You should spend about 20
minutes on Questions 1-13 which are based on Reading Passage 1 below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet.
Do the following statements
agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 7-10 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE
if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE
if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no
information on this
7 The
counter-excavation method completely replaced the qanat method in the 6th
century BCE.
8 Only experienced builders were employed to construct
a tunnel using the counter-excavation method.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 11-13 on your answer sheet.
11 What type of
mineral were the Dolaucothi mines in Wales built to extract?
12 In addition to the patron, whose name might be carved
onto a tunnel?
13 What part of Seleuceia Pieria was the Çevlik tunnel
built to protect?
READING
PASSAGE 2
You should spend about 20
minutes on Questions 14-26 which are based on
Reading Passage 2 below.
Changes in
reading habits
What are the implications of the way we read today?
Look around on your next plane
trip. The iPad is the new pacifier for babies and toddlers. Younger school-aged
children read stories on smartphones; older kids don’t read at all, but hunch
over video games. Parents and other passengers read on tablets or skim a
flotilla of email and news feeds. Unbeknown to most of us, an invisible,
game-changing transformation links everyone in this picture: the neuronal
circuit that underlies the brain’s ability to read is subtly, rapidly changing
and this has implications for everyone from the pre-reading toddler to the
expert adult.
As work in neurosciences
indicates, the acquisition of literacy necessitated a new circuit in our
species’ brain more than 6,000 years ago. That circuit evolved from a very
simple mechanism for decoding basic information, like the number of goats in
one’s herd, to the present, highly elaborated reading brain. My research
depicts how the present reading brain enables the development of some of our
most important intellectual and affective processes: internalized knowledge,
analogical reasoning, and inference; perspective-taking and empathy; critical
analysis and the generation of insight. Research surfacing in many parts of the
world now cautions that each of these essential ‘deep reading’ processes may be
under threat as we move into digital-based modes of reading.
This is not a simple, binary
issue of print versus digital reading and technological innovations. As MIT
scholar Sherry Turkle has written, we do not err as a society when we innovate
but when we ignore what we disrupt or diminish while innovating. In this hinge
moment between print and digital cultures, society needs to confront what is
diminishing in the expert reading circuit, what our children and older students
are not developing, and what we can do about it.
We know from research that the
reading circuit is not given to human beings through a genetic blueprint like
vision or language; it needs an environment to develop. Further, it will adapt
to that environment’s requirements – from different writing systems to the
characteristics of whatever medium is used. If the dominant medium advantages
processes that are fast, multi-task oriented and well-suited for large volumes
of information, like the current digital medium, so will the reading circuit.
As UCLA psychologist Patricia Greenfield writes, the result is that less
attention and time will be allocated to slower, time-demanding deep reading
processes.
Increasing reports from
educators and from researchers in psychology and the humanities bear this out.
English literature scholar and teacher Mark Edmundson describes how many
college students actively avoid the classic literature of the 19th and 20th
centuries in favour of something simpler as they no longer have the patience to
read longer, denser, more difficult texts. We should be less concerned with
students’ ‘cognitive impatience’, however, than by what may underlie it: the
potential inability of large numbers of students to read with a level of
critical analysis sufficient to comprehend the complexity of thought and
argument found in more demanding texts.
Multiple studies show that
digital screen use may be causing a variety of troubling downstream effects on
reading comprehension in older high school and college students. In Stavanger,
Norway, psychologist Anne Mangen and colleagues studied how high school
students comprehend the same material in different mediums. Mangen’s group
asked subjects questions about a short story whose plot had universal student
appeal; half of the students read the story on a tablet, the other half in
paperback. Results indicated that students who read on print were superior in
their comprehension to screen-reading peers, particularly in their ability to
sequence detail and reconstruct the plot in chronological order.
Ziming Liu from San Jose State
University has conducted a series of studies which indicate that the ‘new norm’
in reading is skimming, involving word-spotting and browsing through the text.
Many readers now use a pattern when reading in which they sample the first line
and then word-spot through the rest of the text. When the reading brain skims
like this, it reduces time allocated to deep reading processes. In other words,
we don’t have time to grasp complexity, to understand another’s feelings, to
perceive beauty, and to create thoughts of the reader’s own.
The possibility that critical
analysis, empathy and other deep reading processes could become the unintended
‘collateral damage’ of our digital culture is not a straightforward binary issue
about print versus digital reading. It is about how we all have begun to read o
various mediums and how that changes not only what we read, but also the
purposes for which we read. Nor is it only about the young. The subtle atrophy
of critical analysis and empathy affects us all equally. It affects our ability
to navigate a constant bombardment of information. It incentivizes a retreat to
the most familiar stores of unchecked information, which require and receive no
analysis, leaving us susceptible to false information and irrational ideas.
