Cambridge IELTS Academic 13 Reading Test 1 Answers with Explanation / IELTS Academic Reading: Bringing cinnamon to Europe , Oxytocin, Making the most of trends

READING PASSAGE 1

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

Bringing cinnamon to Europe

Question Number	Answer	Keywords	Location in Passage	Associated Text
1	oils	Biblical times, added	Paragraph 1, lines 2-4	"It was known in biblical times, and is mentioned in several books of the Bible, both as an ingredient that was mixed with oils for anointing people’s bodies..."
2	friendship	used, show, between people	Paragraph 1, line 4	"...people’s bodies and also as a token indicating friendship among lovers and friends."
3	funerals	Ancient Rome, used, sweet smell	Paragraph 1, lines 5-6	"In ancient Rome, mourners attending funerals burnt cinnamon to create a pleasant scent."
4	wealth	Middle ages, food, meat, indication	Paragraph 1, lines 7-9	"At a banquet, a host would offer guests a plate with spices piled upon it as a sign of the wealth at his or her disposal."
5	indigestion	treatment, other health problems	Paragraph 1, lines 11-12	"Cinnamon was also reported to have health benefits, and was thought to cure various ailments, such as indigestion."
6	India	Middle ages, grown	Paragraph 2, line 6	"They took it from India, where it was grown..."
7	camels	merchants, bring, Mediterranean	Paragraph 2, lines 6-7	"At that time, cinnamon was transported by Arab merchants, who closely guarded the secret of the source of the spice from potential rivals... They took it from India, where it was grown, on camels via an overland route to the Mediterranean."
8	Alexandria	arrived in, Mediterranean	Paragraph 2, line 6	"Their journey ended when they reached Alexandria."
9	Venice	traders, took, sold, destinations, Europe	Paragraph 2, lines 6-8	"European traders sailed there to purchase their supply of cinnamon, then brought it back to Venice. The spice then traveled from that great trading city to markets all around Europe."
10	TRUE	Portuguese, control, Ceylon, 16th century	Paragraph 3, lines 10-12	"In 1518, the Portuguese built a fort on Ceylon, which enabled them to protect the island, so helping them to develop a monopoly in the cinnamon trade and generate very high profits. In the late 16th century, for example, they enjoyed a tenfold profit..."
11	FALSE	The Dutch, cinnamon trade, the Portuguese, as soon as, arrived	Paragraph 4, lines 5-6	"...By 1640, the Dutch broke the 150-year Portuguese monopoly when they overran and occupied their factories."
12	NOT GIVEN	trees, the Dutch, larger quantities, wild trees	Paragraph 5	-
13	FALSE	spice trade, maintained, economic importance, 19th

Question Number	Answer	Keywords	Location in Passage	Associated Text
13	FALSE	spice trade, maintained, economic importance, 19th century	Paragraph 6, lines 2-7	"By the middle of the 19th century, production of cinnamon reached 1000 tons a year, after a lower grade quality of the spice became acceptable to European tastes... Not only was a monopoly of cinnamon becoming impossible, but also the spice trade overall was diminishing in economic

 

