Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading question type. Learn how to manage time and improve accuracy.
Originally published April 2023. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
How Bacteria Invented Gene Editing
A This week the UK Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority okayed a proposal to modify human embryos through gene editing. The research, which will be carried out at the Francis Crick Institute in London, should improve our understanding of human development. It will also undoubtedly attract controversy – particularly with claims that manipulating embryonic genomes is a first step towards designer babies. Those concerns shouldn’t be ignored. After all, gene editing of the kind that will soon be undertaken at the Francis Crick Institute doesn’t occur naturally in humans or other animals.
B It is, however, a lot more common in nature than you might think, and it’s been going on for a surprisingly long time – revelations that have challenged what biologists thought they knew about the way evolution works. We’re talking here about one particular gene editing technique called CRISPR-Cas, or just CRISPR. It’s relatively fast, cheap and easy to edit genes with CRISPR – factors that explain why the technique has exploded in popularity in the last few years. But CRISPR wasn’t dreamed up from scratch in a laboratory. This gene editing tool actually evolved in single-celled microbes.
C CRISPR went unnoticed by biologists for decades. It was only at the tail end of the 1980s that researchers studying Escherichia coli noticed that there were some odd repetitive sequences at the end of one of the bacterial genes. Later, these sequences would be named Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats – CRISPRs. For several years the significance of these CRISPRs was a mystery, even when researchers noticed that they were always separated from one another by equally odd ‘spacer’ gene sequences.
D Then, a little over a decade ago, scientists made an important discovery. Those ‘spacer’ sequences look odd because they aren’t bacterial in origin. Many are actually snippets of DNA from viruses that are known to attack bacteria. In 2005, three research groups independently reached the same conclusion: CRISPR and its associated genetic sequences were acting as a bacterial immune system. In simple terms, this is how it works. A bacterial cell generates special proteins from genes associated with the CRISPR repeats (these are called CRISPR associated – Cas – proteins). If a virus invades the cell, these Cas proteins bind to the viral DNA and help cut out a chunk. Then, that chunk of viral DNA gets carried back to the bacterial cell’s genome where it is inserted – becoming a spacer. From now on, the bacterial cell can use the spacer to recognise that particular virus and attack it more effectively.
E These findings were a revelation. Geneticists quickly realised that the CRISPR system effectively involves microbes deliberately editing their own genomes – suggesting the system could form the basis of a brand new type of genetic engineering technology. They worked out the mechanics of the CRISPR system and got it working in their lab experiments. It was a breakthrough that paved the way for this week’s announcement by the HFEA. Exactly who took the key steps to turn CRISPR into a useful genetic tool is, however, the subject of a huge controversy. Perhaps that’s inevitable – credit for developing CRISPR gene editing will probably guarantee both scientific fame and financial wealth.
F Beyond these very important practical applications, though, there’s another CRISPR story. It’s the account of how the discovery of CRISPR has influenced evolutionary biology. Sometimes overlooked is the fact that it wasn’t just geneticists who were excited by CRISPR’s discovery – so too were biologists. They realised CRISPR was evidence of a completely unexpected parallel between the way humans and bacteria fight infections. We’ve known for a long time that part of our immune system “learns” about the pathogens it has seen before so it can adapt and fight infections better in future. Vertebrate animals were thought to be the only organisms with such a sophisticated adaptive immune system. In light of the discovery of CRISPR, it seemed some bacteria had their own version. In fact, it turned out that lots of bacteria have their own version. At the last count, the CRISPR adaptive immune system was estimated to be present in about 40% of bacteria. Among the other major group of single-celled microbes – the archaea – CRISPR is even more common. It’s seen in about 90% of them. If it’s that common today, CRISPR must have a history stretching back over millions – possibly even billions – of years. “It’s clearly been around for a while,” says Darren Griffin at the University of Kent.
G The animal adaptive immune system, then, isn’t nearly as unique as we thought. And there’s one feature of CRISPR that makes it arguably even better than our adaptive immune system: CRISPR is heritable. When we are infected by a pathogen, our adaptive immune system learns from the experience, making our next encounter with that pathogen less of an ordeal. This is why vaccination is so effective: it involves priming us with a weakened version of a pathogen to train our adaptive immune system. Your children, though, won’t benefit from the wealth of experience locked away in your adaptive immune system. They have to experience an infection – or be vaccinated – first hand before they can learn to deal with a given pathogen.
