Marathon Man

18,000 people did the RnR NOLA marathon.
Here's a shot from the start line, courtesy of the RnR page.
The NOLA edition of the RnR series is one of
the largest of the 32 stops on the tour. 

For a city that likes to, shall we say, indulge, in food festivals, the occasional alcoholic beverage and good 'ol time, you'd be surprised about how active New Orlenians are when it comes to athletics. The state of Louisiana has more triathletes per capita than any in the country, and as you may recall, we are home to the largest Half Ironman in the USA, which I participated in a few years ago. We also have a lot of runners here. The Crescent City Classic is held each Easter Weekend and is one of the largest 10ks in America with over 20,000 runners. It's a favorite of Tulane students, staff, faculty and alumni. The Tulane community takes advantage of all of the great races around town each year. From short 5K like this Saturday's Tulane Athletics 5K to longer races like the Rock n Roll Marathon held this past weekend, Tulane loves a good race.

Speaking of the Rock n Roll Marathon, well... I did it! It was my first marathon that I have done. I have done the half marathon the last few years, and decided this was my year to kick it into high gear. I ran it with a few friends who all went to Tulane including my good buddy Chris. We both finished in one piece which we were happy about. You hear a lot of talk about hitting "the wall" during the latter half of the race. I was cruising at 8:50 minute miles for the first 21 miles. Then I hit a wall that felt like it was made of adamantium. My legs, knees, feet, they all just kind of gave out. I had to take it easy and do some walking for the last five miles, but I made it! I finished at slightly over 4 hours, so my goal for next year it to hit a sub 4 hour race. It was great to see so many other Tulanians on the race course as both runners and spectators. The course goes right out front of Tulane so it was easy for our students to come out and cheer people on. It was even cooler to see two-time Olympic gold medal winner Mo Farah leading the pack as they came back down St. Charles Ave. He was a bit ahead of me. A bit.

Chris and I finished! Phew. 

Speaking of active students, if you are the active type, you'll fit in great at Tulane. We have a very active cycling team that has won some great awards in years past. We have a club swim team that practices in our indoor Olympic swimming pool at Reily. We have a runners club that does all the races around town (and there are a lot of races!) and even a TIDES course called A Running Conversation where, you guessed it, they whole class is taught during a nice long run. And if those aren't your kind of sports, don't worry, we have 56 different club sports to choose from- everything from AMA to water polo to ice hockey. You can see a list of our club sports here.


When I was a senior in high school, I knew I wanted to find a school with an active student body. I was a track runner and lacrosse player in high school and wanted to find a school that was conducive to all kinds of outdoor activities. I found it at Tulane and found it even more right here in New Orleans. Come check it out!

Swimming pool at Reily. 

Check out our killer cycling team. 

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DHS Packets Heading Out!

Don't count the folders here. I know you want to.
And don't search for an address on there either! 

Deep breath everyone. I know for those of you who have applied for the Dean's Honor Scholarship and the Paul Tulane award, you are anxiously awaiting those decisions. Good news- you're going to find out in the next week. Winners will be notified by mail in the coming days. Non winners will also be notified via e-mail in the next few days too. This year was extremely competitive for this award- I got to see the winning projects and the creativity, innovation and intelligence of you guys really blew me away. Job well done.

For the Paul Tulane Scholarship, our newest award, applicants will also receive notification in the coming days as well. Our brand new scholarship had a huge first year, we were so excited to see the thousands of excited applicants for that award.

For non-winners of both scholarships, please try to remember just how very competitive these awards truly are! Less than 10% of applicants are awarded the scholarship. Keep in mind we still have extensive need based aid available, and while the unofficial deadline to apply for need based aid was February 15th, you can still apply with the FAFSA and CSS profile before the end of the month. For questions about additional merit scholarships, see my post from a few weeks ago.

Congrats to our newest Dean's Honor Scholars and Paul Tulane Scholars!

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SONG EVENINGS

Theater is not only plays and musicals; it is also opera and ballet, and perhaps even sports events. Also canny storytelling and, if they still exist, poetry readings. And certainly masterly song recitals.

By this I mean the English art song, the German lied, and the French melodie, all of which, expertly performed, yield their kind of drama. Let the song be about a relationship of love or hate, a person’s elated response to natural phenomena like flowers and birdsong, or elegiac contemplation of a parting or death, and drama is born, presupposing of course the capturing and holding of a theatrical audience.

I am thinking here of a recent Alice Tully Hall Liederabend, a concert evening of songs by Hugo Wolf in recital by the English tenor Ian Bostridge and the Austrian soprano Angelika Kirchschlager, a major artistic occasion. The songs were culled from the Spanisches Liederbuch (Spanish Songbook), Wolf’s setting of Spanish folk songs and lyrics by lesser known rhymesters—although also one each by Lope de Vega, Cervantes, and the Portuguese master Luis de Camoes—as translated into German verse by two decent minor poets, Emanuel Geibel and Paul Heyse.

There was first a group of spiritual songs concerning God and Christ, then a secular group, mostly love songs of one kind or another, and rather more satisfying. Bostridge and Kirchschlager are both consummate artists, but there was a difference. He was affected and posturing—which, in the past, he wasn’t, or just barely—whereas she was perfect and adorable.

The white-bread, gangly, Oxford undergradish (he is indeed an ex-Oxonian) Bostridge has the requisite voice and technique, but his physical mannerisms now cry out for the discretion of the CD, sparing us the distracting carryings-on. The tenor swayed to the right and left, sometimes threatening to fall on the piano—at which Julius Drake superbly supported the singers, albeit as an accompanist, not as a crutch. Worse yet, Bostridge kept taking little—or not so little—listing walks toward the footlights and back again, rather like an as yet novice sleepwalker.

One might also have quarreled with his dynamics, which seemed excessive at times, as were his exaggerated facial expressions. It made me nostalgic for the recitals of the greatest singer among my coevals, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. He remained upright, close to the piano, without making faces like the hapless little girl in the Hilaire Belloc poem. The voice acted out the meanings of what it sang, a dignified kind of theater, without unleashed histrionics.

But Kirchschlager made up for everything—and then some. The singers alternated after every one or two songs. When not singing, each sat on a chair well to the right of the piano. As one finished and headed for the chair, the other was crossing him or her on the way toward the piano. The tenor did this deadpan, whereas the soprano with a slightly sly, almost mischievous smile.

Once Angelika sang, she was truly angelic, with understated but charmingly varied facial expressions, whatever subtly enhanced the text. Drama was exuded by the eyes, and surged from the versatility of the voice. That she is a lovely woman added to the expressiveness of the performance. (Personally, I would not allow a pachyderm like Stephanie Blythe on a concert stage no matter how good her voice.)

The last song she delivered in her crystalline yet also warm soprano, “Geh, Geliebter, geh jetzt!” (Go, Beloved, Go Now), was one of my supreme concertgoing experiences. In the text, a girl after a night of lovemaking urges her lover to be off with the dawn, lest prying neighbors’ eyes and malicious tongues put paid to the lovers’ nocturnal trysts.

There was more true, deep feeling in the soprano’s rendition of that one liedthan in an entire recital by so many other singers. Then, delightfully introduced by Drake—as apt with his words as with his fingers—we got for an encore a duet by Schumann, which recalled for me an evening at Carnegie Hall: a joint recital by Kirchschlager and the marvelous British baritone Simon Keenlyside, featuring several such duets.

