Examen de Inglés PAU Galicia 2022 · Ordinaria

TEXT A

Willie Johnson, one of Britain’s most successful inventors, is the man who invented the Micropacer jogging shoe which records time and speed over distance, and the Gogglevox which gives personal television a big-screen effect.

Johnson has no scientific background. He relies on design companies and technical experts to translate his ideas into reality. At an international exhibition of inventions recently, Johnson won nine awards. One of his winning inventions was the Swallet, an electronic wallet which sounds an alarm if a thief cuts the cord by which it is attached to the wearer. Johnson’s own personal favourite is the Tantrum, a tiny electronic device inside a foam brick. When you throw the brick at your TV set, the device sends a signal to a gadget in the plug socket that turns the electricity off if the set was on or on if it was off.

Until the runaway success of the Micropacer in 1984, he struggled to make a living with a string of inventions, from cardboard furniture to a trailer that converted into a boat. “Sometimes I did well, but for each idea that makes you money you may lose on three or four others”. He describes inventing as a tremendous gamble. Inventors can either sell an idea outright to a manufacturer or collect a percentage of the sales in royalties. The latter is every inventor’s dream and even a simple idea can turn into a pot of gold if it is fun, becomes fashionable, and appeals to young people.

Johnson believes that his talent lies in taking technological advances and putting them to creative uses that other people have not thought of. Whatever happens, Johnson cannot stop inventing.

1.1. Write a summary of the text in English, including the most important points, using your own words. (approximately 50 words; 0.75 points)

TEXT A

Willie Johnson, one of Britain’s most successful inventors, is the man who invented the Micropacer jogging shoe which records time and speed over distance, and the Gogglevox which gives personal television a big-screen effect.

Johnson has no scientific background. He relies on design companies and technical experts to translate his ideas into reality. At an international exhibition of inventions recently, Johnson won nine awards. One of his winning inventions was the Swallet, an electronic wallet which sounds an alarm if a thief cuts the cord by which it is attached to the wearer. Johnson’s own personal favourite is the Tantrum, a tiny electronic device inside a foam brick. When you throw the brick at your TV set, the device sends a signal to a gadget in the plug socket that turns the electricity off if the set was on or on if it was off.

Until the runaway success of the Micropacer in 1984, he struggled to make a living with a string of inventions, from cardboard furniture to a trailer that converted into a boat. “Sometimes I did well, but for each idea that makes you money you may lose on three or four others”. He describes inventing as a tremendous gamble. Inventors can either sell an idea outright to a manufacturer or collect a percentage of the sales in royalties. The latter is every inventor’s dream and even a simple idea can turn into a pot of gold if it is fun, becomes fashionable, and appeals to young people.

Johnson believes that his talent lies in taking technological advances and putting them to creative uses that other people have not thought of. Whatever happens, Johnson cannot stop inventing.

1.2. Indicate whether the following statements are true or false (T/F) according to the text. Copy that part (and ONLY that part) of the text which justifies your answer. (1 point)

a.

Johnson has a large reputation as a scientist

True

False

b.

Even before his success with Micropacers, Johnson always found it easy to make a living as an inventor.

True

False

c.

Johnson considers inventing as a very reliable activity.

True

False

d.

Johnson’s natural gift is based on using technology in an ingenious way.

True

False

TEXT A

Willie Johnson, one of Britain’s most successful inventors, is the man who invented the Micropacer jogging shoe which records time and speed over distance, and the Gogglevox which gives personal television a big-screen effect.

Johnson has no scientific background. He relies on design companies and technical experts to translate his ideas into reality. At an international exhibition of inventions recently, Johnson won nine awards. One of his winning inventions was the Swallet, an electronic wallet which sounds an alarm if a thief cuts the cord by which it is attached to the wearer. Johnson’s own personal favourite is the Tantrum, a tiny electronic device inside a foam brick. When you throw the brick at your TV set, the device sends a signal to a gadget in the plug socket that turns the electricity off if the set was on or on if it was off.

