Chiến thuật làm bài: Matching - Heading

1. Đọc tiêu đề (headings) trước. Đừng mất nhiều thời gian với chúng vì một vài
tiêu đề (headings) sẽ sai. Cố gắng xác định Key word của các tiêu đề
(headings). Bằng cách đọc tiêu đề, bạn sẽ hiểu được ý nghĩa chung của toàn
bài văn.
2. Đọc đoạn văn đầu tiên. Cố gắng bỏ qua chi tiết mà chỉ tìm ý chính toàn
đoạn. Đọc những dòng đầu tiên của đoạn để xem có phù hợp với tiêu đề
không. Đừng quên kiểm tra những dòng cuối cùng đề tìm ý. Có thể câu nói
đó là đáp án
3. Cố gắng thử đọc hết tiêu đề để tìm tiêu đề đúng nhất cho đoạn văn. Đọc quá
nhanh sẽ khiên bạn mắc lỗi.
4. Nếu bạn không chắc chắn, đoạn văn có thể phù hợp với heading (tiêu đề) a
hoặc b, bạn viết a,b sang bên cạnh. Đứng cố gắng đoán. Bạn quay lại sau khi
làm những câu hỏi khác;
5. Bạn cần Gạch chân/ vòng tròn lại những từ vựng trong đoạn văn mà phù hợp
với tiêu đề. Điều này rất quan trọng vì nó sẽ giúp bạn tránh lặp đáp án ở
những câu hỏi sau;
6. Chuyển sang đoạn văn tiếp theo và nhắc lại quy trình.
7. Quay lại những câu bạn chưa quyết định và tìm đáp án đúng.
8. Simplicity reigns at London's biggest design festival.
9. (A) With upwards of 300 product launches, installations and exhibitions,
London's annual nine-day design festival is a showcase of head-spinning
choice. In many ways that's the beauty of the extravaganza, everyone has a
different experience and takes something unique away from it. There were
however some intriguing themes and trends in this year's edition that spoke
to larger social or cultural preoccupations.
10.
(B) One was the launch of two consumer electronics products designed to
simplify and beautify our technology-addled lives. Both chose the new
London Design Festival venue of Somerset House to show their wares. The
first was a mobile phone launched by Swiss company Punkt and designed by
Jasper Morrison that allows users to make calls and texts only (well, it has
an alarm clock and an address book too). Punkt founder Petter Neby doesn't
believe it will replace your smart phone but suggests users fit it with the
same SIM card as your main phone and use it in the evenings, weekends and
on holiday.
11.
(C) The other electronics launch came from the unlikely French sibling duo
of the Bouroullec brothers. Though tech companies like Samsung are usually
prescriptive about their products the Bouroullecs (who admitted they found
most TVs sad and ugly) seem to have been given free rein. Their new
television for the mega Korean brand looks more like an item of furniture
than an ultra-large and ultra-slim piece of tech. More importantly, it comes
with simplified on-screen interaction and a 'curtain mode' that turns your
screen into a shimmering pattern during ads or half-time. Again, their focus
was on dialing down digital insanity.
12.
(D) Customizable online furniture was also very much in vogue at this year's
festival. But rest assured, weird and unreliable software or off-the-wall
designs sent to a 3D printer somewhere and arriving months later, seem to
be a thing of the past. Customization may finally have come of age. Two
examples were Scandi-brand Hem that combinded good design by the likes
of Luca Nichetto, Form Us With Love and Sylvain Willenz with affordable
price points. The fact that the brand opened a pop-up store in Covent Garden
during the festival is a recognition of the importance of both physical and
online spaces that work seamlessly together.
13.
(E) Another online configurable brand to make its debut after years in
development was Warsaw-based Tylko. Like Hem, Tylko has spent time and
money on very powerful and easy-to-use software, but with only three
designs - a table, a shelf and salt and pepper mills - it has a way to go. Its
augmented reality app is simple to use however and its table has been
developed with a nano-coating option that really does appear to keep pesky
stains at bay. Craft and 'making' in all its forms was once again a big hit and
nowhere more so than at TENT, the East London design event that gets
better every year.
14.
(F) A definite highlight was the massive space taken over by the Design &
Crafts Council of Ireland and filled with weavers and potters doing their
thing and showing their wares. Irish Design had another delectable stand
over at the Rochelle School in East London too. The Souvenir Project was a
series of nine non-cliché 'souvenirs' made in Ireland and included a rainbow
plate by Nicholas Mosse Pottery that featured rows of animals, flowers and
watering cans and commemorated the legalization of same-sex marriage in
Ireland in May 2015.
 15.
(G) If there was one material that could be said to define the festival it might
just be Jesmonite, the wonder man-made building composite. Lighter and
more sustainable than concrete, its dramatic capabilities were brought to life
by London-based design studio PINCH and their tour-de-force limited
edition Nim table and Swedish artist Hilda Hellström's giant colorful
volcano made for the restaurant in London's Ace Hotel. A show called
Matter of Stuff near Covent Garden was in on the jesmonite act too, but even
more intriguingly was presenting vases made out of Propolis, a resinous
material collected by bees and used to seal gaps in hives that, according to
their designer Marlene Huissoud, behaves like glass.
16.
(H) Finally, this was the year that Chinese Design finally displayed a well-
edited and inspired showcase of products. Despite the mouthful of a title,
Icon Presents: Hi Design Shanghai stand at 100% Design was a meaningful
selection of designers exploring materials and ideas. Young design duo
Yuue's offerings were the most representative of a new conceptual approach
to design that seems to be emerging. Their lamps were functional but also
thought-provoking and humorous. What more could one want from the stuff
that surrounds us?
Questions 1-8
The text has eight paragraphs A-H. Which paragraph contains the following
information? Write the correct letter, A-H, in boxes 1-8 on your answer sheet.
1. Examples of customization
2. Unusual keepsakes
3. A new approach
4. A simple cell phone
5. Unbelievable material
6. A strange TV
7. Number of products shown on the festival
8. Three designs of a software
* Answer keys
1. The correct answer is D, because in the paragraph D we can see that the author
is talking about customization: "Customizable online furniture... Customization
may finally have come of age. Two examples were..."
2. Your answer should be F, because in this paragraph there is a fragment that tells
"a series of nine non-cliché 'souvenirs'" which is a synonym to unusual keepsakes.
 3. The correct answer is H, because you can see a line about "a new conceptual
approach to design" in the third sentence of paragraph H.
4. The correct answer is B, because in the paragraph B we can read about new cell
phone, "that allows users to make calls and texts only". Therefore, it is simple.
5. In the paragraph G we're told about "Jesmonite, the wonder man-made building
composite. Lighter and more sustainable than concrete...". Due to such qualities,
this material can be described as unbelivable.
6. The correct answer is C. Third sentence confirms it: "...new television for the
mega Korean brand looks more like an item of furniture than an ultra-large and
ultra-slim piece of tech...".
7. The very first line of the first paragraph says: "With upwards of 300 product
launches, installations and exhibitions, London's annual nine-day design festival is
a showcase of head-spinning choice. So the right answer is A.
8. E is the correct answer, because the second sentence of paragraph E says that
"...Tylko has spent time and money on very powerful and easy-to-use software, but
with only three designs - a table, a shelf and salt and pepper mills...".

