Victory through self-improvement
Photo by Yao Fan

The awards ceremony of the second "M-zone" Cup Bilingual Writing Competition was successfully held on the evening of May 16 at the Xiamen Daily Building, which attracted more than 300 attendants.
Since March, Common Talk had received more than 1,000 Chinese and English articles from readers throughout China. More than 40 participants won due to their self-improvement.

动感地带杯"我的青春宣言"第二届双语征文大赛颁奖典礼暨青年文艺晚会于16日在厦门日报报业大厦隆重举行. 本次活动由共青团厦门市委、厦门日报社和福建移动通信有限责任公司厦门分公司主办,厦门日报双语周刊承办,共有一千多位本市及外地作者参赛. 三百多位包括获奖选手在内的读者参加了颁奖晚会.


Double happines

英文组冠军 The champion of the English group Happy Hong (One clerk working for an Import & Export company)

It's my great honor to have taken part in the second "M-zone" Cup Bilingual Writing Competition and to have achieved a good result. Tonight will be an unforgettable night in my life.

I would like to take this opportunity to extend my thanks to my parents for their education, to my wife for her support, and to my general manager for his encouragement in my English study.

I am very grateful to Common Talk, for she offers me numerous opportunities of writing exercises. I never tried to write for any newspaper or magazines and I never thought I could eight months ago. However, like a piece of ordinary iron, I have been ground by Common Talk and have become a real knife now. And I'd like to be further ground to be even sharper.


Thanks for all

中文组冠军 The champion of the Chinese group Suky Zhang (One teacher from Zhangzhou Campus, Xiamen University)

I am overjoyed at the moment. I feel so glad that so many of you like and recommend my article.

I guess I win the prize not for a perfectly written article, but for the true feeling I expressed through my writing. As one of the staff that works on the Zhangzhou Campus, I wrote down what we think and feel everyday. Some may find it somewhat over-romantic, but since we are young people, life means more than boring work, right? I hope we can all enjoy the beauty of youth.

At last, I would like to avail myself of this opportunity to say thanks to all the teachers and friends who supported me during this competition.


Knowledge is power

英文组亚军 The second prize winner of the English group David Dong (A student from the Beijing Forestry University) 由于董威现正在北京,双语周刊记者特地连线北京,采访了他的获奖感受.

I felt so excited and honored. Before contributing my essay, I never thought of bearing the palm, but just had practiced by myself on my written English. Because I know that there are many people whose English level is much higher than mine, and also I hold the opinion that participation is always worth the prize.

However, I finally got the prize by defeating many competitors, and I would like to deliver my great appreciation to all the staff of Common Talk. It is them who create the platform that makes us—English lovers—have the opportunities to intercommunicate with each other. What's more, I think I should appreciate my parents, who always encouraged me to learn English well. Now I really taste the benefit of English.

At present, I think there is one sentence that can express my feeling that knowledge is power, knowledge is money. Do you agree with me? Please join us to enjoy the magic of the English world and be a friend of Common Talk, and I am sure you will discover its charm, because I am a living example.



英文组冠军征文
Mobile and my life in the future
By Happy Hong

Let's suppose I'll own a fantastic mobile phone in ten years.

This mobile has a liquid crystal display screen and an electronic stylus instead of keys and buttons. It runs according to my spoken orders, or from instructions given by the electronic stylus.

The infrared sensing system of the mobile takes the place of a number of keys, enabling me to pass through the digital locked doors of either home or office. Moreover, supported by a remote sensing system, the mobile can be used for monitoring the safety of my home when nobody is in the house.

All the information of my banking deposits and personal ID card is stored in the chip of the mobile. I can use the mobile instead of a credit card for withdrawing cash or transferring payment at any bank, for purchasing in a shopping mall, or for doing other expenditures.

The mobile is a personal digital assistant for me. It can do a lot more than organize my schedules and plan my days. In an overwhelming sea of data messages, it uses rudimentary artificial intelligence to sort, store, and forward information and messages based on my individual priorities, preferences and interests. When I want to read a book, the liquid crystal screen will display the page I ask for. If my eyes are tired, I can start the language speaking system of the mobile. That means I can "read by listening".

The mobile is also a 3D-TV that entertains me with wonderful "being there" programs wherever I go.

My entire personal medical history with its record of past illnesses, medications prescribed and other conditions are all stored in the mobile. Should a sudden sickness occur even when I am thousands of miles from home, in a few seconds my home doctor will be able to examine, diagnose and prescribe the medicine I need. The transmission from the communications satellite will link my mobile with my home hospital.

This mobile has another excellent function. Whenever I am going to sleep, it emits a kind of electronic wave that will adjust my brain wave to the proper range so that the highest quality of slumber can be attained. Because of such high quality rest, only 3-4 hours' sleep a night would make me even more energetic than 8 hours of unaided sleep. That means I would have much more free time to spend in enjoyable recreation. Actually, to a certain extent, the span of my life could be extended.

Without a doubt, the mobile will bring more and more convenience to us. However, some people worry that people might become merciless as more and more business will be settled without face-to-face talk. Not long ago, someone predicted that, as distance learning becomes more popular, and through the miracle of online classes and electronic grading, the job of the teacher will disappear in the 21st century. I don't think so. Personal contact and encouragement are part of a teacher's responsibilities. Also, a student needs these to grow. I believe that with the development of mobile technology joining all the people in the world together, we will learn to care more about each other.

It would be wonderful if the mobile could really attain all this.

Winners of the second "M-zone" Cup Bilingual Writing Competition

English group 英文组
First prize 一等奖
Happy Hong 洪建福 (厦门某进出口公司职员)

Second prize 二等奖
Samuel Xu 许林贵(厦大英文系本科生)
David Dong 董威 (北京林业大学本科生)

Third prize 三等奖
Beverly Cai 蔡露虹
Wang Zheng 王峥
Chen Yuanliang 陈元良

Participation prize 优秀奖
姚艳凤
Sally 魏璇璇
阮倩
张颖

Entry prize 入围奖
卢兆锋
周小燕
邹英萍
王芳芳
傅玲玲
郑彦
黄颖
陈君铭
赵壮
薛巧英

Chinese group 中文组
First prize 一等奖
Suky Zhang 张晗(厦大教师)

Second prize 二等奖
Happy Hong 洪建福
Jia Liang 贾亮(山西太原)

Third prize 三等奖
Xing Rui 邢瑞
Li Pingzhen 李屏臻
Zhou Lei 周磊

Participation prize 优秀奖
曾臻
林雅玲
易东
彭文新
陈明珍

Entry prize 入围奖
许银锑
曾惠真
黄雅莉
Janet Hong
陈振智
周洁
陈婷
欧锦琰
易小卉
李育娟

Organizing prize 团体组织奖

Xiamen Huaqiao Middle School 华侨中学
Xiamen Yingcai School 英才学校
Xiamen No.10 Middle School 厦门十中