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What are the differences between the life in the past and at the present?
Well, this is a grave question indeed. Life is a continuously changing process and changes every now and then. A large number of changes have taken place in the current days comparing the past. We are living in the advanced world and everything has been mechanised here. But earlier, people were not so much robotic and had enough time to pass with the near and dear ones. The most important inventions in this age are the computers and the internet which I think have revolutionised the entire system. Travelling was too difficult in the past days and it took long times to reach from one place to another. Vehicles were not so common and people used to travel on horses or carts and sometimes they walked long distances to reach the destination. But in the current days, most of the people have their own cars and mass transportations system is also popular and there are different types of modes as well. If we consider the social issues and families, there are also notable changes. Earlier, the numbers of extended families were prevalent but now they have been almost extinct from the society. Nuclear families are on the rise and most of the parents are living alone.
Besides, the cultural changes are substantial and the East is trying to follow the West and also adopting their lifestyles. As a result, there are some cultural conflicts among the people. Besides, the life in the current days is enjoying more modern benefits regarding medical facilities. The number of deaths caused by diseases has been reduced to a great extent comparing to the past days. The use of electronic gadgets and equipment is also on the rise in the current days. Besides, the use of cellular phones (mobile phones) and television is also upping now which was not as much usual as it is in the current days. The life in the modern days is made comfortable with the use of technology which was not available in the past days.
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What are the impacts of electrical equipment on human’s life in the past ten years?
Umm! A good number of electrical equipment and tools have been invented and those are influencing human lives. The most notable electronic equipment are television, mobile phone, refrigerator, electric oven, electric iron, computer, cassette players etc. All those have dominated the human lives and still, they are dominating. The use of mobile phones is on the increase for several reasons and people cannot do without it for a single moment. It helps greatly to communicate around the world. The computer is the other electronic equipment and has lifted the civilisation to another extent. The use of computers is found everywhere. The impacts are great and people also cannot do without it for a single day. It is used in almost all types of work from designing a rocket to designing a piece of a needle. The equipment has influenced us greatly. Today, if we want to play a song, now we can play that on our computer or on our mobile phones but in the past days, the songs were played on cassette players. Both the equipment belong to the electronic category and have benefitted us in many ways. Further, we need to carry our mobile phones always with us for different purposes and it is a must for us in the current days. When there were no mobile phones, people communicated with each other (though that consumed more time) but now they can do it easily through the mobile phones. In fact, different electrical equipment have made life easier and comfortable for us. The importance and benefits done by those tools and equipment cannot be described in words.
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of computer and internet?
Well, I think you are well informed that there is nothing in the world with negative impacts. Everything has its blessings and demerits and similarly, computers and the internet are not exceptions. A computer with the internet connection is of great help to people. It helps them to connect with the world. People could get to know about the happenings in the surrounding through reading news and articles on newspapers on the internet. Besides, it also helps them to communicate individually through the social networking websites. Moreover, they could also communicate with the people or relatives living in the farthest corner of the world. Moreover, the computers and the internet are shaping the world. Newer types of computers and speedy internet connections are being developed. The use of computer and internet is influencing almost all the spheres of life in the present days and we cannot do without it for a day. But there are some negative impacts as well. Sometimes the youths and the kids spend most of the time of a day with a computer and the internet which is highly harmful to them. They play virtual video games on computers using the internet and forgetting to play on the playground. Sometimes, the computer and the internet are used to spread rumours and misinformation among a targeted group and accordingly they try to get some benefits. Additionally, computers and the internet are also used for scamming and sometimes the people with less knowledge of the issue are made fool. For instance, you do have much knowledge about the computer and the internet and when you get a message on your e-mail that you won a lottery worth billions and ask you to send your private information, there are chances that you are being robbed. So, such issues should be avoided for your own benefits. Some other detrimental impacts of computer and internet are that the young people get addicted to the device and technology and waste more times. They lose concentrations in their studies and instead use a computer with the internet around the day to chat with their buddies and waste their hours in unproductive works. Such issues also should be taken care of by the parents.
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Do you have a mobile phone? What are its advantages?
