Letters, Opinions, and Insights: A Collection of Perspectives

Letters to Magazines or Newspapers

Film Review
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to complain about your review of the film Happy Ever After. I believe it gave the wrong impression, and I’d like to provide readers with an alternative opinion. Firstly, there were several errors in the review. For example, it said the main character was a teenager, whereas she was actually in her twenties. More importantly, however, the review suggested that this was a silly film that only very young people would like. In fact, my friends and I, who are in our late teens, really enjoyed it. To sum up, I would tell your readers not to be put off by your review. This is an entertaining film – watch it and decide for yourself. Yours faithfully, (117)

Emails
Opinion on Pets
To: News: [email protected]
From: claretamo
Dear Madam or Sir,
I disagree with nearly everything that Paul Drake says. Of course, some dogs can be a public nuisance, but nearly always this is the fault of the owner, not the dog. Some dog owners do behave irresponsibly and fail to control their pets in public, and some dogs can be dangerous if they aren’t properly trained. The solution, though, is not to ban dog ownership altogether. A ban on dog ownership would be hard to enforce and would have the effect of driving the problem underground. And what would we do with all the dogs that we already have? It would be far better to strengthen the laws we already have to make owners take their responsibilities more seriously. (125)

Essays
Advantages and Disadvantages of Learning in Your Country
I am writing this essay to give my opinion. The main advantages are that it is cheap to do because you can live at home and continue to study at school or go to work. Another point in favor is that you won’t miss your family or friends. Also, you will be able to eat the food you like and feel comfortable in your normal surroundings. On the other hand, if you go to America or Britain to study English, it can be very expensive, depending on how far you must travel and how long you stay. However, in addition to the language, you will also learn about the culture and have to use English in everyday situations. You will have daily contacts with native speakers who may have strong accents, whereas at home you might not have many chances to practice your English outside the classroom. Nowadays, with the internet, you can communicate in English easily from your own country. In my opinion, however, if you want first-hand experience of using English naturally, it is better to study English in an English-speaking country. (171)

Article
Healthy Eating
Don’t forget your fruit and vegetables! Someone once said, “You are what you eat.” I think this is true, to some extent. Unfortunately, nowadays many young people eat food which is not good for them, even though the taste may be delicious. We all love burgers and fries, but like most things, if we eat too much, it’s not good for our health. The key is balance. According to experts, we should eat at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day to help us stay healthy. They contain lots of minerals and vitamins and can help us lower the risk of getting some types of diseases and other health problems. They are also quite low in calories, and there is so much variety to choose from. You might not like apples, so have a banana instead! Simple! You can still enjoy your burger, but maybe once a week rather than every day. My Top Tips:
+ Remember the 5-a-day rule.
+ Try to cut down on unhealthy foods.
+ Have 3 good meals a day.
+ You can snack, but snack on fruit rather than on chocolate.
+ Do more exercise to burn off calories.
+ Enjoy your food! (200)

Celebrities
Personally, I think that the news needs to have a more serious focus. I am against the excess of sensational news in magazines or newspapers, especially on the Internet. I think that periodical magazines can publish all kinds of news, but in moderation, instead of living full detail about celebrities’ lives. This excess of news about the lives of certain famous people, such as singers, models, and sportsmen and women, makes them well known, although they really do not contribute anything important to society. There are other people, such as doctors, lawyers, teachers, and volunteers, who really play an important role in society, and little is spoken of them in the news. If we think about it, these are the ones who should be in TV programs and news and should be taken as references for society. However, I must admit that entertainment is part of society, and so are celebrities. The problem is the excess of them. Many young people spend most of their time following the lives of these celebrities through Facebook or Instagram, trying to imitate them. They want to be rich and famous like them instead of studying to be able to have a university degree and a good job tomorrow, and this is a serious problem for the families of these young people. On the other hand, there are older people, like the unemployed, who read these news stories about rich and famous people to forget their problems and dream of a life like the famous. To sum up, if we think about celebrity issues all the time, we are ignoring the real issues in the world. Coverage makes celebrities think they are more important than they really are.

Computer Games
Personally, I don’t like computer games. In fact, my children do not have any and do not play with them. We have no home computer games. I think computer games are not good for young people. Young people who start to play computer games when they are children usually have a lot of problems such as: they do not play with other children their age, they have few friends, they are usually shy, and they prefer to be at home with computers. Computer games are addictive and not educational; usually, the most sold computer games are violent. It is better for children and young people to play with friends or do outdoor sports; this is healthier for them than being at home playing computer games. In school, they teach essential computer skills. Computer games should be allowed from the age of sixteen, and there should be fully educational video games for people under 16 years. Nowadays, technology rules our lives. While it apparently makes living much easier, cutting the amount of time it takes to do jobs and connecting us to the rest of the world, it also piles further pressures on us. Take, for example, the car, which perhaps allows somebody to travel further in a day, opening up new work opportunities and therefore supposed to improve their quality of life. To sum up, I think that technology helps us to save time.

