Cambridge IELTS Academic 11 Reading Test 1 Answers with Explanation / IELTS Academic Reading: Crop-growing Skyscrapers , The Falkirk Wheel , Reducing the effects of climate change

READING PASSAGE 1

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13, which are based on Reading Passage 1.

Crop-growing Skyscrapers

ANSWER	KEYWORDS	LOCATIONS	EXPLANATION
1. tomatoes	already grown indoors	p2, L3	The concept of indoor farming is not new, since hothouse production of tomatoes and other produce has been in vogue for some time”. This means that tomatoes, along with other produce, have been produced in heated houses (indoors) for a long period of time. = already = not new = in vogue for some time “grown indoors = hothouse production”
2 urban centres/centers	Vertical farm	p2, L16	“One such proposal is for the “Vertical Farm”. The concept is of multi-storey buildings in which food crops are grown in environmentally controlled conditions. Situated in the heart of urban centres,” Located= situated, so the answer is….. urban centres
3 energy	methane	P4, L17	“Methane” keyword is found in paragraph 4. It says “Although the system would consume energy, it would return energy to the grid via methane generation from composting non-edible parts of plants” so the answer is ……………: energy
4 fossil fuel	vehicles ( look for synonym),consumption, cut	P4, L20	“It would also dramatically reduce fossil fuel use, by cutting out the need for tractors, ploughs and shipping” Vehicles = tractors, consumption = use Cut = reduce So the answer is ………….. fossil fuels
5 artificial	light, disadvantage	P5, L3	“A major drawback of vertical farming, however, is that the plants would require artificial light” need = require Disadvantage = drawback
6 (stacked) trays	One form, planting, not fixed.	P6, L3	“One variation on vertical farming that has been developed is to grow plants in stacked trays that move on rails” One form = One variation (synonym keywords not exact keywords)
7 (urban) rooftops	grown on, towns and cities	P7, L14	“Most experts currently believe it is far more likely that we will simply use the space available on urban rooftops” towns and cities = urban
8 NOT GIVEN	recently changed	P1, L1-12	Not mention any methods of predicting the earth’s population
9 TRUE	Methods for predicting	P1, L15-17	Some 15% of that has been laid waste (destruction) by poor management practices (human)
10 FALSE.	depend, seasons, produced	P4, L3-6	“sustainable production of a safe and varied food supply (through year-round production of all crops).’’ That means it never depend on season, it grows year round- all the year. Depend on season = through year round. So information contradict.
11 TRUE	climate change	P4, L6-8	There would be no weather-related (climate change) crop failures (damage) due to droughts, floods or pests. This line means some corps damage by climate condition like – drought, flood etc. Or, (P3, L19-23) Massive floods, long droughts, hurricanes and severe monsoons (Climate Change) take their toll each year, destroying (damage) millions of tons of valuable crops.
12 FALSE.	fertilizers	P4, L9-11	All the food could be grown organically, eliminating the need for herbicides, pesticides and fertilisers. The statement provides contradictory idea.
13 TRUE	infectious diseases	P4, L12-15	The system would greatly reduce (less likely) the incidence (affected) of many infectious diseases that are acquired at the agricultural interface.

 

 

READING PASSAGE 2

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14–26, which are based on Reading Passage 2 .

The Falkirk Wheel

ANSWER	KEYWORD	LOCATIONS	EXPLANATIONS
14 FALSE	has linked, first time	P2, L 10-11	Historically, the two canals had been joined near the town of Falkirk by a sequence of 11 locks – enclosed sections of canal in which the water level could be raised or lowered- that stepped down across a distance of 1.5 km. This has been dismantled in 1933, .. … .” These lines mean that both the canals had been linked before, so this is not the first time.
15 NOT GIVEN	opposition, design	P3, L1-7	According to paragraph 3, many ideas were submitted for the project but the writer does not show whether anyone opposed the plan that was approved.
16 TRUE	put together, location, components	P4, L1-9	The various parts of the Falkirk Wheel were all constructed and assembled at Butterley Engineering’s Steelworks in Derbyshire…” put together = assembled, components = parts, manufactured = constructed
17 NOT GIVEN	only, by hand	P4, L15-21	“Over 45,000 bolt holes were matched with their bolts, and each bolt was hand-tightened.” So, the writer does mention about bolts being hand-tightened. But, we do not find any information which confirms that it was the only boat with such unique feature.
18 FALSE	weight, varies.	P5, L4-6	These gondolas always weigh the same, whether or not they are carrying boats.” It means that the weight is always the same.
19 TRUE	construction, monument	P7, L3-7	“the Wheel could not be constructed to elevate boats over the full 35-metre difference between the two canals, owing to the presence of historically important Antonine Wall”. So, we can understand form here that the construction of the Wheel is influenced by the presence of an ancient monument.
20 gates	a pair, lifted	P6, L4-6	“Two hydraulic steel gates are raised, so as to seal the gondola off from the water in the canal basin”. Now, here we find some matches with keywords. a pair of = two lifted = raised * shut out water = seal off from water
21 clamp	taken out, rotate	P6, L8-11	“A hydraulic clamp ______ , is removed, allowing the Wheel to turn”. taken out = removed, rotate = turn
22 axle	drive	P6, L12-13	“In the central machine room an array of ten hydraulic motors then begins to rotate the central axle“. means that the hydraulic motors drive the axle by rotating it.
23 cogs	different-sized, upright	P6, L19-22	“As the wheel rotates, the gondolas are kept in the upright position by a simple gearing system. Two eight-metre-wide cogs orbit a fixed inner cog of the same width connected by two smaller cogs…..” Here, the writer says that the writer illustrates the gearing system which comprises many cogs of different sizes. So, the word in the blank is cogs.
24 aqueduct	moves directly onto	P6, L25-29	“When the gondola reaches the top, the boat passes straight onto the aqueduct situated 24 metres above the canal basin”. move onto=pass onto, directly=straight
25 wall	beneath, Roman	P7, L9-11	“This wall” indicates to the wall built by the Romans in the 2nd century AD
26 locks	raise, reach	P7, L1-3	“The remaining 11 metres of lift needed to reach the Union Canal is achieved by a pair of locks“. So, here it means that the locks actually lifts or raises boat.

