1.AEuropeanspacecrafttookofftodaytospearheadthesearchforanother"Earth"amongthestars.

2.TheCorotspacetelescopeblastedoffaboardaRussianSoyuzrocketfromtheBaikonurcosmodromeinKazakhstanshortlyafter2.20pm.

3.Corot,shortforconvectionrotationandplanetarytransits,isthefirstinstrumentcapableoffindingsmallrockyplanetsbeyondthesolarsystem.Anysuchplanetsituatedintherightorbitstandsagoodchanceofhavingliquidwateronitssurface,andquitepossiblylife,althoughaleadingscientistinvolvedintheprojectsaiditwasunlikelytofind"anylittlegreenmen".

4.DevelopedbytheFrenchspaceagency,CNES,andpartneredbytheEuropeanSpaceAgency(ESA),Austria,Belgium,Germany,BrazilandSpain,Corotwillmonitoraround120,000starswithits27cmtelescopefromapolarorbit514milesabovetheEarth.Overtwoandahalfyears,itwillfocusonfivetosixdifferentareasofthesky,measuringthebrightnessofabout10,000starsevery512seconds.

5."Atthepresentmomentwearehopingtofindoutmoreaboutthenatureofplanetsaroundstarswhicharepotentialhabitats.Wearelookingathabitableplanets,notinhabitedplanets.Wearenotgoingtofindanylittlegreenmen,"ProfessorIanRoxburgh,anESAscientistwhohasbeeninvolvedwithCorotsinceitsinception,toldtheBBCRadio4Todayprogramme.

6.ProfRoxburghsaiditwashopedCorotwouldfind"rockyplanetsthatcoulddevelopanatmosphereand,iftheyaretherightdistancefromtheirparentstar,theycouldhavewater".

7.Tosearchforplanets,thetelescopewilllookforthedimmingofstarlightcausedwhenanobjectpassesinfrontofastar,knownasa"transit".Althoughitwilltakemoresophisticatedspacetelescopesplannedinthenext10yearstoconfirmthepresenceofanEarth-likeplanetwithoxygenandliquidwater,Corotwillletscientistsknowwheretopointtheirlenses.

8.MeasurementsofminutechangesinbrightnesswillenablescientiststodetectgiantJupiter-likegasplanetsaswellassmallrockyones.Itistherockyplanets-thatcouldbenobiggerthanabouttwicethesizeoftheEarth-whichwillcausethemostexcitement.Scientistsexpecttofindbetween10and40ofthesesmallerplanets.

9.Corotwillalsoprobeintostellarinteriorsbystudyingtheacousticwavesthatrippleacrossthesurfaceofstars,atechniquecalled"asteroseismology".

10.Thenatureoftheripplesallowsastronomerstocalculateastar’sprecisemass,ageandchemicalcomposition.

11."Aplanetpassinginfrontofastarcanbedetectedbythefallinlightfromthatstar.Smalloscillationsofthestaralsoproducechangesinthelightemitted,whichrevealwhatthestarismadeofandhowtheyarestructuredinternally.Thisdatawillprovideamajorboosttoourunderstandingofhowstarsformandevolve,"ProfRoxburghsaid.

12.Sincethediscoveryin1995ofthefirst"exoplanet"-aplanetorbitingastarotherthantheSun-morethan200othershavebeenfoundbyground-basedobservatories.

13.Untilnowtheusualmethodoffindingexoplanetshasbeentodetectthe"wobble"theirgravityimpartsonparentstars.ButonlygiantgaseousplanetsbiggerthanJupitercanbefoundthisway,andtheyareunlikelytoharbourlife.

14.Inthe2010s,ESAplanstolaunchDarwin,afleetoffourorfiveinterlinkedspacetelescopesthatwillnotonlyspotsmallrockyplanets,butanalysetheiratmospheresforsignsofbiologicalactivity.

15.Ataroundthesametime,theUSspaceagency,Nasa,willlaunchTerrestrialPlanetFinder,anotherspacetelescopedesignedtolocateEarth-likeplanets.

ChoosetheappropriateletterfromA-Dforquestion1.

1.Corotisaninstrumentwhich

(A)canhelptosearchforcertainplanets

(B)isusedtofindplanetsintheorbit

(C)canlocateplanetswithhumanbeings

(D)canspotanyplanetswithwater.

Dothefollowingstatementsagreewiththeinformationgiveninthereadingpassage?Forquestions2-5write

TRUEifthestatementagreeswiththeinformation

FALSEifthestatementcontraictstheinformation

NOTGIVENifthereisnoinformationonthisinthepassage

2.Scientistsaretryingtofindoutabouttheplanetsthatcanbeinhabited.

