Robotic Approach to Crop Breeding Reading Answers

Jan 4, 2023

Robotic Approach to Crop Breeding Reading Answers is a topic about the methods used by robots for nurturing the crops. The given IELTS topic has originated from the book named “Cambridge IELTS 10 Student's Book with Answers”. The topic named Robotic Approach to Crop Breeding Reading Answers comes with 12 sets of questions. The topic includes three different sorts of questions, such as, choose the correct answer, choose the correct letter, and complete the following sentences. The candidates should thoroughly read the IELTS reading passage to recognize the synonyms and identify the keywords and answer the questions below. Similar kinds of topics like Robotic Approach to Crop Breeding Reading Answers are included in the IELTS reading practice papers, which the candidates can take into their consideration for performing a good score in this section.

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Section 1

Read the passage to answer the following questions

Robotic Approach to Crop Breeding Reading Answers

The Australian sunflower industry is the major source of polyunsaturated fatty acids found in margarines and spreads. Recognised as the type of fatty acid most able to protect against heart disease, it is in everybody's best interest that Australia has a competitive and healthy sunflower industry, but in Australia, there is a constant struggle with the harsh climate. However, thanks to one special robot, farmers may be able to win the battle against drought.

Dr Chris Lambrides, a research fellow at the University of Queensland, is nearing the end of a project that aims to develop more drought tolerant sunflowers by selecting flowers that use water more efficiently. He's done this with the help of a robot developed by the Australian National University's Research School of Biological Sciences.

Plants undergo photosynthesis to produce energy in the form of sugar. This involves allowing carbon dioxide to enter the leaves through pores called stomata. Transpiration is the mechanism by which plants lose water through their leaves. This system is thought to facilitate the passage of minerals through the plant and is vital for healthy plants.

However, in conditions of drought, the plants that can use the available water efficiently and lose less to the environment will be more likely to thrive and, in a commercial sense become more profitable. These plants are classified as having a high transpiration efficiency. When plants transpire, the leaves become cooler due to evaporation. Therefore, by measuring the temperature of the leaves, scientists can determine how much water is being lost through transpiration.

When the project first began, the researchers used hand-held infrared thermometers to measure the temperature difference between leaves of different varieties of sunflowers in an experimental plot. Wind can affect leaf temperature, and the research team discovered that its initial approach did not cater for changes in wind speed, which could not be controlled as an experimental variable. The team, therefore, needed a technique to measure temperature continuously that would allow it to examine the effects of other variables such as humidity. They needed a robot.

They designed a robot with two infrared thermometers set at 1800 to each other. The robot runs on an oblong track around the experimental plot and the thermometers operate on each side of the track. In order to minimize any variables from the two thermometers, they are rotated 1800 at the beginning of each run and the results are averaged. The infrared thermometers can be rotated on an angle to examine different parts of the foliage.

The robot is also able to detect light intensity. It has a garage on the track, where it waits until the light intensity is high enough to give useful results. If the skies darken due to rain, heavy cloud cover or sunset, the robot makes its way back to the garage to wait.

The main difficulty faced by the research group was to find an agronomist who could grow the perfect crop of sunflowers. The sunflower canopy had to be complete, with no visible soil, 50 that the thermometers would only measure the temperature of the plants and not the surrounding environment. Eight varieties of sunflower were examined. The data collected by the robot has been used by the research team to determine which variety has the highest transpiration efficiency.

This is not the first time such methods have been used to determine drought-resistance in plants. The team and their robot have already made a major breakthrough in the Australian wheat industry with Drysdale Wheat, which signalled the arrival of a new technique for selecting drought-resistant species.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation

Questions 1-4

Complete the sentences with words taken from the passage.

Use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 1-4 on your answer sheet

In terms of our health, sunflowers are important in defending humans against ..........................................
The research team wanted to find a sunflower that could cope well in conditions ..........................................
The name of the process which is believed to help keep plants in good condition is ..........................................
The research team had to rethink their initial approach when they realised they needed to measure the impact of external conditions such as.......................................... and ..........................................

Question 1:

Answer: heart disease
Supporting sentence: Recognised as the type of fatty acid most able to protect against heart disease, it is in everybody's best interest that Australia has a competitive and healthy sunflower industry, but in Australia, there is a constant struggle with the harsh climate.
Keyword: protect, heart disease, sunflower
Keyword location: paragraph A, lines 1-2
Explanation: Lines 1-2 of paragraph A state that polyunsaturated fatty acids used in margarine and spreads are mostly sourced from the Australian sunflower industry. It is in everyone's best interests for Australia to have a competitive and thriving sunflower sector. However, there is a constant fight due to the severe environment there. Sunflowers are known to be the sort of fatty acid most suited to protect against heart disease.

Question 2:

Answer: drought
Supporting sentence: Dr Chris Lambrides, a research fellow at the University of Queensland, is nearing the end of a project that aims to develop more drought tolerant sunflowers by selecting flowers that use water more efficiently.
Keyword: research fellow, project, drought tolerant sunflowers
Keyword location: paragraph B, line 1
Explanation: Paragraph B suggests that Dr. Chris Lambrides, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Queensland, is nearing completion of a project. This project tries to increase the drought tolerance of sunflowers by choosing blooms that use water more effectively. He accomplished this with the aid of a robot created by the Research School of Biological Sciences at the Australian National University.

Question 3:

Answer: transpiration
Supporting sentence: Transpiration is the mechanism by which plants lose water through their leaves
Keyword: Transpiration, plants, water
Keyword location: paragraph C, line 3
Explanation: Lines 3-4 of paragraph C portrays that plants lose water through their leaves through a process called transpiration. This system, which is essential for strong plants, is supposed to make it easier for minerals to move through the plant.

