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　　Thousands of people in the world are a hundred years old－or more and certain parts of the world are famous for the long lives of their inhabitants：the Vilacamba Valley in Ecuador, and the home of the Hunzas in the Himalayas．

　　Why do so many people live to a healthy old age in certain parts of the world? What is the secret of their long lives? Three things seem to be very important：fresh air, fresh food and a simple way of life．People work near their homes in the clean, mountain air instead of traveling long distances to work by bus, car or train．They do not sit all day in busy offices or factories, but work hard outdoors in the fields．They take more exercise and eat less food than people in the cities of the West．For years the Hunzas of the Himalayas did not need policemen, lawyers or doctors．There was no crime, no divorce and not much illness in their society．They were a happy, peaceful people, famous all over India for their long, healthy lives．

　　Do you want to live to a hundred years old? Here are some rules for success．First, choose your parents and grandparents carefully．If they lived or live to a good old age, so will you．Secondly, live in the right place．Thirdly, choose the right kind of job．Doctors, dentists and bus-drivers die young．Farmers, priests and orchestral conductors live much longer．If you are in the wrong kind of job, you can still improve your way of life．

　　An old man in the Caucasus was talking about his past life．“I was young then,”he said, as he described his 87th year．His secret was：“Think young and stay young．”An old woman from Missouri, USA, gave this advice,“Drink a little whisky and some warm beer every day．”An English lady just said,“Take a cold bath every morning．”The shortest, simplest piece of advice came from Mr．Jim Chapman, aged 103．“Just keep breathing,”he told reporters．

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　　Dear Editor,

　　I’m confused these days．We are taught at home and at school that violence(暴力)is bad．For example, last week, my friend and I were playing at the beach．We found a really beautiful shell．My friend picked it up, but I saw it first, and I said it was mine．He said, no, it was his．I really wanted the shell, and I even thought about hitting him, that’s how angry I was．

　　Now should that be right? No! I shouldn’t use violence．I should talk with my friend instead, and solve that．My parents and teachers often tell me that using violence is the least civilized(文明)way to solve problems．

　　So, if adults have a disagreement, and if they use violence toward each other in order to win, is it all right? No!

　　Now, I’m confused．When two countries disagree, they often use violence．They fight a war．Using violence is not okey at home, at school, or in your country but okey between two countries, why?

　　A war is extreme violence．So not only soldiers but citizens(公民),including small children and babies have been killed and injured because of wars．

　　Adults say they are fighting wars in order to solve problems and make peace．But can you really“make peace”by using violence and killing so many people?

　　I don’t think that bombs and missiles(炸弹和导弹)can reach people’s hearts and change them．Bombs and missiles can’t create love and caring and that’s what we need in the world．Why can’t they use their wisdom(智慧)and talk it over?

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　　Where in the world can you take an hour’s train ride, and pass a forest, a London street, a scene from the Wild West(西大荒), and a burning building that never burns down? There’s only one place, and that’s Hollywood, in California．The scenes you see from the tourist train are film sets(布景)in the Universal Studios, one of the oldest and largest movie companies(公司)in the U．S．A．

　　A visit to Universal Studios brings back memories of great days of Hollywood, the films and the stars．But they are only memories．Hollywood isn’t quite the same as it used to be．Costs have gone up and confidence has gone down．Movie-makers are afraid to spend their money on expensive new ideas．Instead, they repeat old ones．

　　The film industry is changing fast．Teenagers still go out to the movies．The theatre is a good place to meet friends away from home．But older people mostly stay home to watch series, like Dynasty, which have become as important to Hollywood as expensive movies．These“soap opera,”as they are called, show rich, powerful families living in beautiful homes and wearing beautiful clothes．But the actors and actresses are nearly all middle-aged, like many of the people who watch them．

　　Though it is soap operas the are keeping the film-makers of Hollywood in Business, big films are still being made in America．But more and more of them are made outside Hollywood．New York is the most important new center, but there are many others as well．Movie-makers have realized that they don’t need Hollywood any more．They can use modern cameras and real houses instead of expensively made copies in a studio．Other states, especially Florida and Texas, are working hard to take the film business away from California．They are offering better working conditions and lower cost．

　　But Hollywood is fighting back．The state of California is trying hard to keep its best-known industry．

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　　There was once a man who couldn’t sleep well because he was afraid that there was a stranger under his bed．He thought that as soon as he went to sleep, the stranger would come out from under the bed and rob him．He was worried that the stranger might even kill him!

