IELTS Reading Academic Actual Exam Level – Test 1 | Real Exam Practice with Answers

Instructions to follow

• You should spend 20 minutes on Questions 1-13 which are based on Reading Passage 1

Growing of the Aging Society

A. American scientists say that the elderly are now healthier, happier and more independent. The results of a study that has taken place over a 14-year period will be released at the end of the month. The research will show that common health disorders suffered by the elderly are affecting fewer people and happening after in life.

B. Over the last 14 years, The National Long-term Health Care Survey has gathered data from more than 20,000 males and females over the age of 65 about their health and lifestyles. The group has analysed the results of data gathered in 1994 on conditions such as arthritis, high blood pressure and poor circulation; these were the most common medical complaints for this age group. The results show that these conditions are troubling a smaller proportion of people each year and decreasing very quickly. Other diseases suffered by the elderly including dementia, emphysema and arteriosclerosis are also affecting fewer people.

C. According to Kenneth Manton, a demographer from Duke University in North Carolina, “the question of what should be considered normal ageing has really changed.” He also mentioned that diseases suffered by many people around the age of 65 in 1982 are now not occurring until people reach the age of 70-75.

D. It is clear that due to medical advances some diseases are not as prominent as they used to be. However, there were also other factors influencing this change. For instance, improvements in childhood nutrition in the first quarter of the twentieth century gave many people a better start in life than was possible before.

E. The data also shows some negative changes in public health. The research suggests that the rise of respiratory conditions such as lung cancer and bronchitis may reflect changing smoking habits and an increase in air pollution. Manton says that as we have been exposed to worse and worse pollution, it is not surprising that some people over the age of 60 are suffering as a result.

F. Manton also found that better-educated people are likely to live longer. For instance, women of 65 with less than eight years of education are expected to live to around 82. Those who studied more could be able to live seven years longer. Whilst some of this can be attributed to better- educated people usually having a higher income, Manton believes it is mainly because they pay closer attention to their health.

G. Also, the survey estimated how independent people of 65 were and found a striking trend. In the 1994 survey, almost 80% of them were able to complete activities such as eating and dressing alone as well as handling difficult tasks, like cooking and managing their financial affairs. This situation indicates an important drop among disabled elderly people in the population. If 14 years ago, the apparent trends in the US had continued, researchers believe that there would be one million disabled elderly people in today’s population. Manton shows the trend saved more than $200 billion for the US’s government’s Medicare system, and it has suggested the elderly American population is less of a financial burden than expected.

H. The growing number of independent elderly people is probably linked to the huge increase in home medical aids. For instance, the research shows the use of raising toilet seat covers and bath seats has increased by more than fifty per cent. Also, these developments about health benefits are reported by the MacArthur Foundation’s research group for successful ageing. It found the elderly who are able to take care of themselves were more likely to stay healthy in their old age. I. Retaining a certain level of daily physical activity may also help brain function, according to Carl Cotman, a neuroscientist at the University of California at Irvine. He found that rats exercising on a treadmill have higher levels of a brain-derived neurotrophic factor in their brains. He believes the hormone which holds neuron functions may prevent the active human’s brain function from declining.

J. Teresa Seeman, a social epidemiologist at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, was conducting the same research. She found a line between self-esteem and stress in people over 70. The elderly who do challenging activities such as driving have more control of their mind and have a lower level of the stress hormone cortisol in their brains. Chronically high levels of this hormone can cause heart disease.

K. However, an independent life may have negative points. Seeman knew that the elderly people that were living alone were able to retain higher levels of stress hormones even when sleeping. The research indicates that elderly people are happier if they can live an independent life but also acknowledge when they need help.

L. Seeman says, “With many cases of research about ageing, these results help common sense.” Also, the situations show that we may be ignoring some of the simple factors. She mentions, “The sort of thing your grandmother always used to talk to you about seems to be exactly right.”

Questions 1-6

Instructions to follow

• • Reading Passage 1 has twelve paragraphs, A-L.
• • Choose the correct heading for paragraphs B-G from the list of headings below.

List of Headings

i. Disorders strike much later in life.

ii. Drawbacks in public health.

iii. Longevity based on high education.

iv. The elderly people of today got better nutrition when they were children.

v. The elderly are becoming more well off.

vi. Most of independent people over 65 complete activities themselves.

vii. Diseases have decreased recently.

