Read the following passage and answer the questions given after it.

We sit in the last row, bumped about but free of stares. The bus rolls out of the dull crossroads of the city, and we are soon in the open countryside, with fields of sunflowers as far as the eye can see, their heads all facing us. Where there is no water, the land reverts to the desert. While still on level ground, we see in the distance the tall range of the Mount Bogda, abrupt like a shining prism laid horizontally on the desert surface. It is over 5,000 metres high, and the peaks are under permanent snow, in powerful contrast to the flat desert all around. Heaven lake lies part of the way up this range, about 2,000 metres above sea level, at the foot of one of the highest snow-peaks. As the bus climbs, the sky, brilliant before, grows overcast. I have brought nothing warm to wear. It is all down at the hotel in Urumqi. Rain begins to fall. The man behind me is eating overpoweringly smelly goat’s cheese. The bus window leaks inhospitably but reveals a beautiful view. We have passed quickly from the desert through arable land to pasture and the ground is now green with grass, the slopes dark with pine. A few cattle drink at a clear stream flowing past moss-covered stones; it is a Constable landscape. The stream changes into a white torrent, and as we climb higher I wish more and more that I had brought with me something warmer than the pair of shorts that have served me so well in the desert. The stream (which, we are told, rises in Heaven Lake) disappears, and we continue our slow ascent. About noon, we arrive at Heaven Lake, and look for a place to stay at the foot, which is the resort area. We get a room in a small cottage, and I am happy to note that there are thick quilts on the bed. Standing outside the cottage, we survey our surroundings. Heaven Lake is long, sardine- shaped and fed by snowmelt from a stream at its head. The lake is an intense blue, surrounded on all sides by green mountain walls, dotted with distant sheep. At the head of thelake, beyond the delta of the inflowing stream, is a massive snow-capped peak which dominates the vista; it is part of a series of peaks that culminate, a little out of view, in MountBogda itself. For those who live in the resort, there is a small mess-hall by the shore. We eat here sometimes, and sometimes buy food from the vendors outside, who sell kabab and naan until the last buses leave. The kababs, cooked on skewers over charcoal braziers, are particularly good; highly spiced and well-done. Horse’s milk is available too from the local Kazakh herdsmen, but I decline this. I am so affected by the cold that Mr. Cao, the relaxed young manwho runs the mess, lends me a spare pair of trousers, several sizes too large but more than comfortable. Once I am warm again, I feel a pre-dinner spurt of energy—dinner will be long in coming—and I ask him whether the lake is good for swimming in.

Select the most appropriate ANTONYM of the word ‘accept’ from the passage.

Directions: Read the passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:

Over the years, there have been many cases of news breaking about plastic toys and their containment of toxins. In addition to the harmful ingredients that can be found in plastic, we also have to take into account the effect on the environment that plastic usage has.

The internet is flooding with ways to reduce plastic usage and people are more aware of the need to cut down on this. Still, it’s difficult to change behaviors and somehow parents easily end up with a great number of plastic toys at home. This happens partly because you receive gifts from friends and family, and to some extent because kids prefer bright-colored plastic toys more than bland, wooden ones.

Not all toys contain toxins, but they can be found in some cases. Toys that have toxins in them are hazardous to children mainly because of their tendency to swallow and chew on the toys, which can result in the toxins being absorbed by the body. When it comes to young children, even the smallest amounts of toxins can affect their health.

The toxins can either be found in the plastic itself or they can be included in the pigments used to color toys and make them more attractive to children.

Although there are EU regulations for which toxins may or may not be included in toys, there are products that can slip through the cracks. Plastic toys may, for example, be made of, or contain, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which contains lead and cadmium — both toxins that are harmful to children.

The CE mark is supposed to be a sign of quality. The toys have gone through and followed the rigorous EU standards for toys. The EU notes, though, that this marking should only be seen as an indication, as it has been misused due to counterfeiting.

As goes for all plastic, plastic toys are made using fossil fuels, and therefore the production of them contributes to the environmental crisis at hand. Therefore, it would be a good idea to minimize the buying of new plastic toys.

Environmentalists have raised awareness around the fact that plastic toys are a big part of the plastic that ends up in landfills and oceans, which adds to the ongoing issue of plastic pollution. According to a survey done by the British Heart Foundation, 1 in 3 parents admits to having thrown away toys in working conditions. Considering that 90 percent of toys are in some way made of plastic, that quickly adds up to a lot of plastic waste.

In conclusion, yes plastic toys are damaging to the environment. Even though they have a longer life cycle than single-use plastic, they will at some point end up in a landfill — or worse in the sea as non-recyclable waste. But how can we stop this issue?

