E P S N E P S N E P S N E P S N - ESPN

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SUBJECT : ENGLISH CLASS : XII (BSEB)

, (P. No. # 1)

GUESS QUESTION


Reading Comprehension

1. Read the passage given below.

1. Smoking is the major cause of mortality with bronchogenic carcinoma of the lung and is one ofthe factors causing death due to malignancies of larynx, oral cavity, oesophagus, bladder, kidney,pancreas, stomach and uterine cervix and coronary heart diseases.

2. Nicotine is the major substance present in the smoke that causes physical dependence. The addi-tives do produce damage to the body – for example, ammonia can result in a 100-fold increase in theability of nicotine to enter into the smoke.

3. Levulinic acid, added to cigarettes to mask the harsh taste of the nicotine, can increase the bind-ing of nicotine to brain receptors, which increases the ‘kick’ of nicotine.

4. Smoke from the burning end of a cigarette contains over 4000 chemicals and 40 carcinogens. Ithas long been known that tobacco smoke is carcinogenic or cancer-causing.

5. The lungs of smokers collect an annual deposit of 1 to 1.5 pounds of the gooey black material.Invisible gas phase of cigarette smoke contains nitrogen, oxygen and toxic gases like carbon monox-ide, formaldehyde, acrolein, hydrogen cyanide and nitrogen oxides. Thewe gases are poisonous and inmany cases interfere with the body’s ability to transport oxygen.

6. Like many carcinogenic compounds, they can act as tumour promoters or tumour initiators byacting directly on the genetic make-up of cells of the body leading to development of cancer.

7. During smoking within the first 8 – 10 seconds, nicotine is absorbed through the lungs and quickly‘moved’ into the bloodstream and circulated throughout the brain. Nicotine can also enter the blood-stream through the mucous membranes that line the mouth ‘if tobacco is chewed’ or nose ‘if snuff isused’ and even through the skin. Our brain is made of billions of nerve cells. They communicate witheach other by chemical messengers called neurotransmitters.

8. Nicotine is one of the most powerful nerve poisons and binds stereo-selectively to nicotinic re-ceptors located in the brain, autonomic ganglia, the medulla, neuro-muscular junctions. Located through-out the brain, they play a critical role in cognitive processes and memory.

9. The nicotine molecule is shaped like a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine which are involvedin many functions including muscle movement. Breathing, heart-rate, learning and memory. Nicotine,because of the similar structure with acetylcholine when it gets into the brain, attaches itself to acetyl-choline sites and produces toxic effect.

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10. In high concentrations, nicotine is more deadly. In fact one drop of purified nicotine on the tonguewill kill a person. It has been used as a pesticide for centuries.

11. Recent research studies suggest that acute nicotine administration would result in increased dopam-ine release from the brain, producing perceptions of pleasure and happiness, increased energy andmotivation, increase alertness, increased feeling of vigour during the early phase of smoking.

12. However, notwithstanding these superficial effects, research shows that the relationship betweensmoking and memory loss is strongest in people who smoke more than 20 cigarettes each day and thisis not specific to the socio-economic status, gender and a range of associated medical conditions.Smoking may speed up age related memory loss and the details are not yet clear. Some studies suggestthat repeated exposure to high nicotinic smoke related to the ‘Brain-wiring’ is nothing but neuro-biochemistry that deals with complex interaction among genetic experience and bio-chemistry of braincells.

13. Nitric Oxide (NO) is a unique molecule which plays a role in a number of beneficial and some ofthe harmful brain and body mechanisms, for example, synapse formation, drug tolerance and localregulation of cerebral blood flow, Parkinson’s disease etc. It is also found that people who smoke morecigarettes a day have poorer memories in middle age than non-smokers.

14. Some experts say that smoking is linked to memory problems because if contributes to narrowedarteries that restrict blood-flow to the brain. One of the causes of memory decline in relation to thebrain function could be the nerve cell death or decreased density of interconnected neuronal networkdue to loss of dendrites, the tiny filaments which connect one nerve cell to another. Abstinence fromsmoking is essential, not only to avoid this systemic effect but also to reduce the ill-effects on theenvironment.

1.1 On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer any five of the questions given below withthe help of the options that follow.

