Cambridge IELTS Academic 12 Reading Test 1 Answers with Explanation / IELTS Academic Reading: Cork , Collecting as a Hobby, What’s the Purpose of Gaining Knowledge

READING PASSAGE 1

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

Cork

Answers	Keywords	Location	Explanation
1. NOT GIVEN	Thickest bark	Paragraph 2, line 2	The author mentioned the thick bark of the cork oak treeas a remarkable material and its bark grows up to 20 cm in thickness.This information does not mean that it is the thickest bark of any living tree.
2. FALSE	A synthetic cork, the same cellular structure	paragraph 2 line 8	The writer mentioned the cellular structure of the bark of the cork oak “the bark of the cork oak has a particular cellular structure – with about 40 million cells per cubic centimeter – that technology has never succeeded in replicating”. ·         technology = scientists ·         never succeeded in replicating= have not been able to make a copy of the natural cork
3. FALSE	Individual, 25 years	paragraph 4 line 6	From the planting of a cork sapling to the first harvest takes 25 years, and a gap of approximately a decade must separate harvests from an individual tree. ·         Therefore, the period of 25 years is the period from the planting to the first harvest, while the gap between the first and the second harvest is about 10 years ( a decade)
4. TRUE	Stripped, atmospheric conditions​	paragraph 4 line 14	If the bark is stripped on a day when it’s too cold – or when the air is damp – the tree will be damaged. Therefore, the bark should not be stripped in damp atmospheric conditions but in dry .
5. TRUE	Only way, remove, by hand​	paragraph 5 line 2	No mechanical means of stripping cork bark has been invented, so the job is done by teams of highly skilled workers. ·         “stripping cork bark” = “remove the bark”. ·         no mechanical means has been invented”=  no use of any machines in removing the bark ·         By hand = done by workers, no mechanical means
6.Taste	affect, bottle contents	paragraph 6 line 1	Recent years have seen the end of the virtual monopoly of cork as the material for bottle stoppers, due to ……………..can spoil the taste of the product contained in the bottle. The result has been a gradual yet steady move first towards plastic stoppers and, more recently, to aluminum screw caps. ·         Affect = spoil ·         Bottle contents = the product contained in the bottle Moved from cork to plastic and recently to aluminium for not spoiling the taste.
7.Cheaper	Produce	paragraph 6 line 17	These substitutes are cheaper to manufacture. ·         Cheaper= manufacture
8. Convenient	Use​	paragraph 6 line 17	These substitutes are cheaper to manufacture and, in the case of screw caps, more convenient for the user”.
9. image	Suit, quality products	paragraph 7 line 3	Firstly, it’s (the cork bottle stopper) traditional image is more in keeping with that of the type of high-quality goods with which it has long been associated. ·         The answer allows one word only, so it has to be “image”• Products = goods• In keeping with = suit
10.Sustainable	Made from, material	Paragraph 7 line 6	Secondly and very important cork is a sustainable product ….
11.Recycled		Paragraph 7 line 6	Secondly – and very importantly – cork is a sustainable product that can be recycled without difficulty ·         Easily = without difficulty
12.Biodiversity	Cork forests, aid		Moreover, cork forests are a resource which supports local biodiversity, and prevent desertification……………. ·         aids= supports For one word answer= biodiversity Related Articles ·         Reading Answer of Cork September 4, 2019 ·         Answer of Collecting as a Hobby with Explanation February 25, 2019
13. Desertification.	cork forests, stop​	paragraph 7 line 9	Moreover, cork forests are a resource which supports local biodiversity, and prevent desertification in the regions ………….. ·         stop = prevent

 

 

READING PASSAGE 2

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

Collecting as a Hobby

 