3.BBCRadio4recentlyfocusesonthebroadcastingofCorot.

4.Passingobjectsmightcauseafallinlight.

5.CorotcantellwhetherthereisanotherEarth-likeplanet.

Basedonyourreadingofthepassage,completethesentencesbelowwithwordstakenfromthepassage.UseNOMORETHANTHREEWORDSforeachanswer.

Withmeasurements,scientistswillbeabletosearchforsomegaseousandrockyplanets.Theywillbeextremelyexcitediftheycandiscoversomesmall6.__________,theexpectednumberofwhichcouldbeupto7.__________.

Corotwillenablescientiststostudythe8.__________ofstars.Inthisway,astar’smass,ageandchemicalcompositioncanbecalculated.

AccordingtoProfRoxburgh,changesinlightcanbecausedbypassingplanetsorstar9.__________.Therelatedstatisticscangainusabetter10.__________ofthestarformationandevolvement.

Observatorieshavefoundmanyexoplanets,whichare11.__________otherstarsthantheSun.Thecommonwayusedinfindingexoplanetscanonlydetecthugegasplanets,whichdonot12.___________.

WiththelaunchingofDarwin,astronomerswillbeabletoanalysewhetherthoserockyplanetshave13.__________forlife.

newweapontofightcancer

1.Britishscientistsarepreparingtolaunchtrialsofaradicalnewwaytofightcancer,whichkillstumoursbyinfectingthemwithviruseslikethecommoncold.

2.Ifsuccessful,virustherapycouldeventuallyformathirdpillaralongsideradiotherapyandchemotherapyinthestandardarsenalagainstcancer,whileavoidingsomeofthedebilitatingside-effects.

3.LeonardSeymour,aprofessorofgenetherapyatOxfordUniversity,whohasbeenworkingonthevirustherapywithcolleaguesinLondonandtheUS,willleadthetrialslaterthisyear.CancerResearchUKsaidyesterdaythatitwasexcitedbythepotentialofProfSeymour’spioneeringtechniques.

4.Oneofthecountry’sleadinggeneticists,ProfSeymourhasbeenworkingwithvirusesthatkillcancercellsdirectly,whileavoidingharmtohealthytissue."Inprinciple,you’vegotsomethingwhichcouldbemanytimesmoreeffectivethanregularchemotherapy,"hesaid.

5.Cancer-killingvirusesexploitthefactthatcancercellssuppressthebody’slocalimmunesystem."Ifacancerdoesn’tdothat,theimmunesystemwipesitout.Ifyoucangetavirusintoatumour,virusesfindthemaverygoodplacetobebecausethere’snoimmunesystemtostopthemreplicating.Youcanregarditasthecancer’sAchilles’heel."

6.Onlyasmallamountofthevirusneedstogettothecancer."Theyreplicate,yougetamillioncopiesineachcellandthecellburstsandtheyinfectthetumourcellsadjacentandrepeattheprocess,"saidProfSeymour.

7.Preliminaryresearchonmiceshowsthatthevirusesworkwellontumoursresistanttostandardcancerdrugs."It’saninterestingpossibilitythattheymayhaveanadvantageinkillingdrug-resistanttumours,whichcouldbequitedifferenttoanythingwe’vehadbefore."

8.Researchershaveknownforsometimethatvirusescankilltumourcellsandsomeaspectsoftheworkhavealreadybeenpublishedinscientificjournals.Americanscientistshavepreviouslyinjectedvirusesdirectlyintotumoursbutthistechniquewillnotworkifthecancerisinaccessibleorhasspreadthroughoutthebody.

9.ProfSeymour’sinnovativesolutionistomaskthevirusfromthebody’simmunesystem,effectivelyallowingthevirusestodowhatchemotherapydrugsdo-spreadthroughthebloodandreachtumourswherevertheyare.Thebighurdlehasalwaysbeentofindawaytodelivervirusestotumoursviathebloodstreamwithoutthebody’simmunesystemdestroyingthemontheway.

10."Whatwe’vedoneismakechemicalmodificationstothevirustoputapolymercoataroundit-it’sastealthviruswhenyouinjectit,"hesaid.

11.Afterthestealthvirusinfectsthetumour,itreplicates,butthecopiesdonothavethechemicalmodifications.Iftheyescapefromthetumour,thecopieswillbequicklyrecognisedandmoppedupbythebody’simmunesystem.

12.Thetherapywouldbeespeciallyusefulforsecondarycancers,calledmetastases,whichsometimesspreadaroundthebodyafterthefirsttumourappears."There’sanawfulstatisticofpatientsinthewest...withmalignantcancers;75%ofthemgoontodiefrommetastases,"saidProfSeymour.

