Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed – IELTS Reading Answers
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The Academic passage, Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed, is a reading passage that appeared in an IELTS Test. Since IELTS Reading is considered the second easiest exam module after Listening, solve and review the Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed Reading Answers and similar passages to ensure that your reading skills are up to the mark.
Since questions get repeated in the IELTS exam, these reading passages are ideal for practice. If you want more practice, try taking an IELTS reading practice test.
The question types found in the passage are:
- Multiple-Choice Questions (Q. 1-5)
- Sentence Completion (Q. 6-12)
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Reading Passage
Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed
A Scientists studying penguins’ feathers have revealed how the birds stay ice-free when hopping in and out of below-zero waters in the Antarctic. A combination of nano-sized pores and an extra water-repelling preening oil the birds secrete is thought to give Antarctic penguins’ feathers superhydrophobic properties. Researchers in the US made the discovery using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to study penguin feathers in extreme detail. Antarctic penguins live in one of Earth’s most extreme environments, facing temperatures that drop to -40C, winds with speeds of 40 metres per second and water that stays around -2.2C. But even in these sub-zero conditions, the birds manage to prevent ice from coating their feathers.
B “They are an amazing species, living in extreme conditions, and great swimmers. Basically, they are living engineering marvels,” says research team member Dr Pirouz Kavehpour, professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Birds’ feathers are known to have hydrophobic, or non-wetting, properties. But scientists from UCLA, University of Massachusetts Amherst and SeaWorld, wanted to know what makes Antarctic penguins’ feathers extra ice repelling.
C “What we learn here is how penguins combine oil and nano-structures on the feathers to produce this effect to perfection,” explains Kavehpour. By analysing feathers from different penguin species, the researchers discovered Antarctic species the gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua) was more superhydrophobic compared with a species found in warmer climes – the Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) – whose breeding sites include Argentinian desert.
D Gentoo penguins’ feathers contained tiny pores which trapped air, making the surface hydrophobic. And they were smothered with a special preening oil, produced by a gland near the base of the tail, with which the birds cover themselves. Together, these properties mean that in the wild, droplets of water on Antarctic penguins’ superhydrophobic feathers bead up on the surface like spheres – formations that, according to the team, could provide a geometry that delays ice formation, since heat cannot easily flow out of the water if the droplet only has minimal contact with the surface of the feather.
E “The shape of the droplet on the surface dictates the delay in freezing,” explains Kavehpour. The water droplets roll off the penguin’s feathers before they have time to freeze, the researchers propose. Penguins living in the Antarctic are highly evolved to cope with harsh conditions: their short outer feathers overlap to make a thick protective layer over fluffier feathers which keep them warm. Under their skin, a thick layer of fat keeps them insulated. The flightless birds spend a lot of time in the sea and are extremely agile and graceful swimmers, appearing much more awkward on land.
F Kavehpour was inspired to study Antarctic penguins’ feathers after watching the birds in a nature documentary: “I saw these birds moving in and out of the water, splashing everywhere. Yet there is no single drop of frozen ice sticking to them,” he tells BBC Earth. His team now hopes its work could aid the design of better man-made surfaces which minimise frost formation.
G “I would love to see biomimicking of these surfaces for important applications, for example, de-icing of aircraft,” says Kavehpour. Currently, airlines spend a lot of time and money using chemical de-icers on aeroplanes, as ice can alter the vehicles’ aerodynamic properties and even cause them to crash.
Questions 1-5
Write the correct letter in boxes 1-5 on your answer sheet.
1 Penguins stay ice free due to:
A A combination of nano-sized pores
B An extra water repelling preening oil
C A combination of nano-sized pores and an extra water repelling preening oil
D A combination of various factors
2 Antarctic penguins experience extreme weather conditions, including:
A Low temperature, that can drop to -40
B Severe wind, up to 40 metres per second
C Below zero water temperature
D All of the above
3 In line 5 words engineering marvels mean:
A That penguins are very intelligent
B That penguins are good swimmers
C That penguis are well prepared to living in severe conditions
D Both B and C
4 Penguis feather has everything, EXCEPT:
A Hydrophobic properties
B Extra ice repelling
C Soft structures
D Oil structures
5 The gentoo penguin:
A Is less superhydrophobic compared to the Magellanic penguin
B Has feathers that contain tiny pores
C Can’t swim
D Lives in Argentinian desert
Questions 6-12
Write ONLY ONE WORD from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 6-12 on your answer sheet.
6 Formations like ________ could provide a geometry that delays ice formation.
7 The delay in freezing is dictated by the __________ of the droplet.
8 Penguins in the Antarctic are highly evolved to be able to cope with ____________ conditions.
9 Penguins are insulated by a _____________ layer of fat.
10 On the land, penguins appear much more ______________ than in the sea.
11 The inspiration came to Kavehpour after watching a _____________ about penguins.
12 Kavehpour would like to see ______________ surfaces which minimise frost formation
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Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed Reading Answers With Explanation
Read further for the explanation part of the reading answer.
