THE URBAN LANDSCAPE - IELTS Listening Answers & Explanations
From Cambridge IELTS 04 Academic Listening Test 1 · Part 4 · Questions 31–40
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Questions
Questions 31–40 Note Completion
Complete the notes below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.
THE URBAN LANDSCAPE
Two areas of focus:
• the effect of vegetation on the urban climate
• ways of planning our 31 better
Large-scale impact of trees:
• they can make cities more or less 32
• in summer they can make cities cooler
• they can make inland cities more 33
Local impact of trees:
• they can make local areas
– more 34
– cooler
– more humid
– less windy
– less 35
Comparing trees and buildings
Temperature regulation:
• trees evaporate water through their 36
• building surfaces may reach high temperatures
Wind force:
• tall buildings cause more wind at 37 level
• trees 38 the wind force
Noise:
• trees have a small effect on traffic noise
• 39 frequency noise passes through trees
Important points to consider:
• trees require a lot of sunlight, water and 40 to grow
Answers & Explanations Summary
| # | Answer | Evidence | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q31 | cities / environment | There are two major areas that I will focus on in my talk: how vegetation can have a significant effect on urban climate, and how we can better plan our cities using trees to provide a more comfortable environment for us to live in | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript states that the speaker's goal is to discuss how to improve city planning and create better living conditions by using trees. Answer Explanation: The answer identifies the places we can design more effectively, which are our cities or the surroundings where we live. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found at the beginning of the speaker's introduction. The speaker mentions they will focus on two things: the effect of plants (vegetation) on weather (climate), and how to "better plan our cities" or create a better "environment." Because the notes ask for a word that describes what we are planning, both "cities" and "environment" are accurate choices based on the transcript's context. |
| Q32 | windy | They can make a city, as a whole, a bit less windy or a bit more windy, if that's what you want | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript states that trees can change the movement of air across the entire city, making it more or less windy. Answer Explanation: The answer 'windy' describes weather or a place where there is a lot of moving air or wind. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'windy' because the speaker explains how trees affect the overall climate of a city. The transcript states that trees have the power to change how much wind moves through the city, making it either easier or harder for the air to blow. This matches the note saying trees can make cities 'more or less windy'. |
| Q33 | humid | they can make it a bit more humid if it's a dry inland city | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript states that trees can increase the amount of water vapor in the air of cities that are located in dry areas away from the coast. Answer Explanation: The answer "humid" describes air that has a lot of water or moisture in it, making it feel damp or sticky. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is supported by the speaker's description of how trees affect different types of cities on a large scale. They mention that in a city located far away from the ocean (an inland city) where the air is usually dry, trees have the power to add moisture to the air and make the environment more humid. |
| Q34 | shady / shaded | On the local scale – that is, in particular areas within the city – trees can make the local area more shady, cooler, more humid and much less windy | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript says that in specific parts of a city, trees can make the environment darker (shady), cooler, wetter (more humid), and calmer (less windy). Answer Explanation: The answer means that a place has lots of shade, which is a dark and cool area because trees block the sun. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is based on the speaker's explanation of how trees change the environment on a 'local scale' (in small, specific areas). The speaker lists several ways trees improve these areas, specifically stating they make them 'more shady.' Keywords to look for are 'local scale' and 'particular areas.' |
| Q35 | dangerous | In fact trees and planting of various kinds can be used to make city streets actually less dangerous in particular areas | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript says that by planting trees, streets in some parts of the city can become safer and less dangerous. Answer Explanation: The answer "dangerous" refers to places that are not safe or where people might get hurt. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is supported by the part of the talk discussing the local impact of trees. The speaker explains that on a local scale, such as on city streets, planting trees can help make those specific areas less risky or less dangerous for people. In the notes, it follows the point about areas being "less windy," which matches the sequence of information in the transcript. |
| Q36 | leaves | It evaporates water through its leaves, and that means that the temperature of the leaves is never very far from our own body temperature | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript explains that trees use their leaves to release water into the air. This action keeps the tree at a temperature that is very close to how warm a human body is, even when it is sunny. Answer Explanation: The answer "leaves" refers to the flat green parts of a tree where water is released to help the plant stay cool. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "leaves" because the speaker describes how trees manage heat. Unlike buildings, which can get very hot, trees have a way to keep their temperature stable. They do this by letting water turn into vapor through their leaves, a process that works like human sweating to lower the temperature. |
