Reading Comprehension

Which of the four Ice-Ages, according to the passage, proved hard and rigorous for survival of some of the big creatures as elephants, rhinoceros and hippopotamus?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

In the countless ages of the world’s story which preceded the dawn of history, the evolution of life, both animal and vegetable, was profoundly affected by tremendous changes of temperature, whose full significance has only been realized within comparatively recent times.  There were cold periods, four in all, known as Ice Ages, which were fatal to many forms of life; these were always preceded or succeeded by Sun Ages, when living things evolved and developed, first great writhing monsters who lived on banks of slime and fought and devoured each other, and who appear to have been destroyed by the intense cold of the Second Ice Age; then mammals such as horses and bears, very small at first, but gradually increasing in size as they became accustomed to their surroundings. The Ice Ages, which were not universal, either killed warmth-loving animals or caused them to migrate to sunnier climes, and it was the last Ice Age which appears to have caused the disappearance from England of such creatures as the elephant, the rhinoceros, and the hippopotamus. During this time the struggle for existence was hard and rigorous, and it gave man the opportunity of developing the brain which has enabled him to assert his mastery over all other created things.
How man originated is still very doubtful. Possibly he is descended from some man-like ape, or it may be that he and the great anthropoid apes such as the chimpanzee, the gorilla, and the orang-outang are all descended from a common ancestor. The earliest evidences of the existence of creatures which may have been human are flints and stones roughly chipped and shaped so that they could be held in the hand and used probably as axes. At Trinal in Java, at Heidelberg in Germany, and in Central Africa remains have been found, such as the top of a skull, teeth and a thigh bone, and a jaw bone, which may have belonged to ancestors of man. The Heidelberg remains probably belong to the warm period before the Fourth Ice Age; those found in Rhodesia and Tanganyika are thought to be much older. With the former were also found remains of rhinoceroses, elephants, lions, and other warmth-loving animals, evidently from a time of great forests and moist climates. Gradually, however, there was a cooling of the temperature and then some great disturbance in Southern Europe, resulting in the separation of Africa and Europe, and so it was no longer possible for animals to wander as they pleased from Europe to Africa or for the hunters to follow them; consequently the men and animals of the two continents would tend to become differentiated. In the gravel and sand-beds of rivers Marne and Somme in France many of the rough flint implements used by these early hunters have been discovered. At Chelles-sur-Marne so many tools have been found that any resembling them are called Chellean. Here there was probably a flint industry; there was another at St. Acheul on the Somme, near Amiens, where much better tools were made. The stone axes of the Acheulean workers (who have given their name to the cool period which followed the warm Chellean period) had more even edges, and flint knives and awls and a primitive hammer were also made. It is probable that they bartered their wares for the fruits of the chase, and so were spared the necessity of hunting for their food.

While so many publicity tools are available in the market, the writer seems to advocate the case of internet ostensibly because

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Strictly speaking, it is a public notice or announcement for advertising goods or services in newspapers, billboards or through radio broadcasts. We advertise because we wish to draw attention of consumers or prospective clients to goods, services and vacant positions on offer, and this is done through public medium. This is one of the most effective ways to sell, promote or seek employees. We advertise because in this jungle of variegated products, we need to inform consumers about what is available in the market to meet their everyday changing demand. In this burgeoning market of consumerism, if we fail to communicate effectively with the prospective buyers of our goods, we shall be left behind and get finally kicked out of the market.  So, in order to sell products, in order to survive the cut-throat competition and to sustain a business/economic activity, advertisement is a must tool. It not only keeps one in the mainstream, but also afloat. While this is the underlying principle and philosophy, the basic idea of advertisement is to reach out to people and to build clientele base.
There was a time when this was achieved through newspapers and radio broadcasts. But today the scenario has altered radically. While newspapers and radio broadcasts continue to play an important role to boost advertisement campaigns, there are many inexpensive and more innovative means of reaching out and for building clientele base. Electronic medium has come to acquire a very important place in advertisement. And electronic medium is not restricted to television channels and visuals alone. It includes online internet facilities and all that goes with it including facebook, twitter and blog (web log). Net is the new radio. Web world has become an integral part of every individual who thinks global, not local, and has become integrated with every field of activities. Any activity, be it buying or selling something, can be done via a website. This shows that a website is like an online advertisement that helps in marketing a product or an idea to a number of people in just one go. So, an individual who is internet savvy and can think out of the box can become a web designer and an effective advertiser. A web designer is an artist who decides and sculpts the look and feel of a website by employing his aesthetic sense and by turning a website into a product that sells. If we have one such designer in our midst, we have a classic advertiser in this web designer.
But there is no substitute for words. Words speak far more effectively than anything else. Visuals too cannot overshadow words. The only exception to this rule would be when the target group is illiterate. When the target group is not literate, visuals play their part though it is important for the visuals to relate to the product so that those who see the visual understand the relationship. Failure to relate with the product may be counterproductive. (Fundamentals of English Grammar, Prabhat Publications, New Delhi)

