Język angielski, matura 2019 - poziom dwujęzyczny - pytania i odpowiedzi

SUPER RECOGNIZERS

On a hot August afternoon in 2011, as rioters looted and cars burned in the streets, a group of police officers were gathered in a room in London. Projected on the wall was the blurry shape of a man with a black woolen hat pulled deep over his forehead and a red bandana covering all but his eyes. Security cameras had tracked the man setting fire to cars, stealing from shops and attacking passers-by. At that moment, Constable Gary Collins walked in. He took one look and said, “That’s Stephen Prince.” The last time he had come face to face with Stephen Prince was in 2005. It was just a fleeting encounter in court, but it was enough. Over a two-week time span prior to the meeting, Collins had identified 180 suspects out of 4000 captured by security cameras in the London riots. Meanwhile, other officers who had applied profile and facial recognition software had managed to identify just one suspect.

MEMORY MAN

Amos Decker, finally back on duty, sat on a bench, waiting. A sparrow zipped across in front of him, narrowly dodged a passing car before soaring upward, catching a breeze, and drifting away. He noted the make, model, plate number, and physical descriptions of all the passengers in the car before it passed him by. Then a bus rolled to a stop nearby. He ran his gaze over it, making the same observations. A plane soared overhead, low enough for him to recognize it as a United 737, a later model because of the winglets. Sleek, silver, fast, bullet-like. Two young men walked past. Observed, recorded. Next, a woman with a dog. A German shepherd. Not that old but with bad hips. Probably dysplasia, common in the breed. Recorded. A man jabbering away on his smartphone. Dressed far too nicely. Maybe a hedge fund manager, malpractice lawyer, or real estate developer. Memory stored. On the other side of the street an old woman in a wheelchair was being rolled out of a medical transport van. Imprinted.

COLOUR PSYCHOLOGY

A. It’s called the Colour Affects System and works on two levels: the psychological properties of each of the 11 basic colours and the roles that variations in tones, hues and tints can play in achieving a desired psychological effect.

B. There have been incidents of erratic or hostile behaviour during the initial phase of confinement. Despite the exposure to colour, it was not confirmed that the potential for violent or aggressive behaviour as well as low spirits among inmates could be reduced.

C. Many businesses, schools, hospitals and public institutions use the guidelines of colour psychology to achieve a desired result. One of the most extreme cases where a colour is used to change a behaviour is at the San Bernardino County Probation Department in California.

D. To understand why this happens, we need to look at how colour works. Essentially, when the light reflected from objects strikes the retinas in our eyes, the wavelengths are converted into electrical impulses.

E. Once this connection has been made, colour combinations can be created that will help turn homes into spaces that reflect and support the personalities of those living there.

CAN DOGS BE A NEW TARGET AUDIENCE?

A. Startled by a sudden bout of barking in your neighbourhood at around seven o’clock last night? Deafened by a collective howl of longing? Manufacturers of dog foods will be hoping so. Last night, ITV broadcast the UK’s first advert ever targeted at dogs, featuring high-pitched sounds that are inaudible to the human ear. Dogs are notoriously immune to visuals on screen, but the advert, with noises above 17,000 Hertz, had been proven to distract dogs enough for them to leave a toy and react to the television. This, in theory, will convince gullible owners that dogs are desperate for the advertised products.

B. Your first reaction to this – like mine – might well be to let out a melancholy howl yourself. But it is simply a natural progression, because animals are the new marketing frontier. Adults, in the age of the Internet, are now altogether too canny. And as an audience for adverts, children are strictly regulated and annoyingly prone to switches of allegiance. But dogs – can there be a better example of blind and undying loyalty? They are dream consumers. I’m only surprised that nobody thought of it before.

C. Pet owners are, after all, completely crazy when it comes to their animals’ supposed wants. We all know of dogs that apparently “won’t eat” anything but grilled chicken. I visited a friend recently whose house rabbit had no fewer than four kinds of rabbit treats laid out in bowls in front of the fireplace. What happened to the humble carrot? Our increasing anthropomorphism means that even sensible people interpret their own animals as having distinct emotions and desires, which means we have lost all perspective. Mind you, this is written by someone who impulse-bought a device for removing “unsightly chin hair” from a horse last week. Seriously! I had the impression he was feeling bad about it.

D. And the advertising specialists have latched onto pet adverts with the ruthlessness of a terrier with a stick of beef jerky. For years, the pet world was fairly limited in its opportunities for expenditure. You bought food and bedding and perhaps, every few years, a less tatty lead. Now, however, animals have become another outlet for our own rampant consumerism. If sales go up, I predict that within months we will have a whole slew of new animal marketing tricks.

E. However, the Kennel Club yesterday expressed concern that some noise-sensitive dogs may be spooked. They confirm that a dog’s needs are actually pretty simple: food, warmth, love, exercise. “Dogs,” a spokesperson said, “cannot always be trusted to know what’s best for them.” As someone who once had to dissuade their dog from a wax-crayon, I can only agree. But based on my own experiment, the Kennel Club needn’t worry too much. I have now played the ad three times to Alfie (a Border Terrier) and he didn’t twitch an eyebrow. However, when I said, “Would you like a sausage? Would you?” it reduced him to hysterics. Manufacturers of dog foods, you can have that one on me.

SURFING MONSTER WAVES

Uwagi:

1. Odpowiedź uznaje się za poprawną tylko wtedy, gdy wpisywane wyrazy lub fragmenty zdań są w pełni poprawne gramatycznie i ortograficznie. Nie bierze się pod uwagę zapisu wielką/małą literą oraz powtórzenia wyrazu podanego przed luką/po luce. Wyjątkiem są słowa, które muszą być pisane po angielsku wielką literą np. Monday, July. W takiej sytuacji brak wielkiej litery jest traktowany jako błąd ortograficzny.

2. Akceptowane są również inne odpowiedzi, jeżeli są merytorycznie poprawne i spełniają wszystkie warunki zadania.

Uwagi:

1. Odpowiedź uznaje się za poprawną tylko wtedy, gdy wpisywane wyrazy lub fragmenty zdań są w pełni poprawne gramatycznie i ortograficznie. Nie bierze się pod uwagę zapisu wielką/małą literą oraz powtórzenia wyrazu podanego przed luką/po luce. Wyjątkiem są słowa, które muszą być pisane po angielsku wielką literą np. Monday, July. W takiej sytuacji brak wielkiej litery jest traktowany jako błąd ortograficzny.

2. Akceptowane są również inne odpowiedzi, jeżeli są merytorycznie poprawne i spełniają wszystkie warunki zadania.