English Comprehension PYQs

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow:

Mosquitoes can transmit pathogens that cause many human diseases, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, chikungunya, and Zika fever. Many of these diseases can be physically devastating and even fatal. For example, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are over 200 million new cases of malaria per year worldwide, resulting in over 400,000 deaths, most of them children under the age of 5. Zika fever is caused by a virus transmitted to humans primarily by the bite of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Symptoms in infected human adults are typically mild, but if the virus infects a pregnant woman it can be transmitted to the developing fetus and affect brain development, causing a condition called microcephaly. To reduce the number of A. aegypti mosquitoes that may carry Zika virus, researchers at a biotechnology company called Oxitec have produced genetically modified (GM) A. aegypti mosquitoes that when released into the wild, mate with wild mosquitoes, and any offspring produced die before becoming adults.

The fluorescence gene is used to_________ GM mosquitoes. The lethality gene, which is more accurately called tetracycline transcriptional activator variant (or tTAV), encodes a protein that blocks transcription of several other genes that are essential to mosquito development. GM mosquito larvae that produce the tTAV protein die before reaching maturity. However, the tTAV protein cannot prevent the transcription of other genes when it is bound to the antibiotic tetracycline. Therefore, tetracycline acts as a repressor of the lethality gene, or, in other words, its antidote. In the lab, the GM mosquito larvae are reared in water containing tetracycline and develop normally into adult mosquitoes. When adult GM mosquitoes are released into the wild and breed with wild, non-GM mosquitoes, their offspring inherit the lethality gene. Without tetracycline in the environment to protect them, the offspring die. 

In one study, Oxitec scientists released GM mosquitoes into a neighborhood in Brazil. Sustained release over the course of a year led to a reduction of the local Aedes aegypti population by 80% to 95% according to different measures (Carvalho et al., 2015). The scientists chose densely populated neighborhoods for their study because mosquito-borne diseases can spread most easily in areas where lots of humans and mosquitoes are present. They hypothesized that if they could reduce both the population size of the A. aegypti mosquitoes and the mosquito population density, they would reduce the probability that a person becomes infected with a pathogen spread by these mosquitoes. (An activity that shows how scientists measure mosquito density, based on data from Oxitec scientists, is available on the BioInteractive website as “Tracking Genetically Modified Mosquitoes.”)

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow:

Mosquitoes can transmit pathogens that cause many human diseases, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, chikungunya, and Zika fever. Many of these diseases can be physically devastating and even fatal. For example, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are over 200 million new cases of malaria per year worldwide, resulting in over 400,000 deaths, most of them children under the age of 5. Zika fever is caused by a virus transmitted to humans primarily by the bite of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Symptoms in infected human adults are typically mild, but if the virus infects a pregnant woman it can be transmitted to the developing fetus and affect brain development, causing a condition called microcephaly. To reduce the number of A. aegypti mosquitoes that may carry Zika virus, researchers at a biotechnology company called Oxitec have produced genetically modified (GM) A. aegypti mosquitoes that when released into the wild, mate with wild mosquitoes, and any offspring produced die before becoming adults.

The fluorescence gene is used to_________ GM mosquitoes. The lethality gene, which is more accurately called tetracycline transcriptional activator variant (or tTAV), encodes a protein that blocks transcription of several other genes that are essential to mosquito development. GM mosquito larvae that produce the tTAV protein die before reaching maturity. However, the tTAV protein cannot prevent the transcription of other genes when it is bound to the antibiotic tetracycline. Therefore, tetracycline acts as a repressor of the lethality gene, or, in other words, its antidote. In the lab, the GM mosquito larvae are reared in water containing tetracycline and develop normally into adult mosquitoes. When adult GM mosquitoes are released into the wild and breed with wild, non-GM mosquitoes, their offspring inherit the lethality gene. Without tetracycline in the environment to protect them, the offspring die. 

