TEXT (GRUPO A): "There's something here": teen discovers new planet
The best that most teenagers hope for from a summer "internship" is some work experience, and perhaps a good future reference. But Wolf Cukier, a 17-year-old high school student from New York, went a step further. He discovered a planet.
Mr Cukier had only spent three days as an intern at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center when he made the find. He had been examining satellite images marked by members of the public where the brightness of a star seemed to temporarily lower. These images had been marked by volunteers using software that helped them search through data of NASA's planet-hunting Tess space telescope. Mr Cukier was looking for star eclipses, and noticed something unusual. He began to suspect he was looking in front of the star, blocking its light. It turned out the thing was wrong. It was like, oh… there's something here. That looks cool!" Mr Cukier explained to CBS New York. Showing what he saw to seniors, over the coming days his more experienced colleagues gave its confidence that Mr Cukier was right – he had found a planet.
The planet was named TOI 1.338 b. It is almost seven times larger than Earth – around the size of Saturn – and can be found 1,300 light-years away from us. More unusually, the planet travels in a circumbinary orbit, around two stars – unlike Earth, which orbits one. Its happens about once every 95 days.
It was the first time that the NASA program he was working on, called the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), had discovered a planetary system with two stars. The find was so significant that Mr Cukier co-authored a paper with other scientists from a number of different US universities which is being presented to an academic journal.
Experts have since explained that discoveries like this one are easier to make by sight rather than through utilising computers. The human eye is extremely good at finding patterns in data, especially non-periodic patterns.
As for what comes next, Mr Cukier needs to finish his last year at high school first. Cukier, a Star Wars fan, has said he hopes this is the beginning of a career in the field.
*internship: a job, usually unpaid, offered to students by a company or organization so that they can gain work experience
Fragment adapted from The Telegraph, January 2.020
1. Say whether the following sentences are TRUE or FALSE according to the text. COPY the evidence from the text. No marks will be given without the evidence. (1.5 points)
a) Wolf Cukier had been checking solar eclipses.
b) Scientists saw clearly from the very start that Wolf Cukier had found a new planet.
c) Mr Cukier already has the qualifications he needs to become an astronomer.

2. ANSWER the questions below. COPY no more than 10 words and/or a number from the text to answer each question. (1.5 points)
a) How long had Wolf Cukier been at his internship before he made his discovery?
b) Apart from size, what distinguishes the new planet from Earth?
c) What is the best way to make discoveries like Mr Cukier's?

3. WRITE a synonym (=), an opposite (≠), a definition or a sentence for each of the following words to show that you understand their meaning in the text. Use your own words. (1 point)
a) to spot (line 5)
b) significant (line 18)
c) extremely (line 24)
d) field (line 25)

4. READ this conversation and COMPLETE your part. Write the numbers (1-6) and complete each sentence on your exam paper. (1.5 points)
Ordering a pizza on the phone
Employee: Hello, Pizza Express, can I take your order?
You: (1) ____________________ a pepperoni and bacon pizza.
Employee: I'm sorry, we don't have any pizza with those ingredients.
You: (2) ____________________ and it had all the ingredients I said.
Employee: Well, we have one with pepperoni, bacon and mushrooms. Would you like that one?
You: OK. (3) ____________________?
Employee: The medium is 9.5€ and the large one is 15€.
You: OK. I think (4) ____________________
Employee: Do you want delivery for 3€ more?
You: What do you mean, 3€ more?! (5) ____________________ last week!
Employee: Maybe you are not calling the same pizza restaurant, we have always had these terms.
You: Express Pizza, (6) ____________________?
Employee: I'm sorry, but this is Pizza Express.

5. Read the following situations and WRITE what you would say in each one to show that you understand the context of the situation. Write between 10 and 25 words. (1.5 points)
a) Two classmates are arguing about the best universities in Spain. You interrupt to give your point of view.
b) Your mother complains because your room is untidy. Offer an explanation.
c) Your family wants to go to Seville in summer, but you don't. Express your preferences.

6. WRITE a composition of about 120-150 words on the following topic (3 points):
What are the pros and cons of doing an internship?