1 Answer: C
Question type: Multiple Choice Question
Answer location: Paragraph D
Answer explanation: A combination of nano-sized pores and an extra water-repelling preening oil: The passage mentions that the penguins’ feathers stay ice-free due to a combination of nano-sized pores and a water-repelling preening oil, so the correct answer is a combination of various factors.
2 Answer: D
Question type: Multiple Choice Question
Answer location: Paragraph D
Answer explanation: All of the above: The passage mentions that Antarctic penguins face low temperatures, severe winds, and below-zero water temperatures, so all of the above options are correct.
3 Answer: D
Question type: Multiple Choice Question
Answer location: Paragraph D
Answer explanation: In the passage, “engineering marvels” is explained to mean that penguins are great swimmers and well-prepared to live in severe conditions, so both options B and C are correct.
4 Answer: C
Question type: Multiple Choice Question
Answer location: Paragraph B
Answer explanation: The passage does not mention “soft structures” in relation to penguins’ feathers. Hence, the answer is C and the penguins don’t have soft structured feathers.
5 Answer: B
Question type: Multiple Choice Question
Answer location: Paragraph C
Answer explanation: Has feathers that contain tiny pores: The passage mentions that Gentoo penguins’ feathers contain tiny pores, making them more superhydrophobic compared to other species.
6 Answer: Spheres
Question type: Sentence Completion
Answer location: Paragraph E
Answer explanation: The passage states that water droplets on penguins’ superhydrophobic feathers bead up on the surface like spheres, providing a geometry that delays ice formation.
7 Answer: Shape
Question type: Sentence Completion
Answer location: Paragraph F
Answer explanation: The passage explains that the shape of the droplet on the surface dictates the delay in freezing.
8 Answer: Harsh
Question type: Sentence Completion
Answer location: Paragraph G
Answer explanation: The passage mentions that penguins in the Antarctic are highly evolved to cope with harsh conditions.
9 Answer: Thick
Question type: Sentence Completion
Answer location: Paragraph G
Answer explanation: The passage states that under their skin, penguins have a thick layer of fat that keeps them insulated.
10 Answer: Awkward
Question type: Sentence Completion
Answer location: Paragraph G
Answer explanation: The passage mentions that penguins appear much more awkward on land compared to their agility in the sea.
11 Answer: Documentary
Question type: Sentence Completion
Answer location: Paragraph G
Answer explanation: The passage mentions that Dr. Pirouz Kavehpour was inspired to study penguins’ feathers after watching a nature documentary.
12 Answer: Biomimicking
Question type: Sentence Completion
Answer location: Paragraph H
Answer explanation: The passage suggests that Kavehpour would like to see biomimicking of penguins’ surfaces to minimize frost formation.
Tips for Answering the Question Types in the Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed Reading Passage
Let us check out some quick tips to answer the types of questions in the ‘Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed’ Reading passage.
Matching Features:
Matching Features is a type of IELTS reading question that requires you to match a list of features to the correct people, places, or things in a passage.
To answer matching features questions, you can use the following strategies:
- Read the features first: This will give you an idea of the types of information that you are looking for in the passage.
- Read the passage quickly: This will give you a general understanding of the content of the passage.
- Match the features to the people, places, or things: As you read the passage, look for the information that matches each feature.
- Check your answers: Once you have matched all of the features, double-check your answers to make sure that they are correct.
Sentence Completion:
Sentence/Summary Completion is a type of IELTS reading question that requires you to fill in a gap in a sentence/summary with a word or phrase from the passage.
To answer sentence completion questions, you can use the following strategies:
- Read the sentence carefully: This will give you an idea of the type of word or phrase that is missing.
- Scan the passage for the keywords: The keywords in the sentence can help you to identify the correct word or phrase.
- Read the sentence with the missing word or phrase: This will help you to see how the word or phrase fits into the sentence.
- Check your answer: Once you have filled in the gap, make sure that your answer makes sense in the context of the sentence.
Multiple Choice Questions:
You will be given a reading passage followed by several questions based on the information in the paragraph in multiple choice questions. Your task is to understand the question and compare it to the paragraph in order to select the best solution from the available possibilities.
- Before reading the passage, read the question and select the keywords. Check the keyword possibilities if the question statement is short on information.
- Then, using the keywords, read the passage to find the relevant information.
- To select the correct option, carefully read the relevant words and match them with each option.
- You will find several options with keywords that do not correspond to the information.
- Try opting for the elimination method mostly.
- Find the best option by matching the meaning rather than just the keywords.
Great work on attempting to solve the Penguins’ Anti-Ice Trick Revealed IELTS reading passage! To crack your IELTS Reading in the first go, try solving more of the recent IELTS reading passages here.
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