Reading 2026-05 Test 9 — IELTS Academic Reading Practice Test with Answers

基于考生回忆投稿及材料收集整理 — 非官方 IELTS 资料。

Reading Passage 1: Rubber

The plants that produce rubber are spread right across the globe, and grow in many different habitats. One might think it likely, therefore, that humankind has known about rubber for thousands of years. Yet, unlike other crops of economic importance, rubber led a relatively anonymous life until the last 150 years or so. The Indians of South America appear to be the first people to have understood the properties of rubber, and the Aztecs of what is now Mexico were the first to be recorded using the substance; a wall painting dating back to the sixth century depicts a scene of a tribute offering of crude rubber. With the arrival of Columbus in the Americas and the resulting Spanish influx, further evidence starts to appear concerning the Native American use of rubber. Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas describes a ritual game played with a rubber ball at the court of the Aztec Emperor Montezuma II, and the Mayan and Toltec people are known to have taken part in similar activities. Rubber was also used to make raincoats, shoes, jars, torches and musical instruments, all of which must have been made from the indigenous Castilla elastica, as the Para rubber plant now favoured for rubber cultivation does not grow in the Mexican region.

The first description of latex (liquid rubber) extraction was made by Juan de Torquemada, who noted that if a receptacle was not at hand the Native Americans would place the latex on their bodies to allow it to solidify. However, no real interest in rubber was shown by any European until Charles de la Condamine, a French mathematician, published an account of his journey to South America in 1735. The journey was undertaken on behalf of the Paris Academy of Sciences to measure an arc of the meridian line on the equator, but the journey home was to turn out to be more significant than the true purpose of the trip. Condamine explored Brazil and Peru and discovered how the local people used one single piece of coagulated latex to make boots. The boots were impervious to water and, when smoked, looked like real leather. In 1747 the first description of the rubber tree and latex tapping was made by a military engineer and amateur botanist, François Fresneau, who was posted to French Guiana. The publications of Condamine and Fresneau created considerable excitement among French scientists, and an attempt was made to discover a solvent that could turn the crude rubber into a substance for commercial exploitation.

In 1818 a British medical student named James Syme first used rubber to make waterproof cloth. Another early use of the substance was as an eraser of pencil marks, hence the name ‘rubber’. This was complemented by balloons, rubber bands, braces, boots for the army and other ideas that met with varying degrees of success. In 1820 Thomas Hancock, an English manufacturer of rubber goods such as driving belts, industrial rollers and rubber hoses, invented a machine he called the ‘masticator’, which chewed up waste strips for re-use. It was discovered that the masticated rubber was more malleable, while maintaining much of its elasticity. In Scotland at the same time, Charles Mackintosh had discovered a way of using rubber as waterproofing material, by a process he patented in 1823. Hancock and Mackintosh joined forces in 1834, and three years later Hancock invented a machine for spreading rubber onto material.

Despite their beneficial qualities, such as waterproofing, rubber goods were still not particularly popular as they had some major flaws, including the fact that they dissolved malodorously. They also became pliant when warm and rigid when cold. Then in 1839 the American Charles Goodyear discovered that it was possible to stabilise rubber by mixing it with sulphur while exposing it to heat — a process he called vulcanisation — and the full versatility of this extraordinary substance became apparent.

Rubber goods could now be manufactured which had all the beneficial qualities of the material, such as durability, elasticity and variability, but which were not sticky, soluble or governed by the vagaries of the weather. The economic potential of rubber was now clearly evident. It played an important role in the Industrial Revolution, being employed in the steam engines found in factories, mills, mines and railways. It made a triumphant entrance as a new and innovative material at the Great Exhibition of 1851, where shoes, airbeds, furniture and clothing made out of newly improved rubber were proudly displayed.

One of the most important rubber inventions was made in 1888, when an Irishman called John Boyd Dunlop produced the first pneumatic tyre. Solid rubber tyres had been used for the previous 18 years, but Dunlop’s new design, which he updated in 1890, immediately became popular. In 1895 Dunlop’s tyres were first used in motor cars, and with the mass production of cars just over the horizon the rubber industry had never looked healthier. The import levels of rubber over the nineteenth century bear witness to its irrepressible rise. In 1830 Britain had imported just 211 kg of crude rubber. This had risen to 10,000 kg in 1857, and by 1874 levels were just under six times as much again.

