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　　When 47-year-old volunteer Susan Boyle stepped onto the stage of Britain's Got Talent and announced she was unemployed, had never been married and“never been kissed, actually”, few in the audience would have wondered why．This Ms Boyle, looking unfashionable, from a village in Scotland, shocked the three judges and the audience with the song I dreamed a dream from the musical Les Miserables on a show of Britain's Got Talent, one of the hottest reality shows in Britain．

　　She couldn't hide the awkwardness when walking to the center of the stage in a housedress, and everyone－including the judges－seemed laughing at her when she said she wanted to be as successful as Elaine Paige．As soon as she began singing, however, everyone in the auditorium fell silent, then rose within seconds to applaud her incredible voice as the celebrity judges sat open-mouthed, and remained standing to the end．

　　After her performance, one of the judges Piers Morgan said,“Without doubt that was the biggest surprise I've had in three years of this show．When you stood there everyone was laughing at you．No one is laughing now．That was amazing．”Actress Amanda Holden followed,“I'm so thrilled because I know that we everybody were against you．I honestly think that we were all being very cynical(愤世嫉俗的)and I think that's the biggest wake up call ever．”

　　Susan obviously won over the hearts of millions around the world with sensation spreading across the Atlantic．Hollywood actors Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore－who between them have nearly 1.5 million followers－speak highly of her．Kutcher posted a link to the video clip(片段)．The Scottish talent made her live American debut via satellite connection on CBS's The Early Show, doing an interview and singing live from her room．And she already accepted an invitation from talk show host Oprah Winfrey．

　　Now Boyle has become one of the world's hottest celebrities．The video clip of her performance has been viewed more than 50 million times on Youtube, becoming a hit on the Internet．

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　　Shopping in the United States changes a lot．About ninety years ago most people shopped in small stores that were owned by one person or a family．Women went from the bakery to the butcher's to the grocer and on to the fruit and vegetable seller in order to get their food for the week．

　　Then about sixty years ago, supermarkets were born．In a supermarket, people could get all the different kinds of food they needed without going to different stores．

　　The next big change in shopping in the United States was the shopping mall．A shopping mall is a group of stores under one roof．Because malls allowed people to shop without worrying about the weather, they soon became very popular．The mall became a place for people to socialize in addition to shopping．If you walk through a mall, you will see older people sitting, chatting and drinking coffee．Malls are places for teenagers to hang out．Many teens will often just“go to the mall”and spend time with their friends．

　　The recent change in American shopping was the superstore．Large chain stores such as Wal-Mart, Office Depot and Toys“R”Us have been built all across the United States．Because they are so large, they can buy goods at a great discount and sell them much cheaper than smaller stores．

　　Sometimes, when they are built near small towns, many of the small town stores have to close．They just cannot compete with their giant neighbors．

　　And now, online shopping is becoming more and more popular all over the States．People are too busy to go to the physical stores, so they go shopping over the Internet．Online shopping has lots of advantages．For instance, online stores are usually available 24 hours a day．Searching or browsing online shops can be faster than browsing the physical stores．While, online shopping also has its disadvantages．People are at higher risk of being cheated on the part of the merchant than in a physical store．And privacy of personal information may be let out．

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　　Learning new words is learning new ideas：High school students can take control of their learning by always looking up new words and finding out what they mean．They should keep a dictionary and a thesaurus close at hand．

　　Make clear lists：Students should make a list of everything that they need to get done．They should check off assignments(作业)once completed．They should include clear due dates．

　　Make a commitment：Active learners will resolve to keep up-to-date from the start．They will avoid procrastinating．They will complete most of their work as early as possible．

　　Independent work is best：Students will do all assignments independently－they will never copy!Students who copy are passive learners．Passive learners do not give their mind a chance to think on its own．

　　Organization is key：Students should keep an excellent folder and notebook．All problems should be clearly stated and solutions given．All tests and quizzes should be corrected and used as study guides for exams and finals．

　　All actions without solutions are dead：Active learners will always show their work needed to solve a problem．Active learners will never turn in a list of answers without giving an explanation or a solution．

　　Advanced reading：Students should do any required reading for the topic before class．They should write an outline of the section or chapter．They should actively take notes as they read to help them remember．

