The Academic passage ‘Mapping’ is a reading passage with various question types, each of which are asked in the IELTS Reading exam. Try to find the answers to get an idea of the difficulty level of the passages in the actual reading test. If you want more passages to solve, try taking one of our IELTS reading practice tests.

Reading Passage

Mapping

Questions 14-18

14 According to the first paragraph, mapmakers in the 21st century

A Combine techniques to chart unknown territory

B Still rely on being able to see what they map

C Are now able to visit the darkest jungle

D Need input from experts in other fields

15 The Library of Congress offers an opportunity to

A Borrow from their collection of Dutch maps

B Learn how to restore ancient and fragile maps

C Enjoy the atmosphere of the reading room

D Create individual computer maps to order

16 Ptolemy alerted his contemporaries to the importance of

A Measuring the circumference of the world

B Organizing maps to reflect accurate ratios of distance

C Working out the distance between parallels of latitude

D Accuracy and precision in mapping

17 The invention of the printing press

A Revitalized interest in scientific knowledge

B Enabled maps to be produced more cheaply

C changed the approach to mapmaking

D Ensured that the work of Ptolemy was continued

18 The writer concludes by stating that

A Mapmaking has become too specialized

B Cartographers work in very harsh conditions

C The fundamental aims of mapmaking remain unchanged

D The possibilities of satellite mapping are infinite

Questions 19-21

19 Came very close to accurately measuring the distance around the Earth

20 Produced maps showing man-made landmarks

21 Laid the foundation for our modern time zones

List of Mapmakers

1. Mercator
2. Ptolemy
3. Cassini family
4. Eratosthenes

Questions 22-26

Ancient maps allow us to see how we have come to make sense of the world. They also reflect the attitudes and knowledge of the day. The first great step in mapmaking took place in (22)…………………………………….in the 3rd century BC. Work continued in this tradition until the 2nd century AD but was then abandoned for over a thousand years, during which time maps were the responsibility of (23)………………………………..rather than scientists. Fortunately, however, the writings of (24)………………………………..had been kept, and interest in scientific mapmaking was revived as scholars sought to produce maps, inspired by the accounts of travelers. These days, (25)………………………………….are vital to the creation of maps and radar has allowed cartographers to map areas beyond our immediate world. In addition, this high-tech equipment is not only used to map faraway places but cheaper versions have also been developed for use in (26)……………………

Reading Answer 

14 Answer: A

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph 1

Answer explanation: The first paragraph states that today, the mapmaker’s vision is no longer confined to what the human eye can see. The perspective of mapmaking has shifted from the crow’s nest of the sailing vessel, mountain top, and airplane to new orbital heights. Radar, which bounces microwave radio signals off a given surface to create images of its contours and textures, can penetrate jungle foliage and has produced the first maps of the mountains of the planet Venus. And a combination of sonar and radar produces charts of the seafloor, putting much of Earth on the map for the first time. We can deduce from these lines that the vision is changed and is confined to what the human eye can see. The perspective has entirely changed. So, according to the first paragraph, mapmakers in the 21st century combine techniques to chart unknown territory. Thus, the answer is A.

15 Answer: D

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph 2

Answer explanation: We find a reference for the Library of Congress in the 2nd paragraph. The last line of the paragraph reveals: With their prodigious memories, computers are able to store data about people, places, and environments – the stuff of maps – and almost instantly information is displayed on the screen in the desired geographic context, and at the click of a button, a print-out of the map appears. These lines indicate that there are some scholars in the Library of Congress, who study maps on the computers, which store data about people, places, and environments, apart from the stuff of maps and with one click, a printout of the map appears. As a result, the library offers an opportunity to create individual computer maps to order. Thus, the answer is B.

16 Answer: B

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph 4

Answer explanation: The 4th paragraph states that building on the ideas of his predecessors, the astronomer, and geographer Ptolemy, working in the second century AD, spelled out a system for organizing maps according to grids of latitude and longitude. We can deduce from these lines that along with astronomer, and geographer Ptolemy created a system to organize maps according to the grids of latitude and longitude, i.e, Ptolemy alerted his contemporaries to the importance of organizing maps to reflect accurate ratios of distance. So, the answer is B.

17 Answer: C

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph 5

Answer explanation: The introductory lines of paragraph 5 states that however, just as the compass improved navigation and created demand for useful charts, so the invention of the printing press in the 15th century put maps in the hands of more people, and took their production away from monks, who had tended to illustrate theology rather than geography. These lines illustrate that with the invention of the printing press in the 15th century, many put their hands on maps, which also changed the approach to matchmaking. So, the answer is C.

