Is your mobile phone directory full of phone numbers of people you don’t really want to talk to? Do you go out with people from work or school more often than with your real friends? Do you say yes to invitations because you think you should, not because you want to? If you answered yes to at least two of these questions, then perhaps you need to ‘edit your friends’?

　　Nowadays people like to spend a lot of time with people at work or classmates at school．The result is that we don’t have enough time to see our real, close friends．As our lives get busier it becomes more important to spend the little free time we have with people we really want to see, people we love and who really love us．

　　Who are the friends you need to edit? A few years ago I read a book about how to get rid of unnecessary possessions(物品)．It said you should ask yourself about each thing you have：Is it useful? Do I really like it? Do I feel better every time I look at it? If the answer is no to any one of those questions, you should throw it away．Maybe we should ask similar questions about our friends．

　　What kind of friends will you probably need to edit? Sometimes it’s an old friend．Somebody who you used to have a lot in common with, but who, when you meet now, you have very little or nothing to say to．Or it might be a new friend who you get on quite well with, but who is taking up too much of your time．Next time one of these people calls you and suggests a meeting, think, ‘Do I really want to see this person?’ and if the answer is no, say no, and make an excuse．That way you’ll have more time to spend with your real friends．

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　　The oil resources which are left will not last very long．This means that all vehicles such as cars, trains, buses, planes and ships that need oil to work will not be able to run．So it will be necessary to develop a new method of transport which doesn’t use oil．Electric vehicles are one possibility．In England, most families have at least one car and this car is used every day．It could be that only one person in the family drives the car to work or for shopping．The number of cars on the road which are almost empty perhaps helps to explain why the oil is used up so quickly．The family car is a very useful form of transport but it is also a great waste of energy, especially if it is compared with buses or trains which use less petrol per person than a car．A car traveling at 80 kilometers an hour uses only half as much petrol as a car which is traveling at 120 kilometers an hour．Clearly, it would be better if there were fewer cars on the road and more speed limits so that the oil which is left will last as long as possible．

　　About 25％of England’s total consumption(消耗)of energy is domestic－it is used only in the home．Just over 20％is used for transport．Most of the energy is used in industry．It is difficult to suggest any possible energy conservation(保护)in industry because many of the suggestions would mean that some people would lose their jobs．It is important that industry produces the same amount of products using the same amount of workers．

　　Clearly, conservation is not going to be the answer to the energy problem．The most it can do is to give more time for a better method to be found．The more time we have to develop new sources of energy, the better it is because there is still a lot of work to be done in order to find suitable, safe methods of producing energy．

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　　In a few years, most people will know that a healthy, happy, loving family is a joy and it is a necessary part for building a strong society．But there are still some people who don’t believe family life can be an enjoyable experience．

　　Some people already accepted the idea of the“me generation”so they fail to understand that there is a time in life when they have to give up their time to something more valuable．

　　At a time when adults need to think about the needs of their family, they will be doing other important things．Some people will spend too much time working for a more powerful car or a bigger house so that they can proudly say that they have them．Some will be doing dangerous things so that they may tell their stories to their friends, and others will recite things like“I must become the best I can be”or“I don’t want to be at the bottom．”The needs of their family will be forgotten and they never seem to have time for the family．

　　Many people have not experienced a strong helpful perfect family life, so they have never discovered its worth．Many people have always experienced family life as a fight, so they can’t find time and energy for work．

　　But it is really very important that we all expect good family relations．We need to realize and value the importance of what can be achieved by loving each other in the family．It is also important for our society to encourage family members to create happiness．

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　　A prairie is a type of grassland．Prairies are made up of a complete interdependent ecosystem．This means that all kinds of plants and animals in a prairie region depend on one another for survival(生存)．The members of a prairie ecosystem include grasses, flowering plants, animals, soil(土壤), sand, and fire．

　　You may look at a prairie and think there’s nothing there but grass, but that’s not true．Most of the prairie’s living things are below the ground．Underneath the prairie’s surface are roots and bulbs(根茎)．The roots of the prairie flowers and grasses run deep．Some of them are as deep as 3.5 metres below the ground．

　　It is important for the roots to run deep because fires are a part of the prairie ecosystem．When a fire burns through the prairie, plants with shallow(not deep)roots can not survive．Plants that have deep root systems are able to survive the fires．When fire burns across a prairie, it burns dead plants from the top and returns those nutrients(养料)to the soil．This adds to the richness of the prairie soil．Prairies have some of the richest soil in the United States．This cycle of growth and burning has been going on for thousands of years．

