Solution for: CBT GT Reading Test 23: The Fun Way To Save

THE FUN WAY TO SAVE!

Join the Woolwich for Kids Club and you can save money and earn interest.

And you will have a lot of fun besides! As a club member, you will have your own passbook with a wallet to keep it in and your own special money box. Until you are thirteen we will send you the club magazine, edited by Henry's Cat, every six months. It is full of fun and games, news, quizzes, things to do and see, and great competitions to enter. When it is your birthday, Henry's Cat will send you a special birthday card.

If you are sixteen or under, Woolwich for Kids Club is specially for you. It's the fun way to save!

MEDICARE — YOUR HEALTH INSURER

What does Medicare cover?

Doctors

Medicare helps pay for the doctor to treat you at the doctor's surgery or wherever you need treatment. Medicare helps pay for treatment by a specialist. If you need to see a specialist, you must be referred by your doctor.

Other medical services

• X-rays
• pathology tests
• medical tests, examinations and procedures

Optometrists

Medicare helps pay for eye tests, but not for the cost of glasses or contact lenses.

Dentists

Routine dental services are not covered. However, some medical-type operations performed by approved dentists are covered.

Hospitals — Public patient

If you choose to be treated under Medicare as a public patient in a public hospital, Medicare will cover all hospital costs. You pay nothing.

Hospitals — Private patient

If you choose to be treated as a private patient in any hospital, Medicare will help to pay for services by your doctor. However, Medicare will not pay for expenses such as theatre fees or your accommodation. These charges can be covered by arranging private health insurance.

INTERNATIONAL POSTAL SERVICES

GETTING THE PRICE RIGHT

It pays to get the postage right when you're sending mail abroad. Anything intended for airmail but underpaid stands the risk of being sent by surface mail instead. So make sure that you check the postage when mailing abroad.

STAMP BOOKS

For extra convenience, remember international stamp books. There are two available: 4 x 41p stamps with airmail labels, for sending 10 g letters anywhere outside Europe; and 4 x 35p stamps with airmail labels, for sending postcards to anywhere in the world.

PRIORITY TREATMENT — PRIORITY SERVICES FOR YOUR INTERNATIONAL MAIL

These three new services incorporate the latest barcode technology to track and trace your mail up to despatch from the United Kingdom.

1. INTERNATIONAL RECORDED — Peace of mind when posting abroad

Like using recorded delivery in Britain, this service gives you a signature on delivery and is recommended for items of little or no monetary value sent worldwide. Valuable items should be sent by the international registered service. Priced at £2.50 per item plus airmail postage, it provides compensation to a maximum of £25. Advice of delivery is available for an extra 40p.

2. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED — Greater security for your valuables

Gives you extra security in the UK and abroad, and a signature on delivery. Available to 140 destinations, it costs £3.00 plus airmail postage for compensation up to £500; £4.00 plus airmail postage for compensation up to £1000. Lower limits apply to some destinations; to others, registered is not available. Please check at your local post office. Advice of delivery is available for an extra 40p.

3. SWIFTAIR — The express airmail service

Although it is not a courier service, and therefore cannot guarantee delivery the following day, Swiftair is faster than ordinary airmail, international recorded and international registered. It is the economical alternative to courier services when next-day delivery is not essential. Price £2.70 plus airmail postage.

SCHOOL EXCURSIONS

A — Ancient and Modern Museum
This is a museum with a difference. Along with the usual historical exhibits, this museum features an up-to-date display of hands-on information technology.

B — Shortlands Wildlife Park
This is not the usual "animal gaol". Here exotic animals wander free in large compounds, separated in such a way that they cannot harm one another.

C — Botanical Gardens
Besides the many exotic plants one expects to see in a botanical garden, these gardens feature an array of native birds and other wildlife.

D — Wax World
If you are interested in seeing how people used to live and dress, Wax World is the place for you. Featuring over 100 wax models of famous people, this venue is well suited to anyone interested in changing trends in clothing.

E — The Central Art Gallery
The art gallery has six chambers, each exhibiting paintings from different periods, from the Middle Ages to the present. The walking tour, recorded on tape, is designed for visitors interested in art history and criticism.

F — Technology Park
In the planetarium you can observe features of the night sky and learn about historical events such as the origin of the Crab Nebula. This excursion also includes a visit to the Satellite Mapping Centre.

G — Parliament
Students are met at the entrance by ushers who show them around the Houses. The tour includes the Hansard library, the grand lounge, government and opposition offices and the public gallery.

H — St. Cedric's Cathedral
With the Bishop's Throne as its central feature, this building is a classic example of the excesses of architecture. This excursion is a must for any student interested in sculpture and stained glass as art forms.

