The Rise of Agribots Reading Answers

Feb 8, 2023

The Rise of Agribots Reading Answers is an academic reading topic discussing in detail study about the emergence of agribots. The given IELTS topic has originated from the book named “The Official Cambridge Guide to IELTS Student's Book with Answers with DVD-ROM”. The topic named The Rise of Agribots Reading Answers has a total of 13 wide range of questions included. The topic consists of three sorts of questions, like, Yes/No/Not Given, complete the following sentences, and match the headings. The candidates should thoroughly read the IELTS reading passage to recognize the synonyms and identify the keywords and answer the questions below. IELTS reading practice papers can be taken into consideration by the candidates in order to score a good score in the reading section in which similar topics like The Rise of Agribots Reading Answers has been included.

Check: Get 10 Free IELTS Sample Papers
Check: Register for IELTS Coaching - Join for Free Trial Class Now

Section 1

Read the passage to answer the following questions

The Rise of Agribots Reading Answers

The next time you stand at the supermarket checkout, spare a thought for the farmers who helped fill your shopping basket as life is hard for them right now. This, in turn, inevitably means bigger grocery bills for consumers, and greater hardship for the millions in countries where food shortages are a matter of life and death. Worse, studies suggest that the world will need twice as much food by 2050. Yet while farmers must squeeze more out of the land, they must also address the necessity of reducing their impact on the soil, waterways and atmosphere. All this means rethinking how agriculture is practiced, and taking automation to a whole new level. On the new model farms of the future, precision will be key. Why dose a whole field with chemicals if you can spray only where they are needed? Each plant could get exactly the right amount of everything, no more or less, an approach that could slash chemical use and improve yields in one move. But this is easier said than done; the largest farms in Europe and the U.S. can cover thousands of acres. That's why automation is key to precision farming. Specifically, say agricultural engineers, precision farming needs robot farmers.

One day, we might see fields with 'agribots' (agricultural robots) that can identify individual seedlings and encourage them along with drops of fertilizer. Other machines would distinguish problem weeds from crops and eliminate them with shots from high-power lasers or a microdot of pesticide. These machines will also be able to identify and harvest all kinds of vegetables. More than a century of mechanization has already turned farming into an industrial-scale activity in much of the world, with farms that grow cereals being the most heavily automated.

But a variety of other crops, including oranges and tomatoes destined to become processed foods, are also picked mechanically, albeit to a slightly lesser extent. Yet the next wave of autonomous farm machinery is already at work. You probably haven't even noticed, for these robots are disguised as tractors. Many are self-steering, use GPS to cross a field, and can even 'talk' to their implements - a plough or sprayer, for example. And the implements can talk back, telling the tractor that it's going too fast or needs to move to the left. This kind of communication is also being developed in other farm vehicles. A new system allows a combine harvester, say, to send a call over to a tractor-trailer so the driver can unload the grain as and when necessary.

However, when fully autonomous systems take to the field, they'll look nothing like tractors. With their enormous size and weight, today's farm machines have significant downsides: they compact the soil, reducing porosity and killing beneficial life, meaning crops don't grow so well. Simon Blackmore, who researches agricultural technology at Harper Adams University College in England believes that fleets of lightweight autonomous robots have the potential to solve this problem and that replacing brute force with precision is key. 'A seed only needs one cubic centimeter of soil to grow. If we cultivate just that we only put tiny amounts of energy in and the plants still grow nicely.' There is another reason why automation may be the way forward according to Eldert van Henten, a robotics researcher at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. 'While the population is growing and needs to be fed, a rapidly shrinking number of people are willing to work in agriculture,' he points out. Other researchers such as Linda Calvin, an economist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Philip Martin at the University of California, Davis, have studied trends in mechanization to predict how US farms might fare. Calvin and Martin have observed how rising employment costs have led to the adoption of labour-saving farm technology in the past, citing the raisin industry as an example. In 2000, a bumper harvest crashed prices and, with profits squeezed, farmers looked for a solution. With labour one of their biggest costs - 42 percent of production expenses on U.S. farms, on average - they started using a mechanical harvester adapted from a machine used by wine makers. By 2007, almost half of California's raisins were mechanically harvested and a labour force once numbering 50,000 had shrunk to 30,000.

