# The Flavor of Pleasure: answers and explanations

The Official Cambridge Guide to IELTS, Test 2, Reading Passage 1

Source: Passage, questions and answer key from The Official Cambridge Guide to IELTS, Test 2, Reading Passage 1. © Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Used for educational practice. Explanations and evidence notes are written by Testmigo.

## Answer key

| Q | Answer | Proof |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | smell | what scientists call 'retronasal smell'. |
| 2 | umami | and umami, or what is more commonly referred to as savory |
| 3 | toxins | They evolved to recognise only a few basic tastes in order to quickly identify toxins |
| 4 | internal scents | our noses have evolved to detect internal scents. |
| 5 | disciplines | Shepherd has come up with the term 'neurogastronomy' to link the disciplines of food science |
| 6 | spatial map | the brain creates a spatial map. |
| 7 | social life | much as our ability to recognise individuals is central to the pleasures of social life. |
| 8 | molecules | specialised receptors in the back of the nose detect the air molecules in our meals |
| 9 | flavors | it constructs the idea of specific flavors |
| 10 | memories | Smell stimuli form what Shepherd terms 'odor objects', stored as memories, and these have a direct link with our emotions. |
| 11 | prey | to single out prey. |
| 12 | chocolate | Consider the response to the sharpness of a lemon and compare that with the face that is welcoming the smooth wonder of chocolate. |
| 13 | appetites | manipulating flavor to curb our appetites. |

## Why these answers are right

**1. smell.** The sentence asks for the term scientists use for the most important factor in enjoying flavor. Paragraph A says most important are the puffs of air as we chew, what scientists call retronasal smell, so retronasal smell fills the gap in two words.

**2. umami.** The sentence asks which basic flavor savory is a better-known name for. Paragraph B lists the five tastes and says umami is what is more commonly referred to as savory, so more commonly matches better-known and umami is the answer.

**3. toxins.** The sentence asks what unpleasant taste the tongue first developed to detect. Paragraph B says our tongues evolved to recognize a few basic tastes in order to quickly identify toxins, which are often bitter or sour in nature, so the answer is toxins.

The why and the trap for questions 4 onwards are free with an account on the [answers page](https://testmigo.com/ielts/reading/the-flavor-of-pleasure/answers).

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