MCS-015 : COMMUNICATION SKILLS,JUNE-2006

MCA (Revised)
Term-End Examination
June, 2006

MCS-015 : COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Time : 2 hours Maximum Marks : 50

Note : Answer all questions.

1. Read the following passage and answer the questions given after it :

Finally, a virus infects a worm and it has nothing to do with computers. But it does have a lot to do with humans. Courtney Wilkins, a microbiology and immunology student at the University of Arkansas, successfully infected the ... elegans earthworm with the mammalian vesicular stomatitis virus and had it replicate. Others had tried and failed before and Wilkins' breakthrough will let researchers learn more about how viruses move from one host to another, and what proteins they attach to jn humans. Some cells in C elegans, a microscopic earthworm commonly used in biomedical research, are similar to some human cells.

“There were a lot of labs interested in whether this could work, so it just seemed pretty exciting,”- she said Since January 2002, Wilkins began studying whether she
could infect the worms with a virus and have the virus spread. She usually worked with muscle or intestinal cells and eventually settled on using the vesicular stomatitis virus. The virus is related to rabies and similar to foot-and-mouth disease and mostly infects livestock. Wilkins said. It took three to four months to establish the cell cultures. Khaled Machaca, one of Wilkins' advisers and a professor of cell biology, said the experiment wasn't without its rough spots. He said that there were points when he had to remind Wilkins that her decision to undertake the research was a risky one, because it was
unknown whether it would work. And that meant Wilkins" degree was at stake, because her career could be stopped if nothing came of the research, he said. After two years, it was clear that Wilkins was successful in her experiment. Wilkins remembered discovering about 9 pm, one night in 2004 that the VSV had replicated inside the worm cell. She immediately called Marie Chow, a professor of virology and another advisor. "Courtney gets so excited that she starts to stutter, “. Chow said, "She couldn't get the words out, so we knew there was something to it,” she said.

(i) How was the research mentioned in the passage a risky proposition ? 2
(ii) What was the outcome of the research ? 1
(iii) What was the researcher’s reaction to the outcome of the research ? Why was it so ? 2+2
(iv) Find out a word from the passage which has similar meaning as 'spread'. 1
(v) Use livestock' and 'rough spots' in a sentence each of your own to bring out their specific meanings. 2

2. Fill in the blanks choosing the most suitable word from the choices given : 5

(i) They moved ______ their new house two years back, (round/on/over/into)
(ii) Be careful. Your gun should not go _______ accidentally, (away/off/over/on)
(iii) The Government was determined to push the legislation __________ . (through/in/on/off)
(iv) I ran ________ an old friend in Amsterdam. (out/through/into/up)
(v) The flight could not take __________ in time because of the fog. (on/off/up/away)

3. Write down the text of a group discussion between four participants on the need for more strict quality control measures in India. (About 500 words) 10

4. You are Nihal Chand, Managing Director, Purifiers India Ltd. Write a Memo to all the three Managers (sales, Production and Finance) to hold a meeting with them, in a week’s time, for the yearly review of the Company. 10

5. Write a letter of application, together with your Curriculum Vitae (CV) for the job in response to the following advertisement:

“COBOL Programmers, with a minimum 2 years’ experience required by a well known Data Processing Company in Delhi. Apply within 10 days to Box 65, New Delhi-110068."