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　　Dear Mum and Dad,

　　It was a great idea to send me over to Britain to learn English this summer! I’ve met so many students——from Sweden, France and all over the world．And there are lots of students from Germany here too．It’s just like being at home．What a relief to find normal people, even in England, and to speak in a normal language most of the time．

　　Of course, we do have English lessons in the day, and I have to talk to the family I stay with here．Do you know, some of my friends have said they won’t go out with us in the evening any more——they want to speak English and find English friends．I think they’re mad．The family I live with are very nice．But they have some strange habits．They drink tea all day：at breakfast, in the afternoon and at bedtime．And they eat butter with salt in it!If I go out in the evening, I often eat fish and chips．The food is wrapped up in a newspaper; at least reading the paper takes your mind off the fish and chips! Here at the coast, we travel by bus．The buses are always late．I was knocked down by an old lady the other day because I didn’t stand in the queue．English people seem very quiet and reserved, so I was very surprised to see how violent they become about queues．Also, if you ask them directions, they suddenly become very chatty and go on for hours．

　　I’d like to come back here next year to see all my friends again——oh yes, and to learn some more English…

Your loving son,

Hans．

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　　The hand-hooked rugs in this new collection are made of 100％ wool．Made with a thick and dense pile, these rugs are long lasting．The latex(乳胶)backing provides added durability．

　　The Cozy Country line features a solid color rug with a patterned border．The border pattern is a sprinkling of tiny and delicate flowers．These rugs will add a country flavor to any room or area．With the subtle(精细的)pattern, you are not restricted in your choice of accessories．These versatile rugs will perfect any room scheme．You can turn your home into a cozy country cottage!

　　A　Azure：blue with white flowers

　　B　Spring Meadow：green with white flowers

　　C　Sandstone：beige with green flowers

　　D　Rose Garden：dusty rose with blue flowers

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Recently my wife and I, along with a travel companion, were in the tiny town of Battambang in central Cambodia．We hired a guide to take us up the river to our next destination at Siem Reap．This was to be a sixhour trip followed by crossing Lake Sap, the largest lake in central Asia．Battambang is an extremely poor area, and our mode of transportation was a very small, old boat not much larger than the three of us．With six bags tied to the front part of the boat, four travelers, and the boatman, I figured we were overloaded by at least a ton．We frequently had seen four or five people on a single motorbike, so no one but us was concerned about our weight．We had been on the water only a few minutes when our pilot made for shore and jumped from our boat to another．Our guide said not to worry; he would only be a minute．He added, “We need to pick up live chickens for their legs．” My wife and I exchanged glances．We are pretty open-minded, especially when traveling in a third-world country．It was obvious there was little room in our tiny vessel for chickens．If we had to take them along, we were willing to hold them on our legs——there was no place else to put them．The thought even occurred to me that perhaps the chickens were needed if the boat’s tiny engine stopped in the middle of nowhere I had a vision of us holding them over the side of the boat while their tiny legs paddled(划)away, guiding us to safety．After all, our guide had said we needed them for their legs．We continued to make many jokes about live chickens drawing us to shore if the boat turned over and we were about to eat them if we were left on a wild island．Meanwhile our guide just gave us a puzzled look．Finally my wife turned to him and asked, “How many chickens are we taking?” At first he seemed totally surprised, and then a large smile spread over his face．He bent over and began to laugh uncontrollably．My wife turned to me and said, “I’m glad he finds the thought of us holding chickens on our legs for six hours so funny．”When he finished laughing, he looked at us and pronounced every word clearly and loudly, “No live chickens!” he said, “We need life jackets for the lake!” It took a moment for this to sink in, and then we all had a good laugh．In fact, for the next six hours he kept asking us if our “chickens” fit all right and then laughed wildly．“Americans, so funny!” he kept saying．

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　　An informal survey conducted by Shanghai Star reveals that support for the Olympics is widespread．

　　“The Olympic Games are more than just a sport, it is a way of life, ” said Noah Janssen when asked about his views of the Olympics．This was the most enthusiastic response received in the survey, which was conducted yesterday, and consisted equally of Chinese and foreigners．Respondents were given the opportunity to name their favorites sport and, among other questions, were asked if they planned to attend the next Olympic Games．

　　Here are some of the more interesting things that we uncovered．

　　★The Chinese liked to watch water sports such as swimming and diving more than other sports．

　　★Westerners preferred to watch field sports such as football and track and field．

　　★Most of the people said they watched the Games from home, although one person claimed to watch it from the stadium．

　　★None of the people interviewed had any plans for attending the next Olympic Games．

　　★Ninety percent of the people were more than satisfied with the Chinese coverage of the Games．

　　★Most said they would like to attend the Games personally, but none expected to do so．

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　　Pennsylvania－When Connie Beck and her husband awoke to strange noises last weekend, they thought high winds were rattling(使发出响声)their home．

　　What they found was even more unexpected：A deer was taking a bubble(泡沫)bath in their bathtub．

　　“I wasn’t exactly dressed for company, ”Mrs．Beck said．“We were just waking up．”

　　The deer burst through the front door early on Saturday, ran past the couple’s bedroom and into the bathroom．

　　Somehow he managed to turn on the water in the bathtub and knock over a bottle of bubble bath into the bathtub．

