Mind altering media егэ

What has life proved about electronic technologies according to the author?

1)  Scientists can’t do without them.

2)  They could increase the crime level.

3)  They don’t disrupt brainwork.

4)  Television influences intelligence.

Mind over mass media

New forms of media have always caused moral panic: the printing press, newspapers, and television were all once denounced as threats to their consumers’ brainpower and moral fiber. So too with electronic technologies. PowerPoint, we’re told, is reducing discourse to bullet points. Search engines lower our intelligence, encouraging us to skim on the surface of knowledge rather than dive to its depths. Twitter is shrinking our attention spans.

But such panic often fails basic reality checks. When comic books were accused of turning juveniles into criminals in the 1950s, crime was falling to record lows. The decades of television, transistor radios and rock videos were also decades in which I.Q. scores rose continuously.

For a reality check today, take the state of science, which demands high levels of brainwork. These days scientists are never far from their e-mail, rarely touch paper and cannot lecture without PowerPoint. If electronic media were hazardous to intelligence, the quality of science would be plummeting. Yet discoveries are multiplying like fruit flies, and progress is dizzying.

Critics of new media sometimes use science itself to press their case, citing research that shows how “experience can change the brain”. But cognitive neuroscientists roll their eyes at such talk. Experience does not remake the basic information-processing capacities of the brain. Speed-reading programs have long claimed to do just that, but the verdict was rendered by Woody Allen after he read “War and Peace” in one sitting: “It was about Russia.”

Moreover, the effects of experience are highly specific to the experiences themselves. If you train people to do one thing, they get better at doing that thing, but almost nothing else. Music doesn’t make you better at math. Accomplished people immerse themselves in their fields. Novelists read lots of novels, scientists read lots of science.

The effects of consuming electronic media are also likely to be far more limited than the panic implies. Media critics write as if the brain takes on the qualities of whatever it consumes, the informational equivalent of “you are what you eat”. As with primitive peoples who believe that eating fierce animals will make them fierce, they assume that reading Twitter postings turns your thoughts into Twitter postings.

Yes, the continual arrival of information packets can be distracting or addictive. But distraction is not a new phenomenon. The solution is to develop strategies of self-control. Turn off Twitter when you work and put away your smartphone at dinner time.

And to encourage intellectual depth, don’t rail at PowerPoint or Google. It’s not as if habits of deep reflection or thorough research ever came naturally to people. They must be acquired in universities, and maintained with constant analysis, criticism and debate. They are not granted by propping a heavy encyclopedia on your lap, nor are they taken away by efficient access to information on the Internet.

The new media have caught on for a reason. Knowledge is increasing exponentially; human brainpower and waking hours are not. Fortunately, the Internet and information technologies are helping us manage and search our collective intellectual output at different scales, from Twitter to e-books and online encyclopedias. Far from making us stupid, these technologies are the only things that will keep us smart.

2

Вы услышите диалог. Определите, какие из приведённых утверждений А—G соответствуют содержанию текста (1 — True), какие не соответствуют (2 — False) и о чём в тексте не сказано, то есть на основании текста нельзя дать ни положительного, ни отрицательного ответа (3 — Not stated). Занесите номер выбранного вами варианта ответа в таблицу. Вы услышите запись дважды.

A Ricky’s songs are about the lives of famous people.

B The message in Ricky’s songs is difficult to understand.

C Ricky’s popularity is on the increase.

D Money is unimportant to Ricky.

E Ricky has followed the advice of some of his fans.

F Ricky thinks his fans are disappointed when they meet him.

G Ricky is anxious about his new album.

Вы услышите выступление специалиста по проблемам ядерной энергии. В заданиях 3—9 запишите в поле ответа цифру 1, 2 или 3, соответствующую выбранному Вами варианту ответа. Вы услышите запись дважды.

3

According to the narrator, nuclear power
1) is a solution to climate change.
2) is protected against climate change.
3) can be susceptible to climate change.
Ответ: .

4

Nuclear power plants are usually located

Ответ: .

5

Nuclear power plants face the greatest danger from

Ответ: .

6

During hurricanes,
1) preventive measures are always taken.
2) all doors in a nuclear plant should be left open.
3) safety equipment must be protected from flying debris.
Ответ: .

7

In the future, floods are going to become

Ответ: .

8

During the 2003 heat wave, the French government relaxed the environmental regulations

3) to reduce their power output.

Ответ: .

9

New nuclear reactors are likely

3) to have higher water requirements.

Ответ: .

Раздел 2. ЧТЕНИЕ

10

Установите соответствие между заголовками 1—8 и текстами A—G. Занесите свои ответы в таблицу. Используйте каждую цифру только один раз. В задании один заголовок лишний.

A. Developing healthy eating habits is simpler and easier than you might think. You will look and feel better if you make a habit of eating healthfully. You will have more energy and your immune system will be stronger. When you eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables you are lowering your risk of heart disease, cancers and many other serious health ailments. Healthy eating habits are your ticket to a healthier body and mind.