　　Every night, after he got into bed, the man had to get up again and looked under the bed．There was never anyone there, but as soon as he got back into bed, he had to get up and looked under the bed again．This went on for hours until at last he fell asleep from exhaustion．

　　The time came for the man to get married．He didn’t tell his wife about his fears but she soon found out because he kept her awake all night．

　　“You must go to a doctor, ”she told him．“He will cure you of this silly fear．”

　　The man did as his wife told him．He told the doctor his problem, and the doctor said, “I can cure you, but it will take about two years．You must come and see me twice a week．The fee for each visit will be ＄75．”

　　The next day the man called the doctor and said, “I won’t need to visit you again．I’m cured．”

　　The doctor was surprised．“How?”he asked．“Who cured you?”

　　“My wife cured me, ”the man said．“When I told her how much you were going to charge me, she cut the legs off the bed．”

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　　Why do plants grow in some places and not in others? Why does some land have so much growing on it, while other land has almost no plants growing on it at all?

　　To grow plants needs several things．One is warmth．In very cold places almost nothing grows．Plants also need water．In very dry parts of the Earth only a few unusual plants can grow．That’s why dry deserts everywhere are almost not covered by trees or grass．

　　Plants must also have a place in which to put down their roots and grow．They find it difficult to grow on hard land．The town is built on hard land．The plants here have only the soil found between the cracks of the stones to grow in．

　　Another thing plants must have before they can grow is food．

　　What will happen if we try to make things grow on the sandy beach? A few plants, such as beach grass, will grow in sand, but most plants won’t．Even if the weather is warm enough and e water the plants each day．Many of them will die because the sand on the beach has almost no food for plants．

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　　China news, Beijing, July．29–Housing price in China has always aroused heated discussions among property developers and ordinary Chinese．To many property developers and local government officials, housing price in China is still low compared with many developed countries．However, the average housing price in the United States is only 8,000 yuan per square meter, while in China, it is even higher than in the United States．This shows that there are some bubbles(泡沫)in Chinese real estate market, the International Finance News reported．

　　Although the average price of residential houses in the United States, after converted to Renminbi, is about 8,000 yuan per square meter, the houses in US are not sold in terms of building area, as most Chinese property developers do when they sell their houses．If US property developers sell their houses according to the building area, then the housing price will be even lower than 8,000 yuan per square meter．In most big Chinese cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, houses are sold at a price even higher than those in the US．

　　The high housing sales price in large cities in China proves that Chinese real estate market does have some bubbles．Moreover, Chinese houses can not be compared with houses in US in terms of building quality, environment and supporting facilities．Furthermore, it should be noted that American people's average income is several dozen times higher than that of Chinese people．How can the Chinese afford to buy a house which is even more expensive than that sold in US?

　　At the beginning of 2007, Chinese government issued a set of policies that aimed to benefit the public．Now in order to reduce the high housing prices, the government can regulate(控制)the real estate market by raising tax on property industry and controlling the release of loans and lands to property developers．At the same time, the government should allow people to build more houses through various fund-raising channels, such as funds collected from buyers or raised by working units．By applying these multiple means, it is expected that the high housing prices can be lowered．

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　　You are watching a film in which two men are having a fight．They hit one another hard．At the start they only fight with their fists．But soon they begin hitting one another over the heads with chairs．And so it goes on until one of the men crashes(撞击)through a window and falls thirty feet to the ground below．He is dead! Of course he isn't really dead．With any luck he isn't even hurt．Why? Because the men who fall out of high windows or jump from fast moving trains, who crash cars and run out of them even when they catch fire, are professionals．They do this for a living．These men are called stuntmen．That is to say, they perform tricks．There are two sides to their work．They actually do most of the things you see on the screen．For example, they fall from a high building．However, they do not fall on to hard ground but on to empty cardboard boxes covered with a mattress(床垫)．Again, when they hit one another with chairs, the chairs are made of soft wood and when they crash through windows, the glass is made of sugar! But although their work depends on trick of this sort, it also requires a high degree of skill and training．Often a stuntman's success depends on careful timing．For example, when he is“blown up”in a battle scene, he has to jump out of the way of the explosion just at the right moment．

　　Naturally stuntmen are well paid for their work, but they lead dangerous lives．They often get seriously injured, and sometimes killed．A Norwegian stuntman, for example, skied over the edge of a cliff(悬崖)a thousand feet high．His parachute(降落伞)failed to open, and he was killed．In spite of all the risks, this is no longer a profession for men only．Men no longer dress up as women when actresses have to perform some dangerous action．For nowadays there are stunt girls too．

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　　Sri Lanka is known as the“Pearl of the Indian Ocean”, and it is easy to see why．This little country never fails to please visitors．

