English Reading Comprehension

Why was Robin hopeful of winning the prize?

Directions: Read the given passage carefully and answer the question that follows.

It was a very sunny morning in the month of May when Robin Hood started walking with a brave and bold attitude. He was taking his steps briskly. He was on his way to a town called Nottingham to attend a fair. He was going there to test his bowing skills with the best bowmen in the fair. Though he was only seventeen, he had no peer in the whole of England in archery. That’s why Robin was very hopeful of winning the Sheriff’s prize that included a purse of gold. While he was strolling along, he only thought of the contest he was going to take part in. After walking a long distance, he came out of the woods of Sherwood Forest into a clear area with mosses all around.

What did Robin Hood start walking with?

Directions: Read the given passage carefully and answer the question that follows.

It was a very sunny morning in the month of May when Robin Hood started walking with a brave and bold attitude. He was taking his steps briskly. He was on his way to a town called Nottingham to attend a fair. He was going there to test his bowing skills with the best bowmen in the fair. Though he was only seventeen, he had no peer in the whole of England in archery. That’s why Robin was very hopeful of winning the Sheriff’s prize that included a purse of gold. While he was strolling along, he only thought of the contest he was going to take part in. After walking a long distance, he came out of the woods of Sherwood Forest into a clear area with mosses all around.

While he was strolling along, what did Robin think of?

Directions: Read the given passage carefully and answer the question that follows.

It was a very sunny morning in the month of May when Robin Hood started walking with a brave and bold attitude. He was taking his steps briskly. He was on his way to a town called Nottingham to attend a fair. He was going there to test his bowing skills with the best bowmen in the fair. Though he was only seventeen, he had no peer in the whole of England in archery. That’s why Robin was very hopeful of winning the Sheriff’s prize that included a purse of gold. While he was strolling along, he only thought of the contest he was going to take part in. After walking a long distance, he came out of the woods of Sherwood Forest into a clear area with mosses all around.

Writer's perspective seems limited to

Directions: Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

Recently, we have seen many instances of fraud and misuse in the corporate world. Elsewhere, we see corporate governance reforms being enacted with a sense of urgency. It is time to act in India as well — we should not be waiting for problems to occur. We should avoid ‘governance by embarrassment’ and be proactive. What should be done in India? There is need to dwell on the steps that need to be taken, especially from the perspective of corporations and regulatory agencies.
The most important task, it would appear, is revitalising the institution of independent directors. The independent directors of a company should be faithful fiduciaries, protecting the long term interests of shareholders while ensuring fairness to employees, investors, customers, regulators, the government of the land and society. Unfortunately, very often, directors are chosen based on friendship and, sadly, pliability. Therefore, it is appropriate to define what we mean by ‘independent directors’. An independent director is one who will be objective in board decisions. Generally, this independence stems from stature, competence, integrity, character, upbringing, confidence in oneself, openness and, of course, from not having any material income (apart from the director’s fee) derived from the company while he/she is on the board. Today, unfortunately, in the majority of cases, independence is only true on paper. This is the case not just in India, but all over the world. In India, we have seen many instances of legal counsels being appointed to the boards of the company they advise. Such actions will not enhance the independence of the board. Rather, they will become ‘decorative and decorous baubles with no real purpose, as Professor Myles Mace calls it.   
The need of the hour is to strengthen the independence of the board. We have to put in place stringent standards for the independence of the directors. The board should adopt global standards for director -independence, and should disclose how each independent director meets these standards. It is desirable to have a comprehensive report showing the names of the company employees or fellow board members who are related to each director on the board. This report should accompany the annual report of all listed companies.
Another important step is to regularly assess the board members for performance. The assessment should focus on issues like competence, preparation, participation and contribution. Ideally, this evaluation should be performed by a third party. Underperforming directors should be allowed to leave at end of their term in a gentle manner, so that they do not lose face.

