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Tea And The Industrial Revolution Reading Answers: IELTS Reading Practice Test

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Updated on Jul 02, 2024, 11:57

The IELTS Reading section is an important part of the test that checks how well you understand written English. It's not just about understanding words, though. 
 

This part helps you get better at reading, thinking carefully, and understanding different kinds of writing. You'll read stuff from newspapers, magazines, and books. It's like taking a trip through different kinds of writing! So, get ready to learn new things and become a better reader.
 

Key highlights of the Reading section:

 

  • The reading materials cover diverse topics, ensuring candidates are exposed to various writing styles and subjects.
  • Questions may range from multiple choice, matching headings to True/False/Not Given statements, testing different skills like skimming, scanning, and detailed comprehension.
  • With a total of three passages to tackle within an hour, effective time management is crucial. You're encouraged to allocate roughly 20 minutes per passage.
  • Responses are recorded on an answer sheet, where accuracy in transferring answers is essential. Spelling and grammar count!

 

By familiarising yourself with the IELTS Reading section's format and expectations, you can confidently approach it and maximise your performance on test day. 

 

Now, let's look into a passage on, followed by specific questions to test your comprehension and analytical skills.

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1. Tea and the Industrial Revolution Reading Passage

You should spend approximately 20 minutes answering Questions 1 - 13 based on the Reading Passage below. This approach can help manage time effectively during a reading comprehension activity or exam. 

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2. Tea And The Industrial Revolution Reading Question & Answers

Discover exciting and informative IELTS reading answers about Tea And The Industrial Revolution

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1.

Tea and the Industrial Revolution Reading Passage

General Information

  • Read Instructions: Understand each question before answering.
  • Manage Time: Spend about 20 minutes per passage.
  • Skim and Scan: Quickly get the main idea and find specific information.
  • Highlight Key Info: Underline essential words or phrases.
  • Answer All Questions: Attempt every question; no penalty for wrong answers.
  • Stay Focused: Avoid distractions and keep your attention on the task.
  • Check Spelling: Ensure correct spelling and grammar.
  • Transfer Answers Clearly: Write answers neatly on the answer sheet.
  • Don’t Dwell: Move on if stuck and return later.
  • Review: If time allows, review your answers.

 

 

 

 

Tea and the Industrial Revolution Reading Passage


 

 

Paragraph A: Alan Macfarlane, professor of anthropological science at King’s College, Cambridge, has, like other historians, spent decades wrestling with the enigma of the Industrial Revolution. Why did this particular Big Bang – the world-changing birth of industry-happen in Britain? And why did it strike at the end of the 18th century?

 

Paragraph B: Macfarlane compares the puzzle to a combination lock. ‘There are about 20 different factors and all of them need to be present before the revolution can happen,’ he says. For industry to take off, there needs to be the technology and power to drive factories, large urban populations to provide cheap labour, easy transport to move goods around, an affluent middle-class willing to buy mass-produced objects, a market-driven economy and a political system that allows this to happen. While this was the case for England, other nations, such as Japan, the Netherlands and France also met some of these criteria but were not industrialising. All these factors must have been necessary. But not sufficient to cause the revolution, says Macfarlane. ‘After all, Holland had everything except coal while China also had many of these factors. Most historians are convinced there are one or two missing factors that you need to open the lock.’

 

Paragraph C: The missing factors, he proposes, are to be found in almost even kitchen cupboard. Tea and beer, two of the nation’s favourite drinks, fuelled the revolution. The antiseptic properties of tannin, the active ingredient in tea, and of hops in beer – plus the fact that both are made with boiled water – allowed urban communities to flourish at close quarters without succumbing to water-borne diseases such as dysentery. The theory sounds eccentric but once he starts to explain the detective work that went into his deduction, the scepticism gives way to wary admiration. Macfarlanes case has been strengthened by support from notable quarters – Roy Porter, the distinguished medical historian, recently wrote a favourable appraisal of his research.

 

Paragraph D: Macfarlane had wondered for a long time how the Industrial Revolution came about. Historians had alighted on one interesting factor around the mid-18th century that required explanation. Between about 1650 and 1740,the population in Britain was static. But then there was a burst in population growth. Macfarlane says: ‘The infant mortality rate halved in the space of 20 years, and this happened in both rural areas and cities, and across all classes. People suggested four possible causes. Was there a sudden change in the viruses and bacteria around? Unlikely. Was there a revolution in medical science? But this was a century before Lister’s revolution*. Was there a change in environmental conditions? There were improvements in agriculture that wiped out malaria, but these were small gains. Sanitation did not become widespread until the 19th century. The only option left is food. But the height and weight statistics show a decline. So the food must have got worse. Efforts to explain this sudden reduction in child deaths appeared to draw a blank.’

