Welcome to our blog dedicated to Cambridge English Placement Test practice with a unique twist - daily devotions. In this blog, we combine the essential task of honing your English language skills with the nourishment of your soul through insightful and inspiring daily devotionals. By integrating these two elements, we aim to create a holistic learning experience that enriches your mind and spirit.
- Enhancing Your Language Skills
- Daily Devotions for Spiritual Nourishment
You will hear part of a radio programme about classical music.
1 This week’s prize is
A a music cassette.
B two concert tickets.
C a classical CD.
2 The person who wrote the music lived in
A Italy.B Spain. C France.
3 What else shares the title of this music?
A a gardenB a playC a park
4 What did people do when they first heard the music?
A Some left before the end.
B Only a few clapped.
C Some asked for their money back.
5 This piece of music has been
A played in the cinema.
B used in advertising.
C used for a TV pay.
6 If you know the competition answer you should ring
A 0108 937 224.
B 0018 739 242.
C 0018 937 224.
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
s
Audioscript
Presenter: ... and now if you're a regular listener to this programme, you'll know that it’s time for our weekly competition. Last week's prize of two theatre tickets was won by Bill Martins. Congratulations, Bill. I hope you've received your tickets by now.
This week we're offering a classical CD to the first listener who can name the piece oT music and the person who wrote it. I’m going to play the piece in a few minutes, but before I do, you need to get a pencil and a piece of paper, as I’m going to give you some help which should make your job a little easier. Are you ready? Right.
Now, listen carefully, as you might be this week’s lucky winner.
Although the person who wrote this piece of classical music was born in Italy, his parents were French and he spent most of his life in Spain. Have you got that? On to the second point: there is also a famous play which has the same title as mis music and which is usually performed in the open air — in the summer. Any idea yet? I should warn you that it’s not that easy.
Anyway for the next point. When this piece of music was first performed, many people in the audience got up and walked out. At the end they say there was complete silence, which I’m sure wasn’t very pleasant for the writer. People thought the music was terrible and complained about wasting their money. It's amazing really, when you think how popular it is today.
And now for the last point. Part of this music has been used for an advertisement which you can see on television. I'm sure when you hear the music, you’ll know what the advertisement is for. I'm not going to tell you what product it advertises, as that would almost certainly give you the answer! You can also see the advert in a lot of magazines and I think from next month this advert will also be on your cinema screens.
So that's four things to remember. And the phone number to ring if you can give us the title of the music about the name of the man who wrote it is 0018 937 224. And the piece of music is coming up now ...
You will hear a schoolteacher talking to a group of students about a national poetry competition. For each question, fill in the missing information in the numbered space.
Poetry Competition for Schools
The competition for 11-14s is called the
(1) _____ Prize.
The topic for this year is (2) ______ .
The tide of last year's winning poem was
(3) ________ .
This year the prize money available is
(4) ______ euros.
If successful, the school will spend the money on the (5) _____ .
For further help, see the (6) _____ .
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
s
Audioscript
Teacher: Now could everyone sit down, please. I've got an important announcement to make. As you know, the national school poetry competitions that we usually enter are starting soon. All the competitions are named after animals. One of the competitions, called the Dolphin Prize, is for 15- to 19-year olds. So if you have older brothers and sisters in the school, get them to enter that one. But the one for people of your age, the Tiger Prize, is the one we'd like you to go for. We hope lots of you will try. As some of you may remember, the theme for last year was 'Weather'. This time the judges have chosen the topic 'Change', and that could cover a lot of things, couldn't it? A new school, a different house, for example .. .
So, if you want to enter the competition but you're stuck for ideas, have a look at last year's winner on the competition website. You may know the girl who wrote it - Maria Mason from our school with her poem called 'Trains'. She also got a little book of her poems, called 'Travelling' published as part of her prize. Maria won some money for the school, too - one thousand euros. And this time that's gone up to two thousand, which is very generous. If anyone in the school wins, we'd like to use the money for the library, as we feel that's the right way for it to be spent. Marla's prize money last year was spent on the new computer software. Now, you may feel you'd like to enter the competition but need some more help. If that's the case, you can look at the website. The head of English, Mr Winters, has said you will find it really useful.
Woman: Because of the football finishing late, there are some changes to this evening’s programmes. We won't now show the Nature Programme, about the sharks found in the Pacific, at nine o'clock. Instead, the cartoon film the Mighty Heroes will be at this time, an hour later than advertised. You can see the Nature Programme at its usual time next week.