Buy sustainable and non-plastic toys if you do want to buy new toys, try to aim for toys made from more sustainable materials. There are plenty of retailers that focus on environmentally-friendly toys. For example, smaller e-commerce sites like Frida & Fritiof focus on providing non-toxic and eco-labeled toys. If you do want to buy plastic toys, try to minimize the environmental impact by buying them second-hand. There are plenty of charity shops where you can buy toys, but if that is not for you, you can use a site like eBay or any other online marketplace to find second-hand toys. Be aware, though, when buying second-hand toys that security standards might have been updated since they were produced, so double-check that they are up to today’s standards.

What can you infer from the line "The CE mark is supposed to be a sign of quality"?

Comprehension: In the following passage, some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank.
 Nitrogen is essential to life (1)______ Earth. It is a component of all proteins, and it can be (2)______ in all living systems. Nitrogen compounds are (3)______ in organic materials, foods, fertilisers, explosives and poisons. Nitrogen is crucial to life, (4)______ in excess it can also be (5)______ to the environment.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 2.

Directions: In the following passage, some of the words have been left out, each of which is indicated by a number. Find the suitable word from the options given against each number and fill up the blanks with appropriate words to make the paragraph meaningfully complete. Stanford economist Nicholas Bloom is a true believer, and like many true believers, he lets his message __(A) __ his evidence. Based on a single study of a Chinese travel agency, he __(B) __ declares working from home a “future-looking technology” with “enormous potential.”Not so fast.

Bloom’s study comes with serious limitations and is contradicted by a later Gallup report. However, while it is far too soon to draw broad __(C) __ from his findings, savvy business leaders can read between the lines and extract some valuable lessons for working ___(D) ___ with all employees. Bloom __(E) __ on China’s biggest travel agency, Ctrip, which wanted to expand while controlling office space costs. They __(F) __ a remote work trial, expecting that productivity would slip a little, but not enough to cancel out the savings. Instead, productivity shot up 13%, and attrition dropped 50%. When the work-from-home option was rolled out to the entire company and employees were given a choice, the productivity gains were 22%.

Question C

You have eight brief passages with 10 questions following each passage. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives 

Time was when people looked heavenward and prayed, “Ye Gods, give us rain, keep drought away.” Today there are those who pray. “Give us rain, keep El Nino away.” 

El Nino and its atmospheric equivalent, called the Southern Oscillation, are together referred to as ENSO, and are household words today. Meteorologists recognize it as often being responsible for natural disaster worldwide. But this wisdom dawned only after countries suffered, first from the lack of knowledge, and then from the lack of coordination between policy making and the advances in scientific knowledge. 

Put simply, El Nino is a weather event restricted to certain tropical shores, especially the Peruvian coast. The event has diametrically opposite impacts on the land and sea. The Peruvian shore is a desert. But every few years, an unusually warm ocean current - El Nino - warms up the normally cold surface-waters off the Peruvian coast, causing very heavy rains in the early half of the year, 

And then, miraculously, the desert is matted green. Crops like cotton, coconuts and banana grow on the otherwise stubbornly barren land. These are the Peruvians’ anos de abundencia or years of abundance. The current had come to be termed El Nino, or the Christ Child because it usually appears as an enhancement if a mildly warm current that normally occurs here around every Christmas. 

But this boon on land is accompanied by oceanic disasters. Normally, the waters off the South American coast are among the most productive in the world because of a constant upwelling of nutrient rich cold waters from the ocean depths. During an El Nino, however waters are stirred up only from near the surface. The nutrient-crunch pushes down primary production, disrupting the food chain. Many marine species, including anchoveta (anchovies) temporarily disappear. 

This is just one damning effect of El Nino. Over the years its full impact has been studied and what the Peruvians once regarded as manna, is now seen as a major threat. 

What, according to the author, is a positive effect of El Nino ?  

Comprehension: In the following passage, some words have been deleted. Read the passage carefully and select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank. Coca-Cola is to become the new sponsor of the London Eye after (1) ______ a deal to replace France's EDF Energy. The capital's giant Ferris Wheel has been a (2) ______ tourist attraction since it was introduced in 2000, when it was (3) ______ as the Millennium Wheel. It was previously (4) ______ by British Airways before becoming the EDF Energy London Eye in 2011. Coca-Cola will take over in January after (5) ______ a two-year deal with the wheel's owner, Merlin Entertainments, for an undisclosed sum.

Select the most appropriate option to fill in blank number 5. 