The author says, 'it not only keeps one in the mainstream, but also afloat.' How, according to the passage, is this achieved?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Strictly speaking, it is a public notice or announcement for advertising goods or services in newspapers, billboards or through radio broadcasts. We advertise because we wish to draw attention of consumers or prospective clients to goods, services and vacant positions on offer, and this is done through public medium. This is one of the most effective ways to sell, promote or seek employees. We advertise because in this jungle of variegated products, we need to inform consumers about what is available in the market to meet their everyday changing demand. In this burgeoning market of consumerism, if we fail to communicate effectively with the prospective buyers of our goods, we shall be left behind and get finally kicked out of the market.  So, in order to sell products, in order to survive the cut-throat competition and to sustain a business/economic activity, advertisement is a must tool. It not only keeps one in the mainstream, but also afloat. While this is the underlying principle and philosophy, the basic idea of advertisement is to reach out to people and to build clientele base.
There was a time when this was achieved through newspapers and radio broadcasts. But today the scenario has altered radically. While newspapers and radio broadcasts continue to play an important role to boost advertisement campaigns, there are many inexpensive and more innovative means of reaching out and for building clientele base. Electronic medium has come to acquire a very important place in advertisement. And electronic medium is not restricted to television channels and visuals alone. It includes online internet facilities and all that goes with it including facebook, twitter and blog (web log). Net is the new radio. Web world has become an integral part of every individual who thinks global, not local, and has become integrated with every field of activities. Any activity, be it buying or selling something, can be done via a website. This shows that a website is like an online advertisement that helps in marketing a product or an idea to a number of people in just one go. So, an individual who is internet savvy and can think out of the box can become a web designer and an effective advertiser. A web designer is an artist who decides and sculpts the look and feel of a website by employing his aesthetic sense and by turning a website into a product that sells. If we have one such designer in our midst, we have a classic advertiser in this web designer.
But there is no substitute for words. Words speak far more effectively than anything else. Visuals too cannot overshadow words. The only exception to this rule would be when the target group is illiterate. When the target group is not literate, visuals play their part though it is important for the visuals to relate to the product so that those who see the visual understand the relationship. Failure to relate with the product may be counterproductive. (Fundamentals of English Grammar, Prabhat Publications, New Delhi)

Based on the passage, it is possible to conclude that this historical exploration has failed to settle the question of

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

In the countless ages of the world’s story which preceded the dawn of history, the evolution of life, both animal and vegetable, was profoundly affected by tremendous changes of temperature, whose full significance has only been realized within comparatively recent times.  There were cold periods, four in all, known as Ice Ages, which were fatal to many forms of life; these were always preceded or succeeded by Sun Ages, when living things evolved and developed, first great writhing monsters who lived on banks of slime and fought and devoured each other, and who appear to have been destroyed by the intense cold of the Second Ice Age; then mammals such as horses and bears, very small at first, but gradually increasing in size as they became accustomed to their surroundings. The Ice Ages, which were not universal, either killed warmth-loving animals or caused them to migrate to sunnier climes, and it was the last Ice Age which appears to have caused the disappearance from England of such creatures as the elephant, the rhinoceros, and the hippopotamus. During this time the struggle for existence was hard and rigorous, and it gave man the opportunity of developing the brain which has enabled him to assert his mastery over all other created things.
How man originated is still very doubtful. Possibly he is descended from some man-like ape, or it may be that he and the great anthropoid apes such as the chimpanzee, the gorilla, and the orang-outang are all descended from a common ancestor. The earliest evidences of the existence of creatures which may have been human are flints and stones roughly chipped and shaped so that they could be held in the hand and used probably as axes. At Trinal in Java, at Heidelberg in Germany, and in Central Africa remains have been found, such as the top of a skull, teeth and a thigh bone, and a jaw bone, which may have belonged to ancestors of man. The Heidelberg remains probably belong to the warm period before the Fourth Ice Age; those found in Rhodesia and Tanganyika are thought to be much older. With the former were also found remains of rhinoceroses, elephants, lions, and other warmth-loving animals, evidently from a time of great forests and moist climates. Gradually, however, there was a cooling of the temperature and then some great disturbance in Southern Europe, resulting in the separation of Africa and Europe, and so it was no longer possible for animals to wander as they pleased from Europe to Africa or for the hunters to follow them; consequently the men and animals of the two continents would tend to become differentiated. In the gravel and sand-beds of rivers Marne and Somme in France many of the rough flint implements used by these early hunters have been discovered. At Chelles-sur-Marne so many tools have been found that any resembling them are called Chellean. Here there was probably a flint industry; there was another at St. Acheul on the Somme, near Amiens, where much better tools were made. The stone axes of the Acheulean workers (who have given their name to the cool period which followed the warm Chellean period) had more even edges, and flint knives and awls and a primitive hammer were also made. It is probable that they bartered their wares for the fruits of the chase, and so were spared the necessity of hunting for their food.

