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　　Green attackers are taking over America．No．Not attackers from space, just plants．You might not think of plants as dangerous, but in this case they are threatening nature's delicate(脆弱的)food web．

　　The attackers are plants from other countries brought here to make gardens and yards look pretty．Ever since people started to arrive on America's shores, they've carried along trees, flowers, and vegetables from other places．

　　Now there are so many of those plants, and they are crowding out the native plants that have lived here since before human settlers arrived．And that's a problem, says Dr Doug Tallamy．He's an insect expert at the University of Delaware．He explains that almost all the plant-eating insects in the United States－90％ of them－are specialized．That means they eat only certain plants．

　　Pretty orange and black monarch butterflies, for example, can only dine on one plant：milkweed．If people cut down milkweed and replace it with something else, the butterflies starve, because their bodies cannot accept any other food．

　　But trouble doesn't stop there; it goes right across the food web．When insects can't get the right plants to eat and they die off, then the birds don't have enough bugs(小虫)for their meals．Tallamy points out that almost all migrating birds depend on insects to feed their young．

　　“We cannot let the plants and animals around us disappear,”says Tallamy．“The way to preserve them is to give them food to eat．But when we plant non-native plants, we are hitting the food web, because then we don't have the insects the birds need to live．”

　　Fewer of the right plants mean fewer bugs, and fewer bugs mean fewer birds．And that's bad for the Earth, because we need a variety of living things to keep the planet healthy and beautiful．

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　　SANDESTIN, Fla．－A 14-year-old girl died last Saturday after a shark attacked her while she and a companion were swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, authorities said．

　　The teenagers were swimming on boards about 100 yards off shore when they noticed a dark shadow in the water．The other swimmer was not injured, Walton County Sheriff's spokeswoman Donna Shank said．According to Shank, both girls swam to the shore, and the victim was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead．The girl was on vacation from Gonzales, La．, but her name was not immediately told．

　　It was not clear what type of shark attacked her, said Stan Kirkland, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission．“The girl was some distance off from the shore,”Kirkland said．“I don't think anyone got a good view of the shark．”

　　The attack happened near the Camping on the Gulf Holiday Travel Park, about 45 miles east of Pensacola on the Florida Panhandle．Authorities closed about 20 miles of crowded beaches to swimming shortly after the attack．It was not immediately clear when they would reopen．

　　Robert Goodwin, 12, said he was ordered out of the water by authorities．“I didn't know it was because of a shark when I was told to get out,”he said．Goodwin's father, Mark, said the family comes to the beach every year．“It was just a strange feeling to see folks sitting there on the beach,”he said．

　　Florida averaged more than 30 shark attacks a year from 2004 to 2007, but there were only 12 attacks off the state's coast last year, according to statistics offered by authorities．

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　　Like so many girls of my generation, I went straight from college to society．Through my family's attempt, I found my suitable job．I thought I was doing a great job．

　　One day, a female program director arrived at the station．This large and frightening woman came to work every day with an equally large and frightening German dog．She didn't like me．When she called me into her office one Friday afternoon, she simply said,“You're fired!”leaving me to wonder what had gone so terribly wrong．

　　Six months later, after calling every program director in town, I went to work for another major-market radio station, doing four-minute stories for a low ＄15 each．With two young children and a husband who was just starting his own career, I took a chance．

　　Today, some 28 years later, I am still at WOR Radio with a two-hour daily talk show interviewing celebrities, authors and politicians, giving information to more than a million listeners a week and loving every minute of it．

　　I was young when those firings happened, but the process is still the same．Firings know no age or gender．The trick is to get out from under the covers and make things happen．This is exactly what Sherrye Henry did．

　　Sherrye, when her organization came across a sudden financial failure, she was fired．“This wasn't the first job I had lost．Hard as it is, one must remember that there is always life after losing a job．”said Sherrye．Helpful friends, good luck and a good resume got Sherrye back on track．Within a month, she landed what she calls the most satisfying job of her life：raising money for Episconpal Relief and Development(ERD), which provides emergency assistance to people in 40 countries．

