Clozes Final De Curso

Read the texts below and think of the word which best fits each space. Use only one word in each space. 1

The Importance of Family

In Western Europe and the USA, family life 0) has changed dramatically over the last forty years. The number of families that depend 1) ………….... both parents going out to work, or where 2) …… ……….. is one parent raising the children alone, is much greater than it 3) ………………. to be. Also, many more people move away from their families 4) ….......... ever before. 5) …………………. these changes, most people still think 6) ……………….. their family as one of the most significant parts of 7) …………… lives. A recent American survey showed that 8) ……………….. people think that spending time 9) ……… ………… home is more important 10) ………………. earning a high salary or having a challenging job. The majority of young people surveyed said that they 11) ………………….. be happy to earn less money if they had more time to 12) ……………………. with their loved ones. Older people also commented that they had worked 13) ………………… hard in the past when they should have 14) …………… with their families. 15) ……………………. the typical family doesn’t follow the traditional model today, it is still a vital part of our lives. 2

The Eden project

The Eden Project (1) ………. the original idea of a man (2) ………. Tim Smith. He wanted (3) …… …. explain the importance of plants to humans. From this the Eden project developed. The project is in the town of St Austell, (4) ………. is in Cornwall in the south of England, and it covers an area as big (5) ………. 35 football pitches. It consists (6) ………. two huge covered conservatories, or Biomes.(7) ……… are over 100,000 plants representing 5,000 species (8) ……… many of the world's climatic zones. The Humid Tropics Biome is (9) ………. largest greenhouse (10) ………. the world. It is home to plants of the rainforest such (11) ………. bananas, rubber, cocoa and coffee. The Warm Temperate Biome (12) ………. filled with plants from the Mediterranean region of the world. Outside sunflowers, hemp, tea, and (13) ………. other British plants grow. (14) ………. you visit The Eden Project, you won't be disappointed. Entertainment and education are central to the project and there are all (15) ………. of events including art, lectures, storytelling, drama, and music. 3

Collecting things

A new book (1) ……… just come out with the title To Have and to Hold. According to the title, it would seem just a story of collecting and collectors, but actually it goes much further (2) ………. that. As well as telling us about great collectors of the past, it also investigates the reasons why people collect things. In past centuries, only wealthy people (3) ………. afford to travel and most collections started with just a (4) ………. strange objects which had been brought on trips abroad. In the days before photography and television, this was the only (5) ………. people could see objects from other cultures. Gradually, museums were established (6) ………. that ordinary people would be (7) ………. to see these treasures too. These days, everyone seems to be (8) ………. collector. The book describes collectors (9) …… …. the « archaeologists of the present» and it contains some fascinating interviews. (10) ……… instance, there's the man (11) ……… has 50,000 items of food packaging stored tin his home, and the teenager willing to spend large sums of money on the rare Star Wars toy that (12) ………. complete her collection. In explaining (13) ……… we collect things, however, the book sees no difference (14) ………. great art collectors and teenagers collecting items related (15) ………. their favourite pop stars. The social and psychological explanations for collecting, it says, are much the same.

4

Wildlife writer

David Lewis is a wildlife writer and photographer (0) who has travelled to many parts of the world. He (1) _______ being interviewed by Anna Douglas. One of his books was based (2) ______ wild animals in South America - principally the armadillo. However, he has (3) _______ the last 18 months studying the urban fox in London, (4) _______ he lives. He (5) _______ up his mind about his new project while travelling back home (6) _______ train. It was (7) _______ half past three in the afternoon and suddenly he noticed what he thought was a brown dog sitting in the sunshine. (8) _______he realised it wasn't a dog, it was a fox. People usually think that foxes (9) _______ open country, but (10) _______ are foxes that now live on the outskirts of London, (11) _______ instance, near Crystal Palace Park. David is fairly convinced that, most certainly, these few specimens came following the railway tracks. They don't (12) _______ particularly aggressive as they can easily (13) _______ food in dustbins, rubbish dumps, which provide rich pickings not (14) _______ for foxes but also for cats. So far, in his stidies he has found no (15) _______ of foxes attacking domestic animal. In the Wild, they sometimes attack lambs. 5 How television was invented Television owes (0) its origins to many inventors. But it was the single-minded determination of an amateur inventor, John Logier Baird that led (1) ............. the first live television broadcast. Born in Scotland in 1888 and educated in Glasgow, John Logier Baird earned a living (2)..........a razor-blade salesman. In the 1890s Galileo Marconi showed that sound could (3).................sent by radio waves. Baird became convinced that a similar system could transmit a picture. He spent most of (4)............... spare time working on his ideas in his tiny workshop without (5)................. Commercial support. He (6).................to use his (7)...............earnings to continue his research. In 1924, Baird successfully transmitted the general outline of a figure over more (8)................3 metres. He continued to experiment and (9)...............October 25, 1925 transmitted a recognisable image of a doll. He ran (10) ..................to the office on the ground floor and persuaded one of the office boys to come upstairs. (11)............. boy became the first living image transmitted by television. Overnight, Baird became famous and the money (12)..............he needed to continue his research was at (13)................. made available. In 1927 he made a transmission from London to Glasgow and in 1928 he made (14)............from London to New York. He continued experimenting (15).................spent his last years exploring the possibility of colour television. 6 Bicycle safety Having to obey rules and regulations when riding a bike is (0) One of the first experiences children have of the idea of obeying the law. However, a large number of children (1)............ left to learn the rules by trial and error; instead of (2)............ guided by experienced adults. (3) ..............year, hundreds of children visit the doctor or the hospital casualty department (4) ................ crashing on their bikes. This could (5)............ easily prevented by teaching them the basics of bicycle safety. Ideally, children should be allowed to ride only in safe places, (6)............. as parks and cycle tracks. When this is not possible, and they are permitted (7) ........... go on the road, it is important to teach them three basic safety principles. First, they ought to learn and obey the rules of the road, (8) ............. include traffic signs, signals and road markings. Second, they should always wear (9) ............. helmet. Studies (10) .............. shown that wearing bicycle helmets can reduce head injuries by (11) .............. to 85 per cent. In many places, helmets are required (12) ............. law, particularly (13) .............. children. Finally, children should be made to understand (14) ............... importance of riding in areas that are brightly lit and of wearing clothes that make (15) ................ clearly visible on the road. 7