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　　How do you feel when you live in a dormitory?At a glimpse, you will see things people do in their local life and culture．Instant noodles(方便面), chatting, and computer games make up the tools for surviving dormitory life for most students．They sometimes do sports together, have snacks late at night, or just watch TV in the common room．This is a new living situation for most of the students．They learn to accomplish tasks of new types．

　　There are many new aspects of dormitory life for students．One main thing of these is personal responsibility required of an individual．There is sudden lack of parental guidance．Of course dormitories have wardens(主管)and residence tutors to oversee the well-being of the residents．However, the absence of parents as authority figures requires students to keep a watchful eye on their own responsibility．This is important for their initial college life．There are various tasks：keeping the room clean, cooking meals, doing their own laundry．These new situations will have great effect on students' personal responsibility and are necessary to their academic and social accomplishment．

　　There is another important thing in dormitory life：relationship．Students need to form good relationship．The first relationship is formed between roommates．Living with a roommate and adjusting to different living habits may cause tension．Many students prefer complete privacy in their home．So, it is a good idea to discuss several things early on with roommates and arrive at an agreeable arrangement．Like siblings in their own home before, roommates live in continuous contact with them．The condition obliges them to live with other persons, no matter what the situation is．

　　Of course, in a dormitory there are problems．Students must solve these problems in a reasonable way．A college student may adapt to all new challenges and freedoms of dorm life．By learning, they will accept dormitory life as unique environment．Preparing themselves those ways will enable them to face new things in their life．

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　　My friend Jessie and I have known each other since we were very young．After we both started working we seldom had time to get together though I always promised myself that I would meet her whenever I was free．

　　Friendships get more cherished as we get older．When we reached our forties, we decided to do something to keep our friendship strong, healthy and growing．We picked out one Saturday a month and promised to do something together on that day．Sometimes we had a long lunch out, and other times we went to see a movie or went shopping．We also promised to have an adventure every few days．

　　In some adventures we drove to our favorite places and spent a night there．Other times we just drove, stopping wherever we wanted．One of our adventures took us to a very small town in south Georgia．The people there were celebrating a special festival．We enjoyed buying the hand-made gifts and eating the delicious food．There was also a parade．Everyone in the parade smiled and waved to us!It was so great!We had a great day that day!

　　Fun is always on the menu, whether it's a weekend trip or a couple of hours over lunch．We are so happy and have a great influence on each other's lives．We share our sorrow and happiness and we ask for and receive advice．We always laugh, too!Don't keep promising yourself that“someday”you will meet your friends．Do it now．Pick up your phone and make a plan for this weekend．You'll be a happier, healthier person for it!You need it and your friends need it, too．

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　　Dogs, like people and monkeys, seem to have a sense of fairness．

　　In the reward experiments, Friederike Range experimented with dogs that understood the command“paw”, to place their paw in her hand．The dogs were asked to shake hands and each could see what reward the other received．When one dog got a reward and the other didn't, the unrewarded animal stopped playing．When both got a reward all was well．Range said she wasn't surprised at the dogs' reaction, since wolves are known to cooperate with one another and appear to be sensitive to each other．Modern dogs are descended from wolves．Next, she said, will be experiments to test how dogs and wolves work together．“Among other questions, we will study how differences in emotions(情绪)influence cooperative(合作的)abilities,”she said．

　　But the dogs didn't seem to care whether the reward was sausage or bread．One possibility, they said, is that daily training with their owners overrides(比……优先)a preference．And the dogs never rejected the food, something that primates had done when they thought the reward was unfair．

　　Clive Wynne, a professor in the University of Florida, isn't so sure the experiment measures the animals' reaction to fairness, which means that individuals are responding negatively to being treated less well．But the researchers didn't do a control test that had been done in monkey studies, in which a preferred reward was visible but not given to anyone．In that case the monkeys went on strike because they could see the better reward but got something lesser．In dogs, he noted, the quality of reward didn't seem to matter, so the test only worked when they got no reward at all．However, Wynne added, there is“no doubt in my mind that dogs are very, very sensitive to what people are doing and are very smart．”

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　　On January fifteenth, two thousand and nine, the engines of a US Airways plane lost power shortly after its takeoff from LaGuardia Airport in New York City．The pilot reported a double bird strike－a rare event where birds enter both engines．

　　It happened so early in the flight, at a level of about nine hundred meters, that the crew had little time to decide what to do．Captain Chesley Sullenberger decided against landing at a small airport nearby or returning to LaGuardia．

