Learning from the Romans
Read Learning from the Romans and check the IELTS Reading answers. In a quest to make concrete more durable and sustainable, an international team of geologists and engineers has found inspiration in the concrete used by the ancient Romans. The chemical secrets of Roman concrete have been uncovered…
Passage preview
In a quest to make concrete more durable and sustainable, an international team of geologists and engineers has found inspiration in the concrete used by the ancient Romans. The chemical secrets of Roman concrete have been uncovered in samples taken from a concrete Roman breakwater. A breakwater is a barrier that is built out into the sea to protect coasts and harbors from the force of waves. This particular breakwater has spent the last 2,000 years submerged in seawater. The international team of researchers that collected the samples was led by Paulo Monteiro, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. Analysis of samples from the ancient underwater site in Pozzuoli Bay near Naples in Italy pinpointed why the best Roman concrete was superior to most modern concrete.
Vocabulary from this passage
8 words worth learning before you sit the test, each with the sentence it appears in.
- account for verb phrase
To make up a certain part or percentage of a total.
In the passage:
Q26: "Portland cement accounts for seven percent of the carbon dioxide that industry puts into the air".
Synonyms: make up, represent
- breakwater noun
A wall built out into the sea to protect a coast or harbour from waves.
In the passage:
Q17 asks for information about "the structure" the samples came from; the passage says "a concrete Roman breakwater".
Synonyms: sea wall, structure
- carbon footprint noun phrase
The amount of carbon dioxide released by a person, product or activity.
In the passage:
Q18 says "environmental impacts of making modern and Roman concrete"; paragraph E compares their "carbon footprint".
Synonyms: environmental impact, carbon emissions
- incentive for noun phrase
A reason or reward that encourages someone to do something.
In the passage:
"one powerful incentive for finding a better way to provide the concrete the world needs": a reason to act.
Synonyms: motivation for, encouragement for
Opposites: deterrent to
- incomparable adjective
So good or remarkable that nothing else can be compared with it.
In the passage:
"the Romans made their incomparable concrete": the writer sees Roman concrete as better than anything else.
Synonyms: unrivalled, matchless
Opposites: ordinary
- on borrowed time adjective phrase
Likely to end or fail soon, having lasted longer than expected.
In the passage:
"concrete structures were designed to last 50 years, and a lot of them are on borrowed time": past their planned life.
Synonyms: close to the end, nearing the end of its life
- unforgiving adjective
Harsh and hard to survive in, allowing no mistakes or weakness.
In the passage:
"endured the unforgiving saltwater environment": the sea was harsh on structures built there.
Synonyms: harsh, severe
Opposites: mild
- you could also argue that verb phrase
Used to introduce another possible view or reason that someone can defend.
In the passage:
Q14 asks for "an opinion on why" less concrete was made; "You could also argue that" signals a view, not a fact.
Synonyms: it can also be claimed that, another view is that
Answers with explanations
- 14. D
Look for **an opinion on why** something happened. In the paragraph where Jackson is quoted, the reasons are given as views: **the need for the seawater concrete declined** as the empire and shipping declined, and **You could also argue** the old structures did not need replacing. Both explain **used less and less concrete**.
- 15. B
Look for a paragraph that lists what both cements contain. It names **calcium, silicates, and hydrates** for Portland cement, then **aluminum** and **less silicon** for Roman cement. The paragraph about the recipe lists Roman ingredients only, with nothing on Portland cement.
- 16. F
The question's **limited resource** is fly ash: **not enough fly ash in this world**. The **argument for substitutes** is the idea to **find alternative local materials**, including volcanic ash. The paragraph is also about countries that **don't have fly ash**.
- 17. A
Look for **the structure** the samples came from. The first paragraph says they were **taken from a concrete Roman breakwater** and then explains what a breakwater is. Other paragraphs talk about Roman structures in general, not the one that was sampled.
- 18. E
Look for a comparison of environmental effect: **a smaller carbon footprint** than **its modern counterpart**. The paragraph then compares the heat needed, so Roman concrete was **much cleaner**. The paragraph on fly ash mentions emissions but never compares them with Roman concrete.
- 19. G
The comparison is between **today's** concrete and the Roman kind. Modern buildings are designed to last **100 to 120 years**, **Yet** Roman harbor installations **have survived 2,000 years**. The paragraph on the Roman recipe also praises durability, but makes no comparison with modern concrete.
- 20. C
**Details of how** means a process. The Romans put the mix into wooden molds that were **immersed in seawater**, and the seawater **triggered a hot chemical reaction** that hydrated the lime. Other paragraphs mention seawater, but only to say where the structure is or why the concrete declined.
- 21-22: AC
Both correct statements come from the paragraph about fly ash. The option about **less damage to the environment** matches **causes fewer greenhouse gas emissions**. The option about being **already used** matches **fly ash is used** in some modern concrete. The Romans used volcanic ash, not fly ash. Many countries **don't have fly ash**. Volcanic ash may replace fly ash, not the reverse.
- 23. limestone
The gap is in the sentence about the heat of **1,450 degrees Celsius** to make Portland cement. The summary's **combine clays and** matches **a mix of limestone and clays**, so the missing word is **limestone**.
- 24. third
Look for the temperature for Roman concrete. **Reduced by a** matches **a third lower**, and the number is written as a word, so the answer is **third**.
- 25. fuel
The question says less ___ had to be **burned**. The passage links the heat to **burning fuel**, so with less heat there is less **fuel** to burn.
- 26. industry
Find **seven percent**. The question's **carbon dioxide emitted by** matches **carbon dioxide that industry puts into the air**. Portland cement is the product that makes up the seven percent, not the one who emits it, so the answer is **industry**.