Note-making

Practice Questions
Courtesy ZIET Bhubaneshwar

PASSAGE-1

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow :
8 Marks
In Democratic countries, any efforts to restrict the freedom of the Press are
rightly condemned. However, this freedom can be easily abused. Stories about
people often attract far more public attention than political events. Though we
may enjoy reading about the lives of others, it is extremely doubtful whether
we would equally enjoy reading about ourselves. Acting on the contention
that facts are sacred, reporters can cause untold sufferings to individuals by
publishing details about their private lives. Newspapers exert such
tremendous influence that they can not only bring about major changes to the
lives of ordinary people but can even overthrow a government.
The story of a poor family that acquired fame and fortune overnight,
dramatically illustrates the power of the Press. The family lived in Aberdeen,
a small town of 25,000 inhabitants in South Dakota. As the parents had five
children, life was a perpetual struggle against poverty. They were expecting
their sixth child and were faced with even more pressing economic problems.
If they had only one more child the fact would have passed unnoticed. They
would have continued to struggle against economic odds and would have lived
in obscurity. But they suddenly became the parents of quintuplets, four girls
and a boy, an event which radically changed their lives. The day after the birth
of the five children, an aeroplane arrived in Aberdeen bringing sixty reporters
and photographers. The news was of national importance, for the couple had
become the parents of the only quintuplets in America. The rise to fame was
swift. Television cameras and newspapers carried the news to everyone in the
country. Newspapers and magazines offered the family huge sums for the
exclusive rights to publish their photographs. Gifts poured in not only from
unknown people, but from baby food and soap manufacturers who wished to
advertise their products. The old farmhouse the family lived in was to be
replaced by a new $100,000 home. Reporters kept pressing for interviews so
laywers had to be employed to act as the spokesmen of the family at press
conferences. The event brought serious changes to the town itself. Plans were
announced to build a huge new highway as Aberdeen was now likely to attract
 thousands of tourists. Sign posts erected on the outskirts of the town directed
tourists not to Aberdeen, but to 'Quint-City U.S.A.' The local authorities
discussed the possibility of erecting a 'quint museum' to satisfy the curiosity
of the public and to protect the family from inquisitive tourists. While the five
babies were still quietly sleeping in oxygen tents in a hospital nursery, their
parents were paying the price for fame. It would never again be possible for
them to lead normal lives. They had become victims of commercialisation, for
their names had acquired a market value. The town itself received so much
attention that almost every one of the inhabitants was affected to a greater or
leis degree.
(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it,
using at least 4 recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Use
a format you consider appropriate. Supply a suitable title.
(b) Write a summary of the above passage in about 80 words.

PASSAGE-2

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
8 Marks
The work which Gandhiji had taken up was not only the achievement of
political freedom but also the establishment of a social order based on truth
and non-violence unity and peace; equality and universal brotherhood and
maximum freedom for all. This unfinished part of his experiment was perhaps
even more difficult to achieve than the achievement of political freedom. In
the political struggle, the fight was against a foreign power and all one could
do, was either join it or wish it success and give it their moral support. In
establishing the social order of his pattern there was a likely possibility of a
conflict arising between groups and classes of our own people. Experience
shows that man values his possessions even more than his life because in the
former he sees the means for perpetuation and survival of his descendants
even after his body is reduced to ashes. A new order cannot be established
without radically changing the mind and attitude of men towards property and
at some stage or the other, the 'haves', have to yield place to the 'have-nots'.
We have seen in our time, attempts to achieve a kind of egalitarian society
and the picture of it after it was achieved. But this was done by and large,
through the use of physical force.
The root cause of class conflict is possessiveness or the acquisitive instinct.
So long as the ideal that is to be achieved is one of securing maximum material
satisfaction possessiveness is neither suppressed nor eliminated but grows on
 what it feeds. Nor does it cease to be such—it is possessiveness, still, whether
it is confined to only a few or is shared by many.
If egalitarianism is to endure, it has to be based not on the possession of the
maximum material goods by a few or by all but on voluntary, enlightened
renunciation of those goods, which cannot be shared by others or can be
enjoyed only at the expense of others. This calls for substitution of spiritual
values for purely material ones. The paradise of material satisfaction that is
sometimes equated with progress these days neither spells peace nor progress.
Mahatma Gandhi has shown us how the acquisitive instinct inherent in man
could be transmuted by the adoption of the ideal of trusteeship by those who
‘have' for the benefit of all those who 'have-not' so that, instead of leading to
exploitation and conflict, it would become a means and incentive for the
amelioration and progress of society respectively.
(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it,
using at least 4 recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Use
a format you consider appropriate. Supply a suitable title.
(b) Write a summary of the above passage in about 80 words.

