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Science & Technology
Technology is
an important part of our lives. We use computers and other
electric equipment at work and in the home. However, some people
believe we rely too much on machines, and that the more
technology improves, the lazier and weaker humans will become.
Technological advances are changing our lives very rapidly.
Nowadays we can't do without such gadgets as mobile phones, PCs,
digital tape recorders, air conditioners, fax machines and so
on. Many people feel ill at ease without their laptop computers
or GPS navigation systems.
In my opinion, technology facilitates our lives and saves our
time. Computers help us do the most difficult sums and
investigate complicated data. People do business, communicate
and do the shopping via the Internet. It is much easier to do
housework nowadays, thanks to electric equipment such as
microwave ovens, washing machines and so on.
However, many people say that technology makes us lazier and
weaker. For example, such technological developments as the
telephone and the Internet have made communication much easier,
but they can cause the loss of social interaction. A lot of
people prefer communicating through a keyboard than face to
face. That is why people don't meet as often as they did in the
past. A lot of people are fond of watching TV and playing
computer games. They spend hours in front of the screen. They
have no time to read books or to communicate with their friends.
They move less, speak less and they even think less. Of course,
such way of life does much harm to their health.
To sum up, people should continue to develop technology, but
they must do it wisely. Otherwise we may regret in the future.
Some people
say that technical devices do more harm than good. However,
others think that it is impossible to live without computers or
mobile phones nowadays.
Nowadays people can't imagine their lives without different
technical devices. Every day we use computers, laptops, mobile
phones, i-Pods, digital tape recorders and so on.
I have always wondered if our lives could be better without
these technical devices. Personally, I can't do without my
computer as it helps me study. For example, it helps me prepare
reports and create beautiful presentations. Besides, the
computer is a great source of entertainment. I often play
computer games, watch films or listen to music. The Internet
helps me learn the latest news, access useful information,
communicate with my friends and what not. A mobile phone is a
vital part of my daily life. It gives me an opportunity to be
reachable everywhere and to keep in touch with my friends.
However, many people say that technical devices enslave those
who use them. Besides, they do much harm to our health. For
example, if people spend much time in front of the screen, they
have problems with their eyesight and sleep. They don't go out
or exercise, they feel exhausted and depressed. Computer games
can cause addiction and make people aggressive. As for mobile
phones, they use electromagnetic radiation which can influence
our health in a negative way.
To conclude, I would prefer a technological way of life to a
natural one, though it has a number of disadvantages. In my
opinion, modern society can't do without progress and
technology. People can avoid the risk to human life and health
if they use technological devices wisely.
Mobile
telephones have become very popular nowadays. However, some
people say that their use should be restricted.
Mobile phones have changed people's lives. They give us an
opportunity to stay in touch and to be reachable everywhere. It
is very comfortable, especially for the busy modern lifestyle.
So, the mobile phone has become a vital part of our daily lives
and it is difficult to imagine how people lived without mobile
phones in the past.
In my opinion, the mobile phone is a very useful device. Thanks
to it, I can access people I need to speak to and I can never
miss anything important. If I need some help, I just call my
friends and they rush to rescue me. If I have a meeting and I'm
late, I can send an SMS with my excuses. It is very fast and
convenient. What is more, with the help of my mobile phone I can
access the Internet, send and receive photos and video, play
games, listen to music and what not.
However, mobile phones have some disadvantages. Firstly, they
deprive people of privacy and it is almost impossible to relax
with your mobile phone on. Secondly, many people are worried
about the harmful influence of mobile phones on their health.
Mobile phones use electromagnetic radiation. Scientists say that
there is no significant health effect from mobile phone
radiation. But still it is better not to use your mobile phone
too often.
To sum up, a mobile phone is very useful because it gives us the
freedom of movement. It has made communication much easier. But
we shouldn't forget that a face-to-face conversation is much
better than just a telephone talk.
Most people
are used to sending e-mails and SMS messages. But others still
prefer traditional paper letters or phone calls.
Nowadays more and more people are sending e-mails and SMS
messages, while others say that it may lead to the loss of
social interaction.
Personally, I communicate with my friends through e-mails and
SMS messages. To my mind, they have a number of advantages.
