High-tech crime-fighting tools

A
Crime-fighting technology is getting more sophisticated and rightly so. The police need
to be equipped for the 21st century. In Britain we’ve already got the world's biggest DNA
database. By next year the state will have access to the genetic data of 4.25m people:
one British-based person in 14. Hundreds of thousands of those on the database will
never have been charged with a crime.
B
Britain is also reported to have more than £4 million CCTV (closed circuit television)
cameras. There is a continuing debate about the effectiveness of CCTV. Some evidence
suggests that it is helpful in reducing shoplifting and car crime. It has also been used to
successfully identify terrorists and murderers. However, many claim that better lighting is
just as effective to prevent crime and that cameras could displace crime. An internal
police report said that only one crime was solved for every 1,000 cameras in London in
2007. In short, there is conflicting evidence about the effectiveness of cameras, so it is
likely that the debate will continue.
C
Professor Mike Press, who has spent the past decade studying how design can
contribute to crime reduction, said that, in order for CCTV to have any effect, it must be
used in a targeted way. For example, a scheme in Manchester records every licence
plate at the entrance of a shopping complex and alerts police when one is found to
belong to an untaxed or stolen car. This is an effective example of monitoring, he said.
Most schemes that simply record city centres continually — often not being watched - do
not produce results. CCTV can also have the opposite effect of that intended, by giving
citizens a false sense of security and encouraging them to be careless with property and
personal safety. Professor Press said: All the evidence suggests that CCTV alone
makes no positive impact on crime reduction and prevention at all The weight of
evidence would suggest the investment is more or less a waste of money unless you
have lots of other things in place.’ He believes that much of the increase is driven by the
marketing efforts of security companies who promote the crime-reducing benefits of their
products. He described it as a lazy approach to crime prevention’ and said that
authorities should instead be focusing on how to alter the environment to reduce crime.
D
But in reality, this is not what is happening. Instead, police are considering using more
technology. Police forces have recently begun experimenting with cameras in their
helmets. The footage will be stored on police computers, along with the footage from
thousands of CCTV cameras and millions of pictures from numberplate recognition
cameras used increasingly to check up on motorists.
E
And now another type of technology is being introduced. It's called the Microdrone and
it’s a toy-sized remote-control craft that hovers above streets or crowds to film what’s
going on beneath. The Microdrone has already been used to monitor rock festivals, but
its supplier has also been in discussions to supply it to the Metropolitan Police, and
Soca, the Serious Organised Crime Agency. The drones are small enough to be
unnoticed by people on the ground when they are flying at 350ft. They contain high-
resolution video surveillance equipment and an infrared night vision capability, so even
in darkness they give their operators a bird’s-eye view of locations while remaining
virtually undetectable.
F
The worrying thing is, who will get access to this technology? Merseyside police are
already employing two of the devices as part of a pilot scheme to watch football crowds
and city parks looking for antisocial behaviour. It is not just about crime detection: West
Midlands fire brigade is about to lease a drone, for example, to get a better view of fire
and flood scenes and aid rescue attempts; the Environment Agency is considering their
use for monitoring of illegal fly tipping and oil spills. The company that makes the drone
says it has no plans to license the equipment to individuals or private companies, which
hopefully will prevent private security firms from getting their hands on them. But what
about local authorities? In theory, this technology could be used against motorists. And
where will the surveillance society end? Already there are plans to introduce smart
water’ containing a unique DNA code identifier that when sprayed on a suspect will cling
to their clothes and skin and allow officers to identify them later. As long as high-tech
tools are being used in the fight against crime and terrorism, fine. But if it’s another
weapon to be used to invade our privacy then we don’t want it.
Glossary:
drone: a remote-controlled pilotless aircraft
350ft: about 107 meters
bird's eye view: a view from above
fly-tipping: illegally dumping waste (British English)

Reading Tip
 Do not worry about unfamiliar vocabulary or topic, but do not relax if you are
familiar with the subject of a passage: the answers should be in the passage itself.
 Check if the passage have glossaries.
 Read the instructions carefully. They may look similar to instructions from practice
tasks, but there may be important differences. Check to see if an example is given.
 Skip any questions you are not sure about, rather wasting too much time on a
particular question. You can come back to those questions later.
 Try to give an answer for all the questions. Multiple choice questions in particular
are worth trying to answer, as you have a chance of guessing the correct one.
 Reading paper for this section
Questions 1-5
The Reading Passage has six paragraphs A–F.

Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.

List of Phrases
iThe Spy in the sky
iiThe spread of technology
iiiThe limitations of cameras
ivThe cost of cameras
vRobots solving serious crimes
viLack of conclusive evidence
viiCars and cameras
viiiAdvantages and disadvantages
ixA natural progression
xA feeling of safety
ExampleAnswer
Paragraph Aix
1Paragraph B
2Paragraph C
3Paragraph D
4Paragraph E
5Paragraph F
Questions 6-8
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
6Britain has already got
Afour million CCTV cameras.
Bmore data about DNA than any other country.
Cthe most sophisticated crime-fighting technology.
Daccess to the genetic data of one in fourteen people living in Britain.
7Professor Press
Aworks at the University of Manchester.
Bstudies car-related crime.
Cis concerned about the negative impact of the use of CCTV.
Dfeels that some marketing departments lie about the crime-reducing benefits of CCTV.
8The Microdrone is
Aa type of toy in the shape of a plane.
Bbeing used by the Metropolitan Police.
Cbeing used by the government.
Dable to film in the dark.
Questions 9 and 10
Answer the questions below with words taken from the Reading Passage.

Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

9Give examples of 2 events where technology is used to watch crowds. rock festivals,
football
10According to the passage, who do we not want to use the Microdrone? private
security firms
Questions 11-13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the Reading Passage?

In boxes 11-13 on your answer sheet, write

YESif the statement agrees with the writer's claims

NOif the statement contradicts the writer's claims
NOT GIVENif there is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
11The British authorities use too much technology to monitor their citizens.
12Microdrone is currently not used to check drivers.
13Technology should not be used to check on people's private affairs.

