Reading Comprehension Questions and Answers

Direction for [ Question No: 261 To 263 ] :

Read the following passage and answer the questions given after it.

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Excavations by Madhya Pradesh Directorate of Archaeology, Archives and Museum have unearthed 40 ancient temples in the different districts of the state.
They include 24 temples in Ashapuri (Raisen), 10 in Devbadla (Sehore), 4 temples in Dhawala (Raisen), 2 temples in Omkareshwar (Khandwa), 2 temples in Richhawar (Raisen), 1 temple in Samohi (Jhabua), 1 temple in Rajapura (Ratlam).
The temples were uncovered during scientific debris clearance work. The remains of 22 kothis also came to light during debris clearance in Orchha in Niwari district, which have conserved in-situ by using same material. The temples belong to Gupta, Pratihara, Parmar and Chandela period whereas kothis of Orchha belong to 17th century.
Archeologist Ramesh Kumar Yadav said that Directorate conducted village-to-village survey in the state. During surveys, important archaeological sites were identified. Impressive and gigantic temples were destroyed due to past human vandalism and natural calamities. These temples were found either buried under the soil or in the form of ruined mounds.
Then, an action plan was prepared to reconstruct them in their original form, Yadav said. Some photographs of the temples found during scientific debris clearance work have been displayed at an exhibition, Naveen Uplabdhiyan (new achievements) at the State Museum to mark World Heritage Day. Photographs of temples, whose reconstruction is underway, have also been displayed. Among them Devbadla, Mahakal temple complex Ujjain, Omkareshwar, Ashapuri, Samohi, Rajapura, Salaiya are prominent.
The aim of the restoration of temples is to save for posterity. "It is to inform people about the glorious tradition, art and architecture of Indian culture, ancient history and to encourage youths for new research," Yadav added.

Direction for [ Question No: 264 To 268 ] :

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow :

1. Every now and then we would speed through a village lined with waving Tibetan children. Their villages looked wonderful and so inviting that Dorje was not showing any signs of slowing down. Small clusters of single and double storey buildings with walk-in courtyards jostled together in the foothills to gain maximum exposure to the sun. The houses looked solid, built for the harsh environment. Walls are made up of stone to waist height and finished off with mud bricks to the roof. Tin cans lined the window ledges, with the bright orange of marigolds in full bloom livening up the black-and-white of the houses.

2. Branches of trees adorned with colourful prayer flags stood high into the wind from the top of the flat roofs. The auspicious blue, white, red, green and yellow colours of the fabrics stood out against the rich blue of the Tibetan sky. Each prayer flag carries a picture of Lungta, the jewelled dragon horse, who carries the owner's prayers up to the divine every time the flag flaps in the wind.

3. The larger villages have healthy trees, usually willows or poplars which look quite out of place in the generally treeless landscape. Wood is a precious commodity in the highland areas of Tibet and is never wasted. The few shrubs which grow wild on the hillsides are harvested for use as brushwood and each courtyard wall is piled high with sticks gathered from the mountains to get a fire started. The lack of solid fuel in the shape of wood is not a problem for the Tibetans, who have an ingenious wood substitute : yak dung.

Direction for [ Question No: 269 To 270 ] :

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow :

1. Chocoholics no longer need to feel guilty about their desire for chocolate. They are simply the victim of the genes, scientists have found. The so called "sweet-tooth gene" has been identified by separate teams of researchers and helps explain why some find it harder to resist chocolate bars and cream cakes. It also raises the possibility of designing a drug which could "switch off" the gene and help people resist sugary foods. Children, in particular, risk their health by eating too many sweets and chocolates.

2. To identify the gene, research teams conducted almost identical experiments using mice which have differences in their ability to taste sweet foods. One of the team members said "A sweet taste receptor recognises the sweet content of food and initiates a cascade of events which signals to the brain that a sweet food has been eaten." He further added, "The same gene exists in humans, so it means that if your parents have a sweet tooth then you probably will as well".

3. He said, "We have always known that some people have a sweeter tooth than others. But it has also been proved that if you are gradually exposed to less sugar, then the body becomes accustomed to less. They will be satisfied with a lower level of sweetness. Doctors warn against any form of gene therapy which seeks to deactivate the sweet gene. "We have produced this gene through evolution because sweet foods in nature are not poisonous, they give us energy. We all need to have some sugar in our diet," claim scientists. US researchers are using this discovery to develop artificial sweeteners without any after-taste.