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IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 with Answers Origin of Paper

IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 with Answers Origin of Paper

IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 ( Passage 1 Homeopathy – A different type of treatment, Passage 2 The Intense Rate of Change in The World, Passage 3 Origin of Paper ) we prefer you to work offline, download the test paper, and blank answer sheet.

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For Answers Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 Answers

Reading Passage 1

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13, which are based on the IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 Homeopathy – A different type of treatment below.

Homeopathy – A different type of treatment

{A} Homeopathy is an alternative system of medicine, founded in the early 19th century by a German physician, Dr Samuel Hahnemann. Since 1980, homeopathy has experienced a strong resurgence of interest in North and South America as well as in Europe. Surveys indicate that more than a third of French physicians have prescribed homeopathic remedies and almost 50 per cent of British physicians have referred patients for homeopathic treatment.

{B} Hahnemann’s discovery of the principle of homeopathy was accidental. After taking some quinine, he noticed that he developed malaria-like symptoms. Since malaria patients were treated with quinine, he speculated that malaria is possibly cured by quinine because it causes malaria-like symptoms in healthy people. He decided to explore his theory by testing other substances used as medicine at the time, such as arsenic and belladonna. His tests were conducted by either taking the substances internally himself or by administering them to healthy volunteers and then recording all of the symptoms the volunteers experienced. He continued his experiments on a wide range of natural substances, often toxic. These recorded results created ‘drug pictures’ which formed the basis for the new system of medicine. The next step was to give the tested substances to patients suffering from the same group of symptoms represented by the drug picture recorded. The results were incredible. People were being cured of diseases that had never been cured before. He condensed his theory into a single Latin phrase: similia similibus curentur (let likes be cured by likes). This means that a disease can be cured by a medicine that produces in a healthy person, symptoms similar to those experienced by the patient.

{C} The process of making remedies is very precise. A homeopathic remedy is normally a single substance. The substances may be made from plants, minerals, and even animals, for example, snake venom and cuttlefish ink. To make remedies, the raw material is dissolved in a mixture that contains approximately 90% alcohol and 10% water. The mixture is left to stand for 2 to 4 weeks, shaken occasionally then strained. The resulting liquid or tincture is then diluted according to very specific measures to a factor of 1:100. For example, to produce a remedy called 1c potency or strength, one drop of the tincture is added to 99 drops of alcohol/water mixture. To produce a 2c potency, one drop of the 1c mixture is added to 99 drops of alcohol/water mixture. Between each mixture, the remedy is shaken vigorously. Hahnemann believed that through this process, the energy of the substance was released. Once the remedy has been diluted beyond a 12c potency, it is unlikely that even a molecule of the original substance remains. Yet, ironically, the more dilute the remedy, the stronger it is. This makes no sense in light of present-day science but regardless of what science tells us is impossible, in practice, the higher the dilution the stronger and more lasting the effect.

{D} It is this use of high dilutions that has given rise to controversy. Many conventional doctors claim that homeopathy functions only as a placebo because the dosage is so small. However, the clinical experience of homeopathy shows that this tiny dose can be effective: it works on unconscious people and infants, and it even works on animals. Controlled clinical studies performed by medical researchers are demonstrating that homeopathy can be an effective method of treatment for many diseases.

{E} The most important part of homeopathic treatment lies in the lengthy interview that the homeopath conducts with the patient. The idea behind this one to two hour consultation is to build up a psychological, emotional, and physical history of the patient, to discover the underlying patterns of disease. The homeopath then decides which medicine to prescribe based on the closest match between the patient’s symptoms and the known symptoms elicited by the medicine in a healthy body. A single dose is given for the shortest period of time necessary to stimulate the body’s healing power.

