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Café Hub

　　Next to the Castle lies The Hub, home of the Edinburgh International Festival and one of the most talked about spots in town．Our café is open every day for mouth-watering lunches, snacks and fine dining．Come in and enjoy the atmosphere of The Hub or watch the world go by from our beautiful terrace．

　　The Hub, Castlehill, Royal Mile, Edinburgh．Open every day from 9∶30 a．m．till late．

　　Tel：0131 473 2067　www．thehub-edinburgh．com

　　Farm World

　　Enjoy being “A Farmer for a Day”．Join in delivering and feeding our spring babies-bottle feeding sessions twice daily．Fun for all family．Horse Rides, BMX Bikes Cross Country Course, Tractor Ride through 600 acres, New Adventure Playground, Nature Trails．Full details on website．

　　Open：May-Oct Wednesdays to Saturdays and daily during school holidays 11 a. m.－5 p. m．

　　Tel：01797 260256/260321 www．farmworld-rye, co．uk

　　Enter the Europe-wide student competition!

　　Are you curious, creative and energetic? Are you interested in the new media? Are you between 12 and 19 years of age? Then Join Multimedia 2006 is for you!

Your challenge is to build a team and develop a multimedia presentation in English－based on one of three different topics．You can register(报名)between May 1 and June 15,2006 and will have to turn in your entry before September 15,2006．

　　The rewards are wonderful：￡150 000 in prize for schools and teams and the chance to attend a European student camp．

　　For further information and registration forms go to：www．siemens, com/join-multimedia．

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　　From email to online shopping, you may think you’ve heard everything there to know about the electronic frontier．But with hundreds of thousands of Web pages being added weekly, there are plenty of surprises out there．Here are some of the most intriguing(有迷惑力的)．

　　…

　　Put your kid on a greeting card．Here is how：simply take some pictures with a regular camera, and then ask the photo service to develop them digitally(数字化)．For a small fee, you’ll receive your photos on a desk．Put that into your computer and, with a few clicks of the mouse, you can view your photos on the screen．With a few more keystrokes, you can attach the photos to email and send them to friends and relatives worldwide．

　　Sign on to one or several greeting card’s Websites(www．cardcentral．net is an index of more than 1200 electronic card sites)and create an electronic birthday or holiday card．Using your digital photos, you can paste your grandchildren onto the cover．

　　If you don’t want to use your own photos, go to cards．amzon．com to browse hundreds of images in over 30 categories, all of which you can attack to an electronic greeting card for free．For a nominal fee you can choose from a library of 75 000 images as www．phontodisc．com．

　　Call Australia for free．To have a telephone conversation over the Internet, the person you want to talk to no longer needs a computer．Now all you need to talk to someone in Sydney is one computer with speakers, a microphone, a sound card and some software(available at www．vocaltec．com or Mricrosoft．com)．Typically, you’ll pay a monthly fee(usually under ＄20)to a service provider, but after that, the calls themselves are local．Sound quality is the same as that of a cell phone．

　　Even if you don’t have a computer, you can still use the Web to reduce your long distance phone costs．Some companies offer a service that lets you use an ordinary phone to call another ordinary phone, but charges only a few cents per minute for US calls, because they send them through the Internet．

　　Today 48 percent of American homes have computers－a figure that is expected to climb to 60 percent by 2003．And by the end of the next decade, Americans will likely be spending more time shopping, banking, investing and learning on the Internet than in the real world．If you can’t do or find something on the Net today, you probably can tomorrow．

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Tibet trekkings

　　Tibet is a highland featuring on high mountains and deep rivers．Its features of geography made itself cut off from the rest of the world for a long time; many adventurers from Germany, Britain, America, Japan and Russia had failed in the 19th century and the early 20th century on their way to Lhasa and to Mt．Everest because of reasons of nature and human．As a tour operator in Tibet travels, I have gathered rich and helpful experience on highland trekking．

　　In Tibet, there are several nice trekking routes for trekkers and adventurers to take after their regular travel in Tibet, for example, after their visits to Lhasa, Tsetang or Shigatse．Taking the geographical situation into consideration, the level of difficulty of trekking, generally speaking, can be labelled as 3.5 or 4 if the hardest or highest level is 5．