List of Headings IELTS Reading Practice

Note: Please find list of heading IELS reading practice (i,ii,iii,..) to match with
the approriate paragraph (A, B, C...) given below.

 Lamaism (i)
 First account of almases (ii)
 Missing link (iii )
 Lost evidence (iv)
 Borrowed tales from Tibet? (v)
 Living in Mongolia (vi)
 Possible ancestors of humans (vii)
 Funding expeditions (viii)
 New discoveries support a theory (ix)
 Mysterious mountain men (x)

1. Paragraph A
2. Paragraph B
3. Paragraph C
4. Paragraph D
5. Paragraph E
6. Paragraph F

Almas: The Mongolian Man-Beast

A. Mongolia usually evokes images of nomadic herdsmen riding across vast

grasslands, but along the western border with Russia, the Altai Mountains stretch
for over a thousand kilometres, their permanently ice-capped peaks rising above
4000 mE=s From these mountains have long come reports of a mysterious human-
like creature called an almas. Sightings have become increasingly rare over the
past hundred years but according to old accounts, almas are described as being
similar in height to that of modern Mongolians, hairy, having massive jaws,
receding chins and prominent eyebrow ridges. They are thought to be mainly
nocturnal, are unaggressive and usually avoid contact with humans.

B. The earliest description of an almas appears in the memoirs of a Bavarian

noblema Hans Schiltberger, who was taken prisoner by the Turks in the early
1400s SAT general training in Bardoli and sent eastward to serve a Mongol prince.
"In the mountains live wild people who have nothing in common with other human
beings. A pelit covers the entire body of these creatures. Only the hands and face
are free of hair" Giving his seemingly incredible account some credibility is the
fact that he also mentions the Przewais horse (Equus ferus przewalskii), the last
remaining wild species of horse which was unknown in Europe until centuries
later.

C. A few scientists such as Myra Shackley, however, have suggested that the
almas is (or at least was) a real creature, and that it could be a remnant population
of hominids either homo erectus or Neanderthals. Neanderthals - mankind's closest
cousins - lived in Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe, and are thought to
have died out 25000- 30000 years ago. Over the decades there has been the
occasional "find" (hair, skull droppings) but tests have shown them to be either of
human origin or from known Animals.

D. Many accounts of almases seem to be tied up with Mongolia's pre-communist

Buddhism. In 1837 a pilgrim called Luvsandonoi (Mongolians typically use just a
single name) found the body of a dead male almas in the Gobi Desert. He
reportedly gave the skin, head, and limbs to the Galbyn Ulaan Sahius monastery.
Lamas stuffed the skin. The stuffed almas was said to be hairy but with some
human-like features. There are various other descriptions of monasteries with
almas artefacts, even one with a complete stuffed almas. Unfortunately, communist
purges in the 1930s led to the destruction of all but one of the country's more than
500 monasteries, and these artefacts were destroyed or disappeared. An interesting
re-occurring element of almas stories is the use of bile (a digestive juice produced
by the liver) from the gallbladder as a medicine. It was highly prized and used by
lama doctors to treat a variety of disorders. Interestingly, bile from the gall bladder
of black bears has long has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine.

E. One possible explanation for the almas is that it is folklore imported alongside
Tibetan Buddhism from the Himalayas. From medieval times until the early
twentieth century, Buddhism dominated religious, cultural and educational lite in
Mongolia. There were important ties with Tibet, and it was not uncommon for the
religious leaders and devout followers to make the pilgrimage to the holy city of
Lhasa where they would have heard the tales of the yetis, and seen various
supposed yeti artefacts in monasteries. Currently, the weight of scientific opinion is
that the Yeti is a mythical creature born of a combination of bear sightings and
folklore.

F. Two recent scientific bombshells give the remnant hominid theory a boost,
First, the discovery of a new human species Homo floresiensis (nicknamed the
Hobbit) and the startling fact that it occupied the Indonesian island of Flores until
perhaps as recently as 12,000 years ago. Even more relevant to the almas mystery
is the 2008 discovery of a female finger bone in a cave in the Siberian section of
 the Altai Mountains. An international team of scientists from the Max Planck
Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany have worked on the
mitochondrial DNA from the finger bone. They announced in 2010 that it was
from a previously unknown hominid species that lived in the Altai Mountains
about 35,000 years ago.

(Hope you have correctly matched the headings with correct paragraphs in this
given list of headings IELTS reading practice. )

Check more IELTS academic reading matching headings exercise with answer

Matching Headings Skill Building Exercise 2

Questions 1 - 6

The reading passage has six paragraphs, A-F.

Choose the correct heading for paragraphs, A-F, from the list below.

Write the correct number, i-ix, as your answer to each question.

