We can achieve knowledge either actively or passively(被动地)．We achieve it actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning．

　　We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else．Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers or magazines is passive．Conditioned as we are to passive learning, it’s not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co-workers．

　　Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem．It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is little more than hearsay and rumor(谣言)．

　　Did you ever play the game Rumor? It begins when one person writes down a message but doesn’t show it to anyone．Then the person whispers it, word for word, to another person．That person, in turn, whispers it to still another, and so on, through all the people playing the game．The last person writes down the message word for word as he or she hears it．Then the two written statements are compared．Typically, the original message has changed．

　　That’s what happens in daily life．The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story．Then, too, most people listen imperfectly．And many enjoy adding their own creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it, stamping(打上标记)it with their own personal style．Yet those who hear it think they know．

　　This process is also found among scholars and authors：A statement of opinion by one writer may be re-stated as fact by another, who may in turn be quoted by yet another; and this process may continue, unless it occurs to someone to question the facts on which the original writer based his opinion or to challenge the interpretation he placed upon those facts．

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　　Michael Fish may soon be replaced as a weather forecaster by something truly fishier－the shark(鲨鱼)．

　　Research by a British biology student suggests that sharks could be used to predict storms．

　　Lauren Smith, 24, is close to completing her study on shark’s ability to sense pressure．

　　If her studies prove the theory, scientists may be able to monitor the behaviour of sharks to predict bad weather．

　　Miss Smith had previously studied the behaviour of lemon sharks in the Bahamas．

　　She then used their close relatives, lesser spotted dogfish, for further research at Aberdeen University．

　　Her work－thought to be the first of its kind to test the pressure theory－resulted from the observation that juvenile blacktip sharks off Florida moved into deeper water ahead of a violent storm in 2001．

　　Miss Smith said：“I’ve always been crazy about traveling and diving and this led me to an interest in sharks．”

　　“I was delighted to have been able to research in the area for my degree．I know there’s so much more we need to understand－but it certainly opens the way to more research．”

　　It has been discovered that a shark senses pressure using hair cells in its balance system．

　　At the Bimini Shark Lab in the Bahamas, Miss Smith fixed hi-tech sensors to sharks to record pressure and temperature, while also tracking them using GPS(Global Positioning System)technology．

　　In Aberdeen, she was able to study the effects of tidal(潮汐的)and temperature changes on dogfish－none of which were harmed．She also used a special lab which can mimic(模拟)oceanic pressure changes caused by weather fronts．

　　She is due to complete her study and graduate later this year．She says she will be looking for a job which will give her the chance to enrich her experience of shark research．

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　　I love charity(慈善)shops and so do lots of other people in Britain because you find quite a few of them on every high street．The charity shop is a British institution, selling everything from clothes to electric goods, all at very good prices．You can get things you won’t find in the shops anymore．The thing I like best about them is that your money is going to a good cause and not into the pockets of profit-driven companies, and you are not damaging the planet, but finding a new home for unwanted goods．

　　The first charity shop was opened in 1947 by Oxfam．The famous charity’s appeal to aid postwar Greece had been so successful it had been flooded with donations(捐赠物)．They decided to set up a shop to sell some of these donations to raise money for that appeal．Now there are over 7,000 charity shops in the UK．My favourite charity shop in my hometown is the Red Cross shop, where I always find children’s books, all 10 or 20 pence each．

　　Most of the people working in the charity shops are volunteers, although there is often a manager who gets paid．Over 90％ of the goods in the charity shops are donated by the public．Every morning you see bags of unwanted items outside the front of shops, although they don’t encourage this, rather ask people to bring things in when the shop is open．

　　The shops have very low running costs：all profits go to charity work．Charity shops raise more than ￡110 million a year, funding(资助)medical research, overseas aid, supporting sick and poor children, homeless and disabled people, and much more．What better place to spend your money? You get something special for a very good price and a good moral sense．You provide funds to a good cause and tread lightly on the environment．

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阅读理解

　　Sandra Cisneros was born in Chicago in 1954 to a Mexican American family．As the only girl in a family of seven children, she often felt like she had “seven fathers,” because her six brothers, as well as her father, tried to control her．Feeling shy and unimportant, she retreated(躲避)into books．Despite her love of reading, she did not do well in elementary school because she was too shy to participate．

　　In high school, with the encouragement of one particular teacher, Cisneros improved her grades and worked for the school literary magazine．Her father encouraged her to go to college because her thought it would be a good way for her to find a husband．Cisneros did attend college, but instead of searching for a husband, she found a teacher who helped her join the famous graduate writing program at the University of Iowa．At the university’s Writers’ Workshop, however, she felt lonely－a Mexican American from a poor neighborhood among students from wealthy families．The feeling of being so different helped Cisneros find her “Creative voice．”

