewrote some parts so that they had his style of writing rather than Sheekman’s. Questions 9-13 9 Answer: E Note 4th paragraph: ‘By the time Groucho … polishing job.’ In this letter, Groucho referred to his own ‘glaring illiteracies’ – obvious poor uses of language. 10 Answer: G Note 5th paragraph: The letter continued … like me’. Groucho explained that he had changed a piece not to make it better, but so that it would have his style. 11 Answer: D Note 4th paragraph: ‘Shortly thereafter… again’. ‘Shortly thereafter’ means ‘a short time after that’ and refers back to the letter previously mentioned, on July 20,1940, so this letter must also have been in 1940. In this letter, Groucho says that Sheekman’s comments about the beginning of the piece are right, and that therefore he will write that part again. 12 Answer: B Note 3rd paragraph: Groucho refers to a piece he calls ‘my drool’ – by this he means ‘my rubbish’ – that is to going to be published the following week. In the letter mentioned previously in the paragraph, he refers to a piece that has already been published. 13 Answer: F Note 5th paragraph: In this letter, Groucho suggests that Sheekman should write about a political campaign, and that in the piece Sheekman should ‘complain about’ various things. Questions 14—17 14 Answer: D Note 2nd paragraph: In this paragraph, the writer says that their work has not only been important in connection with the movement of continents, it has also had a variety of other results in connection with looking for oil and minerals, learning about volcanoes and earthquakes, and understanding climate changes. 15 Answer: E Note 3rd paragraph: People had observed that South America and Africa appeared to fit together very well if they were put together, and Wegener explained that they had once been joined together, using fossil evidence he had found to demonstrate this. 16 Answer: B Note 3rd paragraph: We are told that he was ‘ridiculed’ (laughed at) because of his theories because he was an ‘outsider’ and because he couldn’t prove that continents actually moved. His theories were therefore not considered believable. 17 Answer: F Note 4th paragraph; Their theory is described as ‘just a hunch’ (a feeling that something is true, but without any evidence to prove that it is true). They felt that their theory must be correct, but they couldn’t show that it was. Questions 18-22 18 Answer: mid(-)ocean ridge(s) / ridge crest(s) Note 5th paragraph: ‘He found what… each side of the ridge.’ All the activity described here happened on both sides of the mid-ocean ridge (a raised part in the middle of the ocean floor), particularly on each side of the ridge crests (the very top of the ridges) where the stripes appeared. 19 Answer: molten rock rose Note 5th paragraph, last sentence: They decided that molten (hot and in liquid form) rock rose, with the result that new ocean floor was formed, which created the stripes. 20 Answer: (Earth’s) magnetic field Note 6 paragraph: When the rock became solid again, the magnetic field changed around, so that north became south and south became north. ‘Flips’ are changes from one side to the other. 21 Answer: parallel/symmetrical/magnetic (zebra) stripes Note 5: paragraph: The stripes formed are described firstly as ‘parallel zebra stripes’ and they are then described as being ‘symmetrical’ and ‘magnetic’. 22 Answer: pushed aside/{further) apart Note 6th paragraph: ‘As the new sea floor…’ the creation of new sea floor meant that the continents on either side of the ocean moved further away from each other. Questions 23-26 23 Answer: plate tectonics Note 7th paragraph,1st sentence: This term is given to the theory that resulted from proof that the sea floor spreads. 24 Answer, climates Note Last paragraph: ‘The distribution of Vine says that the movement of continents has had ‘a profound effect’ (an enormous influence) on climates and has caused some huge climate changes. 25 Answer: Earth Systems Science Note Last paragraph: ‘The recognition that….’. Their work led to an understanding that there was a link between the movement of continents and the other things listed, and this ‘spawned’ (led to the birth of) this new branch of science. 26 Answer: integrated Note Last paragraph: He thinks there should be an ‘integrated approach’ and is quoted as saying that ‘the whole of environmental science should be integrated’. He says that he really disliked (it was ‘anathema’ to him) the idea that science was separated into completely separate areas (the ‘polarisation’}. Question 27-30 27 Answer: science of wellbeing Note Paragraph B, first sentence: The use of inverted commas means that the writer is quoting the term used for the subject of the conference. 28 Answer: scientifically rigorous methods Note Paragraph C, second sentence: They want to ‘deploy’ (use) such methods to find out why some people are happy all the time and others are often miserable. 29 Answer: positive psychology Note Paragraph D, first sentence: He is a lecturer in this subject. Again, the inverted commas mean that this is the actual term used for his subject when he is teaching it. 30 Answer: self-help gurus Note Paragraph D, first sentence: He accepts that this area of research may sound ‘woolly’ (imprecise) and ‘is at pains to distance himself from’ (is very keen not to be included among) the groups of people who consider themselves experts on how people can help themselves, but who have no academic background for this. Questions 31-36 31 Answer: entertainment Note One of the things that causes his first type of happiness is ‘watching a good film’, which is a form of entertainment. 