List of Headings

 i Bills of exchange precede paper money

 ii The English Civil War
 iii Advent of the Gold standard
 iv The Knights Templar
 v Recurrence of paper currency
 vi Goldsmiths in the role of bankers
 vii Scarcity of copper coins
 viii Virginian money
 ix ‘Intangible’ money

1. Paragraph A
2. Paragraph B
3. Paragraph C
4. Paragraph D
5. Paragraph E
6. Paragraph F

Money

A. In China, the issue of paper money became common from about 960 but there
had been occasional issues long before that. A motive for one such early issue, in
the reign of Emperor Hien Tsung 806-821, was a shortage of copper for making
coins. A drain of currency from China, partly to buy off potential invaders from the
north greater reliance on paper money with the result that by 1020 the quantity
issued was excessive, causing inflation. In subsequent centuries there were several
episodes of hyperinflation, and after about 1455, after well over 500 years of using
paper money, China abandoned it.

B. With the revival of banking in western Europe, stimulated by the Crusades,

written instructions in the form of bills of exchange came to be used as a means of
transferring large sums of money, and the Knights Templar and Hospitallers
functioned as bankers. It is possible that the Arabs may have used bills of exchange
at a much earlier date, perhaps as early as the eighth century. The use of paper as
currency came much later.

C. During the English Civil War, 1642-1651, goldsmiths' safes were secure places
for the deposit of jewels, bullion and coins. Instructions to goldsmiths to pay
money to another customer subsequently developed into the cheque. Similarly,
goldsmiths’ receipts were used not only for withdrawing deposits but also as
evidence of ability to pay and by about 1660 these had developed into banknotes.

D. In England's American colonies a chronic shortage of official coins led to

various substitutes being used as money, including, in Virginia, tobacco, leading to
the development of paper money by a different route. Tobacco leaves have
 drawback as currency, and consequently, certificates attesting to the quality and
quantity of tobacco deposited in public warehouses came to be used as money and
in 1727 were made legal tender.

E. Although paper money obviously had no intrinsic value, its acceptability

originally depended on its being backed by some commodity, normally precious
metals. During the Napoleonic Wars convertibility of Bank of England notes was
suspended and there was some inflation which, although quite mild compared to
that which had occurred in other wars, was worrying to contemporary observers
who were used to stable prices and, in accordance with the recommendations of an
official enquiry, Britain adopted the gold standard for the pound in 1816.

F. The break with precious metals helped to make money a more elusive entity.
Another trend in the same direction was the growing interest in forms of electronic
money from the 1990s onwards. In some ways, e-money is a logical evolution
from the wire transfers that came about with the widespread adoption of the
telegraph in the 19th century, but such transfers had relatively little impact on the
everyday shopper.
Attempt this free IELTS academic reading matching headings mock test

Matching Headings Skill Building Exercise 3

Questions 1-6

The reading passage has six paragraphs, A-F.

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

Write the correct number, i-ix, as your answer to each question

List of Headings

 i Difference in social status discourages helpful behaviour

 ii A gruesome act
  iii An impact of presence of others
 iv Becoming emotionless is a convenience
 v An inhuman response
 vi Beautiful and affluent are valued more
 vii Shouldering off accountability
 viii One inaction leads to another
 ix Hesitating to help

1. Paragraph A
2. Paragraph B
3. Paragraph C
4. Paragraph D
5. Paragraph E
6. Paragraph F

ARE WE BECOMING MORE INDIFFERENT?

A. A noticeably shameful attribute of society in recent times is the Bystander

effect, where the general public blatantly ignores a person who may be a victim of
a road accident or in some kind of need. Bystanders do not only remain indifferent
to the condition of the victim, but in a grotesque example of apathy, they also go to
the extent of capturing the event in a video to share on social media or even click a
selfie with the victim in the background.

B. Why are people so unemotional? Simply put, this happens when a person feels
discouraged to get involved in an emergency, especially in the presence of others.
It is called the Bystander Effect. The concept of the Bystander Effect was
popularized by social psychologists John Darley and Bibb Latane after the murder
of Kitty Genovese in New York City in 1964. Bystanders outside Genovese’s
apartment watched while she was stabbed to death, neither trying to stop the crime
nor calling the police for assistance. According to Darley and Latane, there is a
perceived diffusion of accountability and social influence that leads to the
Bystander effect. Onlookers, they believe, are more likely to help if there are fewer
witnesses present.

C. Another example of increasing apathy is the video of an unkempt man in a

dirty coat walking with the aid of crutches and struggling. Ignored by onlookers as
he tried to get up, he was eventually brought back to his feet by a homeless man.
Helping the downtrodden is perceived as damaging to our social standing in
society. Conclusions drawn by a research published by the International
Ombudsman Association, an individual's hesitation in coming to the aid of the less
fortunate is the fear of social consequences or the stigma of being associated with a
person in distress.

D. The larger question about the culture of indifference has a lot to do with the
bystander behaviour, says Wesley Perkins, a sociology professor at Hobart and
William Smith Colleges in Geneva, NY. The Bystander phenomenon is generated
by the perception that other people are not doing anything about it. Therefore I
shouldn't either. However, when these events come to the knowledge of the public,
'people think everybody is mean and cruel-hearted and doesn't care" Perkins says.
'But much of the Bystander phenomenon happens because people are looking on
and thinking, if they don't see someone else coming to the person's aid, then the
person must not be in trouble. Also, people are more likely to do the right thing
when they notice the same behaviour being elicited by other individuals. It is only
the real heroes who step out of a group to help.