TEXT (GRUPO B): Five not-so-great things about TikTok
TikTok has been getting a lot of attention over the past year – and not necessarily for good reasons. Although the video-sharing app has attracted a lot of new users interested in expressing their creativity and getting followers, it has also received bad press for promoting dangerous challenges and supposedly censoring creators.
Here are some of the concerns that have arisen lately.
Dangerous viral challenges are nothing new, but a couple of new ones have been circulating on TikTok in recent weeks — and kids are getting hurt. The penny challenge, for example, which involves dropping a penny between a phone charger and the wall plug, has been blamed for starting fires. TikTok spokesperson Raymond Fang said the safety of users is a "top priority". That's why TikTok's community guidelines make it clear that the platform does not allow content that "encourages, promotes or glorifies" dangerous challenges.
Last November, concerns about censorship on TikTok came to light when Feroza Aziz, a 17-year-old girl from New Jersey, posted a human rights protest video disguised as a makeup tutorial. The American teen claimed her video was temporarily made unavailable by TikTok after it was viewed more than 1.5 million times. TikTok denied censoring the post. In a statement, TikTok said her video was accidentally removed because of a "human control error" and it was made available again less than an hour later.
In December, a German website called Netzpolitik reported that TikTok was hiding content from disabled, LGBTQ and overweight creators. When TikTok was questioned about this, spokesperson Hilary McQuaide said the company had applied such a policy in the past, but only temporarily, "in response to an increase in bullying […]. While the intention was good, we recognize that the approach was wrong," McQuaide said. She added that TikTok has now abandoned the policy in favour of a new approach, which includes reporting and blocking bullies.
Last February, TikTok had to pay a big fine in the U.S. for collecting personal information from kids under 13. However, in a statement posted in October 2.019, TikTok said information saved on the app is secure.
Another issue that TikTok has been forced to address recently is the possibility of child harassment on the platform. The company insists that TikTok is "deeply committed" to child safety and has "zero tolerance" for behaviour that could lead to child abuse or sexual exploitation. It has recently announced a new feature called 'family safety mode', which allows parents to link to their teens' accounts in order to control their screen time, limit direct messaging and restrict some content.
Fragment adapted from CBC Kids News, February 2.020
1. Say whether the following sentences are TRUE or FALSE according to the text. COPY the evidence from the text. No marks will be given without the evidence. (1.5 points)
a) During the last year, the video-sharing app TikTok has been criticised for its presumed bad practice.
b) Feroza Aziz's shared video was intended to show teens how to make up.
c) TikTok has introduced new measures to avoid the harassment of under-18s.

2. ANSWER the questions below. COPY no more than 10 words and/or a number from the text to answer each question. (1.5 points)
a) What type of content is forbidden by TikTok?
b) According to TikTok, why was Feroza Aziz's video momentarily hidden?
c) Why was TikTok fined?

3. WRITE a synonym (=), an opposite (≠), a definition or a sentence for each of the following words to show that you understand their meaning in the text. Use your own words. (1 point)
a) guideline (line 9)
b) to claim (line 14)
c) overweight (line 18)
d) policy (line 21)

4. READ this conversation and COMPLETE your part. Write the numbers (1-6) and complete each sentence on your exam paper. (1.5 points)
You are talking to the new exchange student in your school after class
You: Hi. You are the new exchange student, aren't you? (1) ____________________?
Student: I'll be here from October till June.
You: Wow, that's a long time. (2) ____________________?
Student: Well, I'm Dutch, so apart from learning Spanish, I wanted some nice weather.
You: That's a good reason! (3) ____________________?
Student: At the moment, I'm staying in a student residence, but I'm looking for a flat to share.
You: I think I might be able to help you with that. I can introduce you to my friend who (4) ____________________
Student: Oh! That would be great. Thanks.
You: (5) ____________________
Student: How about right now? I don't have any more classes today.
You: OK, I'll call my friend and we could (6) ____________________
Student: That's a good way of getting to know each other!

5. Read the following situations and WRITE what you would say in each one to show that you understand the context of the situation. Write between 10 and 25 words. (1.5 points)
a) Your parents have planned the university where they want you to do your yearly study abroad. Express your disappointment and convince them to let you choose by yourself.
b) You are going out for lunch and your mother says, "Why don't we eat at the new Chinese restaurant?". Suggest something.
c) Sound notifications from your roommate's WhatsApp are stopping you from sleeping well at night. Complain about it.

6. WRITE a composition of about 120-150 words on the following topic (3 points):
Why do people feel the need to share videos on public platforms? Give your opinion.