32 Answer: illusion Note He thinks that people are given the false belief that these things lead to ‘lasting happiness’. If you are ‘under the illusion’ that something is true, you have a false belief that something, usually something good, is true. 33 Answer: ability Note His second type of happiness comes from being good or talented at’ something, which means that it is connected with your ability at something. 34 Answer: participation Note He believes that this type of happiness comes from identifying what you are good at and ‘taking part in’ things that use your abilities. ‘Participation’ means ‘taking part’. 35 Answer: conviction Note His third type of happiness involves finding something you ‘believe in’ and then taking action to help others in connection with this belief. A conviction is a strong belief, especially a moral one. 36 Answer: permanence Note Involvement in things you strongly believe in can lead to ‘long-lasting happiness’, according to Seligman. If something is long-lasting, it has permanence, rather than being only temporary. Questions 37-40 27 Answer: H Note Lewis Wolpert says that he would not trust someone who was ‘totally happy’, and he would regard them as being incapable of doing anything. He thinks that people need some ‘discomfort’ in order for them to do anything. 38 Answer: C Note Baylis and his colleagues want to find out what makes people happy and then use this information to make people happier. They think this may affect people’s social lives, their health, how long they live and how good they are at work. 39 Answer: B Note The fact that the conference is being held at such an important place as the Royal Society indicates that the subject ‘is being taken very seriously indeed’. 40 Answer: E Note Seligman asked why science investigated unhappiness but not happiness. This shocked people who heard him and, if he had not been so well-known, it ‘could have spelt the end of his career’. People would have found his words unacceptable, and he would have been unable to find work as a result. IELTS Writing Practice Test 32 (Task 1 & 2) & Sample Answers Posted: 05 Jan 2017 09:57 PM PST IELTS Writing Topic: WRITING TASK 1 You should spend about 20 minutes on this task. The pie charts below give information about the household expenditure of an average US family in different years. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. ieltsmaterial.com - ielts writing practice test 32 & sample answers Write at least 150 words. WRITING TASK 2 You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. Write about the following topic: More and more prisons are being built to house the world’s criminals, and many people believe long-term imprisonment is the answer to solving the crime problem. However, others feel that psychological assistance is what is required. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words. SAMPLE ANSWERS Task 1 Model Answer The pie charts compare the expenses of an average American household in 1970 and in 2004. The most significant change that can be seen was in the proportion that went towards paying the mortgage; and the other increase was in the outlay for childcare. In 1970, about a quarter of the household income was spent on mortgage payments, whereas by 2004, this doubled to account for half of all expenditure. The 1970 family spent only one per cent of income on childcarc, while the 2004 family allocated ten times more of the budget to this. Expenditure on entertainment remained the same at 13%, but the percentage spent on food halved from 25% to 12%; and 8% less of the total income was taken up by transport costs in 2004 (only 5%). Clothing costs consumed more of the budget in 1970, at 22%, but this fell to only 10% in 2004. (150 words) Task 2 Model Answer Imprisonment has long been the most popular form of punishment for criminals in society, but many also believe that rehabilitation should take the form of psychological treatment. Those in favour of long-term imprisonment argue that criminals are not fit to live alongside normal members of society. The obvious reason for this is that they represent a danger to others’ personal safety, and it is true that society would not tolerate violent criminals living in its midst. The thinking behind imprisonment is to take away prisoners’ rights to individual freedom: this is their punishment. In addition, it is thought that prisoners use their time in prison to reflect on and consider their illegal behaviour, hopefully regretting and feeling remorseful about their crimes. However, some people argue that prisons are not the best place for all criminals. Advocates for psychological rehabilitation believe that psychological therapy may be a better alternative to imprisonment for some offenders. Psychological therapy may address the root causes of the criminal behaviour and offer strategies and possibilities for change in the future. This approach may be more successful in preventing reoffending in the long run because it does not assume the same solution (that is, prison) works for all. On the whole, I believe prison definitely has its place as a form of punishment, as no one would wish to live in fear of violent crime, and criminals need to be removed from society for this reason. However, I think a combined approach which has a strong focus on psychological treatment is essential in addressing the core causes of crime, as prison alone offers no hope for future change and eventually, almost all criminals are released back into society. (279 words)

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