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　　Starbucks doesn't just sell coffee．It sells a coffee drinking experience．Starbucks coffee shops have high quality drinks, comfortable seating areas, and famous brands．They are fun and fashionable place to have a drink．

　　The first Starbucks opened in 1971, in Seattle, Washington．At first, it was just a normal coffee shop．In the 1980's, it went through big changes．The owners, after traveling in Italy, decided to turn Starbucks into an Italian style coffee shop．Their idea was very successful．Soon, there were Starbucks in many American cities．

　　In the 1990's, Starbucks went international．They opened the first store in Japan in 1995．After that, stores opened in countries all over Asia．By the year 2000, there were more than 3,000 Starbucks around the world．

　　Starbucks is much more than a coffee shop．The company is part of many community projects．For example, there is a group of managers called the“Green Team”．They lead recycling projects in their local areas．They also plant trees and clean neighborhoods．Another group, the Starbucks Foundation, encourages young people to read．

　　So, the next time you order a drink at Starbucks, feel good about yourself．It's nice to know that some companies care about you and your environment, and not just your money．

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　　In only two decades Asian-Americans have become the fastest-growing US minority．As their children began moving up through the nation's schools, it became clear that a new class of academic achievers was appearing．Their achievements are reflected in the nation's best universities, where mathematics, science and engineering departments have taken on a decidedly Asian character．(This special liking for mathematics and science is partly explained by the fact that Asian-American students who began their education abroad arrived in the US with a solid grounding in mathematics but little or no knowledge of English．)They are also influenced by the promise of a good job after college．Asians feel there will be less unfair treatment in areas like mathematics and science because they will be judged more immediately in something like engineering than with an arts degree．

　　Most Asian-American students owe their success to the influence of parents who are determined that their children take full advantage of what the American educational system has to offer．An effective measure of parental attention is homework．Asian parents spend more time with their children than American parents do, and it helps．Many researchers also believe there is something in Asian culture that breed(引起)success, such as ideals that stress family values and emphasize education．

　　Both explanations for academic success worry Asian-Americans because of fears that they feed a typical racial image．Many can remember when Chinese, Japanese and Filipino immigrants were the victims of social isolation．Indeed, it was not until 1952 that laws were laid down giving all Asian immigrants the right to citizenship．

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　　When a storm is coming, most people leave the area as quickly as possible and head for safety．But there are a few people who will get into their cars and go straight for the center of the storm．These people are willing to risk being killed by floods or 100-kilometer-an-hour winds for the excitement of watching the storm close up．

　　“Storm chasing(追逐)”is becoming an increasing popular hobby, especially in the Midwest of the United States, where there are frequent storms between March and July．A storm chaser begins the day by checking the Internet for the latest weather report, and then drives up to 1000 kilometers to where the storm will be and waits for it to develop．

　　Although anyone can do it, storm chasing is extremely dangerous．The power of a big storm can throw a cow into the air or destroy a whole house in seconds．Storm chasers are also often hurt in accidents caused by driving in a heavy rain．If you are a beginner, it is much safer to join a group for storm-chasing vacations during the storm season．

　　Even then, storm chasing is not all adventure and excitement．“Storm chasing is 95％ driving,”says Daniel Lynch, who spends most of his summer storm-chasing．“Sometimes you can sit around for hours waiting for something to happen, and all you get is blue sky and a few light showers．”

　　However, for storm chasers, it is all worth it．“When you get close to a storm, it is the most exciting sight you will ever see in your life,”says Jasper Morley．“Every storm is an example of the power of nature．It is the greatest show on earth．”

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　　Whoever said you cannot get something for nothing has not searched the Internet lately．An increasing number of websites offer users a chance to give things away and get things for free．The goal is to keep useful things from being thrown away．This helps people and keeps waste out of the environment．

　　Laura Gernell of Marmet, West Virginia, got a bicycle through the Freecycle Network last year．The largest give-and-take website is Freecycle．Org．Deron Beal started Freecycle as a non-profit()organization in 2003．The site says it has more than 5,500,000 members in more than 75 countries．Joining is free．And all the goods offered on the site are free without any conditions．

　　Each group is managed by a small number of moderators(版主)．They enforce the rules．For example, members can only make a request for something once a week．And everything on the site must be for all ages．