18 Answer: C

Question type: Matching Features

Answer location: Paragraph 9

Answer explanation: Paragraph 9 states that mapmaking has come a long way since the olden days and that the surveyors go into the field without being linked to navigation satellites. The last line of paragraph 9 states that Cartography is pressing on to cosmic frontiers, but its objective is, and always has been, to communicate a sense of ‘here’ in relation to ‘there’, however far away ‘there’ may be. These lines indicate that cartography (the practice of drawing maps) is pressing on to cosmic frontiers. As a result, the conclusion paragraph states that the fundamental aim of mapmaking remains unchanged. Thus, the answer is C.

19 Answer: D

Question type: Matching Features

Answer location: Paragraph 3

Answer explanation: The 3rd paragraph states that measuring the spherical Earth ranks as the first major milestone in scientific cartography. This was first achieved by the Greek astronomer Eratosthenes, a scholar at the famous Alexandrian Library in Egypt in the third century BC. He calculated the Earth’s circumference as 25,200 miles, which was remarkably accurate. These lines indicate that it was Greek Astronomer, Eratosthenes who measured the spherical Earth rankings. He calculated the remarkably accurate circumference of the Earth. Therefore, Eratosthenes came very close to accurately measuring the distance around the Earth. Thus, the answer is D.

20 Answer: C

Question type: Matching Features

Answer location: Paragraph 8

Answer explanation: The 8th paragraph illustrates that scientific mapping of the land came into its own with the achievements of the Cassini family – father, son, grandson, and a great-grandson. We can deduce from these lines that it was the Cassini family who produced maps showing man-made landmarks. Thus, the answer is C.

21 Answer: B

Question type: Matching Features

Answer location: Paragraph 4

Answer explanation: Paragraph 4 describes that it was Ptolemy who alerted his contemporaries to the importance of organizing maps to reflect accurate ratios of distance. The 2nd line states that today, parallels of latitude are often spaced at intervals of 10 to 20 degrees and meridians at 15 degrees, and this is the basis for the width of modern time zones. Another legacy of Ptolemy’s is his advice to cartographers to create maps to scale. These lines reveal that Ptolemy laid the foundation for the modern time zones. So, the answer is B.

22 Answer: Egypt

Question type: Summary Completion

Answer location: Paragraph 3

Answer explanation: Paragraph 3 illustrates, “Measuring the spherical Earth ranks as the first major milestone in scientific cartography. This was first achieved by the Greek astronomer Eratosthenes, a scholar at the famous Alexandrian Library in Egypt in the third century BC.” We can deduce from these lines that the first great step in mapmaking took place in Egypt at the famous Alexandrian Library in the 3rd century BC. Thus, the answer is Egypt.

23 Answer: Monks

Question type: Summary Completion

Answer location: Paragraph 5

Answer explanation: Paragraph 5 states that just as the compass improved navigation and created demand for useful charts, the invention of the printing press in the 15th century put maps in the hands of more people, and took their production away from monks, who had tended to illustrate theology rather than geography. We can understand from these lines that the invention of the printing press in the 15th century was of great use to the people, however, it took away their production from monks who illustrated theology instead of Geography. Thus, it is evident that maps were the responsibility of monks rather than scientists. So, the answer is Monks.

24 Answer: Ptolemy

Question type: Summary Completion

Answer location: Paragraph 4, line 4

Answer explanation: The 4th line of paragraph 4 illustrates another legacy of Ptolemy’s is his advice to cartographers to create maps to scale. Distance on today’s maps is expressed as a fraction or ratio of the real distance. But mapmakers in Ptolemy’s time lacked the geographic knowledge to live up to Ptolemy’s scientific principles. These lines suggest that Ptolemy advised the cartographers to create maps on the scale. The distance on today’s maps was expressed as a fraction or ratio of the real distance. The writing of Ptolemy had been kept and interest in scientific mapmaking was revived by scholars. Thus, the answer is Ptolemy.

25 Answer: (navigation) satellites

Question type: Summary Completion

Answer location: Paragraph 9

Answer explanation: The introductory lines of paragraph 9 states that mapmaking has come a long way since those days. Today’s surveyors rarely go into the field without being linked to navigation satellites. We can deduce from these lines that nowadays, navigation satellites are important to the creation of maps and radar has allowed cartographers to map areas beyond our immediate world. Thus, the answer is navigation satellites.

26 Answer: (some) cars

Question type: Summary Completion

Answer location: Paragraph 9, line 5

Answer explanation: The 5th line of paragraph 9 states that simplified civilian versions of the receivers are available for a few hundred dollars and they are also the heart of electronic map displays available in some cars. These lines suggest that the easier versions of receivers are available for a few dollars and that the high-tech equipment is not only used to map faraway places but cheaper versions have also been introduced for use in some cars. So, the answer is some cars.

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