　　He then got himself into the bubbly water．

　　“You could hear the water running over the kicking, ” Beck said．

　　The Becks called State Game Commission officials, who arrived with tranquilizers(镇静剂)and a lot of laughter．

　　“A guy said, ’There’s nothing wrong…he’s just in there taking a bubble bath,’” Mrs．Beck said．

　　The animal was soon brought under control, removed from the house and released．

　　“He was unharmed except for a little cut above the eye, ” said Mrs．Beck．“We were also fortunate．There wasn’t much damage, except for the front door, some marks on the tub, and a few hoof(蹄)prints on the floor．”

请同学们阅读下面的短文，然后完成后面的阅读任务。

　　First aid is the emergency(紧急)care for a victim’s(受害人)sudden illness or injury until more skillful medical treatment is available．First aid may save a life or improve certain vital(生命攸关的)signs including pulse, temperature, an unobstructed airway, and breathing．In minor emergencies, first aid may prevent a victim’s condition from worsening and provide relief(解除)from pain．First aid must be carried out as quickly as possible．In the case of the seriously injured, a few minutes can make a difference between a complete recovery and the loss of life．

　　First-aid measures depend upon a victim’s needs and the provider’s level of knowledge and skills．Knowing what not to do in an emergency is as important as knowing what to do．Improperly moving a person with a neck injury, for example, can lead to the everlasting spinal injury and paralysis(永久性脊髓伤害和瘫痪)．

　　Despite the variety of injuries possible, several principles of first aid can be used for all emergencies．The first step is to call for the professional medical help．The victim, if conscious(有知觉的), should be reassured that medical aid has been requested, and asked for permission to provide any first aid．Next, assess(估计)the scene, asking other people or the injured person’s family or friends about details of the injury or illness, any care that may have already been given, and preexisting conditions(原先就存在的疾病)such as diabetes(糖尿病)or heart trouble．Unless the accident scene becomes unsafe or the victim may suffer further injury, do not move the victim．

　　First aid requires rapid assessment(估计)of victims to determine whether life threatening conditions exist．One method for evaluating(估计)a victim’s condition is known by the acronym(只取首字母缩写词)ABC, which stands for：

　　A－Airway：Is it open and unobstructed?

　　B－Breathing：Is the person breathing? Look, listen, and feel for breathing．

　　C－Circulation：Is there a pulse? Is the person bleeding externally(体表上)?Check the skin color and temperature for the additional indications of circulation problems．

　　Once the obvious injuries have been evaluated, the injured person’s head should be kept in a neutral position in line with the body．If no evidence exists to suggest the potential skull(头骨)or spinal injury, place the injured person in a comfortable position．Positioned on one side, a victim can throw up without choking(窒息)or obstructing the airway．

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　　Time talks．It speaks more plainly(明白地)than words．Time communicates(交流)in many ways．

　　Consider the different parts of the day, for example．The day when something is done can give a special meaning to the event．Factory managers in the United States fully realize the importance of an announcement made during the middle of the morning or afternoon that takes everyone away from his work．

　　In the United States, it is not customary to telephone someone very early in the morning．If you telephone him early in the day, while he is shaving or having breakfast, the time of the call shows that the matter is very urgent and requires immediate attention．It is the same with telephone calls made after 11：00pm．If someone receives a call during sleeping hours, he probably thinks it is a matter of life or death．The time chosen for the call communicates its importance．

　　The meanings of time differ in different parts of the world．Thus, misunderstanding arises(出现)between people from cultures that treat time differently．In the United States, people tend to think of time as something fixed in nature, something from which one can not escape．As a rule, Americans think of time as a road into the future, along which one progresses．The road has many sections, which are to be kept separate “one thing at a time”．Thus, an American may feel angry when he has made an appointment(约会)with someone and then finds a lot of other things happening at the same time．

　　Americans look ahead and are concerned almost entirely with the future．The American idea of the future is limited, however．It is the foreseeable future and not the future of involving(牵连)many centuries．

　　Since time has much different meanings in different cultures, communication is often difficult．We will understand each other a little better if we can keep this fact in mind．

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　　Some people say that seals are the fairies of the sea and should not be killed．The seals are the cleverest creatures that have ever been found in the sea．“In the Kingdom of the Seals” is an English fairy story by Donald A．Mackenzie．It tells of a seal hunter who wounds a seal．The seal swims away with the hunter’s knife still in its back．That evening a stranger on a black horse calls at the home of the seal hunter and takes him to the edge of a cliff．Suddenly the seal hunter finds himself falling．He falls to the bottom of the sea．

　　The stranger changes into a seal and leads him towards a huge underwater palace．Inside the palace he sees an old grey seal lying on a bed in terrible pain．Beside the bed is a knife which the hunter recognizes as his own．He is ashamed of his cruelty and begs forgiveness of the old seal．Because this is a fairy story the wound is healed when the seal hunter lays his hand on it and wishes．The old seal regains his strength straight away．The seal hunter promises never to hunt seals again．Then he is led back to dry land．When he gets home he finds his pockets are filled with pearls．

　　So much for the story－what about the reality？True seals are earless．There are 18 species of earless seals．Fur seals are not true seals．Fur seals feed mainly on krill－a small type of shrimp．When diving for food seals have been known to reach depths of 300 meters, but throughout the breading season of several weeks, male seals do not eat or drink．

本文是记叙文。文章讲述了一个关于海豹的神话故事，结尾时介绍了一些海豹的知识。