{F) How does the concept of homeopathy differ from that of conventional medicine? Very simply, homeopathy attempts to stimulate the body to recover itself. Instead of looking upon the symptoms as something wrong which must be set right, the homeopath sees them as signs of the way the body is attempting to help itself. Another basic difference between conventional medical therapy and homeopathy is the role of medication. In much of conventional therapy, the illness is controlled through the regular use of medical substances. If the medication is withdrawn, the person returns to illness. For example, a person who takes a pill for high blood pressure every day is not undergoing a cure but is only controlling the symptoms. Homeopathy’s aim is the cure: ‘The complete restoration of perfect health,’ as Dr. Hahnemann said.

{G} Homeopathy has made significant progress in treating diseases that orthodox medicine finds difficult. Best at dealing with inflammatory conditions such as arthritis, skin conditions, migraines, and respiratory problems linked to allergies, it has also proved highly successful at treating asthma. But homeopathy is not an appropriate treatment for degenerative diseases such as emphysema. It cannot treat diseases that destroy tissue, although it can still be beneficial if used in combination with other treatments. Two of the main advantages of homeotherapy are the low cost of the medications and the rarity of adverse reactions. The medicines are inexpensive, safe, and easy to use, so people can learn to handle many of the common illnesses for which they currently seek medical help. The resulting in savings in costs and the increase in personal independence represent a significant contribution to healthcare.

Questions 1-6

The reading passage has 7 sections A-G.

Choose the most suitable headings for sections B-G from the list of headings (i-x). 

There are more headings than sections so you will not use all of them.

List of Headings
(i) The future of homeopathy 

(ii) Concerns about homeopathy 

(iii) Comparison with traditional western medicine 

(iv) Dr. S. Hahnemann 

(v) Theoretical and experimental basis 

(vi) Revival of homeopathy 

(vii) Preparation of medicines 

(viii) Debate over effectiveness 

(ix) Advantages and limitations of homeopathy 

(x) Aspects of treatment

Example Answer 

Section A vi

Question (1) Section B 

Question (2) Section C 

Question (3) Section D 

Question (4) Section E 

Question (5) Section F 

Question (6) Section G

Questions 7-10

Complete the description below. 

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166  passage 1 for each answer.

The remedies come from plant, animal, and mineral sources. 

A single product is mixed with (7)__________ and left to stand for 2-4 weeks. 

This mixture is strained to produce a tincture that can be diluted. 

1 drop of this tincture is added to 99 drops of alcohol/water. 

The mixture is then (8)__________ vigorously. 

This produces a remedy with a potency of 1c. 

As the remedy becomes more diluted, it gets (9)__________

Questions 10-13

Complete the summary. 

Choose your answers from the box below.

Homeopathy differs from conventional medicine in a number of ways. Conventional medicine views symptoms as an indication of something wrong in the body whereas homeopathy sees them as signs that the body is attempting to (10)__________. The uses of medication differ also. Many types of conventional medication (11)__________ but if the Medicine is taken away, the illness returns. The intention of homeopathy is to bring about a complete cure. Homeopathic remedies are (12)__________ than conventional medicine and have fewer (13)__________

more expensive stronger control symptoms side effects
patients cure healthy  getting better
heal itself treatment  cheaper  heal itself

Reading Passage 2

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14-27, which are based on the IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 Reading Passage The Intense Rate of Change in The World below.

The Intense Rate of Change in The World

{A} The intense rate of change in the world gives rise to numerous new products – many of them electronic. What is brand new and state-of-the-art one month is quickly relegated to old model status the next. Within the world of computing, this frenetic pace of change has led to millions of outdated, worthless products. Keystone, an American-based research company reported. In 2005, one computer became obsolete for every new one introduced in the die market. By the year 2010, experts estimate that in the USA there will be over 500 million obsolete computers. Most of these computers will be destined for landfills, incinerators, or hazardous waste exports.’ Old, outdated keyboards, monitors, and hard drives all combine to produce what is now widely known as ‘e-waste’ and the way to appropriately dispose of them is proving to be a challenge.