E. Transferring responsibility is the most common response. Paul Rogat Loeb,

lecturer on ethics and the author of Soul of a Citizen', speaks about his
conversation with the factory workers who processed plutonium for nuclear
weapons. Loeb asked, 'Do you think it is a good thing?' Promptly denying their
responsibility, the factory workers disassociated themselves from the potentially
horrific consequences of their actions. The prevalent attitude is that someone else
will do what is needed. 'We hope people do the right thing. We hope someone
takes care of the poor, says Loeb.
F. According to legendary Greek philosopher Aristotle, man is an inherently social
animal. It would not be possible for us to survive without one another, not only
because of the lack of sustenance but because we would probably go insane living
alone. But looking at the society we live in today, it appears that humans have
become apathetic not only towards the community and the environment but also
towards fellow human beings. The Bystander effect is evident even on the internet,
where users watch others get bullied or threatened. Unless the feelings of
irrelevance that breed this apathy are addressed, people are going to find comfort
in being apathetic as a tool of self-preservation.
Check more IELTS academic reading matching headings practice questions

Answers For Skill Building Exercises

Answers for Skill Building Exercise 1 - (Almas: The Mongolian Man-Beast)

(Note: The text in italics is from the reading passage and shows the location
from where the answer is taken or inferred. The text in the regular font
explains the answer in detail.)

Paragraph A = x

Explanation: From these mountains have long come reports of a mysterious

human-like creature called an almas. Though Paragraph A mentions old accounts
of almases, ii is not an answer because it does not specifically mention the first
account.

Paragraph B = ii

Explanation: The earliest description of an almas appears in the memoirs of a

Bavarian nobleman, Hans Schiltberger, who was taken prisoner by the Turks in the
early 1400s and sent eastward to serve a Mongol Prince.
Paragraph C= vii

Explanation: A few scientists such as Myra Shackley, however, have suggested

that the almas is (or at least “was”) a real creature, and that it could be a remnant
population of hominids, either homo erectus or Neanderthals. Neanderthals -
mankind’s closest cousins…

Paragraph D = iv

Explanation: There are various other descriptions of monasteries with almas

artefacts - even one with a complete stuffed almas. Unfortunately, communist
purges in the 1930s led to the destruction of all but one of the countries more than
500 monasteries, and these artefacts were destroyed or disappeared.
Paragraph D contains two details- one about alms artefacts in monasteries and the
other about the use of bile juice as medicine. The first one is the dominating detail.
So this forms the Heading.

Paragraph E = v

Explanation: One possible explanation for the almas is that it is folklore imported
alongside Tibetan Buddhism from the Himalayas.

Paragraph F = ix

Explanation: Two recent scientific bombshells give the remnant hominid theory a
boost.

Answer for Skill Building Exercise 2 – (Money)

(Note: The text in italics is from the reading passage and shows the location
from where the answer is taken or inferred. The text in the regular font
explains the answer in detail.)
Paragraph A = v

Explanation: Paragraph A mentions A motive for one such early issue, in the
reign of Emperor Hien Tsung 806-821, was a shortage of copper for making coins.
A drain of currency from China, partly to buy off potential invaders from the north
greater reliance on paper money with the result that by 1020 the quantity issued
was excessive, causing inflation.

Paragraph B= i

Explanation: Paragraph B: …written instructions in the form of bills of exchange,

came to be used as a means of transferring large sums of money… It is possible
that the Arabs may have used bills of exchange at a much earlier date, perhaps as
early as the eighth century. The use of paper as currency came much later.

Paragraph C = vi

Explanation: Paragraph C states that goldsmiths provided services that are usually
given by banks, i.e. depositing valuables in safe vaults and issuing cheques and
banknotes. So they played the role of bankers.

Paragraph D = viii

Explanation: Paragraph D mentions substitutes for money and quotes an example

of Virginia where tobacco was once used as a form of money.