H CRISPR is different. When a microbe with CRISPR is attacked by a virus, the record of the encounter is hardwired into the microbe’s DNA as a new spacer. This is then automatically passed on when the cell divides into daughter cells, which means those daughter cells know how to fight the virus even before they’ve seen it. We don’t know for sure why the CRISPR adaptive immune system works in a way that seems, at least superficially, superior to ours. But perhaps our biological complexity is the problem, says Griffin. “In complex organisms any minor [genetic] changes cause profound effects on the organism,” he says. Microbes might be sturdy enough to constantly edit their genomes during their lives and cope with the consequences – but animals probably aren’t. The discovery of this heritable immune system was, however, a biologically astonishing one. It means that some microbes write their lifetime experiences of their environment into their genome and then pass the information to their offspring – and that is something that evolutionary biologists did not think happened.
I Darwin’s theory of evolution is based on the idea that natural selection acts on the naturally occurring random variation in a population. Some organisms are better adapted to the environment than others, and more likely to survive and reproduce, but this is largely because they just happened to be born that way. But before Darwin, other scientists had suggested different mechanisms through which evolution might work. One of the most famous ideas was proposed by a French scientist called Jean-Bapteste Lamarck. He thought organisms actually changed during their life, acquiring useful new adaptations non-randomly in response to their environmental experiences. They then passed on these changes to their offspring.
J People often use giraffes to illustrate Lamarck’s hypothesis. The idea is that even deep in prehistory, the giraffe’s ancestor had a penchant for leaves at the top of trees. This early giraffe had a relatively short neck, but during its life it spent so much time stretching to reach leaves that its neck lengthened slightly. The crucial point, said Lamarck, was that this slightly longer neck was somehow inherited by the giraffe’s offspring. These giraffes also stretched to reach high leaves during their lives, meaning their necks lengthened just a little bit more, and so on. Once Darwin’s ideas gained traction, Lamarck’s ideas became deeply unpopular. But the CRISPR immune system – in which specific lifetime experiences of the environment are passed on to the next generation – is one of a tiny handful of natural phenomena that arguably obeys Lamarckian principles.
K “The realisation that Lamarckian type of evolution does occur and is common enough, was as startling to biologists as it seems to a layperson,” says Eugene Koonin at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, who explored the idea with his colleagues in 2009, and does so again in a paper due to be published later this year. This isn’t to say that all of Lamarck’s thoughts on evolution are back in vogue. “Lamarck had additional ideas that were important to him, such as the inherent drive to perfection that to him was a key feature of evolution,” says Koonin. No modern evolutionary biologist goes along with that idea. But the discovery of the CRISPR system still implies that evolution isn’t purely the result of Darwinian random natural selection. It can sometimes involve elements of non-random Lamarckism too – a “continuum”, as Koonin puts it. In other words, the CRISPR story has had a profound scientific impact far beyond the doors of the genetic engineering lab. It truly was a transformative discovery.
Questions 1–5
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1 The research carried out at the Francis Crick Institute in London is likely to be controversial.
2 Gene editing, like the one in the upcoming research, can happen naturally in humans or other animals.
3 CRISPR-Cas is a gene editing technique.
4 CRISPR was noticed when the researchers saw some odd repetitive sequences at the ends of all bacterial genes.
5 A group of American researchers made an important revelation about the CRISPR.
Questions 6–9
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
Write the correct letter in boxes 6–9 on your answer sheet.
6 ‘Spacer’ sequences look odd because:
A they are a bacterial immune system
B they are DNA from viruses
C they aren’t bacterial in origin
D all of the above
7 The ones, who were excited about the CRISPR’s discovery, were:
A biologists
B geneticists
C physicists
D A and B
8 Word “learns” in the line 44, 6th paragraph means:
A determines
B gains awareness
C adapts
D studies
9 What makes CRISPR better than even our adaptive immune system?
A long history of existence
B immortality
C heritability
D adaptiveness
Questions 10–16
Complete the sentences below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 10–16 on your answer sheet.
10 Vaccination is so effective, because it involves ………….. with a weakened version of a pathogen.
11 CRISPR adaptive immune system works in a way that seems, at least superficially, superior to ours. But perhaps our ………….. is the problem, according to Griffin.
12 Some microbes write their experience into the genome and pass the information to their ……………..
13 Before Darwin, one of the most famous ideas was proposed by a ………………… scientist, Lamarck.
14 ………………… are often used to demonstrate Lamarck’s hypothesis.