1
Rubber plants grow only in certain regions of the world.
2
Rubber was extracted in Mexico as early as the sixth century.
3
Rubber from the Castilla elastica plant is of poorer quality than that from the Para plant.
4
A French mathematician inspired real interest in rubber amongst Europeans.
5
The process of vulcanisation was discovered by accident.
6
Imports of crude rubber into Britain fell during the nineteenth century.
7
The Commercial Development of Rubber Early European travellers gave accounts of various rubber objects in use in Central and South America, and these accounts created interest in the commercial exploitation of rubber. In 1818, ______ was produced using rubber, and in 1820 a machine was invented for recycling ______ of rubber. Over the next few years, other attempts were made to improve rubber, but some problems remained. For example, rubber products smelt bad when they were dissolved, and could turn either soft or ______ depending on the temperature. However, in 1839 a new process to ______ the substance greatly increased its potential. For example, rubber was used in the creation of the ______ industry during the Industrial Revolution. Then in 1888 the ______ was developed, and a few years later the ______ of the motor car began.

Reading Passage 2: A Study of Western Celebrity

In our celebrity-obsessed culture, TV shows, internet blogs, and even newspapers are often full of the latest news, gossip and scandals about current celebrities.

A: It seems that our current society cannot get enough information about the daily lives of celebrities. But how did celebrities become such an important force in our culture? While people have always shared a certain obsession with the fantastic and the famous, the notion of celebrity, as well as the types of people termed ‘celebrities’, has evolved greatly throughout the ages. The word ‘celebrity’ has its roots in the language of the ancient Roman civilization. The word we now know to mean ‘a condition of being famous’ or ‘a famous person’ is derived from the Latin word ‘celeber’, meaning ‘frequented or populous’.

B: The celebrities of the ancient world were the powerful and awesome deities of Greece and Rome, and the citizens of these civilizations believed in a vast number of immortals who had a direct impact on their lives. It was, therefore, important to know about these figures’ personal lives. This need to know led to the creation of myths, which personalized the gods and involved them in ancient celebrity scandals that thrilled and excited the common people.

C: During ancient times, amateur and professional athletes also began to make an impact on the celebrity culture. Victors in the ancient Olympic Games were treated as heroes and were often elevated to god-like status. In the ancient Roman civilization, gladiators – the equivalent of today’s professional athletes – were also revered by the common people for their heroics and seemingly superhuman strength.

D: As Europe moved into the Dark Ages (the years spanning approximately 400–1300 AD) and a time when athletics and the arts were largely forgotten, monarchs and rulers continued to maintain celebrity status, while religious figures took on newfound fame. The miraculous lives and fascinating deaths of spiritual figures lent excitement to the lives of common people when there was often little else to be excited about, as they faced war, disease and food shortages.

E: During the period 1300–1600 AD, or the Renaissance period as it is known, interest in ruling figures faded. As Europe emerged from its long neglect of the arts, there was greater appreciation for portraits, statues and stone carvings. This period of appreciation for the arts lent a sense of celebrity to artists who were noted for their works and their personal achievements. It was a time when artists began to surpass political and religious individuals for supreme celebrity – a trend that would continue into later centuries.

F: While the figures of the ancient and early modern civilizations were able to achieve moderate and sometimes lasting celebrity within particular cultures, the global reach of their fame was limited. It was not until the 1700s, when technological advances made publishing commercially viable, that the extent of a person’s fame could spread further. The increase in the availability of the written word was accompanied by a huge rise in the number of common people who could read, allowing a mass audience to find out about celebrities for the first time. Suddenly, the lives of authors, politicians, war heroes, and other celebrities could now be read about in newspapers around the world. These gave ordinary people the opportunity to become intimately knowledgeable about the figures they most admired.

