Part 6

Read a short story titled Margaret and the Two-Inch Tomato.

1 Margaret has a black thumb. She has never been able to successfully grow anything. She has
experimented in all manner of cuttings and they blossom for a day or two, then wither and die.
Nothing happens to the seeds that she plants. They don’t even break the ground. Her house plants
are all destroyed, torn by her outdoor loving cats. They hang bedraggled and limp, with broken
branches and dying leaves. 5

2 Every year, she tries to plant the live Christmas tree she buys. Every year it dies.
3 One spring, Margaret spots a whole garden full of beautiful red, beefy tomatoes just across the
street. It is her neighbour’s and she is envious. If her neighbour is able to grow those lovely
fruit/vegetables, why can’t she? Judging by her intelligence and being not totally incompetent, the
chances of her succeeding would be favourable. Besides, the soil is the same on this side of the 10
street as it is on that. She’s sure to be able to grow some freaking tomatoes.
4 Burned in the past, Margaret knows better than to buy seeds. She buys tomato plants in special
pots that guarantee they’ll grow. The tomato plants are already six inches tall in the cardboard pots.
The soil they are planted in his dark and marled with special ingredients. She plants them on the
same side of her yard that her neighbour planted his. He is outside weeding. She waves and he 15
waves back. “I’m growing tomatoes,” she shouts.
5 He smiles and replies, “Takes some of mine. I have too many.”
6 “Braggart,” she thinks. But she laughs and continues planting her tomatoes.
7 The drought starts as soon as she finishes putting the very last tomato plant in the ground. It is
the worst droughts the southeaster has ever experienced; weeks go by without even a single drop of 20
rain. Water levels in reservoirs are slowly going down and even drinking water dries up. No one
is permitted to water their gardens and it is deemed a criminal offence to wash your car. Margaret
stares, distraught, at the sticks where her tomato plants used to be. In the beginning, she tries to keep
up with the watering. Overflow from showers are saved up and used sparingly. She places a
pail in the bathtub makes everyone in her family produce water after each bath. But the plants 25
are so dry from the record-setting heat that she knows the effort is futile.
8 Just when she has given up and intends to remove those miserable looking bare sticks and start
over, it begins to rain. From drought to monsoon in one easy session. Every day, she returns home,
struggles clumsily to open her umbrella, drags her briefcase inside and bolts down the hatches for
the evening. Water seeps into her shoes. Her roof is leaking. Her car is leaking. It is so wet outside, 30
the cats don’t even bother to rush the door. She forgets she ever gardened.
9 Finally, it stops raining. There is a beautiful sunrise. The world looks bright, energetic and
beautiful. In the afternoon, she returns home from work and gets out of her car, grateful that she
doesn’t have to deal with that burdensome umbrella. Something catches her eyes as she is stepping
into the house, a flash of red. 35
10 A plant has grown and blossomed, covered with leaves, and on it hangs a beautiful red waxed
fruit. A perfect two-inch tomato decorating the green foliage. She moves closer to the plant and
bends forward to stare at the flawless fruit.
11 Days go by and it seems not have grown in size, still remaining at its perfect two-inch size. But
it is spectacular. Fearful that it will start decaying, she reluctantly plucks the tomato and brings 40
it inside. Her first home-grown anything.
12 Margaret wonders if there is any way to preserve the tomato. She still keeps the first dollar bill
she ever made. This could be a decorative item just like the dollar bill. However, her search on the
Internet about permanently preserving fruits or vegetables were futile. During dinner, she cuts the
tomato into tiny, perfect wedges and decorates a salad with them. “Do you see that?” she asks her 45
husband.
13 “Oh, great, you grew a tomato,” he answers
14 “If I can grow a tomato, I can grow other things, too.”
15 “How much did that tomato plant cost you?”
16 “Never mind. That’s not the point.” 50
17 The tomato is amazing. She dreads to eat it, but is delighted by the juiciness of the taste, so much
richer than the flat, boring tomatoes she purchases at the grocery store. She starts contemplating the
possibility of growing enough food to feed her family. She has a huge backyard. She could start a
nice garden.
18 She could rear a few chickens and have eggs for protein. She could buy goats for milk. Imagine 55
living off the land. She once had a boyfriend who lived off the land when she was in college.
However, the only plant he was ever successful in cultivating was marijuana, the others ended up
in failure resulting in his frequent visit to her house for meals. But maybe he didn’t have her abilities.
Maybe he didn’t have her abilities. Maybe he didn’t have her patience.
19 “What would you think if I quit my job?” she asks her husband. He knows how exhausted she 60
has been, how stressful her work is.
20 Nevertheless, he says, “I’d think you lost your mind.”
21 Margaret decides to purchase more plants. She will plant them and see what happens. If they
grow, like the two-inch tomato, this will be a sign. She may have a black thumb, but she’s good at
reading signs. 65

(Adapted from http://www.brightlightmultimedia.com)

27. The expression burned in the past (line 12) 30. Why did Margaret want to preserve the
suggests that Margaret tomato?
A. Had learnt her lesson. A. To make it into a decoration.
B. Envied her neighbours. B. To earn money from it.
C. Failed in everything she does. C. To prevent it from decaying.
D. Did not have great gardening skills. D. To commemorate her first home-grown
food
28. From paragraph 7 we can infer that
I. Margaret was determined to grow 31. Which of the following does not describe
tomatoes. Margaret’s behaviour?
II. Margaret did not have Lady Luck on her A. Idealist
side. B. Optimistic
III. Margaret was resourceful in her C. Competitive
methods. D. Sentimental
IV. Margaret was easily discouraged.
A. I, II, III
B. I, III,IV
 C. II, III, IV 32. ‘I’d think you lost your mind’ suggests that
D. All of the above Margaret’s husband
A. Worries about her.
29. The illustration in paragraph 8 is to B. Does not believe her.
highlight C. Disagrees with her idea.
A. The monsoon season. D. Understands her pressure at work.
B. Margaret’s hectic life.
C. Margaret’s forgetfulness. 33. The writer’s tone at the end of the story is
D. The cat’s indifferent attitude. A. Doubtful
B. Sarcastic
C. Inspirational
D. Encouraging

Part 7
Read an article on microsleep
Answer questions 34 to 40.