　　The first trekking route is：13 days Trekking from New Tingri to Mt．Everest, ending trekking at Basecamp．Jeeps meet you and drive you out there．

　　The second one is：14 days Trekking from Old Tingri to Mt．Everest, ending trekking at Basecamp．Jeeps meet you and drive you out there．

　　The third one is：16 days Trekking from New Tingri to Mt．Everest, then trekking out by another route via Lamna La pass(4120 m)to Ganggha-Old Tingri, ending your trekking at Ganggha．

　　The fourth one is：Trekking from Ganden monastery to Samye monastery, ending your trekking at Samye．

　　The fifth one is：Trekking from Tsetang to Lamnatso holy lake．

　　The sixth one is：Trekking from Tsupu monastery to Yangdrok geothermos fields, ending your trekking at Yangbajing．Jeeps come to meet you back to Lhasa．

　　The seventh one is：Trekking around Mt．Kailashi and holy lake Manasarovar．

　　The eighth one is：Trekking from Pai into Deep Grand Cannyon of Yarluzangbu River, there are two routes for choosing(now one route is ready…)．This trekking will be the most exciting and difficult one testing person’s will．

　　The length of trekking is varied, which is dependent on how long the trekking route is and what your body constitution is, but, in general, 3 nights and 4 days are necessary to do any of these trekkings．About the details of each, please click here to see．

　　For more information on trekking routes and arrangements, please contact us at info @tibet map．net．

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Mokele-mbembe：The Living Dinosaur!

　　In the jungles of central African countries－Congo(刚果), Cameroon(喀麦隆), and Gabon(加蓬)are the reports of an animal with a long neck, a long tail, and rounded shape tracks(脚印)with three claws．The closest known animal that has these characteristics is a sauropod dinosaur(蜥脚类恐龙)．

　　When some of the local people of the Likouala region would draw in the dirt or sand a representation of Mokele-mbembe they drew the shape of a sauropod dinosaur．Then when they were shown a picture of a sauropod dinosaur they said that picture is Mokele-mbembe．

　　Mokele-mbembe means “One that stops the flow of rivers．”French priest(牧师)in the region called it “monstrous animal”．

　　Description

　　Body

　　Mokele-mbembe has been described as an animal with a long neck and tail which are characteristics of a sauropod dinosaur．

　　Its body size is somewhere between the size of a hippopotamus(河马)and an elephant．Its length has been reported to be between 5 to 10 meters(16 to 32 feet)．The length of the neck is between 1.6 to 3.3 meters(5 to 10 feet)．The length of the tail is between 1.6 to 3.3 meters(5 to 10 feet)．The reports out of Cameroon have reported Mokele-mbembe to be up to 75 feet in length．

　　There are also reports of a frill on the back of the head．The frill is like the comb found on a cock(male chicken)．There are also reports of it having a horn on its head．

　　Skin

　　The color of the skin is predominantly reddish-brown with a color range from gray to brown．There are no reports of hair on the animal．

　　Tracks

　　Rounded shape between 30 to 90 centimeters(1 to 3 feet)in diameter with three claws．The distance between tracks is about 2.1 to 2.4 meters(7 to 8 feet)．

　　Habitat

　　Mokele- mbembe lives in the pools and swamps near to the rivers of the Likouala swamp region of the People’s Republic of the Congo on the continent of Africa．It uses the lakes as a crossing path to go from one river to another．

　　Behavior

　　Mokele-mbembe lives most of the time underwater except when it eats or travels to another part of the swamp．

　　It has been reported that Mokele-mbembe does not like hippopotamuses and will kill them at first sight, but it does not eat them．Hippopotamuses cannot be found where Mokele-mbembe lives．

　　It has been reported that Mokele-mbembe will overturn boats and kill the people from the boats by biting them and hitting them with its tail, but it does not eat the people．

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　　“Soon, you’re going to have to move out!” cried my neighbor upon seeing the largest tomato plant known to mankind, or at least known in my neighborhood．

　　One tiny 9-inch plant, bought for ＄1.25 in the spring, has already taken over much of my rose bed, covering much of other plants, and is well on its way to the front door．

