PBI 1032

Academic Reading and Writing

Matric No. :
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Section A [20 marks]

Instruction: Read the text below and blacken the correct answer on the multiplechoice answer sheet provided.
Eating Well: Less Science, More Common Sense

Food is life. We eat it to grow, stay healthy, and have the energy to carry out everyday
activities. The food we consume makes all of these things possible, but not all food is
created equal. Studies have revealed, for example, that children who eat a nutritious
breakfast do better in school than those with a poor diet. The well-fed child is able to
pay attention longer, remember more, and participate more actively in class.
Research has also shown that adults who have a healthy diet perform better on the
job and miss fewer days of work. The findings, then, are clear. Because our food
choices affect our health and behaviour, we must do more than just eat; we must eat
well. For many people today, making healthy food choices is taxing.
Now, more than ever, we are surrounded by information telling us what is good for us
and what is not, but usually this information is more puzzling than helpful. In fact,
different research about the same food often produces contradictory results. Take one
example: food studies conducted on eggs. For years, research showed a link between
eating eggs and high cholesterol. To prevent dangerous diseases like cancer or heart
disease, people were encourage to limit, or to completely eliminate eggs from their
diets. However, recent studies now say that eggs are actually food for you and that
most people can and even should eat one a day. It is indeed hard to know who to
believe.
Shopping for food can also be daunting. During a visit to a supermarket, we often
need to make many different choices. Should you buy this cereal or that one? Regular
or fat-free milk? Tofu or chicken? It is hard to know which to choose, especially when
two items are very similar. Many shoppers read product labels to help them decide.
Not surprisingly, people are more likely to buy items with words doctor
recommended, low fat or all natural on them. However, are these foods really
better for the consumers? Probably not, as many food labels are deceiving and trying
to be manipulative. Consumers are lured to buying items that may not be healthy
due to the high dependency on the so-called facts presented on the packaging.

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PBI 1032
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So how do we make healthy choices? Michael Pollan is a professor at the University of

California, Berkeley who has written many books about eating well. In his opinion,
our food needs to be defended against needless complications from nutrition science
and from the food industry. According to Pollan, we need to stop reading labels and
listening to the purported scientific experts. Instead, he offers some simple yet
practical tips for eating well and staying healthy. The first tip is to eat food which is
mostly plants but not too much. We should make fruit and vegetables as the main
source of food and limit the meat intake. And when we eat, says Pollan, do so in
moderation. Another tip is to avoid shopping for instant products available at the
supermarket. One should learn to shop at the farmers market where food is fresher
and healthier.
Thinking like Micheal Pollan is challenging the scientific approach to eating.
However, it is helping people to reconnect with food traditions. In cities around the
world, for example, urban gardens are mushrooming again. On small pieces of land,
neighbours are working together to grow fruit and vegetables. With these gardens,
people have access to more fresh fruits and vegetables and could spend less. There
are other benefits too. Working together in the garden helps people to exercise. It also
promotes togetherness and the spirit of sharing among the community members.
Ultimately, making healthy food choices and eating well do not have to be difficult.
Doing simple things like changing your shopping habits, learning to cook, planting a
garden and limiting your intake of certain foods can result in a better diet and a
healthier you.
(adapted from Paul Carne, 2011 Should science influence what we eat?)

For Questions 1-5, choose a word/phrase that is closest in meaning to the underlined
word as used in the text.

1. making healthy food choices is taxing. (paragraph 1)

A.
B.
C.
D.

difficult
expensive
important
reasonable

2. food often produces contradictory results (paragraph 2)

A.
B.
C.

convincing
disturbing
mixed

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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
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D.

significant

3. food labels are deceiving and trying (paragraph 3)

A.
B.
C.
D.

complicated
inadequate
untrue
vague

4. to the purported scientific experts (paragraph 4)

A.
B.
C.
D.

5.

confused
lying
respected
self-acclaimed

urban gardens are mushrooming again. (paragraph 5)

A.
being revived
B.
converging finally
C.
growing very quickly
D.
becoming the current trend
(5 marks)

For Questions 6-10, choose the most appropriate answers based on your reading.
6. Based on the findings of the studies, which of the following is a positive
outcome of maintaining a healthy diet?
A.
Children behave better in school.
B.
Children are not absent so often.
C.
Children socialise more during class.
D.
Children can focus on the lessons better.
7.
A.
B.
C.
D.

Which sentence contains the main idea for Paragraph 1?

Food is life.
The findings, then, are clear.
Our food choices affect our health and behaviour.
For many people today, making healthy food choices is taxing.

8. What is the contradiction mentioned in Paragraph 2?

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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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A.
B.
C.
D.

The findings are different although they come from similar studies
investigating the same kind of food.
Different practical advice was given by the researchers although their
findings and their studies were similar.
Different researchers conduct different kinds of studies on the effects
of the different kind of food on health.
Some research found that some food is good for health but other
research found that some food is not good for health.

