No.1 Opportunity and Success <br /> Opportunities don't come often. They come every once <br /> in a while. Very often, they come quietly and go by without <br /> being noticed. Therefore ,it is advisable that you should <br /> value and treat them with care. <br /> When an opportunity comes, it brings a promise but <br /> never realizes it on its own. If you want to achieve something <br /> or intend to fulfill one of your ambitious, you must work <br /> hard, make efforts and get prepared. Otherwise, you will <br /> take no advantage of opportunities when they come to visit <br /> you. <br /> The difference between a man who succeeds and one <br /> who does not lies only in the way each treats opportunities. <br /> The successful person always makes adequate preparations <br /> to meet opportunities as they duly arrive. The unsuccessful <br /> person, on the other hand, works little and just waits to <br /> see them pass by. <br /> In my opinion, there are plenty of opportunities <br /> for everyone in our society, but only those who are prepared adequately and qualified highly can make use of them to <br /> achieve their purpose. <br /> -------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> No.2 On Developing Tourism <br /> Tourism, a "smokeless industry", is developing rapidly <br /> in China. With the open and reform policy being carried out, thousands upon thousands of foreign visitors are crowding into <br /> our country. The are eager to see this old mysterious land <br /> with a splendid culture of more than 5000 years. <br /> Tourism brings China a lot of benefits. First it enables <br /> the Chinese people to know more about the outside world and <br /> promotes friendship and mutual understanding. Second ,it is financially beneficial to China, which needs more foreign <br /> currencies for its modernization program. <br /> Tourism, however, gives rise to a number of problems. For instance, it becomes a burden to our inefficient transportation system. Besides, the living standard of the average Chinese is <br /> still not high enough to be able to afford the many different <br /> sorts of expenses during long distance travels. As for me, I <br /> believe that with the development of our national economy, all <br /> these problems will certainly be solved step by step. A much <br /> better and brighter future awaits us. <br /> -------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> No.3 The value of Time <br /> As a popular saying goes, "Time is money. "In fact, time is more precious than money. When money is spent, you can earn it <br /> back if you want to. However, when time <br /> is gone, it will never come back. <br /> As the pace of modern life continues to accelerate ,the <br /> time at our disposal is quite limited. But there are a lot of <br /> things to be done in our lives. We should make full use of our <br /> time to fulfil what is useful to us. For instance, as students we should devote most of our time to our academic studies. In this way we can acquire new knowledge and skill necessary for our future carrier. <br /> In my opinion, wasting time means wasting our valuable life. But many of us don't realize this .They think time is inexhaustable. I'm not in favor of such of a view .Hence ,my conclusion is that we should never put off what can be today until tomorrow. <br /> -------------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> No.4 Are Prizes a Good Thing? <br /> Nobody denies that competitions with prizes can bring people's initiative into full play. Encouraged by a strong desire to win a prize, one will go all out to seek his greatest success. Consequently, the best achievements will be obtained in a game with awards. <br /> However, the prompting of a prize does not always lead to desirable results. For example, a competitor who cannot overcome the temptation of a prize is likely to take a stimulant .And the <br /> hopeless competitor sees nothing but the prize, which might cause improper behavior. <br /> I my opinion, the remedy lies in moral education of competitors. This will help them to understand the slogan: "Friendship--first, and competition--second. "Then, prices will <br /> play a better part in any contest. Generally speaking, I believe <br /> that prizes are a good thing. <br /> -------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> No.5 On Keeping a Diary in English <br /> Keeping a diary in English is one of the effective ways to improve our English writing ability. Compared with other forms of writing, it is shorter and takes less time. It can help us to cultivate the habit of thinking in English. If we persist in this <br /> practice, gradually we'll learn how to express ourselves in English. <br /> In keeping a diary in English, we inevitably run up against a lot of difficulties .In the first place, it often happens that we <br /> have trouble finding appropriate words and phases to give expression to our mind. Secondly , there are many idiomatic ways of saying things in Chinese. And it is extremely hard for us to put them into English properly. Certainly, there are some other roadblocks we may come across in our keeping a diary in English. <br /> As far as I'm concerned, my suggestion is that we should always have a notebook and a Chinese-English dictionary within easy reach. Whenever something beats us, we can first put it down in our notebook and then consult our dictionary. We can also turn to our English teacher for help, if necessary. In short, I believe that it is of great use to keep a diary in English for the development of our writing skills.