You will hear a number of
different recordings and you have to answer questions on what you hear. There
will be time for you to read the instructions and you will have a chance to
check your answers. The recordings will be heard only once. The test is in four
sections. Record all your answers in your test book and at the end of the test
you will be given 10 minutes to transfer your answers to a special answer
sheet.
Now turn to Section 1
You will hear a policeman
giving a talk to some students. First you will have some time to look at
questions 1 to 6 (pause for 30 seconds). You will see that there has been an
example written for you. On this occasion only the conversation relating to the
example will be played first (listen to example being played).
Sergeant Brown is going to
speak about safety so answer B has been circled on the question page. Now
we will begin. You should answer the questions as you listen as you will not
hear the recording a second time. Listen to the talk carefully and answer
questions 1 to 6.
- [man]:
… and so I’d like to hand you over now to Sergeant Brown. Thank you.
- [2nd
man]: Thank you, Mr Fogarty. Er, yes, as you know my name is Sergeant Jeff
Brown, and as Mr Fogarty has indicated, I’ll be speaking to you briefly
today about security, about how to make your time at this university safer
and more comfortable.
I
am officially the university liaison officer, which means I have a specific brief to act as
a go-between for the university and the police, if there are problems, and also
to offer an official presence on or around campus and give individuals advice
if they need it.
Now,
my job is very important to me. I take security and reducing the threat of
crime on this campus very seriously, because although I don’t actually live on
the campus, both my daughters attended this university, and my son is still
here. So I am a local policeman in every respect. I have been the
university liaison officer for the last five years but I have been in the
police force for 15 in all.
Now,
on to some advice. The first thing I want to stress is that this university is
a comparatively safe place to live. We have had no serious crimes here in the
five years I’ve been here. In fact, crime of any sort is very rare on the
campus. We have good security here and although there are a lot of staff and
students, the security staff, including myself, make an effort to get to know
your faces!
However,
as students it is of course wise for you to take precautions to protect
yourselves against crime when you are off the campus. As I said, the campus
itself is really very safe, but there is a large park right behind it,
MacGowen Fields, and although this is a beautiful place to sit or walk
during the day, at night you must be careful. One or two students have reported
unpleasant incidents at night while walking in the park, although it must be
said that no major incidents have been reported.
Now,
there are no areas in town which I advise students to avoid as a general rule,
but the town centre is more hazardous than other areas, especially in
the evenings on Friday and Saturday. On these days there is often fighting
after people have had too much to drink in the pubs and clubs in the area.
There have also been a number of robberies and muggings.
Before the talk continues you
have sometime to read questions 7 to 10 (pause for 20 seconds). Now listen
carefully and answer questions 7 to 10.
Well,
that was my advice to you. Most of it is common sense but remember crime always
happens when you least expect it. But there are ways to protect yourself. First
of all, the university provides all students with personal alarms. If
you are attacked, you can use this to put off your attacker. Secondly, don’t
take anything with you that cannot easily be replaced like a passport or things
of sentimental value. Leave jewellery and other valuables in your room when you
go out. Always make sure you take something which will identify you,
perhaps your student card or your driving licence. Thirdly, when you are out
late at night, come home in twos. It’s much safer if you’re with a
friend than on your own. And obviously, don’t have very much money on you.
Finally, if you do know you‘ll be late back and can’t use public transport,
tell someone else when you expect to be home and if there’s a problem, they can
raise the alarm. So, that’s about all from me and I wish you a pleasant and
safe stay here. Thank you.
That is the end of Section 1.
You will have half a minute to check your answers (pause 30 seconds).
Now turn to Section 2.
You will hear two students,
Sarah and John discussing their choices of courses to study. First you have
some time to look at questions 11 to 15 (pause for 30 seconds). Now listen
carefully to the discussion and answer questions 11 to 15.
Sarah: Hi, John.
John: Hello, Sarah. What are you doing in here? Haven’t all your exams
finished?
Sarah: Well, yes, they have, but I’ve got to make my decisions for next
year. I still haven’t chosen what courses I’m going to do.
John: That’s why I’m here. Why don’t we have a look through the brochure
together?
Sarah: That’s a good idea. I’m nor sure about some of these courses on
medieval history.
John: No. In fact, I’m not sure about the whole second year. I was
talking to Peter Lily the other day - you know, he’s just finished the second
year - and he was saying that the work load is higher in the second year
because you have to read all these medieval documents in Latin. I mean,
the first year’s been pretty hard but next year will be worse. There are more
assignments in the second year - it goes up to six a year for each course,
doesn’t it?
Sarah: Yes. But we’re got the experience of the first year to build on, so
it must get easier. And there isn’t so much secondary material in the
second year. There aren’t so many books about the medieval period.
John: Don’t you believe it! I think this year’s going to be hard
work!
Sarah: Well, perhaps I’d better give up my job then.