9. What is the main idea for Paragraph 2?

A.
Studies on effect of food on health are helpful.
B.
Customers should not believe research findings.
C.
Information on food and health is contradictory.
D.
Eating too many eggs causes cholesterol level to rise.
10. Based on the text, why is shopping for food daunting?
A.
Some are organic food and others are not.
B.
The labels put on products are misleading.
C.
Similar items are placed on the same shelf.
D.
The food are produced by different companies.

11. Why are consumers easily attracted by words such as low fat or all natural
used on product labels?
A.
They are recommended by their doctors.
B.
They think that they are buying healthy food.
C.
The words are clearly printed on the packaging.
D.
These products are placed in more visible positions.
12. Who does NOT give advice on what kind of food to eat?
A.
Scientific experts
B.
Nutrition scientists
C.
Food manufacturers
D.
Supermarket operators
13.
A.

According to Professor Michael Pollan, what should customers do?

Ignore labels on products
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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
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B.
C.
D.

Moderate intake of protein

Defend ideas of the food industry
Avoid buying food in supermarkets

14. What is the writer implying when he says Thinking like Micheal Pollan is
challenging the scientific approach to eating (paragraph 5).
A.
Michael Pollans ideas are based on food traditions
B.
Michael Pollan is discouraging large scale farming
C.
Michael Pollans suggestions are against healthy eating
D.
Michael Pollan is going against the norms of the society
15. Which of the following healthy food choices is NOT an idea found in the text?
A.
Cut down on fast food
B.
Take less meat
C.
Eat out less, eat at home more
D.
Take more food with Vitamin C
(10 marks)

End of Section A

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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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Section B [15 marks]

Instruction: The passage below contains TEN (10) errors in citation. For Questions
16-25, blacken the correct answer on the multiple-choice answer sheet provided.

Pervasive technology often leads to unintended consequences, such as threats to

privacy and changes in the relationship between public and private sphere. These
issues have been studied with respect to a variety of Internet contexts and
applications 16 (Berkman & Shumway, 2003: Cocking & Matthews, 2000:
Weinberger, 2005). This paper investigates privacy violations on Facebook and how
users understand the potential threat to their privacy.
An established website that discusses this issue stated that the watchdog
organization Privacy International charged Facebook with severe privacy flaws and
put it in the second lowest category for threats to privacy 17 (Piracy issue with FB ,
2007). At that time, nearly two years after Facebooks inception, users passwords
were still being sent without encryption, and thus could be easily intercepted by a
third party 18 (Jones and Soltren, 2005). This has since been corrected. As discussed
by Jones, Soltren, and Dawson (2007), simple algorithm could be used to download
all public profiles since Facebook used predictable URLs for profile pages. The
authors also noted that Facebook gathered information about its users from other
sources unless the user specifically opted out. As of September 2007, the opt-out
choice was no longer available but the data collection policy was still in force 19
(Samson as cited by Addams, 2007).
Even the most lauded privacy feature of Facebook, the ability to restrict ones profile
to be viewed by friends only, failed for the first three years of its existence.
Information posted on restricted profiles showed up in searches unless a user chose
to opt-out his or her profile from searches 20 (Jones, Soltren, & Dawson, 2007). This
glitch was fixed in late June 2007, but only after a technology blogger discovered the
loophole, made it public, and contacted Facebook" 21 (Singel, 2007). Recent attempts
to make the profile restrictions more user-friendly and comprehensive seem mostly
public relation-driven and still include serious flaws 22 (Soghoian, 2008, Soghoian,
2009).
In September 2006, Facebook introduced the News Feed, which tracks and displays
the online activities of a users friends. This outraged Facebook users, who felt
exposed and deprived of their sense of control over their information 23 (Boyd, L.,
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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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2008). Due to this issue, it was reported that protest groups have started to form on
Facebook.
These groups are usually instigated by angry Facebook users who feel that the
application has crossed a line. The Facebook team has been accused of not
taking users privacy seriously. These protest groups are very popular, and their
leaders are often very influential 24 members of the online community. (Romano
2007, p. 12)
Subsequently, Facebook introduced privacy controls that allowed users to determine
what was shown on the news feed and to whom. Nevertheless, 25 Chuah, Hamfield,
Weaver, Lin, Hughes, and Stein (2007) argue that additional concerns were still
raised about links between Facebook and its use by government agencies such as the
police or the Central Intelligence Agency.
(adapted from Debatin, Lovejoy, Horn, & Hughes, 2009)

16.

A.
(Berkman & Shumway, 2003, Cocking & Matthews, 2000,
Weinberger, 2005).
(Berkman & Shumway, 2003; Cocking & Matthews, 2000; Weinberger,
2005).
(Cocking & Matthews, 2000, Berkman & Shumway, 2003, Weinberger,
2005).
(Cocking & Matthews, 2000; Berkman & Shumway, 2003; Weinberger,
2005).

B.
C.
D.

17. A.
B.
C.
D.

(Piracy Issue with FB, 2007).

(Piracy Issue with FB, 2007).
(2007, Piracy Issue with FB).
(2007, Piracy Issue with FB).