 

Paragraph E: This population burst seemed to happen at just the right time to provide labour for the Industrial Revolution. ‘When you start moving towards an industrial revolution, it is economically efficient to have people living close together,’  says Macfarlane. ‘But then you get disease, particularly from human waste.’ Some digging around in historical records revealed that there was a change in the incidence of water-borne disease at that time, especially dysentery. Macfarlane deduced that whatever the British were drinking must have been important in regulating disease. He says, ‘We drank beer. For a long time, the English were protected by the strong antibacterial agent in hops, which were added to help preserve the beer. But in the late 17th century a tax was introduced on malt, the basic ingredient of beer. The poor turned to water and gin and in the 1720s the mortality rate began to rise again. Then it suddenly dropped again. What caused this?’

 

Paragraph F: Macfarlane looked to Japan, which was also developing large cities about the same time, and also had no sanitation. Water-borne diseases had a much looser grip on the Japanese population than those in Britain. Could it be the prevalence of tea in their culture? Macfarlane then noted that the history of tea in Britain provided an extraordinary coincidence of dates. Tea was relatively expensive until Britain started a direct dipper trade with China in the early 18th century. By the 1740s, about the time that infant mortality was dipping, the drink was common. Macfarlane guessed that the fact that water had to be boiled, together with the stomach-purifying properties of tea meant that the breast milk provided by mothers was healthier than it had ever been. No other European nation sipped tea like the British, which, by Macfarlanes logic, pushed these other countries out of contention for the revolution.

 

Paragraph G: But, if tea is a factor in the combination lock, why didn’t Japan forge ahead in a tea-soaked industrial revolution of its own? Macfarlane notes that even though 17th-century Japan had large cities, high literacy rates, even a futures market, it had turned its back on the essence of any work-based revolution by giving up labour-saving devices such as animals, afraid that they would put people out of work. So, the nation that we now think of as one of the most technologically advanced entered the 19th century having ‘abandoned the wheel’.

2.

Tea And The Industrial Revolution Reading Question & Answers

Discover exciting and informative IELTS reading answers about Tea And The Industrial Revolution

Questions and Answers 1-7
  • Reading Passage has seven paragraphs, A-G.
  • Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below
  • Write the correct number, i-ix, in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet

 

 

List of Headings

 

i       The search for the reasons for an increase in population
ii      Industrialisation and the fear of unemployment
iii     The development of cities in Japan 4 The time and place of the Industrial Revolution
iv     The time and place of the Industrial Revolution
v      The cases of Holland, France and China
vi     Changes in drinking habits in Britain
vii    Two keys to Britain’s industrial revolution
viii   Conditions required for industrialisation
ix     Comparisons with Japan lead to the answer
 

 

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


 

Tea and the Industrial Revolution Reading Answers with Explanations (1-7)


 

Type of Question: Heading Matching 
 

These types of questions involve choosing the right heading based on the given paragraph. 
 

How to best answer: 
 

  • Read the headings carefully to understand the main idea of each section.
  • Skim the passage to grasp the overall structure and content.
  • Match each paragraph to the heading that best summarises its main point.
  • Pay attention to keywords and phrases that align with the headings.
  • Eliminate choices that do not accurately capture the essence of the paragraph.

 

 

1. iv

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph D, "Between about 1650 and 1740, the population in Britain was static." 

 

Explanation: This answer is found in Paragraph D, which discusses the timeframe and demographic changes preceding the Industrial Revolution. It focuses on the sudden burst in population growth and the search for its causes.


 

2. viii

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph B, "For the industry to take off, there needs to be the technology and power to drive factories, large urban populations to provide cheap labour..." 

 

Explanation: Paragraph B outlines the necessary conditions for industrialisation, including technology, urbanisation, labor availability, and economic and political structures, aligning with the heading "Conditions required for industrialisation."


 

3. vii

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph C, "Tea and beer, two of the nation’s favourite drinks, fuelled the revolution." 

 

Explanation: This paragraph discusses how tea and beer played significant roles in Britain's Industrial Revolution, supporting the idea that these beverages were crucial factors in driving the revolution, as suggested by the heading "Two keys to Britain’s industrial revolution."


 

4. i

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph D, "The infant mortality rate halved in the space of 20 years..." 

 

Explanation: This paragraph delves into the investigation of the sudden decrease in child mortality rates, addressing the search for reasons behind the population growth, fitting with the heading "The search for the reasons for an increase in population."


