I * COMPREHENSION (4 points). CHOOSE TEXT 1 OR TEXT 2 AND ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS FROM THAT TEXT ONLY.

TEXT 1: JOSÉ ADOLFO QUISOCALA IS CHANGING THE WORLD

When he was seven, José Adolfo Quisocala created a bank for school friends in his hometown of Arequipa, Peru, to save money to buy books, stationery and uniforms. Now, nine years later, the Bartselana Student Bank has 6,700 customers, all aged under 18. All these children can add more money to their savings by taking plastic and paper to recycle to school bus stops —the money is automatically credited to their bank accounts. Every month, the bank recycles between 15 and 16 tons of paper and plastic.

The idea came to Quisocala when he saw children begging at traffic lights and wondered how he could help them and their families earn and save, and at the same time recycle household rubbish that would otherwise become litter. He left school to pursue his idea, but it was worth it, he says. "In my town, I considerably reduced the level of child poverty, the school drop-out rate and environmental pollution."

Quisocala also helped create the Bartselana Foundation, which turns donations of recyclable waste from local companies into funds to combat child hunger and improve education. The foundation has been making free online educational videos lately, which they put out via social media, explaining how to distinguish different types of plastic and paper for recycling, for example. "This is relevant information which is not taught at school so we make it public and free to watch," says Quisocala.

Now 16, he plans to pass the bank to another young executive in order to go to university. He intends to continue his social activism, working with the "least-favoured or forgotten groups in Latin America" and helping them benefit from carrying out environmental services.

CHOOSE AND WRITE THE CORRECT OPTION (A, B, C or D). (0.5 points each)

1. José Adolfo started the bank…
(a) when he was in his teens.
(b) for every young student in Arequipa.
(c) to profit from his friends' money.
(d) to help his friends pay for their education.

2. The Bartselana Student Bank has been operating…
(a) for over a decade.
(b) only for minors.
(c) for all people in Arequipa who wish to save money.
(d) at José Adolfo's Primary School exclusively.

ARE THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE PRECISE WORDS OR PHRASES FROM THE TEXT, OR USE YOUR OWN WORDS. (0.5 points each)

3. Customers can get loans from the Bartselana Student Bank by recycling.

4. José Adolfo wanted to help kids in need while reducing waste in his city.

5. The initiative developed by José Adolfo also involves businesses in Arequipa.

6. José Adolfo is currently planning to improve living conditions in other countries.

7. FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)
7.1. ONE SYNONYM FOR: "client" (noun).
7.2. ONE OPPOSITE FOR: "increase" (verb).

8. FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)
8.1. ONE WORD MEANING: "to ask for money or food when being in need."
8.2. ONE WORD MEANING: "writing materials and office supplies."

TEXT 2: GARUM IN THE 21st CENTURY

In modern laboratories, scientists are working to recreate garum, a sauce made from putrefying fish that was beloved by the ancient Greeks and Romans but hardly sounds appealing to 21st-century food lovers.

The Latin term garum could refer to both a sauce used in the cooking process —sometimes also called liquamen— and to a condiment, made with the blood and viscera of fish, that writers such as Petronius, Ausonius and Seneca knew as garum sociorum ("garum of the allies").

Archaeologists had been unsuccessful in extracting well-preserved garum at excavations in Tunisia and other Mediterranean locations until Italian researchers in 2.009 discovered six sealed dolia —large clay amphoras— in a building that they named the Garum Shop at Pompeii. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 had buried the building under ash, thus perfectly preserving a small liquamen factory.

Food technicians from the universities of Cadiz and Seville analysed the contents of the dolia at Pompeii and, using that information and a liquamen recipe thought to have been written in the third century AD, produced what they claim is the first scientific recreation of the 2,000-year-old fish sauce. This recreation is called Flor de Garum and is being sold in amphora-shaped glass bottles throughout Spain. Chefs state that it supercharges dishes with a potent flavour.