　　Big bluestem is the plant that gives parts of the prairie the name“tallgrass prairie”．Big bluestem has very deep roots, and its stems(茎)are often 2 metres tall．

　　The American bison(野牛)or buffalo, is the country’s largest land animal．Its home is on the prairies．In 1830, there were an estimated 30 million to 60 million bison in the United States．By 1889, Americans had made the bison population to fewer than 1,000 animals．Through great efforts, bison are being reintroduced to the prairies．They are also kept in zoos．The bison population has grown to several hundred thousand today．

　　Humans have put the prairie ecosystem in danger．Through constant farming, building, fire prevention, and ignorance(not knowing)of how the prairie works, the United States has lost much of its natural prairie．Through education and other work, we can hope to save some of it．

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　　Are you in shape?To find out, ask yourself some questions：Do I exercise regularly?Do I ever walk places instead of driving my car?Do I ever play sports for fun?Do I ever take the stairs instead of the elevator?If you answered no to any or all of the above questions, you are probably out of shape and need to start a fitness program．

　　Exercise is very important．It improves your strength and blood circulation(循环)．It gives you more energy．It can help you relax and sleep well, and it can help control your weight．In fact, the U．S．Surgeon General says that exercise can help prevent heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and osteoporosis(a disease that weakens the bones)．

　　The first step is to make a program．A good fitness program should be fun．It should involve(包含)both your arms and your legs, and it should help you to build endurance(the ability to do exercise for a long time)．To make a good program for yourself, first you should think about the types of activities you like to do, what you think you are able to do, and when you will have time to do it．A good exercise program will involve cardiovascular activities, such as running, biking, swimming, roller skating, playing soccer or tennis, or jumping rope．It will also involve weight-bearing exercise, such as weightlifting, and stretching activities．Also, daily, low-intensity activities such as walking, gardening, dancing, and climbing stairs are good for your physical health．

　　So what are you waiting for?Get off of the sofa and start exercising．Sign up for yoga, tai chi, or pilates．Join a gym or a running club, or just start walking a half an hour every day．Every little bit helps!

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　　Empire State Building：帝国大厦

　　Statue of Liberty：自由女神像

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　　When she looked ahead, Florence Chadwick saw nothing but a solid wall of fog．Her body was numb(麻木的)．She had been swimming for nearly sixteen hours．

　　Already she was the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions．Now, at age 34, her goal(目标)was to become the first woman to swim from Catalina Island to the California coast．

　　On that Fourth of July morning in 1952, the sea was like an ice bath and the fog was so dense she could hardly see her support(援助)boats．

　　Alongside Florence in one of the boats, her mother and her trainer offered encouragement．They told her it wasn’t much farther．But all she could see was fog．They encouraged her not to stop swimming．She never had…until then．With only a half mile to go, she asked to be pulled out．

　　Still warming her chilled body several hours later, she told a reporter,“Look, I am not excusing myself, but if I could have seen land I might have made it．”It was not tiredness or even the cold water that beat her．It was the fog．She was unable to see her goal．

　　Two months later, she tried again．This time, despite(尽管)the same dense fog, she swam with her confidence and her goal clearly pictured in her mind．She knew that somewhere behind that fog was land and this time she made it!Florence Chadwick became the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel, eclipsing(使黯然失色)the men’s record by two hours!

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　　In the U．S．, people prefer waiting for a table to sitting with people they don’t know．If you are sitting at a table with people you don’t know, it is impolite to light up a cigarette without first asking if it will disturb them．

　　At American restaurants and coffee shops you are usually served tap(水龙头)water before you order．You may find the bread and butter is free, and if you order coffee, you may get a free refill．

　　Most cities and towns have no rules about opening and closing times for stores or restaurants, though they usually do make rules for bars．Especially in large cities, stores may be open 24 hours a day．

　　Servings[(食物的)份] in restaurants are often large, too large for many people．If you can’t finish your meal but would like to enjoy the food later, ask your waitress or waiter for a“doggie bag”．It may have a picture of a dog on it, but everybody knows you’re taking the food for yourself．

　　Supper and dinner are both words for the evening meal．Some people have“Sunday dinner”．This is an especially big noon meal．

　　Tips(小费)are not usually added to the check．They are not included in the price of the meal, either．A tip of about 15％is expected and you should leave it on the table when you leave．In some restaurants, a check is brought on a plate and you put your money there．Then the waiter of waitress brings you your change．

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