<br /> <br /> No.6 On University Tuition System in China <br /> Tuition system has become one of the hottest topics in China since it was put into effect. Different people have different opinions on it. <br /> Some people think that there is no university in the world which is open to students without tuition. As far as China is concerned, it is a developing country with the largest population in the world. The government is unable to allocate enough funds to pay for various teaching facilities and many different kinds of expenses. One of the ways to relieve the problem is for students to pay tuition. The money raised in this way can be used to improve the conditions for running schools. <br /> Others ,however, are opposed to the tuition system. They argue that the living standard of the Chinese people ,especially of those in the poor rural areas, is still low, compared with that in the Western World. The university tuition will certainly add to the already heavy burden of the parents, who live on their salaries or wages. Moreover, tuition may become an obstacle to the development of China's higher education. This is because it hinders some talented people from entering the university just on account of their poverty. <br /> -------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> No.7 Film Is Giving Way to TV in X City <br /> A recent survey analyzed the change in number of film-goers and TV watchers in X city. As is shown by the graph, there has been a sharp decline in the number of film -goers during the period from 1988 to 1998.On the other hand ,the number of TV watchers has steadily increased in the last decade, reaching 150,000 in 1998.Finally,it is interesting to note that there were as many film-goers as TV watchers in the year of 1994. <br /> There might be two reasons, I think, for the change .First, TV is not only a convenient source of entertainment, but a comparatively cheap one. There is no point in arranging transport. And one needn't pay for expensive seats at the cinema. Second, TV makes it possible for one to keep abreast of current events and the latest developments in science and technology. As a consequence, most people prefer to stay at home, watching TV, rather than go out to the cinema, which wastes <br /> both time and money. <br /> personally, I believe there are still a lot of people who enjoy watching films. <br /> They claim that the film is a fascinating form of art. Sitting comfortably in the cinema , one can appreciate the latest movies which will usually be shown on TV far <br /> later on. Therefore, I trust the number of film-goers will be on the rise in the future. <br /> -------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> No.8 The Fight Against Crime <br /> Today the crime rate in some of our cities seems to be rising. Many citizens complain about the thefts and robberies which take place in their street blocks. Therefore ,more and more people are appealing to the authorities to take strong measures to reduce the crime rate. <br /> Faced with criminals ,different people have different attitudes towards them. Some become so frightened that they tend to give up fighting or to turn a blind eye to the criminals. Others, however, are brave enough to fight the criminals even at the risk of their own lives. In their eyes, responsibility is the most important of all the values that hold honest people together. Without it there can be no self-respect, no trust, no law--and, ultimately, no society. There is no doubt that they set a good example for all of us to follow. <br /> As far as I am concerned, my suggestions are as follows. In the first place, every one of us should receive a law education. Secondly, criminals must be punished severely. Finally ,it is urgent to set up a foundation to reward those who fight criminals. In the way we can stand up to any crime and smash it. <br /> -------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> No.9 Road Accidents <br /> In recent years the number of road accidents has been on the rise in big cities. Whenever they happen, the people involved are either injured or killed. They cause great losses both to the country and to the victims' families. Therefore, it is <br /> urgent that we do something to reduce traffic accidents and make our roads safe. <br /> There are several ways I think to cut down the accident rate. In the first place, <br /> the government should take effective measures to improve road conditions. For example, more funds ought to be invested in building new highways and many of the old narrow streets in cities widened or reconstructed. Secondly, local authorities should educate people in every possible way to comply with traffic regulations. Finally pedestrians should be very careful whenever crossing busy streets. <br /> In my opinion, the above mentioned ways are essential to avoid traffic accidents. There is no doubt that the road will be safer to all of us if everyone does his part. <br /> <br /> <br /> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------<br />