In one study, Oxitec scientists released GM mosquitoes into a neighborhood in Brazil. Sustained release over the course of a year led to a reduction of the local Aedes aegypti population by 80% to 95% according to different measures (Carvalho et al., 2015). The scientists chose densely populated neighborhoods for their study because mosquito-borne diseases can spread most easily in areas where lots of humans and mosquitoes are present. They hypothesized that if they could reduce both the population size of the A. aegypti mosquitoes and the mosquito population density, they would reduce the probability that a person becomes infected with a pathogen spread by these mosquitoes. (An activity that shows how scientists measure mosquito density, based on data from Oxitec scientists, is available on the BioInteractive website as “Tracking Genetically Modified Mosquitoes.”)

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow:

Mosquitoes can transmit pathogens that cause many human diseases, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, chikungunya, and Zika fever. Many of these diseases can be physically devastating and even fatal. For example, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are over 200 million new cases of malaria per year worldwide, resulting in over 400,000 deaths, most of them children under the age of 5. Zika fever is caused by a virus transmitted to humans primarily by the bite of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Symptoms in infected human adults are typically mild, but if the virus infects a pregnant woman it can be transmitted to the developing fetus and affect brain development, causing a condition called microcephaly. To reduce the number of A. aegypti mosquitoes that may carry Zika virus, researchers at a biotechnology company called Oxitec have produced genetically modified (GM) A. aegypti mosquitoes that when released into the wild, mate with wild mosquitoes, and any offspring produced die before becoming adults.

The fluorescence gene is used to_________ GM mosquitoes. The lethality gene, which is more accurately called tetracycline transcriptional activator variant (or tTAV), encodes a protein that blocks transcription of several other genes that are essential to mosquito development. GM mosquito larvae that produce the tTAV protein die before reaching maturity. However, the tTAV protein cannot prevent the transcription of other genes when it is bound to the antibiotic tetracycline. Therefore, tetracycline acts as a repressor of the lethality gene, or, in other words, its antidote. In the lab, the GM mosquito larvae are reared in water containing tetracycline and develop normally into adult mosquitoes. When adult GM mosquitoes are released into the wild and breed with wild, non-GM mosquitoes, their offspring inherit the lethality gene. Without tetracycline in the environment to protect them, the offspring die. 

In one study, Oxitec scientists released GM mosquitoes into a neighborhood in Brazil. Sustained release over the course of a year led to a reduction of the local Aedes aegypti population by 80% to 95% according to different measures (Carvalho et al., 2015). The scientists chose densely populated neighborhoods for their study because mosquito-borne diseases can spread most easily in areas where lots of humans and mosquitoes are present. They hypothesized that if they could reduce both the population size of the A. aegypti mosquitoes and the mosquito population density, they would reduce the probability that a person becomes infected with a pathogen spread by these mosquitoes. (An activity that shows how scientists measure mosquito density, based on data from Oxitec scientists, is available on the BioInteractive website as “Tracking Genetically Modified Mosquitoes.”)

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow:

Mosquitoes can transmit pathogens that cause many human diseases, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, chikungunya, and Zika fever. Many of these diseases can be physically devastating and even fatal. For example, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are over 200 million new cases of malaria per year worldwide, resulting in over 400,000 deaths, most of them children under the age of 5. Zika fever is caused by a virus transmitted to humans primarily by the bite of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Symptoms in infected human adults are typically mild, but if the virus infects a pregnant woman it can be transmitted to the developing fetus and affect brain development, causing a condition called microcephaly. To reduce the number of A. aegypti mosquitoes that may carry Zika virus, researchers at a biotechnology company called Oxitec have produced genetically modified (GM) A. aegypti mosquitoes that when released into the wild, mate with wild mosquitoes, and any offspring produced die before becoming adults.

The fluorescence gene is used to_________ GM mosquitoes. The lethality gene, which is more accurately called tetracycline transcriptional activator variant (or tTAV), encodes a protein that blocks transcription of several other genes that are essential to mosquito development. GM mosquito larvae that produce the tTAV protein die before reaching maturity. However, the tTAV protein cannot prevent the transcription of other genes when it is bound to the antibiotic tetracycline. Therefore, tetracycline acts as a repressor of the lethality gene, or, in other words, its antidote. In the lab, the GM mosquito larvae are reared in water containing tetracycline and develop normally into adult mosquitoes. When adult GM mosquitoes are released into the wild and breed with wild, non-GM mosquitoes, their offspring inherit the lethality gene. Without tetracycline in the environment to protect them, the offspring die. 

