Cambridge IELTS General Training 15 Reading Test 1 Answers with Explanation / Consumer advice, Rice cookers,Safety when working,Maternity Allowance, The California Gold Rush

Consumer advice

Question No.	Answer	Keywords	Location	Explanation
1	NOT GIVEN	receive a card, item, left with, neighbour	Paragraph 1, Lines 3-5	"If your item wasn’t delivered to the location you agreed (e.g. if it was left with your neighbour without your consent), it’s the seller’s legal responsibility to sort out the issue." However, there is no mention of receiving a card in such cases.
2	NOT GIVEN	may be, quicker, refund, replacement, non-delivered item	Paragraph 2	"The paragraph talks about ‘replacement or refund’, but does not specify which one is quicker for a non-delivered item."
3	TRUE	entitled to a refund, item, fails to arrive, certain time	Paragraph 2, Lines 1-2	"You can ask for your money back if you don’t receive the item within 30 days of buying it." This confirms that a refund is granted if the item fails to arrive within a specified timeframe.
4	TRUE	time limit, chargeback scheme, debit card payment	Paragraph 3, Bullet Point 1	"If you paid by debit card, contact your bank and say you want to use the ‘chargeback’ scheme. . . . You should do this within 120 days of when you paid." This confirms the existence of a time limit.
5	FALSE	chargeback scheme, credit card payment, more than £100	Paragraph 3, Bullet Point 2	"If you paid by credit card and the item cost less than £100, you should contact your credit card company and say you want to use the ‘chargeback’ scheme." This contradicts the idea that it applies to payments over £100.
6	NOT GIVEN	Paypal’s online resolution centre, good reputation, efficiency	Paragraph 3, Bullet Point 3	"If you paid using PayPal, use PayPal’s online resolution centre to report your dispute. You must do this within 180 days of paying." There is no mention of the centre’s reputation for efficiency.

Rice cookers  

Question No.	Answer	Keywords	Location	Explanation
7	D	handles, side, hard to use	Description of ‘VPN Rice Cooker’, last lines	"... and the handles are tricky to grip."
8	E	cooks, brown rice, without, making a mess	Description of ‘S16 Rice Cooker’, first line	"This is simple to use, not spitting or boiling over even when cooking brown rice."
9	B	automatically switches setting, keep the rice warm, when cooked	Description of ‘Family Rice Cooker’, last lines	"... It’s programmed to adjust the temperature once the rice is done so that it stops cooking but doesn’t get cold."
10	A	difficult, get, removable top, really clean	Description of ‘Ezy Rice Cooker’, last lines	"... There are slight dirt traps around the rim of the lid, and neither the pot nor the lid is dishwasher safe."
11	D	A selection of recipes, provided with the cooker	Description of ‘VPN Rice Cooker’, lines 2-3	"... and comes with a booklet including a range of ideas for rice dishes."
12	B	a handle, at the top, carrying the cooker, safely	Description of ‘Family Rice Cooker’, lines 1-2	"... The lid locks when closed and becomes a secure handle to carry the cooker."
13	E	outside, cooker, doesn’t get, too hot	Description of ‘S16 Rice Cooker’, lines 2-3	"... The exterior stays cool when in use, so there’s no danger of burning your hand."
14	C	can put the pot, in, the dishwasher	Description of ‘Mini Rice Cooker’, lines 1-2	"... The interior pot is made of non-stick aluminum and is dishwasher safe."

Safety when working on roofs

Question No.	Answer	Keywords	Location	Explanation (mention line number and paragraph)
15	3/three metres/meters	over half, falls, less than	Paragraph 1, lines 2-4	“Investigations by WorkSafe into falls that occur while working at height show that more than 50 per cent of falls are from under three metres.” Here, more than 50 per cent of falls = over half of falls, under = less than.
16	residential building sites	majority, falls, occur on	Paragraph 1, lines 6-7	“More injuries happen on residential building sites than any other workplace in the construction sector.” Here, More injuries happen on = the majority of falls occur on.
17	eliminate	hazard, planning stage, before, work begins, if possible	Paragraph 3, first line	“The first thing to be considered is whether it is possible to eliminate this hazard completely, so that workers are not exposed to the danger of falling.” Here, whether it is possible = if possible, design, construction planning, and tendering stage = at the planning stage.
18	(temporary) (work) platforms	prevent, fall, edge protection, scaffolding, or	Paragraph 3, lines 5-6	“It may be possible to use the existing scaffolding as edge protection. If this is not practicable, then temporary work platforms should be used.” Here, If this is not practicable = or.
19	safety nets	reduce, likelihood, injury, e.g. using	Paragraph 3, last lines	“This means considering the use of safety nets and other similar systems to make it less likely that injury will be caused if a fall does occur.” Here, make it less likely that injury will be caused = reduce the likelihood of injury.
20	(maintenance) work	ladders, should be used, does not take long time	Final paragraph, first line	“Ladders should only be employed for short-duration maintenance work such as touching up paint.” Here, Ladders = these, should only be employed = should only be used, short-duration = does not take a long time.
21	selection	ladders, training, should be provided, use	Final paragraph, lines 2-3	“People using ladders should be trained and instructed in the selection and safe use of ladders.” Here, should be trained and instructed = training should be provided, safe use of ladders = use.
22	inspection	regular, ladders, required	Final paragraph, last lines	“There should be inspection of all ladders on a regular basis to ensure they are safe to use.” Here, regular basis = regular, There should be = required.