Sample Practice
Choose the correct heading for sections A-D and F from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number i-ix in boxes 1-5 on your answer sheet
Section A
The role of governments in environmental management is difficult but
inescapable. Sometimes, the state tries to manage the resources it owns, and does
so badly. Often, however, governments act in an even more harmful way. They
actually subsidise the exploitation and consumption of natural resources. A whole
range of policies, from farm-price support to protection for coal-mining, do
environmental damage and (often) make no economic sense. Scrapping them
offers a two-fold bonus: a cleaner environment and a more efficient
economy. Growth and environmentalism can actually go hand in hand, if
politicians have the courage to confront the vested interest that subsidies create.
Section B
No activity affects more of the earth’s surface than farming. It shapes a third of the
planet’s land area, not counting Antarctica, and the proportion is rising. World
food output per head has risen by 4 per cent between the 1970s and 1980s mainly
as a result of increases in yields from land already in cultivation, but also because
more land has been brought under the plough. Higher yields have been achieved
by increased irrigation, better crop breeding, and a doubling in the use of pesticides
and chemical fertilisers in the 1970s and 1980s.
Section C
All these activities may have damaging environmental impacts. For example, land
clearing for agriculture is the largest single cause of deforestation; chemical
fertilisers and pesticides may contaminate water supplies; more intensive farming
and the abandonment of fallow periods tend to exacerbate soil erosion; and the
spread of monoculture and use of high-yielding varieties of crops have been
accompanied by the disappearance of old varieties of food plants which might have
provided some insurance against pests or diseases in future. Soil erosion threatens
the productivity of land in both rich and poor countries. The United States, where
the most careful measurements have been done, discovered in 1982 that about one-
fifth of its farmland was losing topsoil at a rate likely to diminish the soil’s
productivity. The country subsequently embarked upon a program to convert 11
per cent of its cropped land to meadow or forest. Topsoil in India and China is
vanishing much faster than in America.
Section D
Government policies have frequently compounded the environmental damage that
farming can cause. In the rich countries, subsidies for growing crops and price
supports for farm output drive up the price of land. The annual value of these
subsidies is immense: about $250 billion, or more than all World Bank lending in
the 1980s. To increase the output of crops per acre, a farmer’s easiest option is to
use more of the most readily available inputs: fertilisers and pesticides. Fertiliser
use doubled in Denmark in the period 1960-1985 and increased in The Netherlands
by 150 per cent. The quantity of pesticides applied has risen too: by 69 per cent in
1975-1984 in Denmark, for example, with a rise of 115 per cent in the frequency of
application in the three years from 1981.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s some efforts were made to reduce farm
subsidies. The most dramatic example was that of New Zealand, which scrapped
most farm support in 1984. A study of the environmental effects, conducted in
1993, found that the end of fertiliser subsidies had been followed by a fall in
fertiliser use (a fall compounded by the decline in world commodity prices, which
cut farm incomes). The removal of subsidies also stopped landclearing and over-
stocking, which in the past had been the principal causes of erosion. Farms began
to diversify. The one kind of subsidy whose removal appeared to have been bad
for the environment was the subsidy to manage soil erosion.
In less enlightened countries, and in the European Union, the trend has been to
reduce rather than eliminate subsidies, and to introduce new payments to
encourage farmers to treat their land in environmentally friendlier ways, or to leave
it fallow. It may sound strange but such payments need to be higher than the
existing incentives for farmers to grow food crops. Farmers, however, dislike
being paid to do nothing. In several countries they have become interested in the
possibility of using fuel produced from crop residues either as a replacement for
petrol (as ethanol) or as fuel for power stations (as biomass). Such fuels produce
far less carbon dioxide than coal or oil, and absorb carbon dioxide as they
grow. They are therefore less likely to contribute to the greenhouse effect. But
they are rarely competitive with fossil fuels unless subsidised – and growing them
does no less environmental harm than other crops.
Section E
In poor countries, governments aggravate other sorts of damage. Subsidies for
pesticides and artificial fertilisers encourage farmers to use greater quantities than
are needed to get the highest economic crop yield. A study by the International
Rice Research Institute of pesticide use by farmers in South East Asia found that,
with pest-resistant varieties of rice, even moderate applications of pesticide
frequently cost farmers more than they saved. Such waste puts farmers on a
chemical treadmill: bugs and weeds become resistant to poisons, so next year’s
poisons must be more lethal. One cost is to human health. Every year some
10,000 people die from pesticide poisoning, almost all of them in the developing
countries, and another 400,000 become seriously ill. As for artificial fertilisers,
their use world-wide increased by 40 per cent per unit of farmed land between the
mid 1970s and late 1980s, mostly in the developing countries. Overuse of
fertilisers may cause farmers to stop rotating crops or leaving their land
fallow. That, in turn, may make soil erosion worse.
Section F
A result of the Uruguay Round of world trade negotiations is likely to be a
reduction of 36 per cent in the average levels of farm subsidies paid by the rich
countries in 1986-1990. Some of the world’s food production will move from
Western Europe to regions where subsidies are lower or non-existent, such as the
former communist countries and parts of the developing world. Some
environmentalists worry about this outcome. It will undoubtedly mean more
pressure to convert natural habitat into farmland. But it will also have many
desirable environmental effects. The intensity of farming in the rich world should
decline, and the use of chemical inputs will diminish. Crops are more likely to be
grown in the environments to which they are naturally suited. And more farmers
in poor countries will have the money and the incentive to manage their land in
ways that are sustainable in the long run. That is important. To feed an
increasingly hungry world, farmers need every incentive to use their soil and water
effectively and efficiently.

Paragraph E = iii

Explanation: Paragraph E states how Gold, a precious metal, became a standard

for evaluating the pound, the British currency.

Paragraph F = ix

Explanation: Paragraph F states about the rise of electronic money in the 1990s.
As no physical money is being exchanged during e-money transfers, it can be
called intangible.
Answer for Skill Building Exercise 3 - (Are We Becoming More Indifferent?)

(Note: The text in italics is from the reading passage and shows the location
from where the answer is taken or inferred. The text in the regular font
explains the answer in detail.)

Paragraph A = v

Explanation: Paragraph A - A noticeably shameful attribute of society... ignores a

person who may be a victim of a road accident or in some kind of need. Bystanders
do not only remain indifferent to the condition of the victim, but in a grotesque
example of apathy, they also go to the extent of capturing the event in a video to
share on social media or even click a selfie with the victim in the background.

Paragraph B = iii

Explanation: Paragraph B - Simply put, this happens when a person feels

discouraged to get involved in an emergency, in the presence of others. It is called
the Bystander Effect.. Onlookers, they believe, are more likely to help if there are
fewer witnesses present.

Paragraph C = i

Explanation: Paragraph C - Helping the downtrodden is perceived as damaging to

our social standing in society.. An individual's hesitation in coming to the aid of
the less fortunate is the fear of social consequences or the stigma of being
associated with a person in distress.

Paragraph D = viii

Explanation: Paragraph D - The bystander phenomenon is generated by the

perception that other people are not doing anything about it, therefore shouldn't
either'.. much of the a bystander phenomenon happens because people are looking
on and thinking, if they don't see someone else coming to the person's aid, then the
person must not be in trouble.'

Paragraph E = vii

Explanation: Paragraph E - Transferring responsibility is the most common

response.. The prevalent attitude is that someone else will do what is needed.

Paragraph F = iv

Explanation: Paragraph F - But looking at the society we live in today, it appears

that humans have become apathetic not only towards the community and the
environment but also fellow human beings. Unless the feelings of irrelevance that
breed this apathy are addressed, people are going to find comfort in being apathetic
as a tool of self-preservation.