Vegetarianism

Vegetarians don't eat any meat, fish or poultry, and they avoid foods with animal products in (0) them. Some people avoid red meat but they include chicken and fish (1)........... their diet. These are often people who recognize (2)........... health benefits of a vegetarian diet, but who find they can't

(3).............. up meat completely. This half-way position is sometimes taken by people who are making the change (4)............. a completely vegetarian diet. Vegans go one step further (5)............ other vegetarians, avoiding all foods of animal origin, such as dairy produce, eggs and honey. Vegetarians are growing in number.(6).............. estimated seven per cent of British people are now vegetarian, and there are a great many others (7)............. only eat meat occasionally. In the (8)............... few years, food manufacturers have expanded their vegetarian ranges, and it has (9).............. a lot easier to choose an animal-free diet. Many restaurants also now offer a wide variety (10)............. vegetarian dishes. People might choose a vegetarian diet (11).............. moral or health reasons, (12)............. both. Some vegetarians simply don't like the idea of eating other creatures, and they may dislike the conditions in (13) .............. many animals are kept before (14)............. killed for food. Others may have become vegetarians (30)............... of the health benefits. 8 Intuition Sometimes you just know things about people the first time you see them - for example that you want to be friends (0) with them or that you don't trust them. But perhaps this kind of intuition isn't as hard to explain (1)............ it may seem. For instance, everybody gives out body language signals (2)......... the time. The (3).............. you hold your body head and arms tells people about your mood. If you hold your arms tightly at your sides (4)............... fold them across your chest, people will generally feel that you (5).............. being defensive. Holding your head on one side shows interest in the (6)............ person, while (7).............. relaxed, 'open' posture indicates that you are self-confident. Ah this affects (8)............. we feel about someone. Also, a stranger may (9)............... you of a previous meeting with someone. This may be because of (10).............. as simple as the fact that he or she is physically similar (11)............. someone who treated you well - or badly But your reaction doesn't (12)............... to be the result of the memory of a person you previously met - your feelings about the stranger could (13)............... influenced by a smell in the air that brings to mind a place (14)............... you were happy as a child. Since even a single word can bring back a memory (15)............... as that, you may never realise it is happening. 9

Where are the rainforests?

Rainforests once occupied almost all the land around the Equator; (1).............. there is hot sun and rainfall almost every day. In these hot, wet areas, trees and (2).............. kinds of vegetation grow fast, feeding massive numbers (3).............. insects and animals. Until recently, the rainforests filled river valleys in warmer countries (4).............. Australia. They climbed hillsides of great (5).............. chains such as the South American Andes, and covered islands (6).............. Borneo to the West Indies. In West Africa, the rainforests cover (7).............. wide strip of the coast from Sierra Leone to Gabon. In the last century these forests (8).............. mostly uninhabited. The Europeans arrived and soon began chopping (9).............. the trees for timber and to make way for massive plantations of cocoa, peanuts and cotton. Today, two thirds of the West African forests (10).............. gone. But elsewhere in Central Africa it (11) .............. still possible to find huge undisturbed forests. Nineteenth century explorers along (12).............. river Zaire called Africa the 'dark continent'. Even today (13).............. are no roads in some places. The inhabitants include pygmies, (14).............. are trying to lead (15) .............. lives in harmony with the forest. 10 Television and reading Many people believe that watching television (0) has resulted in lower reading standards in schools. (1) ………….. , the link between television and printed books is not as simple as that. In many (2) .............. , television actually encourages people to read : for example, when a book is turned into a TV series, (3) ………….. sales often go up. One study of this link examined six-year-old children who (4) …………..viewing a special series of 15-

