Reading Lab

IELTS Academic Reading Practice Pack 45

A full 60-minute Academic Reading mock with three source-grounded passages, 40 questions, answer key coverage, and doctrine QA traceability.

Question count

Time allowed

60 min

Passages

Academic ReadingFull MockIELTS PracticeQA Approved

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Write only what the question requires. One extra word can still lose the mark.

After submission, you will see your raw score, estimated Academic Reading band, and the correct answers for every question.

What this reading pack trains

This set is built around auditing algorithms why accuracy is not the whole question, biochar and the search for more resilient soils, environmental dna and the new geography of biodiversity monitoring with 7 official IELTS Reading task types spread across three passages.

IELTS Academic Reading Practice Pack 45 is designed as a full Academic Reading simulation, not just a passage archive. The three texts move from a more accessible opener into denser, more inference-heavy material so the burden rises in the same direction students expect in a real test.

Across this pack, you work through roughly 2,254 words on Biochar and the Search for More Resilient Soils; Environmental DNA and the New Geography of Biodiversity Monitoring; Auditing Algorithms: Why Accuracy Is Not the Whole Question. That mix matters because IELTS Reading rewards candidates who can adjust between topic vocabulary, paraphrase recognition, and question-discipline rather than relying on one search habit.

Use this pack when you want one serious timed session, then review every wrong answer against the exact trap type. A strong post-test habit is to check whether the miss came from rushing, weak paraphrase tracking, unstable Not Given logic, or ignoring the word-limit instruction.

Inside the pack

Use the pack as one timed attempt, then return for deliberate review.

Domains

auditing algorithms why accuracy is not the whole question · biochar and the search for more resilient soils · environmental dna and the new geography of biodiversity monitoring

Question types

Matching Headings · Matching Sentence Endings · Multiple Choice · Sentence Completion · Summary Completion · True/False/Not Given · Yes/No/Not Given

If you want more full mocks after this one, go back to the Reading pack library. If you need a broader exam routine, pair one reading session with Listening practice or IELTS Writing repair work.

Passage 1

Biochar and the Search for More Resilient Soils

An academic IELTS passage on biochar and the search for more resilient soils, opening with biochar is a carbon-rich material produced when plant or animal biomass is heated in a low-oxygen environment, a process known as pyrolysis.

A.A. Biochar is a carbon-rich material produced when plant or animal biomass is heated in a low-oxygen environment, a process known as pyrolysis. Although it resembles charcoal, its modern agricultural use is not simply as a fuel. Farmers, foresters and soil scientists are interested in biochar because much of its carbon can remain stable in soil for long periods, while its physical structure may also influence water, air and nutrient movement. The appeal is therefore double: biochar appears to offer a practical way to use waste biomass, and it may improve some soils without relying entirely on synthetic inputs. It also fits a wider interest in circular agriculture, where residues from forestry, food processing or crop production are returned to productive land instead of being burned openly or left to decay without a management purpose.

B.B. The key feature of many biochars is their internal architecture. During pyrolysis, gases escape from the heated material and leave behind networks of pores. These pores can increase the surface area of the amendment and may provide spaces where water, dissolved nutrients and microorganisms are retained. However, this does not mean that every biochar behaves in the same way. A product made from rice husks at one temperature can have different chemical and physical properties from one made from woody residues at another. Soil type, crop choice and climate also affect whether the amendment produces a measurable benefit.

C.C. In coarse-textured soils, especially sandy soils, biochar is often discussed for its ability to improve water-holding capacity. Sand drains rapidly, so a porous amendment can sometimes help plants endure short dry periods by slowing water loss from the root zone. Biochar may also reduce the leaching of nutrients such as nitrogen or potassium when these are otherwise washed below the reach of roots. Yet these effects are not automatic. A heavy clay soil may already retain water effectively, and an unsuitable application rate can alter soil chemistry in ways that do not assist plant growth. The practical question is therefore not whether biochar is good or bad in general, but whether a particular material solves a particular constraint in a particular field.

D.D. Biochar is rarely a stand-alone fertility solution. Many products contain some nutrients, but they are normally valued more for changing the soil environment than for supplying a complete diet for crops. For this reason, biochar is often tested with compost, manure or reduced amounts of fertiliser. The combination may work better than either input alone because fresh organic matter can supply nutrients while the biochar helps retain them. This has encouraged researchers to treat biochar as part of a soil-management system rather than as a universal product. It also explains why some trials report improved yields while others show little effect: the amendment is interacting with existing soil conditions rather than acting independently of them.