13.Twovirusesarelikelytobeexaminedinthefirstclinicaltrials:adenovirus,whichnormallycausesacold-likeillness,andvaccinia,whichcausescowpoxandisalsousedinthevaccineagainstsmallpox.Forsafetyreasons,bothwillbedisabledtomakethemlesspathogenicinthetrial,butProfSeymoursaidheeventuallyhopestousenaturalviruses.

14.Thefirsttrialswilluseuncoatedadenovirusandvacciniaandwillbedeliveredlocallytolivertumours,inordertoestablishwhetherthetreatmentissafeinhumansandwhatdoseofviruswillbeneeded.Severalmoreyearsoftrialswillbeneeded,eventuallyalsoonthepolymer-coatedviruses,beforethetherapycanbeconsideredforuseintheNHS.Thoughtheapproachwillbeexaminedatfirstforcancersthatdonotrespondtoconventionaltreatments,ProfSeymourhopesthatonedayitmightbeappliedtoallcancers.

Questions1-6

Dothefollowingstatementsagreewiththeinformationgiveninthereadingpassage?Forquestions1-6write

TRUEifthestatementagreeswiththeinformation

FALSEifthestatementcontradictstheinformation

NOTGIVENifthereisnoinformationonthisinthepassage

1.Virustherapy,ifsuccessful,hasanadvantageineliminatingside-effects.

2.CancerResearchUKisquitehopefulaboutProfessorSeymour’sworkonthevirustherapy.

3.Viruscankillcancercellsandstopthemfromgrowingagain.

4.Cancer’sAchilles’heelreferstothefactthatvirusmaystaysafelyinatumorandreplicate.

5.Toinfectthecancercells,agooddealofvirusesshouldbeinjectedintothetumor.

6.Researchesonanimalsindicatethatviruscouldbeusedasanewwaytotreatdrug-resistanttumors.

Question7-9

Basedonthereadingpassage,choosetheappropriateletterfromA-Dforeachanswer.

7.Informationaboutresearchesonviruseskillingtumorcellscanbefound

(A)onTV

(B)inmagazines

(C)oninternet

(D)innewspapers

8.Totreattumorsspreadingoutinbody,researcherstryto

(A)changethebody’immunesystem

(B)injectchemotherapydrugsintobloodstream.

(C)increasetheamountofinjection

(D)disguisethevirusesonthewaytotumors.

9.Whenthechemicalmodifiedvirusintumorreplicates,thecopies

(A)willsoonescapefromthetumorandspreadout.

(B)willbewipedoutbythebody’simmunesystem.

(C)willbeimmediatelyrecognizedbytheresearchers.

(D)willeventuallystopthetumorfromspreadingout.

Questions10-13

Completethesentencesbelow.Chooseyouranswersfromthelistofwords.Youcanonlyuseeachwordonce.

NBTherearemorewordsinthelistthanspacessoyouwillnotusethemall.

Inthefirstclinicaltrials,scientistswilltryto……10……adenovirusandvaccinia,soboththeviruseswillbelesspathogenicthanthe……11…….Theseuncoatedviruseswillbeapplieddirectlytocertainareastoconfirmsafetyonhumanbeingsandtheright……12……needed.Theexperimentswillfirstlybe……13……tothetreatmentofcertaincancers

Howshopscanexploitpeople'sherdmentalitytoincreasesales

1.ATRIPtothesupermarketmaynotseemlikeanexerciseinpsychologicalwarfare—butitis.Shopkeepersknowthatfillingastorewiththearomaoffreshlybakedbreadmakespeoplefeelhungryandpersuadesthemtobuymorefoodthantheyhadintended.Stockingthemostexpensiveproductsateyelevelmakesthemsellfasterthancheaperbutlessvisiblecompetitors.Nowresearchersareinvestigatinghow“swarmintelligence”(thatis，howants，beesoranysocialanimal，includinghumans，behaveinacrowd)canbeusedtoinfluencewhatpeoplebuy.

2.AtarecentconferenceonthesimulationofadaptivebehaviourinRome，Zeeshan-ul-hassanUsmani，acomputerscientistfromtheFloridaInstituteofTechnology，describedanewwaytoincreaseimpulsebuyingusingthisphenomenon.Supermarketsalreadyencourageshopperstobuythingstheydidnotrealisetheywanted:forinstance，byplacingeverydayitemssuchasmilkandeggsatthebackofthestore，forcingshopperstowalkpastothertemptinggoodstoreachthem.MrUsmaniandRonaldoMenezes，alsooftheFloridaInstituteofTechnology，setouttoenhancethistendencytobuymorebyplayingontheherdinstinct.Theideaisthat，ifacertainproductisseentobepopular，shoppersarelikelytochooseittoo.Thechallengeistokeepcustomersinformedaboutwhatothersarebuying.