But what about the songs themselves? I prefer Wolf’s similar Italienisches Liederbuch, a setting of songs from the Italian, and even more so the lieder from neither of the songbooks, but superb settings of great poems by the likes of Goethe and Mörike, exalted or shattering as very little in the two song cycles is.

But Hugo Wolf is always interesting. I have a little brochure entitled Das Lied, and subtitled (I translate) “A German Contribution to World Culture,” a collection of essays by various hands (including a lovely prose poem by the distinguished Ingeborg Bachmann), published as an elaborate program booklet in conjunction with a series of concerts and master classes in the fall of 1990, presided over by Fischer-Dieskau, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Mitsouko Sirai and Hartmut Höll, and sponsored by the International Hugo Wolf Society of Stuttgart.

I definitely wasn’t there, alas, and have no idea how the brochure came into my possession. In any case, it contains the text of a talk by the eminent French philosophy professor and music scholar Andre Tubeuf, in which he aptly characterizes Wolf’s work as “l’apogée désespérée d’un genre,” the desperate high point of an art form, which Wolf’s lieder assuredly are.

This brings to mind an incident from the distant past, when Fischer-Dieskau gave a series of lieder recitals in Carnegie Hall. The last of them was to have been all Hugo Wolf, but the crass impresario Sol Hurok persuaded the baritone to switch to all Schubert, which, he claimed, sells better. Emerging disappointed from the concert, I ran into the legendary music critic B. H. Haggin, who beamed at me and exclaimed, “Wasn’t it wonderful?” It would have been more so, I replied, had it remained Wolf. Haggin stared at me in disbelief: How could anyone prefer Wolf to Schubert? Well, by and large, I did. And still do.

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Topic 14. Some people believe that university students should be required to attend classes. Others believe that going to classes should be optional for students.

Some people believe that university students should be required to attend classes. Others
believe that going to classes should be optional for students. Which point of view do you agree
with? Use specific reasons and details to explain your answer.

Sample essay 1.


Nowadays, it becomes a heatedly debated topic whether a student should be required to attend
classes or not. Some people hold the opinion that the university students should be required to go
to classes. However, others have a negative attitude. If I were forced to agree with one of the two
positions, I would stand behind the latter. My Arguments for this point are listed as follows.

I agree with the statement that going to classes should be optional for university students without
reservation since I believe a student is supposed to attend those classes he or she is interested in.
Naturally, interest is the mother of study. When attracted by a wonderful class, you will attend it
unforcedly and immediately. Nevertheless, not all classes are so popular in reality and no one has
interest in every class. Consequently, you should select the classes you like to attend for a higher
efficiency of studying. It can be given a good example, in current universities, many excellent
students almost have the record of skipping some boring and undesirable classes.

Another reason that can be seen by every one is that it contributes to build a university student's
ability of learning by himself or herself. Obviously, by choosing good and meaningful classes,
giving up those undesirable, or studying these classes you can not attend somehow by yourself,
you will learn how to distribute your study time and acquire the capability of learning by yourself,
which is tremendously important to modern university students. Many celebrities, such as Bill Gates, have such powerful ability by not attending some classes when they were in university.

Admittedly, being required to attend classes has advantages of disciplining the student, however,
considering most university students can discipline themselves on their own, I believe it is
sagacious to agree with that going to classes should be optional for college or university students.

Sample essay 2.


Should university students be required to attend classes? There are two different opinions. Some
people claim that attending classed is a must to students. Other people, however, argue that it
should be for students to decide whether they want to go to class or not. As far as I am concerned,
no matter whether students like it or not, they must attend classes.

Students who don't like to go to classes have their reasons. The main one is, they can learn
knowledge by themselves. If they were asked to attend the class in which the professor teaches
something they already have known, it would be a pain. Not attending class, students can control
their time more freely and are likely not to waste time.

Although I agree that there may be one or two advantages to not attending class, I insist that the
advantages of joining classes far overweigh them. In the first place, professors can teach students
a lot of things that cannot be obtained from books. In Chinese dictionary, a university is defined to
be a place where teachers forward what they know to students. In the book, normally there is just
concentrated knowledge. How the writer gets and develops it is a question. How to answer this
question? Go to the class. The professor will not only teach you some knowledge, but also let you
know how to use and develop it. As a Chinese slang says, " Owning a key is owning a house."
That is the most important reason people want to study in university.

In the second place, you will be benefited from discussing with your classmates if attending
classes. Different people have their own special capability. One people cannot be good at every
aspect. What is the best way to share your knowledge with others and learn from others? Go to
the class. Professor always gives some topics for students to discuss. In the discussion, you will be
surprised that so many great fresh thoughts are pushing to you from your colleagues and they are
free.

In conclusion, I believe that students should attend classes not only because professors can teach
you the method of how to master and develop knowledge, but also because students can learn
from each other in the class. In short, attend classes if you select to attend university.

Sample essay 4.


Some people may believe that going to classes should be optional, but I disagree. I don't
understand how university students can expect to learn anything if they don't attend classes.
Personal experience can help people learn about themselves and the world outside the classroom,
but when it comes to learning about academic subjects, students need to be in class.

In class they receive the benefit of the teacher's knowledge. The best teachers do more than just
go over the material in the class textbook. They draw their students into discussion of the material.
They present opposing points of view. They schedule guest speakers to come, give the students
additional information, or show documentary films on the subject.


Also, attending classes on any subject teaches more than just facts. It teaches students how to
learn, how to absorb information and then apply what they've learned to other situations. Their
teacher is the best one to help them with these skills. They can't learn them just by reading the
textbook.

Going to class also teaches students how to work with the other members of the class. Many times
students will be given group assignments. This is different from what they did in secondary school.
Here they're with people from different backgrounds and experiences. In this situation, they learn
how to handle working with people different from themselves to achieve a common goal.
Going to class also teaches students responsibility and discipline. Having to be at a particular
place at a particular time prepares them for getting a job. Being at that place on time with an
assignment completed prepares them for a career.

In short, by going to class students learn more than just information from the teacher. They also
learn how to learn, how to work with others, and how to work responsibly. These are not optional
skills in life, so attending classes should not be optional in college.

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Topic 13. Some people prefer to eat at food stands or restaurants. Other people prefer to prepare and eat food at home.

Some people prefer to eat at food stands or restaurants. Other people prefer to prepare and eat
food at home. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

Sample essay 1.


Some people like to eat out at food stands and restaurants, while others like to prepare food at
home. Often it depends on the kind of lifestyle people have. Those with very busy jobs outside the house don't always have time to cook. They like the convenience of eating out. Overall, though, it
is cheaper and healthier to eat at home.

While eating in restaurants is fast, the money you spend can add up. When I have dinner at a
restaurant with a friend, the bill is usually over twenty dollars. I can buy a lot of groceries with
that much money. Even lunch at a fast-food stand usually costs five or six dollars for one person.
That's enough to feed the whole family at home.