(i) An appropriate title for the passage would be ...............

(a) smoker's paradise (b) how to quit smoking

(c) smoking and its ill-effects (d) nicotine is good

(ii) Smoking causes death due to malignancy of ................

(a) kidneys (b) pancreas (c) stomach (d) All of these

(iii) Nicotine enters the bloodstream from the use of snuff through the ...........

(a) brain (b) heart (c) nose (d) eyes

(iv) Our brain is made of ............ .

(a) diodes (b) millions of nerve cells

(c) oxygen (d) billions of nerve cells

(v) What is a harmful effect of Nitric Oxide on brain and dbody mechanism ?

(a) It helps in causing Parkinson's disease.

(b) It regulates cerebral blood flow locally.

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, (P. No. # 3)

(c) It improve drug tolerance.

(d) It helps in synapse formation.

(vi) According to experts, smoking is linked to memory loss by the fact that it ............... .

(a) restricts blood flow to the brain

(b) speeds up age related memory loss

(c) narrows the arteries

(d) All of these

1.2 Answer the following questions briefly.

(i) In cigarette smoking whatis the effect of ammonia ?

(ii) Which content of cigarette makes the people addicted to it ?

(iii) Neurotransmitters are ................ .

(iv) Acetylcholine is involved in which functions in the body ?

(v) Recent research studies suggest something about the effects of smoking on a person during theearly phase of smoking. What are they ?

2. 1. An urgent problem is now threatening libraries throughout the world. Their collections, which arecrucial for diverse purposes as economic development, educational research and recreational pursuitsare in danger of disintegration.

2. The problem is mainly due to one cause - the type of paper on which books have been printed forthe past one and a half centuries. Until the 1850s, paper was produced from linen or cotton rags andproved to be relatively long-lasting. In the mid-19th century, however, the popular demand for paperand the commercial need for an economic method of production led to the use of mechanically groundwood pulp. Paper manufactured from wood pulp is highly acidic and therefore, inherently unstable. Itcontains lignin, a major factor in causing paper to discolour and disintegrate. The useful lifespan ofmost 20th century book papers has been estimated to be no more than a few decades.

3. Libraries comprise an important part of the market for printed books and they are increasinglyaware of the fragility of this material. The extent of the deterioration of library collections is alarming.Surveys conducted at various major institutions reveal that 26-40% of the books they hold are seri-ously embrittled and thus unavailable for normal use.

4. Programmes are now being developed with two main aims in mind: on the one hand, to improvethe physical condition of library collections, especially by the process called 'mass deacidification'(which is designed to eliminate acid from the paper of published books and insert a buffer compoundthat will provide protection against future acid attack from the environment) and on the other, totransfer the contents of existing books to another medium (such as microfilm or optical disk).

5. Libraries will only be able to carry out these special tasks with the assistance of other experts suchas book conservators and high technology specialists. But, there is another group with whom I havetraditionally enjoyed strong affinities and shose cooperation will be crucial, if the problem of decayingcollections is to e arrested: the printing and publishing industries. The existing problem, that of bookcollections already assembled in libraries, is of vast proportions. It is intensified by the continuing useof acid-based paper in book publishing. They key issue is, how to preserve the books of the future, notsimply those of the past.

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6. If the future dimensions of the conservation problem are to be curbed, there will be a necessity ofwidespread adoption of paper which is of archival quality.

7. This change does not relate to a norrowly perceived need because the long-term preservation oflibrary collections is important both for the overall social benefits they bring as well as for the specialadvantages they bestow on the printing and publishing industries.

8. In the first place, libraries are of critical importance to the well-being of citizens, since theyprovide the knowledge base of society. They contain the record of humanity, the accumulation of ideasand insights and discoveries on which social effort and progress are possible. The destruction oflibraries would represent an immense cultural loss, a form of amnesia, which would affect everymember of society.

9. In the second place, printers and publishers have an economics interest in turning to paper ofarchival quality. So long as the libraries are acquiring books with a short lifespan, they will be forcedto devote an increasing share of their budgets to conservation. These budgets are severely strained bythe combined impact of inflation and currency devaluation and there has been scarcely any prospect ofenlarged government funding. As a result, libraries will be complelled to balance the preservation oftheir collections against the expansion of those collections. Speaking precisely, the choice will bebetween conservation and acquisition and the funds for conservation are likely to come from acquisi-tion budgets. This unpalatable choice will cripple both libraries and the printing and publishing indus-tries and can only be minimised in its effects by a bold decision to revert to use fo permanent paper.

