Olimpiad of English. I stage (9th grade)

Reading (10 points)

Read the text below twice and choose the correct answer.

The smartphone - the spy we adore

Last week my friend Kate sent me a photo of sunglasses and a short message: Cool or not?

I replied that the sunglasses looked great and that she should buy them. Later, when I was checking my Facebook, I noticed an advert on the page for the same sunglasses. A few days later, something very strange happened again.

My parents and I were talking about visiting our cousin in Kyiv. My phone was next to me, but I wasn't using it. Well, the next day, when I was shopping online, an advert appeared about holidays in Kyiv. 'This is crazy!' I said to myself. Was my phone secretly listening to me? I checked online and I found out that smartphones can, and they do spy on us! A lot of apps on your phone use everything to get information about you. That's why, many apps ask for access to your contacts, emails, texts, photos, microphone and camera. But why? Well, it's all about money! Companies use data from your phone to offer you products or services you might be interested in. But some apps may not ask for permission first. That's scary!

So what can you do about it? Just go to the settings in your phone and see what each app has access to. You'll probably find some of them have access to the microphone and camera. For apps you want to keep or those that can't be uninstalled, it's best to turn the microphone and camera off. That wat, they can't record you.

Oh, and if you don't believe me about spying, maybe you'll believe Mark Zuckerberg, the boss at Facebook. He covers his laptop camera and microphone with tape! Maybe you should too?

Choose the correct answer

What did Kate send the narrator (оповідач)?

How did the narrator respond to Kate's message?

What unusual occurrence happened after discussing visiting their cousin in Kyiv?

What is the narrator's concern about their smartphone?

What do many apps on smartphones ask for access to?

Why do companies collect data from smartphones?

What does the narrator suggest doing with apps that have access to the microphone and camera?

What example does the narrator give to support their claim about spying?

What is the narrator's overall feeling about smartphone privacy?

What action does the narrator recommend to protect privacy?

Listening (10 points)

You will hear an expert from a radio programme about a woman who has achieved something remarkable at the age of 84.

Listen the audio and answer questions

How old was Mrs Schofiels when she left school?

How long has she been studying at college?

How many lessons does she have a week?

How many times had she travelled abroad before she started the course?

What did Mrs Schofield learn at school?

What problems did Mrs Schofield have when she was shopping?

What impressed her about what the man in the shop said?

What was the experience of going to college like for her?

How was she able to find out about local news?

What does she want to do now?