In one study, Oxitec scientists released GM mosquitoes into a neighborhood in Brazil. Sustained release over the course of a year led to a reduction of the local Aedes aegypti population by 80% to 95% according to different measures (Carvalho et al., 2015). The scientists chose densely populated neighborhoods for their study because mosquito-borne diseases can spread most easily in areas where lots of humans and mosquitoes are present. They hypothesized that if they could reduce both the population size of the A. aegypti mosquitoes and the mosquito population density, they would reduce the probability that a person becomes infected with a pathogen spread by these mosquitoes. (An activity that shows how scientists measure mosquito density, based on data from Oxitec scientists, is available on the BioInteractive website as “Tracking Genetically Modified Mosquitoes.”)

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow:

Mosquitoes can transmit pathogens that cause many human diseases, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, chikungunya, and Zika fever. Many of these diseases can be physically devastating and even fatal. For example, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are over 200 million new cases of malaria per year worldwide, resulting in over 400,000 deaths, most of them children under the age of 5. Zika fever is caused by a virus transmitted to humans primarily by the bite of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Symptoms in infected human adults are typically mild, but if the virus infects a pregnant woman it can be transmitted to the developing fetus and affect brain development, causing a condition called microcephaly. To reduce the number of A. aegypti mosquitoes that may carry Zika virus, researchers at a biotechnology company called Oxitec have produced genetically modified (GM) A. aegypti mosquitoes that when released into the wild, mate with wild mosquitoes, and any offspring produced die before becoming adults.

The fluorescence gene is used to_________ GM mosquitoes. The lethality gene, which is more accurately called tetracycline transcriptional activator variant (or tTAV), encodes a protein that blocks transcription of several other genes that are essential to mosquito development. GM mosquito larvae that produce the tTAV protein die before reaching maturity. However, the tTAV protein cannot prevent the transcription of other genes when it is bound to the antibiotic tetracycline. Therefore, tetracycline acts as a repressor of the lethality gene, or, in other words, its antidote. In the lab, the GM mosquito larvae are reared in water containing tetracycline and develop normally into adult mosquitoes. When adult GM mosquitoes are released into the wild and breed with wild, non-GM mosquitoes, their offspring inherit the lethality gene. Without tetracycline in the environment to protect them, the offspring die. 

In one study, Oxitec scientists released GM mosquitoes into a neighborhood in Brazil. Sustained release over the course of a year led to a reduction of the local Aedes aegypti population by 80% to 95% according to different measures (Carvalho et al., 2015). The scientists chose densely populated neighborhoods for their study because mosquito-borne diseases can spread most easily in areas where lots of humans and mosquitoes are present. They hypothesized that if they could reduce both the population size of the A. aegypti mosquitoes and the mosquito population density, they would reduce the probability that a person becomes infected with a pathogen spread by these mosquitoes. (An activity that shows how scientists measure mosquito density, based on data from Oxitec scientists, is available on the BioInteractive website as “Tracking Genetically Modified Mosquitoes.”)

Fill in the blanks with suitable words. The words have been provided to you. 

