Table of Contents
BEST IELTS General Reading Test 488
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST 488 – PASSAGE – 1
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST – 488
READING PASSAGE – 1
Read the text below and answer Questions 1-8.
DAVID ZWIRNER ART GALLERY
The 24-year-old gallery represents major names such as Yayoi Kusama and Luc Tuymans, some of whom have been with Zwirner for decades. The gallery’s nearly five dozen artists run the gamut from the biggest names in minimalism, like Donald Judd and Dan Flavin, to figurative painters such as Marlene Dumas and Neo Rauch, to young artists like Oscar Murillo and Jordan Wolfson.
Partner Julia Joern says the gallery’s 150-person staff means it can offer its artists a huge array of services, such as archival help, research assistance, photography and publishing, and institutional (or museum) relations. Zwirner has two spaces in New York and one in London, with a fourth to open in Hong Kong in early 2018.
IELTS General Reading Test
When Joern joined in 2008, she created an in-house photography and imaging department, which allowed flexibility as to where and when the gallery could organize shoots for upcoming shows, press coverage, artists’ books and other purposes.
Similarly, a three-year-old in-house publishing arm is not necessarily a huge contributor to the gallery’s bottom line, but its existence is justified by allowing the gallery to produce books in the way it feels best serves its artists. David Zwirner Books has commissioned art historians like Richard Shiff and Robert Storr to write essays and books for their artists. With all this expertise at its fingertips, the gallery can position itself as one of the premier homes for the world’s most recognized artists, artists who also tend to command the market’s highest prices.
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 1 & 2
Write the appropriate letters from A-D.
1 & 2. Which of the following TWO art historians have been commissioned in David Zwirner Books?
A. Robert Storr
B. Oscar Murillo
C. Richard Shiff
D. Yayoi Kusama
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 3 & 4
Write the appropriate letters from A-D.
3 & 4. Identify TWO figurative painters out of the following options?
A. Marlene Dumas
B. Neo Rauch
C. Luc Tuymans
D. Donald Judd
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 5 & 6
Write the appropriate letters from A-D.
Which of the following TWO services are not provided by the staff at the art gallery?
A. Organize shoots for upcoming shows
B. Archival and research assistance
C. Photography and publishing
D. Press coverage
IELTS General Reading Test
Read the text below and answer Questions 7-11.
DEVELOPMENT OF VIDEO GAMES
A. Video games have been around since the early 1970s. The first commercial arcade video game, Computer Space by Nutting Associates, was introduced in 1971. In 1972, Atari introduced Pong- the first truly successful commercial arcade video game. That same year, Magnavox offered the first video game system. Dubbed the Odyssey, it did not even have a microprocessor! The core of the system was a board with about four-dozen transistors and diodes. The Odyssey was very limited as it could only produce very simple graphics and required that custom plastic overlays be taped over the television screen.
B. In 1975, Atari introduced a home version of its popular arcade game, Pong. The original home version of Pong was sold exclusively through Sears, and even carried the Sears logo. Pong was a phenomenal success, opening the door to the future of home video games. The Fairchild Channel F, released in 1976, was the first true removable game system. Introduced in 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System (VCS), the 2600 used removable cartridges, allowing a multitude of games to be played using the same hardware.
IELTS General Reading Test
C. The software used on these dedicated computer systems has evolved amazingly from the simple rectangular blips used in Pong. Games today feature richly textured, full-color graphics, awesome sound and complex interaction between player and system. The increased storage capacity of the cartridges and discs allows game developers to include incredibly detailed graphics and CD-quality soundtracks. The PlayStation 3 uses a Cell processor. Developed by Toshiba and IBM specifically for the game system, the concept behind this processor was to create a chip that acted like a biological cell in an organism. It’s distributed computing on a single chip.
D. The Xbox 360’s processor is a customized Power-PC based CPU from IBM. It has three symmetrical cores that run at 3.2 gigahertz (GHz) each. This processor has a lot of horsepower, but it lacks the Cell architecture of the PlayStation 3 design. The PlayStation 3 uses an RSX graphics processing unit (GPU) that runs at 550 MHz.
IELTS General Reading Test
The Xbox 360 has a 500 MHz ATI GPU. The ATI Hollywood 243 MHz card powers the graphics for Nintendo Wii. The PlayStation has the edge on the specs, though some gamers say they feel that the Xbox makes better use of its capabilities than the PlayStation. Meanwhile, Nintendo claims that the company wants to focus more on making games fun and less on beefing up graphics.
E. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 can provide Dolby surround sound for audio. The Nintendo Wii can produce stereo sound and simulate surround sound, but again its specs fall short of the other two. All three systems can connect to the Internet. Microsoft’s Xbox Live service is arguably the strongest presence in console Internet gaming. All three companies are also exploring social networking applications through these video game systems. The PlayStation 3 is also a Blu-ray DVD player, which might give it the edge over the other two consoles. For people who want a Blu-ray player and a game system, the PlayStation 3 is a tempting choice.
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 7-11
The text has five sections, A-E.
Choose the correct heading for each section from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, I-V, in boxes 7-11 on your answer sheet.
LIST OF HEADINGS
I. Processing units
II. Traditional Game Systems
III. Audio Systems
IV. Removable Game Systems
V. Gaming Software
IELTS General Reading Test
7. Section A
8. Section B
9. Section C
10. Section D
11. Section E
IELTS General Reading Test
Questions 12 & 13
Classify the following TWO statements as referring to the type of system as listed below.
A. PlayStation 3
B. Pong
C. The Odyssey
D. Xbox 360
Write the appropriate letter A, B, C or D.
12. RSX graphics processing unit
13. Lacks microprocessor
IELTS General Reading Test
IELTS General Reading Test
ANSWERS
1. A / C
2. A / C
3. A / B
4. A / B
5. A / D
6. A / D
7. II
8. IV
9. V
10. I
11. III
12. A
13. C
IELTS General Reading Test