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　　At the World Expo Shanghai 2010, you will be able to see the world in just one day．

　　The World Expo(short for“exposition”)is the third largest world event after the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup．Countries build pavilions(展示馆)at the Expo, showing off technologies and cultures with colorful exhibitions and performances．

　　People can experience the most advanced technologies at the World Expo．Throughout history, many new inventions have made their debuts(样品)at the World Expo, including the TV, telephone and even the ice cream cone．

　　But the Expo is not just a trade fair(商品交易会)．It's a platform(平台)for cultural exchange, bringing people closer to the rest of the world．

　　For example, at the Shanghai Expo, couples may be able to marry in French-style weddings at the France Pavilion．Thailand will let visitors walk into its emperor's palace．Visitors to the Austria Pavilion will have the chance to experience the snow-capped mountains of the country．

　　Many countries have also decided to bring their national treasures to the event．

　　Since the 1993 Expo in Chicago, the World Expo began to focus on one theme．It changed from a show into a community event．Visitors are invited to help solve global issues, such as environmental problems．

　　The theme of the Shanghai Expo is“Better city, better life”．It will call on the world to solve the problems human beings face as a result of urbanization(城市化)．In the future, more and more people may care about protecting the places they live in．

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　　In Britain you may often hear“Drop in any time”or“Come to see me soon”, but you can't really do that．People just say those things to make you feel welcome．It is better to telephone before visiting someone at home．If you receive a written invitation to an event that says“RSVP”, you should reply to let the person who sent the invitation know whether or not you plan to go．

　　You should never accept an invitation unless you really plan to go．You may refuse by saying,“Thank you for inviting me, but I will not be able to come．”If, after accepting, you are unable to go, be sure to tell those who are expecting you as soon as possible that you will not be there．Although it is not necessarily expected that you give a gift to your host, it is considered polite to do so, especially if you have been invited for a meal．Flowers, chocolate, or a small gift are all appropriate(合适的)．A thank-you note or telephone call after the visit is also considered polite and is an appropriate way to express your appreciation for the invitation．

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　　Almost every day, we discuss the topic of health, especially for kids．But what is health?“Health”means eating well, getting enough exercise, and having a healthy weight．Let's read the following rules．They can help you stay healthy．

　　1．Eat a variety of food, especially fruit and vegetables．We all know that eating fruit and vegetables can help us stay healthy, but many of us only eat our favorite food．Remember that we can only get the nutrition(营养)we need by eating different kinds of food, especially fruit and vegetables．

　　2．Drink water and milk most often．Everyone knows that water is important．Besides that, kids need plenty of calcium(钙)to grow strong bones, and milk is rich in it．Every day, you should drink at least three cups of milk, when you are 9 years old or older．You should also try to have less sugary drinks, like soda and coca．They include a lot of sugar．Sugar only includes calories(热量), not important nutrition．

　　3．Listen to your body．When you are eating, notice how your body feels．When your stomach feels comfortably full, stop eating．Eating too much makes you feel uncomfortable．If you do it too often, it can make you unhealthy and fat．

　　4．Limit screen time．What's screen time?It's the amount of time you spend watching TV, movies and playing computer games．The more time you spend on these sitting-down activities, the less time you spend playing sports, like basketball, and doing other activities like riding and swimming．Try to spend no more than 2 hours a day on screen time．

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　　Sixteen years ago a boy gave me an important gift．It was a smile．

　　It was the early autumn of my first year at a middle school, and my old school was far away．As a result, no one knew who I was．I was very lonely, and afraid to speak to anyone．

　　Every time I heard the other students talking and laughing, I felt my heart break．I couldn't talk with anyone about my problems．

　　Then one day, when my classmates were talking happily with their friends, I was sitting at my desk unhappily as usual．At that moment, a boy entered the classroom．I didn't know who he was．He passed by me and then turned back．He looked at me, with a smile．

　　Suddenly, I felt the touch of something bright and friendly．It made me feel happy and warm．That smile changed my life．I started to talk with other students and made friends．Day by day, I became closer to everyone in my class．The boy with the lucky smile has become my best friend now．

　　One day I asked him why he had smiled, but he couldn't remember doing so!