B. A four-week clinical trial that tested the new regimen found that overweight adults who consumed a high-protein, entirely vegan diet were able to lose about the same amount of weight as a comparison group of dieters on a high-carbohydrate, low-fat vegetarian dairy diet. But while those on the high-carbohydrate dairy diet experienced drops of 12 percent in their cholesterol, those on the high-protein vegan diet saw cholesterol reductions of 20 percent.

C. ‘The idea preyed on me for a long time. If the Atkins Diet looks good, and it’s got so much saturated fat and cholesterol in it, suppose we took that out and put vegetarian protein sources in, which may lower cholesterol,’ Dr. Jenkins said. ‘We know that nuts lower cholesterol and prevent heart disease, and soy is eaten in the Far East, where they don’t get much heart disease. So we put these foods together as protein and fat sources.’

D. The first official warning about the dangers of the Atkins diet was issued by the government amid concern about the rising number of people opting for the high-fat, high-protein diet. Cutting out starchy foods can be bad for your health because you could be missing out on a range of nutrients. Low-carbohydrate diets tend to be high in fat, and this could increase your chances of developing coronary heart disease.

E. Earlier this year, a large study that compared different kinds of diets — including low-fat and low-carbohydrate plans — found that the method didn’t matter as long as people cut calories. That study also found that after two years, most people had regained at least some of the weight they had lost. Dr. Tuttle said that while different weight loss plans offer people different ‘tricks’ and strategies, ultimately, ‘It really comes down to calories in and calories out.’

F. When you think about nutrition, be aware of serving sizes. Many people will eat everything on their plate, regardless of how hungry they actually are. If you know you tend to clean your plate, make an effort to reduce your serving size. If you’re eating out or dining at a friend’s house, don’t be shy about asking for smaller portion sizes. Too much of any one food is a bad thing. There are no bad foods, just bad eating habits.

G. Your body has to stay well hydrated to perform at its best and to properly process all the nutrients in the food you eat. Drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. You may need even more water if you are in a hot environment or if you are exercising. If you are trying to lose weight, add plenty of ice to each glass of water. Your body will burn energy to warm the water up to body temperature.

11

Прочитайте текст и заполните пропуски A—F частями предложений, обозначенными цифрами 1—7. Одна из частей в списке 1—7 лишняя. Занесите цифру, обозначающую соответствующую часть предложения, в таблицу. (в поля ввода под текстом)

Stonehenge is probably the most important prehistoric monument in Britain. The Stonehenge that we see today is the final stage A ____________. But first let us look back 5,000 years.

The first Stonehenge was a large earthwork or Henge, comprising a ditch, bank, and the Aubrey holes, all probably built around 3100 BC. The Aubrey holes are round pits in the chalk, about one metre wide and deep, B ____________. Excavations have revealed cremated human bones in some of the chalk filling, but the holes themselves were probably made not for the purpose of graves but as part of the religious ceremony. Shortly after this stage Stonehenge was abandoned, left untouched for over 1000 years.

The second and most dramatic stage of Stonehenge started around 2150 BC. Some 82 bluestones from south-west Wales were transported to the site. It is thought that these stones, some weighing 4 tonnes each, were dragged on rollers and sledges to the headwaters and then loaded onto rafts. This astonishing journey covered nearly 240 miles. Once at the site, these stones were set up in the centre C ____________.

The third stage of Stonehenge, about 2000 BC, saw the arrival of the Sarsen stones. The largest of the Sarsen stones weigh 50 tonnes and transportation by water would have been impossible D ____________. These stones were arranged in an outer circle with a continuous run of lintels. Inside the circle, five trilithons were placed in a horseshoe arrangement, E ____________.

The final stage took place soon after 1500 BC F ____________. The original number of stones in the bluestone circle was probably around sixty. They have long since been removed or broken up. Some remain only as stumps below ground level.

1. when the bluestones were rearranged in the horseshoe and circle that we see today
2. to form an incomplete double circle
3. which form a circle about 284 feet in diameter
4. which were almost certainly brought from the Marlborough Downs
5. so the stones could only have been moved using sledges and ropes
6. whose remains we can still see today
7. that was completed about 3,500 years ago

Прочитайте текст и выполните задания 12—18. В каждом задании запишите в поле ответа цифру 1, 2, 3 или 4, соответствующую выбранному Вами варианту ответа.

My room faces the sun in the morning and on clear summer mornings it wakes me bright and fresh, no matter what time I stayed up till. I get up and make breakfast, watch TV, have a shower. If it’s before six in the morning, I usually have a cup of tea and go back to bed where I’ll doze until seven. If I stay at my sister’s, I sleep until the kids wake me or until she comes rolling in, poured from the back of some taxi, whichever is earlier. I’m an early riser, and a dead sleeper.

This morning I wake up with a twitch, like the alarm clock in my head has given me a little electric jolt. It isn’t sunny outside. I pull back the curtains and the sky is dark grey, the same colour as the sea and it looks like the sun won’t appear before tomorrow. Today is Dad’s birthday. Every year on my Dad’s birthday I draw a picture of him and each year he looks a bit different. I’m an artist. There, I said it. It’s not that I draw a straighter line or a truer circle, as they try to teach us to do at school. I just get the message across more clearly than other people. More truthfully. I know it.

