IELTS LISTENING TEST 8

SECTION 1 Section 1. You will hear a conversation between a man and a receptionist on the subject of joining a surgery. First you have some time to look at questions 1 to 5. You will see that there is an example. This time only, the conversation relating to this will be played first. Hello, I've just moved to Melbourne for a new job and I've been advised to register with a new doctor for my family and myself. I think that this surgery is the nearest one to where I live. What's the name of the road that you live in, sir? Dawson Road. So, Dawson Road is the correct answer. Now we begin. You should answer the questions as you listen, as the recording is not played twice. Listen carefully to the conversation and answer questions 1 to 5. Hello, I've just moved to Melbourne for a new job and I've been advised to register with a new doctor for my family and myself. I think that this surgery is the nearest one to where I live. What's the name of the road that you live in, sir? Dawson Road. Yes, that's in our area. Would you like to register with us now? Yes, please. Right, I'll just have to take some details. First of all, could you give me your name? It's Mike Jacobs. J-A-C-O-B-S. And your family? My wife's name is Janet and I have one little boy whose name is Rod. Rod? No, Rod. R-O-D. Good, that's fine. And what is your address here in Melbourne? 52 Dawson Road, Highfield, Melbourne. Highfield. H-I-G-H-F-I-E-L-D. Good. And I'll need to know your health card number. It's N-H-8-7-1-8-1-2-C. What about my family? Oh, only yours for now. Do you know the name of your old doctor? It was Dr. Graham McKenzie in Perth. Now, we've got four doctors here. There's Dr. Susan Larkins, Dr. Kevin White, Dr. James Nicholson and Dr. Linda Williams. Which one would you like to register with? Oh, I didn't think of that. Well, I think I would like a man as my doctor. I'll go for the last one. Was that one a man? No, that was Dr. Linda. How about Dr. Kevin? Yes, that will be fine. Right, Dr. White it is. Will that be the same for your family? Oh yes, my wife might not want a man as her doctor. Well, we'll leave it as it is for now and my wife can change if she wants to. Before the conversation continues, you have some time to look at questions 6 to 10. Now listen carefully and answer questions 6 to 10. I'd like to make an appointment now for my wife. She wants to come in at the end of the week. How about this Friday morning? That's Friday the 21st. I don't think she can make the morning. Any openings in the afternoon? There are appointments available at 2.30 and 3.30. We'll take the first one, please. OK, that's done. Oh, and what shall my wife do if she wants to switch doctor? She can just give us a call here. Do you want to take the number down? Yes, please. It's 7253 9829. Can you give me your name, please? My name's Angela, but there are two other girls who might be on duty as well. Their names are Elizabeth and Rachel, but it doesn't matter who's on duty. Anyone can take care of it. Now, what do we do if we need to call out a doctor during the night? We've got a rotation system with the doctors in the area. There's a mobile number you can call and that'll get through to the doctor who's on duty. What's that number? It's 0506 759 3856. Got that. I didn't ask about any charges. Like all Australia, prescriptions have to be paid for at the chemist at the prevailing rate. Some things like vaccinations for travel and an insurance report we make a standard charge for, and I can give you a pricelist for those. Consultations, though, are under the National Health Service, so they'll be free. Great. Well, that's all. Thanks and goodbye. Goodbye. That is the end of Section 1. You will now have half a minute to check your answers.

