Diagnostico EXCI

This section of the test consists of two parts. In each part you will hear dialogues and academic talks, and you will be tested on your ability to understand them. 

You will hear each dialogue and academic talk only twice, and then answer questions after each is finished. The questions ask about the main idea, supporting details, and the way the speakers use language. Answer each question based on what is stated or implied by the speakers. 

While you listen, you may take notes. You can then use your notes to answer the questions. Remember that once you go to the questions, you cannot come back to listen to the audio.

You will listen a conversation between a receptionist and a man. As you listen, choose the correct answer to each question.

Listen to the following audio once.  You may take notes  while you listen. When you finish click NEXT to see the questions.
 

SECTION 2 READING

You're about to start the READING SECTION.
This Section contains three texts. Read the three texts and then answer the questions that follow each of them.

TEXT 1

By Stephen Slater



The inquest has been adjourned until the second week in October.


The questions will be displayed after you click "NEXT PAGE". 

Text 2

HOW TO BOOK

1. Ring us stating:   Where and when you want to go. How long you want to stay. How many seats you need. The names of each passenger as they appear on their passports.

2. We send you an invoice and ask for a deposit, usually $80. The deposit guarantees the reservation but not the fare and forms part of the payment.

HOW TO PAY

You can pay by: 

*personal cheque, but allow for 9 calendar days for bank clearance.
*cash, if you come in to our shop.
*credit card, debit card, charge card (over the phone)(there are no extra charges for payment by credit or charge card).
*bankers cheque or draft.
*travelers cheque

TRAVEL TIP

Book early, especially for travel in July, August, at Christmas, New Year and Carnival. It’s not unreasonable to book up to 11 months in advance in order to secure the seats, dates and airline of your choice.

LAST MINUTE BOOKINGS

If you need to travel within a week of booking, you must pay by cash, card or bankers cheque. Book, pay and receive your tickets in a matter of hours. There is a charge for this service. Otherwise, if the airline allows it, you can pick the ticket up at the airport when you check in.

 

RESTRICTIONS

The prices listed in this brochure are for special fares and the following general restrictions apply:

1. You must stick to the same airline.

2. You must stick to the route on your ticket.

3. The financial penalties for making changes or losing your ticket can be severe.

 

CHOOSING THE RIGHT AIRLINE

You may not want the cheapest fare to Latin America. You may have other requirements, such as a generous baggage allowance, the ability to fly from your nearest airport, or you may be traveling with children or infants and so need to use an airline which offers competitive fares for families. Most airlines offer between 25% and 50% discounts off the fares shown here to children while infants travel for 10% of the full IATA fare (usually between $100 and $250). Please ring us with your requests.

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Text 3

Sharks hardly ever attack swimmers. Unless.........
American Times
Vero Beach, Florida

For a 9-year old, Willie Teller was a decent swimmer. But he should never have ventured 90 yards offshore on a recent Saturday picnic here, reaching a water depth of 10 feet before his father realized something was wrong.

The boy could have been caught by one of the local \"rip tides\", currents that strong adult swimmers often find impossible to fight. He could have had his neck rotted by a big wave, but he wasn't.  Willie was dragged underwater and torn to death by a tiger shark. That made him the first shark fatality near an American beach in 22 years. \"Fatalities are extremely rare in Florida, but what was disturbing this time was that it was a child\", according to Professor George Burgess, director of the Florida Shark Attack File. \"If he was flailing his arms, the shark may have been attracted by the movements. They use the standard predatory strategy of any animal, going after the weak or infirm.

People are fascinated by sharks. We probably fear shark attacks more than hurricanes or earthquakes. Tigers can usually be controlled with a well-placed shot. But sharks are something we can't control, they have the upper hand in a one-to-one encounter The last time a shark killed anyone in the US was in 1988, but that was a deep water swimmer who had dived off a boat. The last American shoreline swimmer killed in a shark attack was In 1976, the year after the film Jaws was made.

"You have a much better chance of winning the Florida lottery than of encountering a shark on our coastline" Professor Burgess likes to say. He produces statistics showing that more people in Florida were killed by alligators than by sharks over the last 50 years, and that Americans are more likely to be killed by lightning than by a shark. \"Take 1987, when there were only 13 shark bite injuries in the US,\" he says. \"In New York City alone that year, there were 8,064 cases of dog bites human, 1,587 cases of human bites human and 98 cases of squirrel bites human.

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Read the following questions and choose the best answer for each one.

SECTION 3 GRAMMAR & VOCABULARY

You're about to start the GRAMMAR & VOCABULARY SECTION. 

PART 1
Choose the best answer to complete the sentences below. Click NEXT PAGE to see the questions.

Part 2

Select the correct answer to complete the text below. Choose the word that fits best in each number.

For thousands of years, gray wolves have (41) Europe, Asia and North America from the Arctic to Central Mexico. They were once the (42) land mammal after man. Now, however, most wolves (43) by man, and their (44) is in danger of extinction. Wolf families (45) in packs for efficient hunting. Members of the pack are affectionate with each other and (46) to the group. Wolves usually kill other wild animals, but when there are not enough of these, the wolves attack domestic animals (47) cows and sheep. Farmers want to protect their animals (48) the wolves, while ecologists want to save the wolves. It seems clear that wolves (49) be protected, or they will (50) from the earth forever. Acknowledgement: The reading section above was based on D.Chadwick. “Return of the Gray Wolf.” National Geographic, May 1998, 72-99.