[413] - Reading - Đọc hiểu 10 câu - Chuyên đề Ôn thi THPT Tiếng Anh năm 2025

[I] A decade ago, most employers would have balked at the idea of employees regularly working from home. One major concern most employers had for working remotely was a loss of productivity. [II] The pandemic showed that employees could work on their own. [III] Prodoscore, for example, reported that remote workers’ productivity increased 47 percenat during the lockdown in March and April 2020, finding out that communication activities such as emailing, telephoning and chat messaging all climbed. [IV]
Other recent studies indicate that remote work options increase job satisfaction. Buffer’s 2023 State of Remote Work report found that 91 percent of survey respondents enjoyed working remotely, with flexibility listed as the biggest benefit. Additionally, in 2022, McKinsey surveyed 25,000 workers across a range of industries about their remote work experience. According to the study, seeking out flexible work environments is the third reason why people search for new jobs (better pay/hours and career opportunities are the others). Remote work is such a large priority for workers that 87 percent of the respondents said that when offered the chance to work remotely, they would take it.
There was a time when remote work as we know it wasn’t even a possibility, because the technology didn’t exist. If your colleagues and business partners wanted to get in touch with you when you were out of the office, they couldn’t email, text or direct message to you. You would’ve needed to provide an alternative phone number or email to have a work-related conversation. “Ten years ago, remote employment basically meant a telemarketing or customer service position at below minimum wage,” said Samantha Lambert, director of human resources at Centific. “It was rarely connected with a full-time career. Now, technology affords us the ability to get the same job done, no matter where in the world we are.”
“The modern workforce is increasingly mobile, collaborative and dynamic, and comprises multi generations, all with different communication preferences,” said Stacey Epstein, chief marketing officer at Freshworks. “These workers span multiple industries … all of whom represent unique challenges when it comes to staying connected while on the job.” However, many companies continue to resist this work trend for various reasons. Some business owners may fear a lack of productivity in their employees, while others haven’t invested in teleconferencing and telework tech to support remote workers. Still, some businesses are making the necessary investments to support remote work.
(Adapted from Think)

MAKING LONDON HEALTHIER
As the capital of the nation where the Industrial Revolution began, London has suffered badly from the effects of pollution. Recent efforts to make the city cleaner, however, are turning it into one of the world's least polluted major cities.
A. A RIVER FILLED WITH LIFE
(I) For years, the River Thames was a health hazard because of pollution, and in 1957 it was declared biologically dead. (II) Half a century later, the Thames has won international prizes for rivers that have been restored. Hundreds of different types of animals and birds now feed on its banks. (III) Over 125 different species of fish swimming beneath its surface, and even seals and dolphins have swum up the river from the coast to visit the centre of the city. (IV)
B. THE GREAT SMOG
Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, Londoners had become used to suffering from coughs and chest infections caused by smog, which is a combination of smoke and fog. However, when the smog of December 1952 caused four thousand deaths in one week, the government finally realised that something had to be done. A series of 'clean-air' laws were passed to avoid a repeat of the tragedy, and since then the quality of London's air has improved greatly, although there is still plenty of work to do.
C. PAYING TO DRIVE
At the beginning of the new millennium, because of the number of vehicles, traffic in London was moving at the same speed that it had moved at a hundred years before, when people travelled in horse-drawn carriages: just 16 km/h. To improve journey times and the quality of London's air, a daily charge of £5 was introduced in 2003 for all vehicles being driven in the city. Not only did the number of cars on the roads immediately drop by 15%, but also the number of people cycling increased by 49%, so people benefitted from cleaner air and more exercise. In the last decade, the number of vehicles in central London has fallen by a further 30% and plans to reduce the number of parking spaces for cars will probably cause it to drop again.

Global warming is a concern to all people throughout the world [I]. And it should be a concern. Not only are people affected by global warming, but there is new evidence that shows people have caused most of the warming changes over recent years. [II] Some, but not all, of greenhouse gas occurs naturally in the atmosphere. As the sun heats the earth responds by returning or radiating some of the sun's energy back into space [III]. As the energy is returned, greenhouse gases in the atmosphere- water vapor, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane-retain some of the heat in the atmosphere and, as a result, make our earth have a warmer temperature than it would without the absorption [IV].
When greenhouse gas increases, the ability of the gas to trap heat increases and the earth's surface temperature becomes warmer. Our earth's surface temperature has been increasing over the past century, especially in the last couple of decades. Many attribute this change to often the amount of carbon dioxide that is emitted into the atmosphere. Changes in emissions began to occur when the Industrial Revolution began in America. America is known as a fossil fuel country because of its use of that kind of fuel in heating homes, powering vehicles, and maintaining factories. Oil, coal, and natural gas are all considered fossil fuels and when these fuels are burned the carbon dioxide they emit is released into the air. The same is true when wood is burned. As carbon dioxide is trapped in the atmosphere, changes in temperature occur.
The causes of something are one matter, but effects are another. When the gasses are absorbed in the atmosphere, climate changes occur. Temperatures rise, evaporation increases, and precipitation also increases to an upward spiral. Sometimes the soil moisture declines and sometimes rainstorms become intense and sea levels rise. What has been observed is the melting of glaciers and decreased amounts of snow-fall in the colder regions of the earth.
Projecting actual changes and the effects of those changes over the next several centuries cannot be accomplished with exactness. Not only will the overall effects be difficult to predict, the real problem comes in predicting the effects on regions and specific localities. For example, the scientists know that if global warming makes the ocean temperatures warmer then the result can be hurricanes of more intensity and frequency. The causes of global warming are known but the exact results and the degrees of the results aren't. Uncertainty as to the gravity and extent of global warming will continue until some certainty is extracted from factual, current, and objective data.
Although uncertainty is a serious concern, there are things people can do. If there is a "no ozone" day in your community, try to adhere to the guidelines set forth by government officials. Don't burn leaves and don't drive unless it is necessary. Carpooling is good not only on "no ozone" days, but all the time. Don't continue to send unnecessary items to the landfills. Recycle. And plant trees- for shade and cooling-as well as for decorative purposes. A better environment can help everyone - now and in the future.