International varsity debate gets into full swing ( 2003-09-24 10:56) (CCTV.com) Students from universities
around the world are in Beijing to engage in a war of words. They are taking
part in the "2003 International Varsity Debate" which began on September 20.
This year marks the tenth anniversary of the competition, which roots out the
world's most talented young debaters. The event will last for a week, bringing
its audience a heated and passionate exchange of discussion and opinion.
With different faces, different backgrounds, but it's the Varsity debate that
brings them all together on an exciting stage to express their unique ideas and
to demonstrate their wordy skills. The topic "Whether the virtual world is
imaginary or not" opened the very first match-up between China's Sun Yat-sen
University and Germany's Freiburg University.
Sponsored by China Central Television and Singapore's New Media Group, the
ten-year-old contest has become a cultural brand drawing top university students
from around the world to test their argumentative abilities.
This time around, the one-decade anniversary presented a golden chance for
organizers to put a novel take on the event.
While the debates of previous years had a more philosophical bent, this year
the topics focus more on contemporary issues such as the family, love, the
Internet and consumerism.
If you are curious about how the young orators present themselves, make sure
you are kept well informed about the result from Friday's final.
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