PASSAGE-3

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
8 Marks
For those who failed to keep pace with the advances in mountaineering
equipment in the past two decades, it's a whole new world of synthetic marvels
that may just have taken the sting off taming Everest.
Take boots. Earlier, climbers used heavy leather shoes with soles that were
hobnailed into the uppers. An hour before the start of the expedition, they
needed to be waxed to make them waterproof. No wax meant instant frostbite.
And if the boots were left outside the tent, they would be frozen, making it
extremely difficult to slip the feet in. The only solution was to sleep with the
boots inside the sleeping bag.
Today's boots come lined with the magic of plastic. They don't freeze and are
lightweight. The One Sport Everest is extremely warm, with a lining of
Alveolite insulation and another layer of Alveolite in the built-in over-gaiter.
And they weigh less than a kilo. The sleeping bag is the key to survival in the
Death Zone of 26,000 ft and above. Earlier, the bags were stuffed with goose
feathers. Today, they sidestep the down-versus-synthetic conundrum by
swinging both ways. While feathers are layered next to the body for warmth,
 the synthetic, quick-drying Primaloft, lies on the outside for its moisture-
shedding properties.
The old faithful ice-axe was wooden with a steel head, sturdy, but heavy and
undimensional. Not any more. The latest ice-axes are made of titanium and
are feather-weight. They also have curvatures and teeth that allow a climber
to be suspended, in mid air with only the ice-axe for support. Similarly, pitons
and ice screws have transformed-all are titanium.
Another area where a revolution has been quietly at work is oxygen cylinders.
If one doesn't believe in Reinhold Messner's code of bagging the summit by
"fair means", take heart. The old days, when cylinders weighed 10 kg, are
over. The state-of-the-art Russian-built oxygen systems consist of a stiff
plastic mask, a regulator and an orange steel Keviar gas canister. They weigh
less than 3 kg. Not only are they lighter, but they also have more capacity.
In fact, everything has changed. The tents are lighter, sturdier and can breathe.
The mittens with fleece inners assure frost-free security. Even the food is
precooked and dehydrated. All one needs to do is add water and heat.
Camp cookers too have become lighter, smaller, and more efficient. A steel-
mesh bull's eye in the middle of the ultra-efficient LP gas burner keeps the
flame roaring when the wind is doing likewise. But the handiest feature is its
integrated starter. No more the temperamental matches. Just open the valve,
flick the index finger, and.... Houston, we have ignition.
Technology can keep you in a better frame of mind, but as Captain M.S. Kohli,
who led the Indian team in 1965, says, "In the end, you still need to climb that
mountain."
(a) On the basis of your reading of the passage make notes on it, using
at least 4 recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Use a
format you consider appropriate. Supply a suitable title.
(b) Write a summary of the above passage in about 80 words.

