IELTS® Academic Reading Practice 18

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Human Genome Project Sometimes referred to as the “Holy Grail” of modern studies in biology, the ambitious Human Genome Project is estimated to cost over £2 billion. In fact, many consider this to be one of the biggest scientific projects undertaken since the Apollo Programme landed a man on the moon. Unlike the re...
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This reading practice simulates one part of the IELTS Academic Reading test. You should spend about twenty minutes on it. Read the passage and answer questions 13-26.

Questions 13-19
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage? In boxes 13-19 on your answer sheet, write

YES   if the statement reflects the claims of the writer
NO   if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN   if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

13. Not all scientists are enthusiastic about the Human Genome Project
14. The human genome consists of 3 million letters of genetic text
15. To date, more than 4,000 disorders of haemoglobin have been identified.
16. A genetic defect can be treated with drugs
17. Unborn children can be tested for genetic diseases offering reassurance to parents
18. The Human Genome Project is also concerned with looking at what makes us what we are
19. Because of the Human Genome Project eventually all of today’s diseases will be eradicated
Questions 20-23
Look at the following Statements (Questions 20-23) and A list of categories below.

Match each statement with the correct category

Write the correct number A-D in boxes Questions 20-23 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.
A list of categories
  1. the writer's fears about the Human Genome Project
  2. other people's fears about the Project reported by the writer
  3. the writer's reporting of facts about the Project
  4. the writer's reporting of the long-term hopes for the Project



20. The correct order and inter-relation of all genetic data in all DNA will be mapped.
21. Being 'human' may be defined solely in terms of describable physical data.
22. The Project will provide a new understanding of major diseases.
23. People may be discriminated against in new ways
Questions 24-26
Answer the questions below.

Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 24-26 on your answer sheet.

24. how many books would be required to write out the human genome on paper?

25. What is the commonest genetic disorder among Caucasians?

26. What is the most common single-gene disorder in the world?


Answer Sheet
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7
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8
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9
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12
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13
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24
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26
27
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28
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30
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31
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32
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33
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34
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35
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36
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37
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38
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39
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40
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Reading Passage Vocabulary
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IELTS Academic Reading Tips for Success
These are general tips that will appear on all reading questions.

Tips to improve your reading speed
To get a high score on the IELTS reading section, you need to have a fast reading speed. To have a fast reading speed, you need to improve your vocabulary and practice dissecting sentences. One strategy to dissect a sentence is to look for the subject and verb of the sentence. Finding the subject and verb will help you better understand the main idea of said sentence. Keep in mind, a common feature of a IELTS reading passage is to join strings of ideas to form long compound sentences. This produces large chunks that students have a hard time absorbing. Do not get overwhelmed by its length, just look for the subject and verb, the rest of the ideas will flow.

Keep in mind, having a slow reading speed makes skimming or scanning a reading passage more difficult. The process of quickly skimming through a reading passage for specific keywords or main ideas is a requirement for you to employ successful reading strategies to improve your IELTS reading score. In other words, skimming and scanning are critical skills to ensure you complete all questions in the allotted time frame.
IELTS Reading Strategies
Once you can read and comprehend a passage with a rate of, at least, 220 words per minute, you'll be ready to start implementing our strategies. All too often, students spend too much time reading the passages and not enough time answering the questions. Here is a step by step guide for tackling the reading section.

  1. Step 1: Read questions first

    One of the most common mistakes that candidates make when approaching the reading exam is reading every single word of the passages. Although you can practice for the exam by reading for pleasure, "reading blindly" (reading without any sense of what the questions will ask) will not do you any favors in the exam. Instead, it will hurt your chances for effectively managing your time and getting the best score.

    The main reason to read the questions first is because the type of question may determine what you read in the passage or how you read it. For example, some question types will call for the "skimming" technique, while others may call for the "scanning" technique.

    It is important to answer a set of questions that are of the same question type. You'll need to determine which question type you want to tackle first. A good strategy would be to start with the easier question type and move on to more difficult question types later. The Easiest question types are the ones where you spend less time reading. For example, the Matching Heading question type is an easier one because you only need to find the heading that best describes the main idea of a paragraph. An example of a difficult question type would be Identifying Information. For this question type, you'll need to read each paragraph to find out if each statement is TRUE, FALSE, or NOT GIVEN according to the passage.

    Here is a table that lists the difficulty levels for each question type. Use this table as a reference when choosing which question type you want to tackle first.

    Difficulty level Question Type
    Easy Match Headings
    Short answer
    Medium Matching Sentence Endings
    Matching Features
    Multiple choice
    Sentence Completion
    Diagram Label, Summary, Note, Table, Flow-Chart Completion
    Difficult Match Information
    Identifying Information (TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN)
    Identifying Viewer's claims (YES/NO/NOT GIVEN)

  2. Step 2: Read for an objective

    After you've read the questions for the passage, you will be able to read for an objective. What does this mean? For example, if you come across a question that includes the year "1896", you can make a note of when this year comes up in the text, using it to answer the question later on. There are two reading techniques that will help you stay on track with reading for an objective. The first one, skimming, is best defined as reading fast in order to get the "gist", or general idea, or a passage. With this technique, you are not stopping for any unfamiliar words or looking for specific details. The second technique, scanning, is best defined as reading for specific information. With this technique, you are not reading for the overall gist, but rather, specific information. Notice how each of these techniques has a specific objective in mind. This will help you find information more quickly.

  3. Step 3: Take notes

    As you're reading for an objective, you should also be making notes on the margins of the passage, placing stars next to key information, or underlining things that you believe will help you answer the various questions. This will make it easier for you to check back when you are asked certain things in the questions. Choose whichever note-taking system is right for you - just make sure you do it!

  4. Step 4: Answer wisely

    After you've read the questions, read the passage, and have taken any appropriate notes, you you should have located the part of the text where you where you need to read carefully. Then just read carefully and think critically to determine the correct answer.

IELTS Reading Question Types

The IELTS reading test contains many different question types:

Matching HeadingsIELTS Reading Lesson: Matching Headings
Matching InformationIELTS Reading Lesson: Matching Information
Matching FeaturesIELTS Reading Lesson: Matching Features
Summary CompletionIELTS Reading Lesson: Summary Completion
Identifying InformationIELTS Reading Lesson: Identifying Information
Identifying Writer's claimsIELTS Reading Lesson: Identifying Writer's claims
Multiple ChoiceIELTS Reading Lesson: Multiple Choice
Short AnswerIELTS Reading Lesson: Short Answer
Match Sentence EndingIELTS Reading Lesson: Match Sentence Ending
Sentence CompletionIELTS Reading Lesson: Sentence Completion
Table CompletionIELTS Reading Lesson: Table Completion
 
academic reading Practice 18
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