　　It doesn't matter because all the dark days have gone．I believe that the world is what you think it is．If you think it is lonely, you might always be alone．So smile at the world and it will smile back．

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　　Here is a page from a magazine called Future．Read the following information about things that may happen in ten years．

　　Cars will run on solar power(太阳能)and will be much cleaner．They will be much safer．For example, if you are too close to another car or if you are driving dangerously, your car will slow down or stop by itself．

　　New cities will have to be built in the sea．Some cities on water will have two levels(层)．People will live on the upper level; the lower level will be used for traffic, shops and factories．

　　Biotechnology(生物技术)will make food better and healthier．Plants without insects or illnesses(病虫害)will be developed．The taste of fruit and vegetables will be better and food will be kept longer．

　　Many new ways to cure(治愈)illnesses will be found．People will use products of genetic engineering(基因产品)to cure more illnesses．However, some new illnesses will appear．

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　　A man was walking along the street when he saw a woman carrying a large box．It was half in and half out of her car．So the man went up and said,“The box looks very heavy．Let me give you a hand．”

　　“That's very kind of you,”the woman said,“I'm having a lot of trouble with it．Maybe it sticks(卡住)in the car door．”

　　“Together we'll soon move it,”the man said．“I'll get in and take the other end．”And he got in the car．

　　“Right,”the man said．“I'm ready,”and he began to push the box hard．

　　For several minutes, the man and the woman tried to move the box．Soon they felt very tired．

　　They rested for a moment．Then the woman said,“Let's try again．One, two, three!”They went on moving the box．

　　At last, when they were exhausted, the man said,“I'm sorry, but I don't think there's any way to get it out of your car．”

　　“Get it out?”the woman cried．“I'm trying to get it in!You know?”

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　　Here are some facts about homes in the United States and the people who live in them．In the early 1990s, about 50％ of the Americans owned their homes and the rest rented(租)their homes．The rented homes were usually apartments(公寓)．

　　74％ of the people in the US make their homes in or around cities．26％ live in the country．Dogs live in about 40％ of all homes in the US．About half that number have cats．

　　Families in the US are becoming smaller．On the average(平均), 2.64 people lived at home in early 1990s．In 1960, the average was 3.5．

　　Half of the teenagers in the US have their own bedrooms．

　　An American moves, on the average, twelve times in his or her life．In Japan a person moves about five times, and in England a person moves eight times．

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　　On a British Airways flight from Johannesburg, a middle-aged, rich white South American lady found herself sitting next to a black man．She called the cabin stewardess(机舱乘务员)over to complain about her seating．

　　“What seems to be the problem, Madam?”asked the stewardess．

　　“Can't you see?”she said．“You've sat me next to a black man．I can't possibly sit next to this kind of human．Find me another seat!”

　　“Please calm down, Madam,”the stewardess replied．“The flight is very full today, but I'll tell you what I'll do－I will go and check to see if we have any free seats in Club(商务舱)or First Class．”

　　The lady had an unfriendly look at the outraged(被激怒的)black man beside her．

　　A few minutes later the stewardess returned and said to the lady with a self-satisfied smile,“I'm sorry, Madam, this Economy(经济舱)is full, and Club is also full．However, we do have one seat in First Class．”

　　The lady could not help looking at the people around her．But before she had a chance to get up or make any answer, the stewardess continued,“We seldom make this kind of upgrade(升级), however, and I had to report it to the captain(机长)．When the captain heard this, he said that it was not proper to make someone sit next to such an obnoxious(令人讨厌的)person．”Having said that, the stewardess turned to the black man sitting next to the lady, and said,“So if you'd like to get your things, sir, I have a seat ready for you…”

　　At this time, the people around stood up and clapped their hands．The black man walked up to the front of the plane．

　　That was an unforgettable flight for me, for I was the black man who had never flown First Class before．

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　　Many years before the United States was founded(建立), Americans had already invented barbecues．But the first barbecues, in fact, were the invention of the Taino Indians of Haiti, who dried their meat on raised frames(架子)of sticks over fires．Spanish explorers spelled the Taino word as barbacoa, and as time passed, English settlers along the Atlantic coat had their own barbecues．

　　One summer day in 1773, Benjamin Lynde, a citizen of Massachusetts, wrote in his diary,“Fair and hot ; Browne; hack overset．”That is, on a bright and hot day he went to the Brownes to attend a barbecue, and his carriage(马车)fell over．It shows that the barbecue had its social occasion by that time．Large animals would be roasted whole on frames over hot fires, and neighbours would be invited to dinner．

　　In later centuries, as settlers moved to the west, the barbecue went along with it, reaching an especially large size in Texas, where a pit(坑)for fuels(燃料)such as tree branches might be over ten feet deep．Today, the barbecue grills(烧烤架)which are fueled by charcoal(木炭)or electricity are likely to be small and easy to move, and can cook only parts of an animal at a time, but people still have barbecues out of doors and always invite their neighbours or friends over．