Eating at home is better for you, too. Meals at restaurants are often high in fat and calories, and
they serve big plates of food-much more food-than you need to eat at one meal. If you cook food
at home, you have more control over the ingredients. You can use margarine instead of butter on
your potatoes, or not put so much cheese on top of your pizza. At home, you can control your
portion size. You can serve yourself as little as you want. In a restaurant, you may eat a full plate
of food "because you paid for it."

It's true that eating out is convenient. You don't have to shop, or cook, or clean up. But real home
cooking doesn't have to take up a lot of time. There are lots of simple meals that don't take long to
make. In fact, they're faster than eating out, especially if you think of the time you spend driving
to a restaurant, parking, waiting for a table,, waiting for service, and driving home.

Both eating at restaurants and cooking at home can be satisfying. Both can taste good and be
enjoyed with family and friends. I prefer cooking at home because of the money and health issues,
but people will make the choice that fits their lifestyle best.

Sample essay 2.


In the modern life now, more and more people prefer to eat at food stands or restaurants. They
think that will save time so that they can have enough time to do their jobs. But I still prefer to
prepare and eat food at home.

There several reasons. First of all, you can save money if you eat at home. In general, to get
profit, the restaurants ask for more money on the same food you cook at home. That is the waste
of money. To save money, you may prefer to prepare you food at home with less money.

The second, usually, the food in the restaurants is not what you are expecting. you may dislike the
way the restaurant cook the same dishes as you do at home. For example, the other day, I asked
for potato in a restaurant. After the first bite, I thought it was so awful. My mom never cooked
such potato for me! The bad lunch even destroyed my mood in that day.

The third, if you prepare food by yourself, you will have a happy mood when you eat it, regardless
of the real savor of the food. It goes a saying well "labor brings happiness".In addition, you can
change your method of cooking considering your taste on that day.

The reasons above may can answer why I prefer to eat food at home. Cooking even has become
my hobby now. Come back and have your delicious food, I'm sure you will like it!:)
(This is a 5 point essay)

Sample essay 3.

Nowadays, some people like to eat at home and prepare food for themseves, but others have a negative attitude that they prefer to eat out side in restaurant or at foodstands. As far as I am
concerned, it is better to eat at home. There are numerous reasons why I hold on, and I would
explore only a few primary ones here.

I t cannot be denied that there is some advantage to the first points. Firstly, the condition of the
restaurant is more comfortable and the food of there is more delicious usually. Then eating in
restaurant become a good choice of getting together with friends. In addition, eat out side take
people convenience and shortcut. For the people who are busy on working, prepare food for
themseves will make troubles and waste time. For the young person who are not able to cook for
themseves, eat at foodstands resolve the problem.

The main reason for my propensity for eating at home is that eat at home and prepare food for
themseves can enhance the emotion among the member of family and bring pleasure to everyone.
In modern society, everyday, parents are busy on working and sociality, and children are busy on
study and playing. For convenience and saving time, they offten chioce eat out side. Then there
left so few time of them to share. Sharing the dinner at home is not only eating but also provide a
chance to talking, making joke and exchange feeling with each other. Maybe someone think that
make dinner is a heavy burden. But I believe prepare food with family is also a happy, likely have
dinner with family is a pleasure. With your sisters and brothers help your mother do a meal in
weekend, and enjoy the food ,and you will feel everything is so nice.

Another reason is that I think that eat at home is more economical than go to restaurant and save
money. Using the same number of money you can buy more and better food from shop than from
restaurant. You can do nourishing meal for your children rather than the junk food from
foodstands. And you can spend the saved money on many the other way, such as buy new clothes
and see a movie.

General speaking, eat out side is comfortable and convenience to our live, while eat at home can
share happy with family. Taking into account of all these, I prefer to prepare food for ourseves
and eat at home.

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Topic 12. Many people visit museums when they travel to new places.

Many people visit museums when they travel to new places. Why do you think people visit
museums? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

Sample essay 1.


When people travel to new places, they often choose the local museums as a must-see place.
Sometimes the museums are even more attractive than the most famous place of interest. This
phenomenon can be easily explained if the function of museums is taken into account. As we
have known, museums can help us know the history, the customs and the most representative
products of that place.

Different place has different history. And the most convenient way to know the history is to visit
the local museum. Last year when I traveled to Xi’an, an old city, I went to the history museum to
explore the course of its development. With the background knowledge provided by the museum,
I found that it was easier for me to understand the city. So the museum can clear away the barriers
between tourists and the city by making them familiar with its history. To a tourist, the most
attractive part of a place is usually its customs, which can be demonstrated by the local museum.
In the Beijing custom museum, the real life of typical Beijingers is vividly shown. A tourist can
satisfy his curiosity by knowing the origin and characteristics of the quart-yard, the most classical
building in Beijing. With the help of museums, tourists can have a deeper understanding of the life
of local people.

Every place has its own representative products, which are usually handcrafts. Tourists can have
the access to a wonderful show of these handcrafts in the local museum. For example, in Jingde
town, the most famous pottery-making place in China, tourists can be excited by the beautiful
pottery products and the complicated making process exhibited in the pottery museum. It will be a
pity for a tourist not to experience the wonderful show of the local products in the museum.

In a word, museums serve as a bridge between tourists and the place they travel to. That is why
people are so eager to visit museums when they travel to new places

Sample essay 2.


Museums are presents the whole world left to us, with which we can learn lots of things we did
not previously know, be aware of what has happened in the past as well as what is going to
happen in the future, or gain self-understanding. Personally, among countless factors which
influence the reason for visiting museums, there are three conspicuous aspects as follows.


The main reason for my propensity for visiting museums is that more about local histories can be
known in this way. Nowadays, many museums are mainly operating for responsibilities to collect,
preserve historic treasures and exhibit fine art and antiquities. For instance, the National Museum
of Chinese History, the first of these kinds to be established in China has over 300,000 items,
including more than 2,000 first-grade pieces items, 100,000 photographs of cultural relics and
over 200,000 professional books. As you walk around the General Chinese History exhibition
rooms, looking at the cultural relics and imagining the past, you may feel that you are traveling
along a path spanning the course of Chinese history.

Another reason can be seen by every person is that you can see something rare so much as unique
in museums. For example, Emperor QinShihuang, the first emperor in Chinese history, is known
as the Emperor Qin’s Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses. Today, the Emperor Qin's Terra-cotta
Museum, "the eighth Wonder of the world", is not only a treasure house where the tourists can
learn histories, but also a main scenic spot of China. The vivid pottery figures, colorful uniforms
and various weapons, acclaimed as the peak of perfection, are unique forever.

Furthermore, visiting museums can enrich our knowledge about various sides, such as preventive
measures of a disease, the reason of earthquake, man’s region, the latest development of the laser
and so on. The inventive genius may be inspired in someone by making exhibits, because
knowledge is acquired more easily in this way than being taught in class.

Still, people might list other reasons to explain why they always visit museums while traveling to
new places, but the three points I have explored in the above discussion, I believe, are most
relevant to the issue under discussion.

Sample essay 3.


Many people visit museums when they travel to new places. By visiting museums, one can learn
as much as possible about those places where one visit in a shout time.