 

5. vi

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph E, "The poor turned to water and gin and in the 1720s the mortality rate began to rise again." 

 

Explanation: Paragraph E discusses changes in drinking habits in Britain, particularly the shift from beer to water and gin due to taxation, which impacted public health and mortality rates, in line with the heading "Changes in drinking habits in Britain."


 

6. ix

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph F, "Macfarlane looked to Japan, which was also developing large cities about the same time, and also had no sanitation." 

 

Explanation: This paragraph compares Britain's Industrial Revolution with Japan's development, focusing on the role of tea consumption in both cultures, supporting the idea that comparisons with Japan lead to answers, fitting with the heading "Comparisons with Japan lead to the answer."


 

7. ii

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph G, "So, the nation that we now think of as one of the most technologically advanced entered the 19th century having ‘abandoned the wheel’." 

 

Explanation: Paragraph G discusses Japan's attitude towards technological advancements and its impact on industrialisation, addressing concerns about unemployment and technological progress, fitting with the heading "Industrialisation and the fear of unemployment."

Questions and Answers 8-13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the Reading Passage?
In boxes 8-13 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 in the passage

 

 

8   China’s transport system was not suitable for industry in the 18th century.

9  Tea and beer both helped to prevent dysentery in Britain.

10  Roy Porter disagrees with Professor Macfarlane’s findings.

11   After 1740there was a reduction in population in Britain.

12  People in Britain used to make beer at home.

13  The tax on malt indirectly caused a rise in the death rate.

 

 

Tea and the Industrial Revolution Reading Answers with Explanations (8-13) 


 

Type of Question: True/False/Not Given 

 

These types of questions in IELTS reading involve identifying whether the sentence is  True, False, or Not Given using the given paragraph. 
 

How to best answer: 
 

  • Read the statements and paragraphs carefully to understand the context and meaning.
  • Identify keywords or key phrases in both the statements and paragraphs.
  • Look for direct matches between the statements and the content of the paragraphs.
  • Pay attention to synonyms or paraphrases that convey similar meanings.
  • Choose the paragraph that best aligns with the statement based on the information provided in the passage.

 

 

8. Not Given

 

Reference:

 

Not given

 

Explanation: The passage does not provide information about China's transport system in the 18th century, so the answer is "Not given."


 

9. True

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph C, "The antiseptic properties of tannin, the active ingredient in tea, and of hops in beer – plus the fact that both are made with boiled water – allowed urban communities to flourish at close quarters without succumbing to water-borne diseases such as dysentery." 

 

Explanation: The statement aligns with information from Paragraph C, which discusses how tea and beer, both made with boiled water, helped prevent dysentery in Britain.


 

10. False

 

Reference:

 

Not available

 

Explanation: There is no mention in the passage of Roy Porter disagreeing with Professor Macfarlane's findings. The passage suggests support from notable quarters for Macfarlane's research.


 

11. False

 

Reference:

 

Not available 

 

Explanation: The passage does not state a population reduction in Britain after 1740. Instead, it mentions a burst in population growth during that period.


 

12. Not Given

 

Reference:

 

Not Given

 

Explanation: The passage does not provide information about whether people in Britain used to make beer at home, so the answer is "Not given."


 

13. True

 

Reference:

 

From Paragraph E, "In the late 17th century, a tax was introduced on malt, the basic ingredient of beer. The poor turned to water and gin and in the 1720s the mortality rate began to rise again." 

 

Explanation: The statement is supported by information from Paragraph E, which discusses how the tax on malt, a key ingredient in beer, led to a shift in drinking habits and a subsequent rise in mortality rates.

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FAQs

Q. How long is the IELTS Reading test?

Ans. The IELTS Reading test lasts for 60 minutes. During this time, candidates are required to read three passages of increasing complexity, each followed by a set of questions. Effective time management is essential to ensure adequate time for reading and answering all questions within the allotted timeframe.

Q. How many passages are there in the IELTS Reading test?

Ans. The IELTS Reading test consists of three passages. These passages are sourced from a variety of authentic materials, such as newspapers, magazines, journals, and books. Each passage is accompanied by a set of questions that assess different reading skills, including skimming, scanning, and detailed comprehension.

Q. What types of questions are included in the IELTS Reading test?

Ans. The IELTS Reading test includes various types of questions, such as multiple choice, matching headings, True/False/Not Given, sentence completion, and summary completion. These questions are designed to evaluate a candidate's ability to comprehend written English and assess different aspects of reading skills, including understanding main ideas, identifying specific information, and making inferences from the text.