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Essay Ideas on 'Sports and Money'

Sample essay questions which will be helped by this article:
To what extent is sport being damaged by money?
To what extent has drug-taking damaged the reputation of sport? (Drug taking is done to "win match at any cost"
thus achieving monetary gain/prize and fame, which is again associated with earning more money. In sports and
film line fame = money)
Cases when sport is being damaged by money!

True meaning of sports is being lost as it is now played for financial gain rather than for entertainment, physical
fitness, or refreshing ones mood. The players no longer play fairly. They try to win the match by hook or by
crook (meaning win anyhow). All this is happening because of the greed of earning more money, and nothing
else.

Match-fixing means playing the match at a completely or partially predetermined result, going against the rule of
match or playing. There are many reasons for match-fixing apart from the usual one known as betting or gambling.
Sometimes, a team intentionally loses or scores low, in order to obtain perceived competitive advantage in the
future (for example, earning a high draft pick, getting a weaker opponent in the next round of the tournament,
etc). This process is known as tanking. Similarly, sometimes corrupt referee also involve in match-fixing in which
they favour one team against another. There are many such unfair practices which exist in sports, most of which
are motivated by financial gain. Thus, sport is truly damaging the sport.

Use of performance-enhancing drug is increasing these days. Performance-enhancing drugs refer to any substance
taken to perform better athletically. Mainly the drugs like Benzedrine and anabolic steroid are used by the athletes
and players to increase their performance. However, these drugs are banned by the organizations regulating sport
competitions. They refer the use of banned drugs as doping, for which the alleged players have to pass the test
known as doping test. However, many players have been found guilty of using such drugs through this test, in
the past. This shows that the win at any cost principle has now become the spirit of sport.

Apart from unethical and illegal practices, because of the involvement of money factor, only those sports which
bring in good income are being played. The sports which are unprofitable or have low financial gain like the
athletics are being neglected. The money is concentrated upon the popular games like football, cricket, basketball
and the like. Other sports are being overshadowed and ignored.

The cases when the sport is being helped by money!

Many players have now become professionals and have made a career exclusively on sports. As a result, there is
no need for them to take another job to earn their living. This has helped them to focus only on sports and give
their best in the matches. Thus, money has helped to improve the quality of sport and made the sporting events
more competitive.

Money has made sporting equipment, facilities better which has helped to provide better playing environment for
the players. This is also good news for the players, since they need comfortable environment to engage in sporting
events which are mostly tiresome, or tedious.

Money has made sporting events as well as athletes more popular. The people now discuss about statistics like
the richest football club, the most expensive player, the richest player, and so on. This in a way has increased
the reputation of the sports as well as of the players.





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Do you agree that the primary purpose of the arts whether painting, music, drama, or literature is to
entertain?
We come across, at least, some form of arts almost every day. We perceive them in different ways depending
upon their types and basis for perception. We view paintings and sculptures, we listen to music, we watch drama,
and we read literature. Why do we invest our time and effort, and thus engage ourselves, in such activities? When
doing so, aren't we looking for some kind of ways to entertain ourselves? Indeed we are.

Paintings entertain us in different ways depending upon their types. Some paintings inculcate amusements; others
entice us with their beauty; some abstract paintings make us wonder and imagine; paintings of nature fill us with
tranquility; and so on. Whatever, the way may be, all these ways are undoubtedly meant to refresh our mood, and
thus entertain us.

Music is equally entertaining. It makes us forget our duties and responsibilities for a while. It engages us in its
rhythm and even motivates us to dance and enjoy ourselves. It almost always makes us emotional, be it happy,
sad, and excited. All these functions eventually lead us toward entertainment. What is entertainment after all?

Drama too has similar qualities, all of which are meant to entertain. It is a combination of different art forms like
acting, music, story, background composition, cinematography, makeup, et cetera. Often, its purpose is varying.
Sometimes, it is meant purely for entertainment. At other times, its solely aimed to create awareness.
Nonetheless, combining both aspects is seemed to increase effectiveness most of the times. Unentertaining
dramas with the objective of creating awareness mostly become less successful to retain the interest of audience.
In Nepal, the awareness generating dramas acted by Madan Krishna Shrestha and Haribansha Acharya are the
ones to be most successful. That is because their screenplay and acting are both entertaining. This also proves that
the primary purpose of arts, from the perspective of audience, is entertainment.

Literature also serves many different purposes. Awareness, expression, critique, amusement, emotional empathy,
and so on to name a few. Most of these purposes are however closely related to entertainment. From the
perspective of the author the purpose may be to express her emotions, so that she could get a relief from them,
the relief we get when we share our sorrow with our near ones. Similarly, from the perspective of the audience it
is emotional empathy, amusement, enjoying the story, and so on which is all about entertainment.

Despite having other purposes, entertainment remains the main purpose in majority of the works of art. Without it
the other purposes cannot be achieved properly. Needless to say, more amusing or entertaining works will be
memorized and liked for long time like the timeless Mona Lisa of Leonardo Da Vinci, the Dramas of William
Shakespeare, the poems of Alighieri Dante, and the like. Moreover, the purpose may differ for the creator and the
audience. For the artists, the primary motive may be exploration, self-expression, satisfaction, achievement, and
the like. However, from the perspective of the audience it is mostly entertainment, relaxation, tranquility, relief
from stress, and so on. Hence, although cannot be generalized completely, the primary purpose of arts is, by and
large, to entertain.











