Cambridge IELTS Academic 18 Reading Test 3 Answers with Explanation / IELTS Academic Reading: Materials to take us beyond concrete , The steam car , The case for mixed-ability classes

READING PASSAGE 1

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

Materials to take us beyond concrete

Question Number	Answer	Keywords	Location	Text
1	G	industrial processes, potential raw materials	Section G	"Fly ash and slag from iron ore are possible alternatives to cement in a concrete mix."
2	D	various locations, high-rise wooden buildings	Section D	"Vancouver, Vienna and Brumunddal in Norway are all home to constructed tall, wooden buildings."
3	C	widely available, raw materials of concrete	Section C	"Not only are the ingredients of concrete relatively cheap and found in abundance in most places around the globe."
4	F	more high-rise wooden buildings needed, viability of wood as a construction material	Section F	"But even treated wood has its limitations and only when a wider range of construction projects has been proven in practice will it be possible to see wood as a real alternative to concrete in constructing tall buildings."
5	architects	environmental concerns, wood in modern construction projects	Throughout the passage	"climate change is driving architects to turn to treated timber as a possible resource."
6	moisture	challenges of using wood	Section E	"Wood expands as it absorbs moisture from the air."
7	layers	process of turning wood into a better construction material	Section E	"Cross-laminated timber is engineered wood. An adhesive is used to stick layers of solid-sawn timber together, crosswise, to form building blocks."
8	speed	advantages of wooden buildings over concrete and steel	Section E	"Construction experts say that wooden buildings can be constructed at a greater speed than ones of concrete and steel and the process, it seems, is quieter."
9	C	environmental advantage of cement alternatives	Section G	"But Anna Surgenor, of the UK’s Green Building Council, notes that although these waste products can save carbon in the concrete mix, their use is not always straightforward."
10	A	difficulty in creating a comparable alternative to concrete	Section B	"Chris Cheeseman, an engineering professor at Imperial College London, says the key thing to consider is the extent to which concrete is used around the world, and is likely to continue to be used."
11	B	increased interest in wood as a construction material	Section F	"Stora Enso is Europe’s biggest supplier of cross-laminated timber, and its vice-president Markus Mannstrom reports that the company is seeing increasing demand globally for building in wood, with climate change concerns the key driver."
12	D	expense as a factor in the negative response to new cements	Section H	"In their overview of innovation in the concrete industry, Felix Preston and Johanna Lehne of the UK’s Royal Institute of International Affairs reached the conclusion that, ‘Some novel cements have been discussed for more than a decade within the research community, without breaking through."
13	A	environmental damage caused by concrete due to large quantities	Section A	"If concrete is the only answer to the construction of new cities, then carbon emissions will soar, aggravating global warming."

READING PASSAGE 2

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

The steam car

Q	Answer	Keywords	Location in Passage	Text Associated with Answer
14	iii	steam car, weaknesses, strengths	Paragraph A	"But these early cars inherited steam’s weaknesses along with its strengths."
15	viii	glory days, internal combustion engine	Paragraph B	"But the glory days of steam cars were few. A new technology called the Internal Combustion Engine soon appeared..."
16	vi	Doble brothers, first steam car, improvements	Paragraph C	"Though the Doble boys’ third prototype, nicknamed the Model B, still lacked the convenience of an internal combustion engine, it drew the attention of automobile trade magazines due to its numerous improvements over previous steam cars."
17	v	Model C, innovations, General Engineering Company	Paragraph D	"The following year Abner Doble drove the Model B from Massachusetts to Detroit in order to seek investment in his automobile design, which he used to open the General Engineering Company."
18	vii	Model E, glitches, unhappy buyers	Paragraph E	"Later that year Abner Doble delivered unhappy news to those eagerly awaiting the delivery of their modem new cars."
19	i	Model E road test, cold conditions	Paragraph F	"In early 1924, the Doble brothers shipped a Model E to New York City to be road-tested by the Automobile Club of America. After sitting overnight in freezing temperatures..."
20	iv	financial failure, fewer than fifty produced	Paragraph G	"Sadly, the Dobles’ brilliant steam car never was a financial success... By the time the company folded in 1931, fewer than fifty of the amazing Model E steam cars had been produced."
21	A	success was short-lived	Paragraph B	"But the glory days of steam cars were few."
22	C	built multiple prototypes	Paragraph C	"Though it did not run well, the Doble brothers went on to build a second and third prototype in the following years."
23	B	opened General Engineering Company	Paragraph D	"The following year Abner Doble drove the Model B from Massachusetts to Detroit in order to seek investment in his automobile design, which he used to open the General Engineering Company."
24	speed	Model E road-tested, raised its	Paragraph F	"As the new Doble steamer was further developed and tested, its maximum speed was pushed to over a hundred miles per hour..."
25	fifty	fewer than fifty produced	Paragraph G	"By the time the company folded in 1931, fewer than fifty of the amazing Model E steam cars had been produced."
26	strict	California's emissions laws	Paragraph G	"Astonishingly, an unmodified Doble Model E runs clean enough to pass the emissions laws in California today..."