In the passage the Ice Age refers to

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

In the countless ages of the world’s story which preceded the dawn of history, the evolution of life, both animal and vegetable, was profoundly affected by tremendous changes of temperature, whose full significance has only been realized within comparatively recent times.  There were cold periods, four in all, known as Ice Ages, which were fatal to many forms of life; these were always preceded or succeeded by Sun Ages, when living things evolved and developed, first great writhing monsters who lived on banks of slime and fought and devoured each other, and who appear to have been destroyed by the intense cold of the Second Ice Age; then mammals such as horses and bears, very small at first, but gradually increasing in size as they became accustomed to their surroundings. The Ice Ages, which were not universal, either killed warmth-loving animals or caused them to migrate to sunnier climes, and it was the last Ice Age which appears to have caused the disappearance from England of such creatures as the elephant, the rhinoceros, and the hippopotamus. During this time the struggle for existence was hard and rigorous, and it gave man the opportunity of developing the brain which has enabled him to assert his mastery over all other created things.
How man originated is still very doubtful. Possibly he is descended from some man-like ape, or it may be that he and the great anthropoid apes such as the chimpanzee, the gorilla, and the orang-outang are all descended from a common ancestor. The earliest evidences of the existence of creatures which may have been human are flints and stones roughly chipped and shaped so that they could be held in the hand and used probably as axes. At Trinal in Java, at Heidelberg in Germany, and in Central Africa remains have been found, such as the top of a skull, teeth and a thigh bone, and a jaw bone, which may have belonged to ancestors of man. The Heidelberg remains probably belong to the warm period before the Fourth Ice Age; those found in Rhodesia and Tanganyika are thought to be much older. With the former were also found remains of rhinoceroses, elephants, lions, and other warmth-loving animals, evidently from a time of great forests and moist climates. Gradually, however, there was a cooling of the temperature and then some great disturbance in Southern Europe, resulting in the separation of Africa and Europe, and so it was no longer possible for animals to wander as they pleased from Europe to Africa or for the hunters to follow them; consequently the men and animals of the two continents would tend to become differentiated. In the gravel and sand-beds of rivers Marne and Somme in France many of the rough flint implements used by these early hunters have been discovered. At Chelles-sur-Marne so many tools have been found that any resembling them are called Chellean. Here there was probably a flint industry; there was another at St. Acheul on the Somme, near Amiens, where much better tools were made. The stone axes of the Acheulean workers (who have given their name to the cool period which followed the warm Chellean period) had more even edges, and flint knives and awls and a primitive hammer were also made. It is probable that they bartered their wares for the fruits of the chase, and so were spared the necessity of hunting for their food.

What, according to the writer of the passage, 'this burgeoning market of consumerism' alludes to?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Strictly speaking, it is a public notice or announcement for advertising goods or services in newspapers, billboards or through radio broadcasts. We advertise because we wish to draw attention of consumers or prospective clients to goods, services and vacant positions on offer, and this is done through public medium. This is one of the most effective ways to sell, promote or seek employees. We advertise because in this jungle of variegated products, we need to inform consumers about what is available in the market to meet their everyday changing demand. In this burgeoning market of consumerism, if we fail to communicate effectively with the prospective buyers of our goods, we shall be left behind and get finally kicked out of the market.  So, in order to sell products, in order to survive the cut-throat competition and to sustain a business/economic activity, advertisement is a must tool. It not only keeps one in the mainstream, but also afloat. While this is the underlying principle and philosophy, the basic idea of advertisement is to reach out to people and to build clientele base.
There was a time when this was achieved through newspapers and radio broadcasts. But today the scenario has altered radically. While newspapers and radio broadcasts continue to play an important role to boost advertisement campaigns, there are many inexpensive and more innovative means of reaching out and for building clientele base. Electronic medium has come to acquire a very important place in advertisement. And electronic medium is not restricted to television channels and visuals alone. It includes online internet facilities and all that goes with it including facebook, twitter and blog (web log). Net is the new radio. Web world has become an integral part of every individual who thinks global, not local, and has become integrated with every field of activities. Any activity, be it buying or selling something, can be done via a website. This shows that a website is like an online advertisement that helps in marketing a product or an idea to a number of people in just one go. So, an individual who is internet savvy and can think out of the box can become a web designer and an effective advertiser. A web designer is an artist who decides and sculpts the look and feel of a website by employing his aesthetic sense and by turning a website into a product that sells. If we have one such designer in our midst, we have a classic advertiser in this web designer.
But there is no substitute for words. Words speak far more effectively than anything else. Visuals too cannot overshadow words. The only exception to this rule would be when the target group is illiterate. When the target group is not literate, visuals play their part though it is important for the visuals to relate to the product so that those who see the visual understand the relationship. Failure to relate with the product may be counterproductive. (Fundamentals of English Grammar, Prabhat Publications, New Delhi)