Yes, I do have a mobile phone. It’s a Samsung phone with the name – Galaxy A5. The phone has different attractive features and functions with a long-lasting charging capacity. Well, the mobile phones have a good number of advantages. The first and the topmost important advantage is that you could be reached through the phone at any time of the day. It helps to communicate easily and effectively. When it was the age of cable telephones, people could not be reached immediately when they were needed. Making long distance calls was also troublesome. Even if any messages were delivered, the recipients received those messages when the events or hours were over. So, actually, that cable phone was of no use in the time of necessity. But the mobile phones have removed all such barriers. Since people carry the phones always with them for its size and shape, they could be reached at any time. In the early days of mobile phones, they came with fewer features and facilities. Only phone calls were made using the phones. But currently, the mobile phones come with a wide range of modern features including cameras, music players, calendars, alarms, custom-made ringtones, saving numbers and address of people to a certain limit, improved and fast internet browsing and more other features. Besides, you can use your mobile phones for several purposes as well. Gaming on a mobile phone is a great thing and a great gaming platform has been made based on the mobile phones. Thereby, people are turning to have mobile phones than the phones with cables. Where there are no internet connections, you can use the phone as a modem to get in touch with your virtual world.
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- What role does technological development play in people’s life?
Uhh, it’s a great thing to describe the technological development in the life of people. I think you are well informed about technology. It, in fact, began forming an ancient age with the invention of the wheel and since then it is being continued. The importance of technology cannot be described in words. It has elevated the human lives in many ways. Earlier, people used to send letters to their near and dear ones or relatives living abroad. But sometimes the letters went missing for different reasons. The recipients did not get the messages in due time or sometimes they did not get at all. But with the technological advancement people now can send letters through e-mails. They also can send text messages to their near and dear ones. Besides, sending the e-mails or text messages deliver reports that those have been sent to the recipients. So, it is evident that technology has improved the condition of the people regarding communication. If we consider the issue of our private life, technology is also present here with its blessing. We cannot do the electrical tools and appliances which are the gift of technology. We cannot pass a day without a refrigerator, television, telephone or electricity which is blessings of the modern technology. In brief, technology has grabbed the life (in positive terms) of people across the world. - How will technology develop in the future?
Well, it is difficult for me to predict the future developments of technology as the changes are vast. But I believe that technology will be developed in such an effective manner that will help reducing human efforts and make life more comfortable and easier. Currently, we are commanding or instructing the tools or equipment to perform their respective acts. Take a practical example – we are pressing remote control buttons to change television channels or raise or reduce the television volume level. But someday in the future, it may happen that we do not need to press the button, simply our thoughts will do the remaining. Besides, the emergence of artificial intelligence is another issue, I think. When the artificial intelligence will emerge, the robots or cyborgs will perform the unbelievable tasks. Don’t you watch the sci-fi movies? Yes, the changes will be like so. We will see flying cars and many other incredible things in future if the technological changes take place in the right manner.
116
What kind of person makes a good teacher?
Well, I think a person with the passion for teaching, good interpersonal skill, talent and some teaching experience could become a good teacher. From my experience, I can say that academic background of a teacher has a relationship with his teaching style but this is not always the case. In my academic life, I have found many teachers who had a comparatively less educational qualification and yet they were great teachers and that’s because they had a passion for teaching. Their communication skills with students were excellent and they were good listeners. They let students raise questions to understand their level and then tried in every way possible to satisfactorily answer our questions. That’s another important aspect of becoming a really good teacher.
- Why do people choose to become teachers?
Ahh, in most of the cases people want to become teachers from their passion for the teaching profession. In some cases, they become teachers only because they could not find a better profession than that. However, I believe those type of people should never come in the teaching profession. Apart from passion and career many others choose to become teachers to help the society and to contribute towards building an enlightened society. Research facilities, respect in society, being able to continue learning curves are three major other reasons many people come in the teaching profession in my opinion. - Do you think education will change in the future? How?
Definitely! The education is an ever evolving and changing process. Though the core objective of education will always remain the same – to educate a person and to make a better and enlighten person for the society, the process will change.