Words: Strategy, Resolve, Express, Bounded, Dynamic, Exercise

Individuals experience higher levels of affective commitment when the management is concerned with paying their staff employees based upon the labour market rates. While considerable attention recently has been focused on the development of specific structures such as broad-band pay rate plans, institutions interested in retaining their staff employees should also be sensitive to pay-rate ranges and (1) good work culture. A negative correlation between general training efforts and normative commitment levels may be indicative of the notion that, as employees receive additional training in how to function within learning organizations, they begin to realize that today’s organizations are (2) and that individuals are no longer expected to remain with one organization throughout their career. Institutions need to be aware of the possibility that, although extensive formal training programs do have many benefits, they may also contribute to turnover among staff. Therefore, it is extremely important that the design and implementation of such programs are done with caution and are in line with the overall (3) and scheme of the institution. Therefore, institutions interested in retaining staff employees should design policies and practices that can help to (4) issues faced by employees. A positive relationship between strategies designed to increase employee discretion and responsibility and normative commitment levels among employees may be a result of the notion that individuals subconsciously associate responsibility with loyalty. Presumably, HRM policies and practices should (5) a disarming and warm attitude towards the employees. Plans, statements, and goals are all admirable endeavours; however, in reality, these are simply intentions. The employees are always (6) by the policies, practices, and procedures implemented at an institution and it represents the true strategies; and these realized strategies can subsequently have an effect on the employee.

Fill in the blanks with suitable words. The words have been provided to you. 

Words: Strategy, Resolve, Express, Bounded, Dynamic, Exercise

Individuals experience higher levels of affective commitment when the management is concerned with paying their staff employees based upon the labour market rates. While considerable attention recently has been focused on the development of specific structures such as broad-band pay rate plans, institutions interested in retaining their staff employees should also be sensitive to pay-rate ranges and (1) good work culture. A negative correlation between general training efforts and normative commitment levels may be indicative of the notion that, as employees receive additional training in how to function within learning organizations, they begin to realize that today’s organizations are (2) and that individuals are no longer expected to remain with one organization throughout their career. Institutions need to be aware of the possibility that, although extensive formal training programs do have many benefits, they may also contribute to turnover among staff. Therefore, it is extremely important that the design and implementation of such programs are done with caution and are in line with the overall (3) and scheme of the institution. Therefore, institutions interested in retaining staff employees should design policies and practices that can help to (4) issues faced by employees. A positive relationship between strategies designed to increase employee discretion and responsibility and normative commitment levels among employees may be a result of the notion that individuals subconsciously associate responsibility with loyalty. Presumably, HRM policies and practices should (5) a disarming and warm attitude towards the employees. Plans, statements, and goals are all admirable endeavours; however, in reality, these are simply intentions. The employees are always (6) by the policies, practices, and procedures implemented at an institution and it represents the true strategies; and these realized strategies can subsequently have an effect on the employee.

Fill in the blanks with suitable words. The words have been provided to you. 

Words: Strategy, Resolve, Express, Bounded, Dynamic, Exercise

Individuals experience higher levels of affective commitment when the management is concerned with paying their staff employees based upon the labour market rates. While considerable attention recently has been focused on the development of specific structures such as broad-band pay rate plans, institutions interested in retaining their staff employees should also be sensitive to pay-rate ranges and (1) good work culture. A negative correlation between general training efforts and normative commitment levels may be indicative of the notion that, as employees receive additional training in how to function within learning organizations, they begin to realize that today’s organizations are (2) and that individuals are no longer expected to remain with one organization throughout their career. Institutions need to be aware of the possibility that, although extensive formal training programs do have many benefits, they may also contribute to turnover among staff. Therefore, it is extremely important that the design and implementation of such programs are done with caution and are in line with the overall (3) and scheme of the institution. Therefore, institutions interested in retaining staff employees should design policies and practices that can help to (4) issues faced by employees. A positive relationship between strategies designed to increase employee discretion and responsibility and normative commitment levels among employees may be a result of the notion that individuals subconsciously associate responsibility with loyalty. Presumably, HRM policies and practices should (5) a disarming and warm attitude towards the employees. Plans, statements, and goals are all admirable endeavours; however, in reality, these are simply intentions. The employees are always (6) by the policies, practices, and procedures implemented at an institution and it represents the true strategies; and these realized strategies can subsequently have an effect on the employee.

Fill in the blanks with suitable words. The words have been provided to you. 

