Short Advanced Reading Comprehension Test 39 With MCQs and Answers
Question 1 |
(Please note: The following questions are related to a specific reading passage, available solely before the first question. Remember, referring back to the reading text while answering the questions may be helpful to ensure accuracy.)
The practical advantage of prefabrication is two-fold: it is quicker, and it does away with uncertainty. Speed in building is important these days because of the high cost of land. The time during which such an expensive commodity is out of use must be reduced to a minimum.
Partly or wholly prefabricated methods of construction save time on the job because parts are prepared in the factory beforehand. Prefabrication does away with uncertainty because it means that the whole building is made of standard parts, the behaviour of which is known and has been tested.
Since land is extremely valuable, it is important that _____.
A | costs do not continue to rise |
B | the building materials should also be expensive |
C | people should not disagree as to the advantages of prefabrication |
D | building costs be reduced to a minimum |
E | it does not remain out of use for long |
Question 2 |
One advantage of using prefabricated parts is that _____.
A | fewer skilled workmen are required |
B | this method is much cheaper than standard methods |
C | less land is required |
D | buildings can be put up much faster |
E | there is more scope for experiment |
Question 3 |
When a building is constructed from standard parts that have been well-tested, _____.
A | there is no scope for originality |
B | one is still not sure how they will behave in a particular situation |
C | new methods of construction are overlooked |
D | one knows in advance that the result will be satisfactory |
E | the costs will naturally be excessively high |
Question 4 |
Since the major cost of advanced education, if the student is away from home, is board and lodging, one can argue that as far as possible, the expansion of public education beyond high school should be arranged locally. Otherwise, in order to offer equal opportunities, we would have to envisage using public funds to provide years of free board and room for a considerable fraction of our high school graduates.
However, there are various types of professional and vocational education that can be given at only a few centres in even a very populous state. It is literally impossible, for example, to give adequate instruction in clinical medicine except in cities of sufficient size to support large hospitals. Similarly, advanced work in the arts, sciences, and letters can be done only where adequate libraries and laboratories are at hand.
It is clearly in the national interest to find all the latent talent available for the lengthy training that research careers demand. Yet to establish research centres at every point in the United States where general education beyond high school is desired would be not merely uneconomical, but impossible.
What is mainly discussed in the passage?
A | How education beyond high school should be arranged. |
B | How lodging and board should be provided. |
C | How to provide free board and lodging. |
D | How to provide a first-rate education for all students. |
E | Why university education has failed in the USA. |
Question 5 |
According to the author, all public education beyond high school cannot be arranged locally because _____.
A | there would not be enough housing |
B | hospital services cannot be secured |
C | certain types of education would be too costly to maintain |
D | that would be against the equal-opportunity principle |
E | most localities would grow beyond control |
Question 6 |
The author points out that _____.
A | researches centres should be established even in the smallest towns |
B | there is no way a student can receive adequate clinical education in a small hospital |
C | the only thing to do is to give up the idea of equal opportunity |
D | a talented student will be satisfactorily educated no matter where he is educated |
E | he finds it essential that all university students should be given free board and lodging |
Question 7 |
Looking ahead from the present position, where food production has kept ahead of population growth globally but has fallen per capita in 55 countries (mainly African), it would seem that these trends will continue. About 30 countries - most of them African - can expect serious problems unless they reduce population growth and give higher priority to agriculture and conservation.
Though a warmer, wetter earth with high CO2 levels is likely to be capable of producing more food, the amounts will still be inadequate for many poorer countries. In many cases, the population projections are greater than the entire local land resources can support.
Of all the countries in the world, it is those in Africa _____.
A | which have taken the most drastic measures to prevent population growth |
B | that are most threatened by food shortages |
C | which are environmentally most at a disadvantage |
D | that are most conscious of the need to preserve the environment |
E | in which poverty has been greatly reduced through agricultural development |
Question 8 |
It is argued in the passage that _____.
A | changes in world climate are increasing the problems of food production |
B | agricultural development will presently put an end to global food shortages |
C | with the exception of African countries, the global production of food is adequate and likely to continue so |
D | the conservation of land resources is of minor importance |
E | every effort must be made to prevent the CO2 level from rising |
Question 9 |
According to the passage, it is anticipated that _____.
A | the per capita income in Africa countries will continue to increase |
B | food production will double in the years ahead |
C | the present situation concerning population growth and food production will soon improve |
D | all the African countries will soon solve all their population problems |
E | unless serious measures are taken, the poor countries of the world will face famine |
Question 10 |
Psychology is literally the study of the mind (or soul), but its area has broadened somewhat in the last century. We have learned that one cannot consider the mind as totally isolated from the body, and it now includes the study of human personality and behaviour.
Psychologists also study the behaviour and brain of animals whenever such studies throw light on human behaviour. It is important to realize that psychologists are first and foremost trained as scientists rather than as medical experts, and they do not necessarily take much interest in abnormalities of the brain and mental processes.
