大学英语六级考试短文写作精讲－5

　　(三)谚语警句型 　　13. haste makes waste 　　a famous saying goes “haste makes waste”, which means that one should do everything step by step. even simple operations can easily be spoiled if we rush to complete them, neglecting important stages in the process. one should make full preparations before beginning any task. 　　taking a look around, we can find examples too numerous to list. the best illustration might be english study. without a good command of pronunciation, we can never hope to speak in an understandable way. similarly, if we do not learn to spell properly and to acquire a basic grasp of grammar, we will never succeed in writing good compositions. 　　(或actually, history abounds with examples of haste making waste. a well-known chinese fable goes that a farm tried to help the shoots grow by pulling them upward, only to find that they died soon. another case in point is the so-called great leap forward movement in china in 1950’s and 1960’s. at that time, the chinese people were so eager to develop their economy that they took some improper measures, only to hinder the expansion of economy.) 　　(或here i can think of no better illustration of the proverb than the experience of my own. at the age of 11 or 12, i began to learn to ride. eager to ride as well as others, i started by sitting on the saddle at the very beginning. predictably, i often fell from over the bike. lots of time had been wasted before i realized that i should do it step by step. i tried to slide by standing on one pedal. then i began to ride the bike from under the cross bar. finally, i succeeded. ) 　　in short, laying a solid foundation is essential if we want to make achievements in our studies or work, or indeed in any other aspect of our lives. at every step, review what has been achieved and assess the problems ahead before moving to the next step. and remember, rome was not built in a day. 　　(四)图表图画型 　　14. reading preferences 　　it can be seen from the table that popular fiction is most popular with american students, accounting for 65.9% of book circulation in the library. general nonfiction comes next, taking up 18.2%, while books concerning science, technology and education take up only 10.8%. the least preferred category is that of art, literature and poetry, with a circulation rate of merely 5.1%. 　　a number of factors could account for the reading preferences, but the following are the most critical ones. firstly, popular fiction is fascinating to the young students. secondly, books about science and technology are usually too complex and difficult to read. they often contain many special terms which most students can’t understand. finally, in today’s market economy, much more emphasis is laid on practical and vocational books rather than arts or poetry. 　　when it comes to me, poetry and art are my favorites. such kind of books can nourish my mind, broaden my horizons and render me a fresh feeling. reading a piece of good poetry tends to relieve my burden and lessen my tension, making me more creative and dynamic. it gets me into an imaginary world, fresh and beautiful. i just love it! 　　15. changes in the ownership of houses in china 　　it can be seen from the chart that there have been dramatic changes in the ownership of houses in china in the past 50 years. while the percentage of state-owned houses has dropped from 70% in 1950’s to 20% in 1990’s, that of private houses has soared from 30% to 80% during the same period of time. 　　a number of factors could account for the change in the chart, but the following are the most critical ones. first, thanks to the policy of reform and opening-up, the nation’s economy has been developing at a considerably high speed in the past decades. therefore, people have more extra money to improve their housing. secondly, other relevant state policies and the boom of real estate industry provide citizens with more opportunities to choose their own dwelling places. last but not least, people have attached greater importance to their quality of life. thus, more of them have purchased houses in their own favor. 　　in a word, this chart is a perfect indicator of china’s fast expanding economy and people’s rising standard of life. although a series of problems have arisen in the process, it is reasonable for us to believe that they can be solved in the near future with effective measures taken by both the government and the public. 　　 16. student use of computer 　　students tend to use computers more and more frequently nowadays. reading this chart, we can find that the average number of hours a student spends on the computer per week has increased sharply. in 1990, it was less than 2 hours; and in 1995, it increased to almost 4 hours, and in 2000, the number soared to 20 hours. 　　obviously computers are becoming increasingly popular. there are several reasons for this change. first, computers facilitate us in more aspects of life. also, the fast development of the internet enlarges our demands for using computers. we can easily contact with friends in remote places through the internet. besides, the prices of computers are getting lower and lower, which enables more students to purchase them. 　　however, there still exist some problems, such as poor quality, out-of-date designs and so on. and how to balance the time between using computers and studying is also a serious problem. anyhow, we will benefit a lot from computers as long as we use them properly.