William Henry Perkin – IELTS Reading Answers

Updated On Aug 25, 2021

William Henry Perkin – IELTS Reading Answers

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1 William Henry Perkin
2 Answers

The Academic passage ‘William Henry Perkin’ is a reading passage that appeared in an IELTS Test. Read the passage below and answer questions 1 – 13. Beyond the questions, you will find the answers along with the location of the answers in the passage and the keywords that help you find out the answers.

William Henry Perkin

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Question Number	Answer	Explanation
1	FALSE	In the beginning of paragraph B, it is mentioned that as a student at the City of London School, ‘Perkin became ‘immersed in the study of chemistry’. His ‘talent and devotion to the subject’ were ‘perceived by his teacher, Thomas Hall’, who ‘encouraged him to attend a series of lectures given by the eminent scientist Michael Faraday’ at the Royal Institution. As the statement contradicts the information given in the passage,the answer is ‘FALSE’.
2.	NOT GIVEN	In paragraph B, it is stated that as a student at the City of London School, Perkin became immersed in the study of chemistry. His teacher, Thomas Hall encouraged him to attend a series of lectures given by the eminent scientist Michael Faraday at the Royal Institution. Those speeches tired the young chemist`s enthusiasm further, and he (Perkin) later went on to attend the Royal College of Chemistry, which he succeeded in entering in 1853, at the age of 15. There is no mention of the person who suggested him to join the Royal College of Chemistry. Hence, the answer is ‘NOT GIVEN’.
3	FALSE	In paragraph C, it is mentioned that at the time of Perkin’s enrollment, the ‘Royal College of Chemistry was headed by the noted German chemist August Wilhelm Hofmann’. ‘Perkin’s scientific gifts’ soon ‘caught Hofmann’s attention’ and within two years, ‘he became Hofmann’s youngest assistant’. As the statement contradicts the information given in the passage,the answer is ‘FALSE’.

4	TRUE	Paragraph C informs that at the time of Perkin’s enrollment in the Royal College of Chemistry (1853), the institution was headed by the noted German chemist August Wilhelm Hofmann. Perkin’s scientific gifts soon caught Hofmann’s attention and within two years, he became Hofmann’s youngest assistant. Not long after that, Perkin made the scientific breakthrough that would bring him both fame and fortune (It is mentioned in paragraph B that this breakthrough happened when he was about 15 to 16 years old which is a very young age). As the statement agrees with the information, the answer is ‘TRUE’.
5	NOT GIVEN	In the beginning of paragraph D, it is stated that quinine was the only viable medical treatment for malaria at that time. The drug is derived from the bark of the cinchona tree, native to South America and by 1856 demand for the drug was surpassing the available supply. It is said that it is native of South America, but there is no reference that it is grown only in this part of the world. Hence, the answer is ‘NOT GIVEN’.
6	TRUE	Paragraph E informs that during his vacation in 1856, Perkin spent his time in the laboratory on the top floor of his family’s house. He was ‘attempting’ (hoped) to manufacture ‘quinine’ (a drug) from ‘aniline’, an inexpensive and readily available ‘coal tar waste product’. As the statement agrees with the information, the answer is ‘TRUE’.
7	NOT GIVEN	In paragraph E, it is stated that Perkin’s scientific training and nature prompted him to investigate the substance further. Incorporating potassium dichromate and alcohol into the aniline at various stages of the experimental process, he finally produced a deep purple solution. And proving the truth of the famous scientist Louis Pasteur’s words ‘chance favors only the prepared mind’, Perkin saw the potential of his unexpected find. There is no reference that Pasteur inspired Perkins. Hence, the answer is ‘NOT GIVEN’.
8	the rich	Paragraph F refers to the fact that historically, textile dyes were made from such natural sources as plants and animal excretions. Some of these, such as the glandular mucus of snails, were difficult to obtain and outrageously expensive. Indeed, the purple colour extracted from a snail was once so costly that in society at the time only the rich could afford it. Hence, the answer is ‘the rich’ which was the group associated with the colour purple before Perkin’s discovery.
9	commercial (possibilities)	Paragraph G brings out the fact that Perkin quickly grasped that his purple solution could be used to colour fabric, thus making it the world’s first synthetic dye. Realising the importance of this breakthrough, he lost no time in patenting it. But perhaps the most ‘fascinating of all Perkin`s reactions’ to his find was ‘his nearly instant recognition’ that the ‘new dye had commercial possibilities’. Hence, the answer is ‘commercial (possibilities)’.
10	mauve	Paragraph H states that Perkin originally named his dye Tyrian Purple, but it ‘later’ became ‘commonly known as mauve’ (from the French for the plant used to make the colour violet). Hence, the answer is ‘mauve’.
11	Robert Pullar	In paragraph H, it is made known that Perkin asked ‘advice of Scottish dye works owner Robert Pullar’, who assured him that manufacturing the dye would be well worth it if the colour remained fast (i.e. would not fade) and the cost was relatively low. So, over the fierce objections of his mentor Hofmann, ‘he left college to give birth to the modern chemical industry’. Hence, the answer is ‘Robert Pullar’.
12	France	Paragraph I points out that Perkin set up a factory not far from London with the help of his father and brother. The company received a commercial boost from the ‘Empress Eugenio of France’, when she ‘decided the new color flattered her’. Very soon, ‘mauve was the necessary shade for all the fashionable ladies in that country’. Hence, the answer is ‘France’.
13	malaria	Paragraph K specifies that ‘Perkin’s synthetic dye’ discoveries had outcomes far beyond the merely decorative. They were ‘used to stain previously invisible microbes and bacteria’, allowing ‘researchers to identify such bacilli as tuberculosis. cholera, and anthrax’. The dye’s ‘current use is in the search for a vaccine against malaria’. Hence, the answer is ‘malaria’.