　　We spoke to a moderator in the Washington, D．Carea．She told us that there were about 100 members in her local group when she joined in 2003．Now there are more than 14,000 members．In addition to Freecycle, there are many similar websites such as reuseitnetwork．Org and freesharing．Org．

　　Other websites let users exchange goods and services, or barter(物物交换)．In this ancient form of trade, no money changes hands．Two main trade groups serve the barter exchanges industy．They are NATE`(the National Association of Trade Exchanges)and IRTA(the International Reciprocal Trade Association)．Both have separate systems of credits that make bartering easier．It is said that more than 450,000 businesses use bartering in some form．

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　　Cara Lang is 13．She lives in Boston, Massachusetts, in the U.S．Last Thursday, she didn't go to school．She went to work with her father instead．Every year, on the fourth Thursday in April, millions of young girls go to work．This is Take Our Daughter to Work Day．The girls are between the age of 9 and 15．They spend the day at work with an adult, usually a mother, father, aunt, or uncle．They go to offices, police stations, labs, and other places where their parents or other family members work…Next year, the day will include sons too．

　　The Ms．Foundation, an organization for women, started the program about ten years ago．In the U.S．, many women work outside the home．The Ms．Foundation wanted girls to find out about many different kinds of jobs．Then, when the girls grow up, they can choose a job they like．

　　Cara's father is a film director．Cara says,“It was very exciting for me to go to the studio with my dad．I saw a lot of people doing different jobs．”Many businesses have special activities for girls on this day．Last year, Cara went to work with her aunt at the University of Massachusetts．In the engineering department, the girls learned to build a bridge with toothpicks and candy．In the chemistry department, they learned to use scales．They learned about many other kinds of jobs, too．

　　Right now, Cara does not know what job she will have when she grows up．But because of Take Our Daughters to Work Day, she knows she has many choices．

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　　There is an English saying：“laughter is best medicine．”Until recently, few people took the saying seriously．Now however, doctors have begun to look into laughter and the effects it has on the human body．They have found that laughter really can improve people's health．

　　Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body．People watched funny films while doctors checked their hearts, blood pressure, breathing and muscles．It was found that laughter had similar effects to physical exercise．It increases blood pressure, the heart beating and breathing; it also works several groups of muscles in the face, the stomach, and even the feet．If laughter exercises the body, it must be beneficial．

　　Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be able to reduce the effect of pain on the body．In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio programmes．The group that tolerated(忍耐)the pain for the longest time was the groups which listened to a funny programme．The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce a kind of chemicals in the brain which diminish both stress and pain．

　　As a result of these discoveries, some doctors in the United States now hold laughter clinics, in which they help to improve their patients' condition by encouraging them to laugh．They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing, making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter．

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　　Sweet potatoes are fat-free, high in fiber and full of the vitamins that research suggests reduce your risk of life-shortening diseases．To stay healthy, we must eat more fruits and vegetables, and sweet potatoes are a great source of beta carotene(胡萝卜素)and other carotenoids(which the body turns into vitamin A)．According to a study of the diets of almost 90,000 nurses, eating about one cup a day of fruits and vegetables rich in carotenoids can cut your risk of stroke in half and reduce your risk of heart disease by 22 percent．Other research suggests beta carotene protects against breast, lung and stomach cancers．

　　Beta carotene is the most famous member of the carotenoids family．In fact, a medium-sized sweet potato contains nearly 12mg of beta carotene(anti-aging experts usually suggest 6 to 11 mg per day)．Sweet potatoes are also a low-fat source of vitamin E．Research has linked high E diets with a lower risk of heart disease．This vitamin pill in an orange jacket also packs a vitamin C which is more than apricots(a kind of fruit)．Research suggests that vitamin C protects against ailments(小疾)ranging from cataracts(an eye disease)to cancer．In addition, a UCLA(University of California Los Angeles)study linked high vitamin C diets with a longer life．Recent studies have showed that antioxidant Vitamins C, E and beta carotene fight a fierce battle against free radicals(自由基), which cause cell(细胞)damage and lead to various illness．Therefore, to keep fit, eat more sweet potatoes．

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