Firstly, both e-mails and SMS messages are rather cheap and
quick. Secondly, they are non-intrusive. In comparison with a
call, they do not interrupt a person if he or she is in the
middle of a meeting and can't answer you right now. Besides,
there are no standard rules for writing e-mails and SMS
messages, and a lot of words can be shortened. Their objective
is to convey a comprehensible message as quickly as possible.
That is why traditional rules of grammar, spelling and
punctuation are largely ignored.
However, a lot of people say that sending an e-mail or SMS
message is not the same as writing a letter. Paper letters are
usually intimate and long. They give you an opportunity to tell
your friends or relatives all the latest news and to express
your feelings. As for e-mails and SMS messages, they are often
short and impersonal. You can't see the sender's handwriting,
you can't feel the crisp paper and you are not likely to re-read
these messages. But I still believe that sending e-mails and SMS
messages is more effective than writing letters.
To conclude, when we are short of time, e-mails and SMS messages
are the best way of communication. But if we want to give or
learn more detailed information, letters or phone calls are
better.
The Internet
has revolutionized the way people live and work. However, some
people think it has more drawbacks than advantages.
The Internet is a great source of information and
entertainment for many people. It has made possible new forms of
social interaction and has become a major source of leisure.
Personally, I can't imagine my life without the Internet. Thanks
to it, I have an opportunity to access news, documents, images,
sounds, video, games and sports reports, to make friends, to
book tickets and to purchase different things online. There are
a lot of different sites for pupils, students, gardeners,
engineers, bankers, people who are fond of music, cinema, sports
and even for disabled people. What is more, the Internet has
revolutionized the way people communicate. Sending electronic
text messages is much faster and easier than writing letters.
People use e-mail to stay in touch with friends worldwide.
However, there are still a lot of people who think that the
Internet has too many disadvantages. Internet-addiction is a
topical problem nowadays. Spending much time in front of the
screen becomes a kind of obsession for many people. The symptoms
of Internet addiction include sleep deprivation, decreased
physical activity and social interaction with others. People who
spend most of their time in the virtual world forget about the
real one. They neglect their relatives and ruin their families.
Besides, there is a lot of rubbish online and you can't always
trust what you read on the web.
To sum up, the Internet becomes dangerous when it is misused.
But if it is used wisely and moderately, it helps you work,
study or entertain and saves plenty of time.
Internet
dating is becoming more and more popular. However, many people
say that meeting people online is dangerous.
Nowadays a lot of young people feel that meeting people
online is just the same as meeting in a bar. Many of them make
friends online and even fall in love with their virtual
interlocutors.
To my mind, it is silly to trust a person you have never seen.
You can never be sure that you communicate with the individual
whose personal information and photos you see. For example, a
"young" boy may turn out to be a 50-year-old man. Besides, it is
very dangerous to give detailed personal information to complete
strangers. Your online friend may be a swindler or even a
murderer. So meeting such a person in real life may be extremely
risky.
On the other hand, some people say that internet dating has many
advantages. Firstly, it is easier for shy people to chat through
a keyboard than face to face. Secondly, you can search the
Internet when you are not busy. Besides, you can talk to lots of
people at the same time and you can have several online
boyfriends or girlfriends. One can list all his or her romantic
requirements and then find exactly what he or she wants. But I
still believe that face-to-face dating is much better.
To sum up, internet dating may help you find love. If you don't
meet someone in real life, it seems a great alternative. But
Internet daters must be cautious because you never know what you
are going to get from online romance.
Various social
networks have aroused great interest among Internet users.
However, some people say that they have a lot of drawbacks.
Social networks are very popular among users of different
ages and professions. But many people are concerned about the
influence of social networks on their lives.
Personally, I think that social networks have a lot of benefits.
Firstly, they link together users of the Internet who have
common interests and give people an opportunity to look for old
and new friends, to build communities, to send messages and to
share news and pictures. There are other sites which allow
classmates from school or university to keep in contact with
each other. Secondly, many people use social networks to
communicate and exchange personal information for dating
purposes. Thirdly, social networks are being used by teachers
and students. Teachers often help pupils with homework and post
assignments, tests or quizzes. Social networks also serve to
foster teacher-parent communication. Parents can ask questions
without having to meet teachers face to face. Finally, some
people search for job opportunities with the help of social
networks.