As well as having an impact on the job market, the widespread adoption of agribots might bring changes at the supermarket. Lewis Holloway, who studies agriculture at the University of Hull, UK, says that robotic milking is likely to influence the genetics of dairy herds as farmers opt for 'robot- friendly' cows, with udder shape, and even attitudes, suited to automated milking. Similarly, he says, it's conceivable that agribots could influence what fruit or vegetable varieties get to the shops, since farmers may prefer to grow those with, say, leaf shapes that are easier for their robots to discriminate from weeds. Almost inevitably, these machines will eventually alter the landscape, too. The real tipping point for robot agriculture will come when farms are being designed with agribots in mind, says Salah Sukkarieh, a robotics researcher at the Australian Center for Field Robotics, Sydney. This could mean a return to smaller fields, with crops planted in grids rather than rows and fruit trees pruned into two-dimensional shapes to make harvesting easier. This alien terrain tended by robots is still a while away, he says 'but it will happen.'

Section 2

Solution and Explanation

Questions 14-17

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 2? In boxes 14-17 on your answer sheet, Write:

YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

Question 14. Governments should do more to ensure that food is generally affordable.

Answer: NOT GIVEN
Explanation: There is not any justified information in the given extract to prove the validation of the said sentence. Thus, it is an invalid statement.

Question 15. Farmers need to reduce the harm they do to the environment.

Answer: YES
Supporting sentence: Yet while farmers must squeeze more out of the land, they must also address the necessity of reducing their impact on the soil,
Keyword : farmers, squeeze, necessity, impact
Keyword location: paragraph 1, lines 5-6
Explanation: Lines 5-6 of paragraph 1 states that farmers must balance the need to maximise yield with the requirement to minimise their impact on the soil. They also need to minimise their impact on waterways, and atmosphere. All of this necessitates reevaluating agricultural practises and raising the bar on automation. Thus, the above statement can be regarded as a correct statement.

Question 16. In the future, farmers are likely to increase their dependency on chemicals.

Answer: NO
Supporting sentence: Why dose a whole field with chemicals if you can spray only where they are needed?
Keyword : whole, field, spray, needed
Keyword location: paragraph 1, lines 8-9
Explanation: Lines 8-9 of paragraph 1 suggests that precision will be essential on the new model farms of the future. When one can spray chemicals only where they are required, they don’t need to dose an entire field with them. With this method, chemical consumption could be reduced while yields were improved all at once. Each plant would receive exactly the proper amount of everything, no more and no less. Therefore, the above sentence stands to be an incorrect one.

Question 17. Farms in Europe and the US may find it hard to adapt to precision farming.

Answer: NOT GIVEN
Explanation: No pertinent information has been given in the passage in order to prove the validation of this statement. Thus, the above statement can be stated as an invalid one.

Questions 18-21

Complete the sentences below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Question 18. In the future, agribots will provide.....................to young plants.

Answer: fertilizer
Supporting sentence: can identify individual seedlings and encourage them along with drops of fertilizer.
Keyword : identify, individual, seedlings, fertilizer
Keyword location: paragraph 2, lines 1-2
Explanation: The first two lines says that in the future, fields could have "agribots" (agricultural robots). It can recognise individual seedlings and provide them with fertiliser drips to help them grow. Other equipment would be able to distinguish problematic weeds apart from crops and get rid of them with laser or pesticide microdot shots.

Question 19. Some machines will use chemicals........to get rid of unwanted plants.

Answer: lasers
Supporting sentence: weeds from crops and eliminate them with shots from high-power lasers or a microdot of pesticide.&
Keyword : weeds, eliminate, high-power lasers, pesticide
Keyword location: paragraph 2, lines 3-4
Explanation: Lines 3-4 of paragraph 2 explains that other equipment would be able to distinguish problematic weeds apart from crops. They would also be able to distinguish weeds to get rid of crops with laser or pesticide microdot shots. All types of veggies will be able to be recognised and harvested by these machines.

Question 20. It is the production ................................... which currently uses most machinery on farms.