2.1 On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer the following questions given below withthe help of the options that follow.

(i) An appropriate title for the given passage would be ..............

(a) Me and My Library (b) Conserving Libraries

(c) Books, Books, Books! (d) What is Library ?

(ii) Paper manufactured from the wood pulp is ............ .

(a) highly basic (b) stable (c) highly acidic (d) thin

(iii) Libraries are important to mankind as ............ .

(a) they provide the knowledge base to society

(b) they are the timekeepers

(c) they are a substitute for the internet

(d) they are visited by different people

(iv) The type of paper in which the books are printed today is being used for the last .............. .

(a) century (b) two centuries

(c) 150 years (d) three centuries

(v) The tone of the passage is one of .................

(a) informed concern (b) destructive criticism

(c) derisive ridicule (d) helpless alarm

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(vi) Libraries can save their collections by ........... .

(a) storing them in air-conditioned rooms

(b) laminating the pages

(c) creating a dust-free atmosphere in their premises

(d) widespread adoption of paper of archival quality


(i) the purposes of keeping collections of books in libraries are ...... .

(ii) Why was wood pulp developed as a raw material for paper ?

(iii) Until the 1850s, what was used to keep the paper long lasting ?

(iv) The discolouration of paper occurs due to what reason ?

(v) Who are the experts who can assist libraries to libraries to conserve their collections of books ?

2.3 Find words from the passage which mean the same as each of the following.

(a) activities (para 1) (b) preservation and restoration (para 9)

3. 1. The windless night filled our ears with unaccustomed silence and the foul dryness of our mouthsaggravated the discomfort of our sleepless bodies as we tried to ease the agony of our thirst. Thenbreathlessly, we watched the gathering clouds obscure the stars and it began to rain with a steadydownpour. Slowly the water in the pipe from the canopy ran clear and we filled our empty cans andspare plastic bags, our bellies and our mouths until we could not force down another drop. Suddenly,everything had changed from the shadow of the spectre of death to the joyful prospect of life and all bya shower of rain. We had water!

2. Douglas, lazily watching the dispersing clouds, suddenly sat up with a start, pointing excitedly."A ship! A ship! It's ship!" we all crowded to the door of the raft, staring staring in the direction of hispointing finger; a cargo vessel of about 6000 tonnes was approaching us on a course that would bringher within 3 miles of us. "Get out the flares," I said hoarsely, "and pass them to me in the dinghy.They'll see us better from there."

3. I clambered into the dinghy and Douglas passed me the rockets and hand flares; my hands trembledas I ripped oen a parachute rocket flare and struck the igniter on the fuse. It roared off on a trajectoryhigh above the raft. I waited a moment or two, watching for the ship to alter course, then struck a handflare. I waited a moment or two, watching for the ship to alter course, then struck a hand flare, holdingit high above my head. The blinding red light was hot to hold and I pointed it wway from the wind toease my hand, the red embers of the flare dropping into the dinghy. Surely they must see that!

4. The ship sailed on, slowly disappearing behind a rain shower and when she reappeared, her hullwas half obscured by the horizon. My shoulders drooped, "We daren't use another," I said. "They won'tsee it not and we have to keep something for the next one."

5. If these poor bloody seamen couldn't rescure us, then we would have to make it on our own. theword from now on was, 'survival', not 'rescue', or 'help' or dependence of any kind, just survival. Wewould live for 3 months or 6 months from the sea, but "we would get these boys to land" as Lyn hadsaid, and we would do it ourselves if therewas no other way.

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6. Towards late afternoon, we felt an unusually hard bump on the raft floor and we found ourselvesgazing at the large scaly head of a turtle. The day before I would have said, "Leave it, we can't managethat, "but now things were different. "We'll have this one," I said. " Let's get it aboard the dinghy." Theturtle's flippers had become entangled in the sea anchor line, so first passing a rope from the dinghyunder the raft, we made it fast to one of the back flippers, then carefully avoiding the searching beak,freed the turtle from the sea anchor rope and towed it around the raft to the Ednamair. With a bump anda thrashing of claws, the reptile lay on its back in the bottom of the dinghy.

