Directions (1-8): Read the following passage and answer the given questions. Some words are highlighted to help you answer the questions.
Sri Lanka, Serendip, the jewel in the Indian Ocean, is facing a severe political and economic crisis.
The crisis has multiple roots but has intensified in the last two years with COVID-19, climate change, the debt crisis, the contribution of chemical fertilisers to debt, climate emissions and climate vulnerability. The protests we are witnessing now are triggered by an economy of greed, creation of a debt trap and rent collection, rising costs of living and ordinary citizens facing an economic crisis of survival. When the cost of living becomes unbearable, people rise. And across the world countries are being trapped in debt to generate billions for the billionaires and banks.
Sri Lanka is facing a serious debt and foreign exchange crisis. This is a _______(I)________ result of the neoliberal policies of corporate globalisation that make countries borrow more and more for the infrastructure of profits – ports, power plants, highways, resorts – to then end up in a debt trap. This in turn forces to pay more for essentials. The foreign debt is at $12.55 billion, with the Asian Development Bank, Japan and China among the major lenders. The 22 million citizens of Sri Lanka are facing a crisis of survival, and have risen in protest against the government. Ministers have resigned. Emergency rule had been declared. The country is surviving on credit. Its capacity to pay back its loans with interests was badly hit by COVID-19. Tourism and foreign workers’ remittances was one of Sri Lanka’s main foreign exchange earners. The pandemic dried up both.
The Ukraine crisis has further amplified the issue, with oil and fertiliser prices rising. Sri Lanka has turned to the International Monetary Fund, India and China for credit. The devaluation of the Sri Lankan currency was part of the IMF restructuring demand. In February, India sent diesel shipments under a $500 million credit line. Sri Lanka and India have signed a $2 billion credit line for importing essential items including food and medicine. China provided the Central Bank of Sri Lanka with a $1.5 billion swap and a $1.3 billion syndicated loan to the government. Climate havoc which affects South Asia most severely has also intensified Sri Lanka’s food crisis.
Localisation instead of corporate globalisation, ecological sustainability and sovereignty instead of fossil fuel intensive, capital intensive, debt intensive economies are the path to peace and freedom, resilience and self-reliance – for individuals, communities, countries and the planet.
Q1. From the following statements, choose the incorrect statement(s) in accordance to the information given in the passage.
(i) India sent fuel under a $500 million credit line in February.
(ii) One of Sri Lanka’s biggest foreign exchange earners was tourism and contributions from overseas employees.
(iii) The Asian Development Bank, South Korea, and India are among the primary lenders on the foreign debt, which totals $12.55 billion.
(a) Only (ii)
(b) Both (i) and (iii)
(c) Only (iii)
(d) Only (i)
(e) All of the above
Q2. The author explains the reason for why the ordinary residents were forced to partake in protests in Sri Lanka. What is the reason?
(a) The prolonged Emergency rule instated country-wide.
(b) The growing living expenses that the people have been a victim to.
(c) The development of a debt trap and the collecting of rent the country has found itself in recent times.
(d) Both (b) and (c)
(e) All of the above
Q3. Countries all over the globe are being enslaved by debt in order to _____________________________________________________.
(a) create billions for banks and billionaires
(b) provide the politicians with increasing employment opportunities
(c) tackle with the illegal and unethical Russian occupation of Ukraine
(d) maintain cordial relations with the Chinese authorities
(e) None of these
Q4. What is the way to peace and liberty, self-sufficiency and resilience for the global population as suggested by the author?
(a) The responsible Ministers should step down.
(b) Instead of corporate globalisation, localisation is the way to go.
(c) Credit line for the importation of necessities such as food and medicine should be increased.
(d) All of the above
(e) None of these
Q5. Which of the following word will be placed in the blank (I)?
(a) royal
(b) childlike
(c) direct
(d) overjoyed
(e) None of these
Q6. Choose the synonym of INTENSIFIED as highlighted in the passage.
(a) corrected
(b) mellowed
(c) disciplined
(d) unlocked
(e) exaggerated
Q7. Choose the antonym of AMPLIFIED as highlighted in the passage.