15 Lamarck’s ideas became deeply unpopular as soon as Darwin’s ideas ……………………. .
16 No ……………… biologist agrees with Lamarck’s idea that inherent drive to perfection is the key feature of evolution.
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading question type. Learn how to manage time and improve accuracy.
Originally published April 2023. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
Video Games and Violence
For quite some time now, video games that involve significant amounts of violence have been blamed for growing numbers of violence by young people, the demographic most likely to play these games. Debate about this has even reached the courts, with both sides of the argument claiming that the scientific literature supports their opinions. Some experts involved have proclaimed that the debate is scientifically settled and that only people holding personal concerns and biases oppose these established truths.
Scientifically, two competing social theories have been formulated about the potential effects of video game violence. The first is that video games increase violence because they teach players how to be violent and reinforce violent tendencies. The second theory is that video games have a possibly beneficial effect, because they provide a socially acceptable outlet for the release of aggression and thereby promote better mental health.
Articles reviewing the effects of video games on general populations have found links between playing violent video games and changes in behaviour, and/or thought process, with some finding that people who played realistic violent games for 45 minutes had a greater increase in violent and aggressive feelings than persons who played unrealistic violent video games or non-violent video games for the same period. What seems clear though is that certain populations are more at risk and/or are more likely to play violent video games than others.
Studies suggest that at-risk individuals are usually male, have pre-existing personality disorders or traits, for example a conduct disorder, have pre-existing mental health conditions, have had difficult or traumatic upbringings, and are insecure with poor self-esteem. Children with attention deficit disorder were also seen to be at a higher risk of showing addictive behaviour to violent video games and that violent video games might be a significant risk variable for aggressive behaviour in persons who already have aggressive personality traits.
There are, of course, plenty of other groups of people (probably the majority of users) who play and enjoy video games, with or without violence, that have no character disorders at all. Another recent key report which relied on parents’ self-report of their children’s video game playing behaviours suggest that spending a large amount of time playing violent video games was correlated with troublesome behaviour and poor academic achievement. The same study also indicated that children who played more educational games had more positive outcomes.
What is interesting is that the comic book debate of the 1950’s is eerily similar when compared to the current debate about the effects of video games on children. In 1954, the US Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency held hearings on the effects of comic books on America’s youth. The primary focus of the Senate hearings was ‘crime and horror’ comic books, some of which graphically showed horrific images, such as dismembered bodies.
Concerns were voiced that these comics would lead to a decline in public morals, an increase in violence and aggression, an increase in general lawlessness, and societal disrespect and deterioration. Medical and social science experts became involved in the debate, writing articles in reputable journals. Many of the concerns that dominate the current video game debate were also expressed and it could show the frequently experienced perception that violent behaviour is always more prevalent in the present than in the past and that people just search for a scapegoat on which to blame it.
Although many articles have suggested a connection between violent video games and aggression, several studies have found no such relationship. One study in fact showed that non-gamers and excessive gamers both had lower self-reported mental wellness scores than low to moderate gamers. This finding suggests that excessive playing may be detrimental, but that there are some protective and non-harmful consequences to playing in moderation.
This finding is in line with social theory, which suggests that video games, like sports, may provide an outlet for individuals to work through aggression and, therefore, have better mental functioning and overall lower levels of aggression. The same study pointed to the positive attributes of violent video game playing, such as improved visual-spatial coordination, increased peripheral attention, and increased decision-making capabilities. People who play a lot of video games also generally have better overall computer skills than people who do not.
Another study examining the multivariate risk issues for youth violence showed that the most common positive predictors of youth violence were delinquent peer influences, antisocial personality traits, depression, and parents or guardians who use psychological abuse in family relationships. The factors that were not found to be predictive of youth violence included neighbourhood quality, parental use of domestic physical violence in intimate relationships, and exposure to violent television or video games.
A recent neurological study provided further evidence that video games do not increase violent behaviour by users. The study examined whether there was a change in brain imaging that suggested a loss of distinction between virtual and actual violence in players of violent video games compared with controls. What was found was that the ability to differentiate automatically between real and virtual violence was not diminished by a long-term history of violent video game play, and nor were gamers’ neural responses to real violence subject to desensitization processes. This would indicate that video games do not cause people to lose their grip on what is real in comparison with what is fantasy.