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Analyse the advantages and disadvantages of globalisation for your country.
The speed with which the world is shrinking nowadays in terms of communication of data and information is
massive. The people now feel near to each other even if they are living far away in term of physical distance. This
phenomenon, resulting mainly from the advancement in transportation and communication facilities, is known as
globalization. However, its pros and cons are debatable, not least from the perspective of my country.

Globalization, in Pakistan, has played a huge role in the reawakening of women via cultural exchange with other
countries. When women view films and dramas of other countries, especially the developed ones, displaying the
self dependent lifestyles of women there, they tend to compare themselves with them. They have begun to
understand that domestic violence and emotional abuse that they are told to be legitimate since their childhood is
actually unjust. However, this cannot be generalized though, since in tribal and rural areas the trend of watching
multi-channel cable television is rare and people still live according to their traditional norms.

With globalization has come the opening of multinational food chains in Pakistan. This is a great advantage in that
people now have better options like Mc Donalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Dunkin Donuts, Hardees, et cetera, to choose
snacks from. Although higher in price than food served by street hawkers and food stalls at the corner of every
street, people get to eat better quality food prepared in hygienic conditions, and also get to enjoy a more pleasant
eating environment. This has raised competition in the market, thus forcing traditional restaurants to compete in
terms of food quality. These food chains also offer home delivery service all across the country, adding to their
usefulness. Apart from serving quality food, they have increased the employment opportunities as well as the
countrys Gross Domestic Product (GDP), thus benefitting the countrys economy as a whole.

People now also have a large variety of products to choose from at the market, all thanks to globalization aided by
better transportation facilities. People tend to trust International brands and buy them more, thus creating a
market for them, sometimes so great a market that many of the brands open up their firms in Pakistan. A great
example is the Unilever brand, whose products have prevailed the market strongly and won peoples trust so much
that a recently initiated Pakistani brand of the same type, Engro foods, is struggling hard to gain recognition.

Globalization has helped the country improve International relations. Pakistan is a developing country, facing
energy crisis, and at times even a short fall of staple food crop. In such conditions good International relations help
get aids and grants from developed countries. A good example here is when, during the initial years of Pakistans
creation, countries like USA, UK, Australia and many others loaned money for creation of dams in the country.
Financial aid and expertise also poured in after the catastrophic earthquake of October 2005, much thanks to the
diplomatic ties the Government of that time had maintained with other nations. However, true credit goes to
globalization process that has facilitated better cooperation among nations.

Pakistan being by and large an agricultural country, it wasnt until recently that people have found great
opportunities in agriculture, thanks to globalization. With the International trade blooming, demands for wheat,
cotton, fruits, fish et cetera have swelled. This has helped cut down unemployment, and brought new agricultural
techniques into the scene too. A new trend is of fish farming, which is appealing the private sector greatly.

Pakistans entertainment industry has had a great renewal with globalization. Dramas have gained a never before
seen perfection in terms of scene plotting, acting, and camera use. Documentaries, for example the recent Oscar-
winning Saving Faces by Sharmeen Obaid, gain International appreciation. Pakistani Films now play in world-
wide theatres. All this has happened because globalization has helped people in these fields learn from other
peoples work around the globe and apply them. Pakistani fashion, both the traditional Shalwar Kameez and the
western attire, is appreciated within the country now and the people are seen running after Pakistani designer
wear.

However, globalization has had its bad on the society too. Critics blame globalization for ruining traditional values.
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They say that the lack of respect for elders among the youth today is seen only after the Television and the
Internet stepped in. They argue that Pakistans youth has learned all this from the more free societies of the
Western countries, where the concept of freedom of speech surpasses in importance the need for elderly respect.
Women are now stepping out of their houses to work, learn and earn, standing against acid burning, forced
marriages, traditional practices of Karo Kari(honor killing) ,et cetera. Critics blame globalization for abandonment
of aged parents at old homes, popularity of pornography, western outfits being more frequent in dramas than
Shalwar Kameez, co-education gaining ground, Urdu (national language of Pakistan) being replaced by English in
everyday conversations and many other socio-cultural changes.

It is also believed that multinational food chains, with their high quality and standards, are winning over
customers. Local shops (dhabbas) and street stalls are unable to match them in any way and thus face financial
loss. Also, multinational duty-free shopping centres as in Metro cash and carry, a renowned German-based firm
operating in Karachi, Pakistan, offer variety, quality, and an enjoyable shopping that local shops and bazaars are
unable to offer. The competition has become tougher than ever, all owing to globalization. Local shampoos, soaps,
beauty products, and other consumer goods, as well as cottage industry spices, all have lost popularity in the
market. The local produces are threatened because of globalization.

