Practice 2
Writing Based on Reading and ListeningDirections
　　For this task, you will read a passage about an academic topic and you will listen to a lecture about the same topic. You may take notes while you read and listen.
　　Then you will write a response to a question that asks you about the relationship between the lecture you heard and the reading passage. Try to answer the questions completely as possible using information from the reading passage and the lecture. The question does not ask you to express your personal opinion. You may refer to the reading passage again when you write. You may use your notes to help you answer the question.
　　Typically, an effective response will be 150 to 225 words. Your response will be judged on the quality of your writing and on the completeness and accuracy of the content.
　　You should allow 3 minutes to read the passage. Then listen to the lecture. Then allow 20 minutes to plan and write your response.
　　Write your response in the space provided.

[Reading]
　　You will have 3 minutes to read the passage.
　　The Amazon Basin is the area of South America drained by the Amazon River and its many tributaries. Though scientists have postulated that humans settled in this area long ago, there is no evidence to support that large-scale human settlement ever took place in the Amazon Basin.
　　The reasons for this are straight forward. The soil in the basin is not suitable for growing crops. The ground underneath the basin is a mix of thick clay and minerals. There are almost no nutrients for plants to absorb. Moreover, the clay is acidic and damages the root structures of plants. Its hardness prevents roots from digging into the earth.
　　In addition to this, there has been no hard evidence of human settlement in the area. When humans establish colonies or cities they usually leave behind some indication of their presence. In other parts of the world archaeologists have found evidence of tools or remains of dwellings, but there are no such indicators of human existence in the Amazon Basin.
　　If we look at the history of human migration, the areas that could sustain high populations of people all had a ready source of protein nearby. Usually this comes in the form of domesticated animals or coastal areas with access to marine life. The Amazon Basin has neither of these qualities. There are no domesticated animals native to this area and it is far away from the South American coast. Thus it is unlikely that human beings could have survived for long much less established large-scale settlements in this area.
Then you will hear：

Now listen to part of a lecture on the topic you just read about.
[Lecture]
[Essay Topic]
　　Summarize the points made in the lecture you just heard, explaining how they cast doubt on points made in the reading.
　　You must finish your answer in 20 minutes.