PASSAGE-4

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow :
8 Marks
So often these days we hear and speak of the conquest of nature, 'the taming
of ‘river', ‘the war against insects' and so on. Often these phrases are used
without consciously attaching any values to them, but they have underlying
them an attitude of hostility towards Nature and Nature's creatures, a view
point which seems to assume. Nature as an enemy that needs to be vanquished.
Alternatively, Nature seen merely as a 'resource' to be 'exploited' - take the
maximum out of it, regardless of what this does to natural processes audio
other creatures which depend on these processes It is this attitude which sees
fellow humans too as a resource to be exploited, or other human communities
as enemies to be conquered.
There is a growing back of sensitivity and respect for our fellow creatures.
This attitude is being drilled into a child by social forces, which can only be
countered by environmental education. Yet, sadly, in most cases this is not
done. What is done is talk about the food web and the energy cycles and
ecological balance and how removal of any elements disrupts the whole
system, and how this can affect human beings too What this approach lacks is
the essential interaction with Nature and with other humans. Indeed in many
environmental activities the opposite takes place. A classic example of this is
making of a herbarium, of even worse, and insect collection, as common in
both formal and non formal education in India. A child is often encouraged to
pluck leaves and flowers and run after butterflies with a net, and is part of a
large group of children similarly marauding a patch of nature within it. Such
a child is not likely to develop any strong feeling of respect for nature, or for
the individual "specimens" pressed in the plant file or trapped in ajar. It is
even worse when the activity is also competitive, LC., who collects the
maximum. A lot of knowledge may be gained, but it is gained in a value
system which emphasises exploitation and conquest, ‘not sensitivity and
respect. Learning under a tree, (Santivana) rather than in a classroom, is
indeed the Indian tradition, is far more effective and long lasting.
The alternative is to take up activities where ecobalances, ecological
diversities animal behaviour, human plurality and other such concepts and
systems are introduced with the stress on their intrinsic worth. Materials,
processes, living beings do not exist only for human use, but more importantly
they are worthwhile in themselves.
A frog is as much in love with its life as the human child is with its mother :
the feelings of the frog must be respected. The final thrust of environmental
education seems to be embodied in the vital question : 'Am I doing something
which disrespects or violates some other creature's right to live and live freely
? If I am, what can I do to minimize the damage I am causing ?
Once again, the Indian tradition of ahimsa comes out as infinitely more
relevant then much of what we learn in modern education.
(a) On the basis of your reading of the passage make notes on it, using
at least 4 recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Use a
format you consider appropriate. Supply a suitable title.
(b) Write a summary of the above passage in about 80 words.
PASSAGE-5

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
8 Marks
Self-reliance is a sure key to success and happiness. A self-reliant person
always depends upon his own energy, capacity to work, prudence and the
resources. Therefore, a self-reliant person is master of himself and the
circumstances as he does not depend on others. Such a person is always calm,
sure, confident and self-possessed. He is firm, prompt in action and even ready
to face any challenge, and fertile of resources. While others who are not
independent, are surely much handicapped. It is really a slavery to depend on
others for help, guidance and aid or resources. And a slave is always at a great
disadvantage. A person is most happy and satisfied when he relies upon his
own strength, power and resources. He even walks without crutches or outside
support.
Self-reliant people have always been found sure, self-assured, decisive,
optimistic, free, independent and bold. They do not suffer from indecision or
delay. They are rich in expediency, quick in action, and steadfast in decision.
Their will-power is very strong, their resolutions unfailing. They are the
makers and masters of their destiny. They never blame fate, circumstances or
the tools for they make their own tools and use them with greatest skill and
concentration which is at their command. Their work, their creations and
achievements bear the stamp of their personality. They are original in ideas
and in shaping things and events. They achieve what they will because they
are self-dependent, resolute, single-minded and self-controlled. They know
well their strength and weakness and so use their energies and resources in
such a way as never to expose their weakness. And when they achieve their
victories, their ambitions and goals, then their joy in an unalloyed bliss for the
glory is not to be shared by others. Self-reliance is the best support, the best
tool and the shortest way to success. Lord Budha said "You are both friend
and enemy of yourself. The heaven and hell lies within you. It is upto you
what you choose. You are your own lamp, guide and staff. Never depend on
others. Be the maker of your destiny. Help yourself and the world will help
you". It reminds us of the famous saying "God helps those who help
themselves" All successful men and women have been self-reliant. They
achieved what they desired because they did not depend on others. They ran
fast and in time on the roads of self-reliance. A man walking with the crutches
of others help cannot think of running a race, he cannot compete, he is sure to
end with the crutches.
 (a) On the basis of your reading of the passage make notes on it, using
at least 4 recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Use a
format you consider appropriate. Supply a suitable title.
(b) Write a summary of the above passage in about 80 words.