Words: Strategy, Resolve, Express, Bounded, Dynamic, Exercise

Individuals experience higher levels of affective commitment when the management is concerned with paying their staff employees based upon the labour market rates. While considerable attention recently has been focused on the development of specific structures such as broad-band pay rate plans, institutions interested in retaining their staff employees should also be sensitive to pay-rate ranges and (1) good work culture. A negative correlation between general training efforts and normative commitment levels may be indicative of the notion that, as employees receive additional training in how to function within learning organizations, they begin to realize that today’s organizations are (2) and that individuals are no longer expected to remain with one organization throughout their career. Institutions need to be aware of the possibility that, although extensive formal training programs do have many benefits, they may also contribute to turnover among staff. Therefore, it is extremely important that the design and implementation of such programs are done with caution and are in line with the overall (3) and scheme of the institution. Therefore, institutions interested in retaining staff employees should design policies and practices that can help to (4) issues faced by employees. A positive relationship between strategies designed to increase employee discretion and responsibility and normative commitment levels among employees may be a result of the notion that individuals subconsciously associate responsibility with loyalty. Presumably, HRM policies and practices should (5) a disarming and warm attitude towards the employees. Plans, statements, and goals are all admirable endeavours; however, in reality, these are simply intentions. The employees are always (6) by the policies, practices, and procedures implemented at an institution and it represents the true strategies; and these realized strategies can subsequently have an effect on the employee.

Fill in the blanks with suitable words. The words have been provided to you. 

Words: Strategy, Resolve, Express, Bounded, Dynamic, Exercise

Individuals experience higher levels of affective commitment when the management is concerned with paying their staff employees based upon the labour market rates. While considerable attention recently has been focused on the development of specific structures such as broad-band pay rate plans, institutions interested in retaining their staff employees should also be sensitive to pay-rate ranges and (1) good work culture. A negative correlation between general training efforts and normative commitment levels may be indicative of the notion that, as employees receive additional training in how to function within learning organizations, they begin to realize that today’s organizations are (2) and that individuals are no longer expected to remain with one organization throughout their career. Institutions need to be aware of the possibility that, although extensive formal training programs do have many benefits, they may also contribute to turnover among staff. Therefore, it is extremely important that the design and implementation of such programs are done with caution and are in line with the overall (3) and scheme of the institution. Therefore, institutions interested in retaining staff employees should design policies and practices that can help to (4) issues faced by employees. A positive relationship between strategies designed to increase employee discretion and responsibility and normative commitment levels among employees may be a result of the notion that individuals subconsciously associate responsibility with loyalty. Presumably, HRM policies and practices should (5) a disarming and warm attitude towards the employees. Plans, statements, and goals are all admirable endeavours; however, in reality, these are simply intentions. The employees are always (6) by the policies, practices, and procedures implemented at an institution and it represents the true strategies; and these realized strategies can subsequently have an effect on the employee.

Fill in the blanks with suitable words. The words have been provided to you. 

Words: Strategy, Resolve, Express, Bounded, Dynamic, Exercise

Individuals experience higher levels of affective commitment when the management is concerned with paying their staff employees based upon the labour market rates. While considerable attention recently has been focused on the development of specific structures such as broad-band pay rate plans, institutions interested in retaining their staff employees should also be sensitive to pay-rate ranges and (1) good work culture. A negative correlation between general training efforts and normative commitment levels may be indicative of the notion that, as employees receive additional training in how to function within learning organizations, they begin to realize that today’s organizations are (2) and that individuals are no longer expected to remain with one organization throughout their career. Institutions need to be aware of the possibility that, although extensive formal training programs do have many benefits, they may also contribute to turnover among staff. Therefore, it is extremely important that the design and implementation of such programs are done with caution and are in line with the overall (3) and scheme of the institution. Therefore, institutions interested in retaining staff employees should design policies and practices that can help to (4) issues faced by employees. A positive relationship between strategies designed to increase employee discretion and responsibility and normative commitment levels among employees may be a result of the notion that individuals subconsciously associate responsibility with loyalty. Presumably, HRM policies and practices should (5) a disarming and warm attitude towards the employees. Plans, statements, and goals are all admirable endeavours; however, in reality, these are simply intentions. The employees are always (6) by the policies, practices, and procedures implemented at an institution and it represents the true strategies; and these realized strategies can subsequently have an effect on the employee.