I read a lot of books too, mainly about artists, and I go through phases when I like a certain artist or a movement. And I try to paint like them. When my dad comes back, I’ll be able to say ‘this is you when I was twelve and I was in love with Monet’ or ‘this is you on your thirty-eighth birthday, when I was fourteen and I wanted to paint like Dante Gabriel Rossetti.’ And he’ll look at each painting and know that I loved him and never forgot him.

At the moment I’m into lines, simple lines. It’s a development of a six month obsession I had with calligraphy, which came out of a phase I had with cartoons, which came from Liechtenstein and Warhol, and so on all the way back. So I get out my charcoals, and a couple of sticks of chalk and I pin a heavy sheet of grey A3 paper onto a board and rest it on my knee as I sit on the bed.

On Saturday mornings when my Mum worked, he’d take me to town and I’d drag him around the art shops. On my eighth birthday he bought me an easel, a real one, not a kiddie’s. On my ninth birthday he bought me oils. On my sixth birthday he bought me a box of 99 crayons. ‘Draw me,’ he’d say. ‘Oh, Dad, I can’t.’ Some mornings I’d wake up and there’d be a book on my pillow about Picasso, or Chagall.

I should go to school, I really should. I’m not one of those kids who are scared to go. I don’t get bullied and I’m not thick. I just can’t find a good reason to waste my day in a classroom studying physics or citizenship or Buddhism. I could learn them in the library. Phil, the head of year eleven, will bollock me for it tomorrow, if I go in. I’ll tell Phil the truth, it was my Dad’s birthday and I spent it with him.

So I spend some time thinking about his hair, which I think is probably no more grey than it was last year. I know hair doesn’t age at the same speed every year, but I make his hair longer this year. And in my mind’s eye I give him an extra few pounds too. But I keep the smile fixed in my head, maybe a little muted, like it is when he’s happy but distracted, or trying to understand me when I’m babbling to him.

It’s head and shoulders, so I’ll put him in a T-shirt that shows his neck and throat and how strong he is and how his eyes sparkle and how his eyebrows are dead level straight and still black. I try to think of how much I want to show and how much I want to tell. Then I pick up a charcoal stick and do it. I pick up a chalk to add a suggestion of colour to his eyes, then another chalk for his mouth. And there he is. Dad.

(Adapted from ‘It’s Just the Sun Rising’ by James Ross)

12

That morning the narrator was woken up by

Ответ: .

13

The narrator considers himself to be an artist because
1) he can draw a straighter line and a truer circle.
2) he gets lots of messages from other people.
3) he can speak to people more truthfully.
4) he is able to convey his ideas better than other people.
Ответ: .

14

The narrator’s manner of painting
1) is similar to Monet’s.
2) is like Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s.
3) comes from Liechtenstein and Warhol.
4) is constantly changing.
Ответ: .

15

The narrator was encouraged to paint by

Ответ: .

16

The narrator doesn’t want to go to school because

Ответ: .

17

In paragraph 6 ‘I’m not thick’ means that the narrator is

Ответ: .

18

Compared to the previous year, the narrator’s father

Ответ: .

Раздел 3. ГРАММАТИКА И ЛЕКСИКА

Прочитайте приведённый ниже текст. Преобразуйте, если необходимо, слова, напечатанные заглавными буквами в конце строк, обозначенных номерами 19—25, так, чтобы они грамматически соответствовали содержанию текстов. Заполните пропуски полученными словами. Каждый пропуск соответствует отдельному заданию из группы 19—25.

Обратите внимание, что по правилам ЕГЭ ответы нужно писать без пробелов и других знаков, например, правильный ответ ‘have done’ нужно будет записать как ‘havedone’, иначе ваш ответ не засчитается.

What Can Computers Do?

Прочитайте приведённый ниже текст. Образуйте от слов, напечатанных заглавными буквами в конце строк, обозначенных номерами 26—31, однокоренные слова так, чтобы они грамматически и лексически соответствовали содержанию текста. Заполните пропуски полученными словами. Каждый пропуск соответствует отдельному заданию из группы 26—31.

A Challenge for Europe

Прочитайте текст с пропусками, обозначенными номерами 32—38. Эти номера соответствуют заданиям 32—38, в которых представлены возможные варианты ответов. Запишите в поле ответа цифру 1, 2, 3 или 4, соответствующую выбранному Вами варианту ответа.

Charity

A lot of people in our world have little or no money at all. Many of them are homeless and can’t enjoy what most of us take for 32____. They need our help and there are a lot of charity organizations to help poor people. Because of charities many homeless people have shelters, hungry children have been fed, a lot of diseases have already been 33____ and many animals are safe.

Around the world there are a lot of children who suffer from different diseases, running 34____ time and hope. The biggest charity project in Russia is ‘Contribution to the Future’ whose goal is to help any child in need. Its programmes help poor, homeless and disabled children.

