
The Story Of The Battery Reading Answers: The IELTS reading passage titled “The Story Of The Battery” explores the history, evolution, and scientific principles behind one of the most important inventions in modern technology. In this guide, we will guide you through The Story Of The Battery Reading Answers, explaining each answer and offering strategies to tackle the passage effectively.
The Story Of The Battery Reading Answers are based on scientific facts and historical development, covering major milestones, from Alessandro Volta’s first battery to the CIA’s lithium-ion innovation. The IELTS passage tests your ability to identify detailed information, understand chronological events, and distinguish between cause and effect.
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Answer the below questions based on the reading passage:
When people consider today how indispensable the Internet is, they often overlook that without electricity, it would not function. Living without the Internet would be a significant inconvenience today, but without electricity, life as we know now would collapse. Since we started using electricity, which was in the middle of the nineteenth century, we have worked on ways to move and store it easily and efficiently and one of the most common ways of storing electricity has been the battery. A battery does not actually store electricity. A battery, which is actually an electric cell, is a device that produces electricity from a chemical reaction. The story of the battery is one of people trying to create different compounds to create an electric current. The two goals on improving batteries have always been to create ones that can produce an electric current for a long time and to make them smaller and smaller.
Alessandro Volta is credited with creating in 1800 the first battery and the first practical method of generating electricity. Luigi Galvani, another Italian scientist and contemporary of Volta, almost made the discovery, but misinterpreted his research results. Using a frog’s leg in an experiment, Galvani concluded that the electric current was ‘animal electricity’ and did not come from the apparatus he had set up. Volta’s battery was made by piling up layers of silver and paper or cloth, soaked in salt, and zinc. These layers were assembled, without paper or cloth between the zinc and silver, until the current was created.
Volta’s battery was not good for delivering currents for any significant duration. This restriction was overcome in the Daniell Cell in 1820. Using different chemicals, John Daniell used a copper pot, copper sulphate, sulphuric acid and mercury to produce his electric current. Although we now know better than to put mercury into batteries, this battery, which produced about 1.1 volts, was used to power telegraphs, telephones, and even to ring doorbells in homes for over 100 years. Although many other chemical combinations were used in batteries over the years, the lead acid battery is one that stands out. First made in 1859, it was further improved in 1881 and this design even now forms the basis of the modern lead acid battery found in cars.
One very common battery used today is the lithium-ion battery, which was developed by the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as a part of their efforts during the Cold War. The idea surrounding the lithium-ion battery was to create a power source that could provide a long duration, high-density energy supply in a small package. In the early 1960’s, both the private and public sectors were experimenting with creating batteries using lithium, but the breakthrough in the chemistry was achieved by adding the ion into the equation. Not long after its invention, the CIA shared the lithium-ion battery concept with the public and a company working on an exploratory project developed and created the first patent for the lithium-ion battery for commercial use in 1968. Used for a variety of different applications, the first lithium-ion battery was a game-changer in the medical industry, where it is used as the power source in heart pacemakers.
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Questions 1–6: Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
People often forget that the Internet relies on __________ to work.
A battery produces electricity from a __________.
Volta made the first battery using zinc, silver, and __________.
Galvani believed electricity came from __________.
The __________ battery is still used in modern cars.
Lithium-ion batteries were first developed during the __________.
Questions 7–10: Do the following statements agree with the information in the passage?
Write TRUE, FALSE, or NOT GIVEN
Volta’s battery was able to supply long-lasting electric current.
The Daniell Cell used zinc and mercury to generate power.
Mercury is no longer used in batteries due to safety reasons.
The lithium-ion battery was first used in mobile phones.
Questions 11–13: Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.
What was the main problem with Volta’s original battery?
A. It used animal electricity
B. It could not deliver current for long
C. It was too expensive to produce
D. It was too large for daily use
What was the key improvement in lithium-ion battery design?
A. The use of copper
B. Replacing mercury with silver
C. Addition of the ion
D. Removing lead
Why was the lithium-ion battery significant for the medical industry?
A. It reduced electricity costs
B. It provided power to pacemakers
C. It was invented by doctors
D. It could be reused multiple times
Answers to Questions 1-13
|
Question |
Answer |
Explanation |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
electricity |
The passage begins by stating the Internet cannot function without electricity. |
|
2 |
chemical reaction |
A battery generates electricity through a chemical reaction. |
|
3 |
paper or cloth |
Volta used zinc, silver, and paper or cloth soaked in salt. |
|
4 |
animal electricity |
Galvani thought the electricity was coming from the frog, not the equipment. |
|
5 |
lead acid |
Still used in modern cars, based on the 1859 design. |
|
6 |
Cold War |
The lithium-ion battery was developed during CIA projects in the Cold War era. |
|
7 |
FALSE |
It could not deliver current for long; Daniell Cell improved this. |
|
8 |
FALSE |
The Daniell Cell used copper and mercury, not zinc. |
|
9 |
TRUE |
Mercury is no longer used in batteries due to health risks. |
|
10 |
NOT GIVEN |
The passage does not mention mobile phones at all. |
|
11 |
B |
Volta’s battery could not produce current for a significant time. |
|
12 |
C |
The breakthrough was achieved by adding the ion. |
|
13 |
B |
Lithium-ion batteries were first used in pacemakers. |
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