with a school friend. In 1980, his company, called Microsoft, was asked to write an operating
system by IBM for its new PC. Five years later, Microsoft launched the Windows operating
system, and by 1995 Gates had become the richest man in the world. In 2006, he stepped
down from running Microsoft to focus on his charitable foundation.
8 Vocabulary revision
(a) liquidity: liquid
reluctance: reluctant
stability: stable
prosperity: prosperous
controversy: controversial
conclusion: conclusive
(b) default: when a company or country is unable to pay its debts
sub-prime mortgage: loan to buy property to borrower with weak credit rating
housing bubble: unsustainable increase in property prices
income tax: tax paid on wages or salary
negative equity: owning an asset worth less than debt incurred to buy it
1.10 Introductions and Conclusions
1 Introduction contents
(a)
Components Yes/No
(i) A definition of any unfamiliar terms in the title Yes
(ii) The conclusions you reached on the topic No
(iii) Mention of some sources you have read on the topic Yes
(iv) A provocative idea or question to interest the reader No
(v) Your aim or purpose in writing Yes
(vi) The method you adopt to answer the question (or an outline) Yes
(vii) Some background to the topic Yes
(viii) Any limitations you set yourself Yes
(b) (i) Purpose
(ii) Method
(iii) Definition
(iv) Limitation
(v) Outline
(vi) Background
(vii)Literature review