module 11 Interfering with nature Writing For and against essay Read the article and find one argument in favour of banning, smoking and one argument against Doctors today voted overwhelmingly for a tou ban on smoking in public places. They wane it outlawed in shops, bars, restaurants and at work co cuc deaths from hing cancer and heart diseases. The call follows a decision by the Irish government to make smoking in public egal Several cities and count cs, including Finland, South Afvica and Thailand, already have che legislation, But critics say a ban is difficule tw enforce and has sparked chaos in NewYork. Evidence suggests that passive smoking increases the risk of lung cancer by up to thirty percent and heart disease by rwenty to ewenty-three percent 2D Hete are some more arguments about the issue. Are they for oF against the idea that ‘Smoking should be banned in all public places!? Everyone should have the right to choose whether they smoke or not. bb You can't force people to stop if they don't want to. © Banning smoking would only force people to smoke in secret Treoting people with smoking-related illnesses costs millions of dollars The case that passive smoking harms people seems very strong, f The police have better things to do than enforcing a smoking ban. 1B Look at the plan for a For and Against’ essay Put the phrases in the box below in a suitable section + Introduction: a short introduction to the topic and why its interesting + Arguments for: two or three arguanents in favour of the statement ‘+ Arguments against: two or three arguments against the statement + Concluston: your own opinion One argument against. is In my opinion Firstly, Another aoint in favour of .. fs Itis certainly true that Secondly, Many people nowadays think that On the other hand To sum up, There are two main reasons why | think Quer the ast few years In conclusi Write an essay of about 200 words about one of the titles below using the plan in exercise 3 @ What are the arguments for and against banning smoking in all public places? b_ What are the arguments for and against making it compulsory to ‘wear scat belts in all forms of motarised transport (inchiding buses nd taxis) ¢ New ferolisation techniques make it possible for women to have bobies in their fits, or even sixties, Should they be allowed to have children at this age? d_ Should people be allowed to have cosmetic surgery before the age of eighteen? 124 Using the Internet (2): Ideas for using online news You can find English-language news anywhere thanks to the Internet, e.g. from The Times, Ananova.com. (Ask your teacher for other suggestions.) You can often browse through the day's news free of charge. Here are some ideas if you have access to English- language news online, + Compare how two newspapers deal with the same story: Make 2 Uist of information which (1) only anpears in one rewspaper and (2) appears in bath newspapers Nake a lst of the different sections you would expect ta find in a newspaper, £9 political news, TY listings, arts reviews, etc. How many of the sections can you find? Make a brief note of what is covered in each one. Read one article in detail with 2 goad dictionary. Make a list of ten to twelve useful words or phrases that you found in the article. Try to summarse the main points of the article yourself. Choose an area you are interested in, e.g. sparts fashion, music, etc. Print out a selection af articles on your chosen topic and make a list of new factual information you have got from the articles. Get a translation of an article into your own language (many websites offer a ‘translate this article’ service). See if you can do anything to improve the translation yourself!