Examen de Inglés PAU Madrid 2018 · Extraordinaria

OPCIÓN A

Saving the British Pub

In 1946 George Orwell described his favourite pub, “The Moon under Water”, where there were “mirrors behind the bar” and a “ceiling stained dark yellow by tobacco smoke”. It was the perfect pub, but it didn’t exist since the ideal boozer lived only in Orwell’s imagination. If we carry on the way we are, by 2046 many of the real pubs will exist only in our imaginations, too.

Today about 17,000 pubs are expected to be affected by a dramatic raise in business rates, with closures feared in the next five years. Yes, the death of the great British pub has long been predicted, with some losses since the 1900s. However, in the past decade numbers have dropped like a stone. What is strangling “The King’s Head”? The smoking ban, wage stagnation, alcohol duty, supermarket pricing and the more nebulous “cultural change”. In the forties Orwell wrote that the trend was “away from creative communal amusements and towards solitary mechanical ones” - and this was half a century before the Internet and Netflix came to seduce us.

There are many good economic arguments for wanting to see pubs thrive. In fact, a recent report showed that the industry supports 900,000 jobs. But this is not why the thought of decline hurts. It hurts because for many British people pubs are, in a strange way, an extension of what home is. Our national identity is glued by the places we share, the common denominators of the British experience - and there is perhaps no greater one of these than the pub.

More should be done especially to help rural pubs provide different services and stay alive. One organization helps landlords set up post offices, shops and libraries. We should take more pride in our pubs and support them.

1.- Are the following statements TRUE or FALSE? Copy the evidence from the text. No marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE. [Puntuación máxima: 2 puntos]

a)

George Orwell used to visit his favourite pub every day.

TRUE

FALSE

b)

Pub closures have been most significant since the beginning of the 21 st century.

TRUE

FALSE

2.- In your own words and based on the ideas in the text, answer the following questions. Do not copy from the text. [Puntuación máxima: 2 puntos]

a)

There are several reasons for pub closures. Mention four.

b)

Why is the decline of pubs affecting British people's feelings?

OPCIÓN A

Saving the British Pub

In 1946 George Orwell described his favourite pub, “The Moon under Water”, where there were “mirrors behind the bar” and a “ceiling stained dark yellow by tobacco smoke”. It was the perfect pub, but it didn’t exist since the ideal boozer lived only in Orwell’s imagination. If we carry on the way we are, by 2046 many of the real pubs will exist only in our imaginations, too.

Today about 17,000 pubs are expected to be affected by a dramatic raise in business rates, with closures feared in the next five years. Yes, the death of the great British pub has long been predicted, with some losses since the 1900s. However, in the past decade numbers have dropped like a stone. What is strangling “The King’s Head”? The smoking ban, wage stagnation, alcohol duty, supermarket pricing and the more nebulous “cultural change”. In the forties Orwell wrote that the trend was “away from creative communal amusements and towards solitary mechanical ones” - and this was half a century before the Internet and Netflix came to seduce us.

There are many good economic arguments for wanting to see pubs thrive. In fact, a recent report showed that the industry supports 900,000 jobs. But this is not why the thought of decline hurts. It hurts because for many British people pubs are, in a strange way, an extension of what home is. Our national identity is glued by the places we share, the common denominators of the British experience - and there is perhaps no greater one of these than the pub.

More should be done especially to help rural pubs provide different services and stay alive. One organization helps landlords set up post offices, shops and libraries. We should take more pride in our pubs and support them.

3.- Find the words in the text that mean: (Puntuación máxima: 1 punto)

a)

spectacular (paragraph 2):

b)

succeed (paragraph 3):

c)

actually (paragraph 3):

d)

establish (paragraph 4):

4.- Complete the following sentences. Use the appropriate form of the word in brackets when given. (Puntuación máxima: 2 puntos)

a)

People should (encourage) to visit pubs by the government so as close the gap between the price of supermarket and pub booze.

b)

smoking is no longer permitted, some people still (enjoy) socialising in pubs.

c)

You always come friendly people in local pubs. That’s we should try to frequent them.

d)

I remember (go) to the pub with my father when I was a child. However, now you are not allowed you are over 18.

5.- Write about 150 to 200 words on the following topic:

Is it important to save traditions? Give your opinion.

