阅读理解

　　Some people are lucky enough to be born with a good sense of direction and even if they have only visited a place once, they will be able to find it again years later．

　　I am one of those unfortunate people who have poor sense of direction and I may have visited a place time after time but I still get lost on my way there．When I was young I was so shy that I never dared ask complete strangers the way and so I used to wander round in circles and hope that by some chance I would get to the spot I was heading for．

　　I am no longer too shy to ask people for direction, but I often receive replies that puzzle me．Often people do not like to admit that they didn’t know their hometown and will insist on telling you the way, even if they do not know it; others, who are anxious to prove that they know their hometown very well, will give you a long list of directions which you can not possibly hope to remember, and still others do not seem to be able to tell between their left and their right and you find in the end that you are going in the opposite direction to that in which you should be going．

　　If anyone ever asks me the way to somewhere, I always tell them I am a stranger to the town in order to avoid giving them wrong direction but even this can have embarrassing results．

　　Once I was on my way to work when I was stopped by a man who asked me if I would direct him the way to the Sunlight Building．I gave my usual reply, but I had not walked on a few steps when I realized that he had asked for directions to my office building．However, at this point, I decide it was too late to turn back and search for him out of the crowd behind me as I was going to meet with someone at the office and I did not want to keep him waiting．

　　Imagine my embarrassment when my secretary showed in the very man who had asked for directions to my office and his astonishment when he recognized me as the person he had asked．

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　　Ancient people made clay pottery because they needed it for their survival．They used the pots they make for cooking, storing food, and carrying things from place to place．Pottery was so important to early cultures that scientists now study it to learn more about ancient civilizations．The more advanced the pottery in terms of decoration, materials, glazes, and manufacture, the more advanced the culture itself．

　　The artisan who makes pottery in North America today utilizes his or her skill and imagination to create items that are beautiful as well as functional, transforming something ordinary into something special and unique．

　　The potter uses one of the Earth’s most basic materials, clay．Clay can be found almost anywhere．Good pottery clay must be free from all small stones and other hard materials that would make the potting process difficult．Most North American artisan potters now purchase commercially processed clay, but some find the clay they need right in the earth, close to where they work．

　　The most important tools potters use are their own hands; however, they also use wire loop tools, wooden modeling tools, plain wire, and sponges．Plain wire is used to cut away the finished pot from its vase the potter’s wheel．

　　After a finished pot is dried of all its moisture in the open air, it placed in a kiln and fired．The first firing hardens the pottery, and it is then ready to be glazed and fired again．

　　For areas where they do not want any glaze, such as the bottom of the pot, artisans paint on melted wax that will later burn off in the kiln．They then pour on the liquid glaze and let it run over the clay surface, making any kind of decorative pattern that they want．

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　　A new study shows that fat people in the United States suffer direct economic (经济的) and social effects because of their size．The findings are from an 8－year study of about 100 000 people．The people studied were between the ages of 16 and 24 when the research began．

　　The researchers who carried out the study say they consider the people fat if they are in the top of 5% of the measurement in which weight is connected with height．For example, fat women in the study were about 160 centimeters tall and weighed about 90 kilograms．Fat men in the study were about 175 centimeters tall and weighed 100 kilograms．The researchers say that more than．

1 000 000 Americans are that big．The researchers found that fat young women were more likely to lose social and economic power even if they were form wealthy families．The fat women also were 20% less likely to get married and they earned an average of about $6 700 a year less than other women．The study showed less severe effect on fat men．They earned an average of about $3 000 a year less than other men．Fat men also were 11% less likely to get married．

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　　This is the story of a small boy, who lived a long time ago in Germany．His name was George Frederick Handle．

　　As a very young boy, he loved music most．But his father didn’t allow him to play any music．

　　Then one day he waited until he was all alone at home．Quickly he ran to his hiding place; he and a friend carried a small piano into the house．He decided to put it in his hiding place．There no one could see it．

　　That night, when everyone else was asleep, he went to his hiding place．The moon was shining through a broken window．He sat on a box and began to play the piano．At that moment he knew he could only be happy playing music the rest of his life．

　　He played on and on, and he filled hid house with his music．

　　“George”cried his father．“What are you doing?Stop that playing now!”