The objective of the author in writing the passage is to

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Work is what the caravan society is about. Members of this society find the stimulation in their work, while at home they mellow, watch television, chat and eat pizzas.
From the beginning, the immigrants embarked on the Atlantic journey with high aspirations of ‘making it’ in the New World. They valued hard work and disdained the fine manners and cultured behaviour, which were so important back in Europe. Their lives were dedicated to a single purpose, which was progress; the art of enjoying life took second place. The same values have more or less persisted. Of course, Californians have learnt to enjoy life, but within the US they are the exception. Although, Yuppies have developed an expensive taste, work is what their lives are about.
In contrast, the citizens of European citadels emphasize the art of living. Whether it is jeu de boule, theatre or cooking, Europeans dedicate themselves to enjoying life. They tend their gardens, care for their public spaces, and demand high-quality food, newspapers and books. They also spend many hours in squares, in cafes, offices and at home practising the art of conversation. Europeans seek stimulation in their leisure time, while they want comfort and security in their working lives. Unlike the Americans, they appreciate union mediation and vote for governments which will protect their rights to a minimum income, fair and safe working conditions and long vacations. The European welfare states are direct manifestations of this desire for economic security.
The conclusion is that, whereas Americans seek comfort in leisure, Europeans seek stimulation, and these desires get reversed in their working lives. This contrast accounts for much of the confusion and ambivalence in conversations among transatlantic immigrants. An Italian Nobel Prize laureate living in the US for several years observed in an interview, ‘I felt at home the day I landed in the US…there was great cordiality and generosity. America is a society in which merit is genuinely rewarded—you cannot say the same for Italy. But although the United States appears to be a country where people live comfortably, in reality that is more true in Italy. Here we are not spoiled by comfort and not so worried about the future. In America, happiness is more superficial.’ Another Italian amplifies further when he says that ‘we in Italy are envious of America’s success, and Americans are envious of our way of living.’  
All this means that no authority, no matter how clever and knowledgeable, can decide where life is best. It all depends on one’s cultural values. Admittedly, money, telephones, televisions, flushing toilets and other goods add to the quality of life for most people, but not for everyone. They did not convince the students from Nepal who came to the American university. They had never seen flushing toilets and could not believe that the sewage system was underground. The material abundance of American life overwhelmed them, they were unhappy. Accustomed to being among people and living in public, they felt lost and lonely in their clean apartments with running water and flushing toilets. After three months they returned home.
Values can also change. Most immigrants seek quality away from home. A large number of them are attracted by the quality of America’s working life. Nearly all of them change as they grow attached to being among internationals, to experiencing different cultures. All that has become quality. As a consequence, they do not belong to their home country anymore, at least not fully. This is hard to explain to people back home. People have to see for themselves before they understand. But the immigrants do not belong in the adopted country either. (US versus Europe by Arjo Klamer)

According to the passage, good governance is

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Corporate governance suffers in companies where the allegiance of independent directors is to the officers of the company rather than to its shareholders. To make the shareholder-board relationship more effective, we need better shareholder surveillance. Shareholders must actively step up as owners, and engage directors on corporate issues. Independent directors in general, and chairmen of all companies in particular, must participate more actively in annual general meetings by owning up to their board decisions and answering shareholder queries.
The abuse of corporate power results from incentives within firms that encourage a culture of corruption. For example, former employees within a now-demised corporation described a ‘yes man’ culture in which only those employees who did everything to please their bosses prospered. ‘Corporate culture is what determines how people behave when they are not being watched,’ remarked a former managing partner of a consultancy firm. Unethical companies have typified corporate cultures that voiced their commitment to one value system while their processes and incentives reflected an entirely different value system in practice. The responsibility to change this lies with the top management.
Clearly, good governance requires a mindset within the corporation which integrates the corporate code of ethics into the day-to-day activities of its managers and workers. As the sociologists opine, companies must move from the ‘reactive and compliance mode’ of corporate ethics to the ‘integrity mode’, where the functions of the entire organisation are completely aligned with its value system. To achieve this, we must address the system of incentives that exists within corporations.
Corporations must integrate their value systems into their recruitment programmes. They must mandate compliance with their values as a key requirement from each potential employee. They must ensure that every employee owns responsibility for accountability and ethics in every transaction. Corporations must also publicly recognise internal role models for ethical behaviour. They must reinforce exemplary ethical conduct among employees through reward and recognition programmes. Ethical standards and best practices must be applied fairly and uniformly across all levels of the organisation. Any non-compliance must be swiftly dealt with and publicised. Additionally, there should be strong whistleblower mechanisms within the corporation for exposing unethical or illegal activities.
The need of the hour is for all voices in a corporation to unanimously extol the values of decency, honesty and transparency. In other words, every employee has to appreciate that the future of the corporation is safe only if he/she does the right thing in every transaction. Corporates have to create systems, structures and incentives to promote transparency, since transparency brings accountability. In an ideal organisation, every employee remembers and follows the adage, ‘when in doubt, disclose.’
None of this can happen unless corporate leaders believe in the values of the company, and walk the talk. Corporate leaders are powerful role models. Every employee watches them carefully and imitates them. For example, many corporations talk about cutting costs as a way to improve profitability. Such cost consciousness has to come from the top. If leaders want employees to spend carefully, they have to show the way. 

