Reducing the Effects of Climate Change: reading answers and analysis
With carbon cuts falling short, some scientists are studying geo-engineering as a Plan B: space sunshades, iron in the oceans, sulphur aerosols, cables on Greenland's ice and birch forests in the Arctic. The researchers themselves warn that the effects may vanish quickly, may disturb rainfall or overshoot, and can't replace renewable energy.
The paragraph matching (27-29) runs backwards: D, then B, then A. The table (30-36) follows the passage from B to D, with most answers packed into D. The scientists (37-40) are spread through E to H.
Answer key and self-check
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the passage yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
Q
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Answer
Questions 27-29 · Matching information (paragraphs A-H)
How to attack this block: Only three items, all from the first half of the passage. Look for the signal phrases: a definition ('a term which generally refers to'), proof that something works, and a scheme 'modelled on' a past natural event.
Question 27
Answer: DParagraph D, third sentence
Which paragraph mentions a scheme copied from something that happened naturally in the past?
The idea is modelled on historic volcanic explosions, such as that of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991
Question says → Passage says
based onmodelled on
an earlier natural phenomenonhistoric volcanic explosions
Why: The aerosol plan copies what volcanoes do: throw sulphur into the sky and cool the planet. 'Based on' = 'modelled on', and a volcanic eruption is a natural phenomenon from the past.
The trap: B also mentions clouds, but the Moscow cloud-clearing is a human technique, not one copied from nature.
Question 28
Answer: BParagraph B, first two sentences
Which paragraph gives an example of geo-engineering that has worked?
Geo-engineering has been shown to work, at least on a small localised scale. For decades, May Day parades in Moscow have taken place under clear blue skies
Question says → Passage says
a successful usehas been shown to work
an exampleFor decades, May Day parades in Moscow
Why: B opens by saying geo-engineering works on a small scale, then proves it with Moscow: planes disperse the clouds so parades get clear skies.
The trap: C says many projects have been 'carried out', like planting forests in deserts, but it never says they succeeded.
Question 29
Answer: AParagraph A, second half
Which paragraph gives the usual meaning of the term geo-engineering?
geo-engineering - a term which generally refers to the intentional large-scale manipulation of the environment
Question says → Passage says
a common definitiona term which generally refers to
Why: 'A term which generally refers to' is how writers define something, and 'generally' matches 'common'. That's paragraph A.
The trap: A also compares geo-engineering to a backup generator, which some people read as the definition. It's an analogy; the definition comes just before it.
Table completion (ONE WORD ONLY)
Questions 30-36
How to attack this block: Each table row is one scheme, and the rows follow the passage. The procedure column paraphrases the scheme, so use it to find the sentence, then take the single noun the aim column needs. Paragraph D alone holds four answers.
Question 30
Answer: sunshadeParagraph B, fourth sentence
What would the tiny spacecraft form, to cut the light reaching Earth?
to form a transparent, sunlight-refracting sunshade in an orbit 1.5 million km above the Earth
Question says → Passage says
createform
a large number of tiny spacecraft16 trillion minute spacecraft
reduce the amount of light reaching Earthreduce the amount of light reaching the Earth by two per cent
Why: 'Create' is 'form', and the thing formed is a sunshade. 'A ___' needs one singular noun, so the adjectives 'transparent' and 'sunlight-refracting' stay out.
The trap: 'Orbit' is next to it, but the table already places the craft in orbit. The gap wants what they make.
Question 31
Answer: ironParagraph C, first sentence
What would be placed in the sea?
depositing iron in the ocean to stimulate the growth of algae
Question says → Passage says
placedepositing
in the seain the ocean
Why: 'Place in the sea' = 'depositing in the ocean'. What's deposited is iron, a single word.
The trap: 'Algae' sits in the same phrase, but that's the result, and it belongs in the next gap.
Question 32
Answer: algaeParagraph C, first sentence
What should the iron encourage to grow?
depositing iron in the ocean to stimulate the growth of algae
Question says → Passage says
to encourageto stimulate
to formthe growth of
Why: 'Encourage' = 'stimulate'. The thing that grows is algae. Watch the spelling: a-l-g-a-e.
The trap: 'Forests' appear in the same sentence, but they are planted in deserts, a different scheme.
Question 33
Answer: cloudsParagraph D, second sentence
What would the aerosol sprays create to dim sunlight?
This would involve using sulphur or hydrogen sulphide aerosols so that sulphur dioxide would form clouds, which would, in turn, lead to a global dimming.
Question says → Passage says
to createwould form
reduce the amount of light reaching Earthlead to a global dimming
Why: The sulphur dioxide forms clouds, and the clouds cause dimming. The table has no article before the gap, so a plural noun fits: 'clouds'.
The trap: 'Sulphur' and 'aerosols' are what gets released, which the table's procedure column already covers. The aim is what they create.