It is also believed that every election occurring in Pakistan has a direct relation to the elections occurring in the
developed countries. That is, no election here is fair, and it is the choice of the governments of developed
countries to decide who will get to win. This belief is further strengthened by constant International interference
into Pakistans internal matters. People demand an explanation for the permission granted to drones planes to fly
over Pakistani land, and when they do not get a satisfying response from authorities, they blame the developed
nations. For example, the belief that Pakistan has always supported USAs war on terror is now turning into an
apprehension that we were always fighting someone elses war and have lost way too much over it.

To conclude, globalization, more or less, has both advantages and disadvantages for my country. Rather than
blindly denouncing it, our efforts should be focused in maximizing the benefits and minimizing the negative
impacts of globalization. Otherwise, we would be left behind in the pace of human civilization.


"The ultimate goal of education is to earn money." Discuss.
Education is meant for the all round development of a person in terms of knowledge, skills and wisdom. In
other words, it tries to make people capable and independent. Since being self-dependent requires,
among other things, some sort of income to support our life, in a way, education prepares people to take
a job in order to earn some money. However, education is also about being wise, ethical, moral and
leading a better quality of life. Therefore, we cannot conclude that the ultimate goal of education is to earn
money.

The professionals like doctors, engineers, pilots, lawyers, accountants, and so on had pursued specific
education in their undergraduate and graduate levels of study. Education had equipped them with all the
knowledge and skills required to take up such professions. Although, their profession provides services to
the people in the society, it is done in return for their service fees. Therefore, on this ground we can
conclude that educations ultimate goal is to make money.

Apart from such specific professions, other service sectors offer jobs to the qualified persons. Such
candidates are required to have certain level of educational qualifications. This is an example of peoples
perception that educated people are more suitable for job. And job is all about earning a salary. Hence,
education is about getting a job and earning a livelihood.

Besides, education makes people creative. The educated and knowledgeable people are more likely to
perform innovative works such as inventing new devices, ideas and technologies. Similarly, they are more
likely to contribute literary (poems, stories, novels) and artistic works (paintings, music, acting, and the
like) to the society. In such cases too, monetary incentive plays a critical role especially in their dedication
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and motivation. Moreover, the more they earn the more successful (and famous) they are considered in
their works. Thus, education makes people capable of earning lots of money through creative pursuits.

On the contrary, education can be useful to improve our living standard, and live a healthy life. A more
knowledgeable person can leads a better life than a naive. Even if an uneducated person has a lot of
money he might not have the knowledge about how to use the money wisely. Therefore, the goal of
education is not only to earn money alone, but to teach people how to better spend the earned money to
attain maximum advantages. From this perspective, the ultimate goal of education is to lead a better life.

Education conditions people to work for the welfare of the human beings. Even in doing a job, an
educated person is more cautious or conscious about the impacts of what he does. An ignorant man
might not know about the adverse impacts of his activities. Even if he knows, he might not care it.
However, an educated man is likely to consider such impacts and pay heed to them. An educated man
can be more responsible and accountable in his work. Therefore, education aims to make people
accountable, ethical and moral.

In conclusion, education is not only about earning money. Even the uneducated people earn money as it
is the basis for survival. Again, people cannot live a happy life just by earning lots of money. Moreover,
the economic prosperity conflicts with leading a healthier. It is necessary to open factories, industries and
other business activities at the expense of natural environment to achieve economic prosperity. However,
such an excessive commercialization might have negative consequences upon our health and
environment. Therefore, living a balanced life is necessary if we want sustainable happiness. The goal of
education is probably to make us understand that trade-off and teach us how to achieve such a balanced
life.


Employment is the most important factor of every economy. Do you agree?
From macroeconomic viewpoint, there are three important factors in an economy: national income, general price
level, and employment. Although it is difficult to say which factor is the most important among them, there is no
doubt that employment has a tremendous importance in the economy. Moreover, these factors are
interdependent. Employment influences both general price level and national income. Ignoring the short term
effect, the higher employment will result in a more stable general price level and more stable national income.
Therefore, we can consider employment to be a very important factor of every economy.

Employment is a way for the people to earn income. That income will help them to manage their expenditure in
the necessary goods required in daily life. The surplus income can be saved or spent in fulfilling their other wishes.
Thus, employment not only prevents poverty in the people but also helps them plan for future, and enjoy their life.
Savings can help the people to build up capital which can be used later in stocks, bonds, and other securities which
can provide a regular flow of passive income during the old age. This can prevent old age poverty.

Similarly, employment engages people in useful work for the society and reduces their involvement in anti-social
activities which might arise in the lack of employment. A significant number of criminals commit crimes because of
lack of stable income source. Poverty, resulted by unemployment, is one of the major causes of people engaging in
drug smuggling, robbery, prostitution, human trafficking, murder, and other serious crimes. Employment can
prevent this category of criminals to a large extent, from committing crimes. As a result, employment helps to
maintain peace and order in the society.

Employment engages people in some kind of income generating activity which in turn generates tax income for the
government. That income is used to run the vital governmental bodies like Legislative, Executive and Judiciary
bodies. Apart from that, some of the income is used in infrastructural development which facilitates the economy
to grow further. Therefore, employment is important from the perspective of collecting tax revenue for the
government.

The national output or income is the sum of the income of all the people of a country. The higher the individual
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income, the higher will be the national income. Again, the more the number of active workforce, the more will be
the national income. Therefore, although they are slightly different in economic terms, the indicators of a
countrys income like gross domestic product (GDP), Gross national product (GNP), etc will be positively influenced
by employment.

