Essays for B2

ftware packages. Computer language is also a universal language. Programmers
from different part of the world can work in the Silicon Vally. Although they might have
difficulties in communication in English, they have no problem at all writing programs with Java,
or C++.
Besides, the development of the internet is uniformizing people's life style. Internet is being used
in almost every corner the world. People are doing almost everything with the internet, like getting
all sorts of information, shopping online, paying for their bills and checking their balances in the
online bank. Over 90 per cent of people in the world use the same kind of internet browser - MS
Internet Explorer, and almost every internet page looks like the same, although they use different
language and design. People from all over the world are doing the same thing each day on the
internet, and their living habit is becoming closer and closer with each passing day.
In addition, modern technolgy has facilitated the communications among people from all over the
world, and therefore result a single world culture. For instance, people can chat with a friend or a
stranger who lives abroad on the phone, internet, and they can also see and listen to him/her
through a camera and a microphone just like face to face. This helps one culture learns from other
culture, and bring the world together. Before people can see each other through TV, they used to
wear their local costumes; nowadays T-shirt and blue jeans have become a universal custom for
people. This is a concreate example that modern development is creating a single world culture.
Based on the points discussed above, we can see why I agree with that modern technology is
creating a single world culture.
(Essay ID: 360 )
Topic: 83
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In modern society, technology has brought us amazing surprises everyday. Someone claims that
modern technology is creating a single world culture. I completely disagree with this statement. I
will list some of my reasons here.
Firstly, I believe that modern technology has improved multi-culturalism and the communication
between cultures. With modern communication technology such as TVs and phones, we can see
what people at the other end of the world is doing, and with a modern airplane, we can travel to
every corner of the world. This will greatly help us understand the cultural diversity of this world,
and we will learn to appreciate the cultural difference of people from different part of the earth.
Secondly, modern technology increases the communication between cultures. Eastern people can
learn good virtual from western culture such as politeness and self-cultivation; and western people
can also learn a great deal of good virtual from eastern culture such as modesty and filial pity of
one’s parents. By communication, one culture can learn from other culture and evolve.
Thirdly, modern technology helps us to preserve our cultural relics and world treasures, and
discover our culture in the past. We can also explore and discover more about our past, and have
a better understanding of now and the future. For instance, Xi’an is famous for its figures of
warriors and horses buried in the emperor’s tombs. In the modern world, we explore some of
these tombs so that we would understand the remote and longstanding culture of Qin Dynasty in
China’s history.
Indeed, modern technology has shorten the distance between cultures, and made this world
smaller. But we cannot say that it is creating a single world culture. On the contrary, with the help
of modern technology, we find this world more and more diversify and colorful.
(Essay ID: 172 . Sample essay provided by Erin Billy of www.TestMagic.com)
Topic: 84
What things can be widely used in education, business, government, family and almost all the
other fields all over the world? One answer is the Internet, which is a great communication tool in
the 21st century. Some people claim that the 21st century could not exist without the Internet.
Therefore, children and young adults should use the Internet freely everywhere. Personally, I
have the impression that there are some flaws in this seemingly indisputable proposition. Children
and young adults should not use the Internet freely for three reasons, and some safe programs and
filters are indeed needed in the Internet.
For one thing, the children and young adults that use the Internet freely might get the wrong
information by chance. Children and young adults can be influenced easily by many new things.
The Internet is so wide that it includes some wrong information such as violence and pornography.
That information can cause many bad effects on the children and young adults, which are bad for
them are growing. For example, there is some violence information in the Internet. After the
children and young adults watch that by chance, they might follow the violence way from the
Internet to solve the problems. Consequently, we have to use some kinds of software to block this
kind of information. This highly technical software has already been developed well. Parents can
just trust this kind of software in order to prevent children from accessing the blocked websites,
which includes the wrong information.
For another thing, the children and young adults using the Internet freely might cause some
computer problems. As the Internet is used on the computers, it is related to the computers
closely. The computer is a highly technical machine that sometimes is hard to control. As a result,
some bad things may have loopholes to get into the computer such as the computer viruses. If the
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children and young adults use the Internet freely without some safe programs their computers will
probably be infected with computer viruses. For example, many years ago, I used my computer on
the Internet without any safe programs. One day, I found my computer was abnormal and called a
computer expert to look over it. He said my computer must be infected with computer viruses
from the Internet and suggested I use the safe program to prevent the viruses. Since then, I have
used the Internet with the safe program every time and never get the computer viruses any more.
In addition, there are also some computer hackers on the Internet who always attack others’
computers or steal the data from others’ computers, which is a serious problem for the computer
users. Therefore, a safe program is really needed for the computer users to prevent the viruses and
hackers while they are using the Internet.