According to the passage, 'making it' in the New World shows

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Work is what the caravan society is about. Members of this society find the stimulation in their work, while at home they mellow, watch television, chat and eat pizzas.
From the beginning, the immigrants embarked on the Atlantic journey with high aspirations of ‘making it’ in the New World. They valued hard work and disdained the fine manners and cultured behaviour, which were so important back in Europe. Their lives were dedicated to a single purpose, which was progress; the art of enjoying life took second place. The same values have more or less persisted. Of course, Californians have learnt to enjoy life, but within the US they are the exception. Although, Yuppies have developed an expensive taste, work is what their lives are about.
In contrast, the citizens of European citadels emphasize the art of living. Whether it is jeu de boule, theatre or cooking, Europeans dedicate themselves to enjoying life. They tend their gardens, care for their public spaces, and demand high-quality food, newspapers and books. They also spend many hours in squares, in cafes, offices and at home practising the art of conversation. Europeans seek stimulation in their leisure time, while they want comfort and security in their working lives. Unlike the Americans, they appreciate union mediation and vote for governments which will protect their rights to a minimum income, fair and safe working conditions and long vacations. The European welfare states are direct manifestations of this desire for economic security.
The conclusion is that, whereas Americans seek comfort in leisure, Europeans seek stimulation, and these desires get reversed in their working lives. This contrast accounts for much of the confusion and ambivalence in conversations among transatlantic immigrants. An Italian Nobel Prize laureate living in the US for several years observed in an interview, ‘I felt at home the day I landed in the US…there was great cordiality and generosity. America is a society in which merit is genuinely rewarded—you cannot say the same for Italy. But although the United States appears to be a country where people live comfortably, in reality that is more true in Italy. Here we are not spoiled by comfort and not so worried about the future. In America, happiness is more superficial.’ Another Italian amplifies further when he says that ‘we in Italy are envious of America’s success, and Americans are envious of our way of living.’  
All this means that no authority, no matter how clever and knowledgeable, can decide where life is best. It all depends on one’s cultural values. Admittedly, money, telephones, televisions, flushing toilets and other goods add to the quality of life for most people, but not for everyone. They did not convince the students from Nepal who came to the American university. They had never seen flushing toilets and could not believe that the sewage system was underground. The material abundance of American life overwhelmed them, they were unhappy. Accustomed to being among people and living in public, they felt lost and lonely in their clean apartments with running water and flushing toilets. After three months they returned home.
Values can also change. Most immigrants seek quality away from home. A large number of them are attracted by the quality of America’s working life. Nearly all of them change as they grow attached to being among internationals, to experiencing different cultures. All that has become quality. As a consequence, they do not belong to their home country anymore, at least not fully. This is hard to explain to people back home. People have to see for themselves before they understand. But the immigrants do not belong in the adopted country either. (US versus Europe by Arjo Klamer)

From the following statements, pick out the true statement according to the passage.