Until the runaway success of the Micropacer in 1984, he struggled to make a living with a string of inventions, from cardboard furniture to a trailer that converted into a boat. “Sometimes I did well, but for each idea that makes you money you may lose on three or four others”. He describes inventing as a tremendous gamble. Inventors can either sell an idea outright to a manufacturer or collect a percentage of the sales in royalties. The latter is every inventor’s dream and even a simple idea can turn into a pot of gold if it is fun, becomes fashionable, and appeals to young people.

Johnson believes that his talent lies in taking technological advances and putting them to creative uses that other people have not thought of. Whatever happens, Johnson cannot stop inventing.

1.3. Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions given here: (0.75 points)

a.

b.

c.

QUESTION 2. ANSWER THE TWO BLOCKS OF QUESTIONS:

2.1. Block 1. Pronunciation: (0.90 points)

a.

In which word is the underlined vowel pronounced differently? As i a, pharm a cist, veget a ble, ch a racter

b.

Which word has the stress on the second syllable? expert, veritably, create, promise

c.

In which two words are the underlined letters pronounced like the “u” in “put”? f oo d, m o ve, f oo t, sp oo k, b o som, b oo t, m oo d, f oo l

d.

In which two words is the letter “s” pronounced /s/ as in “past”? windows, rose, laughs, bees, horse, lose, is, blues, eggs

QUESTION 2. ANSWER THE TWO BLOCKS OF QUESTIONS:

2.2. Block 2. Complete the second sentence of each pair so that it has the same meaning as the first one. You must use the word or expression in italics. (1.60 points)

a.

We will tell you the exact time of your exam tomorrow.

You

b.

Nowadays we usually copy and paste; don't get used to it.

Nowadays we usually copy and paste, let's

c.

It was raining cats and dogs. That's the only reason we didn't take our students to the beach.

If

d.

"Did the man attempt to steal your mother's wallet?" He asked me.

He asked

TEXT B

When Harvey and Daeida Wilcox purchased 120 acres of farmland northwest of Los Angeles in 1886, they had plans to live a quiet life on their ranch, which they called Hollywood. This prohibitionist couple’s dream of setting up a fig farm lost strength just one year after buying the land, and as a result the Wilcoxes divided it up and sold it off quickly to like-minded buyers, imagining that a sober and deeply religious community would be established on their land. Perhaps their dream of a Christian utopia could have come true if it had not been for a clever man from New Jersey, Thomas Edison.

The predominant narrative regarding the rise of Hollywood was that land was cheap outside Los Angeles, where the weather was always pleasant, and labour was easy to find. All these factors that drew people to Hollywood are completely true; however, the major factor that pushed independent film makers out west was Edison’s merciless business style, which left film makers only one option: to escape from New Jersey and Edison’s control.

Edison had patents on over 1,000 different things, including most of the technology needed to make high- quality movies. In short, if someone wanted to be in the film business, they basically had to go through Edison. So “independent” film-makers chose an alternative option to fight Edison: they moved to California, to an area of the country where judges weren’t as friendly to Edison and his patents, and where copyright laws would not be a problem. These conditions made it possible for Hollywood to legally flourish without any threats of lawsuits or mob attacks.

Edison was probably the biggest individual influence on Hollywood as we know it today. Without his ruthless, and eventually illegal, business practices, there is a good chance that New Jersey would still be home to the film industry and that Hollywood would just be another town outside Los Angeles.

3.1. Write a summary of the text in English, including the most important points, using your own words. (Approximately 50 words; 0.75 points)

TEXT B

When Harvey and Daeida Wilcox purchased 120 acres of farmland northwest of Los Angeles in 1886, they had plans to live a quiet life on their ranch, which they called Hollywood. This prohibitionist couple’s dream of setting up a fig farm lost strength just one year after buying the land, and as a result the Wilcoxes divided it up and sold it off quickly to like-minded buyers, imagining that a sober and deeply religious community would be established on their land. Perhaps their dream of a Christian utopia could have come true if it had not been for a clever man from New Jersey, Thomas Edison.

The predominant narrative regarding the rise of Hollywood was that land was cheap outside Los Angeles, where the weather was always pleasant, and labour was easy to find. All these factors that drew people to Hollywood are completely true; however, the major factor that pushed independent film makers out west was Edison’s merciless business style, which left film makers only one option: to escape from New Jersey and Edison’s control.