E.E. Practical handling is another reason for caution. Dry biochar can produce fine dust, creating irritation and making accurate spreading difficult in windy conditions. Some forms are light and bulky, so transport costs can be high compared with the amount of material applied. Biochar may need to be moistened, pelletised or mixed with compost before field use. These steps improve handling, but they add labour and can change the economics of adoption for farmers who operate on narrow margins.

F.F. The strongest case for biochar comes from careful matching rather than broad promotion. It is most promising where an available waste material can be converted safely, where the soil has a problem that biochar can realistically address, and where field trials show benefits under local conditions. These trials need to measure more than yield alone. Soil moisture, nutrient movement, microbial activity, crop quality and the durability of carbon should be observed across several seasons, because a short experiment may miss delayed effects or unusual weather. The same evidence also helps distinguish a real improvement from a temporary response to added organic matter. Its reputation as a climate and soil-health tool is therefore justified only when claims are tied to feedstock, production method, soil context and monitoring. Biochar is not a miracle amendment, but in the right setting it can become a useful part of resilient agriculture.

True/False/Not Given

Questions 1-6

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1? Write TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN.

1. Biochar is made by heating biomass in an oxygen-rich environment.

2. All types of biochar produce the same effects in soil.

3. Interest in biochar is partly connected to its potential for long-term carbon storage.

4. Biochar is normally applied as a complete substitute for mineral fertilisers.

5. Sandy soils may benefit from biochar because water can be lost rapidly from them.

6. Handling biochar can create practical problems before it is applied to fields.

Sentence Completion

Questions 7-13

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

7. The process used to make biochar is called ________.

8. Networks of ________ inside biochar can hold water and other materials.

9. Biochar may help prevent some ________ from being washed below plant roots.

10. Benefits for water storage are often discussed in relation to ________ soils.

11. Researchers often test biochar together with ________, manure or reduced fertiliser.

12. Dry biochar can produce fine ________, which may make spreading difficult.

13. Local field ________ are needed before strong claims are made about biochar benefits.

A. Many organisms leave traces of genetic material in the places they inhabit. Fish release cells from their skin and gills, amphibians shed mucus, and animals deposit waste as they move through water or soil. Environmental DNA, usually shortened to eDNA, is the collection of such genetic traces from an environment rather than from a captured organism. The method has developed rapidly because it allows researchers to look for species that are rare, secretive or difficult to observe directly. A small bottle of water can, in some circumstances, contain evidence of a biological community that would otherwise require many hours of field survey.
B. A typical aquatic eDNA survey begins with sample collection. Water is taken from selected points and passed through a fine filter, which traps fragments of cellular material. In the laboratory, DNA is extracted from the filter and amplified using genetic markers designed either for one target species or for a broader group. The resulting sequences are compared with reference databases. If a close match is found, researchers may infer that the species has recently been present in the sampled environment. This chain from water to data is powerful, but each step introduces decisions that influence the final result.
C. One important use of eDNA is early detection. Invasive species can be hard to find when populations are still small, yet this is precisely when management action is most likely to succeed. Because eDNA can detect traces left by organisms, it may reveal a species before nets, cameras or visual surveys do. Similar advantages apply to threatened animals that occur at low densities. In these cases, eDNA does not replace ecological judgement, but it can direct attention to locations where more intensive surveys should follow.
D. The method also creates problems of interpretation. DNA can move with currents, persist after an animal has left, or degrade quickly under sunlight, heat or microbial activity. A positive result does not always mean a living individual is present at the exact sampling point. A negative result does not prove absence, because the sample may have missed the trace or the laboratory process may have failed to amplify it. Contamination is another risk: a tiny amount of DNA transferred from equipment, clothing or previous samples can produce a misleading signal. For this reason, strict field controls and laboratory controls are central to reliable eDNA work.
E. eDNA is increasingly used alongside conventional monitoring rather than in isolation. Nets, visual counts, acoustic sensors and camera traps provide information about abundance, behaviour and habitat use that eDNA alone may not supply. Conversely, eDNA can widen spatial coverage and reduce disturbance to sensitive species. The best survey designs often combine methods, using each to compensate for the limitations of the others. This is especially important in marine and estuarine systems, where water movement makes the location and timing of DNA signals difficult to interpret.
F. The future of eDNA monitoring depends less on the novelty of the technique than on standardisation. Reference databases must include the species likely to occur in a region, sampling protocols need to be repeatable, and managers must understand what a detection can and cannot prove. When these conditions are met, eDNA can become a routine part of biodiversity assessment. Without them, it risks becoming a technology that produces impressive data but uncertain decisions.