Question 34
Answer: cablesParagraph D, fourth sentence
What strong things would be fixed to Greenland's ice?
preserve the ice sheets of Greenland with reinforced high-tension cables, preventing icebergs from moving into the sea
Question says → Passage says
strongreinforced high-tension
to prevent icebergs moving into the seapreventing icebergs from moving into the sea
Why: 'Strong' replaces 'reinforced high-tension', so the noun left over is 'cables'. Keep the plural.
The trap: Writing 'high-tension cables' breaks the ONE WORD rule and repeats the idea of 'strong' already in the table.
Question 35
Answer: snowParagraph D, near the end
What would reflect radiation once the birch trees lose their leaves?
birches would shed their leaves in winter, thus enabling radiation to be reflected by the snow
Question says → Passage says
lose their leaves in wintershed their leaves in winter
to allowenabling
reflect radiationradiation to be reflected
Why: The passage uses the passive ('radiation to be reflected by the snow') and the table turns it active ('allow the ___ to reflect radiation'). The reflector is the snow.
The trap: 'Pines' also appear, but the native pines are the problem: they shade the snow and absorb radiation.
Question 36
Answer: riversParagraph D, last sentence
What would be redirected to bring more cold water into ice-forming areas?
Re-routing Russian rivers to increase cold water flow to ice-forming areas could also be used to slow down warming
Question says → Passage says
change the direction ofRe-routing
bring more cold waterincrease cold water flow
Why: 'Change the direction of' = 're-routing'. What's re-routed is rivers. 'Russian rivers' would be two words, so write just 'rivers'.
The trap: 'Water' is tempting, but the table already says 'cold water'. The thing whose direction changes is the rivers.
Matching features (scientists A-D)
Questions 37-40
How to attack this block: Each scientist answers once. Names are often mentioned in someone else's quote (Angel's project appears in Lunt's paragraph), so check who is actually making the point, not whose name is nearby.
Question 37
Answer: BParagraph E, last quote
Who warns that geo-engineering's effects might not last?
if we were to end geo-engineering on a given day, then the planet would return to its pre-engineered condition very rapidly
Question says → Passage says
may not be long-lastingreturn to its pre-engineered condition very rapidly / probably within ten to twenty years
Why: Rasch says that if geo-engineering stopped, the planet would go back to how it was within ten to twenty years. The benefits don't outlast the scheme, so B.
The trap: Angel (A) calls renewable energy 'the only permanent solution', which hints that geo-engineering is temporary. But his point is about what can't replace renewables, which is statement 40.
Question 38
Answer: DParagraph H, last sentence
Who says geo-engineering deserves serious investigation?
we shouldn't exclude thinking thoroughly about this topic and its possibilities
Question says → Passage says
a topic worth exploringshouldn't exclude thinking thoroughly about this topic
Why: Sommerkorn's double negative ('shouldn't exclude') means we should think it through. That's 'worth exploring', so D.
The trap: Lunt (C) has studied the schemes, but his conclusion is that it's best to avoid geo-engineering altogether, which is the opposite.
Question 39
Answer: CParagraph G, last sentence
Who says a geo-engineering scheme might have to be run below full power?
To avoid such a scenario, Lunt says Angel's project would have to operate at half strength
Question says → Passage says
It may be necessarywould have to
limit the effectivenessoperate at half strength
Why: Lunt warns of 'overshoot' and says Angel's sunshade would need to work at half strength. Deliberately weakening a scheme is limiting its effectiveness, so C.
The trap: Angel's name is in the same sentence, so people pick A. It's his project, but Lunt is the one saying it must be limited.
Question 40
Answer: AParagraph E, second sentence
Who says geo-engineering can't take the place of developing non-fossil energy?
Angel says that his plan is 'no substitute for developing renewable energy: the only permanent solution'.
Question says → Passage says
cannot be replaced byno substitute for
Research into non-fossil-based fuelsdeveloping renewable energy
Why: 'Cannot be replaced by' = 'no substitute for', and renewable energy is non-fossil. Angel says it about his own plan, so A.
The trap: Lunt (C) also prefers avoiding geo-engineering, but he never mentions renewable energy.
Rasch's warning that the planet would return to normal within ten to twenty years is the 'not long-lasting' idea. Angel's 'permanent solution' line belongs to question 40.
Words from this passage worth keeping
inevitable(A)
certain to happen
stemming(A)
stopping or holding back
manipulation(A)
deliberate control or changing of something
disperse(B)
break up and scatter
replenish(C)
fill up or restore again
scrutinised(D)
examined very closely
guarded(E)
careful not to say too much or commit yourself
precipitation(F)
rain and snow
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The full Cambridge 11 Test 1 reading paper: all three passages, 60 minutes, marked the second you finish with a review of every answer. Already done it? Take it again and see if the same traps still get you.
Cambridge IELTS 11, Test 1, Reading Passage 3. The passage and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full text, or sit the test on Langujet.