3.Entersmart-carttechnology.InMrUsmani'ssupermarketeveryproducthasaradiofrequencyidentificationtag，asortofbarcodethatusesradiowavestotransmitinformation，andeverytrolleyhasascannerthatreadsthisinformationandrelaysittoacentralcomputer.Asacustomerwalkspastashelfofgoods，ascreenontheshelftellshimhowmanypeoplecurrentlyintheshophavechosenthatparticularproduct.Ifthenumberishigh，heismorelikelytoselectittoo.

4.MrUsmani's“swarm-moves”modelappealstosupermarketsbecauseitincreasessaleswithouttheneedtogivepeoplediscounts.Anditgivesshoppersthesatisfactionofknowingthattheyboughtthe“right”product—thatis，theoneeveryoneelsebought.Themodelhasnotyetbeentestedwidelyintherealworld，mainlybecauseradiofrequencyidentificationtechnologyisnewandhasonlybeeninstalledexperimentallyinsomesupermarkets.ButMrUsmanisaysthatbothWal-MartinAmericaandTescoinBritainareinterestedinhiswork，andtestingwillgetunderwayinthespring.

5.Anotherrecentstudyonthepowerofsocialinfluenceindicatesthatsalescould，indeed，beboostedinthisway.MatthewSalganikofColumbiaUniversityinNewYorkandhiscolleagueshavedescribedcreatinganartificialmusicmarketinwhichsome14,000peopledownloadedpreviouslyunknownsongs.Theresearchersfoundthatwhenpeoplecouldseethesongsrankedbyhowmanytimestheyhadbeendownloaded，theyfollowedthecrowd.Whenthesongswerenotorderedbyrank，butthenumberoftimestheyhadbeendownloadedwasdisplayed，theeffectofsocialinfluencewasstilltherebutwaslesspronounced.Peoplethusfollowtheherdwhenitiseasyforthemtodoso.

6.InJapanachainofconvenienceshopscalledRanKingRanQueenhasbeenorderingitsproductsaccordingtosalesdatafromdepartmentstoresandresearchcompanies.Theshopssellonlythemostpopularitemsineachproductcategory，andtherankingsareupdatedweekly.Icosystem，acompanyinCambridge，Massachusetts，alsoaimstoexploitknowledgeofsocialnetworkingtoimprovesales.

7.Andthepsychologythatworksinphysicalstoresisjustaspotentontheinternet.OnlineretailerssuchasAmazonareadeptattellingshopperswhichproductsarepopularwithlike-mindedconsumers.Evenintheprivacyofyourhome，youcanstillbepartoftheswarm.

Questions1-6

Completethesentencesbelowwithwordstakenfromthereadingpassage.UseNOMORETHANTHREEWORDSforeachanswer.

1.Shopownersrealizethatthesmellof_______________canincreasesalesoffoodproducts.

2.Inshops，productsshelvedatamorevisiblelevelsellbettereveniftheyaremore_______________.

3.AccordingtoMr.Usmani，withtheuseof“swarmintelligence”phenomenon，anewmethodcanbeappliedtoencourage_______________.

4.Onthewaytoeverydayitemsatthebackofthestore，shoppersmightbetemptedtobuy_______________.

5.Ifthenumberofbuyersshownonthe_______________ishigh，othercustomerstendtofollowthem.

6.Usingthe“swarm-moves”model，shopownersdonothavetogivecustomers_______________toincreasesales.

Dadwenttobuysome__________as__________formycousin.

FelicityLawrence

ThursdayDecember28,2006

TheGuardian

1.ConsumersaretobepresentedwithtworivalnewyearadvertisingcampaignsastheFoodStandardsAgencygoespublicinitsbattlewiththeindustryoverthelabellingofunhealthyfoods.

2.TheGuardianhaslearnedthattheFSAwilllaunchaseriesof10-secondtelevisionadvertsinJanuarytellingshoppershowtofollowared,amberandgreentrafficlightlabellingsystemonthefrontoffoodpacks,whichisdesignedtotackleBritain’sobesityepidemic.

3.Thecampaignisadirectresponsetoaconcertedattemptbyleadingfoodmanufacturersandretailers,includingKellogg’sandTesco,toderailthesystem.Theindustryfearsthattrafficlightswoulddemoniseentirecategoriesoffoodsandcouldseriouslydamagethemarketforthosethatarefatty,saltyorhighinsugar.