1. Paragraph B

2. Paragraph C

3. Paragraph D

4. Paragraph E

5. Paragraph F

6. Paragraph G

Questions 7-13

Instructions to follow

7. Smoking habits are a crucial cause in some cancers.

8. The better-educated elderly people tend to live longer.

9. People over 65 can independently manage a variety of tasks.

10. Elderly people have overcome dementia as a result of home medical aids.

11. Continuing physical exercises is likely to assist digestive function.

12. People over 70 who still do challenging things such as driving are able to lower their level of the hormone cortisol which is linked to heart disease.

13. Isolation may cause a higher level of stress hormones.

Electric Dreams

A. The days of the internal-combustion are numbered, and the fuel cell represents the future of automotive transport, says PETER BREWER. A. Some of the world’s greatest inventions have been discovered by accident. One such accident led to the discovery of the fuel cell and another led to its commercialisation. And in around 30 years, when most of the energy analysts have predicted the oil wells will run dry, motorists will be thankful for both these strange twists of fate. Why? Simply because without the fuel cell to replace the combustion engine, private motoring as we all know it would be restricted to only those who could afford the high price.

B. The exact date of the discovery of the fuel cell is not known, but historians agree it most likely occurred around 1938 in the laboratories of British physicist Sir William Grove, who one day disconnected a simple electrolytic cell (in which hydrogen and oxygen are produced when water contacts an electric current running through a platinum wire) and reversed the flow of current. As author records in his book Powering the Future, Grove realized that just as he could use electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen it should be possible to generate electricity by combining these two gases.

C. The principle behind the fuel cell is simple. Hydrogen and oxygen, two of the most common elements in the world, are a very explosive combination. But separate them with a sophisticated platinum coated barrier and an electro chemical reaction takes place, where positively charged hydrogen ions react with oxygen and leave the hydrogen electrons behind. It is this reaction, theexcess electrons on one side of the barrier and the deficit of electrons on the other that creates electrical energy.

D. The early development of the fuel cell was fraught with problems and high cost. But by 1954 US giant General Electric had produced a prototype that proved sufficiently effective to interest NASA. The Gemini space programme proved the viability of the fuel cell to provide electrical power. The spacecraft used six stacks of cells with three cells in each stack. The electrical power output from each stack was quite modest – just one kilowatt and as a byproduct, produced half a litre of water for each kilowatt hour of operation. But the Gemini Cells were very unstable and required constant monitoring.

E. At this time if anyone had suggested to Canadian Scientist Geoffrey Ballard that he would become a world leader in fuel cell technology, he would have laughed. Ballard’s scientific background was actually geophysics, but during the oil-crisis of 1973, the US government asked the Canadian to explore alternative forms of energy. Ballard threw himself into the project enthusiastically but soon became disillusioned by the politics of the programme. Energy systems take a long time to develop, Ballard said. The short-term vision of politicians, who voted to fund such projects in the desire for quick results to bolster their re-election chances, were frustrating for the scientists. However, since the US government lacked the vision for the job, he decided to tackle it himself.

F. The big breakthrough on Ballard’s fuel cell came by accident in the search for cheaper materials. Up until late 1986, Ballard’s team had worked with only one type of fuel cell membrane manufactured by DuPont, but Dow Chemical had also developed a similar membrane, which had not been released for sale. Ballard’s team tracked down an experimental sample of the Dow material, put it into a fuel cell and set up a standard test. Within a few minutes the fuel cell was generating so much electricity on the test bench that it had melted through the power-output cable.

G. Ballard immediately knew he had a saleable product. The problem was: Should he aim his fuel cell at small markets like military field generators, wheelchairs and golf carts, or try to sell it as a full blown alternative to the combustion engine? “It was so needed and the world was ready for it,” Ballard said. “Los Angeles is dying; Vancouver is going to be eaten alive by its own pollution very shortly. It seemed like a time to go for broke.” Ballard Power Systems first built a small bus to demonstrate the technology, and then an even bigger bus.