There are a lot of people in the world who have chosen charity as their main mission in life. One of the most famous missionaries was Mother Teresa. She lived the hard life of the poor alongside them; she knew how it felt sleeping on hard floors and living on dirty streets. And because she was experiencing 35____ what the people she was helping were going through, she so effectively knew how to give. Besides meeting people’s basic physical needs by giving them food and medicine, she met people’s emotional needs as well.

A lot of rich people also feel the necessity to help the poor. For example, Bill Gates is a famous billionaire, but he is also a noted philanthropist who donated the proceeds of his successful books to 36____ educational organizations. He has also given millions to initiatives in global health and learning, hoping to 37____ more and more people to have access to 38____ facilities in these areas. A good example is the opening of ‘The School of the Future’ in Philadelphia, sponsored by his company ‘Microsoft’.

The spirit of philanthropy is not about what or how much you give but rather about the feeling that you are helping others in need.

32

Ответ: .

33

Ответ: .

34

Ответ: .

35

Ответ: .

36

Ответ: .

37

Ответ: .

38

Ответ: .

Ваш результат: пока 0.

1 variant

1. A uniform makes
the school a better organized place.

2. Uniforms help
improve the discipline at schools.

3. Uniforms can
help prevent crimes at school.

4. Uniforms will
not make life at school better.

5. Uniforms can
teach students how to behave professionally.

6. Getting used to
uniforms is good for a future career.

7. Uniforms make
students focus more on their learning.

A. Jake succeeded
in his school-leaving exams.

B. Jake has an
elder brother.

C. Jake wants to
teach the subject Miss Clark teaches.

D. Miss Clark is
surprised with Jake’s career choice.

E. Jake doesn’t
believe in the abilities of every student.

F. Miss Clark
thinks Jake’s made the right choice.

G. Miss Clark
isn’t happy to hear Jake’s words.

A	B	C	D	E	F	G

3.  What do we
learn about Alice at the beginning of the interview?

1) She has an
Academy award already.

2) She’s 18 years
old.

3) She was born in
Brazil.

4. At present,
Nigel’s main ambition is to work on …

1) trans-Atlantic
flights.

2) popular
international flights.

3) local flights.

5. What is necessary
to understand one’s dreams?

1) Communicating
with people.

2) Deep
self-reflexion.

3) Analyzing
others’ plans.

6. The reason for
buying a plastic camera was that it

1) allowed him to
take original pictures.

2) was not very
expensive.

3) was light to
carry around.

7. “The Ecological
Calendar” is

1) completely
identical to “the Book of Days”.

2) absolutely
different from “the Book of Days”.

3) partly similar
to “the Book of Days”.

8. If Amy hadn’t
become an actress, her parents would have

1) understood and
supported her.

2) been displeased
with her.

3) insisted on her
joining the family business.

9. Chris thinks that
dancers are great to work with because they

1) are lively and
enthusiastic.

2) can cope with
any problem.

3) can work long
hours.

1. Reasons to be afraid 2. Fight your fear 3. A place of wonders 4. How to say thank you

5. Visiting for wild life and animals 6. Learn to be grateful 7. It’s never late to learn 8. Reading non-verbal language

A. Nowadays when
it’s all too easy to send an email or text, the best way to show that you are
grateful to somebody is to actually mail a hand-written card. The person who
gets it will know you took the extra time and thought to write a card and put
it in the mail with a nice stamp. That person will appreciate your efforts much
more. Plus, you’ll get the added bonus of feeling grateful a little longer than
usual as you write out each note and wait for it to arrive.

B. Music is a noble
passion, and people who can play a musical instrument have always been seen as
intelligent people. Learning how to play a musical instrument is far more
efficient if you do it in childhood. However, there are millions of adults who
learn to enjoy music throughout their lives. Moreover, they don’t focus on just
one instrument, but specialize in two or even more, if they have the time and
the necessary ambition.

C. Millions of
people avoid air travel each year because of their fear of flying. The fear of
accidents happening is probably the most common fear among air travellers. It
is an understandable fear, since there have been many aviation accidents
throughout history. Some people may have a fear that the plane has some type of
malfunction or breakdown, while others may have a fear that the weather or
turbulance will affect the plane.

D. Try to understand
that being scared is just an illusion that makes you limited and miserable.
Take control of your mind and don’t let your imagination create frightening
pictures in your head. If you cannot deal with it, you should make attempts to
leave your comfort zone. Choose things and activities you are afraid of and
meet your worries face to face, because it is impossible to run away from them.
Just face your troubles no matter how powerful they may seem.

E. When you get
chronically bored with something, your mind gets used to seeing the world
negatively. It is necessary to break the chain of negative thoughts and train
your mind to notice the best. Just write down 5 things you are thankful for.
This way, your mind will change for the better in a while. The thankfulness
will open your eyes to the beauty of the world around you and will help you to
focus on positive moments in your life.