Yoruba Town
A. The Yoruba people of Nigeria classify their towns in two ways. Permanent
towns with their own governments are called “ilu”, whereas temporary settlements,
set up to support work in the country are “aba”. Although ilu tend to be larger than
aba, the distinction is not one of size, some aba are large, while declining ilu can be
small, but of purpose. There is no “typical” Yoruba town, but some features are
common to most towns.
B. In the 19th century most towns were heavily fortified and the foundations of
these walls are sometimes visible. Collecting tolls to enter and exit through the
walls was a major source of revenue for the old town rulers, as were market fees.
The markets were generally located centrally and in small towns, while in large
towns there were permanent stands made of corrugated iron or concrete. The
market was usually next to the local ruler’s palace.
C. The palaces were often very large. In the 1930’s, the area of Oyo’s palace
covered 17 acres, and consisted of a series of courtyards surrounded by private and
public rooms. After colonisation, many of the palaces were completely or partially
demolished. Often the rulers built two storey houses for themselves using some of
the palace grounds for government buildings.
D. The town is divided into different sections. In some towns these are regular,
extending out from the center of the town like spokes on a wheel, while in others,
where space is limited, they are more random. The different areas are further
divided into compounds called “ile”. These vary in size considerably from single
dwellings to up to thirty houses. They tend to be larger in the North. Large areas
are devoted to government administrative buildings. Newer developments such as
industrial or commercial areas or apartment housing for civil servants tends to be
build on the edge of the town.
E. Houses are rectangular and either have a courtyard in the center or the rooms
come off a central corridor. Most social life occurs in the courtyard. They are
usually built of hardened mud and have roofs of corrugated iron or, in the
countryside, thatch. Buildings of this material are easy to alter, either by knocking
down rooms or adding new ones. And can be improved by coating the walls with
cement. Richer people often build their houses of concrete blocks and, if they can
afford to, build two storey houses. Within compounds there can be quite a mixture
of building types. Younger well-educated people may have well furnished houses
while their older relatives live in mud walled buildings and sleep on mats on the
floor.
F. The builder or the most senior man gets a room either near the entrance or, in a
two storied house, next to the balcony. He usually has more than one room. Junior
men get a room each and there are separate rooms for teenage boys and girls to
sleep in. Younger children sleep with their mothers. Any empty room are used as
storage, let out or, if they face the street, used as shops.
G. Amenities vary. In some towns most of the population uses communal water
taps and only the rich have piped water, in others piped water is more normal.
Some areas have toilets, but bucket toilets are common with waste being collected
by a “night soil man”. Access to water and electricity are key political issues.
569 words

List of Paragraph Headings

i. Town facilities
ii. Colonisation
iii. Urban divisions
iv. Architectural home styles
v. Types of settlements
vi. Historical foundations
vii. Domestic arrangements
viii. City defenses
ix. The residences of the rulers
x. Government buildings

Paragraph Headings Answer Discussion

Paragraph B
(vi) - Historical foundations
B. In the 19th century most towns were heavily fortified and the foundations of
these walls are sometimes visible. Collecting tolls to enter and exit through the
walls was a major source of revenue for the old town rulers, as were market fees.
The markets were generally located centrally and in small towns, while in large
towns there were permanent stands made of corrugated iron or concrete. The
market was usually next to the local ruler’s palace.
In this first question, the word 'foundation' is in the topic sentence. This does not
automatically make 'vi' the correct answer. However, it is a good reason to flag
this up as a possibility. The heading also refers to 'history', so the reference to
'19th century' in the topic sentence tells us the paragraph is about the history. A
quick skim of the paragraph confirms this.
Paragraph C
(ix) - The residences of the rulers
C. The palaces were often very large. In the 1930’s, the area of Oyo’s palace
covered 17 acres, and consisted of a series of courtyards surrounded by private and
public rooms. After colonization, many of the palaces were completely or partially
demolished. Often the rulers built two storey houses for themselves using some of
the palace grounds for government buildings.
The topic setence mentions the palaces, which is where the rulers of Yaruba would
likely live, and the heading mentioned the homes (residences) of the rulers, so it is
likely to be ix. Reading the rest of the paragraph confirms that the whole
paragraph talks generally about the palaces in Yoruna. Don't be tricked by the
'colonisation' heading. This only refers to one sentence in the paragraph, not the
whole paragraph. It is therefore a supporting point rather than the main idea.
Paragraph D
(iii) - Urban divisions
D. The town is divided into different sections. In some towns these are regular,
extending out from the center of the town like spokes on a wheel, while in others,
where space is limited, they are more random. The different areas are further
divided into compounds called “ile”. These vary in size considerably from single
dwellings to up to thirty houses. They tend to be larger in the North. Large areas
are devoted to government administrative buildings. Newer developments such as
industrial or commercial areas or apartment housing for civil servants tends to be
build on the edge of the town.
The answer is first seen in the topic sentence. The word 'divided' should have
flagged this up to you as a possibility. Notice the use of the synonym 'urban' to
replace 'town'. It is common to see synonyms in paragraph headings questions and
other IELTS reading questions.
Paragraph E
(iv) - Architectural home styles
E. Houses are rectangular and either have a courtyard in the center or the rooms
come off a central corridor. Most social life occurs in the courtyard. They are
usually built of hardened mud and have roofs of corrugated iron or, in the
countryside, thatch. Buildings of this material are easy to alter, either by knocking
down rooms or adding new ones. And can be improved by coating the walls with
cement. Richer people often build their houses of concrete blocks and, if they can
afford to, build two storey houses. Within compounds there can be quite a mixture
of building types. Younger well-educated people may have well furnished houses
while their older relatives live in mud walled buildings and sleep on mats on the
floor.
The topic sentence starts to give you a clue that 'iv' is the correct choice of the
paragraph headings as it discusses houses and their styles. This is then discussed
further in the supporting sentences that follow.
Paragraph F
(vii) - Domestic arrangements
F. The builder or the most senior man gets a room either near the entrance or, in a
two storied house, next to the balcony. He usually has more than one room. Junior
men get a room each and there are separate rooms for teenage boys and girls to
sleep in. Younger children sleep with their mothers. Any empty room are used as
storage, let out or, if they face the street, used as shops.
In this context, 'domestic' means of or relating to the home, so the heading is
referring to the arrangements within the home. Again, just by reading the topic
sentence you can see that this paragraph is discussing home arrangements and
skimming through the rest of the paragraph confirms this.
Paragraph G
(i) - Town facilities
G. Amenities vary. In some towns most of the population uses communal water
taps and only the rich have piped water, in others piped water is more normal.
Some areas have toilets, but bucket toilets are common with waste being collected
by a “night soil man”. Access to water and electricity are key political issues.
'Facilities' is a synonym of 'amenities' so this is the first clue that this could fit this
paragraph, but you need to read on to confirm that the paragraph is discussing the
facilities of the town, which it is.