We have already witnessed a radical change in the way education process works these days than in the past. In future the education would become more technology dependent and students will have many various sources for learning than only attending classes or reading books. Teachers will also become dependent on technological advancements to better educate students while distance learning would become very common among adult students.
The courses pupil will study will become more specific and more practical courses will be introduced in the future than we have now, I assume.
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How does technology affect education?
Technology makes the face-to-face communication between students and teachers less necessary and helps students learn from various sources. It also makes the distance learning and e-learning possible and that would help many people get involved in higher education than today.
Besides, technological advancements help teachers prepare and present their lessons in a better fashion and make it possible to digitally evaluate students’ performance.
The negative effects the technological advancements bring in education sector include a scope of plagiarism, less interaction between students and teachers and spending too much time on activities that are not educative. However, this is not the fault of the technology itself, rather how we use it.
- What kind of person makes a good teacher?
Well, I think a person with the passion for teaching, good interpersonal skill, talent and some teaching experience could become a good teacher. From my experience, I can say that academic background of a teacher has a relationship with his teaching style but this is not always the case. In my academic life, I have found many teachers who had a comparatively less educational qualification and yet they were great teachers and that’s because they had a passion for teaching. Their communication skills with students were excellent and they were good listeners. They let students raise questions to understand their level and then tried in every way possible to satisfactorily answer our questions. That’s another important aspect of becoming a really good teacher.
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Why do people choose to become teachers?
Ahh, in most of the cases people want to become teachers from their passion for the teaching profession. In some cases, they become teachers only because they could not find a better profession than that. However, I believe those type of people should never come in the teaching profession. Apart from passion and career many others choose to become teachers to help the society and to contribute towards building an enlightened society. Research facilities, respect in society, being able to continue learning curves are three major other reasons many people come in the teaching profession in my opinion.
- Do you think education will change in the future? How?
Definitely! The education is an ever evolving and changing process. Though the core objective of education will always remain the same – to educate a person and to make a better and enlighten person for the society, the process will change.
We have already witnessed a radical change in the way education process works these days than in the past. In future the education would become more technology dependent and students will have many various sources for learning than only attending classes or reading books. Teachers will also become dependent on technological advancements to better educate students while distance learning would become very common among adult students.
The courses pupil will study will become more specific and more practical courses will be introduced in the future than we have now, I assume.
- How does technology affect education?
Technology makes the face-to-face communication between students and teachers less necessary and helps students learn from various sources. It also makes the distance learning and e-learning possible and that would help many people get involved in higher education than today.
Besides, technological advancements help teachers prepare and present their lessons in a better fashion and make it possible to digitally evaluate students’ performance.
The negative effects the technological advancements bring in education sector include a scope of plagiarism, less interaction between students and teachers and spending too much time on activities that are not educative. However, this is not the fault of the technology itself, rather how we use it.
119
What are some famous tourist spots in your country?
Thank you for the question. Malaysia, the South Asian country is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world and millions of tourists come every year to visit the places. Malaysia has a wide range of attractive tourist spots for the global visitors. The country two special beaches for both the native and tourist naming – Batu Ferringhi beach and Port Dickinson. The beaches are accessible around the day and visitors crowd on the beach, take photos and make lots of fun. Some of the historical buildings have also been used as popular tourist destinations and some of the notable such places are A Famosa, Sultan Abdul Samad Building, Malacca Christ Church etc. Besides, the islands of the country are also famous for their breathtaking beauty. There are three islands including Tioman, Pangkor and Langkawi. The islands are always crowded with tourist from home and abroad. Besides, the museums of Malaysia are the other great source of entertainment for the tourists to gather knowledge about the country and its history.
The museums are decorated with the valuable natural and artificial relics of different ages and they represent the then society and culture. If you want to pass a long vacation in the country, you can hire different resorts with all modern facilities and can enjoy your vacation in Malaysia. Besides, shopping is a fun in the country and the three shopping districts will offer you a large number of shopping malls and spaces to get the right thing for you. Besides, the Petronas Twin Towers is the other tourist destination in the country. This is one of the exciting places for the foreign nationals and most of the times they take snapshots of them before the superstructure. Further, there are some theme parks available to entertain all types of travellers. The rides and surrounding environment of the parks are adorable and breathtaking.
