Magy's English Edu. Club
Cambridge 15 Academic Reading Test One Passage Two
Having a laugh
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C, or D.
27. When referring to laughter in the first paragraph, the writer emphasizes
The answer is C. > its value to scientific research.
In paragraph one, like other human emotions and expressions, laughter and humor provide psychological scientists with rich resources for studying human psychology, ranging from the development of language to the neuroscience of social perception.
28. What does the writer suggest about Charley Douglass?
The answer is A. > He understood the importance of enjoying humor in a group setting.
In paragraph two, these were intended to help people at home feel like they were in a social situation, such as a crowded theatre.
29. What makes the Santa Cruz study particularly significant?
The answer is B. > the similar results produced by a wide range of cultures
In paragraph three, on average, the results were remarkably consistent: worldwide, people’s guesses were correct approximately 60% of the time.
30. Which of the following happened in the San Diego study?
The answer is B. > Participants exchanged roles.
In paragraph four, laughter was recorded as each student took a turn at being teased by the others, involving the use of mildly insulting nicknames.
31. In the fifth paragraph, what did the results of the San Diego study suggest?
The answer is D. > High-status individuals can always be identified by their way of laughing.
In paragraph five, however, high-status individuals were rated as high-status whether they produced their natural dominant laugh or tried to do a submissive one.
Complete the summary using the list of words, A–H.
The benefits of humor
32. In one study at Australian National University, randomly chosen groups of participants were shown one of three videos, each designed to generate a different kind of ………
The answer is F. > EMOTION
In paragraph six, the students then were randomly assigned to watch a video clip eliciting either humor, contentment, or neutral feelings.
33. When all participants were then given a deliberately frustrating task to do, it was found that those who had watched the ……. video persisted with the task for longer and tried harder to accomplish the task than either of the other two groups.
The answer is H. > AMUSING
In paragraph seven, students who watched the Mr. Bean video ended up spending significantly more time working on the task, making twice as many predictions as the other two groups.
34. A second study in which participants were asked to perform a particularly …… task produced similar results.
The answer is C. > BORING
In paragraph eight, again, participants who watched the humorous video spent significantly more time working on this tedious task and completed more questions correctly than did the students in either of the other groups.
35 and 36. According to researchers David Cheng and Lu Wang, these findings suggest that humor not only reduces …… and helps build social connections but it may also have a …… effect on the body and mind.
The answer is D. > ANXIETY
The answer is E > STIMULATING
In paragraph nine, ‘although humor has been found to help relieve stress and facilitate social relationships, the traditional view of task performance implies that individuals should avoid things such as humor that may distract them from the accomplishment of task goals, ‘Cheng and Wang conclude. ‘We suggest that humor is not only enjoyable but more importantly, energizing.’
Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 3?
Write YES, NO, or NOT GIVEN.
37. Participants in the Santa Cruz were more accurate at identifying the laughs of friends than those of strangers.
The answer is NOT GIVEN.
In paragraph three, on average, the results were remarkably consistent: worldwide, people’s guesses were correct approximately 60% of the time.
38. The researchers in the San Diego study were correct in their predictions regarding the behavior of the high-status individuals.
The answer is YES.
In paragraph four, researchers have also found that different types of laughter serve as codes to complex human social hierarchies. A team led by Christopher Oveis from the University of California, San Diego, found that high-status individual’s social status were influenced by the dominant or submissive quality of their laughter.
39. The participants in the Australian National study were given a fixed amount of time to complete the task focusing on employee profiles.
The answer is NO.
In paragraph seven, participants were allowed to quit the task at any point.
40. Cheng and Wang’s conclusions were in line with established notions regarding task performance.
The answer is NO.
In paragraph nine, although humor has been found to help relieve stress and facilitate social relationships, the traditional view of task performance implies that individuals should avoid things such as humor that may distract them from accomplishment of task goals.