SECTION 2 Now turn to Section 2. You will hear a guide talking to a group of visitors about a national park. First, you have some time to look at questions 11 to 16. Now listen carefully and answer questions 11 to 16. Welcome to Byron National Park. I am Jim Carson, your tour guide for the trip. First, I'd like to give you some basic information about the park. Covering 7,000 acres of land and spanning across three states, Byron National Park was established to protect the area's most spectacular scenic values. With unique geological features, natural history and native plant and animal life, it is an ideal destination for recreation as well as research purposes. The park has a breathtaking waterfall connecting the longest river in the country, but it is most renowned for having the largest subtropical rainforest worldwide. There are many layers of tall, medium and low vegetation growing with seasonal variations in the park. It is a place where the air seems green. Ardent hikers can find an awesome array of options here, apart from the dense green rainforest, tourists can also hike along the mountain trail. Despite the stunning view, taking photos is not advised on the way up, I'm afraid, as one might get distracted and the narrow trail by the sheer cliff is quite dangerous. When you reach the top of the mountain, there is nothing better than having a picnic under the trees with your family. Accompanied mostly by wildlife, walkers as well as cyclists may find the bush track a good choice for having a tranquil time to themselves. As your tour guide, I suggest that only expert hikers take the creek circuit, because its beautiful and inspiring scenery through the subtropical jungle is paralleled by its physical challenges. A list of transport is available within the park. Bicycles are a popular choice as it is the most flexible way to get around. Electric trams are temporarily closed for maintenance. Boat trips down the river are an ideal way to spend a tranquil afternoon. Rest assured that transport within the park is covered in the bill. Extreme sports is another highlight of the park. There are, for adventurous grown-ups, especially those who are comfortable with having a racing heart, scary as it may sound, it is actually safe to participate in extreme sports under strict instructions and close supervision. Abseiling is available regardless of the weather. It is a fun way to overcome fear of heights, gain new skills and get an adrenaline rush. Bungee jumping and paragliding are also available, except for during the summer. At this point, you might worry about meals here. Well, even though there is only one restaurant in the park at the moment, the variety of dishes is astonishing. There are two meals included in the price. Just get your meal ticket at the reception before dining. Also, there is no need to make reservations or worry about availability, since there are plenty of tables. Before you hear the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 17 to 20. Now listen and answer questions 17 to 20. During your stay here, you might want to know what there is to do. Let's turn to the plan, so I can familiarise you with the layout of the park. Most tourists would choose to stay in our guesthouse, located in the south-east corner. It features 63 tastefully appointed guestrooms, many of which offer spectacular views of the park. You will find a home away from home at our guesthouse. But for those who want to experience the natural beauty up close, there is also a campsite. When you get out of the guesthouse, go straight ahead, turn right at the end of the road. To your left, there is a campsite amongst the trees, where you could spend a night under the stars together with owls and chipmunks. If you look at the top left of the plan, you will notice a picnic area. You can either bring your own food, or we can deliver food to you. Barbecue is an option. The business centre is situated directly opposite the picnic area. It provides flexible, fully serviced offices, conferencing suites, meeting rooms, and is equipped with the latest multimedia facilities. Wired, as well as wireless, high-speed internet is available within the entire premises. The centre is designed to cater to both individual travellers and corporate groups. Visitors can also go to the museum, which holds a vast collection, that exhibits local history and a natural habitat. You start from the guesthouse, just turn left at the first conjunction, then walk past the tea house, turn right, you will see the museum after making the third right. Have you found it? Pretty easy, right? To spend a delightful afternoon with a book and a fresh cup of coffee, you can go to the only cafe in the park. From the guesthouse, you go straight, then take the second right, and you will see the cafe right in front of you. You might want to check out our all-season tennis court, which offers instruction for all ages and skill levels. It is located right opposite the cafe. That is the end of section 2. You now have half a minute to check your answers.

SECTION 3 Now turn to section 3. You will hear a tutor and three students discussing their work. First you have some time to look at questions 21 to 27. Now listen carefully and answer questions 21 to 27. Good morning, everyone. Well, in today's tutorial, we're going to discuss the essays that you have to submit by the end of next week. Some of you will have already started them, which is good. And if you haven't, well, that's OK, but you'll have to get a move on. So, let's begin with you, Simon. What's happening with you? Well, I've made a start on it. I researched the background quite extensively last weekend, and I should get to the writing stage tomorrow with a bit of luck, and I'll get finished at the weekend. Now, what are you writing about? I decided to look at the car manufacturing company, Jaguar, examine the problems they had with reliability in the 1970s and 80s, how they dealt with it, and how it affected their marketing and sales strategy. That sounds pretty interesting. Any problems with that? At the start, I had problems getting information from that far back, but after rooting around in the library, I found some magazines which gave me information, and also gave me references to find other stuff. It seems now the only problem is keeping to the 4,000 word limit. It just seems I have so much to write about. It seems I'll need 5,000 or even 6,000 words to be able to cope. Yes, your essay title seems to me to be very wide-ranging. Would you think about cutting out part of it? How about looking at their sales and marketing strategy, but only mentioning the problems in the 70s and 80s, and not going too far into it? That's a good idea. That will make it much easier to handle. By the way, how do you want us to hand in our work? Do you want us to drop in a hard copy to your office? You could do that, but I'd prefer it if you just emailed it to me as an attachment. You've all got my address. If not, give it to the secretary clearly marked that it's for me. Right, Jennifer, how about you? I've not really got going on it yet, but I have decided on a subject. I'll try and do some research during the rest of this week, and I should get writing this weekend. OK, what are you writing about then? I want to look into how supermarkets use market surveys to develop their products. Will you have enough time to find out what sort of things that the supermarkets do? You won't have much time for that. I should be OK. I've had a look in the stack system in the library, and I've found a magazine that surveyed all the UK major supermarkets, and a trade publication that analysed the same things in Canadian supermarkets. Be careful about using their conclusions too much. The university takes a tough stance on plagiarism. Make sure you properly list where you get your information from in a bibliography, and try and do your own analysis. Get going too, as that analysis will take a bit of time. OK, thanks. You now have some time to look at questions 28 to 30. Now listen to the rest of the discussion, and answer questions 28 to 30. And Melanie, how is your work going? I'm a bit behind I'm afraid. I was sick all last week and the weekend with flu. I've got a subject I think, but I've not done any work on it yet. Is there any chance I can get an extension to the submittal date? The policy of the department is not to give any extensions, unless they're extenuating circumstances. Do you have a doctor's certificate or anything? No, I went to the doctor's but I didn't get a note as I didn't realise I would need it. The doctor will have a record of me though as I got a prescription. I'll go back and get one. Yes, do. If you get one, then there shouldn't be a problem getting an extension. Without it though, you'll be in trouble. What subject are you considering anyway? I thought I'd do an overview of the UK mortgage interest rates and their effect on housing sales trends over the last ten years. I thought it might be of interest because of the huge increases of house prices over the last decade. Certainly an interesting subject and it should be no great problem getting information as this has been fairly well documented. It's a lot of work again though and you'll really need to get cracking on it even with the extension, if you get one. Well, I've not got much on for the rest of the week and I've set aside the weekend to really get to grips with it. Good. Now, is there anything else? That is the end of section three. You will now have half a minute to check your answers.