H. As a result a number of multinational motor manufacturers, such as General Motors, Mitsubishi and Daimler-Benz all tested Ballard’s cells. Finally, Daimler formed an alliance with Ballard that has yielded some impressive prototypes, including a fully driveable fuel cellpowered A-class Mercedes-Benz compact car, known as Necar 4. Daimler Chlysler, as the merged Daimler- Benz and Chlysler Corporation is now known, says the fuel cell represents the future of automotive transport. “The significance of this technological advancement ( the fuel cell) is comparable to the impact the microchip had on computer technology when it replaced the transistor,” said Dr Ferdinand Panik, the head of Daimler Chlysler’s fuel cell development team.

Questions 14-21

Instructions to follow

• • There are 8 paragraphs numbered A-H in Reading Passage 2.
• • From the list below numbered i- x, choose a suitable heading for the paragraphs.
• • There are more headings than paragraphs, so you will not use all the headings.

14. Paragraph A

15. Paragraph B

16. Paragraph C

17. Paragraph D

18. Paragraph E

19. Paragraph F

20. Paragraph G

21. Paragraph H

i. A conflict of interests

ii. Science is sometimes a question of luck

iii. Using the fuel cell in different ways

iv. How does it work?

v. Deciding how to exploit the new product

vi. vii. Using the fuel cell to be the first in the space race A key stage in the development of fuel cell

viii. A first step on the road to a new source of energy

ix. Applying the new technology on a global scale

x. The first fuel cell is tested

Questions 22-24

Instructions to follow

• • Choose the most appropriate letter A B C or D.

22. The fuel cell generates electricity because

• (A) hydrogen and oxygen can be used to create controlled explosions
• (B) of the reaction which occurs when hydrogen and oxygen are separated
• (C) hydrogen and oxygen are both gases
• (D) hydrogen and oxygen both contain electrons

23. The Gemini space programme demonstrated that

• (A) The fuel cell was too difficult to use in space programmes
• (B) The fuel cell can only work with pure oxygen
• (C) Generating a substantial amount of electricity requires many fuel cells
• (D) The fuel cell could be used successfully

24. The US government asked Ballard to carry out fuel cell research because

• (A) He was an expert in his field
• (B) supplies of oil were running out
• (C) They wanted to find new sources of energy
• (D) He offered to work completely independently.

Questions 25-27

Instructions to follow

• • Complete the sentences below by taking words from the passage. Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS.

25. The key step in the development of fuel cell occurred completely _________________.

26. Ballard decided that the fuel cell could be used to reduce ____________in large cities.

27. In an attempt to produce a more ecological car, Ballard _____________with a major automobile corporation.

History of telegraph in communication

Jean-Antoine Nollet was a French clergyman and physicist. In 1746 he gathered about two hundred monks into a circle about a mile (1.6 km) in circumference, with pieces of iron wire connecting them. He then discharged a battery of Leyden jars through the human chain and observed that each man reacted at substantially the same time to the electric shock, showing that the speed of electricity’s propagation was very high. Given a more humane detection system, this could be a way of signaling over long distances. In 1748, Nollet invented one of the first electrometers, the electroscope, which detected the presence of an electric charge by using electrostatic attraction and repulsion.

After the introduction of the European semaphore lines in 1792, the world’s desire to further its ability to communicate from a distance only grew. People wanted a way to send and receive news from remote locations so that they could better understand what was happening in the world around them—not just what was going on in their immediate town or city. This type of communication not only appealed to the media industry, but also to private individuals and companies who wished to stay in touch with contacts. In 1840 Charles Wheatstone from Britain, with William Cooke, obtained a new patent for a telegraphic arrangement.

The new apparatus required only a single pair of wires, but the telegraph was still too costly for general purposes. In 1 845, however, Cooke and Wheatstone succeeded in producing the single needle apparatus, which they patented, and from that time the electric telegraph became a practical instrument, soon adopted on all the railway lines of the country.

It was the European optical telegraph, or semaphore, that was the predecessor of the electrical recording telegraph that changed the history of communication forever. Building on the success of the optical telegraph, Samuel F. B. Morse completed a working version of the electrical recording telegraph, which only required a single wire to send code of dots and dashes. At first, it was imagined that only a few highly skilled encoders would be able to use it but it soon became clear that many people could become proficient in Morse code. A system of lines strung on telegraph poles began to spread in Europe and America.