Passage 2

Environmental DNA and the New Geography of Biodiversity Monitoring

An academic IELTS passage on environmental dna and the new geography of biodiversity monitoring, opening with many organisms leave traces of genetic material in the places they inhabit.

A.A. Many organisms leave traces of genetic material in the places they inhabit. Fish release cells from their skin and gills, amphibians shed mucus, and animals deposit waste as they move through water or soil. Environmental DNA, usually shortened to eDNA, is the collection of such genetic traces from an environment rather than from a captured organism. The method has developed rapidly because it allows researchers to look for species that are rare, secretive or difficult to observe directly. A small bottle of water can, in some circumstances, contain evidence of a biological community that would otherwise require many hours of field survey.

B.B. A typical aquatic eDNA survey begins with sample collection. Water is taken from selected points and passed through a fine filter, which traps fragments of cellular material. In the laboratory, DNA is extracted from the filter and amplified using genetic markers designed either for one target species or for a broader group. The resulting sequences are compared with reference databases. If a close match is found, researchers may infer that the species has recently been present in the sampled environment. This chain from water to data is powerful, but each step introduces decisions that influence the final result. Researchers must decide how much water to collect, where to sample, how often to return, which markers to use and how strict a genetic match must be before it is accepted as evidence. Different choices can lead to different estimates of community composition.

C.C. One important use of eDNA is early detection. Invasive species can be hard to find when populations are still small, yet this is precisely when management action is most likely to succeed. Because eDNA can detect traces left by organisms, it may reveal a species before nets, cameras or visual surveys do. Similar advantages apply to threatened animals that occur at low densities. In these cases, eDNA does not replace ecological judgement, but it can direct attention to locations where more intensive surveys should follow.

D.D. The method also creates problems of interpretation. DNA can move with currents, persist after an animal has left, or degrade quickly under sunlight, heat or microbial activity. A positive result does not always mean a living individual is present at the exact sampling point. A negative result does not prove absence, because the sample may have missed the trace or the laboratory process may have failed to amplify it. Contamination is another risk: a tiny amount of DNA transferred from equipment, clothing or previous samples can produce a misleading signal. For this reason, strict field controls and laboratory controls are central to reliable eDNA work. Samples may be taken in duplicate, blank filters may be carried into the field, and laboratory blanks may be processed to show whether contamination has entered the workflow. These precautions do not remove uncertainty, but they make the uncertainty visible.

E.E. eDNA is increasingly used alongside conventional monitoring rather than in isolation. Nets, visual counts, acoustic sensors and camera traps provide information about abundance, behaviour and habitat use that eDNA alone may not supply. Conversely, eDNA can widen spatial coverage and reduce disturbance to sensitive species. The best survey designs often combine methods, using each to compensate for the limitations of the others. This is especially important in marine and estuarine systems, where water movement makes the location and timing of DNA signals difficult to interpret. A sample collected near a harbour, for instance, may contain DNA transported from another part of the estuary, while a quiet pond may give a more local signal. Managers therefore need hydrological knowledge as well as genetic data.

F.F. The future of eDNA monitoring depends less on the novelty of the technique than on standardisation. Reference databases must include the species likely to occur in a region, sampling protocols need to be repeatable, and managers must understand what a detection can and cannot prove. When these conditions are met, eDNA can become a routine part of biodiversity assessment. It can help agencies decide where to send survey teams, which habitats deserve closer protection and whether a management action has changed the detectable community over time. Without them, it risks becoming a technology that produces impressive data but uncertain decisions. The point is especially important as agencies begin to compare results across years or regions. A change in laboratory method can look like a change in biodiversity unless protocols are documented and repeated carefully.

Matching Headings

Questions 14-19

Reading Passage 2 has six paragraphs, A-F. Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.