1 Microsleep is a condition in which refers to short, brief episodes of sleep ranging from seconds up
to a minute. It is momentary and uncontrollable as it most frequently occurs in situations where a
person is trying to fight sleep and keep awake. I may occur while driving and drivers are usually
unaware of these periods when microsleep occur. They may cruise along many metres with no
control, which increases the risk of a serious car accident. 5
2 Insufficient sleep can lead to sleep deprivation, resulting in the experience of microsleep.
Research indicates that even a single night of disturbed asleep will highly increase the occurrence
of microsleep. The human biological clock is programmed in body and mental functions to be
active in the day and rest at night, which makes us day oriented. It is nature’s way and it is
impossible for our biological rhythm to be altered to be fully alert at night and be well-rested during 10
the day because the human body is controlled by the pattern of the light and dark. Microsleep in
individuals may be an indicator of certain sleep disorders or the possibility of them being shift
workers. The prior leads to fragmentation of the states of sleep and wakefulness. While the latter
throws off regular snoozing patterns, messing with the normal circadian rhythms that most people
have , which both ensue poor quality sleep. 15
3 It is not just fatigue from a disturbed night’s rest that causes our brains to check out and
not be able to do anything. Microsleep is also closely related with conducting boring, monotonous
tasks. Sometimes boredom can trigger drowsiness, even if you’re well rested. This is especially the
case during dawn and dusk, during the mid-afternoon or late at night. These are the times when our
circadian rhythms naturally dip into drowsy territory. 20
4 While it can be harmless if the occurrence happens on your couch while you are trying
to remain awake for a movie, episodes of microsleep can also be extremely perilous. Having it
to occur at the wrong time, such as when a person is driving, will dramatically impair driving
skills and the ability to have quick reflexes on the road, causing accidents involving cars or heavy
machinery as well as other dangerous situations. Studies have shown that fatigue impairs visual 25
abilities as individuals who are sleep-deprived blink more and longer and they also display a more
 scattered gaze and fixation patterns. All these evidence are found in the driving patterns of those
who suffer from insufficient sleep, which clearly show a reduction in visual attention necessary for
the drivers to drive safely. Sleep-deprived people veer out of the lane three times more often and
the frequency increases the longer they drive. Falling asleep behind the wheel, even momentarily, 30
is gravely dangerous as it can lead to potential injury to the driver and other road users or even road
fatalities.
5 Microsleep is often the direct result of sleep deprivation. Thus, to reduce the possibility
of microsleep, sleep deprivation has to be eliminated. It is significant sleep to
satisfy your sleep needs. Adults require at least seven to nine hours of sleep each night. Besides 35
sleeping more, the improvement of the overall sleep efficiency is an effective way to eliminate sleep
deprivation.
6 Fortunately, there are an ambulance of ways to improve sleep efficiency. One great way is to
eliminate all potential distractions when sleeping. Abstain from having the television on, or playing
music while in bed. If you have the habit of having the music or television on, you should work 40
to change it. It is best to sleep in quite, dark and peaceful atmosphere. All lights should be off,
especially the bright, blinking lights. Cut off from looking at your handphone while in bed as the
bright lights emitted from the screen tend to stimulate the brain and keep it awake.
7 Quality sleep each night helps you to function throughout the day and not feel fatigued. However,
when carrying out repetitive tasks, like driving long distances, operating heavy machinery or just 45
working on eight-hour shift of data entry, take short breaks. During these short breaks, you switch
what you are doing for a few minutes every half-hour or so. Such actions stimulate different parts
of the brain to reduce the monotony. Moving around during the break to exercise by stretching your
body or legs pumps the blood flow, as being physically active wakes up the body to fight sleepiness.
If you dislike moving about then start and engage in a lively conversation with someone near 50
you. Participating in conversations forces you to pay attention to the details of the discussion and
increases oxygen in your bloodstream. On the other hand, if you are alone, then you may opt to
take a short nap to recharge your brain or turn up the tunes of upbeat music to lift your mood
and be more alert for a longer period of time.

(Adapted from https://bettersleep.org/blog)

34. In paragraph 2, the writer develops his points 38. the word monotony (line 48) can be best
mainly by replaced with
A. Citing examples A. Dullness
B. Quoting research B. Simplicity
C. Stating the evidence C. Sluggishness
D. Elaboration sleeping patterns. D. Dissimilarity

35. The following are causes of microsleep 39. which of the following is true about
except microsleep?
A. Working shifts. A. Microsleep is harmless.
B. Poor quality of sleep. B. Microsleep happens unknowingly.
C. Irregular sleeping patterns. C. Microsleep helps to recharge the brain.
D. Conducting mundane tasks. D. Microsleep is a result of only prolonged
insufficient sleep.
36. …to check out (line 16) means 40. According to the text we can conclude that
A. To give up. A. It is important to have good quality
B. To go crazy. sleep.
C. To stop functioning. B. Exercise is needed to prevent
D. To need medical attention. microsleep.
C. Microsleep can be overcome through
37. What is the main idea of paragraph 4? various methods.
A. The dangers of microsleep. D. The main cause of microsleep is
B. Tired people should not drive. insufficient rest time.
C. Sleep deprivation and its effects.
D. Microsleep can occur anytime and
anywhere.