Mapping Reading Answers

Dec 13, 2022

Mapping Reading Answers contains comprehensive paragraphs. Mapping Reading Answers has 13 different types of questions. Candidates will be shown various question types with clear instructions in this IELTS Section. Mapping Reading Answers comprises three types of questions: Matching heading, sentence completion, and Choose the correct option. For the Matching heading, candidates need to thoroughly go through each passage. For sentence completion, candidates need to skim the passage for keywords and understand the concept. To choose the correct option, candidates must read the IELTS Reading passage and understand the statement provided.

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

Mapping Reading Answers

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. ‘Suddenly it's a whole different world for us,’ says Joel Morrison, chief of geography at the U.S, Bureau of the Census. ‘Our future as mapmakers — even ten years from now — is uncertain.’

The world’s largest collection of maps resides in the basement of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The collection, consisting of up to 4.6 million map sheets and 63,000 atlases, includes magnificent bound collections of elaborate maps — the pride of the golden age of Dutch cartography. In the reading room scholars, wearing thin cotton gloves to protect the fragile sheets, examine ancient maps with magnifying glasses. Across the room people sit at their computer screens, studying the latest maps. 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.

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. The longitudinal circumference is known today to be 24,860 miles.

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. 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. 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. Even now, when surveyors achieve accuracies down to inches and satellites can plot potential missile targets within feet, maps are not true pictures of reality.

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. Ocean-going ships launched an age of discovery, enlarging both what could and needed to be mapped, and awakened an intellectual spirit and desire for knowledge of the world.

Inspired by the rediscovered Ptolemy, whose writing had been preserved by Arabs after the sacking of the Alexandrian Library in AD 931, mapmakers in the 15th century gradually replaced theology with knowledge of faraway places, as reported by traveling merchants like Marco Polo.

Gerhardus Mercator, the foremost ship-maker of the 16th century, developed a technique of arranging meridians and parallels in such a way that navigators could draw straight lines between two points and steer a constant compass course between them. This distortion formula, introduced on his world map of 1569, created the ‘Greenland problem’. Even on some standard maps to this day, Greenland looks as large as South America — one of the many problems when one tries to portray a round world on a flat sheet of paper. But the Mercator projection was so practical that it is still popular with sailors.

Scientific mapping of the land came into its own with the achievements of the Cassini family — father, son, grandson, and a great-grandson. In the late 17th century, the Italian-born founder, Jean-Dominique, invented a complex method of determining longitude based on observations of Jupiter's moons. Using this technique, surveyors were able to produce an accurate map of France. The family continued to map the French countryside and his great- grandson finally published their famous Cassini map in 1793 during the French Revolution. While it may have lacked the artistic appeal of earlier maps, it was the model of a social and geographic map showing roads, rivers, canals, towns, abbeys, vineyards, lakes, and even windmills. With this achievement, France became the first country to be completely mapped by scientific methods.

Mapmaking has come a long way since those days. Today's surveyors rarely go into the field without being linked to navigation satellites. Their hand-held receivers are the most familiar of the new mapping technologies, and the satellite system developed and still operated by the US Defense Department, is increasingly used by surveyors. Even ordinary hikers, sailors, and explorers can tap into it for data telling them where they are. 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. 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.

Section 2

Solution with Explanation
Questions 14-18:
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D. Write the correct letter in boxes 14-18 on your answer sheet.

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

Combine techniques to chart unknown territory
Still rely on being able to see what they map
Are now able to visit the darkest jungle
Need input from experts in other fields

Answer: A
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: mapmaker's vision, sailing vessel, mountain top, planet Venus, seafloor.
Keyword location: Paragraph 1
Explanation: These lines indicate that the vision is altered and limited beyond what the human visual system can see. The viewpoint has completely altered. In order to explore uncharted areas, mapmakers in the twenty-first century mix methodologies, as stated in the first paragraph. So, the response is A.

The Library of Congress offers an opportunity to

Borrow from their collection of Dutch maps
Learn how to restore ancient and fragile maps
Enjoy the atmosphere of the reading room
Create individual computer maps to order

Answer: D
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: prodigious memories, computers, environments, geographic.
Keyword location: Paragraph 2
Explanation: In the Library of Congress, there are academics who analyze maps on computers that hold information about people, places, and environments in addition to maps. With only one click, a printout of the map is produced, as the final line of the paragraph reveals. As a consequence, the library provides the option to make customized computer maps upon request. So, B is the correct response.

