IELTS Testbuilder 2 is designed to improve exam performance and increase competence for success in the international Language Testing System (IELTS). This book is suitable for all students at IELTS Band 4.5 and above.

This volume reports research that informs the development of reading and listening assessment in IELTS. This volume brings together a set of eight IELTS-related research studies - four on reading and four on listening - conducted between 2005 and 2010. Findings from these studies provide valuable evidence on the validity, reliability, impact and practicality of the IELTS test; they are also instrumental in highlighting aspects needing attention, and thus directly inform the continuing evolution of the IELTS reading and listening tests. The volume reviews and comments on the specific contribution of each study to the ongoing process of IELTS reading and listening test design and development.

Bestselling author Alain de Botton considers how our private homes and public edifices influence how we feel, and how we could build dwellings in which we would stand a better chance of happiness. In this witty, erudite look at how we shape, and are shaped by, our surroundings, Alain de Botton applies Stendhal’s motto that “Beauty is the promise of happiness” to the spaces we inhabit daily. Why should we pay attention to what architecture has to say to us? de Botton asks provocatively. With his trademark lucidity and humour, de Botton traces how human needs and desires have been served by styles of architecture, from stately Classical to minimalist Modern, arguing that the stylistic choices of a society can represent both its cherished ideals and the qualities it desperately lacks. On an individual level, de Botton has deep sympathy for our need to see our selves reflected in our surroundings; he demonstrates with great wisdom how buildings — just like friends — can serve as guardians of our identity. Worrying about the shape of our sofa or the colour of our walls might seem self-indulgent, but de Botton considers the hopes and fears we have for our homes at a new level of depth and insight. When shopping for furniture or remodelling the kitchen, we don’t just consider functionality but also the major questions of aesthetics and the philosophy of art: What is beauty? Can beautiful surroundings make us good? Can beauty bring happiness? The buildings we find beautiful, de Botton concludes, are those that represent our ideas of a meaningful life. The Architecture of Happiness marks a return to what Alain does best — taking on a subject whose allure is at once tantalizing and a little forbidding and offering to readers a completely beguiling and original exploration of the subject. As he did with Proust, philosophy, and travel, now he does with architecture.

The Expert Guide from Kaplan for 2021 entry One test stands between you and a place at the medical school of your dreams: the UCAT. With 1,500 questions, test-like practice exams, a question bank, and online test updates, Kaplan’s Score Higher on the UCAT, sixth edition, will help build your confidence and make sure you achieve a high score. We know it's crucial that you go into your UCAT exam equipped with the most up-to-date information available. Score Higher on the UCAT comes with access to additional online resources, including any recent exam changes, hundreds of questions, an online question bank, and a mock online test with full worked answers to ensure that there are no surprises waiting for you on test day. The Most Practice 1,500 questions in the book and online—more than any other UCAT book Three full-length tests: one mock online test to help you practise for speed and accuracy in a test-like interface, and two tests with worked answers in the book Online question bank to fine-tune and master your performance on specific question types Expert Guidance The authors of Score Higher on the UCAT have helped thousands of students prepare for the exam. They offer invaluable tips and strategies for every section of the test, helping you to avoid the common pitfalls that trip up other UCAT students. We invented test preparation—Kaplan (www.kaptest.co.uk) has been helping students for 80 years. Our proven strategies have helped legions of students achieve their dreams.