Reading for the Real World 2 Second Edition – Test Bank

Unit 10

People and Opinions
Reading Set 1.1
A Superlative Book

The Guinness Book of World Records is a compilation of the highest, and sometimes lowest, achievements in (A) [every / all] imaginable category. It contains facts, such as the hottest and coldest places on Earth, the largest lizard, and the oldest language, as well as human achievements: the largest cake ever made, the highest jump, and the longest marriage. Some activities, like standing on one leg the longest or blowing the biggest bubblegum bubble, have been created simply (B) [getting / to get] into the book. These sorts of things have clearly __________. If the number of copies sold is a guide, the Guinness Book of World Records is one of the most popular books in the world. About 94 million copies have been sold since it (C) [was / has been] first published in 1955, making the book second in popularity only to the Bible. It has been sold in 100 different countries and translated into thirty-seven languages.

The Guinness Book of World Records was begun for the purpose of settling (A) [debts / disputes] in bars. The idea belonged to Sir Hugh Beaver. He was the managing director of the Guinness Brewery, which still produces the famous Guinness stout (dark beer). On a 1951 hunting trip, after shooting at, and missing, a group of golden plovers, Sir Hugh and his party (B) [launched / settled] a discussion about whether the plover or the grouse was the fastest game bird in Europe. Their discussion was not (C) [resolved / remarkable] at the time, but it caused Sir Hugh to ponder that many such discussions might take place in the bars across the United Kingdom, where Guinness stout was served. He thought a book that could answer questions about superlatives (the tallest, fastest, longest, etc.) would not only be popular but could help to market his company’s product as well.
Sir Hugh contacted Norm and Ross McWhirter, who ran a London research agency.  The brothers compiled a list of facts, and the first edition, called The Guinness Book of Superlatives, was published in August 1955.  By Christmas of that year, the book was at the top of the British bestseller lists.  One year later in America, David A. Boehm, the founder of Sterling Publishing Co., discovered a storehouse full of copies of The Guinness Book of Superlatives.  Boehm renamed the book the Guinness Book of World Records because he thought Americans wouldn’t be able to understand the word “superlatives.”  The book was successful immediately and quickly became famous throughout the world, earning the company $1.7 million per year. In 1989, Boehm sold the book rights back to Guinness for eight million dollars.

Many of the facts in the Guinness Book of World Records are concerned with science and the natural world and are, (A) _____, unlikely to change. Because most of the Earth has been explored, and many of its distinctive plant and animal species have already been classified, it is unlikely that, (B) _____, a lizard larger than the Komodo Monitor will be discovered. But in the area of human achievement, records will continue to be made and broken---a fact that has given hope to a great many people who want to be noticed. Of course, there are some, like Olympic athletes, who set new records simply because they are excellent at what they do.

However, there is also a sort of community of people who spend much of their time deliberately trying to set world records and get their names into the book.  They choose dangerous or highly difficult tasks.  Some attempt deep-sea diving without oxygen or jumping off mountains with parachutes.  Likewise, some set records for being the tallest, or oldest people alive.  There are many others who choose obscure activities, like bicycling backwards or balancing wine glasses on their chins.  This combination of strangeness and achievement is perhaps one of the most appealing and enduring aspects of the Guinness Book of World Records.

The Guinness Book of World Records is a compilation of the highest, and sometimes lowest, achievements in (A) [every / all] imaginable category. It contains facts, such as the hottest and coldest places on Earth, the largest lizard, and the oldest language, as well as human achievements: the largest cake ever made, the highest jump, and the longest marriage. Some activities, like standing on one leg the longest or blowing the biggest bubblegum bubble, have been created simply (B) [getting / to get] into the book. These sorts of things have clearly __________. If the number of copies sold is a guide, the Guinness Book of World Records is one of the most popular books in the world. About 94 million copies have been sold since it (C) [was / has been] first published in 1955, making the book second in popularity only to the Bible. It has been sold in 100 different countries and translated into thirty-seven languages. 1. Choose the grammatically correct words for (A), (B) and (C). (A) (B) (C)  every getting has been  every to get was  every getting was  all to get was  all getting has been 2. Choose the words that best fit in the blank.  been largely exaggerated  fascinated many people  made some people famous  inspired several imitators  become increasingly ridiculous

The Guinness Book of World Records was begun for the purpose of settling (A) [debts / disputes] in bars. The idea belonged to Sir Hugh Beaver. He was the managing director of the Guinness Brewery, which still produces the famous Guinness stout (dark beer). On a 1951 hunting trip, after shooting at, and missing, a group of golden plovers, Sir Hugh and his party (B) [launched / settled] a discussion about whether the plover or the grouse was the fastest game bird in Europe. Their discussion was not (C) [resolved / remarkable] at the time, but it caused Sir Hugh to ponder that many such discussions might take place in the bars across the United Kingdom, where Guinness stout was served. He thought a book that could answer questions about superlatives (the tallest, fastest, longest, etc.) would not only be popular but could help to market his company’s product as well. 3. Choose the correct words for (A), (B) and (C). (A) (B) (C)  disputes settled remarkable  disputes launched resolved  disputes settled resolved  debts launched resolved  debts settled remarkable 4. What is the purpose of this paragraph?  To illustrate the origins of Guinness Stout  To cite errors contained in the Guinness Book  To suggest that the Guinness Book starts arguments  To show how Beaver conceived of the Guinness Book  To explain why game birds are included in the Guinness Book

Sir Hugh contacted Norm and Ross McWhirter, who ran a London research agency.  The brothers compiled a list of facts, and the first edition, called The Guinness Book of Superlatives, was published in August 1955.  By Christmas of that year, the book was at the top of the British bestseller lists.  One year later in America, David A. Boehm, the founder of Sterling Publishing Co., discovered a storehouse full of copies of The Guinness Book of Superlatives.  Boehm renamed the book the Guinness Book of World Records because he thought Americans wouldn’t be able to understand the word “superlatives.”  The book was successful immediately and quickly became famous throughout the world, earning the company $1.7 million per year. In 1989, Boehm sold the book rights back to Guinness for eight million dollars. 5. Where is the best place to insert the sentence below? Boehm decided that the book could be successful in America, so he went to Britain to obtain the rights.      6. What is NOT true, according to the passage?  The McWhirters ran a research agency.  The Guinness Book was first published in 1955.  The rights to the book were sold to David Boehm.  The word “superlatives” was removed from the title.  The book was an American best seller in its first year.

Many of the facts in the Guinness Book of World Records are concerned with science and the natural world and are, (A) _____, unlikely to change. Because most of the Earth has been explored, and many of its distinctive plant and animal species have already been classified, it is unlikely that, (B) _____, a lizard larger than the Komodo Monitor will be discovered. But in the area of human achievement, records will continue to be made and broken---a fact that has given hope to a great many people who want to be noticed. Of course, there are some, like Olympic athletes, who set new records simply because they are excellent at what they do. However, there is also a sort of community of people who spend much of their time deliberately trying to set world records and get their names into the book.  They choose dangerous or highly difficult tasks.  Some attempt deep-sea diving without oxygen or jumping off mountains with parachutes.  Likewise, some set records for being the tallest, or oldest people alive.  There are many others who choose obscure activities, like bicycling backwards or balancing wine glasses on their chins.  This combination of strangeness and achievement is perhaps one of the most appealing and enduring aspects of the Guinness Book of World Records. 7. Choose the correct words for (A) and (B). (A) (B)  likewise even so  therefore for instance  instead in addition  instead even so  likewise for instance 8. Choose the sentence that does NOT belong.     

Reading Set 1.2