26

E

reduced professional authority

6th Paragraph, Line 6

"Since we’d want to ensure that people are treated equally and that policies are fair, the goals of AI would need to be specified correctly."

READING PASSAGE 3

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

The case for mixed-ability classes

Q	Answer	Keywords	Location	Text
27	B	Romeo and Juliet lesson	2nd paragraph, lines 1-9	"Picture this scene... the original."
28	A	streaming	3rd paragraph, lines 1-6	"The practice of ‘streaming’... every stakeholder."
29	C	Mount Qomolangma	5th paragraph, lines 6-10	"Mixed-ability classes bore students... the social divide."
30	C	scaffolding	6th paragraph, lines 5-9	"The purpose of teaching is to provide... would be madness."
31	H	streaming	Last paragraph, lines 1-3	"According to Professor John Hattie... those lucky clever students."
32	D	lowest sets	Last paragraph, lines 4-6	"streaming appears to significantly... low socioeconomic class."
33	F	low socioeconomic class	Last paragraph, lines 4-6	"streaming appears to significantly... low socioeconomic class."
34	E	higher sets	Last paragraph, lines 6-9	"Less significant is the small benefit... higher sets."
35	B	diverse and flexible	Last paragraph, lines 9-10	"Meanwhile, in a mixed environment... and flexible."
36	NO	Vygotsky model	Not given	Not mentioned in the passage.
37	NOT GIVEN	MKO roles	Not given	Not mentioned in the passage.
38	YES	rewarding to teach knowledge	8th paragraph, lines 4-7	"There is also something exciting about passing on skills and knowledge that you yourself have just mastered."
39	NO	highest-achieving students	Not given	Not mentioned in the passage.
40	NOT GIVEN	collaborative outdoor activities	Not given	Not mentioned in the passage.

Question Number	Answer	Keywords	Location in Passage (Paragraph, Line)	Text associated with the answer
27	NOT GIVEN	Leonardo da Vinci, genius	-	-
28	NOT GIVEN	climate crisis, deaths, plague	-	-
29	TRUE	challenges, earlier times	3rd Paragraph, Line 1	"Today, the world is on the cusp of a climate crisis, which is predicted to cause widespread displacement, extinctions and death, if left unaddressed. Then, as now, radical solutions were called for to revolutionise the way people lived and safeguard humanity against catastrophe."
30	FALSE	ideal city, constructed, 15th century	5th Paragraph, Lines 1-2	"Following a typical Renaissance trend, he began to work on an ‘ideal city’ project, which – due to its excessive costs – would remain unfulfilled."
31	TRUE	poor town planning, major contributor, climate change	6th Paragraph, Line 1	"Although the Renaissance is renowned as an era of incredible progress in art and architecture, it is rarely noted that the 15th century also marked the birth of urbanism as a true academic discipline."
32	NOT GIVEN	Pienza, Ferrara, local people fought	-	-
33	FALSE	Leonardo da Vinci, neat, organised record	7th Paragraph, Lines 1-2	"It is not easy to identify a coordinated vision of Leonardo’s ideal city because of his disordered way of working with notes and sketches."
34	transport	Leonardo da Vinci, new city, Ticino River	8th Paragraph, Line 1	"He designed the city for the easy transport of goods and clean urban spaces."
35	staircases	Leonardo da Vinci, high-rise buildings	9th Paragraph, Line 4	"Leonardo wanted the city to be built on several levels, linked with vertical outdoor staircases."
36	engineering	Leonardo da Vinci, hydraulic plants, artificial canals	11th Paragraph, Lines 2-3	"But the true originality of Leonardo’s vision was its fusion of architecture and engineering."
37	rule	Leonardo da Vinci, width of streets, height of houses	12th Paragraph, Line 3	"Leonardo also thought that the width of the streets ought to match the average height of the adjacent houses: a rule still followed in many contemporary cities across Italy."
38	Roman	Leonardo da Vinci, Roman cities	13th Paragraph, Line 1	"Although some of these features existed in Roman cities..."
39	Paris	Leonardo da Vinci, 19th century, redesigned	13th Paragraph, Lines 6-7	"For example, the subdivision of the city by function- with services and infrastructures located in the lower levels and wide and well-ventilated boulevards and walkways above for residents – is an idea that can be found in Georges-Eugene Haussmann’s renovation of Paris under Emperor Napoleon III between 1853 and 1870."
40	outwards	Leonardo da Vinci, building approach	14th Paragraph, Line 2	"Today, Leonardo’s ideas are not simply valid, they actually suggest a way forward for urban planning."