As can be inferred from the passage, psychology _____.
A | has in time developed as a branch of medicine |
B | has always been confined to the study of the mind |
C | is not concerned with the mind alone, but also with human personality and behaviour |
D | primarily concentrates on the study of animal behaviour |
E | mostly deals with mental abnormalities |
Question 11 |
In the passages, attention is drawn to the fact that _____.
A | psychologists give great importance to the study of mental processes for medical purposes |
B | psychologists are basically scientists |
C | the body and the mind are separate entities in the eyes of psychologists |
D | the human mind can be best understood through the study of animal behaviour |
E | there have been no noticeable developments in psychology since the last century |
Question 12 |
It is pointed out in the passage that _____.
A | close cooperation between psychologists and medical experts is essential |
B | the study of human behaviour alone is what interests present-day psychologists |
C | as a branch of science, psychology is no longer to be understood in its literal sense |
D | the mind and the body function independently |
E | in recent years psychologists have concentrated mostly on the study of the mind |
Question 13 |
Aid to underdeveloped countries takes many forms and is given for many reasons. Underdeveloped countries need aid to finance development projects, provide the foreign exchange with which imports for development purposes can be bought, and to provide the trained manpower and technical knowledge they lack.
The motives of the donor are not always humanitarian. Aid can take a military form; it can be used to support an incompetent or unjust government. However, aid is not always beneficial to the recipient country. It may be wasted on ill-conceived or prestigious projects, or cause the government simply to relax its own efforts.
In the passage, it is argued that the reasons behind the aid given to underdeveloped countries _____.
A | are always of a military nature |
B | are varied in purpose and in effect |
C | can be disregarded altogether |
D | invariably involved humanitarian principals |
E | relate only to the technical needs of the recipient country |
Question 14 |
One infers from the passage that what is generally referred to as aid _____.
A | usually leads to the overthrow of the government of the recipient country |
B | is in fact, monetary support for development projects only |
C | is actually one country's intervention in another country's internal affairs |
D | does not necessarily benefit the recipient country |
E | can really be regarded as a waste of resources |
Question 15 |
According to the passage, unless they receive aid, underdeveloped countries _____.
A | will lose their worldwide prestige |
B | often face military coups |
C | will be at the mercy of donor countries |
D | will have to rely on foreign technical advice for many years to come |
E | cannot provide money and human recourses for development |
Question 16 |
The practical advantage of prefabrication is two-fold: it is quicker, and it does away with uncertainty. Speed in building is important these days because of the high cost of land. The time during which such an expensive commodity is out of use must be reduced to a minimum.
Partly or wholly prefabricated methods of construction save time on the job because parts are prepared in the factory beforehand. Prefabrication does away with uncertainty because it means that the whole building is made of standard parts, the behaviour of which is known and has been tested.
Since land is extremely valuable it is important that _____.
A | costs do not continue to rise |
B | the building materials should also be expensive |
C | people should not disagree as to the advantages of prefabrication |
D | building costs be reduced to a minimum |
E | it does not remain out of use for long |
Question 17 |
One advantage of using prefabricated parts is that _____.
A | fewer skilled workmen are required |
B | this method is much cheaper than standard methods |
C | less land is required |
D | buildings can be put up much faster |
E | there is more scope for experiment |
Question 18 |
When a building is constructed from standard parts that have been well-tested, _____.
A | there is no scope for originality |
B | one is still not sure how they will behave in a particular situation |
C | new methods of construction are overlooked |
D | one knows in advance that the result will be satisfactory |
E | the costs will naturally be excessively high |
Question 19 |
Computers can store vast amounts of information in a very small space and are used by banks to keep accounts, print out statements, and control transactions. They are also used by the police to keep personal records, fingerprints, and other details.
In the rapidly developing field of robotics, computers are now being used to control manual operations done by machines. These two are taking over work, previously done by people, in the manufacture of cars, in weaving, and other industries.
Computers play an important role in controlling artificial satellites, decoding information, and in communications generally. They are used to predict the weather with increasing accuracy.
One can conclude from the passage that _____.
A | computers have become an indispensable part of our life |
B | despite great advances in computer techniques, they are not proving as useful as once hoped |
C | weather forecasts carried out by computers are not reliable at all |
D | robotics has long been a field of keen scientific interest for man |
E | computerized banking has led to an increase in unemployment |
Question 20 |
The author points out that _____.
A | the industry is turning back to traditional methods of production |
B | the police use computers to make sure that their records are not leaked |
C | the principal use of computers is in space technology |
D | computers are too complex for everyday use |
E | the use of robots, directed by computers, is becoming widespread in the industry |
Question 21 |
The passage is not concerned with _____.
A | the application of computers in industry |
B | how computers are manufactured |
C | the use of computers in communications and the transfer of information |
D | the conservation of information by computers |
E | the role played by computers in crime detection |
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