F. If you go to Ireland,
go to isolated distant places in the country, talk to the locals and they will
tell you the stories about the mythical Irish place, called the Otherworld.
They believe that it is the land of paradise and happiness. In Irish poetry and
tales, it is described as a series of islands near Ireland where the various
fairytale creatures lived. Also the Otherworld seemed to be able to move from
one location to another.

G. Many people can
understand the nature of character without talking to the person they are
interested in. The gestures and postures usually reflect the mood and the level
of the person’s confidence. It’s easy to notice a highly confident person even
in a big group of people. They stand in one place without constant moving from
place to place, and they always make eye contact with the person they are
talking to.

Peter and Paul
Fortress

The
Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg, located on small Hare Island, is the
historic core of the city. The history of St. Petersburg begins with the
history of the fortress.

Since
1700 Russia had been fighting the Northern War against Sweden. By 1703 the
lands by the Neva River were conquered. To protect them from the attacks of the
Swedes it was necessary to build a strong outpost here. The fortress was
founded on Hare Island 16 (27) May, 1703 by joint plan of Peter I and French
engineer Joseph-Gaspard Lambert de Guerin. This day is well known
A_______________________.

The
fortress stretches from west to east with six bastions B_______________________.
The Peter’s Gate on the east side, C_____________________, has remained since
the time of Peter I. The Peter and Paul Cathedral, D_______________________
emperors and the monument of Russian baroque, was completed after the death of
the emperor, in 1733. The weathervane as a golden angel with a cross,
E_______________________, is one of the main symbols of the city. On the
opposite side of the cathedral, there is the Mint building, constructed in the
time of Paul I by architect A. Porto. Coinage was moved to the fortress
F_______________________ in the time of Peter I. The Peter and Paul Fortress
has never directly participated in any fighting. From the very beginning of its
existence it was used as a political prison. Since 1924 the Peter and Paul Fortress
has been a part of the Museum of the History of St. Petersburg.

1. as the day of
the birth of St. Petersburg

2. which was
designed by D. Trezzini

3. which was the
burial place of Russian

4. and reminding
of the rich history of the city

5. as the most protected
part of the city

6. which is
located on the spire of the cathedral

7. that are
located at the corners

Mind over mass media

New forms of media have always caused
moral panic: the printing press, newspapers, and television were all once
denounced as threats to their consumers’ brainpower and moral fiber. So too
with electronic technologies. PowerPoint, we’re told, is reducing discourse to
bullet points. Search engines lower our intelligence, encouraging us to skim on
the surface of knowledge rather than dive to its depths. Twitter is shrinking
our attention spans.

But such panic often fails basic reality
checks. When comic books were accused of turning juveniles into criminals in
the 1950s, crime was falling to record lows. The decades of television,
transistor radios and rock videos were also decades in which I.Q. scores rose
continuously.

For a reality check today, take the state
of science, which demands high levels of brainwork. These days scientists are
never far from their e-mail, rarely touch paper and cannot lecture without
PowerPoint. If electronic media were hazardous to intelligence, the quality of
science would be plummeting. Yet discoveries are multiplying like fruit flies,
and progress is dizzying.

Critics of new media sometimes use science
itself to press their case, citing research that shows how “experience can
change the brain”. But cognitive neuroscientists roll their eyes at such talk.
Experience does not remake the basic information-processing capacities of the
brain. Speed-reading programs have long claimed to do just that, but the
verdict was rendered by Woody Allen after he read “War and Peace” in one
sitting: “It was about Russia.”

Moreover, the effects of experience are
highly specific to the experiences themselves. If you train people to do one
thing, they get better at doing that thing, but almost nothing else. Music
doesn’t make you better at math. Accomplished people immerse themselves in
their fields. Novelists read lots of novels, scientists read lots of science.

The effects of consuming electronic media
are also likely to be far more limited than the panic implies. Media critics
write as if the brain takes on the qualities of whatever it consumes, the
informational equivalent of “you are what you eat”. As with primitive peoples
who believe that eating fierce animals will make them fierce, they assume that
reading Twitter postings turns your thoughts into Twitter postings.

Yes, the continual arrival of information
packets can be distracting or addictive. But distraction is not a new
phenomenon. The solution is to develop strategies of self-control. Turn off
Twitter when you work and put away your smart phone at dinner time.

And to encourage intellectual depth, don’t
rail at PowerPoint or Google. It’s not as if habits of deep reflection or
thorough research ever came naturally to people. They must be acquired in universities,
and maintained with constant analysis, criticism and debate. They are not
granted by propping a heavy encyclopedia on your lap, nor are they taken away
by efficient access to information on the Internet.

The new media have caught on for a reason.
Knowledge is increasing exponentially; human brainpower and waking hours are
not. Fortunately, the Internet and information technologies are helping us
manage and search our collective intellectual output at different scales, from
Twitter to e-books and online encyclopedias. Far from making us stupid, these
technologies are the only things that will keep us smart.

12. At the beginning
of the article the author reminds that the new media technologies …

1) turn our
attention off morals.

2) used to
frighten the majority of people.

3) improve human
brainpower.

