STEP TWO Sample

Possibility 1: Swimming across a lake in cold weather is extremely dangerous. Leaving two young children alone in the woods is unwise—something unexpected could happen to them. And, if you are drowned, a possible incident when the temperature is low and the lake is unfamiliar to you, they might never be found.

Possibility 2: Letting the 14-year-old boy go alone to try to find the right path is very foolish. How could a 14-year-old find the right path in the forest where an adult got lost? He could get very frightened, fall and hurt himself, or he could get lost again.

Possibility 3: Not moving and spending the night in the forest is also risky. The temperature mightdrop;youmightbeverycoldandmightnotbefoundthenextdaywhilestayingpassively.

And what’s more, you have no food nor other equipment with you, so you might become very weak to do any self-rescue because of hunger.

Allthethreepossibilitiesarerisky.But,ifyouareaverygoodswimmerandyouarefairly

confident that there are houses on the other side of the lake, then Possibility 1 might be a safe choice. If you are quite confident that people might start looking for you in daylight, then Possibility 3 might be a safe choice. The most important thing to do is not to panic. Then, you huddle close together so that you can keep warm and conserve your energy.

3 Personal Safety

Sample

1 Motor vehicle accidents account for the largest percentage (59.0%) of all accidental deaths, followed by falls, which make up almost 15% of the accidental deaths. Deaths caused by drowning reach almost 8% of the total, next to motor vehicle accidents and falls. Then come fire burns (6.4%), poison (5.6%) and choking (3.7%). Only about 2.5% of all accidental deaths are caused by firearms, the lowest of all.

2 Ways of preventing accidents:

• lowerthespeedlimit;

• neverrideamotorcyclewithoutwearingahelmetandprotectivegear;

• nevergoswimmingaloneandbecarefulnottoswimindangerousorunknownareas;wear

alifejacketifyouarenotagoodswimmer;

• constantlycheckelectricwiresandreplaceoldones;

• keeppoisonsoutofchildren’sreach;

• banallfirearms;

• not go rock climbing without training and necessary equipment.

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4 Staging a Talk Show: How to Take Intelligent Risks?

Sample

Host: Good Evening, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to our Talk Show Program this week.

Tonight we have three guest speakers from University to discuss the rise of risky activities and their popularity among university students. Now risky sports like bungee jumping, skiing,BASEjumping,rockclimbing,mountaineeringarenolongernewtouniversitystudents.

Participating in these activities is a growing trend. As we know, some students get injured and some have even lost their lives. Universities and local governments have to take measures to rescue those who are in trouble or in dangerous conditions. Many people have begun to ask whether it is worthwhile for university students to take such risks. We want to hear your opinion.

Guest Speaker A: Well, youth is a stage of life characterized by rapid psychological and physical transition. Young people are full of vigor and vitality and tend to seek thrills. They want to challenge themselves and challenge nature. They aim to overcome their fear and to be able to say

“I did that!” Their great bravery will inspire other people. Although people may not do the same kind of sport, they’ll be encouraged by the sense of adventure to overcome fear in their own lives.

I really admire those students who take the risk of challenging themselves.

Host: Thank you very much. You showed us the best side of these people. I think many people would respect them for their sense of adventure and their bravery. (Turning to Guest Speaker B) What do you think about this?

Guest Speaker B: I can understand Speaker A’s admiration for these people. I’m awfully sorry for those who have lost their lives in risky activities. Life is precious and young people should value their lives. It is not easy for parents to bring them up. They have more important things to devote themselves to. How could they take a risky activity at the cost of their lives? It is not only a loss to their family, but also a loss to our country. Furthermore, the local government has to send a rescue team to help those in trouble, at the expense of the taxpayers’ money, which has caused disagreements among people. So I think we should encourage people to take intelligent risks.

Host:Thankyou,SpeakerB.Youshowedthematterinadifferentlight.Ithinkthere’ssomething

in what you said. Now, Speaker C, we’re eager to know what you think about taking intelligent risks.