The higher employment will result in higher production of goods and services which is measured by GDP. This will
result in a relatively more stable price level in the long term. The stable price level will keep the currency stable in
the foreign exchange markets, which will facilitate international trade and reduce the loss from foreign trade. The
slower devaluation of a currency will make the central monetary authority more powerful and more capable to
influence the economy in case of economic crisis.

To sum up, although we cannot rank employment as the most important factor among the economic factors,
mostly because of its interrelation with them, we can safely conclude that it is the backbone of every countrys
economy. Many strikes and revolutions have occurred because of higher rate of unemployment creating chaos in
the society and administration. Employment is, thus, a sensitive issue when compared with other factors of the
economy. Therefore, it is an extremely important factor of every economy.


'Time watching television is time wasted.' Is this a fair comment?

Every human activities wastes ('passes' and 'elapses' are better words I think) our time. So, we should compare
whether passing our time in a certain activity is worth it or not. In my opinion, the knowledge we gain from TV is
worth the time it kills. In fact, TV saves our time because if you want to get the same information by reading a
book or even listening to the radio, you need to spend more time. While you may argue that accumulating
information by listening to the radio is almost same as watching TV, it, in fact, is not same whatsoever. The
information you can perceive by watching a television is much more vivid and effective than listening to the radio.
Therefore, actually TV saves our time if our purpose is to get information by watching the TV programmes.

The programmes like news, documentaries, awareness related plays and serials and so on, can be very beneficial
for the people. These kinds of programmes can help the society to combat its social evils like girls trafficking,
human trafficking, gambling, drinking and smoking, taking drugs, and so on. Similarly, such programs can help to
eradicate superstitious beliefs and unjust traditions from the society. Therefore, television can become a medium
to bring constructive changes in the society.

Also, TV can be a better and faster way for the children to learn about the world. Since, visual aided learning is
much more effective, the TV programmes are likely to have deeper impact upon children and their learning
capacity. Therefore, programmes aimed at the growth and development of children can be very fruitful and
rewarding.

However, the excessive commercialization of the Television can result in the broadcasting of fake or manipulated
news, advertising of socially undesirable products, making controversial and biased programs, and the like, which
can have serious negative impact upon society. In such a case, watching TV becomes not only wasteful but harmful
as well. Therefore, if the government regulation is not robust and effective then Television can create a chaotic
society instead of an intellectual society.

Also the worthless entertainment programmes can make people addicted to the TV. Such programmes just waste
people's time because watching them is almost the same as not watching them in terms of the benefits we get
from such programmes. Also, such programmes can even make people lazier as people get into the habits of
watching them and reduce their physical activity and alertness. This kind of programmes should be avoided.

On the contrary, the entertainment programs watched for refreshment do not waste our time. Because we need
some time for recreation, we can do it in any way we please. If we like to recreate ourselves by watching TV, then
that is also a useful purpose served by Television. Such entertainment programs include watching films, comedy
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programs, watching the visuals of music, and so on. These programs are harmful only in the condition that people
sacrifice the important events of their life and career in order to watch television.

To sum up, we can say that watching Television is not a mere waste of time as it has numerous benefits. Watching
news, documentaries, and other useful programmes actually help us to learn new things very quickly and saves our
time too. However, watching the entertainment programmes may make people addicted to the TV and thus waste
time, which is again a relative concept. Therefore, we should be careful ourselves whether to utilize our time or
waste it while watching television.


Assess the role that music plays in your own life.

(It is a personal essay. So, you can include your personal experiences, examples, and the like and write it in a personal tone.)

Listening to music is a favorite thing for many people. For me too, it is a pleasant pastime. Apart from a pastime, I use it while I
am doing other things as well. That way I find myself more innovative and less frustrated whenever I have to face new problems
during my work. Therefore, music plays a great role in my own life.

Music is a great way of recreation. In fact, it is the best way of rejuvenating ourselves. After a prolonged period of study or
work, I listen to music to refresh myself. Had not there been music, we would have been missing a lot in our life.

It is a means of expression. I sometimes play various musical instruments like Guitar, piano, harmonium, etc and sing, especially
when I am excited or feeling sad. Our feelings are easily expressed with the help of music. Expressing our feelings gives us
mental relief. It is also a great way of avoiding depression.

Similarly, music is the friend of solitude and lone people. Especially, I feel solitary when I am hurt or when I have to face failure
in my life. I was once been hurt when my girlfriend left me for a new boyfriend. At that time, I did not feel like talking to
anyone. I felt the whole world stop before me and I was deeply upset. I then went to my room and started listening to the
tragic songs from my mobile phone. This aspect of music is amazing. There are songs which sing about joy; there are songs
which express sadness; there are songs which speak of tragedy, and there are songs which suit many other types of mood. I
have used music according to my mood to soothe myself in such occasions.

Music is used in celebration. I have celebrated various occasions with the help of music. For example, I have celebrated my
birthday with the "happy birthday to you music. By the same token, music is used during parties and other kinds of
celebrations.