18. A.
B.
C.
D.

(Jones & Soltren, 2005).

(M. Jones & H. Soltren, 2005).
(Jones, 2005, & Soltren, 2005).
(Jones, M., & Soltren, H., 2005).

19.

A.
B.
C.

(Samson, in Addams, 2007).

(Samson as cited in Addams, 2007).
(Samson, 2007, as cited in Addams).
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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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D.
20.

(Samson, as cited in Addams, 2007).

A.

B.
C.
D.

(Jones et al, 2007).

(Jones et. al, 2007).
(Jones et al., 2007).
(Jones et. al., 2007).

21. A.
B.
C.
D.

(Singel, 2007, p. 21).

(Singel, p. 21, 2007).
(Singel, 2007, pp. 21).
(Singel, pp. 21, 2007).

22. A.
B.
C.
D.

(Soghoian, 2008, 2009).

(Soghoian, 2008a; 2009b).
(Soghoian, 2008; Soghoian, 2009).
(Soghoian, 2008a; Soghoian, 2009b).

23. A.
B.
C.
D.

(Boyd 2008).
(Boyd, 2008).
(L. Boyd, 2008).
(Lillian Boyd, 2008).

24. A.
B.
C.
D.

...members of the online community (Romano, 2007, p. 12)

...members of the online community (Romano, 2007, p. 12).
...members of the online community. (Romano, 2007, p. 12)
...members of the online community. (Romano, 2007, p. 12).

25. A.
B.
C.
D.

Nevertheless, Chuah et al. (2007) argue that

Nevertheless, Chuah et. al. (2007) argue that
Nevertheless, ChuahStein et al. (2007) argue that
Nevertheless, ChuahStein et. al. (2007) argue that
(10 marks)

Instruction: Each of the reference list below contains ONE (1) error. For Questions
26-35, choose the option with the error and blacken the answer on the multiplechoice answer sheet.
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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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26. Austin, Miller. (2009). Texting while driving: How dangerous is it? Car and
Driver. Retrieved from http://editorial.autos.msn.com/article.
A.
Car and Driver.
B.
Austin, Miller. (2009).
C.
Texting while driving: How dangerous is it?
D.
Retrieved from http://editorial.autos.msn.com/article.
27. Clark, R. E. (1989). When teaching kills learning: Research on mathematics.
In H. N. Mandl and H. F. Freidrich (Eds.), Learning and Instruction (pp.
58-72). London, UK: Pergamon Press Ltd.
A.
(Eds.)
B.
Learning and Instruction.
C.
In H. N. Mandl and H. F. Freidrich
D.
When teaching kills learning: Research on mathematics.
28. McKenna, K. Y., & Bargh, J.A. (2000). Plan 9 from cyberspace: The
implications of the Internet for personality and social psychology.
Personality and Social Psychology Review, 4(1), pp. 5775.
A.
pp. 5775.
B.
McKenna, K. Y., & Bargh, J.A. (2000).
C.
Personality and Social Psychology Review, 4(1),
D.
Plan 9 from cyberspace: The implications of the Internet for
personality and social psychology.

29. Carroll, J. (2000). Plagiarism: A good practice guide. Oxford University Press:
Oxford, UK.
A.
(2000).
B.
Carroll, J.
C.
Oxford University Press: Oxford.
D.
Plagiarism: a good practice guide.
30. Murphy, C. (September, 30, 1990). How revolutions die. The New Age
Magazine, 179, 21-23.
A.
179,
B.
21-23.
C.
How revolutions die.
D.
(September, 30, 1990).
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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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(5 marks)

End of Section B

Section C [9 marks]

Instruction: Paraphrase the following texts using your own words but make sure
that the meaning is retained. Remember to cite the source.

Question 1

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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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In this project, the researchers employed a combination of quantitative and

qualitative techniques for data collection. (p. 212)
Source: Jo Angouri (2010)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
(3 marks)

Question 2
To many students, reflective writing allows them to document their reflective
thinking of what they feel and experience. To other students, reflective writing
motivates them to think reflectively. The rest of the students view reflective writing
as a platform to extend their reflective thinking. (p. 189)
Source: John D. Bain & Colleen Mills (2002)

______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
(3 marks)

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Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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Question 3
Paraphrasing is a complicated and mentally challenging task. It involves rewriting
the original quotations in your own words, without copying directly from the original
text. However, you cannot introduce new ideas to the paraphrase but you can extract
the general idea from the quotation. (p. 47)
Source: Adriana Bolivar (2012)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
(3 marks)

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Academic Reading and Writing
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End of Section C

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PBI 1032
Academic Reading and Writing
Matric No. :
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Section D [30 marks]

Instruction: Write a discussion essay based on the topic
The advantages and disadvantages of
employing foreign lecturers to teach in Malaysian universities

Your discussion should NOT be less than 300 words.

Write TWO (2) points for and TWO (2) points against the topic.
Use this page for your draft and write your essay on the next page.

End of Examination

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