You have eight brief passages with 10 questions following each passage. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives 

Time was when people looked heavenward and prayed, “Ye Gods, give us rain, keep drought away.” Today there are those who pray. “Give us rain, keep El Nino away.” 

El Nino and its atmospheric equivalent, called the Southern Oscillation, are together referred to as ENSO, and are household words today. Meteorologists recognize it as often being responsible for natural disaster worldwide. But this wisdom dawned only after countries suffered, first from the lack of knowledge, and then from the lack of coordination between policy making and the advances in scientific knowledge. 

Put simply, El Nino is a weather event restricted to certain tropical shores, especially the Peruvian coast. The event has diametrically opposite impacts on the land and sea. The Peruvian shore is a desert. But every few years, an unusually warm ocean current - El Nino - warms up the normally cold surface-waters off the Peruvian coast, causing very heavy rains in the early half of the year, 

And then, miraculously, the desert is matted green. Crops like cotton, coconuts and banana grow on the otherwise stubbornly barren land. These are the Peruvians’ anos de abundencia or years of abundance. The current had come to be termed El Nino, or the Christ Child because it usually appears as an enhancement if a mildly warm current that normally occurs here around every Christmas. 

But this boon on land is accompanied by oceanic disasters. Normally, the waters off the South American coast are among the most productive in the world because of a constant upwelling of nutrient rich cold waters from the ocean depths. During an El Nino, however waters are stirred up only from near the surface. The nutrient-crunch pushes down primary production, disrupting the food chain. Many marine species, including anchoveta (anchovies) temporarily disappear. 

This is just one damning effect of El Nino. Over the years its full impact has been studied and what the Peruvians once regarded as manna, is now seen as a major threat. 

Which word in Para 3 is the antonym for Fertile?  

Directions: Read the passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:

Over the years, there have been many cases of news breaking about plastic toys and their containment of toxins. In addition to the harmful ingredients that can be found in plastic, we also have to take into account the effect on the environment that plastic usage has.

The internet is flooding with ways to reduce plastic usage and people are more aware of the need to cut down on this. Still, it’s difficult to change behaviors and somehow parents easily end up with a great number of plastic toys at home. This happens partly because you receive gifts from friends and family, and to some extent because kids prefer bright-colored plastic toys more than bland, wooden ones.

Not all toys contain toxins, but they can be found in some cases. Toys that have toxins in them are hazardous to children mainly because of their tendency to swallow and chew on the toys, which can result in the toxins being absorbed by the body. When it comes to young children, even the smallest amounts of toxins can affect their health.

The toxins can either be found in the plastic itself or they can be included in the pigments used to color toys and make them more attractive to children.

Although there are EU regulations for which toxins may or may not be included in toys, there are products that can slip through the cracks. Plastic toys may, for example, be made of, or contain, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which contains lead and cadmium — both toxins that are harmful to children.

The CE mark is supposed to be a sign of quality. The toys have gone through and followed the rigorous EU standards for toys. The EU notes, though, that this marking should only be seen as an indication, as it has been misused due to counterfeiting.

As goes for all plastic, plastic toys are made using fossil fuels, and therefore the production of them contributes to the environmental crisis at hand. Therefore, it would be a good idea to minimize the buying of new plastic toys.

Environmentalists have raised awareness around the fact that plastic toys are a big part of the plastic that ends up in landfills and oceans, which adds to the ongoing issue of plastic pollution. According to a survey done by the British Heart Foundation, 1 in 3 parents admits to having thrown away toys in working conditions. Considering that 90 percent of toys are in some way made of plastic, that quickly adds up to a lot of plastic waste.

In conclusion, yes plastic toys are damaging to the environment. Even though they have a longer life cycle than single-use plastic, they will at some point end up in a landfill — or worse in the sea as non-recyclable waste. But how can we stop this issue?

Buy sustainable and non-plastic toys if you do want to buy new toys, try to aim for toys made from more sustainable materials. There are plenty of retailers that focus on environmentally-friendly toys. For example, smaller e-commerce sites like Frida & Fritiof focus on providing non-toxic and eco-labeled toys. If you do want to buy plastic toys, try to minimize the environmental impact by buying them second-hand. There are plenty of charity shops where you can buy toys, but if that is not for you, you can use a site like eBay or any other online marketplace to find second-hand toys. Be aware, though, when buying second-hand toys that security standards might have been updated since they were produced, so double-check that they are up to today’s standards.

What can you infer from the line "Although there are EU regulations for which toxins may or may not be included in toys, there are products that can slip through the cracks."?