Vertical Transport Reading Answers

Jan 25, 2023

Vertical Transport Reading Answers contains sample answers about the evolution of elevators. Vertical Transport Reading Answers has 14 different questions. IELTS Vertical Transport Reading Answers contains 3 types of questions: true/false/not given, choose one number and identify the paragraph. Candidates are required to read the IELTS Reading passage and answer whether the given statement is true, false or not given in the passage. Candidates are required to answer the given questions by using one number from the passage for each answer. For the last set of questions, candidates are supposed to identify the paragraph that contains the given information. Candidates can gain proficiency on diverse topics by undertaking IELTS Reading practice papers.

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

Vertical Transport Reading Answers

The raising of water from a well using a bucket suspended from a rope can be traced back to ancient times. If the rope was passed over a pulley wheel it made lifting less strenuous. The method could be improved upon by attaching an empty bucket to the opposite end of the rope, then lowering it down the well as The full bucket came up, to counterbalance the weight.
Some mediaeval monasteries were perched on the tops of cliffs that could not be readily scaled. To overcome the problem, a basket was lowered to the base of the cliff on the end of a rope coiled round a wooden rod, known as a windlass. It was possible to lift heavy weights with a windlass, especially if a small cog wheel on the cranking handle drove a larger cog wheel on a second rod. Materials and people were hoisted in this fashion, but it was a slow process and if the rope were to break the basket plummeting to the ground.
In the middle of the nineteenth century the general public considered elevators supported by a rope to be too dangerous for personal use. Without an elevator, the height of a commercial building was limited by the number of steps people could be expected to climb within an economic time period. It was the American inventor and manufacturer Elisha Graves Otis (1811-61) who finally solved the problem of passenger elevators.
In 1852, Otis pioneered the idea of a safety brake, and two years later he demonstrated it in spectacular fashion at the New York Crystal Palace Exhibition of Industry. Otis stood on the lifting platform, four storeys above an expectant crowd. The rope was cut, and after a small jolt, the platform came to a halt. Otis' stunt increased people's confidence in elevators and sales increased.
The operating principle of the safety elevator was described and illustrated in its pattern documentation of 1861. The lifting platform was suspended between two vertical posts each lined with a toothed guide rail. A hook was set into the sides of the platform to engage with the teeth, allowing movement vertically upwards but not downwards. Descent of the elevator was possible only if the hooks were pulled in, which could only happen when the rope was in tension. If the rope were to break, the tension would be lost and the hooks would spring outwards to engage the teeth and stop the fall. Modern elevators incorporate similar safety mechanisms.
Otis installed the first passenger elevator in a store in New York City in 1957. Following the success of the elevator, taller buildings were constructed, and sales increased once more as the business expanded into Europe. England's first Otis passenger elevator (or lift as the British say) appeared four years later with the opening of London's Grosvenor Hotel. Today, the Otis Elevator Company continues to be the world's leading manufacturer of elevators, employing over 60,000 people with markets in 200 countries. More significantly perhaps, the advent of passenger lifts marked the birth of the modern skyscraper.
Passenger elevators were powered by steam prior to 1902. A rope carrying the cab was wound round a revolving drum driven by a steam engine. The method was too slow for a tall building, which needed a large drum to hold a long coil of rope. By the following year, Otis had developed a compact electric traction elevator that used a cable but did away with the winding gear, allowing the passenger cab to be raised over 100 storeys both quickly and efficiently.
In the electric elevator, the cable was routed from the top of the passenger cab to a pulley wheel at the head of the lift shaft and then back down to a weight acting as a counterbalance. A geared-down electric motor rotated the pulley wheel, which contained a groove to grip the cable and provide the traction. Following the success of the electric elevator, skyscraper buildings began to spring up in the major cities. The Woolworths building in New York, constructed in 1913, was a significant landmark, being the world's tallest building for the next 27 years. It had 57 floors and the Otis high-speed electric elevators could reach the top floor in a little over one minute.
Each elevator used several cables and pulley wheels, though one cable was enough to support the weight of the car. As a further safety feature, an oil-filled shock piston was mounted at the base of the lift shaft to act as a buffer, slowing the car down at a safe rate in the unlikely event of every cable failing as well as the safety brake.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation

Questions 28 to 32

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text?

Write:

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this.

Only people could be hoisted with a windlass.

Answer: False
Supporting Sentence: Materials and people were hoisted in this fashion,
Keyword : material, people, hoisted, fashion
Keyword Location: paragraph B, line 5
Explanation: A windlass could be used to hoist big objects, according to paragraph B. In particular, if a smaller cog wheel on the cranking handle drove a larger cog wheel on a second rod. In this way, both supplies and people were hoisted. However, it was a long procedure, and if the rope broke, the basket would fall to the ground.

Tall commercial buildings were not economic without an elevator.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: the height of a commercial building was limited by the number of steps people could be expected to climb
Keyword : height, commercial, building, number, steps, people
Keyword Location: paragraph C, line 3
Explanation: Without an elevator, a business building's height was constrained by how many stairs people might reasonably be expected to climb. This is stated in paragraph C. Elisha Graves Otis (1811–61), an American manufacturer and inventor, was the one who eventually found a solution for passenger elevators.

Otis' pattern documents contained a diagram.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: operating principle of the safety elevator was described and illustrated in its pattern documentation of 1861
Keyword : principle, elevator, illustrated, pattern documentation
Keyword Location: paragraph E, line 1
Explanation: As per paragraph E, the design documentation for the safety elevator from 1861 detailed and illustrated the functioning concept. Between two vertical poles that were each lined with a guide rail with teeth, the lifting platform was suspended.