Furthermore, by using some filters we can save a lot of time to distinguish the useful and
unnecessary information. Most people use the Internet to find and get information. There are so
great quantities of information on the Internet that we usually have to spend quite a long time to
find the useful information. Whereas, if we use some filters, we can distinguish the useful and
unnecessary information easily. For example, my E-mail box always receives some pornographic
junk mail, which are very disagreeable. After I use the filters to block those mails’ senders, that
mail cannot get into my E-mail box any more. However, the Internet is such an interesting thing
that people who enjoy it may keep on surfing on the net. People who have little ability of self
control will lose themselves in the information highway spending a long time in front of the
screen, which is absolutely bad for their health. Thus, the filters are quite useful when we use the
Internet.
Some people hold that children and young adults use the Internet freely can widen their eyes of
the world. However, I think using the Internet with the filters can also get the information much
enough to widen their eyes. Most parents do not use the filters because they do not know how
useful the filters are. The filters are so good now that we can choose the different ways to get the
different kinds of information. Using the filters can make the limit to help the children and young
adults kown more about the things that are useful for them. If the children and young adults use
the Internet freely, they may lose their directions. As a result, they might not only widen their
eyes, but also waste a lot of time. The filters can help us to prevent getting into the websites that
we will never use them anyway so that we could widen our eyes of the world by using the filters.
As the Internet becomes more and more popular, the way of using Internet will also become more
and more advanced. Consequently, children and young adults should use the Internet with some
new advanced programs to get the information easily. They should try to learn the better way to
use the Internet such as by the safe programs and filters. As a result, the Internet will be really
good for them.
(Essay ID: 452 )
Topic: 84
The Internet Provides people with a lot of information, but is this information valuable, or so
much information create problems for us? In my point of view, every thing has its two sides, and
the value of the Internet far outweighs the disadvantages it brings to us.
The Internet has been beneficial to people around the globe. My view is a commonsense one,
based on the fact that the Web is a vast storehouse of information and opinion, which can be
scientific, literary, political, sporting or sexual. Anyone with access to a computer and a dialup
connection can unlock the door and trawl through its offerings.
The Internet can be used as a broad base of knowledge that contributes to the educational system.
Students and teachers benefit from the use of the Internet, as well as administrators and others
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outside of formal education. Students benefit because the Internet provides a resource to
supplemental information for any subject. Educators benefit because the Internet provides a vast
knowledge base to prepare for topics. People are not only learning from the Internet, they are
contributing and sharing knowledge through networked communities. The Internet is the
advancement of education for all its users.
Internet can deliver better customer services to people. The Internet is changing the way we do
business. Using Internet broadcasting, we are able to target the right audience, prepare and present
a technical presentation on a popular topic, interact with new customers, and collect hundreds of
highly qualified leads. As Internet companies continue to find innovative ways to leverage the
capabilities of the Internet for businesses, the more we will learn how to provide optimal solutions
for customers. Which in turn, will greatly benefit people.
The Internet today is a way to transfer and share information. On the whole, it is a benefit to
individuals of all kinds. We do have problems surrounding the Internet that need to be solved, but
as with all new technologies there are debates and opinions. Since the Internet technology is
spreading, it will soon become as popular as all other forms of communication. If you have not
tried it, do so.
(Essay ID: 173 )
Topic: 85
If you attend a conference in China, and would like to take a one-day-visit on site seeing and
shopping, there are three factors you might consider: this place must have special tourist features
which can represent China, and this place must be close to the place where the meeting is held,
therefore you do not have to spend too much time on traveling.
If you are in northern part of China, the best place that you should visit is the city of Beijing,
although spending one day in Beijing is too short of a period to fully explore the splendors of the
city. Nevertheless, for those of you without the luxury of time, make sure you don't miss a few
key points of interest--the Summer Palace, the Forbidden Palace, the Forbidden City, and the
Great Wall of China.
The Summer Palace is a royal retreat located on the bank of a large lake. Visitors can walk along a
waterfront promenade that leads to a concrete ship docked at the far end of the walk. At the
concrete ship, you can take a ferry back to the entrance of the palace. Something you may want
to do while at the Summer Palace is go into the gift shop, get dressed in traditional Chinese
clothing, and pose for a souvenir photograph.
The Forbidden Palace is absolutely breathtaking. There are a series of gates that lead to the main
palace grounds. Pay particular attention to the stairwells in the palace courtyards. There are slabs
carved with intricate dragon designs, which the emperor was suspended over in a caravan
whenever he left the palace grounds. It would be a good idea to get a local guide to lead you
around the palace and explain the significance of various buildings.
Finally, don't miss the Great Wall. It's located outside of the city and it takes up most of the day,
but it's well worth it. When you ascend the Great Wall, there are two paths--one veering to the
left and the one veering to the right. The path on the right is less steep and an easier climb.
However, if you take the path to the left, you can see the remains of the original wall, and there is
a cable car you can take down to the parking area.
Shopping in Beijing is becoming more convenient by the day. The Silk Market at Xiushui Jie is
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favorites among tourists, experts and locals alike. There you can bargain with the shop owners and
buy good quality cloths with a very low price, you can even see plenty of pirated software-
ironically, within sight of the US Embassy.