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Work is what the caravan society is about. Members of this society find the stimulation in their work, while at home they mellow, watch television, chat and eat pizzas.
From the beginning, the immigrants embarked on the Atlantic journey with high aspirations of ‘making it’ in the New World. They valued hard work and disdained the fine manners and cultured behaviour, which were so important back in Europe. Their lives were dedicated to a single purpose, which was progress; the art of enjoying life took second place. The same values have more or less persisted. Of course, Californians have learnt to enjoy life, but within the US they are the exception. Although, Yuppies have developed an expensive taste, work is what their lives are about.
In contrast, the citizens of European citadels emphasize the art of living. Whether it is jeu de boule, theatre or cooking, Europeans dedicate themselves to enjoying life. They tend their gardens, care for their public spaces, and demand high-quality food, newspapers and books. They also spend many hours in squares, in cafes, offices and at home practising the art of conversation. Europeans seek stimulation in their leisure time, while they want comfort and security in their working lives. Unlike the Americans, they appreciate union mediation and vote for governments which will protect their rights to a minimum income, fair and safe working conditions and long vacations. The European welfare states are direct manifestations of this desire for economic security.
The conclusion is that, whereas Americans seek comfort in leisure, Europeans seek stimulation, and these desires get reversed in their working lives. This contrast accounts for much of the confusion and ambivalence in conversations among transatlantic immigrants. An Italian Nobel Prize laureate living in the US for several years observed in an interview, ‘I felt at home the day I landed in the US…there was great cordiality and generosity. America is a society in which merit is genuinely rewarded—you cannot say the same for Italy. But although the United States appears to be a country where people live comfortably, in reality that is more true in Italy. Here we are not spoiled by comfort and not so worried about the future. In America, happiness is more superficial.’ Another Italian amplifies further when he says that ‘we in Italy are envious of America’s success, and Americans are envious of our way of living.’  
All this means that no authority, no matter how clever and knowledgeable, can decide where life is best. It all depends on one’s cultural values. Admittedly, money, telephones, televisions, flushing toilets and other goods add to the quality of life for most people, but not for everyone. They did not convince the students from Nepal who came to the American university. They had never seen flushing toilets and could not believe that the sewage system was underground. The material abundance of American life overwhelmed them, they were unhappy. Accustomed to being among people and living in public, they felt lost and lonely in their clean apartments with running water and flushing toilets. After three months they returned home.
Values can also change. Most immigrants seek quality away from home. A large number of them are attracted by the quality of America’s working life. Nearly all of them change as they grow attached to being among internationals, to experiencing different cultures. All that has become quality. As a consequence, they do not belong to their home country anymore, at least not fully. This is hard to explain to people back home. People have to see for themselves before they understand. But the immigrants do not belong in the adopted country either. (US versus Europe by Arjo Klamer)

What is the central idea of the passage?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Work is what the caravan society is about. Members of this society find the stimulation in their work, while at home they mellow, watch television, chat and eat pizzas.
From the beginning, the immigrants embarked on the Atlantic journey with high aspirations of ‘making it’ in the New World. They valued hard work and disdained the fine manners and cultured behaviour, which were so important back in Europe. Their lives were dedicated to a single purpose, which was progress; the art of enjoying life took second place. The same values have more or less persisted. Of course, Californians have learnt to enjoy life, but within the US they are the exception. Although, Yuppies have developed an expensive taste, work is what their lives are about.
In contrast, the citizens of European citadels emphasize the art of living. Whether it is jeu de boule, theatre or cooking, Europeans dedicate themselves to enjoying life. They tend their gardens, care for their public spaces, and demand high-quality food, newspapers and books. They also spend many hours in squares, in cafes, offices and at home practising the art of conversation. Europeans seek stimulation in their leisure time, while they want comfort and security in their working lives. Unlike the Americans, they appreciate union mediation and vote for governments which will protect their rights to a minimum income, fair and safe working conditions and long vacations. The European welfare states are direct manifestations of this desire for economic security.
The conclusion is that, whereas Americans seek comfort in leisure, Europeans seek stimulation, and these desires get reversed in their working lives. This contrast accounts for much of the confusion and ambivalence in conversations among transatlantic immigrants. An Italian Nobel Prize laureate living in the US for several years observed in an interview, ‘I felt at home the day I landed in the US…there was great cordiality and generosity. America is a society in which merit is genuinely rewarded—you cannot say the same for Italy. But although the United States appears to be a country where people live comfortably, in reality that is more true in Italy. Here we are not spoiled by comfort and not so worried about the future. In America, happiness is more superficial.’ Another Italian amplifies further when he says that ‘we in Italy are envious of America’s success, and Americans are envious of our way of living.’  
All this means that no authority, no matter how clever and knowledgeable, can decide where life is best. It all depends on one’s cultural values. Admittedly, money, telephones, televisions, flushing toilets and other goods add to the quality of life for most people, but not for everyone. They did not convince the students from Nepal who came to the American university. They had never seen flushing toilets and could not believe that the sewage system was underground. The material abundance of American life overwhelmed them, they were unhappy. Accustomed to being among people and living in public, they felt lost and lonely in their clean apartments with running water and flushing toilets. After three months they returned home.
Values can also change. Most immigrants seek quality away from home. A large number of them are attracted by the quality of America’s working life. Nearly all of them change as they grow attached to being among internationals, to experiencing different cultures. All that has become quality. As a consequence, they do not belong to their home country anymore, at least not fully. This is hard to explain to people back home. People have to see for themselves before they understand. But the immigrants do not belong in the adopted country either. (US versus Europe by Arjo Klamer)