The first passenger elevator was installed in a hotel.

Answer: False
Supporting Sentence: Otis installed the first passenger elevator in a store in New York City in 1957.
Keyword : installed, passenger, elevator, New York City, store, 1957
Keyword Location: paragraph F, line 1
Explanation: As per paragraph F, Otis built the first passenger elevator in a business in New York City in 1957. As a result of the elevator's success, taller structures were built. However, as the company expanded into Europe, revenues rose once more.

Electric elevators use similar principles to ancient water-wells.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: the cable was routed from the top of the passenger cab to a pulley wheel at the head of the lift shaft
Keyword : cable, routed, passenger, pulley wheel, shaft
Keyword Location: paragraph H, initial lines
Explanation: According to paragraph H, the cable in the electric elevator was run from the top of the passenger cabin to a pulley wheel at the lift shaft's head. the weight working as a counterweight, and finally, back down. According to paragraph 1, it is comparable to an old well system.

Questions 33 to 36

Answer the questions below.

Choose ONE NUMBER ONLY from the text for each answer.

In what year did Otis demonstrate his safety brake?

Answer: 1854
Supporting Sentence: In 1852, Otis pioneered the idea of a safety brake, and two years later he demonstrated it
Keyword : Otis, safety brake, two years later, demonstrated, 1852
Keyword Location: paragraph D, line 1
Explanation: According to paragraph D, Otis invented the safety brake concept in 1852. At the New York Crystal Palace Exhibition of Industry two years later, he spectacularly exhibited it. Four stories above the assembled throng, Otis was positioned on the lifting platform.

In what year did the Grosvenor Hotel open in London?

Answer: 1961
Supporting Sentence: Otis passenger elevator appeared four years later with the opening of London's Grosvenor Hotel
Keyword : otis, elevator, four years, opening
Keyword Location: paragraph F, line 3-4
Explanation: According to paragraph F, as the company moved throughout Europe, higher buildings were built and sales rose once more. The Grosvenor Hotel in London opened four years after the first Otis passenger elevator in England did.

In what year did Otis develop an electric elevator for skyscrapers?

Answer: 1903
Supporting Sentence: By the following year, Otis had developed a compact electric traction elevator
Keyword : following year, otis, developed, electric tradition, elevator
Keyword Location: paragraph G, line 3-4
Explanation: According to paragraph G, steam powered passenger elevators existed before 1902. A steam engine-driven rotating drum was wrapped with a rope that carried the cab. A tall building needed a big drum to hold a lengthy coil of rope, yet the process was too slow to hold one.

In what year was the Woolworths skyscraper no longer the world's tallest Building?

Answer: 1941
Supporting Sentence: The Woolworths building in New York, constructed in 1913, was a significant landmark, being the world's tallest building for the next 27 years.
Keyword : Woolworths building, New York, 1913, 27 years
Keyword Location: paragraph H, lines 5-7
Explanation: Paragraph H implies that The Woolworths Building has been established in the year of 1913 in New York. It was an important landmark back then. Also, it was claimed to be the world’s tallest building for the next 27 years. This line suggests that the Woolworths Building was no longer claimed to be the tallest one from the year of 1941.

Questions 37 to 40

The text has nine paragraphs, A to I.

Which paragraph contains the following information?

a method that halts the platform when the rope is cut.

Answer: E
Supporting Sentence: the tension would be lost and the hooks would spring outwards to engage the teeth and stop the fall
Keyword : tension, lost, hooks, spring, engage, fail
Keyword Location: paragraph E, line 6-7
Explanation: The elevator could only descend if the hooks were drawn in, which could only happen while the rope was under stress, as per paragraph E. The strain would be lost if the rope were to split. The teeth would be engaged by the springing hooks, stopping the descent. Comparable safety features are present in modern elevators.

two methods that take the strain out of lifting.

Answer: A
Supporting Sentence: If the rope was passed over a pulley wheel it made lifting less strenuous.
Keyword : rope, passed, pulley, wheel
Keyword Location: paragraph A, line 2
Explanation: As per paragraph A, using a bucket suspended from a rope to draw water out of a well dates back to prehistoric times. Lifting was made easier if the rope was passed over a pulley wheel. By fastening an empty bucket to the rope's other end, the procedure could be enhanced. As the full bucket rose, they lowered it down the well to balance the weight.

a method that prevents injury if all other safety features fail.

Answer: I
Supporting Sentence: an oil-filled shock piston was mounted at the base of the lift shaft to act as a buffer
Keyword : oil filled, mounted, life shaft, buffer
Keyword Location: paragraph I, line 2-3
Explanation: Each elevator reportedly used a number of cables and pulley wheels, according to paragraph I. Although the weight of the car may be supported by just one cable. A shock piston with oil inside was put at the lift shaft's base as an added measure of safety to serve as a bolster. In the unlikely event that every cable fails in addition to the safety brake, this will cause the car to slow down at a safe rate.

a method that applies pressure to a cable to pull it.

Answer: H
Supporting Sentence: electric motor rotated the pulley wheel, which contained a groove to grip the cable and provide the traction
Keyword : electric motor, pulley wheel, grip, cable, traction
Keyword Location: paragraph H, line 3
Explanation: The cable in the electric elevator, according to paragraph H, was run from the top of the passenger cab to a pulley wheel at the lift shaft's head. Return to a weight functioning as a counterweight after that. The electric motor that was geared down turned the pulley wheel. It had a groove that could grab the cable and give traction.

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