英语角-圆桌会议 RoundTable - 考研人数5年来首次下降

Topic1 Officials barred from disguising tourism as business tripsGovernment officials are to be banned from taking vacations disguised as business trips, and will not be allowed to upgrade their travel class unless they hold a certain rank.

China's Ministry of Finance has recently released new regulations to standardize travelstipends for the civil service.

Should we welcome the regulation?

Topic2 Fewer candidates take graduate entrance testFor the first time in five years, there has been a drop in the number of candidates who take the annual national graduate school entrance examination.

The Ministry of Education says that 1.72 million people participated in this year's exam, which took place over the weekend, a decline of 40,000 from last year.

What has cooled down the fervor to take part in the exam despite the abolition of a 40-year-old age limit?

Topic3 Waive the Right to Holidays and WeekendsSichuan Si Jian Construction andRenovation Engineer Company recently required its employees to sign on a contract that says: I voluntarily give up weekends, holidays and insist on flexible working hours (work overtime 1-2 hours or more per day according to company's need); I accept 130 yuan fine for being late each minute; I voluntarily allow the company to deduct 30% of my monthly income until the deposit reaches 20,000 yuan.

How is this possible?

Topic4 70 Certificates for A LifetimeAccording to an "incomplete" survey, a Chinese needs 70 certificates on average before his or her life ends.

These certificates are closely associated with the sense of "identity" and "belonging", needless to mention most of them are given the legal power of controlling people.

Are all these certificates needed? What are those certificates?

Topic5 Tailor-made Travel PlansIn director Feng Xiaogang's new comedy Personal Tailor, a company provides tailor-made plans to help clients realize their fantasies - no matter what the cost.

In reality, we may not be able to enjoy this service yet. But it has already become an option for you to hire travel agencies to tailor-made travel plans for you.

How does a tailor-made travel plan compare with traditional ways of travel?

Topic6 Hotel TesterZhang Xinyan, a young female doctoral student in Nankai University, recently got herself an enviable job – Hotel Commentator or Tester. All she needs to do is living in a hotel for free and then writing blogs about it. Many say it's their dream job.