Answer: cereals
Supporting sentence: with farms that grow cereals being the most heavily automated
Keyword : farms, cereals, heavily, automated
Keyword location: paragraph 2, line 6
Explanation: The sixth lines of paragraph 2 implies that all types of veggies will be able to be recognised and harvested by these machines. In many parts of the world, farming has already become an industrial-scale industry after more than a century of mechanisation, with cereal farms being the most intensively automated.

Question 21. ...............................between machines such as tractors is making farming more efficient.

Answer: communication
Supporting sentence: This kind of communication is also being developed in other farm vehicles.
Keyword : communication, developed, farm, vehicles
Keyword location: paragraph 3, lines 6-7
Explanation: Lines 6-7 of paragraph 3 explains that other farm vehicles are also developing this type of connection. A new system, for example, enables a combine harvester to call a tractor-trailer so the operator can unload the grain as and when required.

Questions 22-26

Look at the following researchers (Questions 22-26) and the list of statements below. Match each researcher with the correct statement, A-H.

List of Findings

The use of automation might impact on the development of particular animal and plant species.
We need to consider the effect on employment that increased automation will have.
We need machines of the future to be exact, not more powerful.
As farming becomes more automated the appearance of farmland will change.
New machinery may require more investment than certain farmers can afford.
There is a shortage of employees in the farming industry.
There are limits to the environmental benefits of automation.
Economic factors are often the driving force behind the development of machinery.

Question 22. Simon Blackmore

Answer: C
Supporting sentence: Simon Blackmore, who researches agricultural technology at Harper Adams University College in England believes that fleets of lightweight autonomous robots have the potential to solve this problem
Keyword : Simon Blackmore, autonomous, robots, problem
Keyword location: paragraph 4, lines 4-6
Explanation: Lines 4-6 of paragraph 4 says that fleets of lightweight autonomous robots have the ability to fix this issue, according to Simon Blackmore. He was a researcher in agricultural technology at Harper Adams University College in England. The key is to replace raw force with precision.

Question 23. Eldert van Henten

Answer: F
Supporting sentence: There is another reason why automation may be the way forward according to Eldert van Henten
Keyword : reason, automation, forward, Eldert van Henten
Keyword location: paragraph 4, lines 8-9
Explanation: Lines 8-9 of paragraph 4 explains about Eldert van Henten. As per Eldert van Henten, a robotics researcher at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, there is another reason. There is another reason why automation might be the way of the future.

Question 24. Linda Calvin and Philip Martin

Answer: H
Supporting sentence: Other researchers such as Linda Calvin, an economist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture
Keyword : researchers, Linda Calvin, economist, Department of Agriculture
Keyword location: paragraph 4, lines 1-2
Explanation: The first two lines of paragraph 4 explains that& Other researchers such as Linda Calvin, an economist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Philip Martin at the University of California, Davis, have studied trends in mechanization to predict how US farms might fare.& The first two lines of paragraph 4 explains about other researchers lile Linda Calvin, who was am economist at the agricultural department of the United States. In order to forecast how US farms could perform, Philip Martin at the University of California, Davis, has researched trends in mechanisation.

Question 25. Lewis Holloway

Answer: A
Supporting sentence: Lewis Holloway, who studies agriculture at the University of Hull, UK, says that robotic milking is likely to influence the genetics of dairy herds
Keyword : Lewis Holloway, robotic, milking, dairy herds
Keyword location: paragraph 5, lines 1-4
Explanation: The first four lines of paragraph 5 explains about Lewis Holloway. He was an agricultural researcher at the University of Hull in the United Kingdom. He states that robotic milking is expected to alter the genetics of dairy herds. It is because farmers choose 'robot-friendly' cows with udder form and even attitudes suitable to automated milking.

Question 26. Salah Sukkarieh

Answer: D
Supporting sentence: The real tipping point for robot agriculture will come when farms are being designed with agribots in mind, says Salah Sukkarieh
Keyword : real tipping, agriculture, agribots, Salah Sukkarieh
Keyword location: paragraph 5, lines 8-9
Explanation: Lines 8-9 of paragraph 5 suggests that Salah Sukkarieh was a robotics researcher at the Australian Center for Field Robotics, Sydney. He believes that the actual turning point for robot agriculture will occur when farms are planned with agribots in mind.