　　Instead, he, his co-pilot Jeffrey Skiles and their three flight attendants prepared for a water landing．Captain Sullenberger carefully and smoothly guided the Airbus jet into the Hudson River．People watched from skyscrapers overlooking the near-freezing water．

　　The passengers and crew got onto the wings as water entered the plane and the aircraft floated downriver．Boats quickly came to the rescue of all one hundred fifty passengers on the flight．Captain Sullenberger walked through the plane twice to make sure everyone was off．

　　On January twenty-fourth, the pilot known as“Sully”was honored in his hometown of Danville, California．He told a crowd of thousands that he and his fellow crew members were just doing the job they were trained to do．

　　The former Air Force pilot had his fifty-eighth birthday a week ago．He has been flying for more than half his life and was unusually well prepared for the events that day in New York．For one thing, he is good at handling a powerless aircraft．He is a glider pilot in addition to flying big jets．But Chesley Sullenberger is also an expert on air safety, including accident investigations, and even has his own consulting business．

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　　Younger adults who get either little sleep or a lot of it may see a greater expansion in their waistlines(腰围)over time, a study published suggests．Researchers found that among black and Hispanic adults younger than 40, those who typically slept for five hours or less each night had a greater accumulation of belly fat over the next five years, versus(相比于)those who averaged six or seven hours．Those who slept eight hours or more in bed each night also showed a bigger fat gain-but it was less obvious than that seen in“short sleepers．”

　　The study, reported in the Journal Sleep, does not prove that too little or too much sleep directly leads to excess fat gain．But the findings support and extend those of other studies linking sleep duration-particularly a lack of sleep-to weight gain and even to higher risks of diabetes(糖尿病)and heart disease．Among participants younger than 40, the study found, those who said they slept for five hours or less each night gained more belly fat than those who averaged six or seven hours of sleep．On average, short sleepers showed a 32 percent gain in visceral(内脏的)fat, versus a 13 percent gain among those who slept six or seven hours per night, and a 22 percent increase among men and women who got at least eight hours of sleep each night．A similar pattern was seen with superficial abdominal(腹部)fat．

　　The findings, according to lead researcher Dr.Kristen G.Hairston, support the belief that sleep habits affect weight and health in general．“Sleep is an important part of your overall health-not just in whether you're tired during the day,”she said．

　　There may be indirect effects; people who get too little sleep may be too tired during the day to exercise, while those who spend a lot of time in bed may spend less time being active, relative to people who sleep fewer hours．Research also suggests that sleep loss alters people's levels of appetite-regulating hormones(荷尔蒙)-which could, in theory, cause them to overeat．Depression, which often affects people's sleep and has been linked to weight gain, could also be a factor, Hairston noted．

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　　A university graduate described as a“respectable and intelligent”woman is seeking professional help after being convicted of(证明有……罪)shoplifting for the second time in six months．

　　Ana Luz, recently studying for her PhD, has been told she could end up behind bars unless she can control the desire to steal from shops．

　　Luz, who lives with her partner in Fitzwilliam Road, Cambridge, admitted stealing clothes worth ￡9.95 from John Lewis in Oxford Street, London, on March 9．

　　Phillip Lemoyne, prosecuting(起诉),said Luz selected some clothes from a display and took them to the ladies' toilet in the store．When she came out again she was wearing one of the skirts she had selected, having taken off the anti-theft security alarms(防盗警报装置)．

　　She was stopped and caught after leaving the store without paying, Mr.Lemoyne said．

　　He added that she was upset on her arrest and apologized for her actions．

　　Luz, 28, was said to have been convicted of shoplifting by Cambridge judges last October, but Morag Duff, defending, said she had never been in trouble with the police before that．

　　“She is ashamed and embarrassed but doesn't really have any explanation why she did this,”Miss Duff said．“She didn't intend to steal when she went into the store．She is at a loss to explain it．She is otherwise a very respectable and intelligent young lady．She went to her doctor and asked for advice because she wants to know if there is anything in particular that caused her to do this．”

　　Judge David Azan fined Luz ￡50, and warned：“You've got a criminal record．If you carry on like this, you will end up in prison, which will ruin your bright future you may have．”

　　Luz achieved a degree in design at university in her native Spain, went on to a famous university in Berlin, Germany for her master's degree and is now studying for a PhD at Cambridge University, UK．