7. I plunged the knife into the leathery skin of the neck. Deep red blood spurted into the bottom ofthe dinghy and gradually, the beak and flippers ceased thrashing as the beast died. 24 hours previously,I would not have had the stomach for such a bloody business, but the laws of survival applied and thefirst principle, "The fittest survive, the weakest go to the wall", had now become our way of life. Wewould struggle and endure and if our reflexes were not as swift as the animals and fish around us, wehad to be cunning and improve with practice.

3.1 On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer any five of he questions given belowwith the help of the option that follow :

(i) Why did the author kill the turtle ?

(a) As he liked to hunt

(b) As he was feeling angry

(c) Because he was hungry and had nothing to eat

(d) As he wanted to prove that he was brave

(ii) The containers were filled with the rainwater as ............. .

(a) they wanted to play with water

(b) they did not have any work and wanted to pass their time

(c) they had to give the water to the men in the cargo vessel

(d) they were thirsty and also wanted to save water for the future

(iii) Use of flares by the author was done to .......

(a) get light as it was getting dark

(b) cook the food

(c) heat the water

(d) get the attention of the other ship so that they can be recued

(iv) When the cargo ship reappeared, its position made the was disappointed as ..............

(a) he felt tired

(b) he realised that there was no chance of the cargo ship spotting them as it was very far off

(c) he was ill

(d) Douglas was not obeying his orders

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, (P. No. # 7)

(v) How did the turtle bump into the author's boat ?

(a) The turtle did nt see the boat.

(b) Due to its flippers entangling in the sea anchor line.

(c) The boat was going too fast while the turtle was very slow.

(d) The turtle was asleep and the boat hit it.

(vi) The author killed the turtle because ............. .

(a) it had attacked them

(b) it was poisoning their drinking water

(c) they needed food for everyone

(d) None of these


(i) Along with sleeplessness what was another reason for worsening author's discomfort ?

(ii) Why did the author point the flare away from the wind ?

(iii) The author said, "and we have to keep something for the next one?" Why did he say so ?

(iv) What indicates that the crew of the ship did not see the flares fired into the air by the author ?

(v) When the author says, "Let's get it aboard the dinghy", what does 'it' refer to ?

3.3 Find words from the passage which mean the same as each of the following.

(i) a ghost; something unpleasant or dangerous that might happen in future (para 1)

(ii) reactions without conscious thinking (para 7)

Writing Skills

1. As Secretary of the Literary Club of Vivekanand Senior Secondary School, Bhopal, draft formal invi-tation for the inauguration of the club in your school. (50-60 words)

2. You are the General Manager of EVL Company which requires posh bungalows on company lease asguest houses. Draft an advertisement under the classified columns to be published in 'The New IndianExpress'. (50-60 words)

3. You have to speak in the morning assembly on 'Regularity in Studies Throughout the Year SpellsSuccess.' Draft your speech in 150-200 words. You are Samar/Sanjana, student of Class XII. You canuse the following clues.

Clues

* Keeps the student up-to-date with curriculum

* Students do not get ample time to learn the lessons

* Rote learning

* Reduces the pressure during exam time

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4. Your school has organised a debate competition on the topic "Parents Should Decide Their Children'sCareer." You are Sanjay of Class XII-A. Write your views against the topic. You can use the cluesgiven below. (150-200 words)

Clues

* Experience of what a career is like

* Child to take up something different

* Child's aptitude should be checked

* Taking action based on the results

5. More industrial production means availability of more goods, better lifestyle, lower prices, more jobsetc. However, a higher standard of living can be achieved only at a cost- depletion of raw materials aswell as air and water pollution. Write a debate for the motion, 'Standard of living can be raised, butonly at a great cost'. You are Sameer/Savita. (150-200 words)

6. You are Manju/Manjeet, Head Boy/Girl of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Kanpur. You have seen some studentsof junior classes littering the school compound and verandahs with tiffin leftovers. It makes the schoollook unclean and untidy. Write a speech to be delivered inthe morning assembly, advising such stu-dents to keep the school neat and clean.