| Q37 | ground | The reason that high buildings make it windier at ground level is that, as the wind goes higher and higher, it goes faster and faster | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript states that tall buildings create more wind specifically at the bottom level, which is called the ground level. Answer Explanation: The answer "ground" refers to the floor or the surface of the earth where people walk in a city. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "ground" because the speaker explains why tall buildings make the air move faster at the street level. High buildings catch fast winds from above and push them down to where people are. This makes the bottom area of the buildings very windy. |
| Q38 | filter / considerably reduce / reduce / filter and reduce | Trees filter the wind and considerably reduce it, preventing those very large strong gusts that you so often find around tall buildings | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript says that trees act as a filter for wind. This action makes the wind much less powerful and stops strong, sudden blasts of air from happening near the ground. Answer Explanation: The answer describes how trees change the power of the wind. They act like a screen to make the wind much weaker or slower. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the part of the talk discussing wind force. The speaker explains that unlike tall buildings which push fast air down, trees 'filter' the wind and 'considerably reduce' it. These words show that trees lower the strength or force of the moving air. |
| Q39 | low | Low-frequency noise, in particular, just goes through the trees as though they aren't there | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript states that deep sounds, known as low-frequency noise, travel through trees easily and are not stopped by them. Answer Explanation: The answer 'low' describes a type of sound that has a deep tone or frequency. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'low' because the speaker mentions that trees do not block every kind of sound. While trees can help reduce some noise, sounds with a low frequency pass right through them. The speaker suggests that these sounds act as if the trees are not even there. |
| Q40 | space / room | Trees need water to grow. They also need some sunlight to grow and you need room to put them | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript explicitly lists the requirements for a tree's growth: it must have water, it must have light from the sun, and there must be enough physical room for it to exist in the environment. Answer Explanation: The answer means trees need enough physical area or an open place where they can fit and grow. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is derived from the final section of the talk where the speaker discusses the challenges of planting trees in cities. He mentions that trees need three specific things to grow: water, sunlight, and a place to put them, which he calls 'room'. Earlier, he also mentions that trees take up a lot of 'space'. Therefore, both 'space' and 'room' are appropriate words to describe this requirement. |
Transcript
Good day, ladies and gentlemen. I have been asked today to talk to you about the urban landscape. There are two major areas that I will focus on in my talk: how vegetation can have a significant effect on urban climate, and how we can better plan our cities using trees to provide a more comfortable environment for us to live in.
Trees can have a significant impact on our cities. They can make a city, as a whole, a bit less windy or a bit more windy, if that's what you want. They can make it a bit cooler if it's a hot summer day in an Australian city, or they can make it a bit more humid if it's a dry inland city. On the local scale – that is, in particular areas within the city – trees can make the local area more shady, cooler, more humid and much less windy. In fact trees and planting of various kinds can be used to make city streets actually less dangerous in particular areas. How do trees do all that, you ask?
Well, the main difference between a tree and a building is a tree has got an internal mechanism to keep the temperature regulated. It evaporates water through its leaves, and that means that the temperature of the leaves is never very far from our own body temperature. The temperature of a building surface on a hot sunny day can easily be twenty degrees more than our temperature. Trees, on the other hand, remain cooler than buildings because they sweat. This means that they can humidify the air and cool it – a property which can be exploited to improve the local climate.
Trees can also help break the force of winds. The reason that high buildings make it windier at ground level is that, as the wind goes higher and higher, it goes faster and faster. When the wind hits the building, it has to go somewhere. Some of it goes over the top and some goes around the sides of the building, forcing those high level winds down to ground level. That doesn't happen when you have trees. Trees filter the wind and considerably reduce it, preventing those very large strong gusts that you so often find around tall buildings.
Another problem in built-up areas is that traffic noise is intensified by tall buildings. By planting a belt of trees at the side of the road, you can make things a little quieter, but much of the vehicle noise still goes through the trees. Trees can also help reduce the amount of noise in the surroundings, although the effect is not as large as people like to think. Low-frequency noise, in particular, just goes through the trees as though they aren't there.
Although trees can significantly improve the local climate, they do however take up a lot of space. There are root systems to consider and branches blocking windows and so on. It may therefore be difficult to fit trees into the local landscape. There is not a great deal you can do if you have what we call a street canyon – a whole set of high-rises enclosed in a narrow street. Trees need water to grow. They also need some sunlight to grow and you need room to put them. If you have the chance of knocking buildings down and replacing them, then suddenly you can start looking at different ways to design the streets and to introduce ...
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