Many questions are raised by the split nature of the scientific literature regarding violence and video games and it should also be remembered that a correlation does not prove a causation. Stakeholders need to examine the current video game debate in order to decide how to sensibly influence social policy.
Questions 27-33
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text?
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
27 Violent video games are most likely to be played by people in their youth and middle age.
28 It has been claimed that people, who still feel the effects of violent video games are not decided and clear, have vested interests in the debate.
29 lt is claimed that men and women are more or less equally threatened by the effects of violent video games.
30 One study has found a link between usage of violent video games and poor school performance.
31 Various violent video games are based on stories previously published in comic books.
32 Some of the comic books of the 1950’s had shocking images of mutilated people.
33 It has been claimed that violence has always been present in society and video games are just the latest thing to blame it on.
Questions 34-39
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer.
Studies Defending the Use of Violent Video Games
Study 1
Non-gamers and excessive gamers had similar grading in terms of 34………….It shows excessive gaming can have protective effects.Similar ideas in social theory – users can rid themselves of 35……. and therefore have a better mental condition.Gaming can improve visual spatial coordination, peripheral attention, 36………. and computer skills.
Study 2
It examined the various risk factors for youth violence – peers, personality, depression and psychological abuse.Non-factors were 37…………., violence at home and violent TV and video games.
Study 3
A neurological study examining variations in 38…………. when users interacted with virtual and real violence.Results showed that users’ differentiation between virtual or real violence was not affected by the use of violent video games.The 39………… with regards to real violence in users’ neural reactions were also not affected.It shows video games do not affect people’s perceptions of what is real or what is fantasy.
Question 40
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
40 What is the writer’s purpose in the reading passage?
A To defend the use of violent video game usage.
B To discourage people from using violent video games.
C To examine examples of violence by users of violent video games.
D To review what has been discovered about the effects of violent video games.
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading question type. Learn how to manage time and improve accuracy.
Originally published April 2023. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
Private Space
A It’s a remarkable achievement: the question is no longer ‘How can we send humans into space?’ but ‘How can we keep them there?’. Spaceflight is reaching a turning point where new technologies in engine development, better understanding of aerodynamics and materials for body construction are making spaceflight possible for private industry.
B The history of space exploration, until relatively recently, has been one of big government-backed projects like the Space Shuttle, Mars Landers and Long March rockets. But the most recent launches to the International Space Station (ISS) have been very special for at least three reasons. Firstly, along with 450 kg of scientific equipment, food and clothes, the rocket was carrying ice cream for the three space station astronauts. Secondly, the rocket was unmanned, being guided into docking position and back to earth again by remote control and automated systems. Finally, the rocket was commissioned from a private company by NASA.
C When the privately owned rocket delivered its goods to the ISS, it marked a milestone in the evolution of space flight and vindicated NASA’s decision to delegate routine supply flights to the space station. The flight has been a long time in development. It started with President George W Bush announcing his Vision for Space Exploration, calling for the ISS to be completed. Under the next President, America’s Space Shuttles were retired, leaving NASA with no other choice but to look for alternative methods of supplying the ISS. The initiative was part of an effort to commercialise the space industry in order to decrease costs and spread the investment in the industry across a wider group than governments.
D The initiative had many attractions for NASA. By outsourcing to the private sector the routine business of taking food and equipment to and from low-earth orbit, NASA can theoretically free up money to do things that it really wants to prioritise: missions such as sending astronauts to Mars and landing on asteroids by the 2030s. Now that the Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (spaceX) has proved that private enterprise can be players in space exploration, firms are pouring money into developing new spacecraft built to transport cargo, to mine asteroids and to carry passengers into space.
E In the last half of the twentieth century only government-backed agencies like NASA and Russia’s ROSCOSMOS were capable of running space programmes due to the gigantic investment costs and uncertain payoffs. However, SpaceX and similar companies are proving that the former conditions are no longer relevant as new solutions are coming to light. Commercial companies like Boeing are able to raise large sums of money to run these projects.
Furthermore, as the firms are running cargo and taxi services to lower orbits, the break-even point is lower, the technology is cheaper and they have the benefit of years of experience in commercial aviation and space flight. Opening space programmes to the commercial sector has the additional advantage of generating more solutions to old problems. An analogy is the invention of the Internet. When the technology went into the commercial sector, no one could have envisioned the development of social network sites. Likewise, no one can predict where commercial enterprise will take the space industry.