John: You’re working as well?
Sarah: Yeah, I’ve been working in the same place for over a year now. Only
part-time, you know. Just Saturday mornings in the market. I mean, it doesn’t
pay much, but it’s interesting and it gives me a bit extra cash for my text
books. Anyway, what about these courses? How many do we have to take? I
remember Professor Bolt saying something about four courses in the second year,
is that right? Or do we have to do a certain number of credits?
John: Both. We have to select four courses, but for some courses
there are two parts. They count as one course. It’s six in total, because
everyone has to do Europe 1100-1500 and Chronicles of the Church. Anyway, when
you’ve chosen your four courses, they should add up to 80 credits. Have you got
the course brochure there?
Sarah: Yes. Look … under … second year history … There it is.
You now have some time to read questions 16 to 20 (pause 20 seconds.
Now listen to the rest of the discussion and answer questions 16 to 20
John: Right. Yes, look. Most of these courses are 20 credits each,
except for the two short courses about the Crusades. They are 10 each. Now
Medieval Society … Hmm. What do you think?
Sarah: Well, actually, I think it looks really good. Dr Smith is
OK, and you don’t have to buy any books except a study pack. The best thing is,
there are no special requirements - no Latin or medieval English!
John: The next one is Development of Technology with Mr Mills. Ah … this
is a good one. Peter recommended it. It’s all about the way printing developed,
and early science. In fact, I think I could get a copy of Bouchier’s ‘History
of Science’ from him. That means I wouldn’t have to buy it.
Sarah: That does look interesting. And that doesn’t have any special
requirements either. What’s next…? Ah, here they are. 10 credits each, the
Crusades. You need French to do them. I suppose a lot of the documents are in
French.
John: That’s strange, look. There are different teachers for each part.
I expect that’s why it’s two modules. Dr Clare does the first part, but
it’s Dr Shaker and Professor Lord for the second one.
Sarah: So that only leaves Peasants and Kings, with Dr Reeves. … Oh. Look,
you have to know French for this one.
John: Well, I must say I don’t fancy any course that asks you to have
Latin, but I think my French is good enough to read original sources.
Sarah: Yes, mine too. Well, what shall we choose …?
That is the end of Section 2.
You will have half a minute to check your answers (pause for 30 seconds).
Now turn to Section 3.
You will hear an interview
between Dr Mullet, a university lecturer and a student, Fayed. First you have
some time to look at questions 21 to 25 (pause for 30 seconds). Now listen
carefully to the interview and answer questions 21 to 25
Dr Mullet: So, Fayed, you found my office quite easily.
Fayed: Yes,
thank you.
Dr Mullet: Thank you for coming such a long way for the
interview. I believe you are from the Middle East. Now, Fayed, I really wanted
to speak to you during this interview about two things - your exam results and
your final-year dissertation. Your thesis, your dissertation, that was
something quite special. Your personal tutor actually sent me a copy, and I
must say that for a third year undergraduate it’s a very polished piece of
work.
Fayed: Thank you.
Dr Mullet: Yes, it’s very promising. Now, the
thing is, your tutor tells me that you weren’t all that happy with your exams …
Fayed: Well
… The results aren’t out yet, as you know. The first four were fine, but in the
last three I lost my nerve a bit and didn’t do so well. I know I didn’t do as
well as I could. I was worried when I’d handed in my exams.
Dr Mullet: Right. Well, exams are a bit of a game
anyway. We can’t all do well on the day. But here exam results are not
everything, as you know - I set great store by other factors in deciding
whether we offer you a place on the Master’s course. Perhaps you could tell
me a little about how you became interested in economics.
Fayed: Yes,
of course. Well, I’ve always been interested in social and economic history, so
from a very young age I read about the booms and crashes of the 19th and 20th
centuries. I originally applied to study history at university, but when
I got there I realised I had the chance to study economics at a high level, so
I changed. My mother used to be an economist at the World Bank, so I had her to
help me and guide me. Although she didn’t help me write my final-year paper!
Dr Mullet: No, quite. Now, you’re applying for the
Master’s course in the Economics of the Developing World, taught by
myself and Dr Branigan. Why this particular course?
Fayed: Well,
I’ve read some of your work on the development of rural banks and I thought
this was a good place to be. I mean, this is my first choice.
Now you have some time to read questions 26 to 30 (pause for 20
seconds)
Now listen to the rest of the interview and answer questions 26 to 30
Dr Mullet: And you’re not worried about feeling
homesick? You are still young, and Australia is a very long way from your home.
I mean, your English is fine, there are no problems with language or attitude,
but the distance from your family may make it hard for you at first.
Fayed: I’ve
thought about that. But it’s a problem wherever I go. If I don’t get in
here, I’ll probably take a place at a university in England. That’s just as
far from home!
