9） ECONOMIC REFORMS IN CHINA
　　China has taken her economic reforms for nearly two decades. People have greatly benefited from the free market economy. Year in and year out， our salaries are higher and higher， and at the same time， our deposit secured steadily. With money in pocket， people can turn their eyes to other forms of consumption instead of living necessities： They have more opportunities to enjoy their lives. Meanwhile the number of people in poverty also decreased greatly. China， now full of confidence， is catching up with other developed nations.

　　However， there do exist some problems in the reformation of economy in China. First of all， with the aggravation of leans in some state-owned or state-operated corporations， more and more people lose their jobs. That will make not only those laid-off workers but the whole society lose confidence and will hinder the development in economy. Secondly， deficit in bank has become a major problem in the reformation in China. Thirdly， the polarization of the society gets more and more serious. The rich have become richer and the poor poorer.

　　In spite of all these difficulties， people don‘ t feel frustrated. They still feel happy and confident about the future. They expect the government can continue the reformation in economics and solve all these difficulties.

　　10） AIR POLLUTION

　　Air pollution is one of the major problems of the modern world. As is known to all， air is essential for life， but it has been getting polluted almost everywhere. Air pollution is more serious in industrialized countries. With the development of industry， the number of various kinds of vehicles and factories is rapidly increasing. They give off a great amount of gas， which is poisonous and harmful to the health of people.

　　Scientists are finding ways to stop air pollution especially in big industrial areas and densely-populated cities. For instance， people have fixed special device on a car to reduce its end gas.

　　Measures have been taken to purify the poisonous gases to a great degree. Smokeless fuels like natural gas are used by more and more citizens. New factories are not allowed to be put up in the center of cities， and factories have used soot-eliminating devices or built recovery towers and sewage treatment tanks to turn the harmful into the beneficial.

　　However， we still have a long way to go before we have a “clean” world. Air pollution is a world-wide problem. It can‘t be solved easily within a day or night. People all over the world should make concerted efforts to reduce air pollution step by step.

　　11） WOMAN‘S POSITION

　　Almost 50 years have passed since China‘s liberation. “Though the position of women has improved to a level higher than used to be the case， it is not high enough. The situation can be reflected from the facts of woman’s social life.

　　Firstly， in many rural areas， the problem of looking down on female children is very serious.

　　To give birth to a boy， peasants run here and there to escape the punishment of the authorities， and a few people even throw the newly-born girl baby in the open. Moreover， to the children‘s education， the parents adopt quite different attitudes. If their money is limited， they always send the boys to school ad let the girls stay at home to earn money. They often say， “Daughters eventually will belong to others.

　　Though some female students are lucky enough to enter college， they will force the problem of employment after their graduation. Most companies would rather accept boys. About this they have many so-called excuses. If the female employees get married， they will have much trouble. They will need a long time to take a care of the baby. Some women who have been accepted by the company will have few chances to be trained or promoted for the same reason. Now among the senior leaders of the state there are only a few women， so many important policies will not reflect women‘s thoughts and desires.

　　12） MY VIEW ON TELEVISION

　　The advent of Television has exerted a strong influence on our lives. But in my view， Television watching should be minimized if we want to live a more meaningful and healthy life. The reasons are as follows：

　　First of all， people spend too much time watching Television to carry out other activities which are better. Many people schedule what they do around planned periods of viewing. It is estimated that the average child today spend more time watching TV than in any other activities save for sleep. If people would turn off TV and enjoy a quiet hour， they might be able to rediscover reading in which they would probably find more entertainment. Or they might take a walk with their family and discuss some problems that have been bothering them.

　　Secondly， a growing number of movies and shows display violence and sex for a sensational effect. But viewers， especially teenagers may take this as granted indiscriminately and this may pose a serious threat to our society.

　　Thirdly， scientists have found out that prolonged exposure to artificial light may alter human cells， thus poses a danger to human health. Therefore， life-long TV exposure might well be a physical risk to human beings.

　　In short， it is high time that we turned off TV and have some fun in other activities. By using the quiet hours to do something more useful， we may get to like our new life better.

　　13） EXAMINATIONS HAVE A BAD INFLUENCE ON CHILDREN

　　We might marvel at the progress made in every field of study， but the method of testing a person‘s knowledge and ability remains as primitive as ever it was. For most people， a test means that the candidates or examiners are sitting in a room with a pen in their hands and are supposed to finish the questions on the test paper within a limited time.

　　Examinations are used for various purposes. A teacher may use it to measure how much progress his/her students have achieved after a period of instruction and， in turn， the results or data or examinations reveal what knowledge and ability the students are lacking. In addition， we have entrance examinations， placement tests， proficiency tests and so on.

　　Outside school， examinations are used for the purpose of selection and promotion. Therefore， examinations are of great importance in modern society.

　　However， people have noted tat examinations have a negative effect on education. On one hand， the tests themselves are questionable； the results of tests lack validity and reliability. On the other hand， both teachers and students are working for high marks instead of learning. As a result， we have high marks but incompetent students. Examples have shown that some Asian students with very high TOEFL marks turn out to be poor in their communication skills in the United States.

　　With the development of science， examinations which can objectively and comprehensively measure a person‘s knowledge and ability will be constructed. They will contribute more to education if they are rightly understood and appropriately used.

　　14） ON MAKING FRIENDS

　　As a human being， one can hardly do without friend. It is because one is not only an individual， but also a social being as well. There are times when one needs to turn to someone for help or comfort. It is because life is full of disappointment， sorrow， loneliness and sorrows. In today‘s competitive society， no one can cope everything by himself.

　　There are many kinds of friends. Some are just our playmates， some for show-off， but true friends are those you can count on when faced with difficulties. There is a well-known saying “Friend in need is friend indeed”。 If your friends turn a cold shoulder to you or even turn against you when you are having troubles， he/she is not your genuine friend.

　　Therefore， I prefer staying with those friends who are helpful， trusting， encouraging and loyal. Being selective and knowing that they can stay by my side when I need them is the most important principle in friend-choosing.