[ Comprehension ]
Read the passages below and answer the questions that follow by choosing the most appropriate of the options lettered A-E.
PASSAGE 1
A country’s human population can grow beyond available resources such as food, water and shelter. This leads to problems such as overcrowding and starvation.
Many countries have found it essential to regulate their national populations so that they have populations that they can cater for. Catering for a human population does not involve only food and shelter but many other requirements such as education, medical services, employment and transportation.
A country regulates its population through family planning. Family planning means that parents voluntarily limit their children to the number they want.
An average girl is capable of becoming a mother at the age of about 15, and may continue bearing children until the age of 45.
If she bears children at the rate of one in two years, and all of them remain alive, she may have a total of 15 children. If most of the women in a particular generation did this, the country’s population would explode.
Today, educated parents voluntarily limit the size of their families because they know that by so doing they can better provide for the children they choose to have.
Some people argue, especially on religious grounds, that family planning is wrong because it often involves the termination of the life of a baby. But, in fact, there are several family planning methods and the emphasis in family planning is on the prevention of conception rather than the termination of life. One can therefore choose a method of birth control that agrees with one’s religious beliefs.
Culled from Senior Secondary Biology 2 by Ndu et al. .
According to the passage, family planning is ______
A. catering for a human population in a country.
B. consciously limiting the number of births.
C. preventing conception.
D. preventing overcrowding and starvation.
E. termination of the lives of babies.
[ Comprehension ]
Read the passages below and answer the questions that follow by choosing the most appropriate of the options lettered A-E.
PASSAGE II
From the time of its birth, the newborn needs tender care, including gentle strokes and close skin contact. Some physicians believe that the first 12 hours after birth are crucial. They say that what mother and child require and want most right after the delivery is “not sleep or food, but to stroke and snuggle and to look and listen to each other.”
Instinctively, parents reach out, cuddle, stroke, and snuggle their baby. The baby, in turn, becomes securely attached to its parents and responds to their attention. The power of this bond is so strong that parents will make sacrifices to care for the infant without letup. ,
On the other hand, without a loving parental bond, an infant may literally wilt and die. Therefore, some doctors believe it is important that a baby be given to its mother immediately after the delivery. They suggest that at least 30 to 60 minutes of early contact between parent and infant should be provided.
Despite the emphasis some put on bonding, early contact may be difficult, if not impossible, in some hospitals. Often, newborns are separated from the mother because of the danger of transmission of infection to the child. Some evidence indicates, though, that the rate of fatal infections may actually drop when newborns stay with the mothers. So more and more hospitals are open to early extended contact between the mother and the newborn.
Some mothers do not become emotionally attached to their baby the first time they see it. So they wonder, ‘Will I have trouble bonding?’ Admittedly, not all mothers fall in love with their baby at first sight. Yet, there is no need to be anxious. Even when maternal affection for the baby is delayed, it can develop fully later. “There’s no one birth circumstance that makes or breaks your relationship with your child,” observes an experienced mother. Still, if you are expecting a baby and have concerns, it may be wise to have a discussion with your obstetrician in advance. Be clear about your wishes on when and how long you want to interact with your newborn.
Adapted from Awake
According to the passage, one of the following is not a way mothers establish parental bond with their newborn babies.
A. Cuddling them
B. Listening to them
C. Lying down with them
D. Rocking them
E. Snuggling them
[ Vocabulary Development ]
The milk the _____ produces after delivery, which is yellowish in ______, is called ______ and should not be discarded as some women do.
A. babysitter, appearance, concoction
B. maid, complexion, mixture
C. mother, colour, colostrum
D. nanny, form, nutrient
E. nurse, nature, syrup