**Read the given passage and answer the questions given below.

Some words may be highlighted.** 

Plastics, chemicals and oil management (1) pollute and endanger marine ecosystems. Yet cleaning up the ocean is rarely, if ever, possible. Solutions must therefore consist in reducing waste and other hazardous materials. For decades, waste and hazardous materials have been dumped into the ocean as a result of human activity. Covering more than two-thirds of the Earth’s surface, the ocean is so vast that human carelessness seemed unlikely ever to affect it. But it is now a known fact that, in addition to overfishing, warming caused by climate change, ever-increasing maritime transport, and ocean acidification, pollution is a threat to marine organisms and their habitats. One of the key aiding factors to this is vast scale pollution is the dumping of plastic. By its sheer scale, plastic contamination symbolises the human impact on the environment, above all other forms of man-made pollution. Due to poor waste spills (2), it is estimated that every year, 10 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the sea, 80% of which comes from inland, mainly via rivers. “From coastal regions to the poles, and from the ocean surface to the seafloor, no area of the ocean is free from this pollution. As a result, all the essential services provided by the ocean to the planet and to humankind are likely to be seriously disrupted. The world’s population depends to a large extent on marine resources, not only for food but also for economic purposes, from tourism to the transport of goods. The ocean is also vital to the climate since it absorbs 25% of the CO2 emitted by human activity into the atmosphere every year. Deep-sea organisms also play a key role in the functioning of this biological carbon pump where phytoplankton, at the bottom of the marine food chain, use CO2 and transform it into organic matter, part of which sinks to the ocean floor. In the process, these microscopic algae and bacteria provide half the oxygen produced on Earth.

The whole food result (3) is impacted, from zooplankton to whales,” points out Ika Paul-Pont of the Laboratory of Environmental Marine Sciences. In addition to larger waste such as bags and bottles, which can cause the death of animals by entanglement or intestinal obstruction when ingested, plastic pollution turns out to be particularly insidious, as it is made up of billions of particles, sometimes less than a few millimetres in diameter, produced by the decomposing of plastic caused by UV radiation and wave action. These microplastics, as they are known, are ingested by all marine fauna, even the very smallest organisms, with a wide range of effects. Once swallowed (4), these pollutants can prevent animals from feeding normally, which affects their growth, reproduction and immune defences. “We exposed oysters to microplastics in the laboratory. These molluscs feed on microalgae by filtering water, ingesting plastic in the process. The presence of the polymer means the shellfish have to devote more energy to filtration – and therefore less to reproduction. As a chain (5), we’ve observed a 40% drop in the hatching rate compared to uncontaminated oysters,” Paul-Pont explains. More recently, scientists, including CNRS researchers, have also discovered that microplastics continue to break down into even smaller, nanometre-sized particles. They are able to cross cell membranes and may pose an even greater toxicity hazard. Although this field of research is still in its infancy, its findings are eagerly awaited. Ocean ecosystems are indeed not the only ones exposed to such pollution, since marine wildlife eventually ends up in our plates!

**Read the given passage and answer the questions given below.

Some words may be highlighted.** 

Plastics, chemicals and oil management (1) pollute and endanger marine ecosystems. Yet cleaning up the ocean is rarely, if ever, possible. Solutions must therefore consist in reducing waste and other hazardous materials. For decades, waste and hazardous materials have been dumped into the ocean as a result of human activity. Covering more than two-thirds of the Earth’s surface, the ocean is so vast that human carelessness seemed unlikely ever to affect it. But it is now a known fact that, in addition to overfishing, warming caused by climate change, ever-increasing maritime transport, and ocean acidification, pollution is a threat to marine organisms and their habitats. One of the key aiding factors to this is vast scale pollution is the dumping of plastic. By its sheer scale, plastic contamination symbolises the human impact on the environment, above all other forms of man-made pollution. Due to poor waste spills (2), it is estimated that every year, 10 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the sea, 80% of which comes from inland, mainly via rivers. “From coastal regions to the poles, and from the ocean surface to the seafloor, no area of the ocean is free from this pollution. As a result, all the essential services provided by the ocean to the planet and to humankind are likely to be seriously disrupted. The world’s population depends to a large extent on marine resources, not only for food but also for economic purposes, from tourism to the transport of goods. The ocean is also vital to the climate since it absorbs 25% of the CO2 emitted by human activity into the atmosphere every year. Deep-sea organisms also play a key role in the functioning of this biological carbon pump where phytoplankton, at the bottom of the marine food chain, use CO2 and transform it into organic matter, part of which sinks to the ocean floor. In the process, these microscopic algae and bacteria provide half the oxygen produced on Earth.