(a) unified
(b) condensed
(c) perceived
(d) utilized
(e) resembled
Q8. The second paragraph contains a word which means an electric utility generating station. Select which word it is.
(a) globalisation
(b) pandemic
(c) power plants
(d) infrastructure
(e) debt
Directions (9-15): Read the following passage and answer the given questions. Some words are highlighted to help you answer the questions.
Music is a powerful tool to access information about ourselves. Two recent studies are offering new insight into how our favourite tunes are linked to memories and our personalities — and how those connections can make lives better. Hearing a favourite, familiar or “throwback” song can instantly transport you to another moment of your life, bringing back details in startling clarity. And it’s not just a fanciful feeling — there’s science behind how our minds connect music with memory. There has long been a beneficial association between music and patients with Alzheimer’s or dementia.
Repeatedly listening to music that is personally meaningful has been found to improve the brain’s adaptability in patients with early Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment. Listening to music with a special meaning stimulated neural pathways in the brain that helped them maintain higher levels of functioning, according to Michael Thaut, who was senior author of a study conducted by researchers at the University of Toronto. It was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease in November.
These songs held unique significance, like music the people danced to at their wedding, and led to increased memory performance on tests. The findings could support the inclusion of music-based therapy in the treatment of cognitively impaired patients in the future. Changes were most notable in the prefrontal cortex, known as the control centre of the brain, where decision-making, social behaviour moderation, personality expression and the planning of complex mental behaviour occurs.
When the patients heard music that was personal to them, it powered up a musical neural network connecting different regions of the brain, based on MRIs taken of the patients before and after listening to the music. This differed from when they heard new, unfamiliar music, which only triggered a specific part of the brain tuned into listening. There were only 14 participants in the study, including six musicians, and they listened to specially _________(II)_________ playlists for an hour a day over three weeks. But these participants are the same ones from an earlier study that identified the neural mechanisms for preserving music-related memories in those experiencing early cognitive decline. The research is a promising beginning that could lead to music therapy applications with a broader purpose. It also highlights another connection: music and our personalities.
Q9. Decision-making, social behaviour regulation, temperament expression, and complicated mental activity planning all take place in ____________________________.
(a) neural pathways
(b) memory
(c) neural mechanisms
(d) prefrontal cortex
(e) None of these
Q10. How does the passage explain that a piece of music with a specific significance helped people with mild cognitive dysfunction and Alzheimer’s disease?
(a) It has proven to take you to a different time in your life, recalling memories with striking clarity.
(b) It activated neurological connections in the brain, allowing them to operate at a greater degree.
(c) The link between music and our personalities is vital because it describes certain characteristics of an individual.
(d) Both (a) and (c)
(e) Both (b) and (a)
Q11. What was the difference in brain activity when the patients were exposed to music that was meaningful to them versus the music that was foreign to them?
(a) Songs associated with special memories caused neural impairments.
(b) Music that was being heard first time prompted a portion of the brain dedicated to listening was activated.
(c) The music they were acquainted with activated a musical neural network that connected different parts of the brain.
(d) Both (b) and (c)
(e) All of these
Q12. Which of the following word will be placed in the blank (II)?
(a) curated
(b) apologized
(c) revered
(d) delegated
(e) None of the above
Q13. Choose the synonym of PARTICIPANTS as highlighted in the passage.
(a) establishment
(b) conformists
(c) applicants
(d) deterrent
(e) All of these
Q14. Choose the antonym of CLARITY as highlighted in the passage.
(a) obscurity
(b) clairvoyant
(c) nocturnal
(d) melancholy
(e) None of these
Q15. The first paragraph of the passage includes a word which means thing having the characteristics of a former time. Select which word is it.
(a) fanciful
(b) dementia
(c) throwback
(d) insight
(e) None of these
Solutions
S1. Ans (c)
Sol. The correct answer is option (c): Only (iii).
This statement is incorrect because the second paragraph states: The foreign debt is at $12.55 billion, with the Asian Development Bank, Japan and China among the major lenders.
Statement (i) is correct because the third paragraph mentions: In February, India sent diesel shipments under a $500 million credit line.
The same way statement (ii) is correct because the second paragraph says: Tourism and foreign workers’ remittances was one of Sri Lanka’s main foreign exchange earners.
