Exam Details
| Subject | general english | |
| Paper | ||
| Exam / Course | indian economic service and indian statistical service examination (ies/iss) | |
| Department | ||
| Organization | union public service commission | |
| Position | ||
| Exam Date | 2015 | |
| City, State | central government, |
Question Paper
1. Write an essay on anyone of the following topics in not less than 800 words.
Leadership is not a position but a responsibility.
Does the rise of materialism lead to erosion of values?
Understanding is the best form of hospitality.
Individual freedom versus Social responsibility.
The scientific temper of the modem world.
2. Make a precis of the following passage in about one-third of the original length, using your own words.
(Note: The precis must be written only on the special sheets provided for this purpose, writing one word in each block. The sheet should be fastened securely inside the answer book.)
There are two ways in which science affects human affairs. The first is familiar to everyone: Directly, and to an even greater extent indirectly, science produces aids that. have completely transformed human existence. The second way is educational in character -it works on the mind. Although it may appear less obvious to cursory examination, it is no less incisive than the first.
The most conspicuous practical effect of science is that it makes possible the contriving of things that enrich life, though they complicate it at the same time -inventions such as the steam engine, the railway, electric power. and light, the telegraph, radio, automobile, airplane, dynamite, etc. To these must be added the life-preserving achievements of biology and medicine, especially the production of pain relievers and preservative methods of storing food. The greatest practical benefit which all these inventions confer on man I see in the fact that they liberate him from the exceSSIve muscular drudgery that was once indispensable for the preservation of bare existence. Insofar as we may at all claim that slavery has been abolished today, we owe its abolition to the practical consequences of science.
On the other hand, technology -or applied science -has confronted mankind with problems of profound gravity. The very survival of mankind depends on a satisfactory solution of these problems. It is a matter of creating the kind of social institutions and traditions without which the new tools must inevitably bring disaster of the worst kind.
Technology has shortened distances and created new and"extraordinarily effective means of destruction which, in the hands of nations claiming unrestricted freedom ,of action, become threats to the security and very survival of mankind. This situation requires a single judicial and executive power for the entire planet, and the creation of such a central authority is desperately opposed by national tradition3. Here too we are in the midst of a struggle whose issue will decide the fate of all of us.
Means of communication, finally -reproduction processes for the printed word, and the radio -when combined with modern weapons, have made it possible to place body and soul under bondage to a central authority -and here is a third source of danger to mankind. Modern tyrannies and their destructive effects show plainly how far we are from exploiting these achievements organizationally for the benefit of mankind. Here too circumstances require an international solution, with the psychological foundation for such a solution not yet laid.
Let us now turn to the intellectual effects that proceed from science. In prescientific times it was not possible by means of thought alone to attain results that all mankind could have accepted as certain and necessary. Still less was there a conviction that all that happens in nature is subject to inexorable laws. The fragmentary character of natural law, as seen by the primitive observer, was such as to foster a belief in ghosts and spirits. Hence even today primitive man lives in constant fear that supernatural and arbitrary forces will intervene in his destiny.
It stands to the everlasting credit of science that by acting on the human mind it has overcome man's insecurity before himself and before nature. In creating elementary mathematics the Greeks for the first time wrought a system of thought whose conclusions no one could escape. The scientists of the Renaissance then devised the combination of systematic experiment with mathematical method. This union made possible such precision in the formulation of natural laws and such certainty in checking them by experience that as a result there was no longer room for basic differences of opinion in natural science. Since that time each generation has built up the heritage of knowledge and understanding) without the slightest danger of a crisis that might jeopardize the whole structure.
The general public may be able to follow the details of scientific research to only a modest degree; but it can register at least one great and important gain: confidence that human thought is dependable and natural law universal. (670 words)
3. Write a paragraph in about 200 words on anyone of the following expressions/statements.
All that glitters is not gold.
Time and tide wait for none.
A bird in hand is worth two in the bush.
Brevity is the soul of wit.
To err is human; to forgive is dizine.
4. Use the following words in sentences SJ as to bring out their meaning clearly. Do not change the form of the word. No credit will be given for a vaguE or ambiguous sentence.
Loquacious
Topsy-turvy
Mentor
Enigmatic
Nefarious
5. Use the following homonyms in sentences so as to bring out the difference in meaning clearly without changing the form.
Compliment
Complement
Canvas
Canvass
Device
Devise
Ghostly
Ghastly
Cite
Site
6. Make the directed changes in the following sentences without changing their meaning.
I know him. (Change into passive voice)
The stranger said, "Could you tell me where the post office is (Change into indirect speech)
I did not spend as much money as you. (Change into comparative degree)
You are allowed into the club only if you are a member. (Rewrite the sentence using
Join the two simple sentences to make one complex sentence. We enjoyed our holiday. It rained a lot.
7. Correct the following sentences without changing their meaning. Do not make unnecessary changes in the original sentence.
Despite of repeated reminders, the company has not responded.
All the students will attend the function, wouldn't they?
This is one of the best books that has been recently purchased for the library.
Flying on the northern part of India we could see the peak of the Everest.
Your friend is waiting for you since morning.
