Daily Reads-47 (Level-2): Sources for Reading Comprehension Practice

Sources for Reading Comprehension Practice

When it comes to the verbal section of various competitive exams, Reading Comprehension plays a very important role in making or marring your score. Most students are confused about different sources from where they can do reading comprehension practice. We present this article with links to articles you should read, understand, dissect and discuss to do a thorough Reading comprehension Practice.

In this series of ‘daily reads’ articles, which are meant to help you with Reading Comprehension we have taken special care to include topics from World economy, Indian economy to Sports and Leisure. Make sure you read these articles carefully and are able to clearly pin point the main idea the author is trying to convey in these articles for reading comprehension practice.

Key Learning: Reading Practice Online

Reading Suggestion-1

Article Name: Standing Up for Europe
Author Name: George Soros
Source: The Guardian
Category: World Economy

Summary for this article:

In this article, the writer says how Europe is in existential danger and hence saving the EU must take precedence.This existential danger that EU faces us partly external and also internal. He goes on to say how the eurozone had become the exact opposite of what it was originally intended for.
If the EU continues to function the same way as presently, then there is little hope for improvement. The Union needs to be radically reinvented. Europe needs a collaborative effort that combines both the top-down and the bottom up approach.
The EU should approach the Brexit negotiations in a constructive spirit to avoid the diversion of its attention from reinventing itself.EU should make itself attractive again to welcome the younger generation by giving them hopes for a better future.
The author concludes by saying that though the path is perilous, yet he can clearly see in such struggles the prospect of the EU’s revival

Words to learn from this article:

Existential: Relating to existence
Nefarious:Someone’s actions are known to be nefarious if they are evil

Reading Suggestion-1: Click to read full article

Reading Suggestion-2

Article Name: The myths about money that British voters should reject
Author Name: Ha-Joon Chang
Source: The Guardian
Category: Economy

Summary for this article:

In this article, the writer says how the British economy is held back because of few myths and the necessity of rejecting them all to initiate productive debates.
He talks about the four myths about the British economy.
The first is that there is an inherent virtue in balancing the books. The conservatives favour the idea of eliminating the budget deficit, however in today’s UK economy, some deficit may be good – necessary, even.
The second myth is that the UK welfare state is especially large.The conservatives believe that the UK welfare state is large and needs to be cut and the Labour party partly buying into this idea. The reality is that the UK welfare state is not large at all.
The third myth is that welfare spending is consumption. with the conservatives saying that cuts in things such as disability benefit, unemployment benefit, child care and free school meals has to be accepted simply because it cannot be afforded.
The labour party implicitly supporting this myth.
However, a lot of welfare spending is investment that pays back more than it costs.
The last myth is that tax is a burden, which therefore by definition needs to be minimised. The question here, the writer says should be whether the government is providing services of satisfactory quality, given the tax receipts, not what the level of tax is.
The author concludes by saying that the Britishers have to do away with these myths about tax and spending in order to completely move on from the bankrupt neoliberal consensus.

Words to learn from this article:

Neoliberal: Favouring free-market capitalism
Fiscal: Felating to government treasury

Reading Suggestion-2: Click to read full article

Reading Suggestion-3

Article Name: Knowing the Score by David Papineau review – sport meets philosophy
Author Name: William Skidelsky
Source: The Guardian
Category: Sports and Leisure