4) could make
people less intelligent.

13. What has life
proved about electronic technologies according to the author?

1) Scientists
can’t do without them.

2) They could
increase the crime level.

3) They don’t
disrupt brainwork.

4) Television
influences intelligence.

14. According to the
author, the arguments of the critics of new media make neuroscientists feel …

1) annoyed.

2) amused.

3) surprised.

4) confused.

15. What does the example
of Woody Allen’s reading of “War and Peace” illustrate?

1) Scientific
research of brain supports critics of new media.

2) Technology
hardly influences the way brain deals with information.

3) Experience with
technology is significant for intellectual abilities.

4) Speed-reading
programs improve information-processing.

16. The phrasal verb
“takes on” in “Media critics write as if the brain takes on the qualities …”
(paragraph 6) is closest in meaning to …

1) adapts.

2) changes.

3) acquires.

4) rejects.

17.Which negative
effect of information flood does the author recognize?

1) Inefficient
access to data.

2) Lack of
self-control.

3) Continuous
distraction.

4) Shallow
mindedness.

18. What idea is
expressed in the last paragraph?

1) New media help
us keep up with life.

2) Human knowledge
is developing too fast.

3) New media are
the result of collective brainwork.

4) There are
different ways to manage knowledge.

Did
you know?

19	Here are some interesting facts about Australia. Canberra __________________ as the capital because Sydney and Melbourne could not stop arguing which city should be the capital of Australia.	CHOOSE
20	The sports capital of the world has 70 percent of __________________ total population participating at least once a week in a particular recreational activity or sport.	IT
21	80 % of Australians believe Australia has a strong culture and identity characterized by honesty, sports and multiculturalism based on research __________________ by the Australia Day Council of NSW in 2008.	ORGANISE

The
wolf and the goat

22	A hungry wolf was out searching for a meal. He __________________ a goat feeding on grass on top of a high cliff. The wolf wished to get the goat to climb down from the rock and into his grasp and he called out to her.	SEE
23	“Excuse me, dear Goat,” he said in a friendly voice, “It is very dangerous for you to be at such a height. Do come down before you injure yourself. Besides, the grass is much __________________ down here. Take my advice, and please come down from that high cliff.”	GREEN
24	But the goat knew too well of the wolf’s intent. “You __________________ if I eat good grass or bad.	NOT CARE
25	What you care about is __________________ me.”	EAT

Texas
Rodeo

26	The rodeo is a really exciting event. It is a thrilling ________________ between cowboys from all over the country.	COMPETE
27	It has a long tradition and even today there are rodeo schools which keep it alive and __________________.	PROFESSION
28	The rodeo is a spectacular sight. If a __________________ has a place in the first row of the arena, he or she may even be sprinkled with sand by the passing horses.	VISIT
29	The __________________ usually starts with an opening ceremony by horsemen dressed in bright colours and carrying flags.	PERFORM
30	All through the show the master of the ceremony __________________ jokes with special clowns.	CONSTANT
31	A rodeo in Texas is certainly an exciting experience which is practically __________________ for a tourist to forget.	POSSIBLE

How to become a good leader

Being a good leader takes work. It
is not hard at all to 32 ______ the difference between a good and a bad boss.
Exceptional leaders – those who are respected and 33 ______ by their team –
have a lot of secret skills that they put to use every day.

Firstly, building relationships –
both with your team and your partners – is crucial in leading a team. That
means your success depends greatly 34 ______ interpersonal skills and emotional
intelligence. Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize, understand,
and manage our emotions, as well as understand the emotions of others. It’s a
part of how we navigate social situations and then make decisions to 35 ______
goals. Several studies have found that a strong emotional intelligence is a top
factor for a leader’s success. 36 ______ to the research, managers with the
strongest emotional intelligence were much more likely to succeed.

Exceptional leaders are ones who
regularly 37 ______ employees of the main goal. A team needs to know what
they’re marching toward. With a larger vision in mind, their day-to-day work
has more purpose.

Great leaders 38 ______ sure their
daily behavior is a model for their team. They’re reliable (meaning they always
follow through on what they’ve promised), they respect people’s time (meaning
they don’t make others wait unnecessarily), and they retain a thoughtful,
objective approach to problems or issues.

32. 1) speak     2)
talk     3) tell     4) say

33. 1) amazed     2)
impressed     3) enjoyed     4) admired

34. 1) in     2) on    
3) from     4) for

35. 1) worshiped     2)
admired     3) beloved     4) fancied

36. 1) Regarding     2)
Concerning     3) Including     4) According

37. 1) review     2)
revise     3) recall     4) remind

38. 1) hold     2)
make     3) take     4) keep

39. You have received
a letter from your English-speaking pen-friend Molly who writes:

     I looked
after my little sister. Do you think babysitting is a hard work? Do you agree
to look after kids when parents ask you to do it? Would you like to be a single
child in the family? Why?

    Moreover, I’m
going to visit New York with my cousin soon and stay there for a week.

Write a letter to
Molly.