Maternity Allowance for working women

Question No.	Answer	Keywords	Location	Explanation (mention line number and paragraph)
23	140.98	maximum amount of money, can get, each week, £	Paragraph 2, first bullet point	“£140.98 a week or 90% of your average weekly earnings (whichever is less) for 39 weeks.” Here, £140.98 is the highest amount a woman can get.
24	unemployed	being, for a time, does not necessarily mean, will not be eligible, Maternity Allowance	‘Maternity Allowance for 39 weeks’ section, last lines	“You may still qualify even if you’ve recently stopped working. It doesn’t matter if you had different jobs, or, periods when you were unemployed.” Here, It doesn’t matter = does not necessarily mean.
25	payslip	in order to claim, must send, Small Earnings Exemption Certificate, evidence of her income	‘How to claim’ section, lines 2-3	“You also need to provide a payslip or a Certificate of Small Earnings Exemption as proof of your income.” Here, proof of your income = evidence of her income.
26	doctor’s letter	in order to claim, may need to provide, evidence, due date	‘How to claim’ section, line 3	“...and proof of the baby’s due date, such as a doctor’s letter.” Here, proof of the baby’s due date = evidence of the due date.
27	circumstances	payment, may be affected, differences in, such as, return to work, local Jobcentre Plus, must be informed	‘How to claim’ section, third paragraph	“You should report any changes to your circumstances, for example, if you go back to work, to your local Jobcentre Plus as they can affect how much allowance you get.” Here, any changes to your = differences in someone’s, go back to work = return to work.

The California Gold Rush of 1849

Question No.	Answer	Keywords	Location	Explanation
28	D (the region was about to come under the control of the US.)	Marshall’s discovery, came at a good time, for the US, because	Section A, lines 4-6	"As it happens, just days after Marshall’s discovery, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed, ending the Mexican-American War and transforming California, with its mineral deposits, into the ownership of the United States."
29	C (People needed to see physical evidence before they took it seriously.)	reaction, 1848, news of the discovery of gold	Section B, mid-paragraph	"Though the initial reaction in San Francisco was disbelief, storekeeper Sam Brannan set off a frenzy when he paraded through town displaying a small bottle containing gold from Sutter’s Creek."
30	C (Some of those who stayed behind had to take on unexpected roles.)	the result, thousands of people, moving to California	Section C, lines 7-10	"In pursuit of the kind of wealth they had never dreamed of, they left their families and local areas; in turn, their wives had no option but to shoulder different responsibilities such as running farms or businesses, and many made a real success of them."
31	D (Miners had to find a way round a design fault in one system.)	using, pans and rockers, to find gold	Section E, lines 4-8	"The primary disadvantage was that the rocker had difficulty in trapping the smallest particles of gold, commonly known as ‘flour’. Some miners added small amounts of mercury to the bottom of the rocker. Due to its chemical composition, it had a facility to trap fine gold."
32	C	ways of making money, California, other than mining for gold	Section C, second paragraph, lines 3-5	"To accommodate the needs of the ‘49ers, as the gold miners were known, towns had sprung up all over the region, complete with shops and other businesses seeking to make their own Gold Rush fortune."
33	F	gold that was found, did not often compensate for, the hard work undertaken	Section F, lines 4-5	"Moreover, the average daily pay for an independent miner had by then dropped sharply from what it had been in 1848."
34	B	individual, who convinced, many of the existence of gold, California	Section B, lines 4-5	"Storekeeper Sam Brannan set off a frenzy when he paraded through town displaying a small bottle containing gold from Sutter’s Creek."
35	A	pre-Gold Rush population, California	Section A, last few lines	"At the time, the population of the territory consisted of 6,500 Californios (people of Spanish or Mexican descent); 700 foreigners (primarily Americans); and 150,000 Native Americans."
36	G	contrast between, shrinking revenue, increasing population	Section G, lines 3-5	"After that year, the total take declined gradually, leveling off to around $45 million per year by 1857. Settlement in California continued, however, and by the end of the decade the state’s population was 380,000."
37	gravel	most basic method, used by many miners, began with, digging some, out of a river, hoping, might contain gold	Section D, lines 2-4	"The basic procedure was to place some gold-bearing materials, such as river gravel, into a shallow pan, add some water, and then carefully swirl the mixture around so the water and light material spilled over the side."
38	nuggets	gold dust, weighed more, remained in the pan, miners, very lucky, might even be, some, laborious method	Section D, lines 4-5	"If all went well, the heavier gold nuggets or gold dust would settle to the bottom of the pan. Gold panning was slow even for the most skillful miner."
39	sieve	rockers, also used, larger stones, stuck in the, gold, dropped, to the bottom	Section E, first paragraph, lines 5-6	"The big rocks were caught in a sieve at the top, the waste exited the lower end with the water, and the heavy gold fell to the bottom of the box."
40	mercury	process, introduced, involving, ensure, no gold was washed out, in the water	Section E, second paragraph, lines 5-7	"Some miners added small amounts of mercury to the bottom of the rocker. Due to its chemical composition, it had a facility to trap fine gold."