Reading · Test 30

You are going to read an article about a sporting event. For questions 31-36, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.

The ultramarathon in the Amazon is one of the toughest footraces in the world. You run 230 kilometres over four days through dense jungle, carrying your kit on your back, in temperatures up to 30 degrees. Why would anyone want to do this? Of course, there’s a competitive element, and most runners have at least some desire to win. There’s also the personal satisfaction of pushing your body to its limits. But these are secondary to the main motivation, which is simply the pleasure of running. This is what really drives people to compete in these extreme events.

My running career had followed a fairly established path, graduating from a relaxed 5k in my local park to a half marathon and, finally, what I saw at the time as my ultimate challenge, the New York Marathon. Except that when I crossed the finish line, it didn’t feel like such a big achievement. I’d trained so well and got so fit that running 42 kilometres no longer felt like a big deal, and I felt I needed more. A friend suggested an ultramarathon, so I signed up for one in the Amazon.

My training programme involved running in the heat and rain as well as building up my fitness. One challenge was to get used to running with a backpack. I knew I would have to carry at least 2.5 litres of water every day, and that’s a lot of weight! Luckily, the human body can adapt quickly. Covering more kilometres in a day wasn’t a huge problem for me. But the tough thing about ultra-running is getting up day after day and persuading your tired, aching body to perform again. This was what really tested me.

I arrived at the base camp on 31 May, three days before the start of the race. My journey there had been long, but fairly straightforward, and I had got a reasonable amount of rest along the way. The tents provided for us were quite big and fairly comfortable. The weather wasn’t brilliant, but the forecast was good, so it wasn’t a huge concern. I spent a lot of time over those few days chatting to the other competitors, comparing notes about training and experience. They were all very friendly and keen to offer help and support, which I hadn’t expected. Then it was time for the race itself.

I knew I would have to deal with running over rough ground, with lots of ups and downs and sometimes in the dark. I was also well prepared for the psychological highs and lows, the inner battle that all runners experience, with one voice in your head telling you to just give up and go home, while the other urges you forward. What I hadn’t bargained for was the physical effect of running with wet feet, due to the many streams we had to cross. My feet were sore and bleeding by the end of day one. In the end, though, it was my legs that let me down. On the third day, they simply couldn’t do any more and I had to stop.

Of course, failing at anything is not as good as winning, but, to my mind, having a go at one of the toughest challenges in the world, even if it ends in failure, is hardly something to be ashamed of. I travelled home with no medal, but by no means defeated. And when friends asked me, ‘Are you going to try an ultramarathon again?’ I had no hesitation in saying ‘no’. I am not sorry that I took part, but have accepted that I have my limits and in future I will be happy to stick to standard marathons!

How did they do that?

It’s impossible, isn’t it? An actor fluently speaking nine languages in a new film? OK. Maybe ‘unlikely’ is the word. And yes, surprise, surprise, he isn’t actually speaking those languages, it’s yet another clever technique developed for video using AI. It makes us believe the impossible.

What is really impossible is trying to keep up with the latest technological advances that affect our viewing experiences. Special effects have come a very long way since the ‘stop trick’ which was first used in 1895 when filming Mary Queen of Scots. The director came up with the idea of stopping the cameras just before the execution and substituting a dummy. (I’m sure the actor was relieved!) In those early days the effects were all created physically, with make-up, different backgrounds, models and trick photography. 37. ‘How did they do that?’ they asked. The question the film companies want us to keep asking.

Then digital got involved. Performance capture (performance what?) dazzled cinemagoers with films like The Polar Express (2004), where magically, it seemed Tom Hanks’ expressions and movements were superimposed on an animated character. 38. Performance capture is the combination of acting with computer animation and gives us remarkably human characters in an animated world. Think of the animals and birds in The Lion King. Some think that the creations are now almost too realistic to be called animations any longer.

In addition to this, high-tech fakery can allow real characters to do any actions they want. 39. What allows this magic to happen is ‘green screen’. This is where actors perform in front of a vividly-bright green background which can later be replaced digitally by almost anything from battle scenes to the interiors of exploding planets! The only limitation is the director’s imagination.

And it is not only the technology that is changing and advancing. It is also the skills of the actors involved. Gone are the days when film actors used costume, make-up and interaction with other actors to create a believable character. 40. Or for performance capture, an actor could be dressed in a skin-tight lycra suit with strange tiny balls stuck all over it to record individual muscle movements. He will again be depending on his imagination, this time perhaps to remember, for example, to touch the brim of an imaginary hat.

41. This uses ‘face manipulation’ technology to match lip movements with words so that we’re convinced that the person is speaking. It is awesome in the real sense of the word and its potential for dubbing foreign language films is enormous. Remember that awkward mismatching of lips and sounds? Soon to be long gone.

But what next? I’m writing this in the present tense, but I know full well that what I record as revolutionary and new will soon become outdated. 42. Will we ever stop asking ‘How did they do that?’ Or maybe there will be an unexpected plot twist and we’ll turn our backs on technology and return to the early days of film. What do you think?