Music is used in various religious and cultural functions. That too has deep impact in me. I pray to God early in the morning by
singing along with traditional music. That makes me feel good and refreshed for the whole day. Apart from that, listening to
such music creates peace in our mind and helps us fulfill our spiritual needs.

Music enhances or boosts up our creativity. I do paintings occasionally. When doing so, I find it difficult to move on with my
work at times. But when I am listening to the music, I go to a different energy level in my work. My working speed as well as
work quality increases and the strokes of my brushes become fluent and artistic. It is easy to tap that creative instinct with the
help of music. Music has aided me not only in painting but also in doing other works like doing assignments, cooking, washing
and similar works which do not need our conscious concentration. Also, the pain or burden of doing work eases when the work
is accompanied by music.

All in all, music is really important to me. It is a friend when Im alone; it enhances my creativity when I do creative works; it
creates a pleasant environment when I do casual works of everyday life; it is used to soothe sadness, enjoy happiness and
express our feelings; it is used in religious settings to intensify the effect of prayer; and it is a favorite pastime when I have
nothing to do. Therefore, music plays a great role in my life.









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Essay ideas on Generation Gap

Generation gap refers to the difference in the ways of thinking and perception in the people of two different generations which
results in behavioral differences and sometimes, conflict among them. In other words, it is the difference in the thinking of the
people of the older and younger generation which is generally connoted with the lack of understanding or misunderstanding
between them.

The most common example of generation gap is seen in the family between parents and their children. It is not only because of
the gap in age but also because of the way parents react to a particular situation. Children being very young and immature do
not understand the way of thinking of their parents. In many cases, the parents, even if they are matured, do not empathize
with the changing values and thinking pattern of the modern world. This creates a communication gap between these two
generations.

Another main reason for generation gap between parents and children are parents themselves. They do not talk openly to their
children and take part in solving their problems. That behavior makes the impression about parents as authoritative persons, in
the mind of children, because they only dictate them to do one thing or the other without understanding the problems faced by
their children. As a result, the children become mentally isolated from their parents. Some parents become too busy with their
work that they dont spend some quality time with their family which makes them completely unaware about how their
children are growing, what kind of mentality is being developed, and so on? This ultimately creates a gap between them. They
only realize it when it is too late.

Generation gap is also created in the family due to religious teachings where parents are very strict with the duties their kids
have to follow. They steal their childrens confidence that does not let them develop and find their inner self. Kids usually reject
their parents boundaries because parents do not take their feelings into account. This directly leads the child lying to their
parents, and thinking about other ways of fulfilling their aims and desires, thus creating a generation gap.

Advancement in technology has lead to the generation gap in this modern world. Children tend to spend most of their time
with their digital devices and busy with social media that they do not discuss their problems with their parents. The internet
provides solutions to most of the worldly problems that children instead of contacting their own parents use the help of the
internet in case of any problem, thus again reducing the communication and leading to a generation gap between them.

Generation gap occurs not only in between the parents and children but also between teachers and students. Students are
likely to enjoy the classes of an open minded teacher, who shows mutual respect to his/her students. The teachers, who tend
to keep their students under unnecessary strict disciplines and practice hard ways to make them obey his/her orders, are
usually disliked by the students. This narrow minded thinking, especially seen in the teachers of older generation, eventually
creates a gap between the students and teacher.

Similarly, the way the teachers behave and react to a particular situation, especially by taking unnecessary actions in case of
clashes and other childlike activities of young students is another reason for creating generation gap. They restrict students for
everything instead of understanding and explaining things positively to them. Another difference is the use of technology.
Young teachers tend to use more digital devices in class for their lectures that has a good impact on the students. Students take
more interest and participate actively in the class discussion. Whereas an old teacher has less frequent use of electronic devices
that makes lectures boring, which is not enjoyed by the students and it instead, creates a gap between them.

In conclusion, I think the generation gap has been greatly increased these days because the time is changing fast and people
find it difficult to cope up with this change. So, to overcome this problem parent or teachers must be close to their children.
They should show interest in all their matters and deal with them positively instead of just scolding them and leaving them
alone to deal with their problems. Giving time to the children, having open communication, and allowing the child to feel free
and not in any kind of pressure, will eventually reduce the generation gaps to a tolerable extent.







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"Learn to understand, not to secure marks." Discuss

The question is trying to distinguish between the two purposes of students while studying.

1) learning to understand the concept and
2) focusing on securing more marks in the exams.

Learning is a continuous and life long process which begins right from the birth of an individual. It can take several
forms; however, we can classify them into two categories:

1) formal learning and
2) informal learning

Education is a formal way of learning whereas, experience, self study, and so on are the informal ways of learning.

Because of the importance of education in getting a job, many people have introduced a hack to the education
system. Instead of learning to understand the concept, they have devised a system which helps them to secure
good marks. Just because good marks are often correlated positively with job placement, the people who dont
like to work hard often seek a shortcut to secure marks. Rather than learning the concept, they learn how to
secure good marks.

By securing higher marks, the students increase their chances of getting a job. Moreover, learning to secure better
marks will help the students to complete a degree easily.