There’s an old rule in
neuroscience that does not alter with age: use it or lose it. It is a very
hopeful principle when applied to critical thought in the reading brain because
it implies choice. The story of the changing reading brain is hardly finished.
We possess both the science and the technology to identify and redress the
changes in how we read before they become entrenched. If we work to understand
exactly what we will lose, alongside the extraordinary new capacities that the
digital world has brought us, there is as much reason for excitement as caution.
Questions 14-17
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
Write the correct letter in boxes 14-17 on your answer sheet.
14 What is the
writer’s main point in the first paragraph?
A Our use of technology is having a hidden
effect on us.
B Technology can be used to help youngsters to
read.
C Travellers should be encouraged to use
technology on planes.
D Playing games is a more popular use of
technology than reading.
15 What main point
does Sherry Turkle make about innovation?
A Technological innovation has led to a
reduction in print reading.
B We should pay attention to what might be lost
when innovation occurs.
C We should encourage more young people to
become involved in innovation.
D There is a difference between developing
products and developing ideas.
16 What point is the
writer making in the fourth paragraph?
A Humans have an inborn ability to read
and write.
B Reading can be done using many different
mediums.
C Writing systems make unexpected demands
on the brain.
D Some brain circuits adjust to whatever
is required of them.
17 According to Mark
Edmundson, the attitude of college students
A has changed the way he teaches.
B has influenced what they select to read.
C does not worry him as much as it does
others.
D does not match the views of the general
public.
Questions 18-22
Complete the summary using the
list of words, A-H, below.
Write the correct letter, A-H, in boxes 18-22 on your answer
sheet.
Studies on
digital screen use
There have been many studies on
digital screen use, showing some 18 ………………… trends. Psychologist
Anne Mangen gave high-school students a short story to read, half using digital
and half using print mediums. Her team then used a question-and-answer
technique to find out how 19 ………………… each group’s
understanding of the plot was. The findings showed a clear pattern in the
responses, with those who read screens finding the order of information 20 ………………… to recall.
Studies by Ziming Liu show that
students are tending to read 21 ………………… words and phrases in a
text to save time. This approach, she says, gives the reader a superficial
understanding of the 22 ………………… content of material,
leaving no time for thought.
A fast B isolated C
emotional D worrying
E many F hard G
combined H thorough
Questions 23-26
Do the following statements
agree with the views of the writer in Reading Passage 2?
In boxes 23-26 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE
if the statement agrees with the views of the writer
FALSE
if the statement contradicts the views of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is
impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
23 The medium we use
to read can affect our choice of reading content.
24 Some age groups are more likely to lose their complex
reading skills than others.
25 False information has become more widespread in
today’s digital era.
26 We still have opportunities to rectify the problems
that technology is presenting.
READING
PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20
minutes on Questions 27-40 which are based on
Reading Passage 3 below.
Attitudes towards Artificial Intelligence
A
Artificial intelligence (AI)
can already predict the future. Police forces are using it to map when and
where crime is likely to occur. Doctors can use it to predict when a patient is
most likely to have a heart attack or stroke. Researchers are even trying to
give AI imagination so it can plan for unexpected consequences.
Many decisions in our lives
require a good forecast, and AI is almost always better at forecasting than we
are. Yet for all these technological advances, we still seem to deeply lack
confidence in AI predictions. Recent cases show that people don’t like relying
on AI and prefer to trust human experts, even if these experts are wrong.
If we want AI to really benefit
people, we need to find a way to get people to trust it. To do that, we need to
understand why people are so reluctant to trust AI in the first place.
B
Take the case of Watson for
Oncology, one of technology giant IBM’s supercomputer programs. Their attempt
to promote this program to cancer doctors was a PR disaster. The AI promised to
deliver top-quality recommendations on the treatment of 12 cancers that
accounted for 80% of the world’s cases. But when doctors first interacted with
Watson, they found themselves in a rather difficult situation. On the one hand,
if Watson provided guidance about a treatment that coincided with their own
opinions, physicians did not see much point in Watson’s recommendations. The
supercomputer was simply telling them what they already knew, and these
recommendations did not change the actual treatment.
On the other hand, if Watson
generated a recommendation that contradicted the experts’ opinion, doctors
would typically conclude that Watson wasn’t competent. And the machine wouldn’t
be able to explain why its treatment was plausible because its machine-learning
algorithms were simply too complex to be fully understood by humans.
Consequently, this has caused even more suspicion and disbelief, leading many
doctors to ignore the seemingly outlandish AI recommendations and stick to
their own expertise.
C
This is just one example of
people’s lack of confidence in AI and their reluctance to accept what AI has to
offer. Trust in other people is often based on our understanding of how others
think and having experience of their reliability. This helps create a
psychological feeling of safety. AI, on the other hand, is still fairly new and
unfamiliar to most people. Even if it can be technically explained (and that’s
not always the case), AI’s decision-making process is usually too difficult for
most people to comprehend. And interacting with something we don’t understand
can cause anxiety and give us a sense that we’re losing control.