READING PASSAGE 2

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

Oxytocin

Question Number	Answer	Keywords	Location in Passage	Associated Text
14	B	research, beneficial effects, people	Paragraph B, lines 10-11	"These follow-up studies have shown that after a sniff of the hormone, people become more charitable, better at reading emotions on others’ faces and at communicating constructively in arguments."
15	F	effects of oxytocin, complex	Paragraph F	"Perhaps we should not be surprised that the oxytocin story has become more perplexing."
16	B	period, oxytocin, little attention	Paragraph B, lines 7-8	"For eight years it was quite a lonesome field..."
17	E	ignoring, certain aspects, research data	Paragraph E, lines 3-4	"Where once researchers took no notice of such findings..."
18	A	more trusting, affected by oxytocin	Paragraph B	"In a groundbreaking experiment, Markus Heinrichs and his colleagues at the University of Freiburg, Germany, asked volunteers to do an activity in which they could invest money with an anonymous person who was not guaranteed to be honest... These follow-up studies have shown that after a sniff of the hormone, people become more charitable, better at reading emotions on others’ faces and at communicating constructively in arguments."
19	B	oxytocin, increases, jealousy	Paragraph C, lines 3-4	"...those who inhaled the hormone showed more pleasure when they beat other players and felt more envy when others won."
20	C	effect, varies, one type to another	Paragraph C, lines 4-8	"What’s more, administrating oxytocin also has sharply contrasting outcomes depending on a person’s disposition. Jennifer Bartz from Monti Sinai School of Medicine, New York found that it improves people’s ability to emotions, but only if they are not very socially adept to begin with."
21	animals	earliest findings, involving	Paragraph A, lines 2-3	"It was through various studies focusing on animals that scientists first became aware of the influence of oxytocin."
22	childbirth	discovered, humans produce oxytocin, during	Paragraph A, lines 5-6	"It is also released by women in childbirth, strengthening the attachment between mother and baby."
23	placebo	2005, participants, oxytocin or	Paragraph B, lines 4-6	"The team found that participants who had sniffed oxytocin via a nasal spray beforehand invested more money than those who received a placebo instead."
24	game	study, University of Haifa, participants took part, negative emotions	Paragraph C, lines 2-4	"found that when volunteers played a competitive game, those who inhaled the hormone showed more pleasure when they beat other players and felt more envy when others won."
25	strangers	University of Antwerp, lack of willingness	Paragraph D, lines 2-4	"Studies conducted by Carolyn Declerck of the University of Antwerp, Belgium, revealed that people who had received a dose of oxytocin actually became less cooperative when dealing with complete strangers."

READING PASSAGE 3

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

 

Making the most of trends

Question Number	Answer	Keywords	Location in Passage	Associated Text
27	D	first paragraph, most managers	Paragraph 1, Lines 3-4	"that managers often fail to recognise the less obvious but profound ways these trends are influencing consumers’ aspirations, attitudes and behaviors."
28	C	third paragraph, Coach, anxious	Paragraph 3, Lines 6-7	"that would have risked cheapening the brand’s image"
29	A	Tesco’s Greener Living Programme	Paragraph 4, Lines 7-9	"Tesco has not abandoned its traditional retail offerings but augmented its business with these innovations, thereby infusing its value proposition with a green streak."
30	D	Nike’s strategy	Paragraph 5, Lines 4-5	"spending resources to incorporate elements of a seemingly irrelevant trend into one’s core offerings sounds like it’s hardly worthwhile."
31	D	original about ME2	Paragraph 6, Lines 4-7	"By reaffirming the toy category’s association with physical play, the ME2 counteracted some of the widely perceived negative impacts of digital gaming devices."
32	D	could have harmful effects, own advantage	Paragraph 6, Lines 4-6	"By reaffirming the toy category’s association with physical play, the ME2 counteracted some of the widely perceived negative impacts of digital gaming devices."
33	C	collaborating with another manufacturer	Paragraph 5, Lines 6-7	"In 2006, they teamed up with the technological company Apple to launch Nike+."
34	B	incentive scheme, demonstrate corporate social responsibility	Paragraph 4, Lines 5-7	"Tesco customers can accumulate points for such activities as reusing bags, recycling, cans and printer cartridges, and buying home-insulation materials. Like points earned on regular purchases, these green points can be redeemed for cash."
35	A	customers, positive attitude, difficult circumstances	Paragraph 3, Lines 7-8	"project which revealed that customers were eager to lift themselves and the country out of rough times."
36	C	growing lifestyle trend, unrelated product sector	Paragraph 5, Lines 4-5	"spending resources to incorporate elements of a seriously irrelevant trend into one’s core offerings."
37	A	change customers less for its core products	Paragraph 3, Lines 10-11	"Creating the sub-brand allowed Coach to avert an across-the-board product."
38	B	trend-related changes, impacting, category	Paragraph 7, Lines 1-2	"Once you have gained perspective on how trend-related changes in consumer opinions and behaviors impact on your category, you can determine which of our three innovation strategies to pursue."

Question Number	Answer	Keywords	Location in Passage	Associated Text
39	C	current trend, highlights, negative aspect, category	Paragraph 7, Last few lines	"...if aspects of the category clash with undesired outcomes of a trend, such as associates with unhealthy lifestyles, there is an opportunity to counteract these changes by reaffirming the core values of your category."
40	D	customers’ new focus, increasing lack of connection	Paragraph 7, Lines 5-6	"If analysis reveals an increasing disparity between your category and consumers’ new focus, your innovations need to transcend the category to integrate the two worlds."