The whole food result (3) is impacted, from zooplankton to whales,” points out Ika Paul-Pont of the Laboratory of Environmental Marine Sciences. In addition to larger waste such as bags and bottles, which can cause the death of animals by entanglement or intestinal obstruction when ingested, plastic pollution turns out to be particularly insidious, as it is made up of billions of particles, sometimes less than a few millimetres in diameter, produced by the decomposing of plastic caused by UV radiation and wave action. These microplastics, as they are known, are ingested by all marine fauna, even the very smallest organisms, with a wide range of effects. Once swallowed (4), these pollutants can prevent animals from feeding normally, which affects their growth, reproduction and immune defences. “We exposed oysters to microplastics in the laboratory. These molluscs feed on microalgae by filtering water, ingesting plastic in the process. The presence of the polymer means the shellfish have to devote more energy to filtration – and therefore less to reproduction. As a chain (5), we’ve observed a 40% drop in the hatching rate compared to uncontaminated oysters,” Paul-Pont explains. More recently, scientists, including CNRS researchers, have also discovered that microplastics continue to break down into even smaller, nanometre-sized particles. They are able to cross cell membranes and may pose an even greater toxicity hazard. Although this field of research is still in its infancy, its findings are eagerly awaited. Ocean ecosystems are indeed not the only ones exposed to such pollution, since marine wildlife eventually ends up in our plates!

**Read the given passage and answer the questions given below.

Some words may be highlighted.** 

Plastics, chemicals and oil management (1) pollute and endanger marine ecosystems. Yet cleaning up the ocean is rarely, if ever, possible. Solutions must therefore consist in reducing waste and other hazardous materials. For decades, waste and hazardous materials have been dumped into the ocean as a result of human activity. Covering more than two-thirds of the Earth’s surface, the ocean is so vast that human carelessness seemed unlikely ever to affect it. But it is now a known fact that, in addition to overfishing, warming caused by climate change, ever-increasing maritime transport, and ocean acidification, pollution is a threat to marine organisms and their habitats. One of the key aiding factors to this is vast scale pollution is the dumping of plastic. By its sheer scale, plastic contamination symbolises the human impact on the environment, above all other forms of man-made pollution. Due to poor waste spills (2), it is estimated that every year, 10 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the sea, 80% of which comes from inland, mainly via rivers. “From coastal regions to the poles, and from the ocean surface to the seafloor, no area of the ocean is free from this pollution. As a result, all the essential services provided by the ocean to the planet and to humankind are likely to be seriously disrupted. The world’s population depends to a large extent on marine resources, not only for food but also for economic purposes, from tourism to the transport of goods. The ocean is also vital to the climate since it absorbs 25% of the CO2 emitted by human activity into the atmosphere every year. Deep-sea organisms also play a key role in the functioning of this biological carbon pump where phytoplankton, at the bottom of the marine food chain, use CO2 and transform it into organic matter, part of which sinks to the ocean floor. In the process, these microscopic algae and bacteria provide half the oxygen produced on Earth.