In your letter

— answer her
questions

— ask 3
questions about her visit to New York.

 Write 100–140
words.

Remember the rules
of letter writing.

40. Comment on the
following statement.

Space exploration was the greatest
achievement of the 20^th century.

What is your
opinion? Do you agree with this statement?

Write 200–250
words.

Use the following
plan:

— make an
introduction (state the problem)

— express your
personal opinion and give 2–3 reasons for your opinion

— express an
opposing opinion and give 1–2 reasons for this opposing opinion

— explain why you
don’t agree with the opposing opinion

— make a
conclusion restating your position

41.

Imagine that you are preparing a project
with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation
and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the
text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than
1.5 minutes to read it.

42.

Study the advertisement.

 You are considering joining the
Chess Club and now you’d like to get more information. In 1.5 minutes you are
to ask five direct questions to find out about the following:

1) activities

2) training
courses

3) membership fee

4) location

5) getting to the
place

You have 20
seconds to ask each question.

43.

These are photos from your photo album.
Choose one photo to describe to your friend.

 You will have to start
speaking in 1.5 minutes and will speak for not more than 2 minutes (12–15
sentences). In your talk remember to speak about:

• where and when
the photo was taken

• what/who is in
the photo

• what is
happening

• why you keep the
photo in your album

• why you decided
to show the picture to your friend

You have to talk
continuously, starting with: «I’ve chosen photo number… «

44.

Study the two photographs. In 1.5 minutes
be ready to compare and contrast the photographs:

• give a brief
description of the photos (action, location)

• say what the
pictures have in common

• say in what way
the pictures are different

• say which of the
activities presented in the pictures you’d prefer

• explain why

You will speak for not more than 2 minutes
(12–15 sentences). You have to talk continuously.

 

1.Speaker A
I honestly support school uniforms and let me explain why. I think one of the problems
our current generation is facing is that they are all influenced by gang culture.
It is the root cause of numerous evils at schools, and many people from my school
are members in the so-called school gangs. With uniforms, I believe, there are not
so many chances for conflicts and violence. Besides, it creates a healthy team
culture and harmony on campus.
Speaker B
I think when a person hears the word ‘school’, the first two things that come
to mind are discipline and rules. Everybody knows that we kids love to break
rules and it is hard to make us obey. Almost daily at schools, it is common to
spend some time making us obey certain rules and disciplining us. Making us
wear a uniform is a part of it but I don’t think there’s any point in trying to
do so because kids will be kids. They never obey.
Speaker C
My school has a dress code which is not exactly a uniform and some students
treat this too creatively. Every morning our teachers start to check our
clothes and so on. This happens during the first class so I think a lot of
valuable lesson time could be saved if we had a strict uniform policy at
school. People in charge would not have to worry about checking what each and
every student is wearing and whether it’s acceptable or not.
Speaker D
My school doesn’t have a uniform and I don’t like it. You may be surprised but look
– the best schools in the country do have uniforms and nobody there minds that!
I think a uniform creates a sense of belonging and a feeling of pride amongst students
towards their institution. I think students wearing a school uniform are more
likely to develop a sense of community spirit which can be later quite useful at
work with teambuilding and things like that.
Speaker E
I think school isn’t about studies now. It’s more about hanging out at the
canteen, and playing music but you rarely hear anyone having a good
conversation about a lecture. I wish we had a uniform to help us concentrate
more on our studies. When all students are wearing a similar outfit, they are
less concerned about what other people are wearing. They tend to bond nicely
with peers and can create an environment where they can learn in a group.
Speaker F
I support uniforms because I think they are useful for my future career. Dress codes
and uniforms are a part of practically every job now. Professionalism is very important
as we grow up and especially when we enter a corporate setup. Of course, I
understand that there are no uniforms in some offices but I believe professionalism
is what uniform-friendly children are better at than casually dressed kids. So
I don’t mind wearing a uniform to school.

A3 — they
(generation) are influenced by gang culture… it’s the root cause of numerous
evels at schools… with uniforms I believe there is not so many chances for
conflicts and violence.

B4 —
…disciplining us, making us wear a uniform is a part of it. There is no point
in trying to do so. Kids will be kids. They never obey.

C1 — A lot of
valuable lesson time could be saved if we had a strict uniform policy at
school. People in charge would not have to worry about checking what
each and every student is wearing and whether it is acceptable or not.

D6 — The best
schools in the country do have uniforms. A uniform creates a sense of
belonging, a feeling of pride among students towards their institution. I
think students wearing a uniform are more likely to develop a sense of
community spirit which can be later quite useful at work with team building
and things like that.

E7 — …school is
not about studies now… it’s about hanging out at the canteen… rarely hear a
good conversation about a lecture. I wish we had a uniform to help us
concentrate more on our studies.

F5 — I support uniforms because I think
they are useful for my future career. Professionalism is very important as
we grow up. Professionalism is something uniform friendly children are better
at than casually dressed kids.

