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SECTION TEST - LISTENING
(Time: 30 minutes)
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Section 1
Script:
You will hear a conversation between a student looking for a host family and a housing adviser. ADVISER: Good morning, how can I help you? STUDENT: Good morning. Umm. I understand you help fix up students with host families. ADVISER: That’s right ... are you interested in ...? STUDENT: Yes... ADVISER: Well please sit down and I’ll just take a few details. STUDENT: Thank you. ADVISER: Right now. . . what name is it? STUDENT: Jenny Chan. ADVISER: Can you spell that please? STUDENT: Yes. . . J-E-N-N-Y C-H-A-N. ADVISER: Right.. . and what is your present address? STUDENT: Sea View Guest House. 14 Hill Road. ADVISER: OK, and do you know the phone number there? STUDENT: Yes ... I have it here, ummm . . . 2237676, but I’m only there after about 7 pm. ADVISER: So when would be the best time to catch you? STUDENT: I suppose between 9 and, let me see, half-past, before I leave for the college. ADVISER: Great. . . and can I ask you your age? STUDENT: I’ve just had my nineteenth birthday. ADVISER: And how long would you want to stay with the host family? STUDENT: I'm planning on staying a year but at the moment I’m definitely here for four months only. I have to get an extension to my permit. ADVISER: You’re working on it? Fine ... and what will be your occupation while you’re in the UK? STUDENT: Studying English? ADVISER: And what would you say your level of English is? STUDENT: Umm. Good, I think I'd like to say ‘advanced’ but my written work is below the level of my spoken, so I suppose it’s intermediate. ADVISER: Certainly your spoken English is advanced. Anyway, which area do you think you would prefer? STUDENT: Ummm, well I’m studying right in the centre but I’d really like to live in the north-west. ADVISER: That shouldn’t be a great problem ... we usually have lots of families up there. (Pause) And do you have any particular requirements for diet? STUDENT: Well, I’m nearly a vegetarian . . . not quite. ADVISER: Shall I say you are? It’s probably easier that way. STUDENT: That would be best. ADVISER: Anything about your actual room? STUDENT: I would prefer my own facilities - ‘en suite', is that right? And also if it's possible a TV and I’d also like the house to have a real garden rather than just a yard, somewhere I could sit and be peaceful. ADVISER: Is that all? STUDENT: Well. . . I’m really serious about improving my English so I’d prefer to be the only guest if that’s possible? ADVISER: No other guests . . . Yes, you get more practice that way. Anyway, obviously all this is partly dependent on how much you're willing to pay. What did you have in mind? STUDENT: I was thinking in terms of about £60-£80 a week, but I’d go up to a hundred if it was something special. ADVISER: Well I don’t think we’d have any problems finding something for you. STUDENT: Oh, good. ADVISER: And when would you want it for? STUDENT: I'd like to move in approximately two weeks. ADVISER: Let me see, it’s the 10th today ... so if we go for the Monday it’s the 23rd March. STUDENT: Yes. ADVISER: Right... good, and if I could ask one last question ... Complete the form below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR NUMBERS for each answer. HOST FAMILY APPLICANT | Name: (1).................. Present address: Sea View Guest House, (2) .................. Daytime phone number: 2237676 [NB Best time to contact is 9-9.30 Age: 19 Intended length of stay: (3) .................. Occupation while in UK: student General level of English: (4) .................. Preferred location: in the (5) .................. Special diet: (6) .................. Other requirements: own facilities own television (7) .................. to be (8) .................. Maximum price: £ (9) .................. a week Preferred starting date: 23rd March |
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intermediate
vegetarian
14 Hill Road
1 year/ one year
North-West
Jenny Chan
garden/ a garden/ a real garden/ real garden
100
only guest/ the only guest
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Section 2
Script:
Thank you all for coming to see the new renovations to the Hartford Health Club. I know you’ll be as pleased as I am to see the wonderful results of our months of hard work to improve the club and bring you the best facilities ever. We’ll begin in here with the swimming pool. You’ll notice the new color of the adult pool, a lovely, cool green. Now walk over here and look at the children’s pool. It’s the same green but, as you see, with brightly colored sea creatures painted everywhere. Both of the pools needed painting, not only for maintenance, but I think the new color greatly improves the atmosphere of this part of the club. Next, let’s take a look at the locker rooms. Don’t worry, there’s no one using them just now. Doesn’t it feel roomy in here? We’ve expanded both the men’s and women’s locker rooms, so now they’ll be much more comfortable to use. There are bigger lockers, a good deal more room in the dressing area, and more places to store extra towels and equipment. Be careful as you walk through here. The floor has just been polished and may be a bit slippery. Let’s go up to the exercise room next. Here you’ll notice the new floor. Walk on it. Doesn’t that feel comfortable? It’s a special material, softer than the old floor, an ideal surface for jogging and exercising. They had to move all the exercise equipment out while they were working on the floor, but don’t worry, it will be brought back in before the end of today. Let’s step outside now and look at the tennis courts. We haven’t done a great deal here except to the equipment. We replaced all the nets and the ball-throwing machine. Otherwise, everything is the same as it was before. Let’s walk down this hallway, and here we are at the club store in its new location. We thought here by the entrance was a better place for it than where it used to be by the swimming pool. But it still has all the same items for sale: sports equipment and clothes in the club colors. What change has been made to each part of the Hartford health club?