There is a reference in the passage to a phenomenon which applies to the whole world and is not unique to India alone. It is

Directions: Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

Recently, we have seen many instances of fraud and misuse in the corporate world. Elsewhere, we see corporate governance reforms being enacted with a sense of urgency. It is time to act in India as well — we should not be waiting for problems to occur. We should avoid ‘governance by embarrassment’ and be proactive. What should be done in India? There is need to dwell on the steps that need to be taken, especially from the perspective of corporations and regulatory agencies.
The most important task, it would appear, is revitalising the institution of independent directors. The independent directors of a company should be faithful fiduciaries, protecting the long term interests of shareholders while ensuring fairness to employees, investors, customers, regulators, the government of the land and society. Unfortunately, very often, directors are chosen based on friendship and, sadly, pliability. Therefore, it is appropriate to define what we mean by ‘independent directors’. An independent director is one who will be objective in board decisions. Generally, this independence stems from stature, competence, integrity, character, upbringing, confidence in oneself, openness and, of course, from not having any material income (apart from the director’s fee) derived from the company while he/she is on the board. Today, unfortunately, in the majority of cases, independence is only true on paper. This is the case not just in India, but all over the world. In India, we have seen many instances of legal counsels being appointed to the boards of the company they advise. Such actions will not enhance the independence of the board. Rather, they will become ‘decorative and decorous baubles with no real purpose, as Professor Myles Mace calls it.   
The need of the hour is to strengthen the independence of the board. We have to put in place stringent standards for the independence of the directors. The board should adopt global standards for director -independence, and should disclose how each independent director meets these standards. It is desirable to have a comprehensive report showing the names of the company employees or fellow board members who are related to each director on the board. This report should accompany the annual report of all listed companies.
Another important step is to regularly assess the board members for performance. The assessment should focus on issues like competence, preparation, participation and contribution. Ideally, this evaluation should be performed by a third party. Underperforming directors should be allowed to leave at end of their term in a gentle manner, so that they do not lose face.

g scenarios will fuel the author's concern about global warming, EXCEPT

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:
Scientists and environmentalists estimate that at the present rate of global warming, our planet will have heated up by nearly two degree centigrade by the end of the century. Even if we stopped all greenhouse gas emissions immediately, the pollutants in the atmosphere will drive up the global temperature by around half a degree.  If allowed to run unchecked, the global warming will impact even the permafrost at the poles. Permafrost refers to the perennially frozen part of earth in the Tundra and Polar Regions. At some places, the permafrost is just a few meters thick, while at others, it extends to depths of hundreds of meters. It is feared that in the eventuality of the melting of the polar caps, the poles will turn into a giant carbon-dioxide generation zone. The permanent freeze keeps the carbon inert but at higher temperatures, carbon will react with oxygen present in the air to form oxides. The non-existent flora of the tundra will not be enough to absorb a sufficient quantity of the greenhouse gases that are expected to be released when the polar ice-caps melt. However, keeping in view the grandiose declarations of the policy makers, who are setting ambitious targets for cutting greenhouse emissions without coming out with a plan that puts their money where their plan is, it is highly unlikely that we will halt, much less reverse, the timeline for an appointment with Armageddon. It would mean that emission cuts of the level un-thought of till today will have to be achieved to halt any further increase in global warming.

Which of the following is most likely to happen next in the first scenario?

Directions: Read the following two scenarios and answer the question that follows:

Scenario-1
Kartik lives in a distant town and takes half an hour to reach his school daily. One day on his way to school, he spots an old man lying unconscious on the road with no one around to help him. He tries to help the old man by running back to the town and calling the ambulance from the city hospital. He gets scolding from his teacher on reaching late to the school.

Scenario-2
Rashmi is a kind and considerate girl who has a special love for animals. While playing in the garden one day, she comes across a crippled dog, crying in pain. She decides to take it to the veterinary hospital for treatment. She spends all her pocket money on the treatment of the stray dog. Her mother gets annoyed at her for the same.

What can be assumed about Kartik from the first scenario?

Directions: Read the following two scenarios and answer the question that follows:

Scenario-1
Kartik lives in a distant town and takes half an hour to reach his school daily. One day on his way to school, he spots an old man lying unconscious on the road with no one around to help him. He tries to help the old man by running back to the town and calling the ambulance from the city hospital. He gets scolding from his teacher on reaching late to the school.

Scenario-2
Rashmi is a kind and considerate girl who has a special love for animals. While playing in the garden one day, she comes across a crippled dog, crying in pain. She decides to take it to the veterinary hospital for treatment. She spends all her pocket money on the treatment of the stray dog. Her mother gets annoyed at her for the same.