Man is religious because according to the passage, he

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

In the Sanskrit language, the bird is described as ‘twice-born’—once in its limited shell and then finally in the freedom of the unbounded sky. Those of our community who believe in the liberation of man’s limited self in the freedom of the spirit retain the same epithet for themselves. In all departments of life man shows this dualism—his existence within the range of obvious facts and his transcendence of it in a realm of deeper meaning.
Having this instinct inherent in his mind which ever suggests to him the crossing of the border, he has never accepted what is apparent as final, and his incessant struggle has been to break through the shell of his limitations. In this attempt, he often goes against the instincts of his vital nature, and even exults in his defiance of the extreme penal laws of the biological kingdom. The best wealth of his civilisation has been achieved by his following the guidance of this instinct in his ceaseless adventure of the endless further. His achievement of truth goes far beyond his needs and the realisation of his self strives across the frontier of its individual interest. This proves to him his infirmity and makes his religion real to him by his own manifestation in truth and goodness. Only for man can there be religion, because his evolution is from efficiency in nature towards the perfection of spirit.
According to some interpretations of the Vedanta doctrine, Brahman is the absolute Truth, the impersonal. It, in which there can be no distinction of this and that, the good and the evil, the beautiful and its opposite, having no other quality except its ineffable blissfulness in the eternal solitude of its consciousness utterly devoid of all things and all thoughts. But, as religion can only have its significance in this phenomenal world comprehended by human self, this absolute conception of Brahman is outside the subject of discussion. What, however, is tried out instead is the fact that whatever name may have been given to the divine Reality, it has found its highest place in the history of religion owning to its human character, giving meaning to the idea of sin and sanctity, and offering an eternal background to all the ideals of perfection which have their harmony with man’s own nature.
A man through the age-long tradition of yoga can transcend the utmost bounds of his humanity and find himself in a pure state of consciousness of his undivided unity with Parabrahman. There is none who has the right to contradict this belief, for it is a matter of direct experience and not logic. It is widely known that there are individuals who have the power to attain temporarily the state of Samadhi, the complete merging of the self in the infinite, a state which is indescribable. While accepting their testimony as true, let us at the same time have faith in the testimony of others who have felt a profound love, which is the intense feeling of union, for a Being who comprehends in himself all things that are human in knowledge, will and action. And he is God, who is not merely a sum total of facts, but the goal that lies immensely beyond all that is comprised in the past and the present. (from The Religion of Man by Rabindra Nath Tagore)

What, according to the passage, excites the tourists?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Cultural contrasts are exciting for tourists. They pay to experience them. But for those who have to live and work in a foreign culture, the contrasts can be difficult, confusing and painful. Differences are hard to live with.
Not everybody believes that cultural differences matter. ‘We are all human beings,’ an Iowan businessman declared at a meeting on cross-cultural business interacts, ‘Japanese, Americans, or Germans, underneath we are all just the same. We cry the same tears, we smile the same smiles, and we bleed the same blood.’ He, like so many others, believes that in the face of love and profit people are all the same.
Sameness was also on the mind of the American student when she walked into an Amsterdam shop to ask the way to the Anne Frank house. Still shocked she later told how the woman in the shop had refused to answer. She had suggested she buy a map! According to the student such a rude response was unheard of in the US.
This student had failed to recognize that not all people are the same. Some people consider an American who demands directions in a loud voice rude. Likewise, Japanese and German business people may not appreciate ‘Just call me John’’ ‘a deal is a deal’, ‘get to the point’, ‘I am what I am’, or any other expression that the Iowan businessman customarily uses. Not recognizing such differences can cost dearly, in emotional energy and possibly lost deals.
There is need to focus on the differences that exist between the people of Europe and the US. It offers the transnationals two metaphors as an aid for coping with those differences, namely the citadel for European society with its firm roots in tradition, and the caravan for the less established and more fluid society of the United States. It can well be predicted that people who see the transatlantic contrasts through these metaphors will avoid much confusion, pain, and, who knows, some cost. Here is a sample.
A few years ago an American sales team made a presentation to the manufacturing team of an Italian tractor company. The Americans had prepared themselves thoroughly. They came right to the point, provided illustrations with slides, had anticipated all conceivable questions about their products, and could counter all objections. Afterwards the Americans congratulated each other on a job well done. They did not, however, get the sales contract.
An executive who is familiar with cross-cultural business dealings attended the meeting. He noted: ‘The Americans came to the point too quickly. They alienated the Italians with the style of their presentation. The Italians operate in a business environment where personal relations are crucial; they want to get to know the people they deal with. The Americans would have done better to take the Italians out for a long business conversation over lunch with good food and wine.’
Misunderstandings like this one are all too common. One would expect that, with the increasing internationalization of politics and business, sensitivity to cultural differences would grow, and that at the same time such differences would become less pronounced. Yet neither expectation is fulfilled. Cultural differences are real and pervasive; and we have learned that frequent contact does not guarantee mutual understanding. (Excerpted from The Caravan and The Citadel by Arjo Klamer)

The author has used the symbol of bird and described it as ‘twice-born’. How does it help him build on his theme?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