First of all, one can learn about the history of the places in museums. Today, almost every town in
the world has realized the importance to set up their own museums to exhibit historic items which
belong to their past. When we visit a new place, we can get almost everything we need about its
history in the museums. Last summer vacation, I and several classmates traveled to the city of
Taian. At the foot of Mount Tai located a museum about General Feng Yuxiang. After visiting it,
we knew a lot about Mr. Feng and what he did to the local people. He was respected by there
people, and so did us.

Second, visiting museums gives information about local culture. After a long exhausting journey,
what a good thing to sit in the museum theatre watching a performance about local culture. When
we travel to a new place, especially for a limited time when you cannot go everywhere, so you
can get as much information as possible about local culture by visiting museums.

What is more, visiting museums gives us a good chance to make new friends. Surely, there are a
lot of people will visit museums like us. We can chat with them about what we see and what we
hear. At the end of visiting, we sit together to have a cup of coffee and we become good friends.
By exchanging telephone number, we can also keep in touch with each other late. What a good
experience!

In a word, more and more people visit museums when they travel to new places because they want to get more pleasure from their journey.
(This is a 5 point essay)

Sample essay 4.


People love to visit museums when traveling to new places. I think this is because museums tell
them a lot about the culture of those places. Museums are also fun. It's almost impossible to get
bored in a museum. Every museum will have at least one thing of interest to somebody.

When visiting someplace new, you can find out about the culture of that place in many ways. You
can go to a movie or a place of worship or a nightclub. Another option is to sit in the park and
listen to the people around you. The easiest way to learn about a-place's culture, though, is by
visiting its museums. Museums will show you the history of the place you're visiting. They'll show
you what art the locals think is important. If there aren't any museums, that tells you something,
too.

Museums are fun. Even if you're not interested in art or history, there is always something to get
your attention. Many museums now have what they call "hands-on" exhibits. These were
originally designed to keep children occupied while their parents were looking at exhibits.
However, museums have found that adults enjoy hands-on opportunities just as much as children.
These exhibits have activities like pushing a button to hear more about what you're looking at,
creating your own work of art, or trying on clothes like those on the models in the museum.

People also enjoy visiting museums about unusual subjects. For instance, in my hometown there's
a museum devoted to the potato. This museum has art made out of potatoes. It also tells all about
the history of the potato, and sells potato mementos like key chains and potato dolls. People enjoy
visiting this museum because it's different. It's not something they'd find in their hometown and
the museum's curators enjoy talking about the Great Potato.

Museums are popular because they are about us. They reflect our creations, our values, and our
dreams. No matter who you are or what you like, somewhere there is a museum that will amaze
and interest you.

Sample essay 5.


Do you like to visit a museum when you visit a new place? I'd love to. Because it's an easy way to
know the history, the custom, the people, the culture and natural environment there.
When you arrive at a place, ask which kind of museum they have. To do this you can know what
the people there like. For example, if there are a lot of are museums, the people must like art very
much. So you can enjoy an atmosphere of art there.

If there is a history museum, it's the best way to know the history of this area. It can tell you when
the area was built, whether it has a long history, who came here first, what happened in this
area—maybe a revolution or a war, what changed the people's life there, and so on. If you want to
know the people there, you must know the history there. Because it's history what affect people's
behavior, emotion and custom. If there is a special festival, maybe it's related with a historical
affair.

Want to visit a nature museum? It's a good idea. There must be introduction about the natural environment there. Why to know that? We can get information about why people there eat this
kind of food, maybe it's because of the weather. And where is the best place to visit in this area.

Go to visit an art museum. Which kind of art you find there? Modern art? Then it may be a
modern place. Classical art? It may be a city with a long history. Maybe you can enjoy an old way
of life there.

Don't forget the science museum. It can tell you how the people developed their technology,
whether the science there is well developed. Do people use new technology to develop this area?
If not, it's the best explanation to the question why people there fall behind with people in other
areas.

So go to a museum, it can tell you about a new place more than you think.
(This is a 5 point essay)

Sample essay 6.


It is an interesting phenomenon that, when traveling to new places they have never been to
before, many people choose to visit museums. Why museums are people's common choice? Based
on my personal experience and according to my observations, I think this is because museums tell
people a lot about the culture of those places and give them pleasures.

It is easy to find out many ways to obtain knowledge about the culture of the place where people
visit for the first time. You can go to a theater or worship or a nightclub. Another option is to sit in
the park and listen to the people around you. Among various options, visiting museums might be
the easiest way. Museums show you the history and art and those things that the locals think
important by exhibiting objects and works, some of which might be unique in the world. On the
other hand, the museums themselves are part of the landscape of the places. Many museums are
designed and built based on the historical and artistic characteristics of the places where the
museums are located in. The Forbidden City Museum is the most favorite tourist site because not
only it contains a large variety of historical objects and art works but also it is the representative
of Chinese history and the highest Chinese ancient architecture achievement. As a result, people
are willing to select museums as their first destination to understand culture of the place they visit.

Museums also give people pleasure. Even if you are not interested in art or history, there is always
something to get your attention. Many museums now have what they call "interactive" exhibits.
The "interactive" activities were originally designed to keep children occupied while their parents
were looking at exhibits. However, the interesting thing is that adults are keen to these activities
as well as their children. It is fascinating to create your own work of painting in a art museum or
to design an appearance of a robot by yourself in a science museum. People can be really pleased
through performing the "interactive" works in museums, as well as gaining related knowledge.

Museums are welcomed by both local people and new comers because they are an essential part
of our life. They reflect our history, our art, our values, our creations and our dreams. No matter
who you are and what you like, somewhere there is a museum that will amaze and interest you.

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Topic 11. Universities should give the same amount of money to their students' sports activities as they give to their university libraries.

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Universities should give the same
amount of money to their students' sports activities as they give to their university libraries. Use
specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.

Sample essay 1.


In my point of view,sports activities are as important as ,if not more important than,good
libraries.So it is wise for universities to give the same amount of money to their students' sports
activities as they give their university libraries.There are numerous clear reasons and i would
explore some important ones here.

First,good health is the prerequiste for future success.Universities are not only the place for
students to expand their minds, but also a place for student to build their body.A good health is
very essential for study and future success.In our university,there are several middle-aged
teachers and researchers suffer from diseases,some even died when they were atill at the acme of
their academic achievements.This is a great loss for their families and our university.

Second,through sports activities,student can benefit both physically and mentally.Anyone who has
played in a football game knows that the cooperation and competition are important for
success.They are two basic traits for those who want to succeed,and student who can combine
them harmoniously have better chance of success in the future.

Third,investment in sports activities can save money in the long run.In China, all of students
medical expenses are patronized by government anf this is a heavy burden.If the students health
imporved,a lot of money can be saved every year.With these money,universities can build more
classrooms,laboratories and libraries.


Of course, good libraries are also important for universities.A good library with its large collection
of books is the pride and symbol of a prominent university.Boht libraries and sports activities are
indispenable for unicersity,so it is wise for unicversities give the same amount of money to their
student activities as they give to their libraries

Sample essay 2.


I disagree strongly with the idea that the same amount of money should go to university sports
activities as to university libraries. Although playing sports is a wonderful way to learn about
teamwork, strategy and reaching your goals, it should not be the principal focus of a university
education.

Students need the most up-to-date library facilities available to get the best education. Many of
those facilities are very expensive to buy and maintain. These include computerized programs and
access to Internet research databases that students can use to find information all around the
world. If a university is only offering its students resources of a decade ago, it's depriving those
students of a tremendous amount of information.