Ответ: 341675

2. Расшифровка
записи
Teacher: Hello, Jake. You look great
today.
Jake: Good evening, Miss Clark. Thank you for the compliment.
Teacher: I hope you’ll enjoy the party. After all, your classmates and you have
certainly deserved it. You worked so hard during the academic year, and you passed
your exams with flying colours. My colleagues and I are so proud of you all.
Jake: Oh, Miss Clark, of course we did a good job, but we are very grateful to
our teachers. If not for you, our results wouldn’t be so good.
Teacher: It’s good to know that. Thank you. So, Jake, what are you going to do after
the prom? Are you going to have a gap year?
Jake: Most of my classmates are going to travel somewhere, but I won’t be able
to join them. I’m going straight to college.
Teacher: Why? Don’t you like to travel?
Jake: Of course, I do. Everybody likes to travel, don’t they? It’s just that
this summer isn’t a good time to do it because I’ll have to help my brother.
He’s just had surgery, you know.
Teacher: I hope your brother is doing fine. How did the operation go?
Jake: It all went fine, thank you. The full recovery will take some time, but
he’ll be absolutely fine in a couple of months.
Teacher: Oh, that’s excellent news. So, what college did you choose?
Jake: I’m going to Birmingham University. I want to be a teacher, like you.
Teacher: Really? I would never have thought you had chosen this career.
Jake: Well, I think it’s the most rewarding job in the world, so …
Teacher: It is, but mind you, not every student will succeed in your class. Sometimes,
when one of your students fails, you blame yourself for it.
Jake: I think that’s true about many jobs, like doctors, for instance. I
believe that
every student has the potential for success and it’ll be so exciting because
each
new academic year will present new challenges and new potential successes.
Teacher: Well, Jake, if you are able to look at it that way, teaching is
definitely
Jake: Thank you, Miss Clark. It’s you and your colleagues who have inspired me.
Teacher: Thank you. Now it’s high time for you to join your friends, and it’s
time
for me to wipe away the tears – your words are so touching.
Jake: Sorry if I’ve upset you.
Teacher: No, that’s fine. It’s always good to hear such things, you know. See
you
later, Jake.
Jake: See you.

A1 — Miss Clark: You passed your exams with
flying colours (фразеологизм, означает «прекрасно«).

B3 — Джейк будет помогать брату
после операции, то есть брат у него есть, но ничего не сказано о его возрасте.

С3 — I want to be a teacher like
you. Джейк
хочет стать учителем, но не сказано, того же предмета, что и мисс Кларк или
нет.

D1 — I would never have thought you
had chosen that career. (Учительница удивлена, говорит, что
никогда бы не подумала…)

E2 — Every student has a potential for
success. (Джейк
как раз верит в способности каждого).

F1 — Teaching is definitely your cup of
tea. (Фразеологизм,
означает «то, что подходит.»)

G2 — Your words are so touching. It’s
always good to hear such things. (Мисс Кларк тронута, ей приятно слышать
такие слова ученика.) 

Ответ: 1331212

10. A4
— the best way to show that you are grateful to somebody is to actually mail a
hand-written card.

B7 — However, there are millions of adults
who learn to enjoy music throughout their lives.

C1 — Some people may have a fear
that the plane has some type of malfunction or breakdown, while others may
have a fear that the weather or turbulance will affect the plane.

D2 — Take control of your mind and don’t
let your imagination create frightening pictures in your head.

E6 — write down 5 things you are thankful
for. This way, your mind will change for the better in a while.

F3 — the land of paradise and happiness…
where the various fairytale creatures lived.

G8 — Many people can understand the nature
of character without talking. he gestures and postures usually reflect the mood
and the level of the person’s confidence.

 11. A1
— Этот день хорошо известен «как день основания города»

B7 — bastions — множественное
число. Нужен фрагмент, согласующийся с существительным во множественном числе,
описывающий эти бастионы. that ARE located.

C2 — пропущенный отрывок —
non-defying clause, уточняющее придаточное, выделяется запятыми, может быть
убрано из предложения без потери смысла, дает дополнительную информацию.

D3 — после пропуска идет слово
emperors, императоры. Предыдущий фрагмент связан по смыслу и грамматике.

E6 — Weathervane — флюгер, может быть только на шпиле (spire of the
cathedral).

F5 — Пропущенный фрагмент
объясняет, почему монетный двор был переведен в крепость.

 Ответ:
172365

12. New forms of media have always caused
moral panic: the printing press, newspapers, and
television were all once denounced as threats to their consumers’ brainpower
and moral fiber.

Правильный ответ указан под номером
2.

13. The decades of
television, transistor radios and rock videos were also decades in which I.Q.
scores rose continuously. If electronic media were hazardous to
intelligence, the quality of science would be plummeting. Yet discoveries are
multiplying like fruit flies, and progress is dizzying.

14. «neuroscientists roll
their eyes at such talk.» Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English:To
roll one’s eyes means to show that you are really annoyed or think
something is silly. To roll one’s eyes — закатывать глаза,
показывая, что вас что-то раздражает или вы считаете услышанное глупостью.

Правильный ответ указан под номером
1.