Memories of TOEFL Speaking Questions (4.13) and Sample Answer.

Task 1:

If human beings were not able to live on the Earth because of pollution, where would you like to live?

A. The surface of ocean;

B. Polar areas;

C. Other planets, like Moon or Mars.

If I were to choose a place for human beings to settle in the future, I think living on other planets would be a good option. This is because that astronomers nowadays have already discovered many Earth-like planets outside our own solar system, and advancements in space technology would allow people to travel through wormholes in space, putting those Earth-like planets within reach. Also, human beings would be able to survive on other planets since these planets are Earth-like, and this means that there would be breathable air, drinkable water, and arable land available to human beings.

Task 2:

Someone likes to play board games or card games, while others like to play video games by using phones or computers. Which one do you think is better? Please use specific reasons and examples to support your response. (2013.02.23)

In my opinion, traditional games such as board games and card games are clearly better than modern games like computer games. The reason is that board games do not require players to stare at computer screens for a long period, which is harmful to the eyesight and can lead to poor visions, especially for young children. In addition, an important aspect of some card games is diplomacy, that is, players making deals with one another, and this means that people can develop their social skills and learn how to negotiate with others and how to employ tactics.

Task 3:

Reading:

Proposal— Those who serve as advisors should get paid.

(1) They have much work to do.

(2) In this way, more candidates could be willing to do it.

Listening

Man-disagree

(1) Advisors have only paid half price to live in the dormitory, and there are not much workload compared with other jobs.

(2) The appliers who are aiming at getting high salary from this job may not be sincere to work for students.

The university proposes to pay for the advisors for freshmen. The male student believes that the proposal is a bad idea. He holds the view for two reasons. His first reason for claiming this is that the university has already offered those advisors a 50 percent discount on their accommodation, which is a fair amount of money. Moreover, they do not have a heavy workload when compared to other staff. Also, the male students says that advisors who are drawn to this job because of the salary offered may not be good enough to provide consulate for freshmen. According to him, the advisors must warm-hearted and he fears that offering salary would appeal to those who do not care for students but for money itself. Based on the two reasons, the male student does not support the proposal made by the university.

Task 4

Reading:

Definition—irreversible thinking

Irreversible thinking exists when children are around two and last until approximately age seven. The child’s thinking during this stage is pre (before) operations. This means the child cannot use logic or transform, combine or separate ideas. Children in this stage cannot adapt to the changing environment, they also cannot appreciate that a reverse transformation would return the material to its original state.

Listening:

To make you understand it clear, I would like to share a story about my daughter. Last Saturday, I was going to make a sandwich for my daughter. But she started to cry when I put cheese, turkey and lettuce in it and told me she hate lettuce. However, things didn’t turn better when I took lettuce out of the sandwich, she was still crying and refused to have lunch. I had nothing to do, so I just made her another sandwich, with only cheese and turkey but nothing else, hoping that she can be a good girl and have her lunch. To my surprise, I felt she couldn’t tell the difference between the new sandwich and the one with lettuce. She insisted not to have it and didn’t have lunch that day. ”

The reading passage talks about irreversible thinking, which is a phenomenon that describes the situation where children cannot reverse their thinking about something when they have formed an idea about it in the first place. Then the professor in the lecture illustrates the point using a specific example. According to the professor, he once made a lunch sandwich for his daughter, and the ingredients included cheese and turkey, which his daughter finds delicious. He mentions that he also put some lettuce into the sandwich, only to find that his daughter disliked the lettuce added and it didn’t help even when the professor removed the lettuce from the sandwich, and his daughter still refused to have lunch. Eventually, the professor’s daughter did not eat sandwich with only cheese and turkey. The example above illustrated the tern irreversible thinking. TOEFL information

Task 5

M: Hi, Nancy, how are you doing?

W: Just as usual, thanks Joe.

M: Hey, what’s wrong, you look a bit upset.

W: Well, it’s annoying that I can’t use Internet in our new dormitory. I need to finish several essays this month, and I have tons of papers need to be downloaded. Beside, it’s suffering and really inconvenient if I can’t contact my classmates in dorm.

M: Why don’t you just get the broadband connection?

W: It’s an easy way, but then I need to pay for that every month, even in the vacations.

M: Well, I heard the computer center in the campus is free, maybe you can check that out.

M: Yeah I think I will do that, but my classmates told me it could be difficult to find a sit, especially during the finals’ weeks. I’m still thinking about it…

 The woman was facing a problem that it is impossible for her to write essays in the dorm or communicate with her classmates because she does not have access to the Internet. The man gives her two suggestions: First of all, the woman could pay for the Internet monthly. The second suggestion is that she could use computers in the computer center for free. I think the woman should follow the man’s second suggestion. The first reason why I prefer the second solution is that as a student, the woman does not have a stable source of income, so it is not realistic for her to pay for the Internet. In addition, I think the second solution is better because although there may be many students who would also use the computer center, it is likely for the woman to reschedule her timetable and avoid the rush.

Task 6

[Topic]Biology

Today I would to introduce a behavior called Kleptoparasitism, literally, parasitism by theft. It is a form of feeding in which one animal takes prey or other food that was caught, collected, or otherwise prepared by another animal, including stored food. The term is also used to describe the stealing of nest material or other inanimate objects from one animal by another.

There are two reasons why some animals choose to steal for the resource they need. One is because of their own physical inability, which unable them to get food in a “usual” way. Diving birds that bring their prey to the surface suffer interspecific kleptoparasitism from sea gulls, which are unable to fetch fish from the sea floor themselves.

Another reason is that even the animals have the physical ability, they may expose themselves to their predators when they are searching for food. There is a kind of bird called red star, being known to steal rocks and other nest materials from members of their colony for use in their own nest. And they will steal food from other birds’ nest to reduce the risks of exposure to danger.

In the lecture, the professor explains the meaning of kleptoparasitism and talks about the reasons why certain animals steal food from other animals. The professor illustrates the point by giving two specific examples. Some animals steal food because of their physical inabilities, which means that they are not capable of locating and acquire food themselves. For example, seagulls cannot dive deep into the water to catch fish themselves, so they choose to steal fish that are caught by other seabirds rather than do it themselves. Another reason why certain animals tend to nick food is that when they search for food, they are exposed to their predators. For instance, one type of bird called red stars usually take food and nest materials from other birds’ nest when other birds do not guard the nest. This way, the red stars can avoid the risk of being caught by their predators.