This document consists of 3 printed pages and 1 blank page.
SP (SJF3144) S61188/5
© UCLES 2004
[Turn over
UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE INTERNATIONAL EXAMINATIONS
General Certificate of Education Ordinary Level
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
1115/02, 1120/02, 1123/02
1124/02, 1125/02
Paper 2
October/November 2004
1 hour 30 minutes
INSERT
READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST
This insert contains the passage for comprehension.
2
1120/02/O/N04
1
A thriving coral reef is one of the most glorious sights on our planet. Anyone
swimming underwater near a coral reef for the first time is likely to find it a beautiful
place teeming with life of every description set among a rich and random pattern of
colours. Coral reefs are second only to rain forests in the huge number of plants and
animals they support. Coral animals, the remarkable little creatures that build reefs,
are responsible for creating the largest structures made by life on earth, big enough,
in some cases, to dwarf even the most ambitious buildings constructed by
humankind.
2
There have been people living near coral reefs since prehistoric times, making use
of the rich source of food they provide as well as depending on them for other basic
needs, such as tools made from coral shells and building materials made from the
rock of coral reefs. Coral shells have long been used in decoration, whether as
jewellery or simply to adorn the walls of houses. Even today, coral reefs are still
essential to the way of life of coastal people in the tropics.
3
Just as forest plants have been used for hundreds of years for medicinal purposes
by people living in the rain forests, so some reef plants and animals have been used
by people in coastal communities to help cure diseases like malaria, tuberculosis
and bronchitis. Therefore we should not be surprised at the use of these substances
in human medicine. Plants and animals living in crowded conditions, such as those
on reefs and in rain forests, often produce poisonous substances to defend
themselves against predators. Some of these substances ca