We talked (1) ______ going to the pop concert last night. It’s (2) ____ 15th February and the tickets cost £20 each. They’re (3) ______ expensive than tickets for the disco, but it will be (4) _____ really great night!
(5) ______ you want to come with us? My brother will (6) ______ us there in his new car!
Dad's buying the tickets online tomorrow, so write back quickly or (7) ______ me on my mobile. My (8) ____ is 077845.
You will hear a teacher telling her students about a school trip. Listen and complete each question.
School trip
Name of programme: Teen News
Day: (1) _________
Begins at: (2) _________ p.m.
Channel: (3) _________
Good for (school subject): (4) _________
Name of journalist: (5) _________ Sara
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
s
Audioscript
Woman: OK, everyone. Listen carefully. I want you all to 'Natch a TV programme if you can this week.
Boy: Which programme is it?
Woman: It's called Teen News..
Boy: And which day is it on. Mrs Kendall? Not Friday, I hope!
Woman: No. It's on Wednesday, Leon.
Boy: What time does it start?
lfVoman: It's only twenty minutes long and it starts at a guarter past six.
Boy: Which channel is it on?
Woman: It's on Channel 7. Can you all get that channel?
Boy: I think so but we can't get Channel 11 on our IV.
Woman: Me neither.
Boy: Bu! why should we V'talch this programme, Mrs Kendall?
Woman: Because the journalist is going to talk about a project that some teenagers are doing with robots. It'll be good for your next science project here at school.
Boy: Wow!
Woman: And the journalist is a very interesting person too.
Boy: What's his name?
Woman: It's a woman and her name is Sara Coastley. You spell that C-0-A-S-T-L-E-Y.
You will hear an interview with Derek Allen, an author, about the writing process.
1 Derek Allen thought his book would be successful because
A it deals with an unusual subject.
B he did a lot of research for it.
C its packaging was appealing.
D he invested a lot of effort in it.
2 Allen says that writing for radio is useful because it
A can be good preparation for writing a book.
B makes you popular with a wide audience.
C requires the same dialogue as a book.
D allows you to introduce a variety of characters.
3 Allen says he uses science fiction because
A it represents his vision of what the future will be like.
B many events can happen in a short space of time.
C he wants to make it popular among readers.
D it allows him to explore a bizarre chain of events.
4 According to Allen, other writers use coincidence to
A throw light on characters.
B resolve difficulties with storylines.
C make the reader work harder.
D introduce an element of danger.
5 If Allen was a painter, which element of a painting would he get wrong?
A the background
B the shape of the figures
C the proportions
D the detail
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
s
Audioscript
Interviewer: .. OK, and now we move to our section on books and authors. The book we’re discussing today is Travelling in Space and we’ll be discussing it with its creator, Derek Allen. It was originally presented as a 12-part radio series and it’s a pretty outrageous and satirical science fiction epic but offers a gleefully pessimistic view of modern society. A year later, the book of the radio programme was published and it went straight to the top of the best-seller list — it sold 10,000 copies in the first month alone. Derek Allen, welcome. Now, can I start by asking you what is the essence of its success?
Derek: Of course, it’s an unanswerable question. If one knew the answer, one could bottle it. The only thing I can say with any degree of certainty is that, however extraordinary its success may have turned out to be, there's a little bit of me that isn’t surprised because I actually know how much I put into it in terms of worry and stress. I mean, we all know the packaging can be very attractive but it’s what’s inside that matters. And, you see, there's a little bit of me that doesn’t expect anything I’ve written to be any good, so you work at it a bit more and a bit more, and you are so determined to pack everything in, so it doesn’t surprise me that people have got so much out of it in the end.
Int: It’s a funny thing, isn’t it, radio and writing books go together, don’t they?
D: The overlap between radio listeners and a book audience is absolutely enormous, very much more so than between a book audience and television. But it is words. Now the thing is that one of the strengths of the book is that I originally wrote it all as dialogue. Now the thing about that is that the characters, therefore, are forced to tell the story. So the range of dialogue the characters have to employ is enormous. The mere fact of getting the characters always having to be the ones who tell the story, that gives you a tremendously good backbone for then writing a book.
Int: Absolutely. Now, the thing that strikes me is that in some ways you are ‘sending up’ the craft of science fiction and yet you’ve become a hero of the genre. Curious, isn’t it?
