AU First Year Engineering (Semester 2)
Technical English 2
May 2013
Total marks: --
Total time: --
INSTRUCTIONS
(1) Assume appropriate data and state your reasons
(2) Marks are given to the right of every question
(3) Draw neat diagrams wherever necessary


1 Match the words in column A with their meanings in column B:
AB
(a) appropriate (i) allowing light to pass
(b) translucent(ii) a place water is collected and stored
(c) feedback (iii) repercusion
(d) catchment (iv) suitable
(v) response
2 M

2 Fill in the blanks with correct prepositions:
The research study highlights the importance ______ the fossil record ______ understanding long-term ecological responses ______ changes ______ time.
2 M

3 Rewrite the following into sentences indicating purpose:
(a) a clock ______ to show time of the day
(b) a calendar ______ to show the days, weeks and months of a particular year.
2 M

4 Rewrite the following into sentences using suitable cause and effect expressions:
(a) pollution ______ global warming
(b) decrease in production of potato _______ increase in price.
2 M

5 Use ONE of the following words as noun and verb in sentences of your own:
(a) conduct
(b) record
2 M

6 Rewrite the following in correct numerical expressions:
(a) a company which is 15 years old
(b) an experiment conducted over 10 years time
(c) a lab with 30 computers
(d) a book in six volumes
2 M

7 Convert the following into years or no questions:
(a) Science is beneficial to mankind
(b) Einstein is a genius
(c) Science and technology go together
(d) The galaxies are increasing in numbers
2 M

8 Fill in the blanks with suitable articles:
______ secret of ______ successful sandcastle could aid ______ revival of ______ ancient eco-friendly building technique, according research led by Durham University.
2 M

9 rewrite the following into indirect speech:
??reen building are becoming popular,??said the civil engineer to his customer.
2 M

10 Fill in the blanks with suitable forms of the words.
Noun Adjective Person concerned
(a) archelogy______ ______
(b) ______ ______ ornithologist
(c) ______ conservational ______
(d) industrial ______ ______
2 M

11 (a) Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given at the end:
From time immemorial man must have looked at the clear night sky and wondered what the heavenly objects were supposed to be. He must have compared and contrasted their appearance with that of the Sun during the day. From where does the sun appear in the East and where does it go in the west? Why do most bodies move round a northerly direction, the direction of the Pole Star, whereas a few exceptional ones seem to move in irregular ways? Why is the moon, which apparently is of comparable size to the Sun, considerably less bright than the Sun? These questions must have occurred to the curious among the mankind in the past. Now, there is a tendency in the human mind to ascribe strange natural phenomena to supernatural causes. This tendency runs counter to the scientific approach which is born out of curiosity and thrives on a critical assessment. We see an excellent example of the two tendencies in man's approach to the motion of heavenly bodies. The question raised above could not be answered straight way and so the former tendency was dominant. It is not surprising, therefore that man ascribed supernatural powers to the Sun, the Moon and Stars. Of these those with the irregular motions were singled out as having greater power because their irregularity implied that they could move across the sky 'at will'. These are none other than the planets of our Solar System. Human imagination being what it is, it was but another step from this to argue that these 'powerful planets control human destiny. We could understand and sympathize with this view, shared by most primitive cultures, because in those days, more than two thousand years ago, the answers to the above questions were not in sight. But today, when the scientific approach has provided the answers, the situation should be entirely different. How the scientific outlook prevailed and led to the solution of the mystery is an interesting story which I will briefly narrate. Among the primitive cultures records were kept of the positions of some important heavenly bodies. The reasons for these records were primarily utilitarian. For man had learned to connect the changing of seasons with the changing position of these objects in the sky. Since agriculture was strongly dependent on seasons, it was necessary to forecast these, and this is where the primitive astronomical observations helped.
Complete the following :
(i) The heavenly objects are ______
(1) The sun
(2) The moon
(3) The stars
(4) All of the above
(ii) Northerly direction is the direction of ______
(1) The moon
(2) The pole star
(3) The sun
(4) The earth
(iii) Human fate is refulated by human ______
(1) reason
(2) emotion
(3) stars
(4) truth
(iv) ______ runs counter to the scientific approach.
(1) superstition
(2) nature
(3) man
(4) culture
(v) The primitive societies kept records of the movements of heavenly bodies because such records were _______
(1) interesting
(2) mysterious
(3) wonderful
(4) useful
5 M
11 (b) Mention whether the following statement are TRUE or FALSE:
(i) Man in the asked many questions about the heavenly objects.
(ii) Man has found a number of answers now.
(iii) The size of the sun and the moon is the same.
(iv) Man did not believe in the supernatural powers of the sun.
(v) Science has solved all mysteries of the world.
(vi) There is close connection between the change of the seasons and the position of the heavenly objects.
6 M
11 (c) Choose the definition which best suits the given words as they are used in the text:
(i) Immemorial
(1) existing for a short time
(2) existing for a long time
(3) without any existence
(4) dead and gone
(ii) apparently
(1) seemingly
(2) considerably
(3) largely
(4) realistically
(iii) ascribe
(1) distribute
(2) contribute
(3) attribute
(4) pay tribute
(iv) singled out
(1) chosen
(2) described
(3) entitled
(4) selected badly
(v) prevailed
(1) succeeded
(2) failed
(3) existed
(4) disappeared
5 M

Answer any one question from Q12 (a) & Q12 (b)
12 (a) Write a letter to the Human Resource Manager of an automobile company in Chennai requesting permission to visit the manufacturing units as part of your industrial visit.
16 M
12 (b) Write a letter to complaint to the manager of a bank about the problems you face in using your ATM card.
16 M

Answer any one question from Q13 (a) & Q13 (b)
13 (a) Write a report on a fire accident due to leakage of electric current in a ladies hostel where two electrical engineering students died. Also give a set of recommendations for preventing such accidents in future.
16 M
13 (b) Write a survey report on the reading habits of engineering students for submission to your college principal. Also give a set of recommendations for enhancing the reading habits of technical students.
16 M

Answer any one question from Q14 (a) & Q14 (b)
14 (a) Write a letter of application for the post of a Junior Engineering to the Divisional Engineer, Mambalam Division, Chennai Telephones, 786, Anna Salai, Chennai-35, Attach a suitable bio-data with the application.
16 M
14 (b) The Chief Engineer of Public Works Department, Kancheepuram, wants to make you a member of the technical committee on Road Developments in Kancheepuram. Write a letter of thanks to him and also enclose your resume with your letter.
16 M

Answer any one question from Q15 (a) & Q15 (b)
15 (a) Write an essay in three to five short paragraphs on the problem of providing safe drinking water to the people in your district. Also give a set of solutions to the problems you discuss in your essay.
16 M
15 (b) Write a proposal for submission to the principal of your college for giving employability training to your classmates. Give details regarding the need, the number of students, venus, time and dates, resource persons for the training, amount of money required, sponsorship, if any, etc.
16 M



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