7. Write a letter to the CEO, Delhi Transport Corporation regarding the irregular service of buses on theB-Block, Janakpuri-Shivaji Stadium during the office hours. You can use the following clues. (120-150 words)

Clues

* Irregular service * Crowded buses

* Wastage of time * Ensure timely arrival

* Late to work

* Increase the number of buses on the route

8. MSL India Limited, Mumbai has advertised for recruitment of Management Trainees to be groomedas managers in their company. Apply for the same with your bio-data. You are Neeraj/Neeta of Kokata.(120-150 words)

9. You are Sandeep Kumar, Administrator, RK Academy. You have to place an order for school uniformsrequired by the academy. Ask for a quotation of prices from a local uniform manufacturer, listing theitems required. Also ask for a discount on bulk purchase. (120-150 words)

Clues

* Enquiry for school uniforms

* Send quotation and delivery time

* Provide maximum discount on bulk purchase

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10. Write an article for your school magazine on 'Effect of Social Media in Raising Adolescents. SocialAwareness". You are Naveen/Neeta for Class XII-B. You can take help from the following clues. (150-200 words)

* Response to a questionnaire

* Actions limited to cyber world only

* Social media help hesitant adolescents to express themselves

* Beneficial in raising awareness

Literature Textbooks

1. Answer any one of the following two questions in 30-40 words.

i. Why does the poet wants to go away frrom his beloved?

ii. What does e observe in summer ?

iii. Why is Macavity termed a “Criminal” ?

iv. How did the passer-by get frightened ?

v. How did the snake drink water ?

2. Answer any one of the following two questions in 40-50 words each.

i. Explain the line ‘Hoping to cease not till death’.

ii. What does the poem mean when he says “Now the leaves are falling fast” ?

iii. What does the poet say about the music of autumn? do you like music?

iv. Macavity is never there “Elaborate”.

v. Why does the speaker reveal his reliogus identity ?

vi. Do you think he had a conflict in mind ?

vii. Why was the speacker unable to read the books ?

3. Answer any one of the following two questions in 120-150 words each.

i. Write a note on the use of hyperbole in the poem.

ii. Who are the ‘Strolls’ in the real world ?

iii. What is the central idea of the poem ?

v. Write a summary of the poem ‘An Epitaph”.

vi. What does he mean by ‘the voice of my education?’

vii. In the speaker satisfied with her present life? If not, why ?

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4. Answer any one of the following questions in 30-40 words

i. What does he expres in his speech he delivered after taking the oath of the president of India ?

ii. At time you may have to welcome a guest whom you don’t like much. How do you do this ?

iii. Who had delivered to speech “I have a dream” ?

iv. Why had Sudanese woeman officials stopped going to international conferences?

v. What does ‘the freedom of the press’ means ?

vi. Why had their land not yielded much ?

vii. What was the ‘great lesson’ that India had to reach the west ?

viii. What according to her, is the real worth of Ox meadows ?

5. Answer any one of the following questions in 40-50 words

i. What do you holy scriptures tell us about universal human values ?

ii. Why does Dr Zakir Husain call India “He young state of an ancient people”?

iii. What is the quthor trying to achieve through his speech ?

iv. Has civilization taught us to be more friendly towards one another ?

v. Why did Seibei’s father shout at him ?

vi. What is suppression of context ?

vii. What are her views on the Christian missionaries?

viii. Why does Lomov refer to the land settlement ?

6. Answer any one of the following questions in 120-150 words.

i. What do you known about Gandhi ji?

ii. ‘Had to travel second on a third elase ticket? But it was all arranged quite amicably?’ What arrange-ment Nanukaka is referring to ? How can such arrangement be amicable ?

iii. What would be fatal for the nation? Why? Explain.

iv. How has civilization helped us? Discuss.

v. A pregant woman in a traditional society does not feel that she is alone. Why ?

vi. Did Benjy treat his parents Justly? What would you do if you were benjy?

vii. Why had he Indian intellectuals decided not to support the British in the second world war ?

viii. On the basis of your reading of scene I, do you think that Lomov and Choobookov are cordialneighbours ?

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