Task 1
1. Which period do you think is the toughest during one's life? childhood, adolescent, or adulthood?
I would say the toughest period during one's life is adulthood. Not like the childhood, we are pursuing our degrees in universities or already doing a job to make a living. In school, we are constantly under lots of pressure, the assignments like problem sets, presentations, research papers are killing us. After graduation, we have to fulfill all kinds of responsibilities as a professional. On the other hand, being a child or an adolescent is much easier, they just have fun and do not have to worry about anything
2. Describe your favorite place in the city.
My most favorite place in the city is the beach area. I was born and raised in a coastal city in China. My most favorite place is the beach area. I enjoy bathing in the sun while appreciating the beautiful scenery alone the seashore, like the blossom and palm trees and stuff, and I can also try out the sea food like salmon, tuna and even some lobsters. Apart from that, the most exciting stuff I can do is sea and water activities like snorkeling, wakeboarding and even jet skiing with my dad. Though one might get a little sun burnt, I think it's worth it anyway.
3. A friend of yours wants to make a big purchase but does not have enough money. What would you suggest your friend do to?
Frankly, there are not lots of part jobs, from which you can make lots of money. However, I think to work in a restaurant part-time is a pretty decent choice. You can choose to be a delivery guy or even wait tables. By delivering food to customers, not only can you get lots of tips from generous customers, you can also get transportation fee paid from them. One can make easily make $ 150-200 a day. Also, you can build up a sense of responsibility from doing this job, on top of that, when the customers smile at you and appreciate your service, you can have a sense of achievement. To be able to make others happy is always a pleasant experience. Based on these reasons, I suggest my friend to work in a restaurant.
4. One of your friends wants to drop out of college. Do you think it is a good idea or not? Why?
I disagree that my friend to drop out of college. Firstly, in china. one needs to work really hard to get in to college and you definitely need a college degree to get yourself a job. it's very hard, if not impossible, for a high school graduate to find a job. Secondly, the benefit of a college education goes beyond getting you a job. To be a well-rounded person with comprehensive knowledge in different fields. One needs to go to college. you study economics to better understand the economy. Psychology gives you knowledge about people's motives and desires. Based on these point I disagree that my friend should drop out of college.
5. Describe a gift that you would like to give to your friend.
I would say the gift I would like to give to my friend is an iphone 6 plus. I know it is kind of expensive, but I think it's worth the value. Firstly, it embodies the most cutting edge and state of the art technology, like touch screen, voice control and video camera, stuff like that. With this smart phone, my friend can talk to his friends and family members wherever and whenever he wants. Apart from that, he can download movies to watch on the high fidelity screen, just to kill some time. Last but not the least, with wifi access, he gets to know what is happening around the globe by surfing on the internet.
6. Describe a person that you look up to as a role model. Explain how this person influenced your life. Include details and examples to support your response.
Well, I would say my role model is my friend Iddie, I met him when I was on an exchange program to study in America. I would not say he is a smart or intelligent person, but the fortitude and willpower he has to achieve something he really aspires are so inspiring. He grew up in Ghana, a underdeveloped country in Africa. Though he had lots of setbacks in his life, he never complained about anything, and he just hunkered down and made an effort to make his life better. His passion and attitude for life are so contagious that I always look up to him.
7. One of your friends has suddenly received a large amount of money and has asked you for advice on how to handle this money. What advice would you give to your friend? Give reasons for your answer.
Personally, I would advice my friend to make some wise investment, to begin with, the inflation in my home country is pretty serious, it doesn't make any sense to deposit the money in the bank. He should invest the money into buying some gold, real estate, cuz the real estate in my country maintains such a strong momentum, I bet he can make more money out of this. Additionally, he can also invest the money to assist lots of start-ups, and he should invest in several start-ups in different industries so as to avoid risk.
8. Describe a skill you are good at. Explain why this skill is important to you.
Well, I am pretty versed in taking photographs, I have a very genuine interest in photographing, and I am very passionate about expressing myself through imageries. I take pictures to record my own life, and it is a very good way to reflect the past, also I like to help others to remember their precious moments by photos, like their weddings, graduation ceremonies and some other special events. I just feel that when I am not using my camera, there is a void in my life. On top that, it is a great way to make friends, I made lots of friends going to places taking pictures, and some of them turn out to be life time friends.