{B} Most computers are the complicated assembly of hundreds of different materials, many of which are highly toxic. Most computer users have unaware that these toxic metals, acids, plastics, and other substances have been shown to be the cause of various blood diseases and cancers, Amongst workers involved in the recycling of computer products, there has been a proliferation of blood diseases Printed circuit boards, for example, contain heavy metals such as antimony, silver, chromium, zinc, lead, tin and copper. Environmentalist Kieran Shaw estimates there is hardly any other product for which the sum of the environmental impacts of raw material, extraction, industrial refining and production, use, and disposal is so extensive as printed circuit boards.

{C} Workers involved in the disposal of computers via incineration are themselves being exposed to significantly high levels of toxicity. Copper, for example, is a catalyst in the release of harmful chemicals when exposed to the high tempera lures of incineration. In US and Canadian environments, incineration is one of the greatest sources of heavy metal contamination of the atmosphere. Unfortunately, another form of incineration, smelting, can present dangers similar to incineration. Concerns have been expressed that the Noranda. The smelter in Quebec, Canada is producing atmospheric pollutants from the residual presence of plastics in the e-scrap.

{D} In an effort to explore other alternatives, landfills have been tried, Studies have shown, however, that even the best landfills are not completely safe, In feet, the shortcomings of dealing with waste via modern landfills are well documented. The main ‘offender’ in the area of metal leaching is mercury.

In varying degrees, mercury escapes or leaches from certain electronic devices such as circuit breakers, condensers, and computer circuit boards into the soil, According to Phil Stevenson, managing director of CleanCo a recycling plant in the UK, ‘Everyone knows that landfills leak. it has become common knowledge Even the best, state-of-the-art landfills are not completely tight throughout their lifetimes, to one degree or another, a certain amount of chemical and metal leaching occurs The situation is far worse for older or less stringent dump sites. If uncontrolled fires are allowed to burn through these landfill areas, other toxic chemicals such as lead and cadmium are released.

{E} An overwhelming majority of the world’s hazardous e-waste is generated by industrialized market economies. Because labor costs are cheap and government regulations in some countries are decidedly lax, the exporting of e-waste has been practiced as another method to deal with its disposal. In the USA for example, Datatek, a research company, estimated that it was 12 times cheaper to ship old computer monitors to China than it was to recycle them. Data on the prevalence of this activity is scarce due to past bad publicity and dealers of e-scrap not bothering to determine the final destination of the products they sell in 1989 the world community established the Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste for final Disposal to stop the industrialized nations of the OECD from dumping their waste on and in less-developed countries.

{F} Europe has taken the lead on e-waste management by requiring governments to implement laws controlling the production and disposal of electrical products. The European Union (EL) lias drafted legislation on Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (the WE EE Directive) based on a concept known as Extended Producer Responsibility (EFR), Essentially, EFR places the responsibility of the production and disposal squarely on the shoulders of the producers of electronic products, it requires that producers consider carefully the environmental impact of the products they bring to the marketplace. The aim of EPR is to encourage producers of electrical equipment to prevent pollution and reduce resource and energy use at each stage of the product file cycle. The lead in Europe has been necessary’ because WERE is about three times higher than the growth of any other municipal waste stream.

{G} WEE legislation will phase out the use of toxic substances such as mercury, cadmium, and lead in electronic and electrical goods by the year 2008. It will require producers of electrical equipment to be responsible financially for the collection, recycling, and disposal of their products. And It has stipulated that products containing any lead, mercury, cadmium, and other toxic substances must not be incinerated. It encourages producers to integrate an increasing quantity of recycled material in any new products they produce. In fact, between 70% and 90% by weight of all collected equipment must be recycled or re-used. These directives will go a long way toward improving the e-waste problem in Europe and other governments of the world should look seriously at the implementation of some or all of the legislation.

Questions 14-20

IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 Passage 2 has 7 paragraphs, A-G.

Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.

Write the correct number, i-xi, in boxes 14-20 on your answer sheet.