PASSAGE-6

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow :
8 Marks
In ancient India, during the Vedic age, women were given education in the
same way as men. It was during the Muslim period that women began to be
kept in strict puma . Neither were there proper arrangements, nor did the
parents dare send their daughters out to receive education. During the
freedom struggle, it was realised by our leaders that without active
participation of women in the freedom movement, India would never become
free. Since then the necessity of educating women has been increasingly felt.
Women have to play an important role in the development of the country. If
we want to make democracy successful, women must be educated. They are
the builders of happy homes. It is in their lap that the children receive their
first lesson. As the mothers are, so will be the children. Moreover, certain
professions are most suitable to the nature of women. Women make the best
nurses. Primary education can be given only by women. There are many other
professions in which women can play a very important part. In a nutshell the
progress of the country depends upon female education. We must give up our
conservative outlook. The need of female education was never so great as it
is to-day.
All now accept the necessity of giving education to women. But there are
differences of opinion on the type of education which should be given to them.
Indeed, it is a very important issue. Should boys and girls be given the same
kind of education ? Or should there be different type of education for boys
and girls ? If we decide to give different type of education to girls, then of
what type should it be ? These are the questions which must be answered.
Wrong type of education can cause greater harm than good to our girls.
Some feel that women should be given a different kind of education from the
one given to boys. Women have to discharge their duties as good mothers.
Their education should be such as may enable them to run their homes
efficiently and make them good mothers. Their sphere of activity is entirely
different from that of men. So must be their education.
 Another question is whether there should be co-education or not. Opinions
differ widely on this issue. There are men who strongly advocate co-education
at all stages. On the other extreme are those who are deadly against it. But the
truth lies in between these two extremes. Boys and girls may be educated
together in primary and university classes. But co-education in high school
and inter classes is full of dangers. We should take full advantage of co-
education as well as safeguard ourselves against its evil effects. This will be
the best policy for giving education to women.
Q. A. Make notes on the passage using appropriate abbreviations. Also
supply an apt heading.
Q. B. Make a summary of the passage.

PASSAGE-7

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
8 Marks

Rising prices are causing a great concern to the Indian economists at the
present moment. It is true that prices can never remain stationary. A certain
amount of fluctuation is inherent in the very nature of prices. In a developing
economy, they usually display an upward trend. But if prices keep rising
persistently, they cause great hardship to the people. They spare neither the
rich nor the poor, neither the producer nor the consumer. They make economic
activities uncertain and unstable, causing great unrest in the minds of the
people.
Inflation is a self-accelerating process. It is a phenomenon that feeds on itself
and initiates a very vicious cycle. Rising prices drive people to demand
increased wages and salaries. Since such demands are resisted in the
beginning, they resort to pressure tactics like strikes and demonstrations. But
such tactics only decrease production and aggravate the situation. And if the
demands are met, there is a fresh spurt in prices. All benefits accruing from
additional income are neutralised. Then fresh demands are raised and this
cycle goes on.
The fixed-income groups like salaried people, wage-earners and pensioners
are the most helpless victims of inflation. As prices rise, their real income gets
eroded. The additional dearness allowance which the government sanctions
from time to time proves of no use to them, because their purchasing power
actually goes down. Inflation induces businessmen to invest their money in
 non-productive assets like gold and land whose real worth is not affected by
rising prices. High prices also adversely affect the exports of the country and
distort the balance of foreign trade.
Numerous factors can be cited to explain price rise in India. First, our
economic planning has suffered from serious drawbacks right from the
beginning. During the various Five-Year Plans, while the public expenditure
persistently increased, the production targets-were never realised. This forced
the Government to resort to deficit financing. There was a rapid increase in
the money supply without a corresponding increase in production. The
resulting imbalance inevitably led to inflation.
The taxation policy of the government has also contributed to price rise. A
sound policy of direct taxes would not only have yielded higher revenue but
also have enabled the government to give relief in indirect taxes, which
invariably lead to inflation. Defective tax structure has encouraged tax evasion
and led to the accumulation of black money. This is an example of evil
multiplying evil. The parallel economy in our country that thrives on black
money and smuggling has always encouraged rise in prices.
Steep rise in the population of the country after independence is another major
factor responsible for causing inflation. During the last thirty years alone, the
population has gone up by about 75 per cent. Rising population multiplies
demands for all kinds of goods and services and leads to an all-round price-
hike.
Slow increase in agricultural and industrial production, faulty distribution and
marketing system, and an unprecedented hike in oil prices in the international
market can be cited as some other important factors that have aggravated the
situation. Our agriculture has been rather slow to respond to innovations.
Industry has been faced with shortage of inputs like coal, power, raw
materials. But even the things produced are not properly distributed. Majority
of Indians have no community consciousness. There is no organised consumer
resistance to price rise. Instead, our masses get scared by the rumours of
scarcities and tend to hoard as much as they can. This further intensifies the
crisis. Indians also believe in ostentatious living. They indulge in wasteful
expenditure that directly affects the prices.