In the Sanskrit language, the bird is described as ‘twice-born’—once in its limited shell and then finally in the freedom of the unbounded sky. Those of our community who believe in the liberation of man’s limited self in the freedom of the spirit retain the same epithet for themselves. In all departments of life man shows this dualism—his existence within the range of obvious facts and his transcendence of it in a realm of deeper meaning.
Having this instinct inherent in his mind which ever suggests to him the crossing of the border, he has never accepted what is apparent as final, and his incessant struggle has been to break through the shell of his limitations. In this attempt, he often goes against the instincts of his vital nature, and even exults in his defiance of the extreme penal laws of the biological kingdom. The best wealth of his civilisation has been achieved by his following the guidance of this instinct in his ceaseless adventure of the endless further. His achievement of truth goes far beyond his needs and the realisation of his self strives across the frontier of its individual interest. This proves to him his infirmity and makes his religion real to him by his own manifestation in truth and goodness. Only for man can there be religion, because his evolution is from efficiency in nature towards the perfection of spirit.
According to some interpretations of the Vedanta doctrine, Brahman is the absolute Truth, the impersonal. It, in which there can be no distinction of this and that, the good and the evil, the beautiful and its opposite, having no other quality except its ineffable blissfulness in the eternal solitude of its consciousness utterly devoid of all things and all thoughts. But, as religion can only have its significance in this phenomenal world comprehended by human self, this absolute conception of Brahman is outside the subject of discussion. What, however, is tried out instead is the fact that whatever name may have been given to the divine Reality, it has found its highest place in the history of religion owning to its human character, giving meaning to the idea of sin and sanctity, and offering an eternal background to all the ideals of perfection which have their harmony with man’s own nature.
A man through the age-long tradition of yoga can transcend the utmost bounds of his humanity and find himself in a pure state of consciousness of his undivided unity with Parabrahman. There is none who has the right to contradict this belief, for it is a matter of direct experience and not logic. It is widely known that there are individuals who have the power to attain temporarily the state of Samadhi, the complete merging of the self in the infinite, a state which is indescribable. While accepting their testimony as true, let us at the same time have faith in the testimony of others who have felt a profound love, which is the intense feeling of union, for a Being who comprehends in himself all things that are human in knowledge, will and action. And he is God, who is not merely a sum total of facts, but the goal that lies immensely beyond all that is comprised in the past and the present. (from The Religion of Man by Rabindra Nath Tagore)

Which of the following is/are the ever present motivating factor(s) in our culture?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

Motivation is one of the most important variables in learning. A high degree of motivation engenders an active and aggressive attitude with regard to educational goals. Every child comes to school with interests and motives. The teacher’s problem is to discover, direct and capitalize upon these motives and interests for educational purposes. Knowledge is not self-motivating. Facts become interesting and desirable when they represent a means of obtaining goals which the learner wishes to attain.
Most of the educationally significant sources of drive are social in origin. The socially derived tendencies are listed as the affiliative- and prestige-oriented motives. This is an artificial but useful classification of motives.
The affiliation-oriented motives include gregariousness, social response, affection, and love as subgroups. These motives range all the way from a desire to be with other people as contrasted with being alone, at one extreme, to parent-child and husband-wife love, at the other. Although the affiliative motives are seldom manipulated purposely for motivational reason, they are involved in most classroom learning situations. Where classroom learning is such that working towards desirable education goals carries with it increased social response and closer affectional relationships within the group, the affiliative tendencies will facilitate learning. Conversely, when the students have attitudes of distrust, hostility, and antagonism towards the teacher, defiance of the teacher and opposition to him may be a means of gaining acceptance within a peer group.
Physical rewards and punishments may symbolize the bestowal or withdrawal of affection. Similarly, commendation and praise, on the one hand, and scolding and reproof, on the other, not only involve the prestige-oriented motives but may also signify the bestowal or withdrawal of affection.
The prestige-oriented motives are often used purposely to motivate learning and are practically always involved in educational procedures. Whenever such positive factors as social recognition, commendation, and praise, or negative ones such as reproof and ridicule are used, the prestige motives are involved. Prestige may attach to any extension of the self, such as one’s relatives and friends, one’s physical possessions and social status, and even to one’s convictions and beliefs. Competitive self-enhancement is an ever-present motive in our culture.
Security-related motivation always has a future reference. It is essentially a desire for an assurance with regard to the future satisfaction of the other motives. Most of the things done to satisfy immediate motives have security implications.
Socially-related motives have their roots in the child’s culture. These various ethnic, cultural, sub-cultural, and community influences initially impinge on the child via his family. The family is the primary and most important social source of motivation in the child. The second most important social influence is the peer group. The adolescent peer group often competes with the family and school as a source of social motivation. (from Education Psychology published by Prentice Hall India)