Ptolemy alerted his contemporaries to the importance of

Measuring the circumference of the world
Organizing maps to reflect accurate ratios of distance
Working out the distance between parallels of latitude
Accuracy and precision in mapping

Answer: B
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: building, predecessors, astronomer, geographer Ptolemy.
Keyword location: Paragraph 4
Explanation: We can infer from these lines that Ptolemy, an astronomer and geographer, developed a technique to arrange maps according to latitude and longitude grids. Thus warning his contemporaries of the significance of arranging maps to reflect precise distance ratios. The solution is B, thus.

The invention of the printing press

Revitalized interest in scientific knowledge
Enabled maps to be produced more cheaply
changed the approach to mapmaking
Ensured that the work of Ptolemy was continued

Answer: C
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: improved navigation, invention, 15th century, geography.
Keyword location: Paragraph 5
Explanation: These lines show how the availability of maps increased after the printing press was developed in the fifteenth century, which also affected how matches were made. The response is C, so.

The writer concludes by stating that

Mapmaking has become too specialized
Cartographers work in very harsh conditions
The fundamental aims of mapmaking remain unchanged
The possibilities of satellite mapping are infinite

Answer: C
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: Mapmaking, navigation satellites, cartography.
Keyword location: Paragraph 9
Explanation: These lines show that the boundaries of space are being explored by cartography, the art of producing maps. As a result, it is stated in the conclusion that the primary goal of mapmaking is still the same. The solution is therefore C.

Questions 19-21:
Look at the following list of achievements (Questions 19-21) and the list of mapmakers below.
Match each achievement with the correct mapmaker, A, B, C, or D.

List of Mapmakers

Mercator
Ptolemy
Cassini family
Eratosthenes

Came very close to accurately measuring the distance around the Earth

Answer: D
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: Greek astronomer, Eratosthebes, Alexandrian Library, Egypt.
Keyword location: Paragraph 3
Explanation: These lines show that the Greek astronomer Eratosthenes was the one who determined the rankings for the spherical Earth. He determined the Earth's circumference with astonishing accuracy. Eratosthenes was thus extremely close to correctly calculating the circumference of the Earth. The solution is hence D.

Produced maps showing man-made landmarks

Answer: C
Supporting Statement: scientific mapping of the land came into its own with the achievements of the Cassini family – father, son, grandson, and a great-grandson.
Keywords: scientific mapping, achievements, Cassini family.
Keyword location: Paragraph 8
Explanation: These lines indicate that the Cassini family was responsible for creating the maps that showed man-made landmarks. The solution is therefore C.

Laid the foundation for our modern time zones

Answer: B
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: Ptolemy, contemporaries, meridians.
Keyword location: Paragraph 4
Explanation: These lines demonstrate how Ptolemy established the framework for the current time zones. The solution is B, thus.

Questions 22-26:

Complete the summary below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

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)……………………

Question 22:

Answer: Egypt
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: spherical earth, cartography, Greek astronomer, Eratosthebes, Alexandrian Library.
Keyword location: Paragraph 3
Explanation: These lines indicate that the first significant development in mapmaking occurred in Egypt in the third century BC at the renowned Alexandrian Library. Egypt is the correct answer.

Question 23:

Answer: Monks
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: improved navigation, printing press, 15th century, monks, theology.
Keyword location: Paragraph 5
Explanation: From these lines, it is clear that the printing press's creation. In the 15th century it was very beneficial to the populace, monks who illustrated theology. Rather than geographic topics they lost their ability to produce books. Thus, it is clear that monks rather than scientists were in charge of creating maps. Monks are the appropriate response.

Question 24:

Answer: Ptolemy
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: legacy of Ptolemy, distance, mapmaker's.
Keyword location: Paragraph 4, line 4
Explanation: According to these lines, Ptolemy urged the cartographers to make maps that were scaled. On modern maps, the distance is shown as a percentage or ratio of the actual distance. Scholars have rekindled their interest in scientific mapping because of the preservation of Ptolemy's writings. Ptolemy is the correct response.

Question 25:

Answer: (navigation) satellites
Supporting Statement: mapmaking has come a long way since those days. Today’s surveyors rarely go into the field without being linked to navigation satellites.
Keywords: Mapmaking, surveyors, navigation satellites.
Keyword location: Paragraph 9
Explanation: These lines suggest that today's maps depend on navigation satellites and that radar has made it possible for cartographers. These have allowed us to map regions outside of our immediate environment. Satellite navigation systems are the solution.

Question 26:

Answer: (some) cars
Supporting Statement: 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.
Keywords: civilian versions, receivers, hundred dollars, electronic map.
Keyword location: Paragraph 9, line 5
Explanation: These lines imply that less complicated receivers can be purchased for a few dollars. And that more affordable receivers have been developed for utilization in some cars in addition to being used to map remote locations. So, a few cars are the solution.

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