So, there you have it. I encourage anyone to spend at least a few days in Beijing, because there
are so much to see.
(Essay ID: 174 )
Topic: 85
If a foreign visitor has only one day to spend in my country - China, I will recommend him to live
in an average Chinese family for that special day. There is no denying that the one-day experience
with a average Chinese family will be invaluable for his life and future career, if given a chance to
work or live in China in the foreseeable future!
As is known to all, to live with an average Chinese family for only one day, the foreign visitor
could not get an overall picture of the average Chinese's life style and their culture; but in another
way, even at the very beginning of being enthusiastically welcomed at the threshold of the house,
he must be overwhelmed by the enthusiasm delivered by Chinese people who are famous for their
hospitality; so that he is given a vivid lesson about the characteristics of the Chinese people. Of
course, hospitality is merely one of the virtues Chinese people possess, but it is of vital importance
to get familiar with the natives, to read the thoughts of the natives through their manners, or even
their gestures, and finally be emerged into the life of the native Chinese more harmoniously than
those who do not have such an experience!
Besides, to live with an average Chinese family, a foreigner will get first-hand information about
the situation of the common Chinese people's the life quality, their main expenses, and their
hobbies in their spare time and so on. This first-hand information is of preliminary importance if
he wants to get an insider’s view of this country.
The third reason is that it is the best way for a foreigner to confirm whether he has read or heard
in his own country is true or not is to look into the average Chinese people's life in person. If a
foreigner is also a well-informed person, he must be buried with bulks of information all shouting
about the so-called "insider's view" about the circumstances of the life of the Chinese people in
today's China; and if he is a critical reader, he should not swallow all that without even asking "is
that true?" Accordingly, I would say to the foreigner that to live with an average Chinese family
will deserve all your endeavour and it is the perfect way to spend your one-day tour in China!
(Essay ID: 405 )
Topic: 86
Back to January 19th,2002
Till now, there is only one thing that makes me feel repentant of. My girlfriend died in Japan, and
at that time I was doing my TOEFL test. If I could go back to some time and place in the past, I
choose to go back to January 19th 2002...
I will use a story to show the reasons for choosing this time in the past. My girlfriend's was
Christina. Her father is Japanese, and her mother is Chinese. That is why she looks as beautiful as
an angel. Last winter vacation, I was preparing for the TOEFL test. Of course, I did not pay
enough time for her as usual. I only saw her for twice a month. The night before the TOEFL test,
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she came to my house. I enjoyed her cooking, and everything looked fine as usual. The next
morning, she cooked the breakfast for me.
Before I left, she kissed me and said " Jackey, good luck. I love you!" I replied: "Thanks, honey! I
love you, too." The test goes fine. After the test, my cell phone rang as I turned it on. It is one of
my best friends Moon. He said " Jackey, Christina went back to Japan. She tried to kill herself.
Now she is in the hospital and she is in danger period. You must arrive to the airport in three
minutes. The visa, passport and the air ticket are in the car. You have to come to Japan right now.
We will see you in Japan!"
When I saw her, she said, " I think your business is more important than me. I do not think you
need me any more! Goodbye, forever." She sleeps forever. If I go back to the time, I will stay with
her and spend much more time on her. I even can drop my business.
In fact, it is impossible for backing that time! Christina is died. There is not another Christina for
me, but will have four times per year for the TOEFL test. The lost would never be back.
(Essay ID: 376 )
Topic: 86
If I were afforded the opportunity to go back to a specific time and place in the past, I would
venture back to ancient Greece. During the 5th century B.C., the Greeks were in the process of
developing and reforming a wide range of cultural, social, and scientific pursuits which still have a
significant impact on the world today.
In the arts, Greece excelled in many fields, particularly dramatic literature. The works of
Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes have had a tremendous influence not only on western
literature, but also western thought in general. The works of these playwrights are still performed
on stages around the world today. However, it would be a rare and exciting opportunity to see
these plays performed for the first time.
The ancient Greeks also excelled in the social sciences. Perhaps their greatest contribution in this
area came in the form of democracy. The Greek words "Demo" and "Cracy" mean "People" and
"Rule" respectively. Today, many of the world's great nations have adopted, and to a certain
extent, modified the ancient Greek system. Yet, its birth and early maturation period all took
place in ancient Greece.
Academic subjects such as Philosophy, Astronomy, Physics and Biology also received a great deal
of attention in the ancient Greek world. The philosophical writings of Heraclitus, Plato, and
Aristotle have had a profound influence on western scholarship for well over two thousand years.
The Mathematical theories of Pythagoras and Euclid, combined with theories from other great
ancient civilizations, provided a foundation upon which later mathematicians such as Newton and
Einstein based their work.
The world of the Ancient Greeks would most certainly be an exciting and stimulating place to go
back to. Politics, Drama, Physics, and a number of other subjects were still in their infancy, and
all were being fiercely debated and examined. It would undoubtedly be and enriching experience
to observe and take part in such a fascinating civilization.
(Essay ID: 175 )
Topic: 87
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