Guest Speaker C: Everyone has their preference in making choices. Nobody can interfere. If these university students found that they wanted to try these risky activities, who could stop or blame them? The key point is whether they are fully prepared for the risky sports. There are varying degrees of risks, and not everyone is qualified for the risky sports. They should understand the risk involved and see if they can minimize or avoid it. That is a responsible attitude toward life. People have to take responsibility for their own actions. So it is advisable to maximize the prospect of success at the acceptable risk level.

Host: Thank you all for joining us. I think your ideas are very important and helpful to the young university students when they make their decisions about risky sports. (Turning to the audience) Good-bye everyone and we’ll see you again next week.

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5 Weighing the Risks

STEP ONE

1 disasters ² poses ³ damage ⁴ thinking ⁵ pollutants 6 risk ⁷ amount ⁸ released ⁹ effects ¹⁰ variables STEP TWO

Sample

1 The negative effects of technology on our health include: air pollution, water pollution, soil erosion, increased amounts of garbage, more dangerous chemicals, increased rates of cancer and other diseases, etc.

2 It’s a difficult question. We did take many environmental risks for the sake of economic development. Some environmental risks were caused by ignorance or short-sightedness, and some others were caused because we couldn’t afford to protect the environment while maintaining a high speed of economic development. That’s why many people thought that taking risks was necessary at the early stage of economic development when the country had to accumulate enough money for further development. If the environmental risks taken could be examined again, we may say that most of them could have been avoided if we had been wise and careful enough.

3 Yes. For a long time humans felt proud of themselves because they could fight against nature.

They thought they were the master of the planet and could do whatever they want. Anything else in nature should serve them whole-heartedly. Human beings were too self-centered to pay attention to the environment. So when we have interfered too much in nature, it’s nature’s turn to take revenge on us. Global warming is an example and as a result, there have been more natural disasters on the Earth.

PART 4 Translation and Writing

2 Translation Practice

1 Promising new technologies can power our homes, factories and cars with cleaner, more efficient energy—cutting emissions while promoting the economic development.

2 Unless we reach across borders and face threats to the environment together, by the dawn of the next century the Earth may be confronted with an ecological crisis, with half of all species gone, and our grandchildren enduring deadly floods, droughts and diseases caused by global warming.

3 Our planet is a biosphere, which demands that nations work in global partnership to solve the complex environmental problems, such as the long-range transport of air pollutants and disposal of hazardous waste.

4 Risks are an unavoidable part of life. They stem from rare events, such as earthquakes and fires, or from the slowly accumulating effects of exposure to hazardous conditions, which will

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probably cause the loss of property, and even life.

5 Until 100 years ago man had been living in harmony with nature. While today this harmonious relationship is being threatened by man’s lack of foresight and planning, and by his carelessness and insatiable greed.

3 Writing

Sample 1

I don’t think environmental risks are worth taking. Man has already done too much damage to our planet. We will all suffer the consequences of global warming, massive pollution of rivers and oceans, and continuous destruction of forests. We must start looking for more efficient ways to improve the environment rather than continuing to damage it.

Of course, we all want to have a more comfortable life. We want all the modern devices such as refrigerators, TV sets, air-conditioners and other household items that bring us convenience and comfort. We want cars instead of bicycles to travel faster and over longer distances. We want to be abletobuymoreandmorethings.Butatwhatcost?Ifweproducemoregarbage,ifwecontinue

polluting the air, the land and the great rivers, we will one day not be able to breathe fresh air or drink clean water. Health risks will increase and our life span will decrease.

So the environmental risks are not worth taking in the long run. The short-term gains can’t outweigh the long-term pain and suffering. We shouldn’t destroy the place we are living in and our future generations will depend on for their living.

Sample 2

It seems that environmental risks are worth taking. China is experiencing rapid economic development and people’s living conditions have been improved greatly. In order to do this, she has to take intelligent risks. Pollution is one of the major consequences of technological and economic growth.

If stricter controls are placed on companies and if laws are made to limit pollution, we can minimize the risks to the environment. Unfortunately, installing anti-pollution devices and cleaning up the rivers and lakes are very costly. And very often people are near-sighted when they make their choices.

The market economy has brought about many good changes that have improved people’s lives.

Progress of any kind has always involved risks. We must be prepared to take risks in order to move ahead. However, we should not move blindly. We must remain vigilant with regard to the environmental consequences of our economic development.

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