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1. swimming pools
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Explain:
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3. exercise room
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Explain:
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Script:
Guide: We’re excited about the upcoming activities and events to take place in our newly renovated club. Now that the pools are ready for use again, swimming lessons will begin tomorrow, for both adults and children. If you haven’t signed up yet, you can stop by the office before you leave today and put your name on the list. If you’re a tennis player, you’ll be interested to hear about the tennis competition coming up on Wednesday. Players from different clubs all over the region will be participating. If you’d like to watch the event, tickets are available in the office. Also, I want to be sure you all know you’re invited to our club party, coming up next weekend. We’re celebrating the completion of the renovation work, and we have a lot to celebrate. The entire renovation project was finished in just nine months. That’s three months less than the twelve months we had originally planned on. We’re proud of that and proud that we came in under budget, too. Because we’ve had such good results with this project, we’re already planning the next one. We already have two indoor pools, and next year we plan to install an outdoor pool right next to the tennis courts. Details of these plans will be made available to all club members soon. All right, I think we’ve covered just about everything. Are there any questions? Complete the sentences below. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.
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swimming lessons
party/club party
tennis competition
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Section 3
Script:
Tutor: Well James, I've had a look over your case study and for a first draft, it looks promising. James: I have to be honest, when you told us we had to write about a furniture company, it didn't sound like the kind of thing that would interest me, but since then, I've changed my mind. Tutor: Why's that? James: Well, as you know, Furniture Rossi is an Australian company, still comparatively small compared to some of the high street stores, but it's got plans to expand into foreign markets. So I chose it for that reason. It's going through a transition - it's a family-run business aiming to build a global brand. Tutor: All right, and you've made that clear in your writing. One thing, though, that 1 think you've overlooked is why Luca Rossi started a furniture company here in Australia in the first place. James: Well, he'd just got an arts degree, hadn't he? And people were trying to talk him into an academic profession but he wanted a practical job - something he thought would be more satisfying in the long run. His grandfather had been a craftsman. He'd made furniture in Italy and he'd passed this skill on to Luca's father, and well. Luca thought he'd like to continue the tradition. Tutor: Yes, that was the motivation behind his decision. And what was it, do you think, that gave Furniture Rossi a competitive edge over other furniture companies? James: I wouldn't think it was price. It's always been at the higher end of the market, but according to my research, it was to do with the attitude of the employees - they were really focused on giving good customer service. Tutor: Yes, Luca Rossi insisted on that. Their promotional campaigns also emphasised the fact that the wood only came from Australian forests, but that was the case with their rivals, too, so it wouldn't have made them stand out. OK, we'll have a careful look at the content of your case study in a minute, but I just want to make a general comment first, before you start writing your second draft. James: OK. Tutor: Yes, what I'd like to see more of is your opinion, a bit more critical thinking, rather than the bare facts. But it's good to see you've been careful with your referencing, this time. James: Thanks. And I read and re-read my work so I'm pretty sure there aren't any errors with the language. Tutor: Yes, it's fine. Oh, but there's one other thing I could probably mention at this point. James: Yes? Tutor: Well, at the end of term, you'll also be giving a presentation - also on Furniture Rossi. James: Yes, I haven't given it much thought yet. Tutor: Understandably. But, while you're writing the case study, I'd recommend you think about what kind of information would be suitable to use in your presentation. Remember - the last time you gave a presentation on a company, you spent a considerable part of the time providing the audience with financial data, but they probably needed to hear more about company strategy. James: Yes. I did concentrate rather too much on the figures. I'll make sure there's a balance this time. Tutor: Good. Choose the correct answer.
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1. Why has James chosen to do a case study on the company Furniture Rossi?
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Explain:
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2. According to James, why did Luca Rossi start a furniture company?
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Explain:
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3. What gave Furniture Rossi a competitive advantage over other furniture companies?
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Explain:
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4. What does the tutor recommend James does when writing the second draft of his case study?
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Explain:
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5. What do the tutor and James agree was wrong with James′ last presentation?