9. Talk about what you like to do during spare time. Give specific reasons and details in your explanation.
I would say I like to do lots of sports in school during my spare time. In our school, we have a very up to standard gym. we have a very nice swimming pool, basketball court, badminton court and other facilities. I like play basketball most. usually I play basketball with my best friends. also I like to read books in our school library. reading books make a man intelligent and it offers you experience that you will probably not have in your daily life. Apart from that, I like to attend lectures offered by lots of prestigious professors. I am very curious and eager to learn. so these lectures definitely are my favorites.
10. Your friend has a bad eating habit. What suggestions would you like to give the friend?
I would suggest my friend to eat healthy stuff like vegetables, like salad, tomatoes, and broccoli. Also, in order to have enough nutrient needed for the day, I would suggest my friend to have some sea food, like salmon, tuna, shrimp and stuff like that. They are high in protein, low in carbs. These food are actually easy to cook, you can just steam them, and eat the seafood with some limes or lemon. Another suggestion for my friends is that always avoiding fast food and junk food, like French fries, fried chickens, and hash brown, and stuff. With these two suggestion in mind, my friend can develop a very good eating habit.
11. Describe your favorite place to study.
My most favorite place to study is my campus coffee shop. when I want to read some English materials, I would stay inside of the coffee shop. when I feel like to practice my speaking English, I can always have the choice to go outside sit around the patios to read out loud. despite all these advantages, you can always enjoy a cup of good-tasting coffee. also, if you feel like to eat some snacks, you can get very delicious cookies. that will give you enough energy to study.
12. Which technology do you think has made the greatest impact on people's lives in your country. Airplane, computer, or television.
I would say that computer has the greatest impact on people's lives. Today people use computer for everything, like watching news, watching movies, listening to music, and even doing shopping on-line, computer provides lots of entertainment, it makes our life more fulfilling. Apart from that, computer is a must in a working environment, people use computer to do all kinds of work in a company, like sending emails, filing paper works, and even using excel to create tables and charts, the use of computer in workplace great improved our productivity.
13. Which of the following activities would you do with friends rather than alone?Taking a walk,watching a movie or traveling?
I would say I like to travel with my friends. Since lots of cities in my home country China are very unique and distinctive, I would choose to travel to other cities. Just taking a walk or going to movie with friends are just too boring, and they are not special enough for us to remember when we look back the day we spend together. By travelling to other cities together, we got a chance to talk to locals and get to know their culture, customs and way of living. By interacting with them we can broaden out horizon and have new perspective on things. These experience will benefit us enormously in their future life, we can also connect more with each other while travelling
Task 2
1. Some would like a job that requires frequent communication with others, others prefer to get job that does not require any communication. Which one do you prefer?
Personally, I am an extremely extrovert and easygoing person and will be really bored if I get a job without any communication with others. I really cannot imagine a position that is repetitive and boring; I do not think I can be productive and efficient at all. Apart from that, there are numerous benefits when interacting with other, like you can have new perspective on things, and human beings are at least social being. The last but the not the least, lots of job require communication and cooperation with other department in order to make a profit and help others.
2. Do you prefer to live in a residence where there are strict rules (such as rules against making loud noises at night), or do you prefer to live in a residence without strict rules.
Personally, I would like to choose a residence with strict rules. Our home is supposed to a place where we can relax and take a good a rest, thus get ready for the next day. As a student, I am occupied with lots of assignments, like papers, presentations, and even group projects during the day. If I go back home at night and still don't have a chance to take a good rest, I will be really mad. To be able to live in a place with strict rules, we will not be distracted and disturbed by others, also, it restrains oneself from doing something disruptive to others, and I think it is mutually beneficial to one another.
3. Do you prefer to live in a place where you have access to transportations and shops or somewhere distant but quiet areas.
Living in a place where there is no noise is absolutely my choice. A place like the suburb or country far away from the noise and pollution is very favorable to me, even though it might not be convenient to live in. I hate the hustle and bustle of the city. Especially, I spend almost all my life living in the city to suffer the noise and be choked by the polluted air, I want to get away from the city. I like the solitude, clear skies, and peaceful evenings in the suburbs or country and it is pretty romantic. Living in suburbs or country makes it possible for me to be close to mother nature.
4. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement. Teachers should made their lessons fun.
Personally, I totally agree with this, and teachers should always make their lessons more fun. It is really hard for someone especially a kid or a teenager to learn something that he or she might not be interested in, as the saying goes, interest is the best teacher. If the class is very interesting, it will be more intuitive and keep students’ attention. Students can learn more in this kind of atmosphere and will not get bored. On top of that, a good teacher who makes their lessons more fun has a chance to stir students’ creativity, imagination and their enthusiasm in a specific area. All these combined, I would say teachers should make their lesson more fun.