G: In the modern era, particularly as radio and film took off in the 1900s, things really began to change. First, radio began to make its way into the average home in the 1920s and 1930s. Professional athletes also began to be regarded as stars, as their games and exploits could be broadcast over the air for an entirely new audience. Then, the rise of television in the 1950s only cemented the premier level of celebrity that film stars, athletes and television actors were beginning to share. This also meant a huge increase in the individual salaries of these celebrities. Even a few animals gained fame through children’s TV shows. The emergence of reality television shows in the late 1990s allowed all kinds of people with little ability to enjoy a short burst of fame on the television screen. All you needed, it seemed, was an attractive appearance. Today, reality television programmers make it possible to be famous not for doing anything in particular, but simply for being, with the audience deciding whether someone deserves to become a celebrity or not. As the meaning of celebrity continues to evolve and redefine itself in a quickly changing world, there is no telling who will become of interest next.

8
Paragraph A
- i. Why it is necessary to explain the meaning of the word celebrity
- ii. The influence of non-human celebrities on societies
- iii. The impact of broadcasting on concepts of celebrity
- iv. Creativity having greater value
- v. Admiration for physical achievement
- vi. The advantages of celebrity status in the ancient world
- vii. A result of hardship
- viii. Literacy and widespread celebrity
- ix. Attitudes of celebrities towards the media
- x. The original definition of celebrity
9
Paragraph B
10
Paragraph C
11
Paragraph D
12
Paragraph E
13
Paragraph F
14
Paragraph G
15
A wide variety of people achieve a brief period of fame.
- A. Ancient times
- B. Dark Ages
- C. Renaissance
- D. Modern era
16
Stories are invented about celebrities’ lives.
17
The fame of rulers is starting to diminish.
18
The development of the publishing industry in the 1700s signalled the beginning of international fame. A growing number of people could read, which meant they had the chance to become informed about their favourite figures by reading ________.
19
This exposure to celebrities expanded further when radio and television became popular, and it was mass media attention that resulted in higher status and fame for some celebrities. The recent rise of reality television has also meant that a person’s ________ rather than their talent can bring fame.
20
With this type of television programme, fame may be entirely dependent on the response of the ________.

Reading Passage 3: 200 Years of Australian Landscapes at the Royal Academy in London

This exhibition promises to chart the evolution of a nation through its art, but not everyone agrees with the reasons behind the choice of artwork.

For the casual viewer, the exhibition of landscapes, Australia, selected by the Royal Academy of Art, will be a spectacular guide through Australian art history. Included in the exhibition are a range of artists and styles, dating from the earliest days of colonial art and progressing through expressionism and modernism to the greats of the 20th century, culminating with the current generation of Australian artists. It is hardly surprising, then, that this results in a flexible, wide-ranging notion of landscape.

But this landmark exhibition gives rise to some questions, and perhaps problems, regarding Britain’s relationship with its former colony. By choosing a style of painting at which British artists excel, the Academy could be seen as inviting criticism that hints at a telling attitude towards Australian art by comparison. But it is the very theme of landscape that provides the strongest connection to Australian art from Britain. To consider it condescending is perhaps too strong, but for Joanna Mendelssohn, an Australian critic and Associate Professor at the University of NSW’s College of Fine Arts (COFA), there is a suggestion that British artistic values have directed this exhibition, rather than allowing Australia the freedom to demonstrate its maturity.

What Mendelssohn found surprising about this exhibition was that the underlying rules for the selection of works seemed to have been so conservative. Since the landscape is a very strong British artistic theme, it appeared to her that when the British looked to the art of a former colony, there was a tendency for them to think that those colonies would continue to be like the British themselves. In reviewing Australia, the British insisted on looking at the genre of landscape painting.

Because of colonial ties, it was inevitable during Australian art’s formative years that it would reflect Britain’s devotion to the beloved landscape before its own character and idiosyncrasies took shape. And while Mendelssohn’s concern over the exhibition’s conventional selection is valid, the Academy is nevertheless embracing the peculiarities of Australian art from the mid-19th century onward, albeit within the boundaries of landscape.

Australia is curated by Kathleen Soriano, director of exhibitions at the Royal Academy. “Certainly the influence of English, French, or German art is much more evident in the early periods, in the early 1800s to mid-1800s,” she says. “What I wanted to show was how Australian art develops a real distinctiveness, associated with the landscape and the light.”