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Explain:
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Script:
Tutor: OK, so let's just think about the content of your case study - the history of Furniture Rossi. I see here in paragraph four you're talking about how Luca Rossi raised the capital for his new business venture - and then you're talking about the customer base growing much wider - but what was it that prompted this growth? James: Well, that was to do with the quality of the furniture products that the company was selling. People loved that it was all hand-made and would last. Tutor: And because demand from customers kept growing? James: Well, then Rossi needed to take on more craftsmen so they could make sure the orders were ready on time, and then, he also had to set up two new warehouses to make distribution quicker. Tutor: Yes. And from there, the company really grew. But think what happened next. They started looking at ways to increase their profits and called in a consultant. And what he saw immediately was that the infrastructure was completely outdated - they were paying three full-time admin staff just for data-entry. So he recommended they upgrade their software programs and that, in turn, cut operational costs and just speeded everything up. James: I'm surprised they didn't get on to that earlier, but I suppose Luca Rossi was more interested in the design aspect, rather than the finance side of things. Tutor: Yes, I imagine that's why he eventually turned the day- to-day running of the company over to his son. And in fact, it was the son, Marco, who persuaded his father to move on from traditional television advertising and go online instead. James: I guess that's the best way to reach people. Tutor: It can be, but initially, customers actually complained. James: Why? Tutor: Well, some users found it hard to navigate their way around the website - so they were getting frustrated and giving up. So then the company called in a professional to improve it. James: I see. He must have done a good job. They've had a continuous three-year rise in revenue - so things must be going well. Tutor: Indeed. And what of the future? James: Well, I probably need to talk about this a bit more in the concluding paragraphs, don't I? Consumers are already aware of the quality of the furniture, that's for sure, but I think the company is aiming to publicise their values - the fact that they have respect for beauty, durability and functionality, and the environment. A lot of companies are already ... Complete the flow-chart below by choosing FIVE answers from the list below. History of Furniture Rossi The product (1)……… led to a wider customer base. | ê Greater customer demand meant other (2)……… were needed. | ê Better (3)……… increased overall profitability. | ê Changes to the (4)……… were brought on by customer complaints. | ê Furniture Rossi wants to make people more aware of its (5)……… |
Section 4
Script:
You will hear a historian giving a presentation about techniques to identify the origin of hand-written books from the middle ages. My presentation today is on how the science of genetics is being used to shed light on the origin of manuscripts - anything written by hand - produced in the medieval period ... that is ... the period between the fifth and fifteenth centuries AD. As many of you know, thousands of medieval handwritten books still exist today. Some of them have a clear provenance, that is, we know exactly where and when they were written, but the origin of many manuscripts has been a complete mystery, that is, until two thousand and nine when geneticists started using DNA testing to shed light on their origins. But before looking at the new research, I need to explain something about the way the manuscripts were produced - particularly what they were written on. Virtually all were written on treated animal skins and there were essentially two types. The first was parchment, which is made of sheep skin. It has the quality of being very white but also being thin. It has a naturally greasy surface which meant it was hard to erase writing from it. This made it much sought after for court documents in medieval times. The second type is vellum, which is calf skin. This was most often used for any very ‘highstatus’ documents because it provided the best writing surface so scribes could achieve lettering of high quality. So, once the animal hides had been chosen, they had to be prepared. Where the right materials were on hand, the skins were put into large barrels or vats of lime, where they were agitated or stirred frequently. But if lime wasn’t available, then the hides were buried. Both these techniques were designed to cause the hair to slough off, and the skins to become gelatinous and therefore more flexible. The next stage was to put the hides on stretcher frames and pull them very tight. While on the frame they were scraped with a moon-shaped knife in order to create a uniform thickness. For parchment, that was the end of the process, but for vellum there was an additional stage where it was bleached, in order to achieve the desired colour. So, what does all this preparation mean for the quest to identify the origins of ‘mystery’ manuscripts? Well, until recently the only way historians and other academics were able to guess at origins was either through the analysis of the handwriting style, or from the dialect in which the piece was written. But these techniques have proven unreliable, for a number of reasons. It was thus decided to try to look at the problem from a different angle ... to start from what is known, that is, the small number of manuscripts whose origins we do already know. Because these parchments and vellum are both made from animal hides, it was possible to subject them to DNA testing and to identify the genetic markers for the date and location of production. From this was created what is known as a ‘baseline’. The next stage was to test the mystery manuscripts, finding their DNA characteristics and then making comparisons between the known and the mystery scripts. Genetic similarities and differences enabled the scientists to gain more information about the origins of the many manuscripts we had known virtually nothing about up to that point. Now you might ask - what are the potential uses of this new information? Well, obviously, it can shed light on the origin of individual books and manuscripts. But that’s not all. It can also shed light on the evolution of the whole of the manuscripts production industry in medieval times. And because that was such a thriving business, involving very large-scale movements right across the globe, the new data, in turn, help historians establish which trade routes were in operation during the whole millennium. Now if anyone has any questions ... Complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer. Researching the origin of medieval manuscripts Background • Medieval manuscripts - handwritten books produced between the fifth and fifteenth centuries • Origin of many manuscripts unknown until 2009; scientists started using DNA testing Animal hides - two types Parchment Sheep skin: white in colour and (1)………………. Greasy - writing can't be erased so often used for (2)…………………. Vellum Calf skin: most popular for prestigious work because you can get (3)…………….. lettering. Preparation of hides • Treated in barrels of lime - where this was not available, skins were (4)……………… (removed hair → more flexible) • Stretched tight on a frame • Scraped to create same (5)…………….. • Vellum was (6)……………… — for correct colour Genetic testing - finding origins Previously - analysed handwriting and (7)……………. used by the writer Now - using genetic data from ‘known manuscripts' to create a (8) “…………………” Uses of new data Gives information on individual books Shows the (9)……………… of the book industry Helps define (10)…………… in medieval period
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baseline
high-quality
bleached/whitened
court documents
evolution
dialect
trade routes
thin/very thin
thickness
buried
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PARTNERS |
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