Review all 40 Cambridge IELTS 16 Academic Test 4 Reading answers with explanations. The texts cover Roman tunnels, Changes in reading habits and Attitudes towards Artificial Intelligence, with diagram completion, True/False/Not Given and short answers among the principal question types.
Test 4 Academic Reading Answers with Clear Explanations
Review all 40 Cambridge IELTS 16 Academic Reading Test 4 answers. Find the supporting passage evidence, understand misleading options and check the word limits before your next timed attempt.
Cambridge IELTS 16 Test 4 Academic Reading Answer Key
Use the key for quick marking, then read the explanations below. A slash separates accepted alternative forms. Where two letters are required, enter both letters across the two question numbers, in either order.
Passage 1: Roman tunnels
Questions 1 to 13Passage 2: Changes in reading habits
Questions 14 to 26Passage 3: Attitudes towards Artificial Intelligence
Questions 27 to 40Passage 1: Roman tunnels
Questions 1-13. Use the evidence locations below to return to the relevant text and review each answer.
1____ to direct the tunnellingposts
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: The Persians placed posts in a straight line above the hill to keep the underground work on course. The diagram's arrows point to these surface markers, so the plural answer is posts.
2Water runs into a ____ used by local people.canal
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: Water travelled down the tunnel and flowed into a canal that supplied local people. The arrow marks this channel outside the hillside, so canal is the destination requested.
3Vertical shafts to remove earth and for ____.ventilation
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: The vertical shafts carried excavated earth to the surface and also let air reach the workers. Ventilation names this second purpose, rather than the removal of soil already given in the label.
4____ made of wood or stone.lid
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: The shaft opening was covered by a wooden or stone lid. The diagram points to that cover at ground level, so lid names the required part.
5____ attached to the plumb line.weight
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: A weight hung at the end of the plumb line and showed whether it was centred in the shaft. The arrow points to this hanging object, not to the rod across the opening.
6Handholds and footholds used for ____.climbing
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: Handholds and footholds helped workers move up and down the shaft. Climbing describes that use and fits the label's phrase used for.
7The counter-excavation method completely replaced the qanat method in the 6th century BCE.FALSE
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: Counter-excavation was used where the qanat method was not practical, especially through high mountains. The passage describes a second method for different conditions, not the complete replacement of qanats.
8Only experienced builders were employed to construct a tunnel using the counter-excavation method.NOT GIVEN
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: Counter-excavation needed careful planning and knowledge of surveying and mathematics. The passage does not say that every builder employed on it had to be experienced.
9The information about a problem that occurred during the construction of the Saldae aqueduct system was found in an ancient book.FALSE
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: The construction problem at Saldae is recorded in an inscription on the tunnel's side. The statement wrongly says that the information came from an ancient book.
10The mistake made by the builders of the Saldae aqueduct system was that the two parts of the tunnel failed to meet.TRUE
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: The two teams digging from opposite ends missed each other inside the mountain. They later built a sideways link between the corridors, confirming that the original parts failed to meet.
11What type of mineral were the Dolaucothi mines in Wales built to extract?gold
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: The paragraph about mineral extraction identifies the Dolaucothi tunnels as mines for gold. Gold answers the question about the mineral, while the shafts and tunnels describe how it was reached.
12In addition to the patron, whose name might be carved onto a tunnel?architect / the architect / architect’s name / the architect’s name
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: Tunnel inscriptions usually named the person who ordered the work and sometimes also named the architect. Architect is the additional person's role and fits the two-word limit on its own.
13What part of Seleuceia Pieria was the Çevlik tunnel built to protect?harbor / harbour / the harbor / the harbour
Where to Look: Passage 1.
Why: The Çevlik tunnel diverted floodwater that threatened the city's harbor. The protected place was therefore the harbor, rather than the city entrance or the tunnel itself.
Passage 2: Changes in reading habits
Questions 14-26. Use the evidence locations below to return to the relevant text and review each answer.
14What is the writer’s main point in the first paragraph?A - Our use of technology is having a hidden effect on us.
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: The writer's examples of people using screens lead to a change happening in the brain's reading system without most people noticing. A captures this hidden effect of technology on readers.
15What main point does Sherry Turkle make about innovation?B - We should pay attention to what might be lost when innovation occurs.
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: Turkle says innovation itself is not the mistake; ignoring what it reduces or disrupts is. B matches her warning to notice possible losses as new technology develops.
16What point is the writer making in the fourth paragraph?D - Some brain circuits adjust to whatever is required of them.
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: The reading circuit develops in response to its environment and adapts to the demands of the medium being used. D summarises this adjustment of brain circuits, rather than treating reading as an inborn ability.
17According to Mark Edmundson, the attitude of college studentsB - has influenced what they select to read.
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: Edmundson says many students prefer simpler works because they lack patience for long, demanding classic texts. Their attitude therefore influences their reading choices, as B states.
18There have been many studies on digital screen use, showing some ____ trends.D - worrying
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: The studies report troubling effects of screen use on students' understanding of texts. Worrying, option D, expresses the concern attached to these trends.
19Her team then used a question-and-answer technique to find out how ____ each group’s understanding of the plot was.H - thorough
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: Mangen's team asked questions about the same story to compare how well the two groups understood it. Thorough, option H, describes the depth and completeness of their understanding.
20The findings showed a clear pattern in the responses, with those who read screens finding the order of information ____ to recall.F - hard
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: Print readers were better at placing details and plot events in time order than screen readers. The screen group therefore found that order harder to recall, matching hard in option F.
