IELTS READING TEST 16

READING PASSAGE 2
THAY HAI CHUYEN LUYEN TI IELTS CO BAO DAM 0984467000
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14-26, which are based on Reading Passage 2.
Questions 14-18
Reading Passage 2 has 6 paragraphs, A-G.
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number i-ix in boxes 14-18 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i
ii
iii
iv
v
vi
vii
viii
ix
x Research into short periods of sleep
Famous people, short sleepers
Measuring sleep movement
Sleep experiments over the past century
Monitoring the effects of sleep deprivation
Antarctic and Arctic sleep means quality sleep
Challenging research in reduced normal sleeping hours
Are we getting enough sleep?
The impact of noise on sleep
Sleep experiments in an isolated area

Example
Paragraph A Answer
viii


14 Paragraph B
15 Paragraph C
16 Paragraph D
17 Paragraph E
18 Paragraph F


A Almost every living creature sleeps. For humans, it is typically something we dislike doing when we are younger and, as we age, something we increasingly look forward to at the end of each day. On the one hand, it is something that we absolutely need to sustain our life and on the other, we tend to feel guilty if we spend more time in bed than we should. Sleep researcher Professor Stanley Limpton believes that 7 hours - the average amount of sleep most people get per night - is not enough. Limpton points out that the average person is now getting 2 hours less sleep than those who lived 100 years ago and contends that this lack of sleep is one of the main reasons so many people are often clumsy, unhappy, irritable and agitated. Other scientists share Limpton’s thinking. Many other researchers feel that we are not getting enough sleep and the negative impacts are being regularly felt around the world in the workplace and in the home.

B The first experiments in recorded scientific history on the effects of people not getting enough sleep took place in the late 1800s. According to records, three volunteers were deprived of sleep for a total of 90 hours. Later on, in 1920 more experiments in sleep deprivation were conducted by scientists where several people were deprived of sleep for a period of 60 hours. The results of many sleep deprivation experiments have been recorded and conducted by American ‘sleep scientist’ Nathaniel Kleitman. Often referred to as ‘the father of modern sleep research’, Kleitman’s work has formed the foundation for many areas of current sleep research. In one experiment, Kleitman examined thirty five volunteers who had been awake for 60 hours and also conducted an experiment on himself, remaining awake for a total of 100 hours. It was revealed that people who are sleep-deprived for periods of more than 60 hours try to fall asleep in any environment and show signs of mental disturbances, visions and hallucinations. As the length of sleep deprivation increases, so too does the mental decline in an individual. Having studied a group of 3 sleep deprived people, sleep researcher Dr Tim Oswald, concluded that chronic sleep deprivation often leads to drastic consequences. Oswald’s experiments reinstated the necessity of sleep for proper human functioning.

C Studies of sleep patterns in some of the more remote areas of the world have also been a subject of interest amongst sleep researchers. It is well-known that during the summer months in both the Arctic and Antarctic Circles the phenomenon known as the midnight sun occurs. Given fair weather conditions, the sun is visible for a continuous 24 hours. One summer, Dr Peter Suedfeld traveled to the Arctic and conducted a series of research projects. All participants were required to get rid of all clocks, watches and any other timekeeping devices and conduct work and sleep according to their own ‘body clock’. Those involved in the experiment were required to note down when they had a nap and when they actually went to bed. The results were that most people slept around 10 hours per day and all participants reported feeling completely invigorated and refreshed.

D The affect of sleep interruptions have also been a focal point of some sleep research. In urban societies, traffic and aircraft noise are often referred to as ‘the bane of urban existence’. Tom Grimstead took people who were classified as ‘good sleepers’ from quiet neighbourhoods and introduced into their bedrooms and night the noise equivalents of a major urban road. An actimeter – a device which measures the amount of movement in sleep - was used to gauge the quality of the participant’s sleep. The participants emerged from the experiment in a depressed-like state after four days. Grimstead reported that participants ‘had depression and mood scores similar to people with clinical depression…a reduction in certain performance tasks was also noted’.

E Another area of interest in the field of sleep study involves such famous people as Thomas Edison and Winston Churchill who, reportedly, were known to be and have been classified as short sleepers. A short sleeper is one who claims to be able to get by with only 4 or 5 hours of sleep per night. Dr David Joske, secretary of the British Sleep Association believes that ‘genetically short sleepers may have some natural resistance to the effects of sleep deprivation but it is not entirely certain why some people seem to require more and others less’. Determining what makes up the differences between short and long sleepers has been difficult for researchers. Says Joske, ‘When we brought long and short sleepers into controlled environments which were dark and soundproof we found that all participants slept between nine and ten hours, which seemed to preclude the short sleeper category.’

F A study in Norway was undertaken on a number of bus drivers. They were hooked up to various computers which monitored their states of being awake. The study revealed that bus drivers were asleep for as much as 25% of the time they were driving the bus. What the drivers were having was a series of ‘micro-sleeps’ – short periods of time of 10 to 20 seconds where they would be classified as being asleep. In the micro-sleep state, the individual may appear awake, even with their eyes open but in fact they are actually sleeping.



Questions 19-23
Look at the following list of statements (Questions 19-23) and the list of people below.
Match each statement with the correct company.
Write the correct letter A-D in boxes 19-23 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once.
19 People need to increase their average amount of sleep.
20 Extended periods of no sleep causes serious health problems.
21 Some need more sleep and others seem to get by with less sleep.
22 The quality of sleep can be measured by an individual’s sleep activity.
23 Most people need to sleep the same number of hours.

List of researchers
A
B
C
D David Joske
Stanley Limpton
Tim Oswald
Tom Grimstead

Questions 24 and 25
Choose TWO letters A-F.
Write your answers in boxes 24 and 25 on your answer sheet.
The list below lists some health issues associated with lack of sleep.
Which TWO of these health issues are mentioned by the writer?
A heart problems
B nervous disorders
C dizziness
D depression
E problems with mental state
F increased blood pressure

Question 26
Choose the correct letter, A-E
Write the correct letter in box 26 on your answer sheet.
Which of the following is the most suitable title for Reading Passage 2?
A The importance of sleep
B Studies in sleep
C How much sleep we need
D The effect of sleep patterns
E Modern perspectives on sleep