F The uncertainty surrounding where the space industry will end up is a problem as well as an asset and it is unsettling private investors who like to invest in relatively certain prospects. At the moment the industry is dominated by big-spending billionaires like the owner of SpaceX. In addition, the relatively small number of companies in the area could pose a problem in the future. The commercial space industry is still very new and there is no guarantee that progress will be smoother. For one thing, no one is sure that the business model is sound: government is still the major, if not only, customer available to the private space companies.
The other problem is that space travel is high risk: the loss of space shuttles Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003 illustrates that even the most carefully planned launches have unavoidable risks associated with them. The question is what would happen to the industry if another accident occurred. Finally, many space experts are doubtful that, even if private industry takes over the ‘taxi’ role for low-orbit missions, NASA will be able to achieve its ambitions, given its squeezed budgets and history of being used for political purposes. Furthermore, NASA may have created another space race, this time between government and private industry. If NASA doesn’t go to Mars or the asteroid belt, its private competitors certainly have plans to do so.
G In spite of all of these risks, many argue that it is critical for the private sector and federal government to work together to push further into space.
Questions 1-6
The passage has six paragraphs labelled A-F.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter A-F in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet.
1 NASA being able to spend money on important projects ……….
2 events leading to the commercialisation of spaceflight ……….
3 new developments that have made spaceflight more accessible ……….
4 an automated rocket that successfully completed a mission ……….
5 the great dangers of space travel ……….
6 new answers being found to previous questions ……….
Questions 7-11
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
7 Which is NOT mentioned as making private space flight possible?
A new methods of constructing the rockets
B modern substances from which to build the rockets
C understanding better how air moves round objects
D new methods of making space suits
8 Why are the recent launches special?
A Their destination was the International Space Station.
B They carried clothes.
C They were not managed by a private company.
D The rocket is not owned by a government.
9 In order to make NASA look for other spaceflight providers, the US government
A invested in private space companies.
B started to build the international space station.
C stopped using the Space Shuttle.
D allowed private companies to fly into space.
10 Private companies
A need to reduce the cost of space projects.
B have social network sites.
C are able to fly rockets at high orbits.
D act as ferries to and from the space station.
11 At present, the private space industry is characterised by
A uncertainty about how to make profits.
B companies controlled by individuals.
C companies too small to raise the amount of money needed.
D government interference.
Questions 12-17
Complete the summary below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 12-17 on your answer sheet.
There are a number of problems with commercial space projects. To start with, the 12……… might not be sound. There is also great 13……….. attached to space flight – what would happen if there was another 14……..? Experts doubt whether NASA can fulfil its 15……….. as it has often been under 16…………. pressure. Moreover, the development may lead to a 17………… between NASA and the private space industry.
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading question type. Learn how to manage time and improve accuracy.
Originally published April 2023. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
A Neurologists tend to divide the experience of love into three distinct categories: attraction, lust, and attachment. The combination of all three can make for an intoxicating and lasting bond, but they have not always experienced together. Frequently, for example, we lust after those with whom we have no desire of having a long-term relationship; at other times, we feel ‘attached’ to people in the sense of being drawn to them emotionally or spiritually, but not drawn to them physically.
It is accurate to describe these as ‘stages’ of love — lust tends to come first, then attraction, which lasts for months or years, and finally attachment, which can keep people together for decades. These are separate chemical substrates, so they can overlap; however, evidence suggests that attraction has a limited lifespan.
B Lust is typically experienced soon after puberty. This is when estrogen and testosterone — the underlying chemical substrates for lust in women and men respectively — activate themselves in our bodies for the first time. The primary purpose of lust is believed to be procreation, and the experience is one of feeling physically drawn, or even ‘pulled’ towards another person. Pheromones, physical attractiveness, and our socialized predispositions for what we seek in a mate are the factors that activate the sensation of lust. Despite the strength, it can have over our psyche, lust on its own is a very fleeting experience. It can firmly steer people together for their initial encounters, but it has no power to keep them there.
C If the relationship is to last, something called attraction must take place. The attraction is the intoxicating sensation experienced in the initial period of knowing someone. The ‘symptoms’ include dizziness, flushed skin, and a loss of appetite and sleep. These are a result of a chemical cocktail of dopamine and norepinephrine that PEA — a transmitter chemical — unleashes into the bloodstream when attraction takes place.
