Reading – Advanced

1.You are going to read an article about robot shops. Seven sentences have been removed from the article. Choose from the sentences A - H the one which fits each gap (1 - 7). There is one extra sentence which you do not need to use.

Like most ideas that seem absolutely revolutionary, the concept behind the robot shop is actually very simple. In fact, it has already been around for many years in the form of vending machines, selling bars of chocolate or drinks. This idea has been further developed to create the first robot shop, which may eventually change the future of shopping.

The prototype robot shop in a suburb of London looks like a giant vending machine. Nncnc The display on the right is refrigerated and holds items such as milk, yoghurt and cheese, while the display on the left has an impressive selection of biscuits, coffee cakes and crisps. It does not have the variety of conventional shops, but it can cope with a late night request for bread or painkillers.

You key in the code numbers of the goods you want, which are displayed just underneath each item in the window, and a huge robot arm reaches out and picks up each item, bringing it over to the console inside the shop.

An electronic display shows you the total you have to pay. Unlike supermarkets, in robot shops you can only collect the goods after you’ve paid. When the robot arm finds the things you want, it drops them into a hatch and you reach inside to take them out. If this happened before you paid, you could easily walk off with the goods without having paid for them.

The system couldn’t yet be described as entirely efficient. There’s a lot of room for improvement. The robot arm represents one of the biggest problems. kkkkknnkkknn The arm has to be very accurate in order to pick up the item it has reached for, carry it to the hatch and safely drop it into it.

The difficulty of judging customer attitudes is another reason why the robot shop has to be tested. Customers are still cautious about doing most of their shopping in a robot shop, but this is only to be expected; every new invention has been regarded with some suspicion at first.

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The manufacturers of robot shops suggest that the small shopkeeper in inner-city areas represents their biggest potencial client. People in the area value the convenience of being able to pop out virtually all hours of the day and night for some item they have forgotten or suddenly feel like buying. Small shopkeeper are likely to invest in robot shop equipment, rather than employ part-time staff to work twenty-four hours a day.

The question is whether customers will prefer the impersonal service of a robot shop to the conventional type of shopping where there’s human contact. hhhhhhhhhhhhhh Machines do not take lunch breaks, they hardly ever make mistakes and they are never rude to customers. Isn’t this the sort of efficiency people want from a shop these days?

A A central console between the windows is where you actually do your shopping.

B The first thing you notice are the two large display windows which are absolutely jnjn packed with goods.

C Older customers in particular may find the experience cold and impersonal, but a nnii younger generation may respond more positively.

D The real question is whether, over the three-month testing period, enough people jnjiij will overcome their doubts and start shopping here in significant numbers.

E For security reasons, you have to do this before the robot arm starts gathering iiin jiyour goods.

F Many shops like these only survive because they stay open late, or even round the jjjjjjjclock in some cases.

G Experience with similar machanised service equipment, such as cash dispensers, jjjjjjjjsuggest that there are considerable advantages for both customers and shop j jjjjjjj owners.

H The challenge is to create a piece of machinery which will be delicate enough to jjjjjjjjpick up eggs but at the same time strong enough to pick up bottles of mineral jjjjjjjjwater and baked bean cans.

By: Carolina Contreras Hidalgo

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2.You are going to read about five students’ experiences of studying abroad. For questions 8 - 22 choose from the people (A – E). The people may be chosen more than once.

Which person

did better in their studies as a result of going abroad?

says other students made good progress with a foreign language?

was entertained by a teacher?

wanted to spend less time studying?

overcame some initial difficulties with the academic system?

particularly appreciated meeting people from many different countries?

says some people are discouraged from studying abroad by problems they may have?

felt homesick when first in the country?

found communicating with other students difficult?

thinks studying abroad is a unique experience?

suggests that studying abroad may make you more attractive to future employers?

was surprised by the country despite speaking the language?

learnt a lot about people?

were able to get practical working experience in thecountries they studied in?

A year abroad

By: Carolina Contreras Hidalgo

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Have you ever thought of studying abroad? Read about five people who have done just that.

A Vanna studied in Australia

My first weeks were one of the worst experiences of my life. I felt extremely lonely and lost. In my country, students hardly ever live away from home when they are at

university, so the first thing I had to do was to learn to look after myself. Then I had to face my second big challenge: the language. It was hard to listen to a foreign language 24 hours a day, and even harder to take notes during the lectures! I found the teachers quite easy to understand, as they generally spoke English very clearly. Unfortunately that was not always the case with my classmate. Coming to terms with a different teaching method was another surprise, but when I got used to working in groups and doing assignments, I began to feel more confident.

B Mandy studied in Finland

The hospital where I studied was small and friendly. I spent five weeks as a nursing assistant on an

orthopaedic ward. My mentor had already worked in a London hospital, so she was familiar with the English hospital system. I also had a fantastic tutor who was incredibly helpful. She drove me to Helsinki several times to catch boats and buses and I spent many Sundays at her house enjoying her cooking and hospitality. I feel that my contact with patients and hospital staff

has given me a much better understanding of human nature and human behaviour and I’ve also noticed a marked improvement in my academic work.

C Karl studied in the UK

London as a multicultural city gave me the feeling that I was at the centre of thing. One of the best things was that as a university student I was able to get to know people

from all over the world. Another thing I liked about studying in the UK was having the opportunity to change aspects of my studies if I wanted to. I was also lucky to take part in an internship programme, which enabled me to work in the British Parliament as a politician’s assistant, so my studies were not just theoretical.

D Verina studied in Brazil

By: Carolina Contreras Hidalgo

I spent my second year abroad in Sao Paolo. My mum’s French and my dad’s Portuguese, so being bilingual I already had the advantage of knowing the language well, but I was totally unprepared for the amazing experience of living in Brazil. I studied on average 38 hours a week, which I felt was too

much, but it was fantastic mixing with other students. I had a great social life and managed to combine studying with everything else, like my day-to-day chores.

Studying in a foreign university is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but you have to make the most of it as the year flies by so quickly.

E Paul studied in Austria

Luckily, because my mother is German, I didn’t come up against a language barrier, but I did meet lots of people from all over Europe with only a basic knowledge of German. After a few months they were all speaking with much more confidence. Many people have told me that if there was no language barrier, they would love to have this sort of experience. My advice is always go. If you do, by the end of the year you will be able to put on your CV that you have working knowledge of another language. But if studying in a foreign language really scares you, there is an option in many countries of studying in English and many of the textbooks are in English anyway.

By: Carolina Contreras Hidalgo