14. Paragraph A

i. The need to replace every older survey method
ii. Using genetic traces to locate vulnerable or unwanted species
iii. Combining eDNA with other forms of evidence
iv. A sample-based approach to finding hidden life
v. The commercial value of genetic databases
vi. Why detections can be difficult to interpret
vii. The laboratory path from sample to sequence
viii. Standards needed for routine use
ix. A method designed only for marine mammals

15. Paragraph B

i. The need to replace every older survey method
ii. Using genetic traces to locate vulnerable or unwanted species
iii. Combining eDNA with other forms of evidence
iv. A sample-based approach to finding hidden life
v. The commercial value of genetic databases
vi. Why detections can be difficult to interpret
vii. The laboratory path from sample to sequence
viii. Standards needed for routine use
ix. A method designed only for marine mammals

16. Paragraph C

i. The need to replace every older survey method
ii. Using genetic traces to locate vulnerable or unwanted species
iii. Combining eDNA with other forms of evidence
iv. A sample-based approach to finding hidden life
v. The commercial value of genetic databases
vi. Why detections can be difficult to interpret
vii. The laboratory path from sample to sequence
viii. Standards needed for routine use
ix. A method designed only for marine mammals

17. Paragraph D

i. The need to replace every older survey method
ii. Using genetic traces to locate vulnerable or unwanted species
iii. Combining eDNA with other forms of evidence
iv. A sample-based approach to finding hidden life
v. The commercial value of genetic databases
vi. Why detections can be difficult to interpret
vii. The laboratory path from sample to sequence
viii. Standards needed for routine use
ix. A method designed only for marine mammals

18. Paragraph E

i. The need to replace every older survey method
ii. Using genetic traces to locate vulnerable or unwanted species
iii. Combining eDNA with other forms of evidence
iv. A sample-based approach to finding hidden life
v. The commercial value of genetic databases
vi. Why detections can be difficult to interpret
vii. The laboratory path from sample to sequence
viii. Standards needed for routine use
ix. A method designed only for marine mammals

19. Paragraph F

i. The need to replace every older survey method
ii. Using genetic traces to locate vulnerable or unwanted species
iii. Combining eDNA with other forms of evidence
iv. A sample-based approach to finding hidden life
v. The commercial value of genetic databases
vi. Why detections can be difficult to interpret
vii. The laboratory path from sample to sequence
viii. Standards needed for routine use
ix. A method designed only for marine mammals

Summary Completion

Questions 20-23

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

20. In an aquatic eDNA survey, water is usually passed through a 20. ________, which captures cellular material. Scientists may then use genetic 21. ________ to amplify selected material before comparing sequences with databases. The method is sensitive, but it is vulnerable to 22. ________ if DNA is transferred from equipment or earlier samples. For this reason, eDNA is often used with 23. ________ monitoring methods rather than alone.

21. In an aquatic eDNA survey, water is usually passed through a 20. ________, which captures cellular material. Scientists may then use genetic 21. ________ to amplify selected material before comparing sequences with databases. The method is sensitive, but it is vulnerable to 22. ________ if DNA is transferred from equipment or earlier samples. For this reason, eDNA is often used with 23. ________ monitoring methods rather than alone.

22. In an aquatic eDNA survey, water is usually passed through a 20. ________, which captures cellular material. Scientists may then use genetic 21. ________ to amplify selected material before comparing sequences with databases. The method is sensitive, but it is vulnerable to 22. ________ if DNA is transferred from equipment or earlier samples. For this reason, eDNA is often used with 23. ________ monitoring methods rather than alone.

23. In an aquatic eDNA survey, water is usually passed through a 20. ________, which captures cellular material. Scientists may then use genetic 21. ________ to amplify selected material before comparing sequences with databases. The method is sensitive, but it is vulnerable to 22. ________ if DNA is transferred from equipment or earlier samples. For this reason, eDNA is often used with 23. ________ monitoring methods rather than alone.

Multiple Choice

Questions 24-26

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

24. What is the writer's main point about early detection?

25. Why are marine and estuarine systems described as especially challenging?

26. What condition does the final paragraph suggest is necessary for eDNA to become routine?

Passage 3

Auditing Algorithms: Why Accuracy Is Not the Whole Question

An academic IELTS passage on auditing algorithms: why accuracy is not the whole question, opening with algorithmic systems now assist decisions in settings that once relied mainly on professional judgement: welfare screening, policing, loan asse....

A.A. Algorithmic systems now assist decisions in settings that once relied mainly on professional judgement: welfare screening, policing, loan assessment, recruitment and identity verification. Their attraction is clear. A model can process large amounts of information quickly and apply the same formal rule to every case. Yet the appearance of consistency can be misleading. Algorithms do not enter public services as neutral machines floating outside institutions; they are selected, configured and interpreted by organisations that already have priorities and blind spots. If the data used to train or operate a system reflect unequal social conditions, or if the system is tested only on average performance, some groups may experience higher error rates or unfair outcomes.