Similarly, the students who run after marks may be motivated by the fact that certificates are more important than
the real skills and knowledge. Thus they may focus on mugging up, cheating, studying only the important notes,
and other tactics which help them score better marks in the exams. In other words, such students would be
completely exam-oriented and may never learn the true value of knowledge.

On the other hand, students who learn to understand something may be interested in the utility, application, and
core essence of the knowledge so as to know why it is important and worth learning. For them, learning the
concept is more important than having a degree with good grades.

A person who understand conceptual matters of certain field, has the possibility of doing something creative and
useful for others as well as earn money and fame for himself. However, getting good grades only may not make
you capable to achieve a similar success. Understanding has more value than securing marks can be proved more
obviously by the importance of informal education and training which do not involve grading on the basis of
performance.

The philosophy of securing good marks "anyhow" is based on the logic that the employers give due value to the
certificates with good grades. Although such philosophy may seem to be temporarily beneficial, it's not a long term
vision whatsoever. While landing a good job is one thing, keeping up the job is another thing. And climbing up the
ladder of the posts and positions is yet another thing which counts much more in the life later. A person who has a
not-so-attractive entry level job may, however, can keep on progressing with his career if he has given emphasis to
understanding, sincerity and hard work. However, the same cannot be said about the person who had just run
after marks during his/her student life.

Therefore, in the end, what matters is the persistent understanding and knowledge, rather than a evidence that
you once studied something. So, you should learn to understand rather than securing marks only.



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"Science and technology can be more harmful than useful." What's your view?
Whether it is the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the house we live in, or any other goods and services we use
on a daily basis, almost everything is the gift of science and technology. Our current life is impossible without the
aid of science and technology. The credit of inventing and discovering all the modern tools, techniques and
equipment goes to technology. However, the excessive commercialization of scientific inventions and their use for
destructive purposes have made human life more threatening than ever. Therefore, whether science and
technology are harmful or useful is a debate of how we use their product.

Although the size of land is fixed, the productivity of land can be increased. That is exactly what is done by the
combination of scientific knowledge and technology. The seeds quality has been improved. The fertilizers are
being used according to the requirement of the soil. The irrigation system has also been improved. As a result, the
farmers are successful to increase yields from the same area of agricultural land.

The manual work at ores and mines is risky to the labourers. However, the advent of robots and automated
machines has helped to replace the labourers in such areas. Now, the difficult and risky jobs are done by robots
automatically, thus leaving safe and easy jobs for the humans. All of this is possible because of the advancement of
science and technology.

Similarly the credit of discovering many mysterious and interesting things goes to the science and technology. The
evolution of life on Earth, the occurrence of various natural phenomena in the Earth and space, the explanation of
the causes of diseases and their treatment, etcetera are a few such things. Therefore, science and technology has
dramatically helped in the expansion of knowledge and wisdom in almost all the sectors of human endeavour.

On the contrary, pollution, ozone layer depletion, climate change, and use of weaponry all are the consequences
of the developments of science and technology. They have serious negative impact upon our health and living
conditions which wouldn't have occurred if there was no advancement in science and technology.

Weaponry, a product of science, is made for destructions and devastations. Guns and bombs never end or reduce
wars but promote it. Development of more sophisticated and more destructive weapon ignites a feeling of avenge
thus inducing more wars. Germany, being heavily defeated in First World War, was forced to sign Versailles Treaty.
Everyone thought that the war was over and the opponent has been sidelined when in fact worse war was yet to
come. Within two decades Germany prepared itself to avenge the unjust treaty it was forced to sign.

Computer is also a product of science and technology. It has revolutionized everything and made tasks faster and
easier. This is a good thing. However, along with that it has created new forms of jobs and has made us busier than
ever. This has compelled us to spend a large part of our time with computers. For the advertisers, online service
providers, software developers, website designers, etc working with computers is a compulsion. Similarly, the
social networks like Facebook and Twitter have made almost every individual busy with their computers.

The computer related jobs and prolonged stay in front of the computer are harmful from the health point of view.
For example, introduction of computers in the workplace has contributed to causing Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI)
to the workers. The mechanical compression (pressing against hard surfaces) of elbow, sustained or awkward
positions for a long duration, repetitive tasks like typing, etc cause RSI. Therefore, technology has become curse for
the workers who perform highly repetitive job by sitting in the same place for a prolonged period of time.

In short, science and technology has both positive and negative aspects. Whether science and technology is
harmful or useful depends largely upon how we use it, and in which direction do we further research on it?
Devoting our time to create weapons, bombs, and other destructive things might bring adverse consequences
whereas improving our living conditions, creating balance in the environment, and reducing the harmful effects of
the technologies will bring positive consequences. The answer to whether science and technology can be harmful
or useful lies, therefore, depends more upon us and our activities rather than science and technology in itself.


11

What can be done to reduce the stress-related problems of the stressful modern life?
Original Question:

In recent years, life has become more stressful than it has ever been. As a consequence,
more and more people are suffering from stress related problems. What factors are
contributing to this increase and what do you think can be done to overcome the current
problems?
Source: Handout from GP instructor Mr. Kamal Pandey

Stress and stress-related illness seem to be unavoidable in the life most people lead nowadays. For
many years now, it has been recognized that increasing levels of stress in the workplace not only
increases the risk of disease but also reduces people's ability to respond flexibly to the demands of their
job. This stress results from a variety of aspects of our modern life; there are, however, several things
that can be done to reduce the problems caused by stress.

