Cambridge 15 Test 1 covers spice trade history, automotive technology and the meaning of exploration. Passage 1 follows nutmeg from the remote Banda Sea islands to European spice empires. Passage 2 surveys driverless cars and the manufacturing automation that paved the way. Passage 3, What is exploration?, reflects on the human urge to discover and share new knowledge.
Passage 1 packs three question types into thirteen marks — four note completions, three True/False/Not Given and a six-row table completion — making careful navigation crucial. Passage 2 has a five-item classifying task on driverless car claims, a four-gap summary and two two-answer multiple choice questions; classifying is the swing block here, so handle it second after the summary anchors your reading. Passage 3 closes with six multiple choice, five matching items linking quotations to writers and three summary completions.
Plan eighteen minutes on nutmeg, eighteen on driverless cars, twenty-one on exploration, with three minutes to transfer. Nutmeg was once worth its weight in gold — your time on this paper is just as valuable, so spend it wisely on the question types you can finish quickly.
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