B.B. This is why algorithmic auditing has become a central idea in discussions of public-sector technology. An audit examines how a system performs, who is affected by its errors, what data it uses and whether there is a meaningful process for challenge or correction. It is not the same as asking whether software functions as designed. A system may be technically reliable while still distributing risk unevenly. In facial recognition, for example, evaluations have shown that demographic effects can differ by algorithm, application and dataset. Such findings do not prove that all systems are equally flawed, but they show why general claims of accuracy are insufficient. A responsible audit asks whether performance is acceptable for the actual use case, the actual population and the actual consequences of error.

C.C. A common mistake is to treat bias as a property that can be removed once and for all before deployment. In practice, fairness depends on context. A false positive in a leisure application may be an inconvenience; the same error in a policing database may expose a person to investigation. Similarly, an automated benefits screen that incorrectly flags fraud can impose serious burdens even if its overall statistical accuracy appears high. Auditing must therefore consider the social consequences of different error types, not only the percentage of correct predictions. It should also ask who bears the cost of correction. An organisation may describe an appeal process as available, while the affected person experiences it as slow, confusing or intimidating.

D.D. Another difficulty is transparency. Some organisations defend algorithmic systems by pointing to commercial secrecy or technical complexity. However, secrecy can prevent affected people, regulators and even frontline staff from understanding why a decision was made. Full disclosure of source code is not always necessary or useful, but a credible audit requires access to enough information to reconstruct inputs, assumptions, performance measures and governance arrangements. Without this, accountability becomes a slogan rather than a practical safeguard. Documentation is part of the same issue. If a system's purpose, training data, performance tests and update history are not recorded, later investigators may be unable to tell whether a harmful result came from design, data drift, misuse or ordinary human error.

E.E. Human oversight is often presented as the solution, but it can be weaker than it sounds. A caseworker may technically retain the final authority while facing time pressure, institutional expectations or a user interface that makes the algorithmic recommendation appear authoritative. If the human reviewer rarely has the evidence, confidence or permission to disagree, oversight becomes ceremonial. Effective governance should define when humans must intervene, what information they receive, and how disagreement with the system is recorded and protected. This matters because organisations often measure efficiency, while the quality of review is harder to count. A process that saves minutes per case may still be poor if it discourages careful judgement.

F.F. Audits also face political limits. Measuring unequal error rates can identify a problem, but it cannot by itself decide which trade-offs society should accept. Reducing one type of error may increase another; making a system more cautious may lower harm to wrongly flagged individuals while reducing the number of cases investigated. These are not purely mathematical choices. They require public reasoning about rights, institutional purpose and acceptable risk. Treating audit results as technical answers can conceal the value judgements embedded in deployment. The task of audit is to make those judgements explicit enough for public scrutiny, not to pretend that a metric can replace democratic argument.

G.G. The strongest argument for auditing is therefore not that it makes algorithmic systems perfect. Rather, it turns vague confidence into testable claims. It asks organisations to specify the purpose of a system, measure its effects across relevant groups, document its limits and provide channels for correction. Some systems may pass such scrutiny; others may need redesign, restricted use or abandonment. In this sense, auditing is less a final stamp of approval than an ongoing discipline of evidence, accountability and restraint. A system that passes a pre-launch test may still fail after policies change, populations shift or staff learn to rely on it in unanticipated ways. Periodic review is therefore part of the audit concept, not an optional extra.

Yes/No/Not Given

Questions 27-31

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 3? Write YES, NO or NOT GIVEN.

27. Applying the same formal rule to each case always produces fair outcomes.

28. A system can operate according to design and still create unequal risks.

29. Source-code publication is always required for a credible algorithmic audit.

30. Human oversight may be ineffective if reviewers cannot realistically challenge the system.

31. All public-sector algorithmic systems should be banned immediately.

Matching Sentence Endings

Questions 32-36

Complete each sentence with the correct ending, A-G, below.

32. Average accuracy figures may be inadequate because

33. The same technical error can matter differently when

34. Claims of commercial secrecy may be problematic because

35. Human review becomes ceremonial when

36. Audit results should not be treated as purely technical answers because

A. affected people and regulators cannot examine the assumptions behind a system.
B. a model is trained only on recently collected data.
C. reviewers lack the conditions needed to disagree with an automated recommendation.
D. they may hide unequal error rates across different groups.
E. the social setting changes the consequences of being wrong.
F. they still involve judgements about rights, purpose and acceptable risk.
G. they remove the need for later monitoring.

Multiple Choice

Questions 37-40

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

37. What does the writer imply about bias in algorithmic systems?

38. What is the writer's attitude to human oversight?

39. What problem is discussed in paragraph F?

40. What is the best description of the writer's conclusion?