People expect a lot from an university scholar.
The sun is rising in the East everyday.
When we arrived at the station, the train already left.
Neither the officer nor his PS were in the office.
The minister along with his wife are leaving for London.
Leadership is not a position but a responsibility.
Does the rise of materialism lead to erosion of values?
Understanding is the best form of hospitality.
Individual freedom versus Social responsibility.
The scientific temper of the modem world.
2. Make a precis of the following passage in about one-third of the original length, using your own words.
(Note: The precis must be written only on the special sheets provided for this purpose, writing one word in each block. The sheet should be fastened securely inside the answer book.)
There are two ways in which science affects human affairs. The first is familiar to everyone: Directly, and to an even greater extent indirectly, science produces aids that. have completely transformed human existence. The second way is educational in character -it works on the mind. Although it may appear less obvious to cursory examination, it is no less incisive than the first.
The most conspicuous practical effect of science is that it makes possible the contriving of things that enrich life, though they complicate it at the same time -inventions such as the steam engine, the railway, electric power. and light, the telegraph, radio, automobile, airplane, dynamite, etc. To these must be added the life-preserving achievements of biology and medicine, especially the production of pain relievers and preservative methods of storing food. The greatest practical benefit which all these inventions confer on man I see in the fact that they liberate him from the exceSSIve muscular drudgery that was once indispensable for the preservation of bare existence. Insofar as we may at all claim that slavery has been abolished today, we owe its abolition to the practical consequences of science.
On the other hand, technology -or applied science -has confronted mankind with problems of profound gravity. The very survival of mankind depends on a satisfactory solution of these problems. It is a matter of creating the kind of social institutions and traditions without which the new tools must inevitably bring disaster of the worst kind.
Technology has shortened distances and created new and"extraordinarily effective means of destruction which, in the hands of nations claiming unrestricted freedom ,of action, become threats to the security and very survival of mankind. This situation requires a single judicial and executive power for the entire planet, and the creation of such a central authority is desperately opposed by national tradition3. Here too we are in the midst of a struggle whose issue will decide the fate of all of us.
Means of communication, finally -reproduction processes for the printed word, and the radio -when combined with modern weapons, have made it possible to place body and soul under bondage to a central authority -and here is a third source of danger to mankind. Modern tyrannies and their destructive effects show plainly how far we are from exploiting these achievements organizationally for the benefit of mankind. Here too circumstances require an international solution, with the psychological foundation for such a solution not yet laid.
Let us now turn to the intellectual effects that proceed from science. In prescientific times it was not possible by means of thought alone to attain results that all mankind could have accepted as certain and necessary. Still less was there a conviction that all that happens in nature is subject to inexorable laws. The fragmentary character of natural law, as seen by the primitive observer, was such as to foster a belief in ghosts and spirits. Hence even today primitive man lives in constant fear that supernatural and arbitrary forces will intervene in his destiny.
It stands to the everlasting credit of science that by acting on the human mind it has overcome man's insecurity before himself and before nature. In creating elementary mathematics the Greeks for the first time wrought a system of thought whose conclusions no one could escape. The scientists of the Renaissance then devised the combination of systematic experiment with mathematical method. This union made possible such precision in the formulation of natural laws and such certainty in checking them by experience that as a result there was no longer room for basic differences of opinion in natural science. Since that time each generation has built up the heritage of knowledge and understanding) without the slightest danger of a crisis that might jeopardize the whole structure.
The general public may be able to follow the details of scientific research to only a modest degree; but it can register at least one great and important gain: confidence that human thought is dependable and natural law universal. (670 words)
3. Write a paragraph in about 200 words on anyone of the following expressions/statements.
All that glitters is not gold.
Time and tide wait for none.
A bird in hand is worth two in the bush.
Brevity is the soul of wit.
To err is human; to forgive is dizine.
4. Use the following words in sentences SJ as to bring out their meaning clearly. Do not change the form of the word. No credit will be given for a vaguE or ambiguous sentence.
Loquacious
Topsy-turvy
Mentor
Enigmatic
Nefarious
5. Use the following homonyms in sentences so as to bring out the difference in meaning clearly without changing the form.
Compliment
Complement
Canvas
Canvass
Device
Devise
Ghostly
Ghastly
Cite
Site
6. Make the directed changes in the following sentences without changing their meaning.
I know him. (Change into passive voice)
The stranger said, "Could you tell me where the post office is (Change into indirect speech)
I did not spend as much money as you. (Change into comparative degree)
You are allowed into the club only if you are a member. (Rewrite the sentence using
Join the two simple sentences to make one complex sentence. We enjoyed our holiday. It rained a lot.
7. Correct the following sentences without changing their meaning. Do not make unnecessary changes in the original sentence.
Despite of repeated reminders, the company has not responded.
All the students will attend the function, wouldn't they?
This is one of the best books that has been recently purchased for the library.
Flying on the northern part of India we could see the peak of the Everest.
Your friend is waiting for you since morning.
People expect a lot from an university scholar.
The sun is rising in the East everyday.
When we arrived at the station, the train already left.
Neither the officer nor his PS were in the office.
The minister along with his wife are leaving for London.