Section 2 Metallurgy
Metallurgy is the scientific study of the properties of metals as well as extracting and
refining them into useful products. It has been an important part of human civilization for
thousands of years and played a critical role in the development of modern industry.
History of metallurgy is a fascinating tale of human ingenuity, from the earliest days of
metalworking to the cutting-edge technologies of today.
The first proven evidence of human metallurgy dates back to around 5000 BCE, when
copper was first used for making tools and ornaments. The discovery of this metal was
groundbreaking for humanity, as it allowed us to create more effective and durable tools.
The use of copper also heralded the beginning of the Bronze Age, when people saw the
development of more sophisticated metalworking techniques. The earliest metal objects
from the Bronze Age were still cast from copper, which was extracted from ore deposits
in the earth. Copper is relatively soft and malleable, making it easy to hammer or cast
into new shapes. However, it all came at a cost. It was not firm enough for warfare
applications like weapons or heavy armor - it would bend easily when hit. As a result,
this reddish metal was mostly reserved for civilian needs. This is why the discovery of
bronze was so significant.
Bronze, a new kind of alloy made by combining copper with tin, was much harder than
pure copper while also having better resistance to corrosion. The formula for making
bronze was developed during the early Bronze Age, when it is believed that the mixing
of copper and tin started. The Bronze Age spanned several thousand years – from
around 3000 BCE to 1000 BCE – and saw the rise of many early civilizations, including
Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Indus Valley. These societies were built on the foundation
of metallurgy, enabling them to create complex machines, build monumental
architecture, even facilitate waging wars against their enemies. Bronze allowed people
to reach an unprecedented level of accuracy and sophistication in creating various tools.
The process of making bronze was not as straightforward as 'heat, mix and stir'. This
was an arduous process that took lots of time and patience. The ores were first broken
up into small pieces, then roasted in a furnace to drive off impurities. Once the ore had
been purified, it was combined with other metals, such as iron or zinc, to create alloys
with unique properties. The resulting material was then utilised to create a cast bronze
object using the lost-wax technique: making a mould of the object in wax, followed by
filling the cavity with molten bronze. Metalworkers had to be proficient in a range of
different techniques, including forging, casting, and hammering.
The next major milestone in history of metallurgy was the discovery of iron smelting,
which, interestingly, occurred independently in different parts of the world around 1000
BCE. Iron was much more abundant and easier to work with than copper or bronze,
quickly becoming the preferred metal for multiple applications. The Iron Age saw the rise
of many new empires and the spread of iron technology across the globe, notably in the
Roman Empire, the Han Dynasty in China, the Mauryan Empire in India. During the
Middle Ages metallurgy continued to advance, with the development of new approaches
for refining gold, silver and other precious metals. The creation of new alloys like brass
and pewter also became more common, as did the use of metals in medicine. In the
early modern period, metallurgy played a critical role in the development of modern
science.
Probably the most impactful point was the invention of the blast furnace. Developed in
China around the 3rd century BCE, the blast furnace revolutionized metalworking
allowing to produce cast iron on a large scale, kickstarting an even more revolutionary
development - the steam engine - which in turn was one of the many breakthroughs that
made the Industrial Revolution possible. The Industrial Revolution itself transformed
metallurgy into a highly mechanized, even scientific discipline. One particular advance
was the Bessemer converter, making mass-production of steel without the need for
highly-skilled professionals a reality.
Before the Bessemer process, steel was primarily produced by heating iron ore in a
charcoal fire and then hammering it to ensure the material is more uniform. This
process, known as wrought iron production, was slow and labour-intensive, with the
resulting material ending up not being as strong or durable as modern steel. The
Bessemer converter involved blowing air through molten pig iron to burn off undesirable
elements as well as to adjust the carbon content, which leads to a higher-quality, more
uniform product. This approach was much faster while at the same time being more
efficient than previous methods of steel production, and it quickly revolutionized the
industry. The so-called Bessemer process was later improved upon with the introduction
of new techniques such as the open-hearth process and the basic oxygen process.
Today, we produce steel using a variety of methods, but the basic principles of the
Bessemer process remain unchanged.
Nowadays, metallurgy is a vast field of study with many different branches and subfields:
physical metallurgy, mineral processing, materials science and others. Advancements in
production technologies, such as the use of computers, robot-controlled machines as
well as automation in general have made many previously prohibitively expensive things
financially viable. Modern alloys are lightweight, strong, and resistant to corrosion – this
is just the tip of the iceberg. History of metallurgy is a testament to human ingenuity and
the power of innovation. From the earliest days of copper smelting to the modern-day
production of advanced alloys, metallurgy has been the cornerstone of human
civilization. As we continue to push the boundaries of science, metallurgy will no doubt
remain an important discipline. It is the tool that ensures we will be able to overcome
whatever challenges we might face.
Questions 14-16
Choose the appropriate letters A-C and write them in boxes 14-16 on your answer
sheet.
14 Copper was the metal of choice in the early days of metallurgy because of its A
Abundance
B Affordability
C Ease of shaping
15 Military application of copper was limited because the material
A wasn't strong enough
B found use for more peaceful purposes
C proved to be too bulky
16 One of the advantages bronze has over copper is
A being less prone to rusting
B having tin in it
C its wide use in architecture
Questions 17-21
Complete the flow-chart
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in
boxes 17-21 on your answer sheet.
Questions 22-27
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2? For
questions 22-27, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information FALSE if the statement contradicts
the information NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this statement
22 Iron smelting was invented in the Roman Empire
23 Blast furnace was one the biggest breakthroughs of the Industrial Revolution
24 The invention of steel alloy was made possible thanks to the Bessemer converter
25 The Bessemer process made the output material quality more consistent
26 Introduction of machinery in the process of metal making helped reduce production
costs 27 It is unlikely that metallurgy will lose its significance in the future