D: As far as I was concerned, I wasn’t ‘sending up’ science fiction. I was using science fiction as a vehicle for ‘sending up’ everything else. In comedy, for example, a sketch can create some sort of surreal premise on which a universe is based that will then last for two or three minutes and then you’re on to the next scene. And I always wanted to say — but what are the consequences of that surreal premise?
So, for example, right back at the beginning of the story, it could start with a man whose house is demolished to make way for a by-pass and so it then becomes conceivable that the earth then gets demolished to make way for a hyper-space by-pass. OK, now let’s move it on again, let’s give that consequences and of course, once you’ve blown up the earth, you are kind of committed to science fiction!
Int: Yes, and the other thing I notice is that while most writers avoid situations based
on coincidence, you positively revel in it.
D: Yes, well, coincidence is the thing that for many authors indicates that the plot has broken down and he is in danger of losing the reader! But I decided to embrace coincidences. As a coincidence is difficult to write about and to do it successfully you have to understand the force that you’re dealing with. For example, I can put characters in great jeopardy and you have a dilemma, which is, that if the jeopardy is going to mean anything, then you can’t get them out of it with one bound. So it’s got to be something, something that’s going to be of equal weight. I was watching a TV programme on judo where the principle is to use your opponent’s weight against himself. So every problem I come up with has to be resolved by something that is equally implausible!
Int: So is this all clearly delineated for you before you start?
D: Well, no, normally what an artist would do is rough out the general shape of the picture — a man’s going to be standing here, there’s going to be a donkey over here or whatever and you’ve got the main shape of the picture. Then you gradually put in a background — you rough it out in grey and then you put in the layers of paint but the first thing that’s there is the shape of it.
Now, if I was a painter, I would start painting in enormous detail down in the bottom left-hand corner and by the time I got to the top, everything would be out of scale.
Int: Right, OK well, let’s bring in our guest reviewer now ...
Everyone knows that parrots can imitate human speech, but can (1) _____ birds also understand meaning? Two decades ago, researcher Irene Pepperberg started working with Alex, an African grey parrot, and ever since then, she has been building (2) _____ data on him. Pepperberg, (3) _____ recently published book The Alex Studies makes fascinating reading, claims Alex doesn’t copy speech but intentionally uses words to get (4) _____ it is that he wants.
In actual (5) _____ , some of his cognitive skills are identical to those of a five-year-old child. (6) ______ a child’s, Alex’s learning has been a steady progression. Early on, he (7) ______ vocalise whether two things were the same or different. Now, he carries (8) _____ more complex tasks. Presented (9) _____ different-coloured balls and blocks and asked the number of red blocks, he’ll answer correctly. He requests things as well. (10) _____he ask to sit on your shoulder and you put him (11) _____ else, he’ll complain: ‘Wanna go shoulder.’
A (12) _____ experts remain sceptical, seeing very (13) ______ in Alex’s performance beyond learning by association, by (14) ______ of intensive training. Yet Alex appears to (15) ______ mastered simple two-way communication. As parrots live for 60 years or more, Alex may surprise (16) _____ all further.
You hear part of a discussion about a composer who writes film music.
How does the speaker feel about Nunan’s current work?
Acynical
Bangry
Cconfused
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
Audioscript
It’s certainly not that Nunan is untalented. In his earlier films, Lives at Sea for example, produced, when? 20 years ago and — one of my favourites — it would have been a much poorer film without the incidental music. The spectacular set pieces would have suffered from being over long. As it is, we are swept from mood to mood, changing from passion to serenity in one scene. And why this was so important was that it actually gave new layers of understanding to the viewer. We wouldn’t have got it otherwise. So I was his fiercest defender, as you may well remember, because Lives at Sea was so controversial that I felt that it needed defending; and Nunan’s work particularly so. And then other films started to come out and the suspicion began to creep up on me that he had one eye firmly on sales, which then became both eyes and that’s when a very good composer was lost to us.
In the last ten years or so, hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world have (1)_____ up residence in Vancouver, in western Canada. To relax in the evening, residents (2)____down the city streets and, if you join them, you are likely to overhear a different language at almost every other step. People come to Vancouver for its mild climate, its wonderful setting between the ocean and the mountains, its clean and safe environment and its educational and job opportunities. And (3)____ some may grumble about the speed at which new buildings have (4)_____, there’s no doubt that the new arrivals and (5)____ tourism industry have helped fuel an urban renaissance. Locals once referred to Vancouver as ‘Terminal City’ because of the city’s role as a terminus or gateway to all other places. Though the name has fallen slightly out of (6)____, Vancouver is more a gateway than ever.