Dopamine is responsible for the blissful feelings of self- confidence, joy, and motivation that new love brings about; norepinephrine, similar to adrenaline, brings about palpitations and anxiety. The attraction has more staying power than lust; while its intensity fades after a few weeks, the effect of the PEA transmission can continue for some time between eighteen months and four years. After that, our bodies build up a natural tolerance.
D At this stage, a transition to a phase called attachment can occur. The ‘rush’ of attraction is replaced by endorphins like oxytocin and vasopressin that feel like a gentle, warm sort of pleasantness — a safe feeling that calms the mind, numbs pain, and soothes anxiety. This is a much more pleasant feeling in which to spend an extended period of time — potentially, forty, fifty or more years, depending on when you meet your partner.
It allows you to live your life with someone, without their being the central obsession of your life. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that PEA transmission will evolve into the endorphin stage — in many instances, it will be replaced by a feeling of emptiness and dissatisfaction. It is not a coincidence that peak divorce rates occur at between four and seven years, as PEA transmission wears away and attachment does not materialize in many people’s brains.
E Even neurologists agree that chemistry isn’t everything. There are numerous other factors such as culture and personality, for which science may never have an explanation. While dopamine is bliss, however, ignorance is not — neurology has much to contribute to satisfaction in our personal lives. It may not be a good idea to commit to marriage or spending the rest of your life with someone if you still feel the blissful rush of PEA transmission, for example.
Once your brain has succumbed to the warming opiates of oxytocin and vasopressin, this will be a safer commitment. Attachment brings other needs to the foreground, however; while people enjoy the security that attachment brings about, they do not lose their desires for either lust or attraction. Losing the ability to give your partner the rush of PEA transmission, while knowing that he may feel this for other people, can bring about jealousy and anxiety in people. Acknowledging and discussing these insecurities can alleviate them as it is likely that, to some extent, both partners will be feeling them.
Questions 27-33
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.
Lust
Attraction
Attachment
Designed to encourage 27 ……………..
Two chemicals are released through a third one called PEA.
Chemicals in the brain work to reduce physical and mental suffering, and calm 31 …………
Generated by natural scent, look and 28 ……………..
29………….. is a feel-good chemical, norepinephrine, brings about elevated heart rate and nervousness.
Separate chemical processes mean PEA transmission does not always progress to 32 …………….. There is a relationship between 33 ……………… and the failure of attachment to occur.
Has weak staying power
Can last for up to 30 ……………..
—
Questions 34-39
Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in the Reading Passage ?
YES if the statement agrees with the views of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the views of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
34 We cannot explain all romantic decisions based on chemical processes.
35 Knowing about brain chemistry can actually harm our happiness.
36 Long-term relationship commitments should be made after attraction has faded.
37 Relationship insecurities fade away once the attachment phase begins.
38 Growing resistance to PEA transmission is experienced as mental anguish.
39 Talking about the effects of PEA resistance on a relationship can make anxiety worse.
Question 40
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C, or D.
40 Which is the most suitable title for the Reading Passage?
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading question type. Learn how to manage time and improve accuracy.
Originally published April 2023. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
A Radioactivity occurs naturally. The main source comes from natural sources in space, rocks, soil, water and even the human body itself. This is called background radiation and levels vary from place to place, though the average dose is fairly constant. The radiation which is of most concern is artificial radiation which results from human activities. Sources of this include the medical use of radioactive materials, fallout, and contamination from nuclear bomb tests. discharges from the nuclear industry, and the storage and dumping of radioactive waste.
B While artificial radiation accounts for a small proportion of the total, its effects can be disproportionate. Some of the radioactive materials discharged by human activity are not found in nature, such as plutonium, while others which are found naturally may be discharged in different physical and chemical forms, allowing them to spread more readily into the environment, or perhaps accumulate in the food-chain.
For all these reasons simple comparisons of background and artificial radioactivity may not reflect the relative hazards. Equally important, it has never been shown that there is such a thing as a safe dose of radiation and so the fact that we are progressively raising global levels should be of as much concern to us as the possibility of another major nuclear disaster like Chernobyl. Every nuclear test, nuclear reactor or shipment of plutonium means an additional and unnecessary health risk.
C In general, the effects of radiation can be divided into those which affect the individuals exposed and those which affect their descendants. Somatic effects are those which appear in the irradiated or exposed individual. These include cancer and leukemia. Hereditary or genetic effects are those which arise in subsequent generations.