S2. Ans (d)
Sol. The correct answer is option (d): Both (b) and (c).
Both the statements can be found in the first paragraph where it states: The protests we are witnessing now are triggered by an economy of greed, creation of a debt trap and rent collection, rising costs of living and ordinary citizens facing an economic crisis of survival.
S3. Ans (a)
Sol. The correct answer is option (a): create billions for billionaires and banks.
This answer is present in the last line of the first paragraph: And across the world countries are being trapped in debt to generate billions for the billionaires and banks.
S4. Ans (b)
Sol. The correct answer is option (b): Instead of corporate globalisation, localisation is the way to go.
The last paragraph mentions the answer to this question: Localisation instead of corporate globalisation, ecological sustainability and sovereignty instead of fossil fuel intensive, capital intensive, debt intensive economies are the path to peace and freedom, resilience and self-reliance – for individuals, communities, countries and the planet.
S5. Ans (c)
Sol. The correct answer is option (c): direct.
When we use ‘direct result’ in a sentence, we mean to say that a result is something that happens or exists because of something else that has happened.
S6. Ans (e)
Sol. The correct answer is option (e): exaggerated.
Exaggerate means to make (something) larger or greater than normal. This can serve as a synonym of Intensified.
Correct- put right (an error or fault).
Mellow- become gentler, wiser, and nicer; colour: become less bright.
Discipline- train (someone) to obey rules or a code of behaviour, using punishment to correct disobedience.
Unlock- undo the lock of (something), typically with a key.
S7. Ans (b)
Sol. The correct answer is option (b): condensed.
Condense means reduced in volume, area, length, or scope; shortened.
Unify- make or become united, uniform, or whole.
Perceive- become aware or conscious of (something); come to realize or understand.
Utilize- make practical and effective use of.
Resemble- have a similar appearance to or qualities in common with (someone or something); look or seem like.
S8. Ans (c)
Sol. The correct answer is option (c): power plants.
A power plant is an engine or other apparatus which provides power for a machine, building, etc.
S9. Ans (d)
Sol. The correct answer is option (d): prefrontal cortex.
The answer is in the third paragraph: Changes were most notable in the prefrontal cortex, known as the control centre of the brain, where decision-making, social behaviour moderation, personality expression and the planning of complex mental behaviour occurs.
S10. Ans (b)
Sol. The correct answer is option (b): It activated neurological connections in the brain, allowing them to operate at a greater degree.
This can be found in the second paragraph saying: Listening to music with a special meaning stimulated neural pathways in the brain that helped them maintain higher levels of functioning, according to Michael Thaut, who was senior author of a study conducted by researchers at the University of Toronto. It was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease in November.
S11. Ans (d)
Sol. The correct answer is option (d): Both (b) and (c).
This can be found in the last paragraph where it mentions: When the patients heard music that was personal to them, it powered up a musical neural network connecting different regions of the brain, based on MRIs taken of the patients before and after listening to the music. This differed from when they heard new, unfamiliar music, which only triggered a specific part of the brain tuned into listening.
S12. Ans (a)
Sol. The correct answer is option (a): curated.
To curate means to carefully chosen and thoughtfully organized or presented.
Apologize- express regret for something that one has done wrong.
Revere- to honour and admire profoundly and respectfully.
Delegate- entrust (a task or responsibility) to another person, typically one who is less senior than oneself.
S13. Ans (c)
Sol. The correct answer is option (c): applicants.
Applicants- someone who has applied for a job, a place on a course, etc.
Conformist- a person who accepts established behaviour.
Establishment- a business organization, public institution, or household.
Deterrent- something immaterial that interferes with or delays action or progress.
S14. Ans (a)
Sol. The correct answer is option (a): obscurity.
Obscurity- a thing that is unclear or difficult to understand.
Clairvoyant — seeing events in the future.
Nocturnal- done, occurring, or active at night.
Melancholy- a feeling of sadness, depression, or unhappiness.
S15. Ans (c)
Sol. The correct answer is option (c): throwback.
Throwback means something that is like a thing from an earlier time.
Rest of the words have different meanings.
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