🔥Good Nuggets of Australia: Đề thi thật IELTS READING (IELTS Reading Recent Actual Test) - Làm bài online format computer-based, kèm giải thích từ vựng(vol 2)

Reading Passage 1

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13, which are based on Reading Passage 1.

Good Nuggets of Australia

Australia was, and is, home to some of the most amazing discoveries of gold the world has seen. This is mainly due to the fact that gold was often found on the surface. Some finds changed the nation entirely, such as those in Ballarat in Victoria and Bathurst in New South Wales. Gold nuggets are naturally occurring lumps of gold. These are recovered either by placer mining (mining the gold in deposits where the veins—thin layers of gold contained in rock—are weathered).

A single, small-to-medium-sized gold nugget could turn a poor miner into a rich man, and nugget discoveries could turn under-worked fields or empty farmland into thriving tent villages with thousands of miners looking to locate the next "big one." Some of these places where gold was found over 150 years ago are towns today. In fact, eight of the largest gold nuggets ever formed on Earth were found in Australia.

The Welcome Nugget was by far the largest nugget ever found when it was discovered. It was found in June 1856 by a team of approximately 20 miners at Bakery Hill, Ballarat. It was dug out of a tunnel at a depth of 55 metres. The Welcome Nugget weighed 69.96 kilograms, and it was melted down a little over a year later, in 1859. Despite its size, the Welcome Nugget's fame was short-lived. An even bigger nugget was found ten years later. On 5th February 1869, the Welcome Stranger Nugget was discovered in a small town named Moliagul. A miner named Deason was digging at Bulldog Gully when he first thought he had struck a large stone just under the surface. However, after digging only three centimetres, he was delighted to see the twinkle of gold. With the help of his companion, Oates, Deason was able to free the monster from the roots of a native Australian tree. This discovery was the world's largest-ever recorded gold nugget. The nugget weighed 2,284 troy ounces (71 kilograms) and measured 60 by 30 centimetres. It could not be weighed in the district as they did not have scales large enough. At today's gold exchange rate, the Welcome Stranger would be worth over $2,000,000.>> Form đăng kí giải đề thi thật IELTS 4 kĩ năng kèm bài giải bộ đề 100 đề PART 2 IELTS SPEAKING quý đang thi (update hàng tuần) từ IELTS TUTOR

A stone monument marks where it was found.

In 1985, at the Mount Alexander goldfield in Victoria, a group of inexperienced miners was sent by other miners to a site in Golden Gully that was believed to be empty of gold. Such spots were called "duffer claims" because they were thought to be useless. However, in this case, the plan backfired. On their second day of digging, the miners unearthed a 1,008-ounce (28.5 kilograms) gold nugget, which would change their lives forever. The nugget was named after a gold commissioner called Mr. Heron. The Heron Nugget was the seventh largest nugget in the world when discovered.

More recently, the Hand of Faith was found behind a primary school in the state of Victoria by an amateur metal-collector named Hillier. The nugget was in a vertical position, only about 15 centimetres below the surface. It measures 47 by 20 centimetres and is still on display at a casino in Las Vegas, named The Golden Nugget, which bought it for only $1,000,000. Interestingly, the school where it was found is only approximately 30 miles from where the Welcome Stranger Nugget was found in 1869.

The nugget Hillier found in 1980 was, and is, the largest known nugget found anywhere in the world by a metal detector. It weighs 27.21 kilograms, making it also the largest still in existence. As noted above, much larger nuggets were discovered in the 1850s, but these were melted down to decrease the chances of theft and to change the gold into a form that would be easily sold.

While the largest nugget of gold ever found is the Welcome Stranger, it is not the largest mass of gold ever found. The Holtermann 'Nugget' is not technically a nugget. In 1872, it was cut from an incredibly rich vein at Hill End, New South Wales, by a prospecting company in which Holtermann was a partner. The specimen also had quartz in it and weighed a whopping 286 kilograms. It was estimated that 3,000 ounces (85 kilograms) of gold were extracted when the Holtermann was crushed. Only the top of the specimen remains, cut off by Holtermann as a souvenir.

Amazingly, this was not the only gigantic piece of gold cut from Hill End's mine. An even larger specimen was drilled from the same vein some months later. This second monster was broken up below ground as there seemed no point struggling with it up to the surface only to have it crushed. Its estimated weight was around 318 kilograms, and it yielded approximately 5,000 ounces (142 kilograms) of gold.

Gold has been a major part of Australia's development and continues to have huge effects on the nation. It is possible that even larger nuggets and gold deposits still exist, although as years and technology progress, it is not very likely.

Questions 1-7

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?

In boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet, write:

TRUE if the statement is true
FALSE if the statement is false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage.

1. Placer mining involves searching for gold near a present or past source of water.
2. The locations of former tent villages still attract gold diggers today.
3. A small minority of the ten largest gold nuggets in the world were found in Australia.
4. The Welcome Stranger nugget was smaller than the Welcome Nugget.
5. The people who found the Heron nugget were sent to the site by people who were trying to trick them.
6. Holtermann kept a piece of the gold his company had found.
7. A more significant specimen of gold that was found at the same site as the Holtermann "nugget" was cut into pieces as soon as it was brought above ground.

Questions 8-13

Complete the table below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet.

1. Placer mining
   • Definition: A method of mining where gold is extracted from riverbeds or other locations where it has been deposited naturally.
   • Vietnamese: Khai thác vàng sa khoáng
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Gold nuggets are naturally occurring lumps of gold. These are recovered either by placer mining (mining the gold in deposit where the veins are weathered)."

1. Nugget
   • Definition: A small lump or chunk of something, especially gold, naturally found in the earth.
   • Vietnamese: Cục vàng
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Gold nuggets are naturally occurring lumps of gold."

1. Veins
   • Definition: Thin layers of gold or minerals that are contained in rock.
   • Vietnamese: Mạch (mỏ vàng)
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Placer mining (mining the gold in deposit where the veins (thin layers of gold contained in rock) are weathered)."

1. Melting down
   • Definition: The process of turning solid gold into liquid form by heating it.
   • Vietnamese: Nấu chảy
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "The Welcome nugget weighed 69.96 kilograms, and it was melted down a litter over a year later, in 1859."

1. Twinkle
   • Definition: A small, shining light, often used to describe the gleaming of gold.
   • Vietnamese: Lấp lánh
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "However after digging only three centimetres, he was delighted to see the twinkle of gold."

1. Gully
   • Definition: A small valley or channel formed by water erosion, often found in mining areas.
   • Vietnamese: Suối nhỏ, khe suối
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "A miner named Deason was digging at Bulldog Gully when he first thought he had struck a large stone just under the surface."

1. Duffer claims
   • Definition: A term for mining claims that were believed to be unproductive or useless.
   • Vietnamese: Mỏ không có giá trị
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Such spots were called duffer claims because they were thought to be useless."

1. Specimen
   • Definition: An individual sample or example of something, especially something rare or noteworthy.
   • Vietnamese: Mẫu vật
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "The Holtermann 'nugget' is not technically a nugget: in 1872 it was cut from an incredibly rich vein..."

1. Incredibly
   • Definition: Something that is difficult to believe due to its extreme nature.
   • Vietnamese: Khó tin, đáng kinh ngạc
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "In 1872 it was cut from an incredibly rich vein at Hill End, New South Wales..."

1. Partner
   • Definition: A person involved in a business or project with others.
   • Vietnamese: Đối tác
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "The specimen also had quartz in it and whopping 286 kilograms. It was estimated that 3,000 ounces (85 kilograms) of gold were extracted when the Holtermann was crushed."

1. Monument
   • Definition: A structure built to honor a person, event, or discovery.
   • Vietnamese: Đài tưởng niệm
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "A Stone monument marks where it was found."

1. Gigantic
   • Definition: Extremely large or massive.
   • Vietnamese: Khổng lồ
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "This was not the only gigantic piece of gold cut from Hill End's mine..."

1. Struggling
   • Definition: Making an effort to do something difficult, or dealing with a difficult situation.
   • Vietnamese: Vật lộn, cố gắng
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Its estimated weight was around 318 kilograms and it yielded approximately 5,000 ounces (142 kilograms) of gold. Its estimated weight was around 318 kilograms and it yielded approximately 5,000 ounces (142 kilograms) of gold."

1. Souvenir
   • Definition: An item kept as a reminder of a place or event.
   • Vietnamese: Quà lưu niệm
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Only the top of the specimen remains, cut off by Holtermann as a souvenir."

1. Extracted
   • Definition: To remove or obtain something, usually by effort or force.
   • Vietnamese: Chiết xuất, lấy ra
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "It was estimated that 3,000 ounces (85 kilograms) of gold were extracted when the Holtermann was crushed."

1. Mass
   • Definition: A large amount or quantity of something, often used to describe a large object.
   • Vietnamese: Khối lượng, khối
   • IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "It was estimated that 3,000 ounces (85 kilograms) of gold were extracted when the Holtermann was crushed."

Passage 1

1. T
2. NG
3. F
4. F
5. NG
6. T
7. T
8. Three centimetres
9. Stone Monument
10. Gold commissioner
11. Primary school
12. Casino
13. Qartz