General Questions
General Questions
Internet Shopping
Twenty-five years ago, very few people used the internet. Only scientists and people in the
government knew about the internet and how to use it. This is changing very fast. Now almost
everyone knows about the internet, and many people are online (on the internet) every day.
When people think about the internet, they often think about the internet, they often think about
information. But now, more and more, when people think about the internet, they think about
shopping.
Amazon.com was one of the first companies to try to sell products on the internet. Jeff
Bezos started the company. One day he made a prediction about the future. He saw that the
World Wide Web was growing 2,000 present a year. He predicted that it was going to continue
to grow, and he thought that shopping was going to move to the internet. People were going to
shop online. He quit his good job and drove across the country to Seattle, Washington. There he
started an online bookstore called Amazon.com. Bezos had very little money. The company
began in a garage (a building for a car), and at first there were very few customers (people who
buy things).
At the Amazon.com site, people can search for a book about a subject, find many
different books about that subject, read what other people think about the books, order them by
credit card, and get them in the mail in two days. This kind of bookstore was a new idea, but the
business grew, In a few years, Amazon.com had 10 million customers and sold 18 million
different items in categories including books, CDs, toys, electronics, videos, DVDs, home
improvement products (things that you use to fix up a house), software, and video games. Today,
at a “virtual shopping mall,” a group of online stores, you can buy anything from gourmet food,
usually expensive food, to vacations.
Fifteen years ago, many people said, “Online shopping is crazy. Nobody can make
money in an online company.” They were wrong. Today, Jeff Bezos is a billionaire. More and
more people are shopping online, and online companies are making a profit. It is a huge
business. However, some people predict, “Online business isn’t going to grow anymore.” They
say,” customers are afraid of online crime, and they will stop shopping on the internet.” Are
these people right? Nobody knows, but we will soon find out.
Write a word for each definitions. Use words from the reading.
a. On the internet = _________________
b. People who buy things = _________________
c. Things that you use to fix up a house = _________________
d. A group of online stores = _________________
e. Special, usually expensive food = _________________ food
If you'd like to improve your English, one thing you can do is to build up your
vocabulary. In order to do this, you have to practice a lot. I’m afraid there is not a short
cut for this. But there are many effective ways. First of all, you should read a lot. You
can read short stories, comics, newspapers, magazines etc. depending on your English
level. As you read, you can try to guess the meanings of unknown words from the
context of the sentence. If you cannot, then look up the definition in a dictionary. English
to English dictionary should be your first choice and keep the translator as last. Another
way of building vocabulary is to watch movies in English which will also help with
pronunciation. Try to be involved with the language as much as you can. Keep a
vocabulary notebook and write down a few words each day. Keep in mind that you have
to revise them regularly. In my opinion, to communicate with people all you need is
words. Even if you just say the words one after another, people most likely will
understand what you mean regardless of the order of the words and grammar.
3. What is the most important thing to communicate with people according to the writer?
A) Grammar
B) Vocabulary
C) Order of the words used
D) Advanced English course