【正文】 d materials that are primarily of regional or local significance. For example, California requires children at certain grade levels to learn about the history of particular ethnic groups who make up the state39。 otherwise, a nation39。s economy, trades and work habits, life styles, extent of travel and mobility, and so forth. Linguists are needed to interpret hieroglyphics and extrapolate from found fragments of writings. And an astronomer can help explain the layout of an ancient city as well as the design, structure and position of monuments, tombs, and templessince ancients often looked to the stars for guidance in building cities and structures. An even more striking example of how expertise in diverse fields is needed to advance knowledge involves the area of astronomy and space exploration. Significant advancements in our knowledge of the solar system and the universe require increasingly keen tools for observation and measurement. Telescope technology and the measurement of celestial distances, masses, volumes, and so forth, are the domain of astrophysicists. These advances also require increasingly sophisticated means of exploration. Manned and unmanned exploratory probes are designed by mechanical, electrical, and puter engineers. And to build and enable these technologies requires the acumen and savvy of business leaders, managers, and politicians. Even diplomats might play a roleinsofar as major space projects require intemafional cooperative efforts among the world39。s legitimate concerns for its national security, its political sovereignty, the 3 stability of its economy and currency, and so forth. In sum, unless two opponents in a debate are each willing to play on the same field and by 2 the same rules, I concede that disagreement can impede learning. Otherwise, reasoned discourse and debate between people with opposing viewpoints is the very foundation upon which human knowledge advances. Accordingly, on balance the speaker is fundamentally correct. Issue 2 No field of study can advance significantly unless outsiders bring their knowledge and experience to that field of study. I strongly agree with the assertion that significant advances in knowledge require expertise from various fields. The world around us presents a seamless web of physical and anthropogenic forces, which interact in ways that can be understood only in the context of a variety of disciplines. Two examples that aptly illustrate this point involve the fields of c ultural anthropology and astronomy. Consider how a cultural anthropologist39。s claim. Assuming mon ground between two rational and reasonable opponents willing to debate on intellectual merits, both opponents stand to gain much from that debate. Indeed it is primarily through such debate that human knowledge advances, whether at the personal, munity, or global level. At the personal level, by listening to their parents39。s typical television or radio talk show, disagreement usually manifests itself in meaningless rhetorical bouts and shouting matches, during which opponents vie to have their own message heard, but have little interest either in finding mon ground with or in acknowledging the merits of the opponent39。 1 1 GRE AWA MODEL ESSAYS Topics in the following list may appear in your actual test. You should bee familiar with this list before you take the GREAWA test. Remember that when you take the test you will not have a choice of topics. You must write only on the topic that is assigned to you. 2 The Pool of Issue Topics Present your perspective on the issue below, using relevant reasons and/or examples to support your views. Issue 1 We can usually learn much more from people whose views we share than from people whose views contradict our own.。 disagreement can cause stress and inhibit learning. Do we learn more from people whose ideas we share in mon than from those whose ideas contradict ours? The speaker daims so, for the reason that disagreement can cause stress and inhibit learning. I concede that undue discord can impede learning. Otherwise, in my view we learn far more from discourse and debate with those whose ideas we oppose than from people whose ideas are in accord with our own. Admittedly, under some circumstances disagreement with others can be counterproductive to learning. For supporting examples one need look no further than a television set. On today39。s viewpoint. Understandably, neither the batants nor the viewers learn anything meaningful. In fact, these battles only serve to reinforce the predispositions and biases of all concerned. The end result is that learning is impeded. Disagreement can also inhibit learning when two opponents disagree on fundamental assumptions needed for meaningful discourse and debate. For example, a student of paleontology learns little about the evolution of an animal species under current study by debating with an individual whose religious belief system precludes the possibility of evolution to begin with. And, economics and finance students learn little about the dynamics of a laissezfaire system by debating with a socialist whose view is that a centrv2ized power should control all economic activity. Aside from the foregoing two provisos, however, I fundamentally disagree with the speaker39。 rationale for their seemingly oppressive rules and policies teenagers can learn how certain behaviors naturally carry certain undesirable consequences. At the same time, by listening to their teenagers concerns about autonomy and about peer pressures parents can learn the valuable lesson that effective parenting and control are two different things. At the munity level, through dispassionate dialogue an environmental activist can e to understand the legitimate economic concerns of those whose jobs depend on the continued profitable operation of a