List of Headings
(i) Exporting e-waste

(ii) The hazards of burning computer junk

(iii) Blame developed countries for e-waste

(iv) Landfills are not satisfactory

(v) Producer’s legal responsibility

(vi) The dangers of computer circuit boards

(vii) Electronic changes bring waste

(viii) European e-waste laws

(ix) The dangerous substances found in computers

(x) Landfills and mercury leaching

(xi) New products must contain recycled products

Question (14) Paragraph A

Question (15) Paragraph B

Question (16) Paragraph C

Question (17) Paragraph D

Question (18) Paragraph E

Question (19) Paragraph F

Question (20) Paragraph G

Questions 21-24

Look at the following list of statements (Questions 21-24) and the list of companies below.

Match each statement with the correct company.

Write the correct letter A-D in boxes 21-24 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once. 

Question (21) waste sites without strict dumping rules lead to big problems

Question (22) e-waste should be relocated to other countries

Question (23) most old computers will be buried or burned

Question (24) it is impossible to contain metal waste in soil

List of companies
(A) Noranda Smelter

(B) Datatek

(C) Keystone

(D) CleanCo

Questions 25-27

Choose THREE letters, A-G,

Write the correct letters in boxes 25-27 on your answer sheet.

According to the information in the text, which THREE of the following pollution laws have been proposed in Europe?

(A) Manufacturers will have to pay for the disposal of their products.

(B) Manufacturers must dispose of the electronic goods they produce.

(C) Products made in Europe must be completely recyclable.

(D) Consumers are responsible for the disposal of the products they purchase.

(E) Disposal of products containing mercury should be incinerated.

(F) Other governments around the world will implement EU laws.

(G) A large percentage of old products must be included in new products.

Reading Passage 3

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27-40, which are based on the IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 165 Reading Passage Origin of Paper or The History of Paper below.

Origin of Paper

{A} When we think of the origins of paper, our minds might wander back over 5000 years ago to the Nile river valley in Egypt. It was there that a marsh grass called Cyperus Papyrus flourished. The Egyptians cut thin strips from the plant’s stem and softened them in the muddy waters of the Nile. These strips were then layered at right angles to form a kind of mat. The mat was then pounded into a thin sheet and left in the sun to dry. The resulting sheets were ideal for writing on. Since they were also lightweight and portable they became the writing medium of choice of the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans for record keeping, spiritual texts and works of art.

{B} Paper as we know it today comes from another source, China. It wasn’t until the 3rd century that the secret art of papermaking began to creep out of China, first to Vietnam and later to India. It made its true push westward in 751AD when the Tang Dynasty was at war with the Islamic world. During a battle on the banks of the Tarus River, Islamic warriors captured a Chinese caravan which happened to include several papermakers. They spirited them away to Samarkand, which soon became a great centre for paper production.  Finally, when the Moors from North Africa invaded Spain and Portugal they brought the technology with them and so it was that papermaking entered Europe in the 12th century.

{C} In Europe, the use of papyrus dropped out in the 9th century. The preferred medium for the artists and literati of the time was the smooth and lustrous parchment. However, parchment – made from animal skin – was extremely expensive. The notion of paper being used as a practical everyday item did not occur until the 15th Century when Johann Gutenburg perfected movable type and sparked off a revolution in mass communication. The birth of the modern paper and printing industry is commonly marked by this time.

{D} Printing technology rapidly developed and created an ever-increasing demand for paper. Early European paper was made from recycled cotton and linen – and a huge trade quickly developed around the trading of old rags.  It is said that the black plague entered England from Europe on these old rags. Others experimented with fibres such as straw, cabbage, wasp nests and finally wood. This resulted in inexpensive – and replaceable – materials for paper making. Today, the long soft fibres of softwoods such as spruce have become the most suitable source of pulp for mass production.

{E} The demand for paper also created the need for greater efficiency in production. In the late 18th century the labours of Nicholas Luis Robert resulted in the creation of a machine that could produce a seamless length of paper on an endless wire mesh with squeeze rollers at one end. Perfected and marketed by the Fourdrinier brothers, the new machine made papers that soon replaced traditional single sheets made by hand.  In Europe and America, the mass production of paper became a thriving industry supplying huge volumes of paper for a huge variety of purposes.

