DSE English Paper 1 Reading 2013

## **PART A**

Q1)     B excited

[“a dazzling spectacle” “are bringing that ancient vision back to life”]

[using “a spectacle” to describe the tomb warriors shows the writer’s excitement and anticipation.]

[ both cautious and critical are negative tone which are not shown in paragraph 1.]

[ the writer simply illustrates the fact without words in humorous tone.]

Q2)     It is the tomb of China’s first emperor.

[What is special about the earthen pit is a question asking “what is the earthen pit for?”/ “what is the use of the earthen pit”?]

Q3)     The pieces of Terra-cotta warriors.

[Puzzle means the warriors are not complete / are broken, so the answer has to include ‘pieces’/ ‘fragments’(in line22).]

Q4)     To transform/Transforming the fragments into a full-size warrior.

[A task means a job. The job of Yang and her coworkers is “to transform a heap of clay fragments into a full-size warrior”. ]

Q5)     The farmers were digging a well for their orchard.

[“What were the farmers doing” is a past continuous tense, so you need to look for an answer in the same tense.]

[ “when farmers … while digging a well for their orchard”]

Q6)

      I.         NG (only Yang’s age, 57, is mentioned in paragraph 2)

    II.         T (the terra-cotta army is the 2200-year-old mystery and the burial complex is still dimly understood)

  III.         F (line 20-21: “It usually takes… many days”)

   IV.         T (2013-1974=39 years) <deleted in marking scheme>

Q7)     C

A: the clay head is a warrior’s head since the terra-cotta warriors are made of clay.

B: “sheathed in protective plastic” = wrapped in plastic

C: the flashes of pink and red “hint” at the original glory implies that the glory is not **all** lost. Part of the glory can still be seen from the bright colours.

D: “visible through the wrap” implies the red and pink colors are still bright enough to be seen directly.]

Q8)     Monochrome

[“not colourful” is to describe the warrior figures. The only descriptive for figures in paragraph 4 is “monochrome”. Hint: “mono” means single, simplified, one, as opposite to “multi”]

Q9)     He made much contribution/ achieved / did a lot during his reign (to develop China).

[In “packed a lot into his earthly reign”, explain “packed a lot” and the significance of his contribution to China.]

[ From line40, the passage elaborates what the emperor did (packed a lot). ]

Q10)   B

A: standard weight = measurement

  B: a kind of weapon (not mentioned)

  C: a coin = currency

  D: an extended character from all kinds of styles = writing system

Q11)   The warriors’ colors were exposed to dry air.

[line 52: Rephrase “colors did not survive… the exposure to air”]

Q12)   The time for the colors to flake off is as short as boiling an egg/ in a short period of time.

[line 60-61: 4 minutes is the time it takes to boil an egg and also the time for the paint colors to flake off. The write makes the comparison of boiling an egg and colors disappearing to let readers visualize the quick period.]

Q13)   A

A: “protected”= “preserved” (the best-preserved specimens were found …where has a layer of mud. This shows that the mud helped protect the figures)

B: “improved” is not correct as the mud didn’t improve/change the colors but preserved the colors/let the colors remain fresh.

C: “created” is wrong. The mud is created by flooding. The mud is functional as a spa coat, not that it creates a spa.

D: “2000-year-long spa” refers to the mud. “The mud reveals the mud” would be wrong.

Q14)   Experts from the Conservation Office in Germany.

[Skills: look for “PEG” in paragraph 7 and then look for the subject before “develop”]

Q15)   To keep the artifact in the protective moisture.

[“purpose”: a purpose is stated usually in the adverb phrase which begins with –to. Line80: “wrapped it in plastic to keep…in moisture”]

Q16)

4,2,31

  Q17)

      I.         Clay quivers (“they are…clay quivers”)

    II.         Chariot (recently unearthed= “freshly excavated”)

  III.         Shield (reveals = unveils ; a …shield)

   IV.         Military drum (still in one piece = “intact”(remains complete) )

Q18)   D

[Line104-105: “clues”= “evidence”. Clues about the distinctive artistry…under Qin dynasty implies that the artifacts(figures) are the fruit of Qin’s artistic culture.]

Q19)   The ancient paint adheres to dirt more readily than to lacquer.

[Line109-110: “the ancient paint…to lacquer” is the reason why Chinese preservationists are trying to preserve the earth like Rong Bo does.]

  Q20)

      I.         chemists/ Rong (Rong works as a chemist representing the museum)

    II.         find

  III.         reapplying

   IV.         binding agent

  Q21)

T (“less than one percent of the vast tomb” indicates a small

     portion(percentage) )

F (“But the pace of discovery is quickening” indicates the speed is

     increasing. Pace = speed. )

F (“In 2011 the museum launched…projects on … central burial mound”.