It has been said that it is impossible to recreate definitive modern versions of these Roman ancient fish sauces, but at least this is the first time in modern history that a scientific reconstruction of garum has been successfully achieved.

CHOOSE AND WRITE THE CORRECT OPTION (A, B, C or D). (0.5 points each)

9. According to the text, …
(a) garum was a popular sweet in ancient times.
(b) the garum sauce was cooked with ashes.
(c) it is now possible to buy a version of garum.
(d) garum was made with fresh fish.

10. According to the text, Flor de Garum is made using…
(a) a recipe collected by Seneca and other classical writers.
(b) 2,000-year-old fish.
(c) data obtained from Pompeian dolia.
(d) information gathered from excavations in Tunisia.

ARE THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE PRECISE WORDS OR PHRASES FROM THE TEXT, OR USE YOUR OWN WORDS. (0.5 points each)

11. Today, people would love the original garum.

12. Garum could be used in two different ways in Roman cooking.

13. Some garum amphoras were not destroyed due to volcanic activity.

14. The new garum also helps to soften the taste of dishes.

15. FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)
15.1. ONE SYNONYM FOR: "esteemed" (adjective).
15.2. ONE SYNONYM FOR: "rotten" (adjective).

16. FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)
16.1. ONE WORD MEANING: "a building in which goods are manufactured."
16.2. ONE WORD MEANING: "to close tightly so that nothing can enter or leak."

II * USE OF ENGLISH (3 points; 0.5 points each). CHOOSE AND ANSWER ONLY 6 (SIX) QUESTIONS.

17. FILL IN THE GAPS WITH A CORRECT FORM OF THE VERB IN BRACKETS:
17.1. "He always makes me… when I feel sad." (smile)
17.2. "They… since they bought the phone. I think they will finally get the refund." (complain)

18. FILL IN THE GAPS WITH THE CORRECT OPTION:
18.1. "Frankly, there's no reason to be mad… this. Don't get upset, please." of / from / about / behind
18.2. "After using the spray, there were still… ants in the kitchen." much / little / a little / a few

19. TURN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE INTO THE ACTIVE VOICE: "The passengers were told to stay away from the bus until the door opened."

20. TURN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE INTO THE PASSIVE VOICE: "The staff at the shopping centre is already working on next year's campaign."

21. GIVE A QUESTION FOR THE UNDERLINED WORDS: "Martina criticised the organization of the event a lot."

22. JOIN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES USING A RELATIVE. MAKE CHANGES IF NECESSARY: "Randy's pet needs to be kept in a cage. It is a rather dangerous snake."

23. REWRITE THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE WITHOUT CHANGING ITS MEANING. BEGIN AS INDICATED: "If I were you, I wouldn't tweet them any more messages like this one." You'd better…

24. COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONAL SENTENCE: "As long as the doctor calls, …"

25. REWRITE THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE WITHOUT CHANGING ITS MEANING. BEGIN AS INDICATED: "It has been over two decades since The Matrix revolutionised the science fiction genre." The Matrix…

26. THERE ARE TWO MISTAKES IN THIS SENTENCE. FIND THE MISTAKES AND REWRITE THE SENTENCE CORRECTLY: "My grandchildrens asked me accompanying them home."

27. TURN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE INTO REPORTED SPEECH: "'I think I am going to update my Facebook profile tomorrow,' Brian replied."

28. USE THE WORDS IN THE BOXES TO MAKE A MEANINGFUL SENTENCE. USE ALL AND ONLY THE WORDS IN THE BOXES WITHOUT CHANGING THEIR FORM:
actors | is | googled | time | the | photo | of | about | most | all

III * WRITING (3 points)

29. WRITE A COMPOSITION OF AT LEAST 120 WORDS ABOUT ONE OF THE TOPICS PROPOSED AND FOCUS ON IT. CHOOSE ONE TOPIC ONLY:

29.1. How could you help people around you? Explain.

29.2. Do you think that our grandparents used to eat better than we do now? Explain.