[Puntuación máxima: 3 puntos]

OPCIÓN B

Fancy a Lab Grown Burger?

Tissue engineering, which helps to improve damaged cells or whole organs, has proved to be extremely useful for medical applications that extend our lives. However, we might question ourselves what’s the point of living with artificial organs for a much longer period and without disease if our planet is going to be barren and without food. The answer might be cultured meat, that is to say, meat produced in a laboratory, in a cell culture, rather than from an animal, but identical to the burgers you can find at any supermarket. This new type of meat has the potential to address huge global problems such as world hunger and global warming in the coming years. After all, if you look at the potential benefits of tissue engineering, food production for 9 billion people is going to be a much more relevant matter than merely prolonging their lives.

After producing the first cow-less burger, which cost a massive €250,000 to grow, a researcher at the University of Maastricht has become the public face of cultured meat. That first burger, which was financed by a co-founder of Google, was tasted live in London back in 2013. The price has since dropped to around €10 per burger, and several new companies in the US and in Israel are currently working on their own cultured meat products. In 3-4 years’ time these companies might have launched some expensive burgers in small scale production. However, large-scale production with a price equal to regular meat will take much longer.

Lab grown meat is not only beneficial for humans. Animal welfare is an added benefit; however, if one had to prioritize, no doubt the environmental impact of protein production alternatives for beef and pork is even more important. More cultured meat means less pollution through fossil fuel usage, animal methane, effluent waste, and water and land consumption.

QUESTIONS

1.-

Are the following statements TRUE or FALSE? Copy the evidence from the text. No marks are given for only TRUE or FALSE.

(Puntuación máxima: 2 puntos)

a) The University of Maastricht invested a total of a quarter of a million euros from its own budget in the first synthetic burger.

TRUE

FALSE

b) It will take some time before the cultured burgers cost as much as regular ones.

TRUE

FALSE

2.-

In your own words and based on the ideas in the text, answer the following questions. Do not copy from the text.

(Puntuación máxima: 2 puntos)

a) Explain how tissue engineering may help biomedical research.

b) What may be the effects of large-scale cultured meat production on global warming?

OPCIÓN B

Fancy a Lab Grown Burger?

Tissue engineering, which helps to improve damaged cells or whole organs, has proved to be extremely useful for medical applications that extend our lives. However, we might question ourselves what’s the point of living with artificial organs for a much longer period and without disease if our planet is going to be barren and without food. The answer might be cultured meat, that is to say, meat produced in a laboratory, in a cell culture, rather than from an animal, but identical to the burgers you can find at any supermarket. This new type of meat has the potential to address huge global problems such as world hunger and global warming in the coming years. After all, if you look at the potential benefits of tissue engineering, food production for 9 billion people is going to be a much more relevant matter than merely prolonging their lives.

After producing the first cow-less burger, which cost a massive €250,000 to grow, a researcher at the University of Maastricht has become the public face of cultured meat. That first burger, which was financed by a co-founder of Google, was tasted live in London back in 2013. The price has since dropped to around €10 per burger, and several new companies in the US and in Israel are currently working on their own cultured meat products. In 3-4 years’ time these companies might have launched some expensive burgers in small scale production. However, large-scale production with a price equal to regular meat will take much longer.

Lab grown meat is not only beneficial for humans. Animal welfare is an added benefit; however, if one had to prioritize, no doubt the environmental impact of protein production alternatives for beef and pork is even more important. More cultured meat means less pollution through fossil fuel usage, animal methane, effluent waste, and water and land consumption.

3.- Find the words in the text that mean: (Puntuación máxima: 1 punto)

a)

b)

c)

d)

4.- Complete the following sentences. Use the appropriate form of the word in brackets when given. (Puntuación máxima: 2 puntos)

a)

I wish scientists (discover) meat culture decades ago! It have spared the planet much irreversible degradation.

b)

The first cultured meatball (make) in 2016 by an unknown company manager is a young bio-engineer in her twenties.

c)

Some believe that cultured meat is one of (important) discoveries in recent times for (defeat) some world problems.

d)

Nowadays, (be) a vegetarian is becoming a far more popular option it used to be a few decades ago.

5.- Write about 150 to 200 words on the following topic: (Puntuación máxima: 3 puntos)

Would you like to live in a world with only artificial food? Justify your answer.

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