The modern world is constantly developing and at a very high speed. This means that there is constant
change and people need to update their skills. Job security is no longer guaranteed and this can cause a
great deal of stress. In the past, most people were guaranteed a job for life, but this is no longer true. In
fact, many people may have to change career more than once in their life time. In Japan, for example,
the restructuring of many businesses in the last ten years led to a reduction in the number of middle
managers. This was very stressful and led to an alarming number of suicides.

Another contributory factor is population growth. This puts more pressure on our environment. For
example, many calamities like soil erosion, landslide, and drought are caused through deforestation and
various types of pollution have caused the human problems. Moreover, the roads and public transport
become more crowded. As a result, there are longer lines for everyday activities and very crucial
services like shopping and more important things like visits to the hospital where there is great question
of saving a life. In a world where people do not have much time these waits can cause huge amount of
stress.

Although there are many factors behind stress and they are continuing to grow, there are several
courses of action open to everyone. An important way to overcome stress is to focus on health. Health
services could embark on a stress-awareness campaign to make individuals and families understand the
factors that lead to stress. Employers could also run relaxation classes during work time and try to make
work less stressful for their workforce. They can make work divisions with shifts for works in a day as per
the ease of the workers. All people need to find time to relax.

Except the roles of companies, governments have great roles to play to reduce stress of people in
different ways. For instance, they have to provide job opportunities to people with establishments of job
places and they have to supply all necessary things of daily life related to food, shelter and dress without
causing any lacking and problems. Furthermore, they have to develop the situations of security for the
people so that they need not worry about safety of their own and their property.

In brief, the problem of stress is caused by many things and will continue to increase. However, it is the
responsibility of all members of society, governments, companies and individuals, to take action to
minimize its impact. Unless we can control the effects of stress, economic and social development will
be restricted and people will be unable to live a fully active life.


12

Would it be advantageous if all the people throughout the world could speak one common language?
Words are all we have Samuel Beckett.

According to an eleventh century Arab writer, Ibn-e-Hazm, in the beginning there existed a single language given
by God, thanks to which Adam was able to understand the quiddity of things. Over the chequered history of
mankind, the fragmentation of this unique tongue that existed abinitio gave rise to a multitude of diverse
languages. An integration of all these, or a reversion to a single language would have several repercussions.

The fundamental benefits of a single world language are pragmatic. A common language would dissolve all
communication barriers and increase mutual understanding between people and the world over. Such an
environment would be conducive to world peace and the end of conflicts. Economic prosperity would be
facilitated as business partners are able to communicate freely, leading to a growth of international trade.

Xenophobia and other related human fears would be eliminated as people are united under one language. This
would undermine at least some racism or ethno-centrism as societies become more egalitarian in their outlook on
foreign individuals. On the cultural front, a unique tongue would make redundant the need to translate works of
literature or to subtitle/dub movies. The dissemination of knowledge and information could be done freely and in
all parts of the globe, as the world's comprehension of different cultures rises.

However, there are some drawbacks of a single world language. The convenience of a single language with its
resulting blandness would not make for a full life. Language is more than just a communication of needs, it is a
reflection of the social, historical and cultural milieu of society and is therefore a sacred institution. By restricting
the modes of human expression to a single language we would be stultifying, repressing and suffocating man's
desire to be creative. 'The limits of my language are the limits of my world', as someone once aptly noted. Also, in
a manner similar to the situation depicted in George Orwell's 'Nineteen Eighty-four', a single language is a
dangerous situation as it may put disproportionate power into the few hands controlling the medium.

Although the implementation of a single language is an achievable target, the situation is bound to be transient
and impossible to maintain in the long run. Cultural differences between societies transcend language. This is
proven by the distinct cultures of the countries speaking the same language. Hence, although the same language,
English, as spoken in Canada for instance, is dissimilar to that spoken in the United Kingdom, the United States of
Australia. Also, the culture of a country may be composed of several sub-cultures each with its own language. The
home of the Queen's English - the UK - is where English, Gaelic, Welsh, Punjabi, Bengali and Urdu, all coexist.
Another obstacle in achieving this target of common language is political pride, which could create conflict
between nations, when the choice of a dominant language is being made.

In the light of the above discussion, I would suggest that if we are to succeed economically, socially, culturally and
politically, then the world must embrace plurilinguism. The future is a multi-lingual one.














13


'The benefits of technology are mostly enjoyed by the rich.' Do you agree?
When we hear the term technology, devices in sophisticated looks and designs, which are highly expensive to buy
comes in our mind. This definition of technology in our imagination is incomplete. The technology not only aims at
improving the performance and design but also at reducing its cost. In general the sleek designs and beautification
are the factors which multiply the cost of such devices. Therefore, technology is viable and within the reach of
poor and middle class people.

Technology, itself aims at reducing cost. The credit of increasing in the agricultural production of India goes to
technology. Due to the use of technology in farming the agricultural production of India has been multiplied up to
ten times since its independence making the country self-dependant. With the growth in production the cereals
and vegetables have become cheaper in India. Had the country not used the technology, the Indians would have to
pay high price for the food that would otherwise be imported from other countries.

