SOLVE COMPUTER BASED READING AND LISTENING ON OUR WEBSITE
SECTION 1
READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on Question 1-13 which
are based on Reading Passage 1 below.
Radiocarbon Dating - The Profile of Nancy Athfield
Have you ever picked up a small stone off the ground and
wondered how old it was?
Chances are, that stone has been
around many more years than your own lifetime. Many scientists share this
curiosity about the age of inanimate objects like rocks, fossils and precious
stones. Knowing how old an object is can provide valuable information about our
prehistoric past. In most societies, human beings have kept track of history
through writing. However, scientists are still curious about the world before
writing, or even the world before humans. Studying the age of objects is our
best way to piece together histories of our pre-historic past. One such method
of finding the age of an object is called radiocarbon dating. This method can
find the age of any object based on the kind of particles and atoms that are
found inside of the object. Depending on what elements the object is composed
of, radiocarbon can be a reliable way to find an object’s age. One famous
specialist in this method is the researcher Nancy Athfield. Athfield studied
the ancient remains found in the country of Cambodia. Many prehistoric remains
were discovered by the local people of Cambodia. These objects were thought to
belong to some of the original groups of humans that first came to the country of
Cambodia. The remains had never been scientifically studied, so Nancy was
greatly intrigued by the opportunity to use modern methods to discover the true
age of these ancient objects.
Athfield had this unique
opportunity because her team, comprised of scientists and filmmakers, were in
Cambodia working on a documentary. The team was trying to discover evidence to
prove a controversial claim in history: that Cambodia was the resting place for
the famous royal family of Angkor. At that time, written records and historic
accounts conflicted on the true resting place. Many people across the world
disagreed over where the final resting place was. For the first time, Athfield
and her team had a chance to use radiocarbon dating to find new evidence. They
had a chance to solve the historic mystery that many had been arguing over for
years.
Athfield and her team conducted
radiocarbon dating of many of the ancient objects found in the historic site of
Angkor Wat. Nancy found the history of Angkor went back to as early as 1620.
According to historic records, the remains of the Angkor royal family were much
younger than that, so this evidence cast a lot of doubt as to the status of the
ancient remains. The lesearch ultimately raised more questions. If the remains
were not of the royal family, then whose remains were being kept in the ancient
site? Athfield’s team left Cambodia with more questions unanswered. Since
Athfield’s team studied the remains, new remains have been unearthed at the
ancient site of Angkor Wat, so it is possible that these new remains could be
the true remains of the royal family. Nancy wished to come back to continue her
research one day.
In her early years, the career of
Athfield was very unconventional. She didn’t start her career as a scientist.
At the beginning, she would take any kind of job to pay her bills. Most of them
were low-paying jobs or brief Community service opportunities. She worked often
but didn’t know what path she would ultimately take. But eventually, her friend
suggested that Athfield invest in getting a degree. The friend recommended that
Athfield attend a nearby university. Though doubtful of her own qualifications,
she applied and was eventually accepted by the school. It was there that she
met Willard Libby, the inventor of radiocarbon dating. She took his class and
soon had the opportunity to complete hands-on research. She soon realised that
science was her passion. After graduation, she quickly found a job in a
research institution.
After college, Athfield’s career
in science blossomed. She eventually married, and her husband landed a job at
the prestigious organisation GNN. Athfield joined her husband in the same
organisation, and she became a lab manager in the institution. She earned her
PhD in scientific research, and completed her studies on a kind of rat when it
first appeared in New Zealand. There, she created original research and found
many flaws in the methods being used in New Zealand laboratories. Her research
showed that the subject’s diet led to the fault in the earlier research. She
was seen as an expert by her peers in New Zealand, and her opinion and
expertise were widely respected. She had come a long way from her old days of
working odd jobs. It seemed that Athfield’s career was finally taking off.
But Athfield’s interest in
scientific laboratories wasn’t her only interest. She didn’t settle down in New
Zealand. Instead, she expanded her areas of expertise. Athfield eventually
joined the field of Anthropology, the study of human societies, and became a
wellqualified archaeologist. It was during her blossoming career as an
archaeologist that Athfield became involved with the famous Cambodia project.
Even as the filmmakers ran out of funding and left Cambodia, Athfield continued
to stay and continue her research.
In 2003, the film was finished in uncertain conclusions,
but Nancy continued her research on the ancient ruins of Angkor Wat. This
research was not always easy. Her research was often delayed by lack of
funding, and government paperwork. Despite her struggles, she committed to
finishing her research. Finally, she made a breakthrough.
Using radiocarbon dating, Athfield completed a database for
the materials found in
Cambodia. As a newcomer to
Cambodia, she lacked a complete knowledge of Cambodian geology, which made this
feat even more difficult. Through steady determination and ingenuity, Athfield
finally completed the database. Though many did not believe she could finish,
her research now remains an influential and tremendous contribution to geological
sciences in Cambodia. In the future, radiocarbon dating continues to be a
valuable research skill. Athfield will be remembered as one of the first to
bring this scientific method to the study of the ancient ruins of Angkor Wat.
Questions 1-7
Do the following statements agree
with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 1-7 on you answer sheet, write
TRUE
if the statement is
true
FALSE
if the statement is
false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage
1
Nancy Athfield first discovered the ancient
remains in Cambodia.
2
The remains found in the Cambodia was in
good condition.
3
Nancy took some time off from her regular
work to do research in Cambodia.
4
The Cambodia government asked Nancy to
radiocarbon the remains.
5
The filmmakers aimed to find out how the
Angkor was rebuilt.
6
Nancy initially doubted whether the royal
family was hidden in Cambodia.
7
Nancy disproved the possibility that the
remains belonged to the Angkor royal family.
Questions 8-13
Complete the flow-chart below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in
boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet.
The Career of Nancy Athfield
During
her mid-teens, Nancy wasn’t expected to attend 8……………………..
↓
Willard
Billy later helped Nancy to find that she was interested in science.
↓
Her
PhD degree was researching when a kind of 9……………………….,
first went into New Zealand.
↓
Her
research showed that the subject’s 10………………………… accounted for the fault in the earlier
research.
↓
She
was a professional 11………………….. before she went back to Cambodia in 2003.
↓
When
she returned Cambodia, the lack of 12……………………….. was a barrier for her research.
↓
Then
she compiled the 13……………………… of the
Cambodia radiocarbon dating of the ancients.
↓
After
that, the lack of a detailed map of the geology of Cambodia became a hindrance
of her research.
ANSWER
1. FALSE
2. NOT
GIVEN
3. NOT
GIVEN
4. FALSE
5. FALSE
6. NOT
GIVEN
7. TRUE
8. university
9. rat
10. diet
11. archaeologist
12. funding
13. database
PASSWORD: IELTSONESTOP22
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