4.TheUKmarketforbreakfastcerealsisworth￡1.27bnayearandthemanufacturersfearitwillbeseverelydentedifredlightlabelsareputonpackagingdrawingattentiontothefactthatthemajorityarehighinsaltand/orsugar.

5.Theindustryisplanningamajormarketingcampaignforacompetinglabellingsystemwhichavoidscolour-codinginfavourofinformationaboutthepercentageof"guidelinedailyamounts"(GDAs)offat,saltandsugarcontainedintheirproducts.

6.Thebattleforthenation’sdietcomesasnewrulesontelevisionadvertisingcomeintoforceinJanuarywhichwillbaradvertsforunhealthyfoodsfromcommercialbreaksduringprogrammesaimedatchildren.SourcesattheTVregulatorsarebracedforalegalchallengefromtheindustryandhavedescribedthelobbyingeffortstoblockanynewadbanorcolour-codedlabellingas"themostferociouswe’veeverexperienced".

7.Ofcom’schiefexecutive,EdRichards,said:"Wearepreparedtofaceuptoanylegalactionfromtheindustry,butweverymuchhopeitwillnotbenecessary."TheFSAsaiditwasexpectinganonslaughtfromtheindustryinJanuary.SeniorFSAofficialssaidthemanufacturers’effortstoundermineitsproposalsonlabellingcouldthreatentheagency’scredibility.

8.TerrenceCollis,FSAdirectorofcommunications,dismissedclaimsthattheproposalswerenotbasedonscience."WehavesomeofthemostrespectedscientistsinEurope,bothwithintheFSAandinourindependentadvisorycommittees.ItisunjustifiedandnonsensicaltoattacktheFSA’sscientificreputationandtotrytoundermineitscredibility."

9.TheFSAisunderstoodtohavebriefeditsadagency,United,beforeChristmas,andwillaimtoairadsthatare"non-confrontational,humorousandfactual"asacounterweighttoindustry’seffortsaboutthesametime.Theagency,however,willhaveatinyfractionofthebudgetavailabletotheindustry.

10.GavinNeath,chairmanofUnileverUKandpresidentoftheFoodandDrinkFederation,hassaidthattheindustryhasmadeenormousprogressbutcouldnotacceptred"stop"signsonitsfood.

11.AlastairSykes,chiefexecutiveofNestléUK,saidthatundertheFSAproposalsallhiscompany’sconfectioneryandmostofitscerealswouldscoreared."Arewesayingpeopleshouldn’teatconfectionery?We’redrivenbyconsumersandwhattheywant,andmuchofwhatwedohasbeentomakeourproductshealthier,"hesaid.

12.ChrisWermann,directorofcommunicationsatKellogg’s,said:"Inprinciplewecouldneveraccepttrafficlightlabelling."

13.TherivallabellingschemeintroducedbyKellogg’s,Danone,Unilever,Nestlé,KraftandTescoandnowfavouredby21manufacturers,usesanindustry-devisedsystembasedonidentifyingGDAsofkeynutrients.TescosaysithastestedbothtrafficlightsandGDAlabelsinitsstoresandthatthelatterincreasedsalesofhealthierfoods.

14.ButtheFSAsaiditcouldnotlivewiththisGDAsystemalonebecauseitwas"notscientific"oreasyforshopperstounderstandataglance.

Questions1-6

AnswerthequestionsbelowusingNOMORETHANTHREEWORDSfromthepassageforeachanswer.

1.Whenwillinstructionsbegivenonreadingthecolor-codedlabels?

2.Wherecancustomersfindtheredlightlabels?

3.WhatproblemistheFSAtryingtohandlewiththelabelingsystem?

4.Whichproductsellswellbutmaynotbehealthy?

5.Whatinformation,accordingtothemanufacturers,canbelabeledonproducts?

6.Whatcannotbeadvertisedduringchildren’sprogrammes?

Questions7-13

Usetheinformationinthetexttomatchthepeople(listedA-E)withtheopinions(listed7-13)below.Writetheappropriateletter(A-E)forquestions1-7.

NBYoumayuseanylettermorethanonce.

AEdRichard

BTerrenceCollis

CGavinNeath

DAlastairSykes

EChrisWermann

7.Generallywewillnotagreetousetheredlightlabels.

8.ItisunreasonabletodoubtifFSAistrustworthy.

9.Wearetryingtomeetourconsumers’needs.

10.Thefoodindustryhasbeenimprovinggreatly.

11.Thecolor-codedlabelingsystemisscientific.

12.OurproductswillbelabeledunhealthybytheFSA.

13.Wearereadytoconfrontthemanufacturers.