　　Arrive．

　　The national airline is Sri Lankan Airlines, which flies from Colombo to London and a couple of other European cities．The country's main airport is Colombo Bandaranaike, located 29km north of the capital city．

　　Why now?．

　　The best time to visit Sri Lanka's southern beaches is from November to April．So by going early in the season, you'll get the best weather．Also in November, Deepavali, known as“Diwali”or the“Festival of Lights”, is Sri Lanka's main religious festival, celebrated throughout the country．

　　See．

　　There is plenty to see in Sri Lanka．The ancient capital cities of Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura are worth seeing, and so are many outstanding ruins．Other mustsees are the rock fortress(要塞)of Sigiriya, towering over the jungle as far as the eye can see, and Dambulla's cave temple, the country's largest and best preserved．Both are UNESCO World Heritage(遗产)Sites．Kandy is a picturesque town, which was the last stronghold of the Kandyan Kings．Today it is a cultural relic centre where ageold customs, arts, and crafts remain．

　　Do．

　　Sri Lanka owns about 1,600km of beautiful palm-shaded beaches as well as warm, pure seas and colorful coral reefs(珊瑚礁)．You can explore the underwater world, and surfing and diving are available too．Away from the shore, wildlife is a big draw for Sri Lanka, and Yala National Park is one of the best places in the world to see wild animals including leopards(豹)and elephants．

　　Taste．

　　Sri Lanka is celebrated for its excellent food, with a particular emphasis on fresh fruit and vegetables on menus everywhere．Fish and seafood are a big part of the local diet．

　　Sri Lanka is known for its tea, but it is also the world's largest producer and exporter of cinnamon(肉桂)．

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　　Robby was 11 when his mother dropped him off for his first piano lesson．I prefer students to begin at an earlier age．Robby said that it had always been his mother's dream to hear him play the piano, so I took him on as a student．

　　Robby tried and tried while I listened and encouraged him and gave him more instructions．But he just did not have any inborn ability．

　　I only saw his mother from a distance．She always waved and smiled but never came in．Then one day Robby stopped coming to our lessons．I thought about calling him but I guessed he had decided to try something else．

　　I was also glad that he stopped coming for the sake of my career．However, several weeks before the recital(演奏会)of my students, Robby came，telling me that he never stopped practicing and begged me to allow him to take part in it．I agreed, but I made him perform last in the program, so I could save his poor performance through my “curtain closer”．

　　I was surprised when he announced that he had chosen one piece of Mozart's．Never had I heard a piece of Mozart's played so well by someone at his age．When he finished, everyone was cheering．

　　I ran up and put my arms around Robby in joy．“I've never heard you play like that, Robby! How could you do it?”

　　“Well, Miss Hondorf．Do you remember I told you my mom was sick? Actually she died this morning．She was born deaf, so tonight was the first time she could hear me play．I wanted to make it special．I knew I could．”

　　That night, Robby was the teacher and I was the student．He taught me so many important things about life．

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　　Remember when a trip to the supermarket was nothing more than a boring thing requiring little or no specialized knowledge? You could send your kids into a cart while you did shopping．You always bought the same brands, usually the brands your mother bought．You didn't know about unit pricing, and furthermore, you didn't care．It never occurred to you to read the labels on anything．After all, you' d bought these things a hundred times．

　　But now, I really look on those days with a feeling of yearn(怀旧)．How innocent we were! How carefree were those trips to the supermarket．No worries．Today a trip to the supermarket is filled with social influence．Every time I buy pork chops I think about the years I' m shaving from my life．I keep a careful eye on the freshness date and examine the tamper-proof packaging．I am victim of that most dangerous social disease：shoppers' panic．

　　I didn't realize how serious my condition had become until the last time I needed laundry soap．It seemed simple enough．Just run into the market, grab a box of the old reliable and pay for it．I hadn't planned on discovering Ecover, a new brand of laundry soap．It sat quietly on the shelf right next to my old reliable．“Healthy, gentle but effective．”My respect for it deepened with each new claim as I read the entire package．Then I looked at the price：＄5.69 for2 pound．＄5.69!I cast a quick glance at the old reliable, still on sale for ＄1.39

　　Six bucks for laundry soap! These people must be crazy! Who's going to pay six bucks for laundry soap? It's not as though I can't afford it．See, it's concentrated-use less, get more．BUT SIX BUCKS! And the box is made from recycled materials…This act went on for a solid half hour, after which I left the shelf without any soap at all．

　　Surely the meat department is a most threatening place．Remember what protein was good for you? That's all over．Every bite you take kills you．I won' t even mention meat' s moral influence．

　　When all is said and done, we still must eat．I gather up my healthy-cooking oil and my recycled paper towels and head to the checkout counter．

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