However, some users are worried about data theft and viruses.
The problem is that many people give out too much personal
information that may be passed to third parties for different
purposes. To protect user privacy, social networks allow users
to choose who can view their profile or contact them. This
prevents unauthorized users from accessing, adding, changing, or
removing personal information and pictures.
To conclude, the popularity of social networks continues growing
because more and more people find it easier to communicate
digitally. What is more, millions of people use them for fun as
well as for business and educational purposes.
Artificial
intelligence performs quite a lot of jobs nowadays. However,
many people are worried about computers doing the same things
that people can do.
In the 90s and early 21st century artificial intelligence
achieved its greatest success. Today clever machines are taught
to think and make decisions. But is it safe that artificial
intelligence is invading the world?
To my mind, computers and robots are very helpful. There are
more and more jobs which humans leave to robots such as
exploring another planet, defusing bombs or just doing boring
household chores like cleaning. Computers can perform a lot of
functions: they can control cars and planes, give us the news or
compose music. Many factory jobs are performed by industrial
robots nowadays. It has led to cheaper production of various
goods, including automobiles and electronics. Artificial
intelligence has successfully been used in a wide range of
fields including medical diagnosis, stock trading, robot
control, law, scientific discovery and toys.
However, there are some reasons to worry about robots. Firstly,
the use of robots in industry leads to unemployment as many jobs
are performed by machines. Secondly, industrial robots can be
dangerous and cause harm to human workers. Besides, many people
fear that highly intelligent robots may take over and destroy
the human race. There are a lot of books and films about people
losing control over clever machines that begin to kill their
creators. But I believe that it is early to worry because robots
are still clumsy and not very intelligent.
To conclude, artificial intelligence serves to help people and
make their lives easier. That is why I think that we should
promote research in artificial intelligence. But people must be
careful and pay more attention to security.
People have
different attitude to cloning. Some of them think that cloning
opens new possibilities, while others are convinced that it is
morally unacceptable.
Scientists have always dreamed of reproducing exact copies
of animals and even human beings. They have already succeeded in
this field and created Dolly, the first cloned sheep, and many
other animals. But the question of cloning, especially human
one, still remains controversial.
Personally, I think that cloning plants and animals is rather
interesting and exciting. Cloned animals may be strong and
healthy and they may produce more wool, meat or milk. Besides,
cloning will help us preserve species that are on the brink of
extinction. Moreover, cloning gives people new medical
possibilities. Owing to it, scientists can create organs for
transplantation and save people who need a new heart, liver or
kidneys.
However, quite a lot of people are against cloning. They say
that people must not interfere in the process of creating a new
life because it is the duty of nature. What is more, scientists
don't know for sure how clones will behave and what diseases
they may transmit. As for human cloning, it seems to be
dangerous and morally unacceptable.
To conclude, I think that science must develop in order to
improve our lives. But people should be more careful when they
use new technologies and investigate new phenomena. So to my
mind, cloning must be used only when it is necessary to save
lives and to solve important problems.
The Large
Hadron Collider (LHC), the world's largest particle accelerator,
is expected to advance humanity's understanding of the deepest
laws of nature. However, a lot of people are worried about its
existence.
The Large Hadron Collider has gained considerable attention
of the scientific community, the mass media and the general
public. Experts say that it could change physics and our
understanding of the world. But why do many people worry that
the LHC would be a problem?
Personally, I'm amazed by all the interesting theories
surrounding the LHC. Scientists hope that the Large Hadron
Collider will help us answer many of the most fundamental
questions concerning the structure of space and time, extra
dimensions, the nature of the dark matter and many others. There
hasn't been any advance in fundamental physics for many years,
but the LHC may help us understand how the universe works and
discover new facts about it.
However, many people are against the LHC. The project costs much
money and the LHC is considered to be one of the most expensive
scientific instruments ever built. Moreover, people fear that
the experiments at the Large Hadron Collider may be extremely
dangerous and that it may swallow Switzerland or even destroy
the planet. In his famous novel "Angels & Demons" Dan Brown
describes antimatter created at the LHC which is used in a
weapon against the Vatican. But according to scientists, the LHC
presents no danger and there is no reason for concern. I
strongly feel that the experiments at the LHC should continue
because they are extremely interesting and nobody knows what is
going to be found.