I — The Light Fantastic
Find out about the fascinating process of candle making. This factory also illustrates the diverse uses that candles and other wax products can have—from the projection of film to their use in sculpture and decoration.

J — Trolland's Caves
These caves, situated below the hills to the north of the city, are entered via the Widmore River. The caves are home to colonies of glow worms that shine like stars on the ceilings and walls, casting an eerie light on the many stalagmites and stalactites.

VOCATIONAL TRAINING

Technical and Further Education

Australia's Technical and Further Education (TAFE) sector is a nationally recognised government system of vocational education and training and is the major provider of the skills required by the Australian workforce.

TAFE is the largest of the tertiary education sectors in Australia. It accounts for approximately 70 per cent of post-secondary education enrolments. There are 232 major TAFE colleges in Australia.

Although each state and territory administers its own system of TAFE, the qualifications they award are transferable throughout Australia. Although TAFE colleges cannot award tertiary-level degrees, some TAFE courses permit TAFE graduates to be admitted with advanced standing into degree courses offered by universities.

TAFE courses provide initial and further education at professional, para-professional, post-trade, trade and operative level. TAFE courses are developed in collaboration with industry and the community to ensure the most up-to-date education and training is provided.

Private Post-secondary Institutions

These private institutions are like TAFE colleges because they teach special skills for jobs, but each one usually specialises in courses for one industry.

There are many private institutions in Australia offering a wide range of courses: English language (ELICOS, see Chapter 6), secretarial studies, data processing, pilot training, business and management, recreational courses and religious studies. Other courses are listed in Chapter 7, Special Studies.

If you successfully complete these courses you receive a qualification called a certificate or diploma. These are widely recognised by professional associations and industries in Australia, and are sometimes recognised by higher education institutions for credit. Before you undertake a course at a private post-secondary institution, you should check that the certificate or diploma offered is appropriate for your particular purpose because some private institutions offer courses which are not recognised. If you want to enter a higher education institution from a private post-secondary institution, you should ask the higher education institution whether it accepts the qualification before you start your course.

UNDERGROUND CITIES — JAPAN'S ANSWER TO OVERCROWDING

A nation running out of room seeks a down-to-earth solution.

The Japanese may find a solution to the nation's space shortage right beneath their feet. Some of Japan's largest construction companies are planning underground cities that would not only ease urban crowding but also provide protection against earthquakes and increase energy efficiency.

Japan's soaring real-estate prices provide reason enough. In a country with nearly half as many people as the United States, but squeezed onto an archipelago which is only one hundredth the size, land shortages have led to construction becoming prohibitively expensive.

Another plus for subterranean construction is that underground earth movement during an earthquake is far less than at the surface. In addition, the near-constant underground temperature would reduce fuel costs because underground areas would need much less heating in winter and less cooling in summer.

Taisei Corporation of Tokyo is planning a network of 'Alice Cities', named after the fictional Lewis Carroll heroine who fell down a rabbit hole into a wonderland. Taisei proposes turning cramped downtowns into airy underground spaces connected by subway trains and subterranean roads. The cities will be designed for self-sufficiency, but could be linked to sister cities by underground railway. Although some buildings and roads would remain above ground, much surface space would be freed up for trees and public parks.

Each Alice City would be divided into three sectors. The first sector, Town Space, would contain underground boulevards and plazas free of automobile traffic, with shopping malls, entertainment complexes and fitness centres. The second, Office Space, would contain business operations, hotels and parking lots, as well as residential areas for some workers. The third, Infrastructure Space, would contain facilities for power generation, heating and air-conditioning, waste recycling and sewage treatment.

Existing cities could be redeveloped beneath the surface using the Alice system. Downtown areas could remain above ground in a modified form, while most future growth could be accommodated underground.

An alternative is the Shimizu Corporation's proposed Urban Geo Grid, a vast network of smaller subterranean city spaces linked by tunnels. The project would cover 485 square miles and accommodate half a million people.

The Urban Geo Grid provides for a more complicated interaction of many underground spaces over a larger area. Each 'grid station'—a complex of underground offices, shopping malls and hotels—would connect to several smaller 'grid points' providing local services such as public baths and convenience stores. The Grid would provide road and rail transport, communication and energy supply within and between cities. Individual facilities for power generation and waste treatment would be smaller but more numerous.

Whichever concept is ultimately used, one obstacle must be overcome before Japanese cities have real 'downtowns': geology. Japan's densely populated lowlands are mostly founded on loose geologic strata, making underground construction particularly difficult. Japanese construction firms are therefore conducting extensive research and development on drilling, excavation and underground construction technologies.

Some technology is already available. Robots similar to those used to build the Channel Tunnel could be used in some areas. It is anticipated that within 10 to 15 years most remaining technological obstacles will be overcome. Underground city spaces in Japan are therefore coming much closer to reality.