YDS Reading Passages Test III

2. FROM HASHSHASHIN TO ASSASSIN The adoption of assassination as a political weapon derives from the Islamic world of the 11th century. A secret order of Muslims was founded in Persia in about 1090 by a man named Hasan-e Sabbah. After gaining control of a mountain fortress near the Caspian Sea, Hasan founded a sect to fight his political enemies by means of murder. Hasan and his followers were known as Nizaris and belonged to the Isma'ili branch of Islam. For two centuries this secret organisation terrorised the Middle East. Hasan, who gained the nickname Old Man of the Mountains from his fortress hideaway, is said to have given his followers a vision-inducing drug called hashish, made from Indian hemp. The visions of Islamic paradise brought on by the drug persuaded his disciples that they would have a glorious afterlife if they followed Hasan's orders and killed his enemies. The killers were called Hashshashin, the plural of a word meaning "one who smokes hashish." This name was eventually corrupted into its present form, Assassins. The passage describes how Hasan-e Sabbah ......... .

3. THE DANGER OF HEIGHT Emma Christoffersen was twenty-eight years old when she collapsed moments after leaving a long flight from Australia. Her death highlighted the statistics concerning health-related problems during long flights. In fact, more people die from health-related incidents during flights than from air crashes. Studies show that poor air quality, low oxygen levels and cramped seating are triggering heart attacks, deep vein thrombosis and causing contagious diseases among an increasingly large number of passengers. Long periods of sitting in cramped quarters can cause blood clots to form, especially in the legs and lower abdomen, which can cause deep vein thrombosis, from which Emma died. Passengers have also contracted tuberculosis through recycled air. Despite these problems, the airlines are not addressing these issues and continue to reduce the space between seats. The Aviation Health Institute advises that cabins are ventilated every three minutes, but at present, the average Is every ten. To minimise the risk to their health, passengers are advised to exercise and drink plenty of water during a flight. According to the passage, air crashes account for.......... .

4. ETERNAL ART, TRANSITORY TECHNOLOGY Technology suggests permanent change and improvement. Once a new technique is discovered and adopted, society does not attempt to revert to the former technique. The automobile displaced the horse; the electric light replaced silent films; and word processors are rapidly making typewriters obsolete. This forward march of technology is called progress. In the fine arts such progress does not exist. The skill of the artist rests upon knowledge and experience, just as the skill of the technician does. But the creative processes involved seem to be different. Today, for example, one can admire the design of a Roman chariot, but few people would ever want to depend on it as a regular means of transportation. By contrast, it is still possible to walk into the Vatican's Sistine Chapel and be astounded by the magnificence of Michelangelo's frescoes. These paintings have an excellence that will never become outmoded. A work of art, whether it is a painting by Titian or a concerto by Mozart, is not a stepping-stone to something else that will someday be considered better. It is not like the vacuum tube, which served its purpose well enough until the transistor was invented. Each artwork stands on its own — distinctive for all time. Even poor imitations cannot damage the goodness and integrity of the original. We understand from the passage that Michelangelo's frescoes ...... .