To conclude, I believe that the LHC may change the face of
physics forever and help answer the questions that people have
been asking since the beginning of time.
The use of
polygraph still remains controversial. Some people think that
this device helps detect a lie, while others are convinced that
polygraph evidence is unreliable.
It is well-known that lying causes bodily changes. A
polygraph, or a lie detector, measures the physiological stress
a person endures while he or she gives statements or answers
questions. The device measures the suspect's heart rate, blood
pressure, breathing rate and respiration. If there is increased
activity in these areas, the suspect might be lying. However,
the accuracy of the polygraph has been contested almost since
the introduction of the device.
Personally, I think that a polygraph is a very useful invention.
If people believe that it can detect lies, they try to answer
truthfully. In some countries polygraphs are used to interrogate
suspects and screen new employees. Polygraph examinations
sometimes help extract confessions from a defendant.
But experts say that the accuracy of this method is
questionable. According to them, if you go into the test rested
and relaxed, if you are cooperative and try to remain calm, you
are likely to pass polygraph tests. There were some cases when
polygraph failed to trap known spies. Conversely, innocent
people have been known to fail polygraph tests. That is why
polygraph results are not admissible as court evidence.
To conclude, I believe that no device or expert can detect a lie
with 100% accuracy. To my mind, polygraph can make some people
be honest, but it can also be deceived.
Some people
think that science plays the most important role in the
development of our civilization; others believe that our world
would be impossible without poetry.
What does science have in common with poetry? Science is a
product of people's intellect. Poetry is a product of their
imagination and inspiration. Science deals with bacteria, atoms,
electricity, magnetic fields and so on. Poetry deals with human
feelings such as love, jealousy, hatred and others.
I believe that the world wouldn't develop without science. The
aims of science are making discoveries and increasing human
knowledge and understanding. Science deals with such areas as
the theory of evolution, the method of creation of the universe
and the Earth, the origins of life and many others. Science has
already helped people answer a lot of complicated questions.
With the help of the latest achievements of science and
engineering we can solve many problems and make our lives
better.
However, many people are not sure that all we need is science.
Some of them are convinced that our lives would be dull without
poetry. People's feelings are so intense, that they want to
express them using beautiful language. Poetry serves to stir our
imagination and to evoke emotional or sensual responses. While
reading poetry we forget about our problems and experience the
poet's deepest dreams and fears. A good poem often makes us
laugh or cry. It also makes us think about other people's
feelings.
In conclusion, I'd like to say that it's rather difficult to
live both without science and poetry. Science helps develop
technology and solve many problems. Poetry helps make our lives
more colourful and romantic. Besides, it helps us not to forget
about human feelings, values and beliefs.
Some people
think that science has nothing in common with religion, while
others are convinced that it is not so.
There seems to be an eternal conflict between science and
religion. Religious people have disagreed or are still
disagreeing with scientists in different areas. Does it mean
that there is a great gap between science and religion?
To my mind, science and religion have little in common. Science
is a product of people's intellect. Religion is a product of the
mystical sense and it requires some unquestioned faith. Science
is based on observation, research and experiment. Religious
knowledge is gained from religious leaders, scriptures and
personal revelation. Scientists are convinced that there must be
explanations for all mysterious phenomena. It has already
answered some complicated questions about bacteria, atoms,
electricity, magnetic fields and many others. Religion deals
with questions which science has not answered yet. What is the
purpose of our life? Is there life after death? What happens to
the soul?
However, many people say that science and religion are not as
different as it seems to be. Many scientists dedicate their
lives to solving the riddle of existence. But the more they
learn about the world, the more complex and harder to grasp it
seems to be. Many scientists such as Albert Einstein or Isaac
Newton were devoutly religious individuals and worked to
harmonize science and religion. What scientists call the Energy
is called God by religious people. Besides, more and more
scientists are becoming religious and they are beginning to use
words like "God", "soul" or "spirituality".
To conclude, one day people may realize that science and
religion have a common ground and that spiritual power is as
important as scientific power.
Из учебного пособия
"Открывая
мир с английским языком. 150 эссе для ЕГЭ. Готовимся к ЕГЭ" Юнёва С.А. 2011г.
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