Edison had patents on over 1,000 different things, including most of the technology needed to make high- quality movies. In short, if someone wanted to be in the film business, they basically had to go through Edison. So “independent” film-makers chose an alternative option to fight Edison: they moved to California, to an area of the country where judges weren’t as friendly to Edison and his patents, and where copyright laws would not be a problem. These conditions made it possible for Hollywood to legally flourish without any threats of lawsuits or mob attacks.

Edison was probably the biggest individual influence on Hollywood as we know it today. Without his ruthless, and eventually illegal, business practices, there is a good chance that New Jersey would still be home to the film industry and that Hollywood would just be another town outside Los Angeles.

3.2. Indicate whether the following statements are true or false (T/F) according to the text. Copy that part (and ONLY that part) of the text which justifies your answer. (1 point)

a.

The Wilcoxes sold parts of their land to people sharing their ideology.

True

False

b.

The main reason why film makers chose Hollywood was the year-round pleasant weather

True

False

c.

Edison's technological advances were needed by film makers

True

False

d.

Thanks to Edison's way of doing business, which was very advantageous for film makers, the film industry moved to LA.

True

False

TEXT B

When Harvey and Daeida Wilcox purchased 120 acres of farmland northwest of Los Angeles in 1886, they had plans to live a quiet life on their ranch, which they called Hollywood. This prohibitionist couple’s dream of setting up a fig farm lost strength just one year after buying the land, and as a result the Wilcoxes divided it up and sold it off quickly to like-minded buyers, imagining that a sober and deeply religious community would be established on their land. Perhaps their dream of a Christian utopia could have come true if it had not been for a clever man from New Jersey, Thomas Edison.

The predominant narrative regarding the rise of Hollywood was that land was cheap outside Los Angeles, where the weather was always pleasant, and labour was easy to find. All these factors that drew people to Hollywood are completely true; however, the major factor that pushed independent film makers out west was Edison’s merciless business style, which left film makers only one option: to escape from New Jersey and Edison’s control.

Edison had patents on over 1,000 different things, including most of the technology needed to make high- quality movies. In short, if someone wanted to be in the film business, they basically had to go through Edison. So “independent” film-makers chose an alternative option to fight Edison: they moved to California, to an area of the country where judges weren’t as friendly to Edison and his patents, and where copyright laws would not be a problem. These conditions made it possible for Hollywood to legally flourish without any threats of lawsuits or mob attacks.

Edison was probably the biggest individual influence on Hollywood as we know it today. Without his ruthless, and eventually illegal, business practices, there is a good chance that New Jersey would still be home to the film industry and that Hollywood would just be another town outside Los Angeles.

3.3. Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions given here: (0.75 points)

a.

b.

c.

QUESTION 4. ANSWER THE TWO BLOCKS OF QUESTIONS:

4.1. Block 1. Pronunciation: (0.90 point)

a.

In which two words is the letter “l” mute (not pronounced)? actual, Paul, owl, calm, digital, special, walk, travel

b.

Which pair of words does not rhyme?

c.

In which two words is the ending "-ed" pronounced /d/ as in “loved”? asked, helped, waited, smiled, arrived, looked, relaxed, missed

d.

In which word does the underlined vowel sound like the “a” in “c a t”? part, ankle, bath, fall.

QUESTION 4. ANSWER THE TWO BLOCKS OF QUESTIONS:

4.2. Block 2. Complete the second sentence of each pair so that it has the same meaning as the first one. You must use the word or expression in italics. (1.6 points)

a.

On TV they’ve advised people to stay at home.

... suggested...

b.

They offered my friend a home-based job.

My friend...

c.

I live in England. It gets dark too early in winter.

I wish...

d.

He is 19 years old. I think he can travel alone.

... enough...

QUESTION 5. WRITE A COMPOSITION ANSWERING THIS QUESTION: People need qualities to make a success of “do-it-yourself”. Do you agree? (Approximately 120 words) (2.5 points)

QUESTION 6. WRITE A COMPOSITION ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS: What is your favourite film/ series? Why? (Approximately 120 words) (2.5 points)