Questões de Inglês para Concurso

A revolution in communication

When cell phones first became available in the 1980s, they were considered to be expensive playthings for business people. No one thought that they were going to change the world. People knew that the internet had the power to transform lives, but the expectation was that this would happen through the dissemination of personal computers. However, it is now predicted that by 2020, cell phones will have replaced laptops as the main point of access to the internet worldwide. So, why will more people be using cell phones than laptop computers in the future? One reason is that the price of even a fairly cheap laptop makes it inaccessible for a lot of people in developing countries. Computers rely on a regular power supply, which is a problem in many developing countries where outages are frequent, and internet connections unreliable. Cell phones, on the other hand, are cheap to buy (especially recycled ones), require little electricity for recharging, and have good access to the internet in most parts of the world via cell phone networks. It is therefore cell phones, rather than computers, which are revolutionizing life and communication in many developing countries.

How cell phones are transforming the developing world

NextDrop is an app which is now being used in rural parts of India. In many parts of the country, people rely on weekly or twice weekly deliveries of clean water. The problem is that villagers never know exactly when deliveries will take place, meaning that they waste time waiting by their village well for the water tanker to turn up. NextDrop is a simple app that sends automatic text messages to people notifying them when their next water delivery will be. It’s a simple idea which greatly improves people’s lives.

Transferring money between countries can be tricky, and this causes problems for the thousands of people who work abroad and need to send money to their families back home. A piece of software called Boom allows Mexicans who work in the US to send money back to family members in Mexico through their cell phones. Once the link is established and the software is installed on both phones, money can be transferred using a simple text message.

Cell phones are also bringing health benefits to developing countries. A project called TulaSalud in Guatemala uses cell phone technology to communicate with nurses in remote areas of the country, who are working to reduce the infant mortality rate. The software allows nurses access to their patients’ medical records wherever they are. The service provides free phone numbers that both nurses and patients can call to ask questions about health.

Maria Neander is a nurse who works on the TulaSalud project.

Before we had TulaSalud, patients’ medical records were only available........ the health center. When I went..........into the villages, I couldn’t take the records with me, so I didn’t know if a woman I was visiting had any health problems. Now I have all.........information I need.............my cell phone. It helps me monitor women during pregnancy, giving them a better chance of having a healthy baby. When I’m with a woman who is giving birth, I have phone numbers that I can use if there are any problems, so I can get help and advice about what to do. TulaSalud has definitely saved lives.

INSTRUCTIONS: Read the text carefully and then answer the questions from 33 to 38 by choosing the correct alternative.

Brazil corruption scandals: All you need to know

For the past three years, Brazil has been gripped by a scandal which started with a state-owned oil company and grew to encapsulate people at the very top of business - and even presidents.

On the face of it, it is a straightforward corruption scandal - albeit one involving millions of dollars in kickbacks and more than 80 politicians and members of the business elite.

But as the tentacles of the investigation dubbed Operation Car Wash fanned out, other scandals emerged.

It has led to some of those who have found themselves accused claiming they are the victims of political plots, designed to bar them from office.

What is Operation Car Wash?

Operation Car Wash began in March 2014 as an investigation into allegations that Brazil's biggest construction firms overcharged state-oil company Petrobras for building contracts.

Investigators accused directors at the firm - named the world's most ethical oil and gas company in 2008 - of skimming the extra money off the top as a bribe for awarding the contract.

Which is bad enough - but then the Workers' Party found itself dragged into the corruption scandal amid allegations of having funneled some of these funds to pay off politicians and buy their votes and help with political campaigns.

Among those accused in the scandal were dozens of politicians, and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva - the country's extremely popular former president, known affectionately as "Lula".