Question 4:

Answer: wind
Supporting sentence: Wind can affect leaf temperature, and the research team discovered that its initial approach did not cater for changes in wind speed, which could not be controlled as an experimental variable.
Keyword: Wind, temperature, initial
Keyword location: line 2, paragraph E
Explanation: Line 2 of paragraph E says that wind can affect leaf temperature. Also, the research team discovered that its initial approach did not cater to changes in wind speed. This could not be controlled as an experimental variable. The team, therefore, needed a technique to measure temperature continuously. It permitted them to examine the effects of other variables such as humidity. They needed a robot.

Questions 5-12

The reading passage has nine paragraphs labelled A-I.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter A-I in boxes 5-12 on your answer sheet.

the precise growing conditions required to allow the experiment to work
a description of the how the robot operates
an explanation of two important processes used by plants
a reference to a previous study using a different crop
details of what the robot does when conditions are poor
the name of the group responsible for making the robot
the number of different types of sunflower tested
the purpose of taking the temperature of the plants

Question 5:

Answer: H
Supporting sentence: The main difficulty faced by the research group was to find an agronomist who could grow the perfect crop of sunflowers.
Keyword: difficulty, research group, perfect crop of sunflowers
Keyword location: paragraph H, line 1-2
Explanation: The biggest challenge the research team encountered was locating an agronomic that could produce the ideal crop of sunflowers. To ensure that the thermometers would only measure the temperature of the plants and not the surrounding environment some conditions need to be considered. The sunflower canopy had to be fully covered. It also had to be free of any soil that could be seen.

Question 6:

Answer: F
Supporting sentence: The robot runs on an oblong track around the experimental plot and the thermometers operate on each side of the track.
Keyword: robot, runs, oblong track
Keyword location: paragraph F, lines 1-2
Explanation: Lines 1-2 of paragraph F suggest that two infrared thermometers placed 1800 apart on a robot were constructed by the research team. The thermometers function on either side of the rectangular track that the robot travels on as it circles the experimental plot. The two thermometers are rotated 1800 degrees at the start of each run in order to reduce any influence from them, and the outcomes are averaged. To observe various areas of the foliage, the infrared thermometers can be rotated at an angle.

Question 7:

Answer: C
Supporting sentence: i) Plants undergo photosynthesis to produce energy in the form of sugar
ii) Transpiration is the mechanism by which plants lose water through their leaves.
Keyword: Plants, photosynthesis, Transpiration
Keyword location: paragraph C
Explanation: Paragraph C in the passage explains about two vital and major processes which plants endure. Sugar is the energy source used by plants during photosynthesis. In order to achieve this, stomata, or pores, allow carbon dioxide to enter the leaves. The process through which plants lose water through their leaves is called transpiration. This system, which is essential for strong plants, is supposed to make it easier for nutrients to flow through the plant.

Question 8:

Answer: I
Supporting sentence: The team and their robot have already made a major breakthrough in the Australian wheat industry with Drysdale Wheat, which signalled the arrival of a new technique for selecting drought-resistant species.
Keyword: robot, breakthrough, new technique
Keyword location: paragraph I, line 2
Explanation: The second line of paragraph I clarifies that such methods have been utilized in the past to assess a plant's drought tolerance. With Drysdale Wheat, the team and its robot already achieved a significant achievement in the Australian wheat sector. It also heralded the coming of a new method for choosing drought-resistant varieties.

Question 9:

Answer: G
Supporting sentence: If the skies darken due to rain, heavy cloud cover or sunset, the robot makes its way back to the garage to wait.
Keyword: skies, heavy cloud, garage
Keyword location: paragraph G, last line
Explanation: Paragraph G clarifies that the robot is capable of determining light intensity. In order to wait until the light intensity is high enough to produce useful results, it has a garage on the track. The robot returns to the garage to wait if the sky becomes overcast due to rain, thick clouds, or sunset.

Question 10:

Answer: B
Supporting sentence: He's done this with the help of a robot developed by the Australian National University's Research School of Biological Sciences.
Keyword: help, robot, Australian National University's Research School of Biological Sciences
Keyword location: paragraph B, last line
Explanation: The concluding line of paragraph B states that Dr. Chris Lambrides, a research associate at the University of Queensland, is nearing completion of a project. It tries to increase the drought tolerance of sunflowers by choosing blooms that use water more effectively. He accomplished this with the aid of a robot created by the Research School of Biological Sciences at the Australian National University.

Question 11:

Answer: H
Supporting sentence: Eight varieties of sunflower were examined.
Keyword: Eight varieties, sunflower, examined
Keyword location: paragraph H, line 3
Explanation: Paragraph H explains that the biggest challenge the research team encountered was locating an agronomic that could produce the ideal crop of sunflowers. To ensure that the thermometers would only measure the temperature of the plants and not the surrounding environment. The sunflower canopy had to be fully covered and free of any soil that could be seen. We looked at eight different sunflower varieties. The study team has identified the kind with the maximum transpiration efficiency using the data gathered by the robot.

Question 12:

Answer: D
Supporting sentence: Therefore, by measuring the temperature of the leaves, scientists can determine how much water is being lost through transpiration.
Keyword: measuring, temperature, transpiration
Keyword location: paragraph D, last line
Explanation: Paragraph D’s last line depicts that some of the plants are categorized as having a high efficiency of transpiration. The evaporation that occurs during plant transpiration makes the leaves colder. Therefore, scientists can determine how much water is lost through transpiration by checking the temperature of the leaves.

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