The Quest for Beauty

Question 1
While skin bleaching is a long-standing cosmetic staple across Sudan, a newer
craze is sweeping the nation. Many young women are turning to prescription pills
in order to gain weight, and hopefully gain the curvaceous figures they see as the
standard of beauty. Away from the regulation of trained pharmacists, fattening pills
are illegally dispensed by the same small shops which sell topical bleaching
creams and other popular beauty fixes. Sold individually, in small bags and
emptied sweet containers, they are completely devoid of any information about
medical risks.
1. People do not get any information about the dangers to their health when
they purchase unregulated weight gain pills.
 True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answer

Question 2
It is difficult to estimate how many women in Sudan use these products to gain
weight, because many are reluctant to admit to it. "Pills are handed out in the
village like penny sweets," says Imitithal Ahmed, a student at the University of
Khartoum. "I've always been scared to use them because I've seen family members
fall ill and close friends become dependent on appetite stimulants. My aunt is on
the brink of kidney failure and has blocked arteries from taking too many fattening
pills, trying to get a bigger bum. Everyone in the family knows why she's sick, but
she won't own up to it. She's had to stop taking the pills on doctor's orders."
2. Since a large number of women in Sudan are not willing to reveal that they
take the pills, the exact number of women using them is not known.

True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answer

Question 3
Pills are often rebranded and given catchy street names which allude to their
effects. From The Neighbours' Shock to Chicken Thighs and My Mama Suspects,
the clinical name of pills are forgotten and replaced by promises of a bigger
bottom, shapely thighs and a belly that will have your mother concerned that you
might be pregnant. Tablets range from standard appetite stimulants to allergy
medicines containing the steroid hormone, cortisone. The side-effects of taking
cortisone are now a cash cow for pill peddlers. It is known to slow the metabolism,
increase appetite, trigger water retention and create extra deposits of fat around the
abdomen and face.
3. Promoting the clinical name of the pills helps the sellers to focus on the
weight gaining aspects associated with them.
 True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answer

Answer: False
The answer to this question is here:
Pills are often rebranded and given catchy street names which allude to their
effects. From The Neighbours' Shock to Chicken Thighs and My Mama Suspects,
the clinical name of pills are forgotten and replaced by promises of a bigger
bottom, shapely thighs and a belly that will have your mother concerned that you
might be pregnant.
The answer is the opposite to the statement. In the statement it says that the sellers
use the clinical name of the pills to sell them. But in the reading it says that they
are rebranded using street names, and then people forget the clinical name.
*****

Question 4
(This question is again from paragraph three, so take a look at it again above)
4. Those selling the pills are making more money on them than other types of
pills.

True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answer

Answer: Not Given

This is the information you may have been drawn to in seeking the answer to this
question:
The side-effects of taking cortisone are now a cash cow for pill peddlers.
This is saying the weight gained by taking the pills (the side-effects) are making a
lot of money for those selling them.
You may have therefore been tempted to mark it 'True' but it does not say that they
are making more money than they do selling other types of pills.
Maybe they are and this is a good assumption, but you can't answer a question as
true on the basis of an assumption. It must clearly state it in the reading but it
doesn't. So it is 'not given'.
*****

Question 5
Using unregulated steroids without supervision can damage the heart, liver,
kidneys and thyroid, says Dr Salah Ibrahim, Head of the Pharmacists' Union in
Sudan. He explains that cortisone is a naturally occurring hormone in the body,
helping to regulate vital bodily functions. But when a man-made, concentrated
version enters the body in the form of pills or topical bleaching creams, the brain
gives the body a signal to stop production. If a user suddenly stops taking the
substance, their major organs can spiral into dysfunction.
5. The body's cortisone production will eventually return to normal once a
person stops taking the pills.

True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answer

Answer: Not Given

This is the information you will have been drawn to in seeking the answer to this
question:
...cortisone is a naturally occurring hormone in the body, helping to regulate vital
bodily functions. But when a man-made, concentrated version enters the body in
the form of pills or topical bleaching creams, the brain gives the body a signal to
stop production. If a user suddenly stops taking the substance, their major organs
can spiral into dysfunction.
This says that cortisone is naturally occuring in the body, but when the pills are
taken, the body stops producing it naturally. Organs can then suffer if the pills are
stopped.
That might suggest the statement is false as it talks about a 'return to normal' when
taking the pills ceases. However, the statement says that eventually (so some time
in the future) the production will go back to normal.
It's quite possible this will happen but we really don't know that from the reading.
The reading just tells us what happens to the organs immediately after suddenly
stopping taking the pill. Assuming the person does not die, their production levels
may go back to normal.
So as we don't have that information in the reading, it is 'not given'.
*****

Question 6
Young women in Sudan are dying from kidney and heart failure caused by sudden
steroid withdrawal, medical professionals say. Fatalities are especially common
among new brides, who traditionally undergo a month of intense beautification
prior to their wedding day and then abruptly stop using fattening pills and steroidal
bleaching creams. Their deaths are put down to sudden organ failure.
6. Intense usage in the month after marriage followed by sudden withdrawal
is resulting in a high death rate for newly wed women.

True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answers

Answer: False
This is where the answer is:
Fatalities are especially common among new brides, who traditionally undergo a
month of intense beautification prior to their wedding day and then abruptly stop
using fattening pills and steroidal bleaching creams.
The statement says the month after marriage, but the reading says the month prior
(before) marriage.
*****

Question 7
Yet these horrifying beauty trends continue to gain traction. Prescription pill abuse
is taking off in Sudan's conservative society, partly because it lacks the social
stigma and pungent, giveaway odour of alcohol and cannabis. University students
flock to buy the potent painkiller Tramadol, which is sold for 20 Sudanese pounds
($1; 80 pence) per pill. Some of Khartoum's roadside tea-sellers are even known to
drop the painkiller in a cup of tea, upon a coded request.
7. Sudanise society does not view the absue of prescription pills as negatively
as it does other drugs such as alcohol and cannabis.