In the 1840s and 1850s several individuals proposed or advocated construction of a telegraph cable across the Atlantic Ocean, including Edward Thornton and Alonzo Jackman. At that time there was no material available for cable insulation and the first breakthrough came with the discovery of a rubber-like latex called gutta-percha. Introduced to Britain in 1843, gutta-percha is the gum of a tree native to the Malay Peninsula and Malaysia.

After the failure of their first cable in 1850, the British brothers John and Jacob Brett laid a successful submarine cable from Dover to Calais in 1851. This used two layers of gutta-percha insulation and an armoured outer layer. With thin wire and thick insulation, it floated and had to be weighed down with lead pipe.

In the case of first submarine-cable telegraphy, there was the limitation of knowledge of how its electrical properties were affected by water. The voltage which may be impressed on the cable was limited to a definite value. Moreover, for certain reasons, the cable had an impedance associated with it at the sending end which could make the voltage on the cable differ from the voltage applied to the sending-end apparatus. In fact, the cable was too big for a single boat, so two had to start in the middle of the Atlantic, join their cables and sail in opposite directions.

Amazingly, the first official telegram to pass between two continents was a letter of congratulation from Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom to the President of the United States, James Buchanan, on August 16, 1 858. However, signal quality declined rapidly, slowing transmission to an almost unusable speed and the cable was destroyed the following month.

To complete the link between England and Australia, John Pender formed the British-Australian Telegraph Company. The first stage was to lay a 557nm cable from Singapore to Batavia on the island of Java in 1870. It seemed likely that it would come ashore at the northern port of Darwin from where it might connect around the coast to Queensland and New South Wales. It was an undertaking more ambitious than spanning the ocean. Flocks of sheep had to be driven with the 400 workers to provide food. They needed horses and bullock carts and, for the parched interior, camels. In the north, tropical rains left the teams flooded.

In the centre, it seemed that they would die of thirst. One critical section in the red heart of Australia involved finding a route through the McDonnell mountain range and then finding water on the other side. The water was not only essential for the construction teams. There had to be telegraph repeater stations every few hundred miles to boost the signal and the staff obviously had to have a supply of water.

On August 22, 1872, the Northern and Southern sections of the Overland Telegraph Line were connected, uniting the Australian continent and within a few months, Australia was at last in direct contact with England via the submarine cable, too. This allowed the Australian Government to receive news from around the world almost instantaneously for the first time. It could cost several pounds to send a message and it might take several hours for it to reach its destination on the other side of the globe, but the world would never be the same again. The telegraph was the first form of communication over a great distance and was a landmark in human history.

Questions 28-32

Instructions to follow

• • Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 3.
• • TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
• • FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
• • NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

28. People increasingly hoped to explore ways of long-distance communication in the late eighteenth century.

29. Using Morse Code to send message needed special personnel to first simplify the message,

30. Morse was a famous inventor before he invented the code.

31.Water was significant to early telegraph repeater stations on the continent.

32. The Australian Government offered funds for the first overland line across the continent.

Questions 33-40

Instructions to follow

• • Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

33. Why did Charles Wheatstone’s telegraph system fail to come into common use in the beginning?

34. What material was used for insulating cable across the sea?

35. What was used by British pioneers to increase the weight of the cable in the sea?

36. What would occur in the submarine cable when the voltage was applied?

37. Who did the Queen first send a message to, across the Atlantic ocean?

38. What animals were used to carry the cable through the desert?

39. What weather condition delayed construction in north Australia?

40. How long did it take to send a telegraph message from Australia to England in 1872?

<ans id="1. vii 
2. i 
3. iv
4. ii 
5. iii
6. vi
7. Not Given
8. True
9. True
10. Not
11. False
12. True
13. False">Show Answer Section 1</ans>

<ans id="14. ii
15. viii
16. iv
17. x
18. i
19. vii
20. v
21. ix
22. B
23. D
24. C
25. By accident
26. Pollution
27. Formed an alliance">Show Answer Section 2</ans>

<ans id="28. True
29. True
30. Not Given
31. True
32. Not Given
33. Costly
34. Guttapercha
35. Lead pipe
36. Impedance
37. James Buchanan
38. Camels
39. Tropical rains
40. Several hours">Show Answer</ans>