　　Roses require a good deal of care, and if it weren’t for the pleasure they give, it wouldn’t be worth the work．As it is, I have a garden full of sweet-smelling roses for most of the year．Bushes must be pruned(剪枝)in early spring, leaving ugly woody branches until the new growth appears a few weeks later．It was the space available(可用的)in the garden that led me into planting just one little tomato plant．A big mistake．

　　Soil conditions made just perfect for roses turn out be even more perfect for tomatoes．The daily watering coupled with full sun and regular fertilizing(施肥)have turned the little plant into a tall bush．The cage I placed around it as the plant grew has long since disappeared under the thick leaves．

　　Now the task I face in harvesting the fruit is twofold; First, I have to find the red ones among the leaves, which means I almost have to stand on my head, and once found I have to reach down and under, pick the tomatoes and withdraw(缩回)my full fist without dropping the prize so dearly won．I found two full-blown white roses completely hidden as I picked tomatoes in June．But they were weak and the leaves already yellow for lack of light．

　　Here I am faced with a painful small decision：To tear up a wonderful and productive tomato plant that offers up between ten and twenty ripe sweet tomatoes each day or say goodbye to several expensive and treasured roses．Like Scarlett in Gone With the Wind, I’ll think about that tomorrow．

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　　Thinking is something you choose to do as a fish chooses to live in water．To be human is to think．But thinking may come naturally without your knowing how you do it．Thinking about drinking is the key to critical(判断性的)thinking．When you think critically, you take control of your thinking processes(过程)．Otherwise, you might be controlled by the ideas of others．Indeed, critical thinking is at the heart of education．

　　The word “critical” here has a special meaning．It does not mean taking one view against another view, as when someone criticizes another person for doing something wrong．The nature of critical thinking is thinking beyond the easily seen-beyond the pictures on TV, the untrue reports in the newspapers, and the faulty reasoning．

　　Critical thinking is an attitude as much as an activity．If you are curious about life and desire to dig deeper into it, you are a critical thinker．If you find pleasure in deep thinking about different ideas, characters, and facts, you are a critical thinker．

　　Activities of the mind and higher-order reasoning are processes of deep and careful consideration．They take time, and do not go hand in hand with the fast speed in today’s world：fast foods, instant coffee, and self-developing film．If you are among the people who believe that speed is a measure of intelligence(智力), you may learn something new from a story about Albert Einstein．The first time Banesh Hoffman, a scientist, was to discuss his work with Albert Einstein．Hoffman was too nervous to speak．But Einstein immediately put Hoffman at ease by saying, “Please go slowly．I don’t understand things quickly．”

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　　We are all interested in equality, but while some people try to protect the school and examination system in the name of equality, other, still in the name of equality, want only to destroy it．

　　Any society which is interested in equality of opportunity and standards of achievement must regularly test its pupils．The standards may be changed－no examination is perfect－but to have to tests or examinations would mean the end of equality and of standards．There are groups of people who oppose this view and who do not believe either in examinations or in any controls in school or on teachers．This would mean that everything would depend on luck since every pupil would depend on the efficiency, the values and the purpose of each teacher．

　　Without examinations, employers will look for employees from the highly respected schools and from families known to them－a form of favourtism will replace equality．At the moment, the bright child from an ill-respected school can show certificates to prove he or she is suitable for a job, while the lake of certificate indicates the unsuitability of a dull child attending a well-respected school．This defend of excellence and opportunity would disappear if examinations were taken away, and the bright child from a poor family would be a prisoner of his or her school’s reputation, unable to compete for employment with the child from the favoured school．

　　The opponents of the examination system suggest that examinations are an evil force because they show differences between pupils．According to these people, there must be no special, different, academic class．They have even suggested that there should be no form of difference in sport or any other area：all jobs or posts should be filled by unsystematic selection．The selection would be made by people who themselves are probably selected by some computer．

阅读理解

　　If the world were a village of 1000 people it would include：

　　584 Asians

　　124 Africans

　　95 Eastern and Western Europeans

　　84 Latin Americans

　　55 former Soviets(including Lithuanians, Latvians, Estonians, and other national groups)

