Task 1 Do you think scientists should be required to study certain fields or to study whatever that interests them?
I think scientists should be given the right to study whatever that interests them for the following reasons. Firstly, they would probably be much more efficient when they get to study the topics that truly interest them. Take myself as an example, I interned in the science lab in my university last summer and my supervisor allowed me to conduct experiments that I found interesting. So I spent everyday there from 8am to almost 9pm doing experiments, taking down results and analyzing them. I was actually able to come up with some pretty amazing analyses in the end of my internship and I believe I owe it to my supervisor. I probably wouldn't have had so much done if I was forced to study something I had absolutely no passion about. Plus, scientists themselves know more about science than anybody else, they probably have the best ideas about what to study to make a difference in the world.
Task 2 Your friend is going to a new school to study, what suggestion would you give him to help him blend in.
If my friend is going to a new school to stud. I’d have two suggestions for him. First of all, I'd suggest him to learn more about the school. For instance, he can try getting some information on the website of the school, like when it was founded, what kind of facility they offer to students, where everything is and what kind of courses are available for him to take, this will help him get familiar with the school in no time. My second suggestion for him would be to socialize. Go out there and make some new friends. Joining a club would be ideal since he would be surrounded with people who share the same interest with him and it would offer him a perfect platform to meet new interesting people. Building a social circle is definitely a priority when you're new to a place.
Task 3
The university is planning to make two changes to the summer course. The first change is to shorten the course from 8 weeks to 4 weeks. The second one is to reduce on-campus housing fee for students. In the lecture, the man thinks it's a great idea. He mentions in his first reason that a lot of students didn't want to take the course because they wanted to spend time with their family or go traveling. Now that the course is shorter they can enjoy their vacation while not missing out on the course. The man took the summer course and he had a whole week before the course started to enjoy his vacation. As for the second reason, he points out that this way students get to save some money which is definitely a good thing for those with a limited budget.
Task 4
In the lecture, the professor talks about vertical migration which means sometimes marine animals move up and down the ocean to protect themselves from predators and look for food supply. He offers us an example to illustrate it. There's this kind of fish. They swim to the surface of the ocean at night to feed on a type of organism. They choose to swim to the surface of the ocean at this time of day because it's dark at night and it's almost impossible for the predators to locate them. But during the day, this kind of fish swim back to the bottom of the ocean to avoid predators. This means they have to travel between the bottom and the surface of the sea, but this way they get to survive.
Task 5
The man's problem is that he accidentally left his guitar back home but he's got a concert in a couple of days he has to practice for. There are two possible solutions. The first one is to go back home and retrieve the guitar. And the second solution is to borrow his roommate's guitar. If I were in his shoes, I'd go for the second solution because I'm pretty sure his roommate would be glad to help him out, plus he still has some time to get familiar with his roommate's guitar. I personally don't recommend the other solution because it's way too far and it mean he has to use the time he's supposed to spend studying on the road. That's why in this case I think the second solution is a much better option.
Task 6
In the lecture, the professor talks about two production costs that will affect the price of the products. The first one is delivery fee. For instance, if a car company has to delivery the cars to a location which is much closer to where the consumers are, that means they'll have to spend money on delivery, and that eventually will raise the price of the car. The second one is advertising fee. Companies need to spend money on publicity to make their products known to the public. For example, they advertise in magazine and on TV. And of course that costs money too. So it will increase the cost of production eventually as well.