Both the scenarios teach us the true meaning of

Directions: Read the following two scenarios and answer the question that follows:

Scenario-1
Kartik lives in a distant town and takes half an hour to reach his school daily. One day on his way to school, he spots an old man lying unconscious on the road with no one around to help him. He tries to help the old man by running back to the town and calling the ambulance from the city hospital. He gets scolding from his teacher on reaching late to the school.

Scenario-2
Rashmi is a kind and considerate girl who has a special love for animals. While playing in the garden one day, she comes across a crippled dog, crying in pain. She decides to take it to the veterinary hospital for treatment. She spends all her pocket money on the treatment of the stray dog. Her mother gets annoyed at her for the same.

The passage shows that in the present world, educational system is

Directions: Read the following passage and answer the question that follows:
In this present world of technological development, Internet is a boon for all the students who are given assignments to complete or do a secondary research. Internet provides such students with all the relevant information on their fingertips. But most of the students just surf the net and easily copy and paste information directly into their paper and claim it as their own. Is this not cheating? To use the ideas, content of others without giving due attribution is considered illegal.
Students are pressurised to do well in their assignments and projects. But when they make honest effort, it is not appreciated. On the other hand, those who have copied and pasted from internet would be appreciated and awarded more marks. Instead of testing their ability to write, one's ability to search best article and paste it in their assignments would be tested. Even in exams, students are encouraged to learn by rote and write the answers as they occur in text book or in notes given by teacher.
A child would grow up copying and pasting and in later stages face difficulties when given individual projects to be handled in this competitive world. He/she would be unable to come up with innovative ideas. Creativity of the student would be curbed.

The main idea conveyed in the passage is

Directions: Read the following passage and answer the question that follows:
Some teachers believe that good old traditional methods of teaching are quite reliable and there is no urgent need to revamp the whole system. However, modern educators are pretty sure that learning should be fun. And the more fun a student has, the more successful the results of the teaching process will be. And nowadays computer and digital technologies are the ultimate extensions of fun.
Parents in general view a computer as a new baby-sitter and a rather upgraded one when compared with the previous version – a TV-set.  They seem to think that buying a computer for their child is enough to make him or her upload and engage into some educative programs, surf informative sites and resources.  And they are bitterly disappointed when their children spend most of the time indulging in some stupid shooters tearing their enemies to bloody pieces or chat with the same rattle-brained peers in some neighbouring district discussing football or MTV. It was quite clear from the very beginning that a child or even a teenager needs some sort of guidance to enter the Internet world, somebody who would teach them to behave at different forums and online discussions. 
But sooner or later all of them come to some sort of a conclusion that computer skills are indispensable for children not to lag behind the time and be competitive at the current education and workforce market.

Which of the following could replace ‘steady’ as used in the passage?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and select the most suitable option according to the corresponding number in the passage.

A star is a heavenly (1) body which shines by its own light. Planets, as you know, shine only by light reflected (2) from the sun. The planets shine with a steady (3) light and the stars twinkle. This twinkling is caused by desturbances (4) in the air between the star and the earth. The unsteady air bends the light from the star, which then appears to tremble (5). Stars differ greatly (6) in size, density and temperature. At one end (7), there are stars called “red super-giants,” which are many times (8) larger than our sun (which is also a star). At the other end, there are stars called “white dwarfs,” some of which are about the size of our earth.

Which of the following could replace 'At one end' as used in the passage?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and select the most suitable option according to the corresponding number in the passage.

A star is a heavenly (1) body which shines by its own light. Planets, as you know, shine only by light reflected (2) from the sun. The planets shine with a steady (3) light and the stars twinkle. This twinkling is caused by desturbances (4) in the air between the star and the earth. The unsteady air bends the light from the star, which then appears to tremble (5). Stars differ greatly (6) in size, density and temperature. At one end (7), there are stars called “red super-giants,” which are many times (8) larger than our sun (which is also a star). At the other end, there are stars called “white dwarfs,” some of which are about the size of our earth.

Which of these fits gap 24?

Directions: Complete this passage by selecting the most suitable option for the corresponding gap.