Many people are also simply not
familiar with many instances of AI actually working, because it often happens
in the background. Instead, they are acutely aware of instances where AI goes
wrong. Embarrassing AI failures receive a disproportionate amount of media
attention, emphasising the message that we cannot rely on technology. Machine
learning is not foolproof, in part because the humans who design it aren’t.
D
Feelings about AI run deep. In
a recent experiment, people from a range of backgrounds were given various
sci-fi films about AI to watch and then asked questions about automation in
everyday life. It was found that, regardless of whether the film they watched
depicted AI in a positive or negative light, simply watching a cinematic vision
of our technological future polarised the participants’ attitudes. Optimists
became more extreme in their enthusiasm for AI and sceptics became even more
guarded.
This suggests people use
relevant evidence about AI in a biased manner to support their existing
attitudes, a deep-rooted human tendency known as “confirmation bias”. As AI is
represented more and more in media and entertainment, it could lead to a
society split between those who benefit from AI and those who reject it. More
pertinently, refusing to accept the advantages offered by AI could place a
large group of people at a serious disadvantage.
E
Fortunately, we already have
some ideas about how to improve trust in AI. Simply having previous experience
with AI can significantly improve people’s opinions about the technology, as
was found in the study mentioned above. Evidence also suggests the more you use
other technologies such as the internet, the more you trust them.
Another solution may be to
reveal more about the algorithms which AI uses and the purposes they serve. Several
high-profile social media companies and online marketplaces already release
transparency reports about government requests and surveillance disclosures. A
similar practice for AI could help people have a better understanding of the
way algorithmic decisions are made.
F
Research suggests that allowing
people some control over AI decision-making could also improve trust and enable
AI to learn from human experience. For example, one study showed that when
people were allowed the freedom to slightly modify an algorithm, they felt more
satisfied with its decisions, more likely to believe it was superior and more
likely to use it in the future.
We don’t need to understand the
intricate inner workings of AI systems, but if people are given a degree of
responsibility for how they are implemented, they will be more willing to
accept AI into their lives.
Questions 27-32
Reading Passage 3 has six
sections, A-F.
Choose the correct heading for
each section from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i-viii, in boxes 27-32 on your answer
sheet.
List of Headings
i An increasing divergence
of attitudes towards AI
ii Reasons why we have more
faith in human judgement than in AI
iii The superiority of AI projections over
those made by humans
iv The process by which AI can help us make
good decisions
v The advantages of
involving users in AI processes
vi Widespread distrust of an AI innovation
vii Encouraging openness about how AI
functions
viii A surprisingly successful AI application
27 Section A
28 Section B
29 Section C
30 Section D
31 Section E
32 Section F
Question 33-35
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
Write the correct letter in boxes 33-35 on your answer sheet.
33 What is the writer
doing in Section A?
A providing a solution to a concern
B justifying an opinion about an issue
C highlighting the existence of a problem
D explaining the reasons for a phenomenon
34 According to
Section C, why might some people be reluctant to accept AI?
A They are afraid it will replace humans in
decision-making jobs.
B Its complexity makes them feel that they are at a
disadvantage.
C They would rather wait for the technology to be
tested over a period of time.
D Misunderstandings about how it works make it seem
more challenging than it is.
35 What does the
writer say about the media in Section C of the text?
A It leads the public to be mistrustful of AI.
B It devotes an excessive amount of attention to AI.
C Its reports of incidents involving AI are often
inaccurate.
D It gives the impression that AI failures are due to
designer error.
Questions 36-40
Do the following statements
agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 3?
In boxes 36-40 on your answer sheet, write
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
36 Subjective
depictions of AI in sci-fi films make people change their opinions about
automation.
37 Portrayals of AI in media and entertainment are likely
to become more positive.
38 Rejection of the possibilities of AI may have a
negative effect on many people’s lives.
39 Familiarity with AI has very little impact on people’s
attitudes to the technology.
40 AI applications which users are able to modify are
more likely to gain consumer approval .
ANSWERS
Passage 1
1 posts
2 canal
3 ventilation
4 lid
5 weight
6 climbing
7 FALSE
8 NOT GIVEN
9 FALSE
10 TRUE
11 gold
12 (the) architect(‘s) (name)
13 (the) harbour / harbor
Passage 2
14 A
15 B
16 D
17 B
18 D
19 H
20 F
21 B
22 C
23 YES
24 NO
25 NOT GIVEN
26 YES
Passage 3
27 iii
28 vi
29 ii
30 i
31 vii
32 v
33 C
34 B
35 A
36 NO
37 NOT GIVEN
38 YES
39 NO
40 YES
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