Many of the elements which our bodies need are produced by the nuclear industry as radioactive isotopes or variants. Some of these are released into the environment, for example, iodine and carbon, two common elements used by our bodies. Our bodies do not know the difference between an element that is radioactive and one which is not. So, radioactive elements can be absorbed into living tissues, bones or the blood, where they continue to give off radiation. Radioactive strontium behaves like the calcium-an essential ingredient in our bones — in our bodies. Strontium deposits in the bones send radioactivity into the bone marrow, where the blood cells are formed, causing leukemia.
D There are three principal effects which radiation can have on cells: firstly the cell may be killed; secondly the way the cell multiply may be affected, resulting in cancer; and thirdly damage may occur in the cells of the ovaries or testes, leading to the development of a child with an inherited abnormality.
In most cases, cell death only becomes significant when large numbers of cells are killed, and the effects of cell death therefore only become apparent at comparatively high dose levels. If a damaged cell is able to survive a radiation dose, the situation is different. In many cases, the effect of cell damage may never become apparent. A few malfunctioning cells will not significantly affect an organ where the large majority are still behaving normally.
However, if the affected cell is a germ cell within the ovaries or testes, the situation is different. Ionizing radiation can damage DNA, the molecule which acts as the cell’s ‘instruction book’. If that germ cell later forms a child, all of the child’s cells will carry the same defect. The localized chemical alteration of DNA in a single cell may be expressed as an inherited abnormality in one or many future generations.
In the same way that a somatic cell in body tissue is changed in such a way that it or its descendants escape the control processes which normally control cell replication, the group of cells formed may continue to have a selective advantage in growth over surrounding tissue. It may ultimately increase sufficiently in size to form detectable cancer and in some cases cause death by spreading locally or to other parts of the body.
E While there is now broad agreement about the effects of high-level radiation, there is controversy over the long-term effect of low-level doses. This is complicated by the length of time it takes for effects to show up, the fact that the populations being studied (bomb survivors, people exposed to nuclear tests or workers in the nuclear industry ) are small and exact doses are hard to calculate.
All that can be said is that predictions made about the effects of a given dose vary. A growing number of scientists point to evidence that there is a disproportionately high risk from low doses of radiation. Others assume a directly proportionate link between the received dose and the risk of cancer for all levels of dose, while there are some who claim that at low doses there is a disproportionately low level of risk.
Questions 1-4
Reading Passage has 5 sections A-E.
From the list of headings below choose the most suitable heading for sections B to E.
Write the appropriate numbers (i-viii) in boxes 1-4 on your answer sheet.
Note: There are more headings than sections, so you will not use all of them. You may use any of the headings more than once.
HEADINGS
i. Cells affected by radiation
ii. Effects of low-dose radiation
iii. Effects on cell multiplication
iv. Effects of radiation on cells
v. Sources of radiation
vi. Radiation in the food chain
vii. Dissemination of radiation
viii. Health effects of radiation
Example Section A Answer v
1 Section B
2 Section C
3 Section D
4 Section E
Questions 5-10
Classify the following as linked in the passage to:
BR Background Radiation
AR Artificial Radiation
N Neither
B Both
Write the appropriate letters in boxes 5-10 on your answer sheet.
5 produced by the human body
6 involves only safe amounts of radiation
7 is used for medical purposes
8 includes plutonium
9 produces a constant level of radiation
10 can enter the food chain
Questions 11-16
Complete the summary of Section D of Reading Passage below.
Choose your answers from the box below the summary and write them in boxes 11—16 on your answer sheet.
Note: There are more words/phrases that you will need to fill the gaps. You may use a word or phrase more than once if you wish.
SUMMARY
Radiation can affect an organism by damaging 11……… which may then die or malfunction. If the 12……. affected in this way is small, the effect will not be too drastic and may not be noticeable. Alternatively, the 13……. may grow uncontrollably and form cancers, in which case the organism is likely to die.
If the DNA in a germ cell in the ovaries or testes is affected, and 14…….. originating from that 15….. may display 16…., which can, in turn, be passed on to further offspring.
Essential strategies and practice techniques for this IELTS Reading question type. Learn how to manage time and improve accuracy.
Originally published December 2022. Last reviewed 3 July 2026.