William Skidelsky reviews David Papineau’s new book, in which sport meets philosophy.
Having breached his self-imposed division, Papineau set about applying his philosopher’s brain to a range of other sporting topics. Five years on, those inquiries have resulted in a book, Knowing the Score. This is essentially a collection of essays on whatever sporting questions happen to interest its author. It isn’t comprehensive, nor does it advance an overarching argument. The tone – informal, anecdotal, contrarian – is more popular philosophy than academic. What unifies the book is the consistency of its approach rather than of its content: he isn’t interested only in applying philosophical ideas and principles to sport. More importantly – and more originally – he wants to use arguments about sport as a launching pad into philosophy.
What point is made about Papineau’s book?
A It examines previously overlooked aspects of sport.
B Its style is inappropriate for the subject matter.
C It doesn’t convincingly link sport and philosophy.
D The areas of sport that it covers are very diverse.
William Skidelsky reviews David Papineau’s new book, in which sport meets philosophy.
David Papineau is an eminent philosopher and a passionate lover of sport. For much of his life, he has kept the two spheres separate, fearing that to mix them would produce a double negative in his readers’ appreciation of his work: philosophy robbed of its seriousness and sport of its excitement. Then, in 2012, a colleague invited him to contribute to a lecture series titled ‘Philosophy and Sport’, organised to coincide with that year’s Olympics. ‘I couldn’t really refuse’, Papineau recalls. ‘I had an extensive knowledge of both philosophy and sport. If I wasn’t going to say yes, who would?’
The reviewer suggests that Papineau
A was in two minds whether to take on the lectures on sport and philosophy.
B thought no one was better qualified than him to combine sport and philosophy.
C was disappointed with previous attempts to unite sport and philosophy.
D thought that philosophy was of greater value to people’s lives than sport.
Finding a job you love is the first step to being happy at work, but (1) ........ the right workplace environment is equally important. Creativity, hard work and bright ideas come (2) ........ positive, happy working environments in (3) ........ people are allowed the freedom to think, develop and express themselves. It's important for everyone to have (4) ........ own clearly-defined workspace, even if the workplace adopts an 'open plan' style, as so many offices now (5) ........ . Relaxation areas where people meet to chat and discuss ideas during office hours are regarded (6) ........ particularly beneficial.
Adding plants to the working environment can also (7) ........ offices to life, since they increase oxygen levels, purify the air and can create a calming and more productive environment. Finally, the lighting (8) ........ be right, because it can have a huge effect on people's moods. If offices are too harshly lit, (9) ........ can result in anger and headaches and lead to a lack of concentration.
No doubt you may be inclined to think that in this day and age, traditional pursuits are no longer ‘in’ and that we would have (1)______ away with old-fashioned hobbies that don’t involve computers. Nothing of the (2)______ . If anything, the internet has made it easier for people with specialist hobbies in different corners of the planet to (3)_____ themselves to their passion and to support one another. With one quick press of a key, (4)_____ car collectors are online, comparing notes and restoration (5)_____ with enthusiasts in distant lands. If a part needs replacing, a vast electronic inventory is out there (6)_____ and waiting. After a day in the field, birdwatchers can post sightings they consider worth sharing with likeminded enthusiasts who will immediately (7)_____ to their passion. Thankfully, face to face contact does still take place. Historic car rallies and races have a large following. Come Sunday morning, children and adults alike still meet to swap, or perhaps even (8)_____ , the cards missing from their collections.
Brad says there are no (1) ............................. to warn extreme snowboarders of dangers.
Brad advises snowboarders always to follow the (2) ............................. when descending.
Brad always wears a (3) ............................. when he goes into the mountains.
According to Brad, you need a lot of (4) ............................. to set off down the mountain.
Brad particularly enjoys doing several (5) ............................. when he is going down a slope.
Brad says at first he found it difficult to do a good (6) ............................. on steep slopes.
Brad says you must never (7) ............................. if you feel you're about to fall.
Brad advises against putting your weight on your (8) ............................. in a fall.
Brad always carries a (9) ............................. in case he is in difficulty following a fall.