　　The music stopped．George had tears in his eyes．Then he turned to his father and said,“Papa, you must understand．I love music．It is my whole life．”．

　　“Now listen to me, you foolish boy,”said Mr．Handle．“I want you to be a rich man．I want you to work hard．I don’t want you to be a poor man all your life．You must leave music and become a doctor．Don’t let me see you at the piano again．”

　　One day George found his way to church．He went straight to the organ (管风琴) and began to play it．He was only seven years old then．The story of his music spread in his town．

　　When the Duke heard the story, he said,“This boy must have the best music teacher．”So George began to take music lessons．

　　George’s teacher was very good．He taught George well and helped him write his own music．George became famous when he was eleven years old．Now his music is played all over the world．

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　　Just as mankind has always had a desire to fly, the human race has wanted to swim under the water since prehistoric times．But our dream of moving freely beneath the ocean waves for long periods of time was only realized about 60 years ago, when French diving legend Jacques Cousteau developed the first practical Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus(SCUBA)．Since then the sport of SCUBA diving has gone from strength to strength．

　　Lovers of SCUBA diving like the feeling of weightlessness, the peace and quiet under the water, and the sense of adventure they get while on a dive．SCUBA divers often travel to some of the most beautiful and remote places in the world in the search for rare underwater animals and plants．Palau, the Red Sea, the Maldives and Hawaii have many of the most popular diving sites．

　　SCUBA diving is not without its dangers, however．The mixture of nitrogen(氮)and oxygen divers breathe underwater, combined with the pressure under the water can be deadly if a diver rises too quickly to the surface, causing a condition called‘the bends’．Divers can also get lost or trapped when diving on wrecks, and deaths are particularly common in cave diving, where divers add to the dangers of diving by swimming through underground caves filled with water．Diving can also be harmful to the underwater environment．However, proper diving can open up a whole new world, far from the stresses of daily life．

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　　It may look like just another playgroup, but a unique educational center in Manhattan is really giving babies something to talk about．“It’s a school to teach languages to babies and young children with games, songs-some of the classed also have arts and crafts,”said Francois Thibaut, the founder of the Language Workshop for Children, a place where babies become bilingual(双语的)．

　　Children as young as few months are exposed to French and Spanish before many of them can even speak English．Educators use special songs and visual(视觉的)aids to ensure that when a child is ready to talk, the languages will not be so foreign．“Children have a unique ability to learn many languages at the same time,”said Thibaut．“Already at nine months, a child can tell the differences between the sounds he or she has heard since birth and the sounds he or she has never heard yet．”Thibaut says the best time to expose children to language is from birth to 3 years old．For the last 30 years, the school has been using what it calls the Thibaut Technique, a system that combines language lessons with child’s play．

　　“I always wanted to learn Spanish, but by the time I got to high school it was too late to pick it up and speak fluently,”said Marc Lazare, who put his son at the school．“I figured at this age, two,”it’s a perfect time for him to learn．

　　Aside from learning a language, the kids also gain a great sense of confidence．One young student boasted that besides French, she can speak five languages(though that included“monkey”and“lion”)．The school gives children the tools to communicate, and sometimes that gives them an advantage over their parents．“I think they sometimes speak French when they think I won’t understand them,”said parent Foster Gibbons．

　　Depending on the age group, classes run from 45 minute up to 2 hours．Even when students are not in class, the program is designed to make sure the learning continues at home．Tapes and books are included so kids can practice on their own．

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　　Middle East Nest

　　A look at U．S．military deaths in Iraq AP-23 minutes ago

　　As of Sunday, Aug．20, 2006, at least 2,606 members of the U．S．military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count．The figure includes seven military civilians．At least 2,069 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military’s numbers．

　　20 Shiite pilgrims shot to death in Iraq AP-24 minutes ago

　　BAGHDAD,Iraq-Gunmen were seen shooting into Shiite Muslim religious meetings in the capital Sunday, killing at least 20 people in another bloody attack that many Iraqis fear is pushing them toward civil war．

　　Israel seizes senior West Bank lawmaker AP-33 minutes ago

　　RAMALLAH,West Bank-Israeli forces seized a senior Palestinian legislator Sunday in the latest move in a 7-week-old crackdown on the ruling Hamas movement, drawing angry accusations(指责)from Palestinian leaders that Israel is ruining their efforts to form a unity government．

　　Israel puts conditions on peacekeepers AP-2 hours, 42 minutes ago

　　JERUSALEM-Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday that countries that don’t have diplomatic relations with the Jewish state should not join in the international peacekeeping force that will police a truce(停战期)along the Lebanese border, his office said．

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　　After visiting a Haringey tower block, the Metropolitan Police commissioner Ian Blair claimed that people now feel as safe as they did 25 years ago．

　　Do you agree with Sir Ian’s rosy view of society?

　　Do you feel safe enough to leave your doors unlocked where you live?…

　　I lived in Devon for three years, and can honestly say that in the village where I lived it was safe to leave the front door unlocked．But a London district?What planet is Ian Blair on?What decade is he in?