A. In Thailand, elephants are revered as a national symbol, but even there, the survival of great mammals is at risk. A century ago, more than 100,000 elephants worked in the Thai timber industry or roamed the forests. Today the number of elephants in captivity is just 2,500 and there are even fewer in the wild. Illegal hunting has taken a toll. Deforestation and the banning of logging have removed the elephants’ chief source of employment.
B. Recently, on the site of a former government logging camp, the Thai elephant conservation centre has been established. It is home to more than one hundred elephants retrenched from the logging industry. An American elephant specialist and his team have come up with an ingenious career alternative for these redundant employees. A select group of the centre’s residents have been chosen to play in the world’s first elephant orchestra. The project was initiated to create income for the operation of the Elephant Conservation centre.
C. The orchestra currently has twelve members, selected for their musical aptitude and motivation. They are aged seven to eighteen and play a variety of percussion and wind instruments in the Thai tradition – rentals which look like xylophones, slit drums, harmonicas, a bow bass, a gong and a thundersheet. The instruments are ‘elephant sized’ and specially designed to be played with trunks. Early in the project the organisers were unsure how the elephants would respond to musical training. Then one morning they were awakened to the sound of harmonicas.The elephants had picked up the instruments on their own and were wandering through the forest playing enthusiastically.
D. Making music comes naturally to elephants. They have huge brains and are highly sociable creatures. Their hearing is much better than their sight and they use a wide range of vocalisations.In performance, they stand in a line and prompted by the trainers, play their instruments. A strong sense of rhythm is evident as they flap their ears to the beat, swish their tails and generally rock back and forth. Some add to the melody with their own trumpeting. As the conductor paces up and down orchestrating proceedings, a trunk can sometimes be seen imitating the movement of his arm.
E. The elephants aren’t forced to learn complex patterns, so playing the instruments is quite easy. Commands are given only to indicate when to start and when to stop. The rest of the time, the players have the time to improvise. According to the trainers, the elephants love their work. The modest plan initially was to teach the elephants just to hit the instruments and then overdub those sounds with other music. But after only five practice sessions, a decision was made to record the performances intact with just the human noises removed. The players improvise distinct metres and melodies, then vary and repeat them.The resulting music is meditative, deliberate and delicate and it is real elephant music. Western listeners often describe it as ‘haunting’. To some ears it may seem monotonous but anyone not knowing they were listening to elephant music would assume that humans were playing.The first CD, classical in style, has sold well, so soon there will be a pop techno and country versions in production.
F. Playing music is not the only creative form of activity the elephants of the centre engage in. For several years now, a number of residents have been painting. They use acrylic paints on large canvases and have a preference for broad strokes and bold colours. Last year, elephant paintings helped raise over $25,000 at charity auctions internationally. These art sales together with profits from the CD are helping to fund the centre’s operations. The proceeds go towards an orphanage, hospital and mobile veterinary clinic for elephants and to support the training school.
G. Animal rights’ advocates might object to these non-traditional occupations for elephants. But, Thai elephants have always had to work for a living. If they weren’t playing music or painting pictures, they would be dragging logs or carrying tourists. Given those choices, playing music and painting are not such bad options.
Questions 1-6
The passage The Elephant Orchestra’ has paragraphs labelled (A-G).In which paragraph can the following information be found? Use only ONE letter for each answer. Note: You may use each letter more than once.
1 Description of the type of music produced by the elephants………………….. 2 Details of how the income generated is used………………….. 3 Description of the musical instruments………………….. 4 Forthcoming projects for the orchestra………………….. 5 Situation of elephants in Thailand………………….. 6 How the orchestra got started…………………..
Questions 7 – 11
Complete the summary. Choose your answers from the list below. Note: There are more words than spaces so you will not use them all. You may use any word more than once.
In order to raise funds for the Thai Elephant Centre a number of creative 7___________________have been developed, including the first Elephant Orchestra. The elephants play a variety of instruments and their 8 ———————–are being sold to 9 ________________income. These intelligent animals also produce paintings, which have been sold at international auctions. The 10 ——————support an orphanage, hospital and 11————— facility.
List of Words
painting projected music initiatives occupation proceeds production generate recordings training
Question 12
Choose the correct letter A-D.
12. What is the main idea of this passage?
A. Elephants can be trained to do unusual tricks. B Creative projects can help to save endangered species. C Elephants have large brains. D Intelligent animals should not be forced to work.
Complete the sentences below with the words from the paragraph.
13. Making music comes ………….. to elephants. 14. Animal rights’ advocates might object to these ……………………. for elephants.