True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answers

Answer: True
This is where the answer is:
Prescription pill abuse is taking off in Sudan's conservative society, partly
because it lacks the social stigma and pungent, giveaway odour of alcohol and
cannabis.
The statement says the abuse of pills doesn't have the stigma attached to it like
alcohol and cannabis do, so it is 'true'.
*****
Question 8
Awareness campaigns have so far had very little impact. Dr Ibrahim, Head of the
Pharmacists Union, has made numerous appearances on national television to warn
of the dangers of prescription pill abuse. At university level, pharmacists are taught
vigilance and trained to act in keeping with ethics and pharmaceutical law. But in a
country where pharmacists and doctors are paid very little, the temptation to sell
pills to illegal vendors is overwhelming for some. "Last time I went to the beauty
shop I go to for my creams, the shop owner brought out a chocolate box full of
different fattening pills," says Ms Ahmed, the Khartoum student. "Girls are too
scared to ask pharmacists and doctors about the pills they buy from beauty shops,
for fear of being publicly shamed."
7. Awareness campaigns are becoming common on national television.

True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answers

Answer: Not Given

This is where you find a similar part to the statement:
Dr Ibrahim, Head of the Pharmacists Union, has made numerous appearances on
national television to warn of the dangers of prescription pill abuse.
However, this is not the same as the statement. This says that Dr. Ibrahim has
appeared on television many times. That does not mean that awareness campaigns
more generally are commonly appearing on television.
We are not told if that is the case or not, so the answer is not given in the reading.
*****

Question 9
(This question is again from the above paragraph, so take a look at it again)
4. The low pay of doctors and pharmacists contributes to the problem of
weight pill abuse.
 True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answers

Answer: True
This is where you find a similar part to the statement:
But in a country where pharmacists and doctors are paid very little, the
temptation to sell pills to illegal vendors is overwhelming for some.
This section clearly states the same thing as the statement, as it states that their low
pay means they are tempted to sell pills to vendors.
*****

Question 10
Police may arrest traders and block smuggling routes, but the profits for rogue
pharmacists keep growing regardless. Fattening pills are poured into the black
market, deemed to be the lesser evil. Sudan isn't the only African society where
being overweight is a symbol of prosperity and power, boosting the
"marriageability" of young women. But in this country, it embodies an ideal. It
defines the ultimate Sudanese woman - full-bodied and light-skinned - epitomising
beauty and coveted as a wife. The iconic status of Nada Algalaa, a Sudanese singer
whose looks are widely praised and emulated, is testament in itself. For some
women, it is an ideal to be acquired by any means necessary.
7. Being overweight is a sign of prosperity and power throughout African
countries.

True
False
Not Given
Show / hide answers
Answer: Not Given
This is where you find a similar part to the statement:
Sudan isn't the only African society where being overweight is a symbol of
prosperity and power, boosting the "marriageability" of young women.
However, this is not the same as the statement. This does say indicate that other
countries also view being overwight positively (Sudan is not the only country).
But it does not give any information on how many countries actually do view it
this way. It could be a few others, it could be many. We don't know for sure so it is
'not given'.

Match Headings Questions 1-5

The reading passage has five paragraphs, A-E.

Choose the correct heading for paragraphs A-E from the list of headings below.

Write the correct number, i-x, in boxes 1-5.

1 Paragraph A

2 Paragraph B
3 Paragraph C

4 Paragraph D

5 Paragraph E

A
Despite its bad reputation, stress historically had a vital role to play. Commonly
referred to as the ‘fight or flight’ mode, the sudden release of stress hormones like
adrenalin and cortisol causes the heart to beat faster, airways to dilate and blood
vessels to open up, all of which push the body towards optimal performance and,
ultimately, survival. In the rest of the animal kingdom, this is still often the
difference between life and death. As he springs off to freedom, the lucky gazelle
who escapes the lion can thank this primal evolutionary response.

B
In ordinary modern life, although we’re in little danger of being stalked by wild
beasts down city streets, our bodies react to stress in the same ways. Experiencing
anxiety, fear and stress is considered a normal part of life when it is occasional and
temporary, such as feeling anxious and stressed before an exam or a job interview.
It is when these acute reactions are prolonged or cannot be switched off, however,
that serious physical, social and cognitive issues can result. In contrast to the
normal everyday stress of modern life, chronic stress is a pathological state which
can significantly interfere with daily living activities such as work, school and
relationships, wreaking havoc on the body’s immune, metabolic and cardiovascular
systems.

C
Of major concern is the impact on the brain. Researchers have found that the
hippocampus, the control centre of memory and our ability to learn, can physically
shrink in response to prolonged release of stress hormones like cortisol which
result from chronic stress. Neurons in this area do not just get smaller, but actually
die, which weakens the neural connections, affecting the way memories are
organised and stored in the brain. A chronically stressed person would recognise
this as a ‘brain fog’, and it also has ramifications for other areas such as creativity
and adaptability.
D
While this part of the brain gets smaller, another area, the amygdala, which is
involved in processing emotions, can grow with chronic stress. Across species, a
larger amygdala has been found to correlate with aggression and this, coupled with
the weakened connection to the prefrontal cortex, the brain’s decision -making
centre, can profoundly impact mood and behaviour. With the link between
emotions and decision-making compromised, a person is much less able to stop
and reflect, becoming instead reactive and short-fused. Think of the difference
between being able to tolerate a screaming child and instead giving in to the desire
to scream back.

E
In the past, it was accepted that there was a limited number of neurons in the brain
and as they died off as a result of ageing, stress or substance abuse, for instance,
they were lost forever. It turns out, however, that this is not the case and that stem
cells within the brain are actually able to create new neurons. In other words, lost
neurons can be replaced. What makes this discovery even more powerful is the fact
that replenishing neurons is rather straightforward. One of the most powerful
stimulants for neuron growth is physical activity. So, in addition to its role in the
reduction of stress hormones in the first place, and its ability to stimulate the
release of endorphins, exercise has now been shown to contribute to the repair of
the chronically stressed brain.

1 Paragraph A vi

2 Paragraph B iii

3 Paragraph C iv

4 Paragraph D viii

5 Paragraph E x