　　52 North Americans

　　6 Australians and New Zealanders

　　The people of the village would speak：

　　165 Mandarin

　　86 English

　　83 Hindu/Urdu

　　64 Spanish

　　58 Russian

　　37 Arabic

　　The above list covers the mother tongues of only half the village．

　　One-third of the people in the village are children, and only 60 are over the age of 65．Just under half of the married women in the village have access to modern equipments．

　　This year 28 babies will be born．Ten people will die, 3 of them for lack of food, 1 from cancer．Two of the deaths will be of babies born within the year．With the 28 births and 10 deaths, the population of the village next year will be 1018．

　　In this village of 1000 persons,(200 people receive 75 percent of the income; another(200 receive only 2 percent of the income．

　　About one-third have access to clean, safe drinking water．Of the 670 adults in the village, half can not read nor write．

　　The village has a total yearly budget(预算), public and private, of over ＄3 million-＄3000 per person if it is distributed evenly．Of the total ＄3 million：

　　＄181 000 goes to weapons and warfare

　　＄159 000 to education

　　＄132 000 to health care

　　These weapons are under the control of just 100 of the people．The other 900 are watching them with deep anxiety, wondering whether they can learn to get along together．

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　　The private automobile(私家车)has long played an important role in the United States．In fact, it has become a necessary and important part of the American way of life．In 1986, sixty-nine percent of American families owned at least one car, and thirty-eight percent had more than one．By giving workers rapid transportation, the automobile has freed them from having to live near their place of work．This has encouraged the growth of the cities, but it has also led to traffic problems．

　　For farm families the automobile is very helpful．It has made it possible for them to travel to town very often for business and for pleasure, and also to transport their children to distant schools．

　　Family life has been affected(影响)in various ways, The car helps to keep families together when it is used for picnics, outings, and other shared experiences．However, when teenage children have the use of the car, their parents can’t keep an eye on them．There is a great danger if the driver has been drinking alcohol or taking drugs, or showing off by speeding or breaking down traffic laws．Mothers of victims(受害者)of such accidents have formed an organization called MADD(Mothers Against Drunk Driving)．These women want to prevent further tragedies(悲剧)．They have worked to encourage the government to limit the youngest drinking age．Students have formed a similar organization, SADD(Students Against Drunk Driving)and are spreading the same message among their friends．

　　For many Americans the automobile is a necessity．But for some, it is also a mark of social position and for young people, a sign of becoming an adult．Altogether, cars mean very much to Americans．

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　　She took up skating at age 85, made her first movie appearance at age 114, and held a concert in the neighborhood on her 121st birthday．

　　When it comes to long life, Jeanne Calment is the world’s record holder．She lived to the ripe old age of 122．So is 122 the upper limit to the human life span(寿命)?If scientists come up with some sort of pill or diet that would slow aging, could we possibly make it to 150－or beyond?

　　Researchers don’t entirely agree on the answers．“Calment lived to 122, so it wouldn’t surprise me if someone alive today reaches 130 or 135, ”says Jerry Shay at the University of Texas．

　　Steve Austad at the University of Texas agrees．“People can live much longer than we think, ”he says．“Experts used to say that humans couldn’t live past 110．When Calment blew past that age, they raised the number to 120．So why can’t we go higher?”

　　The trouble with guessing how old people can live to be is that it’s all just guessing．“Anyone can make up a number, ”says Rich Miller at the University of Michigan．“Usually the scientist who picks the highest number gets his name in Time magazine．”

　　Won’t new anti-aging techniques keep us alive for centuries?Any cure, says Miller, for aging would probably keep most of us kicking until about 120．Researchers are working on treatments that lengthen the life span of mice by 50 percent at most．So, if the average human life span is about 80 years, says Miller, “adding another 50 percent would get you to 120．”

　　So what can we conclude from this little disagreement among the researchers?That life span is flexible(有弹性的), but there is a limit, says George Martin of the University of Washington．“We can get flies to live 50 percent longer, ”he says．“But a fly’s never going to live 150 years．” Of course, if you became a new species(物种), one that ages at a slower speed, that would be a different story, he adds．

　　Does Martin really believe that humans could evolve(进化)their way to longer life? “It’s pretty cool to think about, ”he says with a smile．