Even the book and magazine budget of universities has gone up tremendously in the last decade.
More is being published on every subject, and every university wants to have this information
available to its students.

It also costs money for universities to keep their libraries open. Students need to have access to all
the libraries' research tools as much of the time as possible. Because students are young and can
stay up all night studying, many universities are starting to leave their libraries open all night
during exam periods. This costs money, because the staff has to be paid extra to be there. It also
costs money to run the building (electricity, heat) during that time.

Students at universities are only going to benefit from their education if they can get to all the
tools they need to learn. Sports are secondary to the resources that students need from university
libraries. For this reason, libraries should always be better funded than sports activities.

Sample essay 3.


Both libraries and sports activities are welcome in the universities. Students could study in the
libraries to build up their knowledge. They could get the information that they cannot get in the
class. But knowledge is not all for the students. They are willing to have sports frequently.
Anyone cannot go on his study without a healthy body. Unfortunately, if we have limited
resources to put on the construction and operation of libraries or sport activites, how could we
make a decision? I disagree with the statement that universities should give the same amount of
money to sports activities as libraries.

The librarie is necessary part of a university. We cannot imagine a university without any library.
Student would like to find books in the library to facilitate their study. The time in the class is very
limited. So they could get more academic information in the library. On the other hand, students
could enjoy sports outside the campus. Many people just like running, which doesn't need any
investment.


Considering the operation of the establishments, we should certainly pay more to run a library
than the sports activities. With the developement of the informationalization of the world, more
and more books are published. In order to possess those books, universities must pay a lot money
on them. While running a stadium is much more easier.

Because university is a place to study, it is natural that more students go to the library. Whenever
you go to the library, you will see diligent students studying there. Especially in the examination
period, you can hardly find a vacant seat.

To sum up, sports activities are very important to students health, but if there is limited money, we
have to spend more money on libraries than on sports activities. Because libraries are necessities
of a university, which need a large amount of money to run, and many students enjoy them.
(This is a 5 point essay)

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Topic 10. When people succeed, it is because of hard work. Luck has nothing to do with success.

When people succeed, it is because of hard work. Luck has nothing to do with success." Do
you agree or disagree with the quotation above? Use specific reasons and examples to explain
your position.

Sample essay 1.


I fully agree with the claim that there is no correlation between success and luck. Moreover, I
understand success to refer to one's ability to achieve the predominant part of his goals in his
lifetime, which in turn leads to a correlation between success and income since the
accomplishment of such a natural goal as to provide a good future for your loved ones demands
the means. What is the simplest and most lawful way to earn enough to consider yourself a
successful person? To receive a good education and to find a good job. Both receiving an
education and making a career presuppose one's readiness to work hard, and success without hard
work is simply not possible for the vast majority of the world's population. The reasons and
examples listed below will strengthen my point of view.

First of all, considering an education and a career as key factors of success, one will choose to
pursue a degree from a college or a university. One wishing to be admitted to the university will
have to take several tests. It is doubtful that someone will be so lucky that knowing nothing, he
could pass the test with a high score. A low score means failure, and that test taker will not likely
be admitted. Therefore, in order to be successful, one should prepare for the tests and work hard,
because a good education will provide him with a good job and an opportunity to accomplish
some of his goals and dreams. In my lifetime, I have never met a person who could graduate from
a college without working hard.

Secondly, it is impossible to make a career if one is indolent and lacking knowledge, at least in
developed countries. Luck plays no role in achieving this success. Even if someone was
unbelievably lucky enough to become a manager not being qualified enough, he will be asked to
resign in the near future because of his inability due to lack of knowledge and experience to make
right decisions. For instance, I used to work for a very small company owned by a friend. This
company was later closed because of bankruptcy. The cause of bankruptcy was wrong strategies
and decisions made by the owner. After the failure, he went to a university and worked for
another company so that he could obtain experience and become a successful businessman.
Nowadays, he considers himself a successful person because he had turned into reality his two
biggest dreams of producing consumer goods of high quality and making charitable donations to
needy people.

In sum, as long as someone understands success as an ability to turn into reality some of his
dreams and goals, he will have to work hard because he will need money. And his chances to earn
that money will remarkably increase if he could graduate from a college and make a career. All of
these things are simply not possible without hard work. Luck has no place in such a scheme of
events.

Sample essay 2.


There is a humorous saying in English – “The grass is always greener on the other side of the
valley”. The saying is used ironically to point out that there is a temptation in us all to insist that
others are more fortunate than we are. This is nowhere more true than on the question of luck and hard work. When faced with the “bad times”, we often find comfort in the idea that we are
special in our degree of misfortune. I feel that such an attitude is negative, and that it can bring
only further misfortune.

Many famously successful people have begun from small origins. Mao was the son of a (modestly
prosperous) peasant; the explorer Captain Cook was so poor that, as a child, he had to work by
day and study by night; many of the affluent Americans of today are the children of the poor
immigrants of yesterday. Beethoven, it should be remembered, became deaf before the end of his
career. There are many, many more people who have also made genuine, though Jess spectacular,
successes against the odds.

Within his own terms, a person who is born into poverty in India is a great success if he manages
to own a house in later life. Poverty cannot be reduced by merely complaining and blaming
others: no matter how guilty other people are, each individual must reach out to success for
himself. Indeed, some economists believe that the world operates by what they call “the rule of
the jungle”. They believe that in economics a person a1ways attempts to gain profit from his
neighbor: that given the chance the poor man would quickly make himself rich by trading to his
own advantage.

Also, it is presumptuous to judge another according to his or her apparent fortune. No man can
ever truly understand the sufferings of his neighbor. A man who appears comfortably rich may
have suffered elsewhere in his life - through the death of a loved one, for example. Retired
businessmen have often worked long hours in their youth. Surely, it must be wiser to respect
achievement than to deny that anyone has achieved good in the world.

To rely on notions of luck - to believe that life is a kind of lottery - is an attempt to escape reality.
Paradoxically, the only time a person can claim that luck is more important than work is when he
reflects on his own success. Because of that modesty, the great man then becomes even greater.

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Topic 9. Some people prefer to live in a small town. Others prefer to live in a big city.

Some people prefer to live in a small town. Others prefer to live in a big city. Which place would
you prefer to live in? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.

Sample essay 1.


I grew up in a small town and then moved to a big city, so I have experienced the good and bad
sides of both. I never thought that I would like living in a big city, but I was wrong. After ten years
of living in one, I can't imagine ever living in a small town again.

Small towns and big cities both have some problems in terms of transportation. In a small town,
you have to own a car to ensure a comfortable living. You can't get around without one because
there isn't any kind of public transportation. Big cities generally have heavy traffic and expensive
parking, but there you have a choice of taking public transportation. It's not free, but it's often
cheaper than driving when you consider gas and time. Especially if you don't have a car, you're
better off in the city.

I love the excitement of big cities. Small towns have a slow pace. Large cities mean you have to
adapt to a variety of situations, like finding a new route to work or trying a new restaurant. I enjoy
that challenge very much. Another pan of the excitement of city living is the variety of cultural
activities available. There is a wide assortment of theatre, music and dance performances
available in big cities. These things are rare in small ones.