Answers	Keywords	Location	Explanation
14. Antiques	Collecting, make money	Paragraph 2 line 1	There are the people who collect because they want to make money – this could be called an instrumental reason for collecting; that is, collecting as a means to an end………“They’ll look for, say, antiques that they can buy cheaply and expect to be able to sell at a profit.” He/she used antiques as an example of one object that is able to be collected to make money. Therefore, the answer is “antiques”.   Because = in order to
15. Triumph	Collectors, feeling, buying and selling	Paragraph 2 line 7	But there may well be a psychological element, too – buying cheap and selling dear can give the collector a sense of triumph”. “A sense of” means “a feeling of”. So the answer is triumph.• A sense of = a feeling of
16.Information	Collectors’ clubs, share	Paragraph 3 line 2	Here, ….attending meetings of a group of collectors and exchanging information on items.” We can consider these groups as “collectors’ clubs”. While attending those clubs, they can exchange information on items. But the question requires one word only, so we choose the most important word – “information”.• A group of = a club• Exchange = share
17. Contact/meetings	Collectors’ clubs, similar interests.	Paragraph 3 line 6	This question still mentions “collectors’ clubs” as in the question above, so we still pay attention to paragraph 3. In the second sentence, we see the phrase “like – minded people”. This phrase has the same meaning as “people who have similar interests”. And those clubs bring them into “contact” with other collectors, so the answer is “contact”. “Attending meetings” in clubs is oneway in which collectors come into contact socially. (Note: you can make an adjective by a combination which is Adj + N + Ed, such as Grey-haired,one-eyed, strong-minded and kind-hearted).• Bring = offer• People who have similar interests = like – minded people.
18.Hunt/desire	Collecting, life – long, special item.​	Paragraph 3 line 6	We can see another purpose of collecting – it is “the desire to find something special” (= special item). But the author does not mention something like “life-long”, so we have to continue reading to find the accurate answer. Fortunately, in the next sentence, the author writes “Some may spend their whole lives in a hunt for this” (“the whole lives = life – long”). We can understand that the writer wants to say “Collectors sometimes have a life-long desire/ spend their whole lives in a hunt for a special item.” The answer can be “desire” or “hunt”.• Whole lives = life- long
19. Aimless/empty	Searching, prevent their life.	Paragraph 4 line 5	The author writes “Some may spend their whole lives in a hunt for this (=the special item referred to in paragraph 3). Psychologically, this can give a purpose to a life that otherwise feels aimless .” “This” means “spend their whole lives in a hunt for a special item”. We can understand “a hunt” = “searching for”. The author claims if they are not searching for a special item, they will feel “aimless”. Therefore, the answer is “aimless”. Then, we are told, if the collector finds that special item, they may then “feel empty”, because the search has ended.• A hunt for = searching for
20. Educational	Stamp collecting, facts, different countries.	Paragraph 5 line 1	This question mentions “stamp collecting” as the main subject, so we have to find part of the passage which contains information about this type of collecting – paragraph 5. In this paragraph, the author writes “If you think about collecting postage stamps another potential reason for it – or, perhaps, a result of collecting – is its educational value. Stamp collecting opens a window to other countries, and to the plants, animals, or famous people shown on their stamps.” He/ she mentions the educational value of stamp collecting as it “opens a window to other countries” with things shown on their stamps. The answer is “educational”.
21. Trainspotting	Male hobby	Paragraph 7 line 2	We have to find the paragraph mentioning something related to “male”. In paragraph 7, the author mentions “trainspotting” as “a popular form of collecting, particularly among boys and men” (“In the past – and nowadays, too, though to a lesser extent – a popular form of collecting, particularly among boys and men, was trainspotting.”). The answer is “Trainspotting”.
22.  Not given	The number of, buying dolls, grown.	Paragraph 8 line 1	We have to find every part of the text about “dolls”. The whole of paragraph 8 is about this topic. But it is about the things which interest doll collectors, but there is no information about the number of people buying dolls. Therefore, the answer is Not given. (Note: If you are not sure enough, you can try doing the next question. Since the questions are in order, if you find out the sentence for the answer of the next question, then the following sentences will not have the answer for this question)
23.  False	16th century, made of, wax and porcelain	Paragraph 8 line 1	In the same paragraph about dolls: “Similarly, people who collect dolls may go beyond simply enlarging their collection, and develop an interest in the way that dolls are made, or the materials that are used. These have changed over the centuries from the wood that was standard in 16th century Europe, through the wax and porcelain of later centuries, to the plastics of today’s dolls.” Therefore, in the 16th century, European dolls were often made of wood. And the wax and porcelain dolls were popular in later centuries, which means the 17th century and the ones after. The answer is False.
24. Not given	Arranging, by the size, less common	Paragraph 9 line 6	We have to pay attention to paragraph 9, which contains information about arranging a stamp collection. In this paragraph, the author only mentions the reason why some collectors like to arrange their collection and the types of arrangement. There is no reference to what kind of arrangement is more or less popular. Therefore, the answer is Not Given.
25. True	Unusual objects, think.	Paragraph 10 line 1	The author claims “One reason, conscious or not, for what someone chooses to collect is to show the collector’s individualism”, and gives an example when someone collects something unexpected (which means unusual objects), they may be conveying their belief (which means they want others to think) that they are interesting as well. The answer is True.
26. True	Other hobbies, inspire	Paragraph 11 line 4	There is a sentence that is “More than most other hobbies, collecting can be totally engrossing, and can give a strong sense of personal fulfillment.” This means collecting needs all your attention and makes you completely satisfied, while most other hobbies could not do the same (more than most other hobbies). The answer is True.

  

READING PASSAGE 3

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

What’s the Purpose of Gaining Knowledge

Here is the table with the answers for questions 27-40 in four columns:

Question	Answer	Keywords	Location	Explanation
27	vi	founding, institution, possible majors, course titles	Section A	Discusses the idea of founding a special institution, possible courses, and course titles.
28	viii	attracting students, wrong kind of students, arsonists	Section B	Mentions the possibility of attracting students interested in starting fires rather than preventing them.
29	ii	course title, two meanings, misunderstanding	Section C	Talks about how the course title "Principles of..." can have two meanings, leading to confusion.
30	iv	applying a theory, unexpected context, Kant	Section D	Discusses the philosopher Kant’s idea that all knowledge is principled, which seems surprising when applied to marketing.
31	iii	equal importance, two key issues, means and ends	Section E	Mentions the balance between "how to achieve X" and "what X is," showing that both are equally important.
32	vii	different names, same knowledge, different outcomes	Section F	Compares a doctor and a murderer, both using the same knowledge but for different purposes.
33	fire science	undergraduates, academic requirements, course	Section A	States that undergraduates who meet academic requirements can enroll in "fire science."
34	investigators	course, intended for, prospective	Section B	Mentions that the course is designed for prospective arson investigators.
35	evidence	detecting fire cause, discovering who did it	Section B	Talks about detecting whether a fire was deliberate and establishing a chain of evidence.
36	prosecution	chain of evidence, court, successful case	Section B	States that evidence helps in the prosecution of arson cases in court.
37	Not Given	attract students, difficulty, enrollment issues	-	No information about difficulties in attracting students is provided.
38	Yes	Arson for profit, dangerous, reckless activity	Section F	Mentions that the same knowledge can be used for personal profit in a destructive way.
39	No	Fire science courses, good at the job, expertise	Section B	States that fire science courses help students become professionals, not just naturally good at the job.
40	No	purpose, studies, articulate definition	Section F	Says students "generalize" the purpose of fire science rather than providing a clear, detailed definition.