minute programmes at school. The series was designed to encourage love of books, as (5) ………….. as to develop the basic mechanical skills of reading. Each programme is an animated film of a children's book. The story is read aloud (6) ………….. certain key phrases from the book appear on the screen, beneath the picture. Whenever a word is read, it is also highlighted on the TV screen. One finding was (7) .............. watching these programmes was very important to the children. If anything prevented them (8) .............. seeing a programme, they were very disappointed. What's more, they wanted to read the books (9) ………….. the different parts of the series were based on. The programmes also gave the children (10) ………….. confidence when looking at these books. As a result of (11) ………….. familiarity with the stories, they would sit in pairs and read the stories aloud to (12) ………….. other. On (13) ………….. occasion, the children showed great sympathy when discussing a character in a book because they themselves (14) ………….. been moved when watching the character (15) ………….. television. Read the text below and decide which word A, B, C or D best fits each space. There is an example at the beginning (0). 11 Couch-potatoes are getting fatter An important (0) C has recently confirmed a (1) ___ national stereotype - people in the USA are fat. The researchers (2) ___ out that a third of people in the USA are more than 20% above their (3) ___ weight; Twenty years ago the (4) ___ of over-weight adults was about one in four. Among young people the figures are even more (5) ___ . The research is a poor advertisement for the slimming industry in the United States which (6) ___ $40 billion on marketing diet products every year. This (7) ___ in the country's waistline is the (8) ___ of an increasingly inactive lifestyle and the fact that food is (9) ___ available all day. The US food industry produces 3,700 calories per day for every US citizen, but a woman's energy (10) ___ is half of that, and a man can easily live (11) ___ 2,500 calories. The experts say that television, use of cars and the (12) ___ of compulsory physical education in schools have all (13) ___ down the activity (14) ___ of people in the USA, and this situation is (15) ___ even worse by people's habit of eating more while they are watching television. 0 A 1 A 2 A 3 A 4 A 5 A 6 A 7 A 8 A 9 A 10 A 11 A 12 A 13 A 14 A 15 A

composition normal brought ideal measure worrying empties growing result gradually want on end come amount brought

B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B

research common gave happy proportion anxious costs building answer partly request by finish got level done

C C C C C C C C C C C C C C C C

study ordinary turned top part annoying spends add end easily need through last cut degree held

D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D

inspectio n average found real size concerne d passes increase reason surely wish above close let height made

Key 1 The Importance of Family 1 on 2 there 3 used 4 than 5 Despite 6 of 7 their 8 most/many/some/more/young/several 9 at 10 than 11 would 12 spend/be/relax 13 very/quite/too/so/really 14 been 15 Although 2

The Eden project 1 was/is 2 called/named 3 to 4 which 5 as 6 of 7 There 8 from 9 the 10 in 11 as 12 is 13 many/some/several 14 If/When 15 kinds/sorts/types

3

Collecting things 1 has 2 than 3 could 4 few 5 way 6 so 7 able 8 a 9 as 10 For 11 who 12 will/can/would 13 why 14 between 15 to

4 Wildlife writer 1 is 2 on 3 spent 4 where 5 made 6 by 7 about/around 8 Then/Later 9 need/like 10 there 11 for 12 seem 13 find/get 14 only 15 evidence/proof 5 How television was invented 1 to 2 as 3 be 4 his 5 any 6 had 7 private/personal/own 8 than 9 on 10 down/downstairs 11 that/the/this 12 that/which 13 last/once 14 one/another 15 and 6 Bicycle safety 1 are 2 being 3 Every 4 after 5 be 6 such 7 to 8 which 9 a 10 have 11 up 12 by 13 for 14 the 15 them 7

Vegetarianism 1 in 2 the 3 give 4 to 5 than 6 an 7 who 8 last/past 9 become/got/been 10 of 11 for 12 or 13 which 14 being/getting 15 because

8 Intuition 1 as 2 all 3 way 4 or 5 are 6 other 7 a 8 how/what 9 remind 10 something 11 to 12 need/have 13 be 14 where 15 such 9

Where are the rainforests? 1 where 2 all/other 3 of 4 like 5 mountain 6 from 7 a 8 were 9 down 10 have/are 11 is 12 the 13 there 14 who 15 their

10 Television and reading 1 However 2 cases/instances 3 its 4 were 5 well 6 and/while/as 7 that 8 from 9 which/that 10 more/some/greater/increased 11 their 12 each 13 one 14 had 15 on 11 Couch-potatoes are getting fatter 1 B 2 D 3 A 4 B 5 A 6 C 7 D 8 A 9 C 10 C 11 A 12 A 13 C 14 B 15 D