The final thing I like about large cities is the diversity of the people. The United States is made up
of people of different races, religions, abilities, and interests. However, you seldom find such a
variety of people in a smaller town. I think that living in an area where everyone was just like me
would quickly become boring.

Of course, security is a concern, and that's one area where small towns are superior to big cities.
Still, I would rather be a bit more cautious and live in a large city than to feel secure but bored.

Sample essay 2.


Where should we live? Some may choose to live in big cities, while other like the natural and quiet
surroundings in countryside. As far as I am concerned, I would like to live in a big city because
living in a big city has more advantages than living in countryside.

To begin with, the city is the symbol of human civilization and there are a many facilities for
living, recreation and health care. Therefore, living there is more convenient than living in
countryside. For example, we can find a plenty of malls around our neighborhood, where we can buy everyday necessities at a low price. Furthermore, people concern more about their health and
safety than other things in their lives. In big cities, medical facilities and emergency services are
easily accessible than in countryside. Big cities also have convenient transportation and utility
systems. They also offer faster Internet connections. These all make our life easier in big cities.

In addition, we can take part in a variety of events in big cities. Human being likes to live together
and need to interact with each other. In a big city, the population density is high therefore there
are always plenty of social activities, sports events and concerts. There are more recreational
places in big cities, such as opera houses, movie theatres, clubs, and swimming pools. You will
have many kinds of entertainment in big cities, and meet many people. In countryside, however,
the life may be dull and quite, and you may only have a few neighbors. Living alone with few
activities can easily cause mental diseases.

Some may argue that the pollution in cities makes people sick. However, with automobiles and
modern highways we can easily take a break to expose to fresh air in countryside and sunshine on
the beach.

In conclusion, I strongly hold that living in big cities is much better than living in countryside
because of the advanced facilities and social activities in cities. Moreover, the autos and highways
enable us to enjoy the natural and quiet surroundings in countryside.

Sample essay 3.


In English, there is a well-known fairy story about a poor country boy, Dick Whittington, who
goes to London because he believes that the streets of that city are “paved with gold”. The story
is a tale of “from rags to riches”. Dick eventually becomes the Lord Mayor of London. Like the
hero of that story, I always find wonder and adventure in cities.

Cities contain a great assortment of people. Whenever I walk around a shopping precinct at
midday on a weekend, I am fascinated by all the different types of people hurrying around the
shops. Sometimes, I just sit on a public bench and simply watch the variegated streams of
shoppers. Today, in the age of globe-trotting transport and communications, city life is more
mixed than it has ever been. Capital cities are not cosmopolitan, and eager to attract foreign trade
and currency. There is a contemporary English joke which tells that “you can never find an
Englishman in London”.

Whether rightly or wrongly, governments and local authorities usually build public amenities in
the big cities. Money is invested in transport, libraries, parks and museums. Often, countries will
compete with each other for the best “show-case” building. Malaysia has built a skyscraper that is
taller than is anything in New York. In large countries, region will compete against region: New
York against Chicago, Shanghai against Hong Kong and Beijing.

All of this is good for the citizen. The magic of the Dick Whittington story is rekindled in me when
I enter a library in a magnificent building. If a person is at university studying art or music, a large
city usually offers galleries and public performances. Even as a teenager, I appreciated the worth
of living in a city because two or three times a year there was a rock concert by a favorite band.
Architecture is the urban landscape. If a person has an appreciation of architecture, a city can be
as visually exciting as the Himalayas. A modern metropolis is a mountain range of height, light
and solidness. And then there are the old buildings: the quaint, unspoiled side-street or shops and
homes from a distant age. If a person lived all of his life in one large city, he would continue to discover its architectural secrets into his old age.

Man is a 'social animal'. He talks, mixes and creates. Cities offer the libraries, universities and cafe
bars for him to meet others of his kind.

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Topic 8. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Television has destroyed communication
among friends and family. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.

Sample essay 1.


Television is undoubtedly one of the most powerful means of communication in the history of
humankind, rivaled only by such other forms of communication as the Internet, the telephone,
movies, and, of course, simple, low-tech speech. Television, with its wide availability and rich
media with image and sound, is difficult to ignore and even seductive in its appeal. Television is as
much a part of our lives as are our meals, work, or school; studies consistently show that the
average American child spends almost as much time watching television as she does in school.
Furthermore, because television is so rich in its media, it often requires our full attention or is
more attraction to us than are our daily lives. Naturally, the more time one spends watching
television, the less time she has with her family and friends. Thus, we can clearly see why some
have claimed that television has been harmful for communication among family and friends.
However, I believe that, while television has been somewhat harmful in its effects, it has hardly
"destroyed" communication among family and friends for most people, although for some, this
may be true.

Most people much prefer spending time with their families and friends to spending time watching
television. Television is of course an important part of many people's lives, but most people would
gladly choose family and friends over television were they given the choice. Furthermore, most
educated people are aware of the deleterious effects of too much television and either avoid
excessive time watching television, or actually do not enjoy it. I, for example, after a long day at
work, would much rather spend time talking with my wife and playing with my children than I
would watching some unrealistic portrayal of life on television. For me and my family, our time
together is precious and beautiful, and could never be replaced or hurt by television.

Furthermore, the effect of television is simply not so great that it could be said to have
"destroyed" communication among family and friends. Granting that communication among
family and friends in industrialized countries has decreased in recent years, it might be tempting to
blame this problem on television since its rise roughly coincided with the decrease in time we
spend with our families. However, I believe this situation is more likely due to increased pressures
relating from work, school, and the economy. In my case, for example, I find that my pressures
from work are so great that I must often sacrifice time at home so that I can meet the challenges
of running my own business. Many of my friends are in similar situations--my best friend, for
example, has just finished law school, which took about sixty hours a week of his time. In a word,
people nowadays have very little time for anything, but television is not the cause--it is increased
desire to succeed.

In some situations, however, television has surely contributed to a decrease in communication
among family members. In my childhood in the countryside, I often saw parents and children
watching television for hours on end, rarely speaking with one another. It seemed for them that
television was a way to escape from their sad, miserable existence. However, even in this case, I
would say that television merely contributed to the bad situation, but did not cause it; were
television not existent, surely these people would have found other escapes, alcohol or gambling,
for example. In other words, people always find a way to do what they want to do.

In short, I do not believe that television has destroyed or even harmed interpersonal
communication among most people. Most people realize that television is merely a temporary
diversion and do not use it to replace interpersonal communication. I believe that the damage
attributed to television is greatly exaggerated and that such damage is most likely attributable to
other more powerful social factors

Sample essay 2.


When asked about what has been brought by television , different people have different answers.
There is some people who don't like TV saying that television has destroyed communications
among friends and family. however other people take a negative attitude on this issue. In my
opinion, I disagree with the above statement . The reasons are given below.

Television is only one instrument for people to relax. There is many ways of amusement for
people to select after the working time nowadays. You can select to meet your friends, to
accompany your parents or to take part in some sports activities. Watching TV at home is simply
one way to live. It is too narrowly to regard TV as one main reason to damage relationship among
friends and family just because some people has spent a lot of time on it .