The whole food result (3) is impacted, from zooplankton to whales,” points out Ika Paul-Pont of the Laboratory of Environmental Marine Sciences. In addition to larger waste such as bags and bottles, which can cause the death of animals by entanglement or intestinal obstruction when ingested, plastic pollution turns out to be particularly insidious, as it is made up of billions of particles, sometimes less than a few millimetres in diameter, produced by the decomposing of plastic caused by UV radiation and wave action. These microplastics, as they are known, are ingested by all marine fauna, even the very smallest organisms, with a wide range of effects. Once swallowed (4), these pollutants can prevent animals from feeding normally, which affects their growth, reproduction and immune defences. “We exposed oysters to microplastics in the laboratory. These molluscs feed on microalgae by filtering water, ingesting plastic in the process. The presence of the polymer means the shellfish have to devote more energy to filtration – and therefore less to reproduction. As a chain (5), we’ve observed a 40% drop in the hatching rate compared to uncontaminated oysters,” Paul-Pont explains. More recently, scientists, including CNRS researchers, have also discovered that microplastics continue to break down into even smaller, nanometre-sized particles. They are able to cross cell membranes and may pose an even greater toxicity hazard. Although this field of research is still in its infancy, its findings are eagerly awaited. Ocean ecosystems are indeed not the only ones exposed to such pollution, since marine wildlife eventually ends up in our plates!

**Read the given passage and answer the questions given below.

Some words may be highlighted.** 

Plastics, chemicals and oil management (1) pollute and endanger marine ecosystems. Yet cleaning up the ocean is rarely, if ever, possible. Solutions must therefore consist in reducing waste and other hazardous materials. For decades, waste and hazardous materials have been dumped into the ocean as a result of human activity. Covering more than two-thirds of the Earth’s surface, the ocean is so vast that human carelessness seemed unlikely ever to affect it. But it is now a known fact that, in addition to overfishing, warming caused by climate change, ever-increasing maritime transport, and ocean acidification, pollution is a threat to marine organisms and their habitats. One of the key aiding factors to this is vast scale pollution is the dumping of plastic. By its sheer scale, plastic contamination symbolises the human impact on the environment, above all other forms of man-made pollution. Due to poor waste spills (2), it is estimated that every year, 10 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the sea, 80% of which comes from inland, mainly via rivers. “From coastal regions to the poles, and from the ocean surface to the seafloor, no area of the ocean is free from this pollution. As a result, all the essential services provided by the ocean to the planet and to humankind are likely to be seriously disrupted. The world’s population depends to a large extent on marine resources, not only for food but also for economic purposes, from tourism to the transport of goods. The ocean is also vital to the climate since it absorbs 25% of the CO2 emitted by human activity into the atmosphere every year. Deep-sea organisms also play a key role in the functioning of this biological carbon pump where phytoplankton, at the bottom of the marine food chain, use CO2 and transform it into organic matter, part of which sinks to the ocean floor. In the process, these microscopic algae and bacteria provide half the oxygen produced on Earth.

The whole food result (3) is impacted, from zooplankton to whales,” points out Ika Paul-Pont of the Laboratory of Environmental Marine Sciences. In addition to larger waste such as bags and bottles, which can cause the death of animals by entanglement or intestinal obstruction when ingested, plastic pollution turns out to be particularly insidious, as it is made up of billions of particles, sometimes less than a few millimetres in diameter, produced by the decomposing of plastic caused by UV radiation and wave action. These microplastics, as they are known, are ingested by all marine fauna, even the very smallest organisms, with a wide range of effects. Once swallowed (4), these pollutants can prevent animals from feeding normally, which affects their growth, reproduction and immune defences. “We exposed oysters to microplastics in the laboratory. These molluscs feed on microalgae by filtering water, ingesting plastic in the process. The presence of the polymer means the shellfish have to devote more energy to filtration – and therefore less to reproduction. As a chain (5), we’ve observed a 40% drop in the hatching rate compared to uncontaminated oysters,” Paul-Pont explains. More recently, scientists, including CNRS researchers, have also discovered that microplastics continue to break down into even smaller, nanometre-sized particles. They are able to cross cell membranes and may pose an even greater toxicity hazard. Although this field of research is still in its infancy, its findings are eagerly awaited. Ocean ecosystems are indeed not the only ones exposed to such pollution, since marine wildlife eventually ends up in our plates!