MEDIUM (Clik here for answers)
Text 5
Visions of the future Humans have always speculated about what society may or should look like in the future and there is a long and honourable tradition of writers who have described their vision of the world in a future age. One possible division of these books is into utopias which paint a picture of an ideal society and dystopias in which the world is a much less desirable and often frightening place. Perhaps the most famous utopia remains Plato’s Republic, written around two and half thousand years ago, which is also partly a political manifesto proposing a form of government where philosophers kings rule in the interests of the many. In its day, this most undemocratic proposal was less controversial than it would be today, as there was a strong body of opinion in Athens that democracy was not a model form of government. While many today may find Plato’s vision unpleasant, his intention was otherwise and the book has the optimistic goal of showing how the ills of society could be cured. This optimism stands in stark contrast to George Orwell’s dystopian nightmare 1984. That book too presents a version of what society may look like in the future, but it has a quite different purpose: the aim of the book is to serve as a warning. The reader is meant to be shocked and horrified by the world of deception and tyranny it portrays, a world where the state authorities, in the form of Big Brother, have absolute control of every aspect of individuals’ lives and where truth is lost. Are the following statements true, false or not given? 13. The society proposed by Plato in The Republic is democratic. 14. George Orwell wrote 1984 as a warning against communism. 15. 1984 presents a pessimistic view of the future. (Note: "1984" is the name of Orwell's novel) Text 6: Lotteries: Positive Good or Unnecessary Wrong? A A lottery is a form of gambling where contestants purchase tickets, with one or more tickets being drawn as winners at the end of the competition period. Often, there is a jackpot winner who wins most or all of the prize pool. Today, national lottery jackpots can range from millions to hundreds of millions of dollars. It wasn’t long ago that lotteries were outlawed almost everywhere in the world. Today, lotteries are legal in North America, Australia, and much of Europe and Asia. A question is raised over what has changed to make something previously seen as negative for society, become common across the globe. If gambling is bad, why are lotteries so popular, and why do governments support them? B People buy lottery tickets for one chief reason – they want to win the jackpot. In the long run, lotteries are a “bad bet”. The odds of winning are always stacked against the player – that is to say the long-term expected return on the player’s money is significantly less than the money paid for the tickets. This is how the lottery corporations make money on the lottery – the payout is far less than the revenue of the ticket sales, and the government takes the difference. If one million tickets are sold at five dollars a piece, and the jackpot is three million dollars, then the government has made two million dollars of profit in the process. We are forced to question why lotteries are so popular given their poor value for players. It’s because of the thrill of possibly winning the jackpot – the anticipation of a life-changing win for the ticket purchaser is worth the money. It’s the same reason why people gamble at casinos. Many people know they are not going to win in the long run at a casino, but the short term thrill makes up for the long term losses. C The main argument against lotteries is that it acts as a tax on the poor, and such a tax is unfair. This is because statistics show that poor people are by far the most common purchasers of lottery tickets. There are two reasons why this could be the case. First, poor people have the most to gain by winning the lottery; second, poor people are arguably less likely to have a statistical understanding of the lottery – they are less likely to realize that it is a ‘bad bet’. D The main argument in favour of lotteries is that it is harmless fun which results in tax income that often goes straight to community programs such as sports or the arts. Many community programs rely solely on lottery finances to operate, so in this sense the lottery is a positive good. However, there are many people, often poor people, who become obsessed with gambling and the lottery, and it starts to take over their lives. For these people, the lottery is detrimental. E One interesting way to look at the lottery, and why people participate in it, is to imagine it as a kind of ‘reverse insurance’. People buy insurance for their home or car so that if something bad happens to it, they do not have to pay the entire cost of the damage. In other words, they pay a little bit each month so that they don’t have to pay a large amount at one time. They pay these smaller amounts to insurance companies, and those insurance companies make money in the long run. So paying insurance is not a ‘good bet’ either, just like the lottery. With the lottery, we pay “little amounts” every once in a while so that maybe we will hit the jackpot. With insurance, we pay a little to save a lot, and with the lottery, we pay a little to win a lot. When looked at in this way, the popularity of the lottery is more easily understood. F When it comes down to it, lotteries are a choice. Yes, they amount to a ‘tax’, but so do the monthly fees we pay to insurance companies. If people want to pay a few dollars here and there for a little fun, excitement and a small chance to win a monstrous amount of money, then what’s the harm? Additionally, lottery monies fund many valuable community programs which otherwise would have trouble operating. Playing the lottery responsibly is fun, exciting and maybe, just maybe, extremely profitable. Are the following statements true, false or not given? 16. Lotteries are outlawed almost everywhere. 17 In the long run, a person who plays the lottery should expect to lose money. 18. Lotteries are popular because they serve as a pleasurable diversion from everyday life. 19. Many people play the lottery without an understanding of its statistical background. |