Wind and Solar Industries
Wind and solar industries have grown rapidly in recent years, but they still supply only a small fraction of global electricity. The continued growth of these industries to levels that significantly contribute to climate change mitigation will depend on whether they can compete against alternatives that provide high-value energy on demand. Energy storage can transform intermittent renewables for this purpose, but cost improvement is needed. Evaluating diverse storage technologies on a common scale has proved a major challenge, however, owing to their widely varying performance along the two dimensions of energy and power costs. Here we devise a method to compare storage technologies and set cost improvement targets. Some storage technologies today are shown to add value to solar and wind energy, but cost reduction is needed to reach widespread profitability. The optimal cost improvement trajectories, balancing energy and power costs to maximize value, are found to be relatively location invariant, and thus can inform broad industry and government technology development strategies.

Fashion
I’ve actually asked myself this very question. I like to look nice, but I do think trying to look fashionable is somewhat of a waste of time and money. It’s a completely self-serving pursuit that doesn’t contribute anything positive to the people around us or the rest of humanity. In a way, striving to be fashionable is a means to appear dominant over other people. As far as I’m concerned, a well-dressed man from the 1960s looks infinitely more fashionable than somebody from modern day in tight pants, an ugly jacket, and sock-less shoes. People have been trading non-essential items for thousands of years. Nobody needs fashion; nobody needs a bottle of Coca-Cola or a pet rock. Does this make creating and selling these things a waste of time or resources? No, it doesn't. Fashion is very utilitarian. It denotes status, power, and affluence.

Money Management
I think that a child should not have to manage money until they are old enough to understand the working world and mature enough to make responsible purchases. Other parents feel that giving their children money is a good way to teach them about money and financial responsibility. For me, children younger than five are not mature enough to understand money management. They usually resist saving money and tend to spend money right away. Older children can begin to figure out how much they need to save for an item or how much they will have left over after buying something. By the time children are five or six years old, they may be responsible enough to handle small amounts of money. Before starting an allowance, parents may discuss budgets with children and what children want to buy. They may shop with their children in stores or online and discuss prices. The amount of allowance is a personal choice for parents. Young children may be given one or two euros, while teenagers may be given ten euros or more. But general practice is to give older children more money than younger children.

Exam Mag 2017
1. Who are the speakers? C/A/C/C/B/B/A/B/C/B
2. Village markets are common throughout the United Kingdom. Attractions include the selling of local produce and competitions for the best fruit or vegetables. There might also be live music or traditional English dances; it is one of the best ways to experience genuine life. 12. For an especially decorated chocolate, framed creative talent, wrapping colorful paper, protective leather and wood, gardening, industrial revolution/1840s, tourist souvenir. 22. In Australia: B/C/A/B/C/
27. Why study adverts? C/B/B/C/A

Exam Dec 2015
How many medals? C/B/A/A/B/C/B/C/C/A
2. The government announced today they will put millions of dollars into fighting internet bullying, an activity that affects the lives of teenagers across the world. New education programs in schools and colleges will show young people how to protect themselves when they are online. 12. At home: cooking, programmed, slaves, simple task, look after all the writing routine, regular job, intense, five the time, 8000. 22. This new course: C/B/A/B/C
27. Dr. Martens: B/A/B/C/B
32. Community services work in partnership with education welfare officers, home circumstances, pupils with limited prospects at school or as school leavers, a completely new book, computer technology, imagination and creativity, range of information. 40. JustGiving: rewarding, recommend, up to date, charities and projects, more than double, sacrifice, a cause.

Exam May 2016
The news story: B/B/A/C/C/C/A/B/A/C
2. Fans of computer games waited for hours to get their hands on the latest video games. It’s expected to be the biggest selling title in video game history, with sales of more than 15 million predicted for the first day of sales. 12. The subject: biological science, Kenya, United States, grants, new varieties, 90%, initial cost, maintenance, in advance, 100 years. 22. The award: A/B/A/C/B
27. Babage: C/A/B/B/C
32. June 30^th = the end of the world; red sand had been carried from the Sahara Desert by high winds; control food production… unusual weather. 36. Soylent: food shortage… unspoken details… future is unrealistic. 40. Autocorrect: spelling text, students, women, spellathon, post impressions, attitude, exams.

Exam May 2014
How many showings? C/B/B/B/A/A/B/C
12. Name of TV: how much, 7:30 PM, city hall, her painting ship, 01392, bad economic conditions, Las Vegas, remote. 22. New shows: C+A+B+B+C
27. Shiny brown: A/B/A/B
32. Toronto: ten days even at venues throughout the city, TIFF Bell Lightbox, five cinemas. 36. Exploiting untapped resources of talent, a cognitive surplus, 20^th century, the desire for community. 40. The dream: going to lecture, style of delivery, first principal, friends and lectures, the tutorial, revision, two-way communication.

Dictation
2017: Village markets are common throughout the United Kingdom. Attractions include the selling of local produce and competitions for the best fruit or vegetables. There might also be live music or traditional English dances; it is one of the best ways to experience genuine life. 2016: Fans of computer games waited for hours to get their hands on the latest video games. It’s expected to be the biggest selling title in video game history, with sales of more than 15 million predicted for the first day of sales. 12/2015: The government announced today they will put millions of dollars into fighting internet bullying, an activity that affects the lives of teenagers across the world. New education programs in schools and colleges will show young people how to protect themselves when they are online. 05/2015: It is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, but it’s also very well paid. Perhaps that explains why more and more people are choosing to become deep-sea fishermen, all this despite long hours and tough conditions.