- What are the impacts of tourism in your country?
Well, tourism has many things to do with the country. Though the country is economically sound and does not need an external assistance, the tourism has been favouring the state in many ways. Firstly, it is creating employment opportunity for the unemployed and unskilled people ate the tourist spots. The visitors are getting their necessary things from the local product sellers which are a kind of employment for them. If there were no tourist, there would have no chances for the employment. Besides, the tourists are spending inside the country which means they are consuming our products and thus we need to grow more products which help raise the country’s GDP. Moreover, the Malaysian products travel around the globe through the tourists (after they get the products from Malaysia, they expose them in different places) which is a kind of advertisement for us. It helps raising our fame and also the demand for the products rise to some extent. Another matter should be brough into consideration – cleanliness. As tourists come to visit the natural spots and other visiting places, those parts are kept clean which is helpful to protect the environment. Wastes are disposed in specific areas and the cleaners also try their best to remove the wastes which result in a cleaner environment. So, tourism also helps to keep the country clean.
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What are the positive impacts of tourism in your country?
Umm! I think basically we have three notable impacts of tourism for my country. They include the environmental impacts, impacts on the economy and socio-cultural impacts. Each of the impacts plays an important role in the advancement of the country. Earlier, I have said that tourism has some impacts on the economy and have explained how it helps to grow. Tourism helps to grow the local and small entrepreneurship inside the country. It encourages the locals to produce more and more products as per the demands of the tourists. If we consider the socio-cultural impacts, we will found that some of the cultures and events of Malaysia are being celebrated in the other parts of the world. How is it happening? In fact, the tourists who come visiting the state, they take the cultures way back to their home and if that appears too funny or enjoyable for them, they spread that among the surroundings. This is the unique way to spread the Malaysian tradition in the other countries. The quality of the environment including the artificial and natural is kept in a sound state so that it could satisfy the visitors. When the visitors come to an attractive place, they usually are amazed at the very first sight. Environment plays the key role in this case. Thereby, I think all these three aspects help to improve Malaysia and in the future and the rate of improvement will be accelerated as well.
- What are the negative impacts of tourism in your country?
Nothing in the world comes without any negativity and similarly, tourism has some specific negative impacts on Malaysia. But the rates of the negative impacts are almost similar to the positive aspects. You know when the tourists come from different parts of the globe, a large chunk of them are careless to the surrounding environment. As a result, the cause damage to the landscape. Sometimes the tourists make the campfire on the beaches but they do not clean the space when they leave which is unusual. Consequently, the specific land is to bear the negative impacts. Sometimes, traffic congestions occur inside the city which becomes intolerable in certain cases for the natives. The other important aspect is that the price of the local goods becomes too expensive for the locals. Sometimes the needy Malaysian people even cannot bear the expenses of the necessary items as those are sold to the tourists only at a higher price. Housing in the tourist areas also become expensive for the natives and everything is dealt on a commercial basis. At times, in the beach areas, employment becomes seasonal. The employees are even not paid a higher remuneration as well comparing the other small jobs. Besides the government has to make infrastructures for the tourists and visitors and consequently, the tax on the common people get a hike. Sometimes there are few misunderstandings with the tourists which create an awkward situation in the spots. So, I think these are the detrimental impacts of tourism but should not be considered as harmful to the country. Proper initiatives and guidelines will remove the troubles, I think.
121
What do you think are the reasons people visit new places?