Another reason that I disagree with the above statement is that TV can provide some additional
topics for communication among friends and family. Talking about the news, the soap drama or
soccer game watching on the TV last night is also good communication ways to increase your
affections with your friends and your family. Also sometimes, skipping one TV program could
probably make you lose voices among your friends.

Last but not least, watching TV is one good medicine to cure the loneliness when your friends and
parents can not accompany with you. I would not forget the warm which was brought by TV
when along outside the hometown.

I can't deny that some people has ignored friends and family when they are addicted into watching
TV. However, everything has it's two sides. All the factors mentioned above determined me to
draw the conclusion that it is not reasonable to say television has destroyed communications
among friends and family.
(This is a 5 point essay)

Sample essay 3.


Some people believe that television has destroyed communication among friends and family. I
think this is an exaggeration. In my opinion, whether or not television hurts communication
depends on what type of program is being viewed. More importantly, it depends on the type of
viewer.

There are empty programs and educational programs. Empty programs do not challenge people.
They have just enough storyline to keep them from switching channels. There are also passive and
active viewers. A passive viewer will just watch television without thinking about what he or she
is seeing. The combination of an empty program and a passive viewer makes communication
unlikely. Passive viewers just continue to watch, actually enjoying the fact that they don't have to
think. They won't break away to talk about programming with friends and family. Even with
better programming, passive viewers still won't think or communicate much. They'll probably even
prefer the empty programs because the better programming is too much work.

On the other hand, active viewers watching educational programming always want to share what
they see with friends and family. "Educational" doesn't necessarily mean documentaries on PBS.
They could be dramas with realistic relationships or action shows with clever plotlines. When
active viewers watch programs, they have ideas and talk about them with others. Good
programming inspires them to change their thinking and their lives. Unlike passive viewers, they
don't want to watch more and more without thinking.

In short, television may destroy communication among passive viewers. Those viewers probably
don't want to communicate with friends and family much anyway. For active viewers who already
enjoy communicating, television is actually helpful!

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Topic 7. How do movies or television influence people's behavior?

How do movies or television influence people's behavior? Use reasons and specific examples to
support your answer.

Sample essay 1.


Do movies and television affect our behavior? I believe that movies and television do influence
our behavior, both for the better and for the worse.

Movies and television influence our behavior because they make us less active. Looking at films is
a passive activity. If we watch too much, we become unhealthy, both mentally and physically. We
stop using our own imagination when we see things acted out for us. Mental laziness becomes
physical laziness; we'd rather watch sports on TV than play sports ourselves. We'd rather visit with the characters on "Seinfeld" or "Friends" than go chat with our own neighbors. Imaginary
people have exciting lives. Is it any wonder that some people would rather live a fantasy life than
their own? Movies and television also can make people more violent. The more we see violent
acts on television, the less sensitive we become to them: Eventually violence doesn't seem wrong.
We may even commit violent acts ourselves. This is especially true because we don't always
realize that violence has consequences. Actors can be killed and come back for another movie.
Sometimes we confuse that with reality. We forget that killing someone is permanent.

Of course, watching movies and television can also be good for us. It can give us a broader
window on the world. For example, seeing movies can expose us to people of different races and
cultures. We can then overcome some prejudices more easily. Recently there have been more
handicapped people in films, and this also helps reduce prejudice.
The best influence on our behavior is that movies and television reduce stress. Watching films, we
can escape our own problems for a little while. Also, sometime movies show positive ways to
resolve problems we all face. While TV and movies shouldn't be a way to hide from life,
sometimes they can help us cope.

It is true that movies and television can influence our behavior negatively. However, I also believe
that they influence our behavior in positive ways. How they affect you depends on how much you
watch, what you watch, and how you respond to what you watch.

Sample essay 2.

Hesitating I enter my house, the light outside is dimming and the shadows make everything appear

unfamiliar. I know that my husband has not returned from work yet, simply because his car is not
in the garage. I am alone. I carefully check all the rooms, almost expecting something to happen
suddenly. I hold my bag in my hand as if it were a weapon. After the whole house has been
declared "clear," I start to breathe normally again and a smile appears on my face as I realize,
once again, how a simple movie seen at the cinema a week earlier can modify my actions.

Sometimes I wonder if I should watch TV, with all its shows that make me wonder whether I
exercise enough, whether I am slim enough, or whether I treat my pets with the care they deserve:
am I really concerned about their mental health? Not to mention the hundreds of commercials that
try to make me believe I need a water purifier to remain alive since the water I am currently
drinking is heavily polluted! And countless are the times when I have heard people talking by
quotations learned from movies. We need to watch shows and films to know what to say, how to
be, how to act. We are so addicted to all this that it almost seems like we cannot think on our own.

I cannot help thinking about what happened to me some days ago, an example that clearly shows
what kind of power TV has over people. My husband and I were in a restaurant when I heard my
young neighbor pronouncing violent words in a low angry voice. Surprised, I turned to better
understand the situation and I saw that he was holding a fake military device and was acting as if
he were filming a war movie. I am sure that if I had been a little be more updated about this type
of movie, I would have recognized what he was saying as a quotation. Now, I wonder if he uses
such a language also with his friends and with his parents, if he is aggressive, and if so, whether
his attitude has really nothing to do with what he watches on TV.

That same evening on the way home I saw two cars stopped one next to the other at a traffic light
and as soon as the light turned green they started racing, in the middle of town. In this case not
even a major knowledge of movies and TV programs would have helped me: there are just to many of them on the market showing the exact same thing: people racing with cars.

I am sure that everybody, if asked, could easily list many other examples of how TV and movies
can modify our behavior and therefore our life but, I wonder, if we will always be able to draw the
line between a TV show and real life, between what they make us think we want and what instead
we really need and are and believe.

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Topic 6. If you could change one important thing about your hometown, what would you change?

If you could change one important thing about your hometown, what would you change? Use
reasons and specific examples to support your answer.

Sample essay 1.


Everything in the universe is in constant change. And everything needs continual improvement if
the ever changing and increasing demands of humankind are to be met. If I am ever given the
chance to change one important thing about my home town, it would be internet service. Needless
to say that nothing generally revolutionized the way we live as internet in the past decade. Thus,
an improvement in this vital service would mean an even more, unheard betterment to the people
in my home town.

It is said that information is power. True saying indeed! I can envision how everything in my home
town could improve dramatically if the internet service in it were made free, fast and staying out
there like electricity, telephone or water all the time. One thing, a fast free and reliable internet
service could improve in my home town is the way people work. If there is a this said service
people in my home town must not necessarily commute to a far place to do their job. This in turn
would mean less traffic jams, spacious work place, more time for family and recreation and so on.

The way people learn would be another important thing that a fast, free and reliable internet
service could better in my home town. People will have the chance to go through tremendous and
different information resources in a very small amount of time. They, apparently will also take less
time to share it. This assures a more fulfilled life for my home town people.

Since its advent, internet touched every part of our life. It in a dazzling way improved the way we
do business, learn and communicate. A change in internet service implies good way of living for
every one in my home town.

Sample essay 2.


If I could change one important thing about my hometown, it would be air pollution problem, and
I will give the following reasons to explain why I want to solve the problem.