Q. A. Make notes on the passage using appropriate abbreviations. Also give an

PASSAGE-8
1. Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that
follows : 8 Marks
Occasional self-medication has always been part of normal living. The
making and selling of drugs has a long history and is closely linked, like medical
practice itself, with belief in magic. Only during the last hundred years or so has the
development of scientific technique made it possible some of the causes of
symptoms to be understood, so that more accurate diagnosis has become possible.
The doctor is now able to follow up the correct diagnosis of many illness- with
specific treatment of their causes. In many illness of which the causes remain
unknown, he is still limited, like the unqualified prescribe, to the treatment of
symptoms. The doctor is trained to decide when to treat symptoms only and when
to attack the cause. This is essential difference between medical prescribing and self-
medication. The advance of technology has brought about much progress in some
fields of medicine, including the development of scientific drug therapy. In many
contries public health organization is improving and people’s nutritional standard
has risen. Parallel with such, beneficial trends are to which have an adverse effect.
One is the use of high pressure advertising by the pharmaceutical industry which has
tended to influence both patients and doctors and has let to the over use of drug
generally. The other is the emergence of the sedentary society with its faulty ways
of life: Lack of exercise, over-eating, unsuitable eating, insufficient sleep, excessive
smoking and drinking. People with disorder arising to self-medication and so add
the taking of pharmaceutical of the list. Advertiser go to great length to catch this
market. Clever advertising aim at chronic suffers who will try anything because
doctors have not been able to cure them, can induce such faith in preparation,
particularly if steeply prized, that is will produce-by suggestion-a very real effect in
some people. Advertisement are also aimed at people suffering from mild complaints
such as simple cough and cold which clear up by themselves within a short time.
These are the main reasons, why laxatives, indigestion remedies, pain killers, cough
mixers, tonics, vitamins and iron tablets, nose drops,. Ointments, and many other
preparations are found in quantity in many households. It is doubtful whether taking
these things ever improves a person's health, it may even makes it worse. Worse,
because the preparations may contain unsuitable ingredients; worse because the
taker may become dependent on them; worse because they might be taken in excess;
worse because that may cause poisoning and worst of all because symptoms of some
serious underlying cause may be asked and therefore medical help may not be
sought. Self diagnosis is a greater danger than self medication.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage, make notes on it, in
points only, using sub-headings. Also write at least 4 recognizable
abbreviations, wherever necessary (minimum 4). Use a format you can
 consider suitable. Supply an appropriate title to it.

(b) Write a summary of the above passage in about 80 words.