READING PASSAGE 3

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27–40, which are based on Reading Passage 3 .

Reducing the effects of climate change

Answer	Keywords	Location	Explanations
27. D	geo-engineering, earlier natural phenomenon	paragraph D, lines 3-4	“The idea is modelled on historic volcanic explosions, such as that of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in o 1992, which led to a short-term cooling of global temperatures by 0.5 C. So, the “earlier natural phenomenon” = “historic volcanic explosions”. based on=modelled on, earlier=historic
28. B	successful use, geo-engineering	paragraph B lines 1-2	“Geo-engineering has been shown to work, at least on a small localized scale. For decades, May Day parades in Moscow have taken place under clear blue skies, aircraft having deposited dry ice, silver iodide and cement powder to disperse cloud.’’ We can easily find here the example of a successful use of geo-engineering.
29. A	common, definition	paragraph A lines 7-8	geo-engineering – a term which generally refers to the intentional large-scale manipulation of the environment.” Here, refers to = means / defines
30. sunshade	create, would reduce, light reaching earth	paragraph B, line 6	His scheme would employ up to 16 trillion minute spacecraft, each weighing about one gram, to form a transparent, sunlight-refracting sunshade in an orbit 1.5 million km above the Earth. This could, argues Angel, reduce the amount of light reaching the Earth by two per cent.” tiny = minute, create = form, far above Earth = 1.5 million km above the Earth
31. iron	place, the sea	paragraph C, line 2	“…. . . and depositing iron in the ocean to stimulate the growth of algae – …”. depositing = place, ocean = the sea
32. algae	encourage, to form	paragraph C, line 2	“…. . . and depositing iron in the ocean to stimulate the growth of algae – …”. to stimulate the growth = encourage, to form
33. clouds	create, would reduce,	paragraph D, line 1, 3	“… .. .. so that sulphur dioxide would form clouds which would, in turn, lead to a global dimming.” create = form, reduce the amount of light reaching Earth = a global dimming,
34. cables	fix, strong, Greenland ice sheets	paragraph D, line 5	“Scientists have also scrutinized whether it’s possible to preserve the ice sheets of Greenland with reinforced high-tension cables, preventing icebergs from moving into the sea.” strong = reinforced
35. snow	allow, reflect, radiation	End of paragraph D	“Meanwhile in the Russian Arctic, geo-engineering plans include the planting of millions of birch trees. Whereas the region’s native evergreen pines shade the snow and absorb radiation, birches would shed their leaves in winter, thus enabling radiation to be reflected by the snow.” So, planting trees would allow snow to reflect radiation. lose = shed, allow = enable
36. rivers	change, direction, to bring	End of paragraph D	“Re-routing Russian rivers to increase cold water flow to ice-forming areas could also be used to slow down warming, say some climate scientists.” change the direction of = re-route, bring more cold water = increase cold water flow
37. B	effects, not long-lasting	paragraph E	“I think all of us agree that if we were to end geo-engineering on a given day, then the planet would return to its pre-engineered condition very rapidly… . . .. ” This means that once geo-engineering does its job, the effects of it on the planet may end, too. In other words, “the effects of geo-engineering may not be long-lasting”
38. D	worth exploring	last paragraph	“Human-induced climate change has brought humanity to a position where we shouldn’t exclude thinking thoroughly about this topic and its possibilities.” worth exploring=shouldn’t exclude thinking thoroughly
39. C	limit	paragraph G	“To avoid such a scenario, Lunt says Angel’s project would have to operate at half strength; all of which reinforces his view that the best option is to avoid the need for geo- engineering altogether.” limit the effectiveness = operate at half strength
40. A	non-fossil-based fuels	paragraph E	Angel says that his plan is “no substitute for developing renewable energy, the only ‘permanent solution’.” non-fossil-based fuels = renewable energy, cannot be replaced = no substitute for