5. Some would like a job that does not require any travelling; others prefer to get job with frequent travel. Which one do you prefer and why?
Personally, I would to choose a job that can give a chance to travel around. I am the kind of person who likes new and exciting things and exploration. Just staying in one place, I will get extremely bored. I might not have a high efficiency at work and might not be very productive. On top of that, travelling around makes me a well-rounded person. When doing business in different places, I got a chance to talk to locals and get to know their culture, customs and way of living. By interacting with them I can broaden my horizon and have new perspective on things.
6. Which one do you think is better to help do research, internet or academic books? Explain why
Personally, I would definitely use the internet to do research rather than using academic books. To begin with, with internet, I can just type in the key words of the topic that I am researching, and then the next moment I know, there are millions of sources showing up on the screen, and I can use whichever I need to. It is so instant and convenient. On top of that, most of the sources on the internet is free, if I chose to use books when researching, I might end up spending lots of time without getting anything done, and that is very unproductive, based on these reasons and more, I find it more convenient and effective to use the internet.
7. Some people prefer to have a tight schedule while others prefer to have some free time in their schedule. Which one do you prefer and why?
Personally,. I would say I prefer a very tight schedule, I am the kind of person who are very motivated under lots of workload, and I am likely to goof off when there is not much to do. Having a tight schedule makes my day productive, like as a student, I enjoy finishing assignments, like problem sets, papers, and even doing group project with fellow classmates. I get a strong sense of achievement when I keep working nonstop. However, if I have lots of free time, I just stay in my apartment, and wasting my time, and that is certainly not the right thing to do.
8. Here are two jobs with equal amount of time and pay. One you need to work with other employees in a group and the other requires you to work individually. Which do you prefer?
Personally, I would like to work in a group with other colleagues, I am an extrovert and outgoing person, and I think it is more fun when there are people around me. Plus, I can also learned the importance of cooperation and responsibility when I am with a team, to achieve something that is assigned to us, me and my teammate can struggle together for a common goal, offer each other motivation along the way, and I feel that I care something bigger than myself during the process, and I think this is very meaningful. Based on these reasons and more, I find working in a group more appealing.
9. Which do you think is better in order to be successful, taking risks or making safe and comfortable decisions?
Well, personally, I would say we should taking risk when it comes to success. To begin with, lots of successful businessperson take risk in order to survive and thrive in competing with their competitors. For examples, real estate tycoon Donald Trump, I am sure he lost billions of dollar whenever there is recession, but I am sure the risks he took would pay off. Another case in point is Sir Richard Branson, a very iconic businessman from England. He risked his own life and health to fly the balloon over the Atlantic ocean in order to market his company and his own image. Based on these reasons and more, taking risks is a good choice.
10. Should a person keep his or her spare time free or make a plan for it?
Well, personally, I prefer to make a plan to spend my free time. Frankly, I am the kind of person who likes to make plans. There are lots of benefits, when I make a plan, I feel like I got a sense of purpose even though we are talking spending free time. If I don't make a plan, I tend to procrastinate things. Like, I want to spend my weekend with a good friend, however, if I didn't let him know ahead of time, I might just put it off. On the other hand, if I tell him we are going to hang out, I will definitely keep my word. We need plans to make our spare time more productive for sure.
11. Some like do jobs with different tasks and others prefer to do the same task every day. Which one do you prefer?
I would like to choose a job that requires me to do lots of tasks. First of all, sitting in the office and repeating the same task again and again can be killing. I will be really bored doing these repetitive tasks, and my working efficiency will be very low. Secondly, doing lots of different tasks can develop myself to be a well-rounded person, now the job market is very competitive. If you are trained to do different kind of tasks in a professional setting, you will be more popular in the job market, thus have a better shot in getting a higher-paid job.
12. Some people believe that it is better for children to grow up in big cities. Others believe that it is better for children to grow up in rural areas. What is your opinion and why?
I would say it is better for children to grow up in big cities. The facilities and the atmosphere will be very beneficial to kids to grow up in a city. For example, kids are likely to get better education, medical treatment, and even social welfare. However, kids that live in the country are not that lucky. Apart from that, a big city is multi cultural and full of dynamics, there are people from all over the country and even from around the globe. Getting a chance to experience different languages, customs and cultures will benefit the kids a lot when they grow up and it will make them a better and well-rounded person.
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