The scope of technology is not limited to electronic gadgets and agriculture but to all the areas of human concern.
From pens and copies we use to the designs of bridges and mega structures, technology has its strong influence on
almost everything. The pen which can write smoothly and last for quite a long time can be bought in just 5 Rupees.
However, if we try to make it manually it would be very costly and time consuming and still the pen would not be
as comfortable as it is with the 5 Rupees pen. The introduction of machines and factories to drastically improve the
quality and lower the cost of things which are required in our day to day life is a technology. Are the poor deprived
of using such goods?

The zinc sheets used in constructing the roofs of the houses are very thin and cheap as well. However, they are
strong, durable and reliable too. They are strong not because they are made out of metals but because of the
zigzag shape. They have made it easy to roof the houses in the villages and rural areas. This technology is very
useful for poor and middle class people and hence, they use it whenever roofing is necessary.

Technology saves the cost of replacing something by making them less prone to damage. The electronic devices
can be totally damaged by lightning. However, with the use of an additional wire to ground the excessive charges
prevents the device from this terrible disaster. Here, the cost involved is at the time of research only which might
have been high but its usefulness and the protection of the electronic devices and important data stored in them is
many times worthier than the cost involved in research. And most importantly we do not have to bear that cost
directly.

Finally the introduction of digital technology recently has revolutionized everything. Kollywood film industry is an
example. Despite the decreasing number of spectators of Nepali movies, the production of movies has not
decreased. The digital technology has reduced the cost of the production. This has even inspired the minorities and
backward groups to produce their own movies in their local language. Who are benefitted by this technology? No
answer to the technology.

Therefore, I prefer to say that technology is targeted for poor ones. The rich people, on the other hand, simply
have more options and alternatives to pick up the items which best fit their desire. Though the poor ones have to
consider economy while choosing the stuffs of their need and desire they do not have to compromise their wants
just because of technology. In fact, fulfilling their desires has become possible only because of technology.








14


How important is it to preserve the balance of nature?
Both human beings and animals are the creation of nature. They depend on nature to get whatever they require
for their survival. Nature may exist without us but we cannot survive in the absence of nature. Then, why do we
deplete the nature to quench our never satisfying thirst of pursuit of development? Why are we not aware of the
fact that all these developmental works would deteriorate our environment and bring imbalance in nature which
will eventually secure our extinction? Nature is our need; wealth and luxury are our wants. Why cannot we
sacrifice our desires for the welfare of all of us?

The imbalance of nature has caused many disasters. For example, the destruction of forest mercilessly has given
rise to the occurrences of floods, landslides, and soil erosion which in turn will destruct human settlements and
livestock in the hilly areas. The drought seen in different parts of the world has dried up water sources.
Consequently, many countries have started to experience the problems of drinking water and irrigation. The
problem of irrigation will reduce the agricultural production of a country which will ultimately cause famine in the
world. So, environmental balance is a must.

The uncontrolled population growth is the major threat to the nature. The more is the population the more will be
the demand for food, water and other resources. The source of all these things is nature. When all the increasing
needs are tried to be fulfilled from the nature, an imbalance is created in the nature. The natural supply hasn't
increased but the consumption rate is skyrocketing. Nature has its limited carrying capacity and it cannot hold
further the pressure of more population. As a result, forest has to be destroyed for settlement and agriculture; the
agricultural production has to be increased to fulfill the demand of food and so on, which will cause the
environmental imbalance further. This will end up creating problems in gratifying the basic needs. Each year about
800 million people suffer from food crisis around the globe; World Bank Research has shown. This will ultimately
leave people with diseases and hunger.

Furthermore, industrialisation has also played great role in bringing imbalance in the nature. Global Warming and
the subsequent change in global climatic condition is the proof of this unbalance. Carbon-dioxide is the main
byproduct of fuel combustion in industries and vehicles. It does not allow heat to escape from the Earth's
atmosphere. This has resulted the melting of polar ice which later caused deluge and rise in the sea level. If the
same condition persists and the global warming continues to increase at the current rate it may sink the whole
world in the ocean, devastating the terrestrial biodiversities including the so-called superior human beings. If it
happened then our luxurious castles and bungalow will perish into the water. The bungalow of Bollywood's King
Shah Rukh Khan in Mumbai will be inside the water within 2050 A.D. according to a recent scientific prediction.
Therefore, these dreadful but probable consequences of the natural imbalance and instability are enough for us to
realise the importance of natural equilibrium.

On contrary to this, if the balance in the nature is maintained, then this world can be saved from these
catastrophes. The people will be able to lead a happy life, in the sense that their physiological needs will be
fulfilled. It will let us and the earth to sustain longer.

To sum up, natural balance is absolutely necessary and there are not any alternatives to it if we want to continue
human race on the earth. If otherwise also it will help us to live a secure, easier and healthy life. We should apply
the principle of Live and let live where we survive along with the forest and wildlife. We can also create
awareness among the people about environmental balance and how to maintain it. We can, as well, conduct
afforestation programs to preserve and promote natural balance which is vital for our survival.