In the future, Brad would most like to try (10) ............................. snowboarding.
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
s
Audioscript
When you go extreme snowboarding, you head for the highest peaks and the steepest slopes, taking little more than a map and some basic survival equipment with you. Unlike in ski resorts, you won't see any signs telling you there are rocks, or trees around, so it's up to you and your guide to make sure your route is as safe as possible. Of course, you should never attempt to go down a slope on your own. It's essential to be accompanied by a guide, who must go first every time as there may be no clear route down through the rocks and other dangers. They'll also show you the way up to your starting point, which may involve a long, difficult climb, and may wear a backpack containing supplies. I know some snowboarders like to take a helicopter up to the top, and that's quick and easy - though expensive - but I always prefer to go on foot. with a helmet on. of course. When you finally get up there, the view is always completely different from the way it looked from below. People say to me it must take a lot of courage to start going down such a steep slope, but if you've reached that point then you must be a pretty experienced snowboarder and what's really required is a tremendous amount of confidence. You never know exactly which way you're going to go or what you're going to encounter on your way down, and you often find yourself having to make split -second decisions, but that's part of the fun. !MW.. nothing Quite as exciting as suddenly having to perform a series of jumps as you descend. and then managing to stay on your feet afterwards. The ability to do that is obviously something that takes those new to extreme snowboarding quite some time to learn. And whereas doing a reasonably good take-off seems to come fairly naturally to most of us, landing is a more complex skill to acquire, as I found in my early days out on the mountain side.
Falling correctly is also something you need to practise, initially at low speed and on gentle slopes, and later in conditions more similar to those you'll encounter on the mountain. Rule one when you lose your balance is not to panic, or else you'll get tense and be far more likely to injure yourself than it you're relaxed and just let yourself go with the fall. Often the best thing to do is roll out of the fall, but it's natural to try to use your arms to try to slow yourself down and if you do so remember that elbows. If you fall on them, are much stronger and less likely to be injured than wrists. Following a high-speed fall, you might find yourself covered by some of the white stuff that has fallen with you. There may be just a few feet of it and you can usually pull yourself up to the surface, but if you can't you're in big trouble and that's why I'd never go down a slope without a small device fastened to my body that sends out a signal to the rescue services If I get buried. I know some safety experts recommend also taking a medical kit. but somehow I think that if I were buried under ice, my priority would be to get out or get rescued. I'm always looking for new challenges. Competition snowboarding was something I looked at, but there were just too many guys showing off. Teaching snowboarding is certainly something I might do one day, but what I really dream about is parachute snowboarding: going straight down a mountain, flying off a cliff and then floating down to the valley below. Now that's what I call extreme.
What is her opinion of the place she is living in while at college?
A She is not sure she will have enough room to study.
B She has difficulty in working because of the noise.
C She does not get on well with her room-mates.
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
Audioscript
Well, I'm sharing with two other girls ... I know, it was supposed to be me and one other person, but there's a shortage of accommodation, apparently. Anyway, the room's rather cramped. But it's great. There've been three parties so far, and it's still the first week. It's an incredibly noisy place, with doors banging and people laughing and shouting till the small hours. Yes, I suppose we'll have to get down to work soon, though I don't know how we'll be able to, packed into that little space - none of us is very tidy ...
You hear part of a radio interview. Who is speaking?
A a taxi driver
B a porter
C a tourist guide
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
Audioscript
We get people to the taxis, that's the first priority, and to the trains. We make sure they get on early and get comfortable seats. These days many passengers have a lot of luggage and they want assistance with it. So we provide a much needed service. We even take people down to the Underground or to places in the surrounding streets. But the majority of users are airline passengers with a lot of bags and perhaps accompanied by elderly relatives, young children and so on. Obviously they can't manage everything on their own.
You turn on the radio and hear a man talking. What is he talking about?
A drawing pictures
B writing fiction
C composing music
c
h
e
c
k
y
o
u
r
a
n
s
w
e
r
Audioscript
In practical terms, the place I'm in doesn't matter too much. As long as I have the necessary tools, you know, pencil and paper and, of course, my keyboard. Once I'm started, I go over things again and again - must be very dull if anyone's listening. I change a few notes here and there, but basically I tend to stick with an idea once I have it. I guess home's the best place in a way because there I'm relaxed enough to let my imagination flow and that's what you need to do, in order to produce a good piece ...