     Launch means start doing something; the project isn’t finished in 2011.)

Q22)   D

[D: “mind-boggling” “amaze” mean impress someone at large extent.]

Q23)   C

[Skills: look for the subject “the museum”; ignore paragraph 12 which only include Yang and the warrior.

[A: line 139-140 :“…the terra-cotta warriors were plastered over.” The past perfect tense here shows plastering is not what the museum is trying now.

B: line144: “Yang’s handiwork is plainly visible” states that her work will be seen, not hidden.

C: “The museum’s views on historical accuracy” reveals the museum has an emphasis on the historical view of terra-cotta warriors.

D: “a new army is forming on the pit…” already reveals the museum will show a new army to reflect the evolution as a main purpose. Yang’s handiwork is only part of the display.]

  Q24)

B  ( line6-9 : Yang is one of the local farmers)

A  ( line 50-51: The emperor’s army is a display of multiple colours)

C ( line75-77: Chinese researchers adopted PEG to reserve colors)

D (line108-109: Much color is imprinted to the soil so preservationists need to preserve the colorful earth)

F (line 127-130: Future discoveries will amaze everyone)

E (line 134-135: The cracks of reconstructed warrior have been preserved)

Q25)   C

[ C: A feature article is one that explores a trendy social issue such as the excavation/new discovery of terra-cotta army.

  D: An opinion piece is like an editorial which mostly states the writer’s opinion/views on a certain issue. This passage has no personal views. ]

**PART B1**

Q26)   Guzheng became popular during Qin dynasty.

            [“When”: the answer can comes with either “since”(line2) / “during” (line4)]

Q27)   B

            [“a symbol of”= “a representative of ” traditional Chinese culture (line10)]

Q28)   Turbulent

Q29)   Chinese have been exposed to guzheng since childhood.

            [“Chinese…are attracted to learning guzheng because…”(line11-12)]

Q30)   exotic              (line18)

            relaxing          (line18)

Q31)

I.    Social activity            [“meet new and interesting friends”]

II.   Sense of accomplishment     [“allows me to feel that”=sense]

III.  Artistic expression             [“an outlet”=expression]

Q32)

   I.         T          [“The school offers classes… taught by Zou” (line33-34)]

    II.         NG

  III.         F          [“Zou, born into a family of guzheng musicians”(line23-24)]

   IV.         T          [“She has played for celebrities…” (line26)]

Q33)   The correct use of both hands

            How to pluck the strings

            How to sit properly while playing the instrument            [“correct body

posture”(line40)]

Q34)

child    [“for students aged between six and 23” (line51)]

            adult   [“for students aged between six and 23” (line51)]

            Zou      [“Zou founded the International Academy for Musical Arts”(line30-31)]

            Lunlun            [“says Zou Lunlun”(line15)]

            North Point   [“…in North Point”(line32)]

One-on-one lessons for different levels                                         Cost

Beginner        $420

[line43; Elementary is wrong because that is the course

provided by The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (line50)]

Advanced students  [line43]                                                         $550

Q35)   Students need to pass an interview and take a music aptitude test

            [(line55-56)]

Q36)   A: Gu Zheng Artist Association [“a short course would be best”; “The Gu Zheng Artist Association offers two-month courses…”(line59-60)]

            B: Gu Zheng Artist Association  [“and level 10 is for students to…at professional level”(line72-73); a profession= an occupation=a cereer.]

Q37)   it suggests that social media is not as great as we think.

[“or is it?” (line3) is a reflective question which aims to provoke readers’ thinking against the topic sentence “social media is  great…”.]

  Q38)   A

[“who contribute much more content than the average user” is an adjective clause to describe power users. This description indicates they are active on Facebook by sharing more content]

B: “those suffering from low self-esteem” isn’t equal to power users.

Q39)   revealing undesirable personal traits

[“unwittingly”(line6)= by accident(accidentally)]

Q40)   The idea that Facebook could be a fantastic place for people to strengthen their relationships.

[“We had this idea that Facebook…relationships” is the assumption made by Amanda Forest (paragraph 3)]

  Q41)

      I.         High self-esteem users [(line30)]

    II.         Low self-esteem users [“were...liked less by strangers…”(line22-23)]

  III.         Low self-esteem users

   IV.         High self-esteem users

  Q42)

      I.         T

    II.         F

  III.         T

Q43)   a negative reaction

[“…they seem to keep it(a negative reaction) to themselves”(line41). “It” is  an accountable noun and can be referred to as either “a negative reaction”/ “a post”. But people keeps the response from others in mind, not the post.]

Q44)   Facebook is addictive/as addictive as cigarettes and alcohol

  Q45)

      I.         Because they can share things on Facebook to improve friendships.

    II.         They may bombard their friends with negative posts/tidbits.