21Studies by Ziming Liu show that students are tending to read ____ words and phrases in a text to save time.B - isolated
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: Liu describes readers scanning a first line and then picking out separate words rather than reading the whole text closely. Isolated, option B, describes those selected words and phrases.
22This approach gives the reader a superficial understanding of the ____ content of material, leaving no time for thought.C - emotional
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: Skimming leaves less time to understand another person's feelings and other deeper meanings. Emotional, option C, identifies the feelings-related content that receives only shallow attention.
23The medium we use to read can affect our choice of reading content.YES
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: The writer says changes in how we read also change what we read and why we read it. This supports a link between the reading medium and the content people choose.
24Some age groups are more likely to lose their complex reading skills than others.NO
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: The writer specifically says the weakening of critical analysis and empathy affects everyone equally, not only young readers. This contradicts the claim that some age groups are more at risk than others.
25False information has become more widespread in today’s digital era.NOT GIVEN
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: The passage warns that weaker analysis can make readers more open to false information. It does not compare the amount of false information today with the amount in an earlier period.
26We still have opportunities to rectify the problems that technology is presenting.YES
Where to Look: Passage 2.
Why: The final paragraph says science and technology can help identify and correct changes before they become established. The writer therefore believes we still have a chance to deal with these problems.
Passage 3: Attitudes towards Artificial Intelligence
Questions 27-40. Use the evidence locations below to return to the relevant text and review each answer.
27Section Aiii - The superiority of AI projections over those made by humans
Where to Look: Passage 3, section A.
Why: Section A describes AI's strong forecasting abilities in areas such as crime and health, and says it usually predicts better than people. Heading iii captures that advantage, even though the section also introduces the problem of trust.
28Section Bvi - Widespread distrust of an AI innovation
Where to Look: Passage 3, section B.
Why: Section B describes doctors rejecting Watson's advice whether it agreed with them or not. Heading vi summarises the distrust faced by this particular AI product.
29Section Cii - Reasons why we have more faith in human judgement than in AI
Where to Look: Passage 3, section C.
Why: Section C contrasts familiar, understandable human judgement with AI that feels complex and outside our control. Together with negative publicity, these points explain why people often trust humans more, as heading ii says.
30Section Di - An increasing divergence of attitudes towards AI
Where to Look: Passage 3, section D.
Why: Section D shows supporters becoming more enthusiastic while sceptics become more cautious. Heading i captures this growing distance between people's attitudes towards AI.
31Section Evii - Encouraging openness about how AI functions
Where to Look: Passage 3, section E.
Why: Section E suggests revealing more about AI's algorithms and their purposes, drawing a comparison with transparency reports. Heading vii covers this call for greater openness about how AI works.
32Section Fv - The advantages of involving users in AI processes
Where to Look: Passage 3, section F.
Why: Section F explains that giving users some control makes them more satisfied and more willing to use AI. Heading v summarises the benefits of involving people in the process.
33What is the writer doing in Section A?C - highlighting the existence of a problem
Where to Look: Passage 3, section A.
Why: Section A sets out a gap between AI's useful predictions and people's unwillingness to trust them. The writer is identifying a problem that needs to be addressed, so C fits; solutions come later.
34According to Section C, why might some people be reluctant to accept AI?B - Its complexity makes them feel that they are at a disadvantage.
Where to Look: Passage 3, section C.
Why: Section C says AI decisions are difficult to understand, which can make people anxious and feel less in control. B matches this uncomfortable position caused by AI's complexity.
35What does the writer say about the media in Section C of the text?A - It leads the public to be mistrustful of AI.
Where to Look: Passage 3.
Why: The media give much more attention to embarrassing failures than to AI working quietly in the background. This strengthens public distrust, which is the point in A, rather than a claim that the reports are inaccurate.
36Subjective depictions of AI in sci-fi films make people change their opinions about automation.NO
Where to Look: Passage 3.
Why: The films strengthened the views people already held: optimists became more positive and sceptics more guarded. They did not persuade people to adopt the opposite opinion, so the statement does not match the writer's account.
37Portrayals of AI in media and entertainment are likely to become more positive.NOT GIVEN
Where to Look: Passage 3.
Why: The writer expects AI to appear more often in media and entertainment. The passage does not say that these future portrayals will be more positive rather than negative.
38Rejection of the possibilities of AI may have a negative effect on many people’s lives.YES
Where to Look: Passage 3, section D.
Why: Section D warns that rejecting AI's advantages could leave a large group at a serious disadvantage. This directly supports a possible negative effect on many people's lives.
39Familiarity with AI has very little impact on people’s attitudes to the technology.NO
Where to Look: Passage 3, section E.
Why: Section E says previous experience with AI can significantly improve people's opinions. This contradicts the claim that familiarity has very little effect on their attitudes.
40AI applications which users are able to modify are more likely to gain consumer approval.YES
Where to Look: Passage 3.
Why: People who could slightly change an algorithm were more satisfied with its decisions and more willing to use it again. This supports greater acceptance when users can modify the AI.
Using This Reading Answer Key
Is This the Academic or General Training Test?
This page covers Cambridge IELTS 16 Academic Reading Test 4. Academic and GT Reading use different texts and answer keys, so check the track before marking.
How Should I Review a Wrong Answer?
Return to the evidence location and compare the exact meaning, not just matching words. Check spelling and word limits. For NOT GIVEN, identify the information the text does not supply.
How Do I Estimate My Band?
Count one mark for each correct answer, then consult the Reading Band Score Guide. Academic and GT use different raw-score conversions, and an estimate is not an official IELTS result.
What to Do After Marking
Group your errors by misunderstanding, distractors, spelling and instructions. Review the difficult section, then try another complete test to check whether your accuracy improves.