The fusion of tradition of the European kind with something more specifically Australian, and often personal, is crucial to the exhibition, and extends particularly to some of the more contemporary artists involved. Sydney-born video artist Shaun Gladwell is a good example of this. Gladwell’s most famous piece, which is featured in the exhibition, is Storm Sequence (2000), a video of Gladwell skateboarding on the Bondi seafront as one of Sydney’s signature brutal storms lingers offshore. It is his acknowledgment of landscape (or seascape) tradition, colored by Gladwell’s own individualism. “To exhibit my work in this show might make some sense because I was interested in Turner and the idea of atmosphere affecting vision, something I was really interested in around the time of Storm Sequence. I was thinking about this tradition of Romantic landscape, but I wanted to make it personal,” says Gladwell. But he didn’t want to just embark on borrowing imagery from elsewhere. He wanted to bring it to his experience and his world through skateboarding and beach culture.

So while it may seem narrow for Britain to reduce Australian art to the genre of landscape, there can be little denying that British landscape painting is still relevant to a current generation of Australian practitioners, however indirectly.

Visitors to the exhibition encounter Australian Aboriginal art first, the idea being that these works warrant a prominent position because they were ‘first’. Over the last couple of decades, London has hosted many successful exhibitions of Aboriginal art in smaller spaces, but for Soriano, Australia represents an opportunity to place such art in a broader context, with new relationships to the art of the settlers and white Australia. ‘One of the reasons landscape makes sense as being the right theme was because Aboriginal art started in and on the landscape,’ she says. ‘[The exhibition] is a beautiful meshing of the two different kinds of art, that allowed me to bring them together comfortably and honestly within this theme. It was important for me to present Indigenous art to audiences, and I felt it was most authentic that it was seen as part of Australian art history, rather than a separate area with a world of its own.’

Meanwhile, Australian critic Mendelssohn also points out that London is increasingly less important to today’s generation of artists, and this somewhat weakens the ceremony surrounding the exhibition in London. ‘China is the most important art market in the world,’ she says. ‘If you’ve made it in Shanghai, you’ve made it. The world has changed. My students in Australia, who come from all over the world, really want to see Venice Biennale and Art Basel, but they’re less interested in going to London. When I was growing up, London was the destination, and then when I was at university all the smart young things wanted to go to New York,’ she added. ‘Now they want to go everywhere. There’s no such thing as the centre and the periphery like there used to be. It’s much more complicated.’

21
27 As expected, the artworks chosen for the exhibition reflect a narrow interpretation of landscape.
22
28 The Academy rejected Australian suggestions for the subject of the exhibition.
23
29 The colonial relationship meant that early Australian landscape painting followed the traditions of English landscape painting.
24
30 The exhibition reflects the fact that Australian art developed its own particular qualities.
25
31 Contemporary Australian artists have generally rejected British landscape traditions.
26
32 What is the writer’s main point in the second paragraph?
- A. Australian landscape painting derives from the British tradition.
- B. Australian landscape painting is more highly regarded than British.
- C. Britain is still imposing its principles on Australian art.
- D. British art cannot be compared to Australian art.
27
33 What does Joanna Mendelssohn find surprising?
- A. Modern Australian landscape painting has great variety.
- B. The guidelines for the choice of work were very traditional.
- C. Landscape painting remains a popular subject for British artists.
- D. The British find the Australian landscape unsuitable as a subject.
28
34 Shaun Gladwell’s work is included in the exhibition because
- A. it adopts a subjective approach to depicting the landscape.
- B. skateboarding is an inspiration to many Australian artists.
- C. storms are a significant feature in the Australian landscape.
- D. Bondi is an iconic Australian location.
29
35 What was the reason for Soriano including Aboriginal art in the exhibition
- A. It is not well known in London art circles.
- B. Aboriginal landscape painting influenced Australian settlers.
- C. It is part of the Australian art tradition and not independent of it.
- D. Modern Aboriginal painting deals with changes to the landscape.
30
36 By referring to China, Mendelssohn is making the point that
- A. having an exhibition in London is not as important as it used to be.
- B. young artists in Britain are not interested in Australian art.
- C. art from Shanghai is more important than Australian art.
- D. New York is still a preferred destination for young artists.
31
37 In spite of its conservatism, the Royal Academy exhibition
- A. reflects the mood created by the natural environment.
- B. demonstrates that the dominant art form in Australia is landscape painting.
- C. demonstrates an understanding of the historical importance of the land.
- D. showcases a very small number of artists.
- E. demonstrates a strong European flavour.
- F. shows an acceptance of the unique qualities of Australian art.
32
38 Australian art of the early to mid-1800s
33
39 The modern work by Gladwell chosen for the exhibition
34
40 Including Aboriginal art in the exhibition

