Summary - Jake Meyer, mountaineer - May/June 2008 (Core) V1

Not only is Jake Meyer one of the world’s quickest climbers, he is the youngest Brit to climb Everest and the youngest man to summit each continent’s highest mountain. He trains hard, relying of how he feels and young age, stops very rarely, sets higher targets and ignores pain. However, there are still dangers and on his last adventure in America he had to be careful with altitude, wild animals and road accidents.

Letter - A reunion with a family member - May/June 2008

Hi Mark,

It was fantastic receiving your letter last week and I am so excited to hear that you are coming to visit soon. I really can’t wait to see you again as it’s been so long since your last visit.

During that time, I have started to enjoy lots of new activities. For example, I joined the local sailing club and every weekend we sail amongst the idyllic islands in the local bay. In addition, I’m now a member of the local hiking club and during the cool season we go for expeditions in the nearby mountains, valleys and gorges. We climb so high that we often experience snow. I hope you can join me when you get here.

But I know that you are not the most energetic of people, so it’s ok if you want to do more leisurely activities such as strolling in the park or doing some window shopping in the local malls. If you like, we can visit the neighbourhood museum as the new exhibition on modern, surrealist art is out of this world.

Anyway, I’m really looking forward to seeing you again and catching up on all the latest gossip.

See you soon,
John

Letter - Missing a friend - Oct/Nov 2011

Hi Jim,

How are things? You’ve been away for three months now so hopefully you have settled in by this stage. Even though I know it’s a great opportunity for you to study abroad, I must admit that I’m really missing you and the things that we used to do together. Anyway, I writing to let you know about a couple of cool things that I’ve done recently.

As you know, I’m really keen of football, in particular Manchester United. I entered a competition on the radio and, unbelievably, I won first prize, which was an all-expenses paid trip to see them play at Old Trafford. I just got back last week and, let me tell you, it was unforgettable. And to cap an absolutely fantastic week, I was picked by the school to represent them at the inter-schools debating competition. Not only did I get to meet some wonderful people my age, I also got to meet the famous talk-show celebrity David Frost. He was an incredibly inspiring individual.

So as you can see, despite missing you, I’ve been doing some interesting things. How about you? Please write soon to let me know about your new life.

All the best,
Bob

Article - Benefits and drawbacks of using new technologies - May/June 2008 V1

Nowadays, technology and computers are playing a more prominent role in everyone’s lives. While there is no doubt that the use of new technologies, such as the internet and mobile devices, has many benefits, I believe that over-reliance on them has some drawbacks too.

First of all, using new technologies allows us to be connected anytime, anywhere and anyplace. As a result, we have more knowledge at our fingertips. We can quickly find out about current and past affairs, and this is crucial in allowing us to produce better work for school and to solve problems that come up in our lives. In addition, the ability to use new technologies is essential for us to get better jobs after school as technology plays such an important role in modern workplaces.

However, being connected 24/7 to the internet also has some negative consequences. For example, people can become obsessed with checking their social media accounts and playing online games, leading them to losing skills such as face-to-face communication and becoming unhealthy due to lack of exercise.

In conclusion, using new technologies allows us to develop important new skills but we must also be careful not to lose existing ones.