IELTS READING PRACTICE

MATCHING FEATURES 2
Exercise 1

Russia’s boreal forests and wild grasses could combat climate change

A Scientists believe Russia’s ancient forests are the country’s best natural weapon against climate
change, even though the stockpile of carbon beneath the ground also makes these areas vulnerable
to carbon release. A recent study found that half of the world’s carbon is stored within land in the
permafrost region, about two-thirds of which lies in Russia. Overlying former glaciers, they are a
coniferous mix called the boreal forest. “There’s a lot of carbon there and it’s very vulnerable,”
says Josep Canadell, co-author of the study. “If the permafrost thaws, we could be releasing ten
percent more carbon a year for several centuries more than our previous models predicted. It’s
going to cost a lot to reduce our emissions by that much—but it will cost more in damage if we
don’t.”

B The study was published in Global Biogeochemical Cycles. Researchers found that the region
contains 1,672 billion tons of organic carbon, much of it several feet underground, that would
account for approximately 50 percent of the estimated global below-ground organic carbon.
Another paper published in Nature found that old forests, which make up perhaps half of the boreal
forest, continue to accumulate carbon, contrary to the long-standing view that they are carbon-
neutral. Even though fires and insect infestations destroy entire swaths of forest and release into
the atmosphere the carbon they contain, old-growth forests still take in more than these natural
disturbances release, says lead author Sebastiaan Luyssaert, a biologist at the University of
Antwerp in Belgium. “This is a relief. We have more reason to protect Russia’s boreal forests,
which take in 500 million tons of carbon a year, or about one-fifth of the amount absorbed by the
world’s landmass,” says Mr Canadell, who is executive director of the Global Carbon Project,
based in Canberra.

C Jing Ming Chen, a University of Toronto geography professor who specialises in climate
modelling for the boreal region, says: “Cutting down trees increases the amount of carbon in the
atmosphere and it takes 50 to 100 years to put that carbon back in the ground.” Luyssaert and Chen
argue there’s a strong case for conserving the old-growth forests. “It’s better to keep as much
carbon in the forest as possible right now,” Mr Luyssaert explains. “If we want to avoid irreversible
processes like melting permafrost or changing ocean currents, we absolutely have to control our
emissions in the next two or three decades. It’s a case where you need to be short-sighted to be
far-sighted.” The threats to the boreal forests don’t seem significant right now,” explains Nigel
Roulet, a carbon cycle specialist at McGill University in Montreal, “but I’m convinced pressure
will increase as the region gets warmer and it gets easier to operate there. Also, I expect these
resources to become more valuable as others are exhausted.”

D Scientists say Russia and Kazakhstan could make a unique contribution to the fight against
global warming by harvesting wild grasses that have overgrown 100,000 square miles of
agricultural lands abandoned in the nineties, and using them to make ethanol—or, better yet, burn
them in coal-fuelled power plants. According to Nicolas Violland, principal author of a paper

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published in Environmental Science and Technology in Washington, DC, using the grasses to make
ethanol would sequester in the ground, over 60 years, about 1.1 billion tons of carbon a year—
one-quarter as dead root matter in the soil and the rest in producing ethanol as a substitute for
petroleum-based fuels. “That’s not huge on a world scale, but it’s substantial,” he says. Fossil fuels
emit about eight billion tons of carbon a year, of which about two billion tons are absorbed by
plants and soil.

E Renton Righelato, visiting research fellow at the University of Reading and former chairman
of the World Land Trust, agrees. “Given that it would take the world’s entire supply of arable
land to replace just two-thirds of our transport fuel needs,” he says, “biofuels are not a
practicable long-term solution for transportation emissions. What we need is carbon-free fuel.
But in the case of abandoned croplands, using grasses as biofuels could make a contribution,” he
adds. Study co-author Adam Wolf, of the Carnegie Institution for Science at Stanford University,
cites a study by Elliott Campbell in Science magazine that showed that burning grasses in a coal-
fuelled plant doubles the savings in carbon emissions compared to using the same grasses to
make ethanol. “If biofuels are going to reduce emissions, using abandoned croplands to make
electricity and offset coal use is our best bet,” he says. “Both of these countries have coal-fuelled
power plants, so the process could start soon.” Thus, Russia and Kazakhstan are now in a
position to become leaders in green energy, and could use the grasses to export clean electricity
in addition to oil and gas, according to Mr Wolf.
Questions 1–5
The reading passage has five paragraphs, A–E.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A–E.
NB You may use any letter more than once.
1. a view concerning what can and what cannot replace something
2. a mention of the amount by which carbon emissions might increase in the future
3. a reference to an established belief that researchers say is incorrect
4. evidence from one study that supports the conclusions of another study
5. how much carbon is currently located in a particular part of the world
Questions 6–9
Look at the following statements (Questions 6–9) and the list of scientists below.
Match each statement with the correct scientist, A–D.
6. More attention will be paid to the situation in the boreal forests in the future.
7. Boreal forests are able to deal with some of the damage that is done to them.
8. Earlier research may have underestimated the scale of a future problem.
9. The damage done by destroying boreal forests lasts for a very long time.
List of scientists
A. Josep Canadell
B. Sebastiaan Luyssaert

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C. Jing Ming Chen

D. Nigel Roulet
Questions 10–13
Complete the summary below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Wild grasses in Russia and Kazakhstan
Scientists believe that wild grasses which are currently growing on former 10 __________ in
Russia and Kazakhstan could be useful in combating environmental problems. There are two
different ideas concerning how this could happen.
With the first idea, approximately ten million tons of carbon would be stored in the ground, and
three-quarters of this would create 11 __________ that could be used instead of petroleum-based
fuels. The second idea is to burn the grasses in 12 __________ power plants. Supporters of this
idea say that the effect in reducing carbon emissions would be twice as great as if the first idea
was carried out. The grasses would be used to produce 13 __________ and production of this
could begin in a short period of time.