Dr Mullet: I see, I see. And what are your long-term
ambitions, Fayed? What do you want to do ultimately with your qualifications
and your life?
Fayed: I want to work in my country. You know there are some
problems there, and I want to try to right some of them in the economic
infrastructure.
Dr Mullet: I see. And this is your last interview, I
believe. That gives you four weeks before the next term starts. What will you
do during your holidays?
Fayed: On, I’m going to relax. I was going to work on my English,
but in fact I’ve got a couple of friends in Hamburg, so I think I’ll go and
stay with them instead as I’ve never been to Germany.
H: I see. Well, Fayed, as you know I can’t give you a
decision right away. However, I can tell you that you’ve made quite an
impression with your application, and I think you should not worry too much
about the place. My decision will be made tomorrow after I’ve seen the
last candidate, and I’ll let you know within the next two weeks.
Fayed: Thank
you very much.
Dr Mullet: Well, thank you for attending the interview.
That is the end of Section 3.
You now have half a minute to check your answers (pause for 30 seconds). Now
turn to Section 4.
You will hear a lecturer give
a talk on nutrition. First you have some time to look at questions 31 to 40
(pause for 40 seconds).
Now listen carefully to the
talk and answer questions 31 to 40.
Now, the topic of today’s talk is nutrition - specifically,
vitamins and minerals. I’ll be dealing first with some of the most common
misconceptions about them. Then I’m going to talk about what vitamins there
are, where they come from, and the quantities we need. We’ll have some time at
the end of the talk for any questions you may have.
OK. Well, vitamins are known to the general public-in
fact, the public knows more about them than it does about certain other key
aspects of nutrition. One reason for this is that vitamins have been in the
public eye for quite a while - at least since the middle of the 20th century,
when their importance first became widely recognised. This awareness does mean
that the public knows how important vitamins are - even if it doesn’t mean that
we all eat a healthy diet all the time. However, a problem does arise
that is associated with this, which is the number of old wives’ tales about
vitamins. Usually these fallacies are not dangerous, but they do lead to an
unnecessarily high intake of vitamin supplements. For example, it is widely
held that high doses of vitamin C will cure colds and flu. I’d like to hit
this one on the head - there is no evidence that any vitamin can cure anything!
No, I’m afraid you’ll just have to let time sort out your cold. And of course,
the body can’t store vitamin C, so those tablets you take are just an expensive
waste of time.
Another common belief with no evidence is the idea that
vitamin A helps you see in the dark. Actually, there is some truth in this
one, because vitamin A is necessary for good vision. But in the dark, in real
darkness, nobody can see. And of course, taking too much vitamin A can actually
be bad for you. But perhaps the most misleading idea, heavily promoted by
certain companies, is that vitamins will make your intelligent. Now,
while a healthy diet is essential if you are to make the most of your
intelligence, there is no evidence whatsoever that vitamin supplements can make
the slightest bit of difference. (Pause for 3 seconds).
So what can vitamins do? Or, perhaps more accurately,
why do we need them? Well, the answer is that we need them for all sorts of
reasons.
Vitamin A, for example, also called retinol, is
essential for good eyesight, especially at night, and to help us fight off
infection and illness. We get it from liver, butter, egg yolks and milk.
Vitamin D, as is well known, is used to build
strong teeth and bones, but it also helps us absorb calcium. Vitamin D is
mainly formed in the skin through the action of sunlight. How much you need
depends on different factors such as age and health.
Vitamin E, tocopherol, is less well-known, but is
necessary in maintaining a healthy balance of fats in the body. We need 10-12
mg every day, and although some people take supplements, you can normally
get what you need from a balanced diet.
The B complex includes vitamins B1, thiamine, B2,
riboflavine, B6, pyridoxine and B12, cyanocobalamin. It performs many
functions, including allowing our bodies to metabolise carbohydrates, forming
healthy tissue, and perhaps most importantly, forming red blood cells to
prevent pernicious anaemia. We need varying amounts of the B complex, and while
most of us can get enough from a well-balanced diet, vegetarians may find
themselves deficient in B12, which is only found in any noticeable quantity in
meat, especially liver.
Finally, vitamin C is the one everyone knows. Ascorbic
acid, as it’s also known, helps fight infection, which perhaps accounts for the
myth about preventing colds. It also helps protect against scurvy. We need 30
mg a day, and can only really get this amount from eating plenty of citrus fruit
and fresh vegetables. Now, in a moment I’ll be moving on to talk about
how we can plan a diet which will supply all our vitamin needs. But before
that, I’d like to look at some of the recent advances in our knowledge of the
ways vitamin deficiencies can affect us … (fade)
That is the end of Section 4.
You will have half a minute to check your answers (pause for 30 seconds).
That is the end of the
Listening Test.
You now have 10 minutes to transfer
your answers to the Listening answer sheet (pause for 10 minutes).
Please stop writing.