　　“It was not until this moment when I considered myself truly different that my writing acquired a voice．I knew I was a Mexican woman, but I didn’t think it had anything to do with why I felt so much imbalance in my life, but it had everything to do with it! That’s when I decided I would write about something my classmates couldn’t write about．”

　　Cisneros published her first work, The House on Mango Street, when she was twenty-nine．The book tells about a young Mexican American girl growing up in a Spanish-speaking area in Chicago, much like the neighborhoods in which Cisneros lived as a child．The book won an award in 1985 and has been used in classes from high school through graduate school level．Since then, Cisneros has published several books of poetry, a children’s book, and a short-story collection．

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　　At a certain time in our lives we consider every place as the possible sites(地点)for a house．I have thus searched the country within a dozen miles of where I live．In imagination I have bought all the farms, one after another, and I knew their prices．

　　The nearest thing that I came to actual ownership was when I bought the Hollowell place．But before the owner completed the sale with me, his wife changed her mind and wished to keep it, and he offered me additional dollars to return the farm to him．However, I let him keep the additional dollars and sold him the farm for just what I gave for it．

　　The real attractiong of the Hollowell farm to me were its position, being about two miles from the village, half a mile from the nearest neighbor, bounded(相邻)on one side by the river, and separated from the highway by a wide field．The poor condition of the house and fences showed that it hadn’t been used for some time．I remembered from my earliest trip up the river that the house used to be hidden behind a forest area, and I was in a hurry to buy it before the owner finished getting out some rocks, cutting down the apples trees, and clearing away some young trees which had grown up in the fields．I wanted to buy it before he made any more of his improvements．But it turned out as I have said．

　　I was not really troubled by the loss．I had always had a garden, but I don’t thing I was ready for a large farm．I believe that as long as possible it is better to live free and uncommitted(无牵挂的)．It makes but little difference whether you own a farm or not．

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　　Five million people visit Grand Canyon in the US every year．For the purpose of helping project Grand Canyon for your fellow visitors and future generations, please follow the guidelines below．

　　To project the park, camping is allowed only within permitted campgrounds．Permits are required for overnight camping at the North Rim．Advance booking can be received by mail．Please write：Information Center, P．O．Box 129, Grand Canyon, AZ 86023

　　Because of the extreme fire danger, campfires are not allowed except at Mather and Desert View campgrounds．Collection of firewood is not allowed either．

　　Please stay on permitted paths．Otherwise you may destroy desert plants．Pack out what you pack in, so you leave no signs of your visit．It is important to keep in mind that you are in a national park where wildlife exists．

　　The weather at Gramd Canyon can change very quickly．With so much rock, lightning(闪电)causes a particular danger during sudden summer storms．These storms also frequently bring floods inside valleys, a danger to hikers．Watch the skies and check daily weather reports．

　　Do not feed park wildlife．There have been a few cases at Gramd Canyon National Park where deer(鹿)were purposely shot because they are plastic bags that left them sick and weak．Hungry deer can be danger and have kicked and bitten visitors at Grand Canyon．Some other animals will also beg and bite．For your own safety and the well-being of the animals, please do not feed wildlife, no matter how gentle they may appear．

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　　Are you sometimes a little tired and sleepy in the early afternoon?Many people feel this way after lunch．They may think that eating lunch is the cause of the sleepiness．Or, in summer, they may think it is the heat．However, the real reason lies inside their bodies．At that time－about eight hours after you wake up－your body temperature goes down．This is what makes you slow down and feel sleepy．Scientists have tested sleep habits in experiments where there was no night or day．The people in these experiments almost always followed a similar sleeping pattern．They slept for one long period and then for one short period about eight hours later．

　　In many parts of the world, people take naps(小睡)in the middle of the day．This is especially true in warmer climates(气候)，where the heat makes work difficult in the early afternoon．Researchers are now saying that naps are good for everyone in any climate．A daily nap gives one a more rested body and mind and therefore is good for health in general．In countries where naps are traditional(传统的)，people often suffer less from problem such as heart disease．

　　Many working people, unfortunately, have no time to take naps．Though doctors may advise taking naps, employers do not allow it!If you do have the chance, however, here are a few tips about making the most of your nap．Remember that the best time to take a nap is about eight hours after you get up．A short sleep too late in the day may only make you feel more tired and sleepy afterward．This can also happen if you sleep for too long．If you do not have enough time, try a short nap－even ten minutes of sleep can be helpful．