Exercise 2

ESTABLISHING YOUR BIRTHRIGHTS

Position in the family can play a huge role in shaping character, finds Clover Stroud.

A. Last week I was given a potent reminder of how powerful birth order might be in determining
a child’s character. My son, Jimmy Joe, nine, and my daughter, Dolly, six, were re-enacting a TV
talent show. Jimmy Joe elected himself judge and Dolly was a contestant. Authoritative and
unyielding, he wielded a clipboard, delivering harsh criticisms that would make a real talent show
judge flinch. Initially Dolly loved the attention, but she soon grew tired of his dominance,
instigating a pillow fight, then a fist fight, and, inevitably, in tears. A visiting friend, with an older,
more successful sister, declared it ‘classic first child behaviour’ of dominance and supposed
authority.’ Dolly’s objection to her brother’s self-appointed role as leader was justified, he
announced, while Jimmy Joe’s superiority was characteristic of the forceful personality of
firstborns. Birth order, he said, wasn’t something they could just shrug off.

B. Debate about the significance of birth order goes right to the heart of the nature versus nurture
argument and is, consequently, surrounded by huge controversy. This controversy has raged since
the 19th century, when Austrian psychiatrist Alfred Adler argued that birth order can define the
way someone deals with life. He identified firstborns as driven and often suffering from a sense of
having been ‘dethroned’ by a second child. Younger children, he stated, were hampered by having
been more pampered than older siblings. It’s a view reiterated by Professor Frank Sulloway’s
influential work on Rebel. Sulloway, a leading proponent of the birth-order idea, argued he has a
definite effect on the ‘Big Five’ personality traits of openness, conscientiousness, extroversion,
agreeableness, and neuroticism.

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C. According to the birth-order theory, first children are usually well-organised high achievers.
However, they can have an overdeveloped sense of entitlement and be unyielding. Second children
are sometimes very competitive through rivalry with an older sibling. They also tend to be more
laid back and keen to keep everyone happy. Middle children, regarded as the ‘easy ones,’ have
good diplomacy skills. They suffer from a tendency to feel invisible and like they have little role
to play in the family compared with their parents. Youngest children are often the most likely to
rebel, feeling the need to ‘prove’ themselves. They’re often extroverts and are sometimes accused
of being selfish. Twins inevitably find it harder to see themselves as individuals, unless their
parents have worked hard to identify them as such. It’s not unusual for twins to have a slightly
dominant role over the other and take on the lead.

D. But slapping generalised labels on a child is dangerous: they change all the time, often taking
turns at being the ‘naughty one’ or the ‘diligent one’. However, as one of five children, I know
how hard it is to transcend the tags you earn according to when you were born. It’s unsurprising
that my eldest sister is the successful entrepreneur, and though, despite covering all the big bases
of adult life like marriage, kids and property, all my siblings will probably always regard me as
their spoilt younger sister.

E. As the oldest of three, I’ve found it hard not to think of my own three children as having the
same personality types that the three of us had when I was growing up,’ says Lisa Cannon, a
teacher. ‘I identify with my eldest son, who constantly takes the lead in terms of organisation and
responsibility. My daughter, the middle child, is more cerebral than her brothers. She’s headier
and resents them. She avoids confrontation, as long as it’s an easy relationship with both boys. My
youngest son is the naughty one. I know I’m partly to blame for this, as I forgive him more easily
than I ever would with my eldest.’

F. As a parent, it’s easy to feel guilty about saddling a child with labels according to their birth
order, but as child psychiatrist Stephen Bayliss points out, other characteristics might be better
attributed to parenting styles, rather than a child’s character. He says that if a parent is worried
about having encouraged, for example, an overdeveloped sense of dominance in an older sibling
as spoiled or a younger sibling, then it’s not unusual to look at ways this can be addressed than an
over-worry why it happened in the first place. He advises that if you're unhappy about treating
each child as a certain type of personality, try to work out if it’s a role you've subconsciously
expected. If you’re unhappy with the role, then by calmly choosing not focusing on your own
reactions, rather than blaming theirs, will help you change it. ‘Change isn’t easy but nobody need
be the victim of their biography.’

Questions 1–6
The reading passage has six paragraphs, A–F.
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
List of Headings
i. Children's views on birth order
ii. Solutions are more important than causes
iii. Characteristics common to all children regardless of birth order
iv. Doubts about birth-order theory but personal experience supporting it

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v. A theory that is still supported

vi. Birth-order characteristics continuing as children get older
vii. A typical example of birth-order behaviour in practice
viii. Exceptions to the rule of birth order
ix. A detailed description of each child in families in general
1. Paragraph A: ........
2. Paragraph B: ........
3. Paragraph C: ........
4. Paragraph D: ........
5. Paragraph E: ........
6. Paragraph F: ........
Questions 7–10
Look at the following statements (Questions 7–10) and the list of people below.
Match each statement with the correct person, A–D.
You may use any letter more than once.
7. Experience as a child can affect behaviour as a parent.
8. Birth order may not be the main reason why children have the personalities they have.
9. There is a link between birth and a group of important characteristics.
10. It is possible for people to stop feeling bad about how family members behave with them.
List of people:
A. Alfred Adler
B. Professor Frank Sulloway
C. Lisa Cannan
D. Stephen Bayliss
Questions 11–13
Complete the sentences below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
11. First-born children have expectations that are too high with regard to .....................
12. Middle children are often considered .................... by their parents.
13. Youngest children may be described as .................... by other people.

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