Writing › Summarize Written Text

Exercise 8

← Back to Summarize Written Text

Task reminder: Read the passage carefully, then write a one-sentence summary of 5–75 words. You have 10 minutes. Aim for 55–65 words using your own words.

1. The Green Revolution

The Green Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s transformed agricultural production in many developing countries through the introduction of high-yielding crop varieties, synthetic fertilisers, pesticides, and irrigation infrastructure. In countries such as India and Mexico, grain production more than doubled within a decade, averting famines that had been widely predicted and lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. The Revolution’s legacy is contested, however: critics point to its contribution to soil degradation, water depletion, loss of genetic crop diversity, and the economic marginalisation of smallholder farmers who could not afford the new inputs, raising questions about the long-term sustainability of the yield gains achieved.


Model Summary

The Green Revolution dramatically increased food production in developing countries through high-yield crops and modern agricultural inputs, preventing famines and reducing poverty, but its legacy is disputed because of associated environmental costs including soil degradation, water depletion, reduced biodiversity, and the exclusion of small farmers unable to afford the technology.

2. Architecture and Wellbeing

The environments in which people live and work have a measurable influence on their physical and psychological wellbeing. Research in the field of evidence-based design has found that access to natural light, views of nature, adequate ventilation, and thoughtfully designed communal spaces can reduce stress, improve concentration, accelerate recovery from illness, and strengthen social cohesion. Conversely, poorly lit, noisy, overcrowded, and aesthetically monotonous environments are associated with elevated cortisol levels, reduced cognitive performance, and greater social isolation. These findings have practical implications for the design of hospitals, schools, workplaces, and residential buildings, suggesting that investment in design quality has measurable returns in human health and productivity.


Model Summary

Evidence-based design research demonstrates that built environments significantly affect human wellbeing, with access to natural light, nature views, and social spaces improving health and cognitive performance, while poor design correlates with stress and isolation — findings with important implications for the design of hospitals, schools, and workplaces.

3. The Columbian Exchange

The Columbian Exchange refers to the transfer of plants, animals, culture, human populations, diseases, and technology between the Americas and the Old World following Christopher Columbus’s 1492 voyage. The exchange transformed both worlds permanently. Crops originating in the Americas — including potatoes, maize, tomatoes, and cacao — revolutionised diets and supported population growth in Europe, Africa, and Asia. In the opposite direction, Old World diseases, particularly smallpox, measles, and influenza, devastated indigenous American populations who had no prior immunity, with mortality estimates reaching ninety percent in some communities — one of the most catastrophic demographic collapses in human history.


Model Summary

The Columbian Exchange, initiated by Columbus’s 1492 voyage, transformed both hemispheres through the reciprocal transfer of crops that enriched Old World diets and supported population growth, and Old World diseases that caused catastrophic mortality among indigenous Americans who lacked immunity to them.