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1. FALSE
The passage mentions that rubber plants are found in Central and South America, but it does not say they grow only in certain regions, so the statement is false.
2. NOT GIVEN
There is no information in the passage about rubber being extracted in Mexico as early as the sixth century, so the answer is not given.
3. NOT GIVEN
The passage does not compare the quality of rubber from the Castilla elastica plant and the Para plant, so the answer is not given.
4. TRUE
The passage says a French mathematician created real interest in rubber among Europeans, so this statement is true.
5. NOT GIVEN
The passage does not say whether the process of vulcanisation was discovered by accident, so the answer is not given.
6. FALSE
The passage says imports of crude rubber into Britain increased during the nineteenth century, not fell, so the answer is false.
7. waterproof cloth / waste strips / rigid / stabilise / steam engines / pneumatic tyre / mass production
The passage describes that in 1818 waterproof cloth was produced using rubber, in 1820 a machine was invented for recycling waste strips of rubber, rubber could turn rigid depending on temperature, a new process to stabilise the substance was found in 1839, rubber was used in steam engines, the pneumatic tyre was developed in 1888, and then mass production of the motor car began.
8. x
Paragraph A explains the original definition of celebrity, matching option x.
9. ii
Paragraph B discusses the influence of non-human celebrities on societies, matching option ii.
10. v
Paragraph C talks about admiration for physical achievement, matching option v.
11. vii
Paragraph D describes how hardship can result in celebrity, matching option vii.
12. iv
Paragraph E discusses creativity having greater value, matching option iv.
13. viii
Paragraph F mentions literacy and widespread celebrity, matching option viii.
14. iii
Paragraph G discusses the impact of broadcasting on concepts of celebrity, matching option iii.
15. D
The passage says that in the modern era, many different people can become famous for a short time, so the answer is D.
16. A
The passage says that in ancient times, stories were invented about celebrities’ lives, so the answer is A.
17. C
The passage states that during the Renaissance, the fame of rulers was starting to diminish, so the answer is C.
18. newspapers
The passage says people could read about their favourite figures in newspapers, so the answer is 'newspapers'.
19. appearance
The passage explains that with reality television, a person’s appearance rather than their talent can bring fame, so the answer is 'appearance'.
20. audience
The passage says that with this type of television programme, fame may depend on the response of the audience, so the answer is 'audience'.
21. NO
The passage says the artworks chosen do not reflect a narrow interpretation of landscape, so the answer is No.
22. NOT GIVEN
There is no information about whether the Academy rejected Australian suggestions for the subject, so the answer is Not Given.
23. YES
The passage states that early Australian landscape painting followed English traditions because of the colonial relationship, so the answer is Yes.
24. YES
The passage says the exhibition shows that Australian art developed its own qualities, so the answer is Yes.
25. NO
The passage says contemporary Australian artists have not generally rejected British landscape traditions, so the answer is No.
26. C
The main point in the second paragraph is that Britain is still imposing its principles on Australian art, so the answer is C. Option A is tempting but does not capture the idea of ongoing influence.
27. B
Joanna Mendelssohn is surprised that the guidelines for choosing work were very traditional, so the answer is B. Option A is tempting but the surprise is about the guidelines, not the variety.
28. A
Shaun Gladwell’s work is included because it adopts a subjective approach to depicting the landscape, so the answer is A.
29. C
Soriano included Aboriginal art because it is part of the Australian art tradition and not independent of it, so the answer is C.
30. A
By referring to China, Mendelssohn means that having an exhibition in London is not as important as it used to be, so the answer is A.
31. F
Despite its conservatism, the exhibition shows an acceptance of the unique qualities of Australian art, so the answer is F.
32. E
Australian art of the early to mid-1800s demonstrates a strong European flavour, so the answer is E.
33. A
The modern work by Gladwell reflects the mood created by the natural environment, so the answer is A.
34. C
Including Aboriginal art in the exhibition demonstrates an understanding of the historical importance of the land, so the answer is C.

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