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
8 Marks
Medical experts have cautioned against extensive use of aluminum cookware
and foils, especially for acidic food preparations containing tamarind,
tomatoes and green leafy vegetables which could lead to aluminum toxicity
and consequent nerve disorder. The use of aluminum cookware should be
limited and their use for making acidic food preparations should be avoided
as they increase aluminum leaching into food warn scientists from National
Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad.
Chronic exposure to high levels of aluminum through food and water could
lead to nerve and brain disorder such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease,
they say. Studies at NIN have shown that chronic exposure of rats to high
aluminum and calcium defiant diets lead degeneration of nerves and
impairment of some brain functions.
Earlier studies too have linked high aluminum intake with dementia and bone
diseases. Keeping in view evidence of a link between high aluminum content
in drinking water and senile dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, a reduced
intake of aluminum by kidney patients and elderly persons is advisable.
NIN scientists say in a report that they have also advised regular monitoring
of aluminum in blood for dialysis patients. Patients with kidney disorders are
particularly susceptible to aluminum is present in water, soil, plants and
cooking utensils. It is added to drinking water as aluminum sulphate at the
treatment plants, while soil contamination with it leads to accumulation in
vegetables.
It is also used in medicine such as antacids, analgesics and anti-diarrhoeals in
food and food activities, foils, wrapping papers and cookware and in water
purification processes. NIN studies showed especially green leafy vegetables,
spices and in the form of 'Sambhar' contribute significantly to aluminum
uptake.
Aluminum containing food additives are generally used as buffers,
neutralising agents, dough strength emulsifying agents for processed cheese
and thinkers. Studies on experimental rats also showed that deficiencies of
certain minerals such as calcium and iron enhance aluminum absorption and
accumulation in tissues over a long period.
 Recent reports indicate that most individuals consume aluminum daily from
natural resources. Additional aluminum is injected through pressure cookers,
roasting pans, frozen dinner trays, foil wrappers.
The use of aluminum in packaging food is on the increase and is becoming a
potential source of contamination.
Studies also show that certain dietary factors such as citrate and nutritional
deficiencies of essential minerals such as calcium and iron significantly
enhance aluminium absorption and accumulation in tissues. Aluminium
toxicity is greater when there is calcium deficiency in the body.
(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it
using heading and sub headings. Use recognizable abbreviations
wherever necessary (minimum 4). Your notes should be in points
only.
(b) Write a summary of the above passage in 80 words only. Suggest a
suitable title.

PASSAGE-10

Q.1 Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow :
8 Marks
We have been talking about the evils of child abuse for the last 10 years in
this country. But the number of working children seems to be increasing.
Instead of building up a groundwell of public opinion against child labour and
for compulsory primary education, we are still talking about child labour as
being necessary for the survival of the family. The debate has not changed
radically in the last 10 years. The result is that children continue to work in
the most hazardous conditions and compulsory education is still a dream.
The presence of child labour in hazardous industries is a gross violation of
human rights. If children are not dying in explosions, they are dying a slow
but sure death in the glass, brassware, lock, slate, balloon, brick-kiln and other
industries.
With their power employers of child labour get away scot-free. If at all
compensation is paid, it is the state that dishes out the cash.
Not only are children working in hazardous industry, they are also engaged in
the most hazardous processes in industries which adults do not want to touch.
In the glass industry children are primarily engaged in removing molten glass
from the furnaces. Since the furnaces are designed for adults, the child's face
is almost touching the wall of the furnaces. It is not all.
Accidents happen all the time and most of them go unreported. Doctors refuse
to treat injured and severely ill patients. A common complaint I heard from
workers in all the industries I studred- glass, lock, brassware, pottery and
gemstone- was that doctors tell them to come back to them for
treatment when they are better. Doctors refuse to treat severely injured
patients, as they have to necessarily report medico-legal cases.
What then is going to be the fate of Indian children? Will Rohtak become
another statistic or yesterday's news? Are we still going to justify child labour
in India as an economic necessity for the family? The children who are found
working are those that are able to work. What about the children
who are too ill or injured working in hazardous occupations? The word
"hazardous" is not defined anywhere, not in the Constitution of India and in
the Child Labour (prohibition and regulation) Act 1986. Child labour has to
be banned uniformly.
Or will the state take notice only when it becomes an international issue, as is
the case with the carpet industry? Child labour in hazardous industry at least
needs to be banned by a residential order or something dramatic and serious
like that. The message needs to get home to all employers of child labour that
this situation just cannot continue. Parents also cannot be allowed to justify
sending their children to work in such industries on the grounds of poverty. A
massive countrywide campaign needs to be launched-like the campaign on the
girl child-staling clearly the punitive action which would be taken if children
were found to be employed.
We cannot wait for the perfect programme to be developed before child labour
is banned in hazardous employments. The word "hazardous" needs to be
defined and defined now. If all work is considered hazardous then let all work
be banned for children.
1. On the basis of your reading of the passage make notes on it using
subtitles and at least 4 abbreviations. Give the passage a Title.

2. Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words, using your