{F} Papermaking in essence is a simple process. Whether using recycled materials or fresh organic matter, the process starts with the material being shredded into small strips and soaked overnight to loosen the fibres. Next, the fibres are boiled for 2 to 6 hours, being turned every so often. When finished, the fibres are washed with fresh water to remove impurities and then small particles or specks are removed by hand. The fibres are beaten in a blender creating a creamy pulp. At this stage, dyes can be added to create coloured papers. The pulp is then poured into a large tub and the fibres are suspended in the water. Framed screens are lowered into the water and then lifted to the surface catching the fibres onto the screen. The screens are then dried, pressed and smoothed.

{G} In the west, as industrial paper production boomed, the art of hand paper-making has been driven nearly to extinction – being practised only by a few fine artists and craftspeople. However, in small areas throughout Asia, the tradition has lived on through regular and rice paper made by hand. Incidentally, the traditional Asian paper which is often referred to as “rice paper” is not made from rice fibres at all. More commonly it is made from the versatile mulberry tree – varieties of which are also used for feeding silkworms and in medicine.  In contrast to the cold precision and standardisation that industrial production demands, the soft, subtle textures and natural feeling of handmade paper are said to echo the warm heart of the papermaker who makes each sheet with devotion.

{H} The new Millennium will be dominated by the tremendous progress that has been made in computer science, thus triggering a complete change in our commercial and private communication and information behaviour. Does this mean that the paper era will come to an end? The answer is most definitely “No”. Clearly, there will be a huge amount of data being generated electronically, but the issue is how to preserve it. The difficulties of data storage over a long period of time are well known (for example, the durability of disks; frequent changes of hardware and software, electronic breakdowns etc.).  Once again, the paper offers the most convenient and durable storage option.

Questions 28-34

The reading passage on Origin of Paper has 8 paragraphs A – H.

From the list of headings below choose the most suitable headings for paragraphs B – H.

Write the appropriate number (i – xi) in boxes 28 – 34 on your answer sheet.

NB    There are more headings than paragraphs, so you will not use them all.

List of headings
(i)        Arabian Expertise

(ii)       Traditional Paper Producers

(iii)      Superstition

(iv)      The Origins of Paper

(v)       The Development of Mass Production

(vi)      The Journey to the West

(vii)     The Prospects for Paper

(viii)    The Age of Experimentation

(ix)      The Father of Modern Paper

(x)       The Modern Process

(xi)      A Change of Material

Example                Answer

Paragraph A              iv

Question (28) Paragraph B

Question (29) Paragraph C

Question (30) Paragraph D

Question (31) Paragraph E

Question (32) Paragraph F

Question (33) Paragraph G

Question (34) Paragraph H

Questions 35-38

Look at the following 8 statements A – H.

According to IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 Passage 3, which FOUR statements are TRUE?

Choose from the appropriate letters, A – H, and write them on your answer sheet for questions 35 – 38. 

(A) Today’s style of paper originated in Egypt.

(B) Papyrus-style paper was employed up to the 18th century.

(C) There is a story that disease was spread due to the great demand for paper.

(D) The author cites reasons why computer technology is not dependable.

(E) Rice Paper has been used in medicine.

(F) Paper was not used extensively until the movable type was commonly used.

(G) Robert’s invention led to the redundancy of the handmade paper industry.

(H) Today paper is no longer handmade.

Questions 39-40

Using the information in the IELTSFever Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 passage 3, complete the flow chart below.

Write your answers in boxes 39 and 40 on your answer sheet.

Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.

The Paper Production Process

The paper raw material is (eg)______ and then            Answer

                                            saturated in water.                                             Shredded                                    

⬇️

The sodden material is then boiled while being turned periodically.

⬇️

Material fibers are washed and checked manually.

⬇️

Fibres are then blended to (39)__________ .

⬇️

Colouring added if desired and mixed with water.

⬇️

(40)__________ are dipped into the liquid.

⬇️

Liquid paper is then pressed, smoothed, and dried.

⬇️

Dried paper is cut packaged and distributed.

For Answers Academic IELTS Reading Test 166 Answers

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