　　I’m not one of these people who think that Britain is slipping into a deep hole, but I am realistic enough to understand that wherever you find a large population you will find crime．

　　The idea that we can measure society’s downfall by how safe it is to leave the door unlocked is misleading, anyhow．It’s a little like the recent announcement that street crime has increased in recent years．Yes, it has, but the majority of people now walk around with half a branch of Dixon’s in their pockets-mobile phones, I-Pods．Of course, street crime is going to increase．

　　Funnily enough, there was hardly any car theft in the 19^th century!!!

　　The same goes for houses．A hundred years ago your house may have contained a little jewelry, some furniture, and some small cash in a biscuit tin．Now even working class households are equipped with computers, DVD players, wide-screen televisions-all of which can be carried out in a matter of minutes．

　　I’m not speaking for the scum(渣滓)who choose to break into people’s houses and rob them of their hard-earned belongings, but it does put things into context．

　　Yes-we have to lock our front doors, and yes, it is a shame that we can’t trust everyone, but if we’re honest with ourselves, those of us living in cities never could trust absolutely everyone．

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　　Andrea had never seen an old lady hitchhiking before．However, the weather and the coming darkness made her feel sorry for the lady．The old lady climbed in through the car door, and pushed her big brown shopping bag down under her feet．She said in almost a whisper,“Thank you, dear-I’m just going to Brockbourne．”

　　Something in the way the lady spoke made Andrea uneasy about this strange hitchhiker．She didn’t know why, but she felt instinctively(直觉上)that there was something wrong, something…dangerous．But how could an old lady be dangerous?It was strange．

　　Careful not to turn her head, Andrea looked sideways at her passenger．She studied the hat, the dirty collar of the dress, the shapeless body, the arms with their thick black hairs

　　Thick black hairs?

　　Hairy arms?Andrea’s blood froze．

　　This wasn’t a woman．

　　At first, she didn’t know what to do．Then suddenly, an idea came into her racing, terrified brain．Swinging the wheel suddenly, she threw the car into a skid(侧滑),and brought it to a stop．

　　“My god!”she shouted,“A child!I think I hit her!”The“old lady”was clearly shaken by the sudden skid,“I didn’t see anything, dear,”she said．“I don’t think you hit anything．”

　　“I am sure it was a child!”insisted Andrea．“Could you just get out and have a look?”She held her breath．Would her plan work?

　　It did．The passenger slowly climbed out to have a look．Hardly was she out of the car, Andrea drove madly away, and soon she put a good three miles between herself and the awful hitchhiker．

　　It was only then that she thought about the bag．Maybe the bag would provide some information about what she was．Pulling into the side of the road, Andrea opened the heavy bag curiously．

　　It contained only one item-a small hand axe, with a sharp blade．The axe, and the inside of the bag, were covered with the dark red stains of dried blood．

　　Andrea began to scream．

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　　COURSE：History 101“Introduction to American History”

　　INSTRUCTOR：Dr, Jane Klammer．

　　OFFICE：305 Marshall Hall．

　　OFFICE HOURS：11∶15~12∶30 M W F(Monday Wednesday Friday)．

　　CLASS：363 Marshall Hall 3∶35~5∶00T Th (Tuesday Thursday)．

　　10∶10~11∶00M W F Other times by appointment．

　　TELEPHONE：255-4786．

　　TEXTBOOK：Green, Robert P, The American Tradition：A History of the United States, Charles E．Merrill publishing Co．Columbus, Ohio 1984 which is available at the College Bookstore．

　　COURSE Requirements mid-term exam：October 10, 20% of the final gradefinal exam：December 10, 40% of the final grade term paper due：December 15, 40% of the final grade

Attendance is not required, but you are responsible for all the information given in the class lectures．In the lectures I will talk about the chapters in the textbook and other materials that I choose to supplement(补充)the course．The exams will cover all this information．Therefore, I advise you to come to the class as much as possible．If you have to miss a class, be sure to get the class notes from another student．

　　Your homework assignments (作业) are listed on the next page．You are supposed to read the chapter about which I will be lecturing before you come to class．This is to make sure that you understand as much as possible while taking notes in my lectures．Be prepared when you come to class．If there are any changes in the assigned homework reading, I will announce in class．

　　The term paper is 40% of your final grade．It should not exceed(超前)fifteen pages．(Anyone thinking of majoring in history may write twenty-five pages．)Before the mid-term exam you will choose the topic for your paper．

　　Have a good term!

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