SECTION 4 Section four. You will hear a lecturer talking about the movement of population towards cities. First, you have some time to look at questions thirty-one and thirty-two. Now listen carefully and answer questions thirty-one and thirty-two. If you consider the farms of old, the type your father or grandfather grew up on, they were small and labour intensive, requiring lots of workers. In addition, they often had a diversity of products, be that animal or vegetable, say cows and sheep, or oranges and lemons with some peaches and a few chickens on the side for the production of eggs. The many workers involved raised their families who needed products and support services, such as medical clinics and schools. So the small country towns had mercantile activity, storefronts and community participation with all ages present and a distinct town culture. And how it has changed. Travel to any small country town in virtually any developed country and you will often see that these places are now somewhat forlorn and deserted, lacking life and vigour. Many of the residents have long since moved towards the big cities, so the country areas have become depopulated and their downtowns empty. This phenomenon is so predictable and widespread that it even has a name, rural flight or rural exodus, and it has produced some fairly predictable problems. Before you hear the next part of the lecture, you have some time to look at questions 33 to 35. Now listen and answer questions 33 to 35. As for the causes of rural exodus, the most obvious is the industrialisation of agriculture. This comes in two aspects, one of them being monocultural farming practices. What this means is that it is now more efficient to have one product and focus on its needs almost exclusively. So, for example, animal husbandry will usually involve a single type of animal, say, pigs, but with huge factory farming techniques or, in other words, the second aspect, economies of scale. This means instead of 200 pigs, there will be 2000, tightly fitted into small pens or cages, with high-density waste disposal and automatic feeding systems. Yet, despite this huge size, it can all be controlled by just a dozen farm workers pushing the right button. You might not like it, but in a competitive market, the cheaper the overheads, the better, and one can't argue with market economics. It's simply the way of the modern world, and it has changed the face of rural districts mostly for the worst. Before you hear the rest of the lecture, you have some time to look at questions 36 to 40. Now listen and answer questions 36 to 40. We can talk at length about the problem of rural exodus, but what about solutions? Well, there is certainly some cause for hope, since many are now feeling the negatives of increasing urbanisation, negatives which the countryside generally does not have. Thus, tourism, for example, is certainly one avenue of revenue and revitalisation. The most important consideration here is that the local residents themselves participate in developing such initiatives and deciding what happens, since outsiders, be they state government or city-based planners, do not fully understand the local settings, the possibilities which may be on offer, or the town culture, since even small rural areas can be highly distinctive from neighbouring ones. For example, the Daylesford area has developed a tourist industry based on the natural springs there, putting forward the angle that this water is relaxing and revitalising for the health. There has been the development of spas, saunas, and small-scale accommodation within its picturesque hillsides, and another solution is to utilise the predominant local product. This takes advantage of the fact that many city people are developing a dislike for factory-produced and packaged foodstuffs. They are becoming interested in products that can be sold directly to them, at a cheaper price, while preserving all the freshness from the tree or animal. It is important here that the country area is not only characterised by a specific product, but markets this idea well. For example, many areas of country Victoria have developed widespread grape-growing and winemaking facilities and encourage wine-tasting tourism, now a thriving industry with an international patronage. Similarly, Harcourt is famous for apples, Shepparton for mature cheeses, and Mildura for its citrus products. Such strategies, done well, give hope that rural areas can revitalise somewhat, and once again be lively and interesting places to live in. That is the end of Section 4. You now have half a minute to check your answers. That is the end of the listening test.