The first and most important reason is that I hope that my hometown can become a beautiful city.
As an old industrial city, my hometown has made a great deal of contribution for the country’s
economic development. At a result, the natural environment of the city has been badly damaged.
The forest has disappeared; the mountains have become bald, and the most awful thing is that the
air quality becomes more and more worse. People seldom see the blue sky during most time of year.

Another reason why I want to change my hometown’s air pollution situation is that the city’s
development needs clean and tidy environment to attract investors. Nowadays people have come
to know that the city’s environment, which is so called “software facility of the city”, plays an
important role in the city’s future. For example, due to the fact that the environment of the city is
very poor, many local students who pursue their study out of the city would rather find
themselves a job in other cities than coming back to their hometown after they graduated.

In addition, nowadays people have paid more and more attention to their health. If air pollution
problem cannot be solved as quickly as possible, people’s requirement for a healthy body will
never be realized.

In my mind, changing air pollution will apparently be my first choice if I can change one
important thing about my hometown. Fortunately people in my hometown are gradually aware of
the serious problem.

Sample essay 3.


If i could change one thing about my hometown, i would like to build up some useful and
advanced facilities for their use. A modern library, an advanced broad band system and an
integrated gym may bring a lot of changes to people living in my hometown and keep them up
with the latest information and technology.

In my opionion, a modern library in my hometown can provide a good environment for the local
people to study and upgrade themsevles. There are a lot of newspaper, magazines and reference
books for their use. They can know what happened around the world and keep up with the fastpace
of this developing world. From lots of cultural books, they also can own a good habit of
reading and learn to get knowledge from books. "Knowledge is strengh". Knowledge can give us
guidance to overcome problems we meet in the daily life.

To popularize the broad band at home also is a quick access to Internet and movie channel, which
can give people much more chances to choose their entertainment. Because of the Internet, our
lives have been changed a lot no matter whether we accept or not. We can read news, buy items
from e-commerce companies, send a free e-card to our friends, mail our beautiful photos to
anyone we like or watch the movies online. Anyway, Internet brings us obvious changes.
Additionally, broad band also can provide movie channel to users. Can you imagine that you can
watch the movies you like just by cliking one button? It provide different types of movie for you
to choose. People have more choice to enjoy the life and advanced technology at home.

Besides important information we need to know and advanced technology we use, we also need
to do exercise to keep our healthy life. This is the reason why i want to set up an integrated gym in
my hometown. Through doing many various exercises, such as, swimming, jogging, playing
badminton or tennice, peopple can enhance their ability to resist the virus and enjoy the life
happily. Furthermore, people who often do exercise have positive attitudes towards life although
when facing difficulties. This is really what i hope to see.

In summary, i want my hometown to be a city equipped with a modern library, an advanced broad
band system and filled with people liking exercise, loving life and possessing positive attitudes
towards life. Thus, i want to build up above-mentioned facilities first.

Sample essay 4.


With the developement of my hometown in the past few years, the population is expanding very
fast. The city is expiriencing not only a higher birthrate than ever, but also waves of immigration.
The streets in the city are crowed or even jamed during the rush hours. If I could change one thing
about my hometown, I would develope an advanced public traffic system.

In order to hold such an exploding population, the city has extended miles by miles without much
plan. It is common for people to travel from the southmost part to the northmost part of the city to
go to work everyday. They have to spend three hours or more on the way they go to work and
come home. Eight hours' work is a heavy burden, while people have to spend hours before and
after the work. A subway running through or around the city can solve the problem. People could
live further away from the downtown without worrying about spending too much time on the way.

Some people buy their own car or take a taxi to work everyday. It's really expensive for most of
the people in the city. They can't afford paying so much on traffic fares. Many civil engineering
experts advocate that sharing a public traffic system is the most efficient way. People could
reduce their fares a lot by using the public traffic system, and they can spend the money on some
other things.

Even there are more and more people who can afford buying a car or taking taxi everyday, It is
still suggested to using the public traffic system. Because the road developement can never keep
up with the demand of the increasing cars, the cars may jam on the roads during rush hours.
Usually, the speed of the car in that time is no higher than a bycicle! And pollution is another
concern. So many private cars running in the city will bring us an environmental problem. On the
other hand, the pollution from the public traffic system is much lighter.

All in all, an advanced public traffic system time efficient, cost efficient, and pollution preventing.
This is the trend of advanced cities.
(This is a 5 point essay)

Sample essay 5.


I am from Arroz e Feijao, a small town in the northeast of Brazil. Building a factory in there will
bring a lot of advantages and disadvantages, but I believe that Arroz e Feijao will mostly benefit
from the building of a new factory because it is largely populated by poor people and the factory
would bring many benefits to this small town. However, of course, a factory has disadvantages as
well.

As you know, factories usually bring pollution. If this factory is not managed very effectively and
efficiently according to specific rules, it's prone to polluting the local air and water. What's more,
factories usually make noise. Beside clean drinkable water and fresh air, an ideal community
should be quiet. If the factory cannot maintain this situation to the community, it will not last long.
A factory that is too noisy or pollutes too much will eventually be relocated to a new area.

On the other hand, a factory could bring a lot of benefits to the community. So I would support
the plan to build a factory to my community for all the reasons I will describe below.

First of all, the factory's construction will surely improve the local infrastructure. To run smoothly,
the factory will have to have a steady, reliable supply of water and electricity. Some old pipes will
be changed, and some facilities will be renovated. The residents' living standard get improved as a result of these widespread changes, an important benefit in Arroz e Feijao, where many people do
not have access to clean water.

Secondly, to make the employee commute more convenient, the local roads will have to be rebuilt
and broadened, resulting in improved public transportation. The town's residents can take a public
bus to go shopping or go to work. As a result, air pollution and fuel consumption might be
reduced.

Most important, a factory's establishment will bring up a lot of employment opportunities for the
community. A factory need experts from various fields. The residents can take just a few minutes
to go to the factory to work. So, the local residents can get great benefits from this factory.
Generally speaking, I agree with the plan to build a factory near my community. If the factory can
be managed successfully, the factory and local residents can have mutual benefit.

Sample essay 6.

Have you been waiting for buses at bus station for an hour in an extremely hot day? Have you
been staying in a car waiting hours for the heavy traffic? Have you seen the scene that tons of
people are crammed on a small bus? Maybe you think that’s incredible, but it’s true in my
hometown. So the thing I want to change most about my hometown is the mass transportation
system.

Mass transportation system is a very important part of a city. It influences people’s daily life,
work and entertainment. An effective mass transportation system can save people’s time so that
people can do more work hence to increase the city’s efficiency. If you were the mayor, would
you like the people in the city to sit in the cars or stand at bus stations wait for hours or would you
like them to sit in the offices or stand in factories work for hours?

Moreover, a city with bad mass transportation system can’t be qualified as a good city, regardless
how rich the city is and how big the city is. It’s essential for a city to have a good mass
transportation system to be qualified a good city. For example, big cities such as Toronto, Tokyo,
New York all have very good mass transportation systems which can bring people anywhere they
want in a short time. A bad mass transportation system would limit the city to grow and it would
be a handicap for the city to develop in the future.

Finally, as we can see, if my hometown can improve the mass transportation system, people will
appreciate it a lot. It will be a great thing which benefits everyone in the city and makes our lifes
more convenient.

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