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　　As nanny(保姆)，cook, cleaner, shopper, driver, and gardener, she has one of the most demanding jobs in Britain today．And paying someone else to do the chores(家务活)which take the average housewife 71 hours a week would cost ?349．

　　At over ?18,000 a year that’s more than the earnings of 70 percent of the population, including train drivers, firemen, prison officers, and social worker．Looking after a baby less than a year old takes a housewife into a even higher pay league．According to a stud, she earns ?457 a week－at nearly ?24,000 a year, the same as teachers, engineers, and chemists．

　　Researchers put a price on each chore, then tried to find out how long the average person takes doing them．They found housewives spend an average 70.7 hours a week on housework－with looking after the children(17.9 hours)and cooking and cleaning(12.9 hours each)the most time-consuming(费时)．

　　A wife with a part-time job still works and average of 59 hours a week at home．Those in full-time employment put in longer hours at home than in the workplace．The good news is that these hours sharply as children get older．While the average mother with child under one puts in 90 hours weekly, the figure drops to 80 hours from one to four and to 66 hours from five to ten．

　　Mother-of-four Karen Williams from London said, “Paying the housewives may not be practical, but the government should recognize the value of housework, perhaps through the tax．Running a house takes a lot of time and most husbands don’t understand this．For example, my husband only puts a shelf up now and again．He never cleans the kitchen－that’s the real test．”

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阅读理解

　　The meaning of the word “volunteer ” may be a little different in different countries, but it usually means “one who offers his or her services．” There are many different ways in which people can volunteer, such as taking care of sick people, working in homes for homeless children, and picking up garbage(垃圾)from beaches and parks．Volunteers may work within their own countries or in other countries．They are often people with a strong wish to help those who are less fortunate than themselves．Volunteers don’t expect any kind of pay．

　　At the root of volunteering is the idea that one person may have the ability to offer services that can help other people．Tracy, a good friend of mine, however, recently came back from India with a new idea of what being a volunteer means．She worked for two and a half weeks in one of Mother Teresa’s homes in Calcutta．The following is her story．

　　“I first heard about Mother Teresa in my high school, we watched a video(录像) about her work in India and all over the world．I was so moved by her spirit to help others and her endless love for every human being that after I graduated from high school, I too wanted to try her kind of work．So with two friends I flew to Calcutta for a few weeks．”

　　“I was asked to work in a home for sick people．I helped wash clothes and sheets, and pass out lunch．I also fed the people who were too weak to feed themselves and tried to cheer the up．I felt it was better to share with them than to think that I have helped them．To be honest, I don’t think I was helping very much．It was then that I realized that I had not really come to help, but to learn about and experience another culture(文化)that helped improve my own understanding of life and the world．”

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　　Rail passengers are being forced to pay thousands of pounds more in fares as a result of poor advice from the national telephone helpline and individual stations, a consumer organisation reveals today．Research by Which?found that in some cases passengers are being charged almost double the cheapest price because of errors made by staff．

　　Which?asked 25 questions of both station staff and the National Rail Enquiries (NRES) helpline．Only half of the 50 questions were answered correctly．If customers had followed all the advice given, they would have been ￡1,263.60 worse off．

　　Bad advice was given for the cheapest fare for a single journey between London and Grantham．For a ticket bought on the day of travel, both NRES and a King’s Cross station clerk quoted GNER’s ￡44.50 fare, ignoring a Hull Trains service which leaves 10 minutes earlier and costs just ￡20．

　　Some of the most costly misinformation was given for journeys where season tickets should have been recommended．Passengers making a return journey between Swindon and Penzance twice in a week could buy a ticket from one company for ￡70 which would cover all the travel．But both NRES and station staff quoted ￡67 for each journey, making ￡134．However, the NRES website proved to be a much more reliable source of information．

　　Which?also checked “the earlier you book, the cheaper the ticket” claims by five companies and found this was not always the case．On some services, prices went up and down at random．

　　Ithiel Mogridge, 52, gave one example of poor advice：“Last Christmas I found my brother a ticket on the thetrainline.com to travel from Blackburn to Yate．While the direct route was ￡51, this one involved a change in Newport and cost just ￡21．I emailed the details to him and his partner．They went to Blackburn station, where the clerk insisted the fare was ￡51．”

　　Malcolm Coles, editor of which.co.uk, said：“Staff training needs to be improved．In the meantime, we’ve designed a checklist, available at which.co.uk/railadvice．”

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