Ummm! There are several reasons for people’s visiting different places. I think you cannot think of the travelling benefits. Mostly they want to know the unknown and see the unseen. Travelling is one of the greatest things to enjoy in life. There are certain seasons for travelling like summer or winter and people set out to have a trip around the world. When people go from one place to another, they experience a good number of things which were unseen to them before the trip. Travelling in new places is highly enjoyable and provides many things to the travellers. When people explore the places, they earn a priceless knowledge. They know the real world and experience the real things which were on their books. Gradually, our knowledge level increases than the ordinary people. People enjoy the places and explore different cultures where they go. Sometimes they try adopting the cultures in their own lives. But the most important thing is that travelling removes stress from the life. When you will go for travelling abroad, all your stress and mental anxiety will go down to level zero. As a result, you will be energised to start your responsibilities when you are back. Memory is an important thing that people have from their travelling. Memories never die. And the memories of travelling help to remember the joyful day when you are passing a gloomy climate in your real life.
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What can you tell about the future of tourism industry in your country?
Smart question! Well, Malaysia is blooming every day. Tourism has become one of the important sectors of the country and based on the sector, different initiatives have been adopted in the country and some are in the pipeline. In future, if the ideas are implemented, the tourism will be cheaper and easier for both the local and foreign nationals. Most of the cases, accommodation in expensive resorts or hotels become troublesome for the tourists and they also cannot afford the prices of the knickknacks. It the Malaysian government takes proper initiatives to solve the issues, more and more travellers will make a stop in the country. The beaches are beautiful indeed but the surrounding regions need renovations. It should be done by the private initiatives and the number of affordable resorts and hotels should be increased. I think the government will take measures over the issue. Besides, it will improve the local productions and more employment will be created. In fact, it is the tourists who promote the local products in the international arena and they should be taken care of properly.
- What kinds of things give status to people in your country?
Well, education, wealth, money, large house, car, fame, career are some of the things that give status in our country. There are some other aspects of status in my country like luxury gadgets, political power, expensive dresses and publicity. However, the things I mentioned before are most prominent aspects of status in my country. For instance, people with higher education and knowledge naturally get a status that others can’t have. Similarly, wealth, cars, houses, branded dresses, and many other things are often considered as part of people’s status in many cases.It is not unlikely that people with fame and popularity also enjoys a different type of status that mass people can’t have. Jobs in important government sectors can also be a symbol of status in many societies and finally political power, though controversial in some cases, is also a status symbol in my country. - Have things changed since your parents’ time?
In terms of people’s status in a society, things have not changed that much between my father and my generation. The status symbols I mentioned earlier were almost same as they are nowadays. Expensive technological gadgets and new brand names might have been added as part of people’s status symbol; however, those could be classified as the materialistic achievement which was also present in my parent’s era.
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- Do you think advertising influences what people buy?
Yes, I think advertisement has a huge impact on people’s purchasing decision. It is quite natural that people would pick a known branded product that purchasing products from brand names they do not know about.People spend a lot of time in front of their television or computer and they are knowingly and unknowingly being influenced by the advertisements and advertisers. Some advertisements even allure us to purchase products we actually do not need at all. - What are the important qualities to achieve our ambitions?
Determination and hard work, in my opinion, are two most important qualities to fulfil our ambitions and goals. Luck often plays its tricks but I believe fortune always favours the hard working and strong-minded people to succeed.Apart from that, proper planning, timely execution, expertise and experience are some other qualities we need to achieve our goals in life. - Are all ambitions good in life?
- I guess every positive ambition that brings happiness, success, prosperity and well-being of others is a good one. However, we are often driven by our selfishness, greed and materialistic achievements and any ambition which is aimed to fulfil our personal greed is a bad one.
In general, ambitions in our life help us to work harder and give meaning to life and that’s why we should have ambitions, positive ambitions I mean.
- What type of ambition young generation in your country has?
That’s a good question. The young generation in our country usually aims for a prosperous career and economic freedom. Their ambitions in life also include being someone famous so that people will know them, being a successful and happy person in later life and having a beautiful and nice life partners. They also want to explore the world and want to see a flourishing country in the future where violence and crime would be a thing of past.
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Would you focus more on achieving your ambition or doing things you love to do?
Personally, my ambition in life is quite realistic and not something we hear in fairy tales only. Being able to do something I love and have passion is not different than my ambition. I want to lead a life that would be surrounded by my family members, relatives, friends and people I care about. Being able to set up my own business or doing a job that I would feel interested in is both my ambition and dream.