2012年2月18日雅思真题范文：Technology and Lifestyles
海外大学教师谢振礼Jeenn Lee Hsieh

IELTS试题模糊回忆:

真题是鹦鹉今天说的，缺乏真实与完整。请以现场试题原文为凭。对于本次雅思A类的考题，有做预测的名师全是孔明。超热门考古题层出不穷，大家还是可以继续押注这个5星真题：科技对生活的影响有利也有弊。

范文之后，再举例五道沾到边的雅思真题

The development of modern technology has made people's life more complex, so people should choose to have a simple and easy life without using technology. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Give reasons for your answer and include relevant examples from your knowledge or experience.

The advancement of modern technology is making people's life more comfortable and at the same time less human. To those who enjoy the benefits of technology, there is no better time to be alive than now, but to others life has been increasingly complex and stressful. The issue is whether such new technological machines as computers and the Internet would be our servants forever or eventually could become our masters.

All kinds of inventions made possible by technology are designed to be the slaves of human beings, if human beings are not to be slaved by machines. Once upon a time, we were plain people, but that was before we began having relationships with technological systems. By getting involved with computerized machines, we could not help changing the way we live and the way we work, for better or for worse It can be realized that life is more complex because much of modern technology is not born to meet primary human needs, and many "unnecessary" inventions are producing negative effects on a living style that used to be relatively simple. Thus, there is an overwhelming feeling of complexity in the sense that machines act like humans and humans act like machines. Now that "intelligent" machines such as robots are widely applied to take the place of human beings because they are capable of doing many useful jobs, although making many people jobless. Those who cannot work with computers are disadvantaged and therefore helpless while the traditional skills and simple ways of life are fading away, never to return again.

Technology has turned this world into a different one full of wonders, some of them being too good to be true. For example, mobile phone is playing an important role in our social and professional lives, whereas the Internet has connected people at every corner on the planet and beyond. As a consequence, telecommuting may soon become a more common way of working as more people are doing part of their jobs from home. And so what? Actually people are no closer to feeling happy in various respects because such technological developments are destroying many basic values of simple and easy lifestyles. Computers in particular have made life less emotional since the more time people use the Internet, the less time they spend with human beings.

In sum, there are reasons to be worried about what will become of mankind as a whole facing an increasingly complex world in which they may enjoy all the conveniences of life and yet they do not feel any happier or wiser. Who knows that over-dependence on modern technology could not mean the beginning of the end of human sparks of creativity, spirit, compassion, love and understanding and other good things about a simple and easy life. In making people's lives more enjoyable but more complex, technology seems as if sending plenty of blessings from heaven as well as sending plenty of evils from hell. (Jeenn Lee Hsieh, Feb. 18, 2012)


IELTS Related Topics
Writing Task 2

a. Modern technology is transforming the way we work and is of benefit to our society. How far you think our social lives influenced by modern technology?
b.'Telecommuting' refers to workers doing their jobs from home for part of each week and communicating with their office using computer technology. Telecommuting is growing in many countries and is expected to be common for most office workers in the coming decades. How do you think society will be affected by the growth of telecommuting?
c. Technology is making communication easier in today's world, but at the expense of personal contact as many people choose to work at home in front of a computer screen. What dangers are there for a society which depends on computer screens rather than face-to-face contact for its main means of communication?
d. The Internet is becoming more central to our lives as it provides more information, acts as interactive entertainment and a means of voting. These functions have obvious benefits, but there are dangers involved in the control of the Internet over our lives. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
e. Advances in technology and the Internet have transformed the way we live as well as postponing the day we die. There is no better time to be alive than now. To what extent do you agree or disagree?