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　　I travel a lot, and I find out different“styles”of directions every time when I ask“How can I get to the post office?”

　　Foreign tourists are often confused in Japan because most streets there don't have names; in Japan, people use landmarks(地标)in their directions instead of street names．For example, the Japanese will say to travelers,“Go straight down to the corner．Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market．The post office is across from the bus stop．”

　　In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks．There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles．Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances．In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say,“Go north two miles．Turn east, and then go another mile．”People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles．“How far away is the post office?”you ask．“Oh,”they answer,“it's about five minutes from here．”You say,“Yes, but how many miles away is it?”They don't know．

　　It's true that a person doesn't know the answer to your question sometimes．What happens in such a situation?A New Yorker might say,“Sorry, I have no idea．”But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers“I don't know．”People in Yucatan believe that“I don't know”is impolite．They usually give an answer, often a wrong one．A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!

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　　Is early childhood education really necessary?Early childhood education primarily focuses on learning through playing to develop the child's physical, sensory, communicational and social development．Early childhood education has become a concern of the government, who pushes poor children to be formally trained before they are old enough for Kindergarten．

　　There are good reasons for the government to push early childhood education．Studies have shown that orphaned children who did not receive good care and education become developmentally delayed causing failure in school, and even in life．Further studies show that poor children who take part in Head Start programs are more prepared for school, less likely to end up in Special Education classes, and are less likely to receive public help or go to jail．

　　There are also negative parts to putting a child in formal education programs too early．Time Magazine online explains that“the younger the child the less his chances of catching up with first-grade work．”I have personally witnessed many children of my generation who went to Head Start programs become frustrated and bored with school before they finished high school．Yet parents have been sure that the earlier the child starts school, the better off he or she is, so they push to start children earlier．

　　Actually while early formal education of poor children does show great gains in the early elementary years, studies also show that this head start is really a“false start”, as the gains are lost in middle and high school years．It seems that environment is a bigger factor on life's success than early education．Head Start programs have not achieved its original goal in closing the achievement gap in poor and middle school children．Perhaps it is time to find other ways to close that gap．

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　　American cities are similar to other cities around the world：American cities are changing, just as American society is changing．After World War Two, the population of most large American cities decreased; however, the population in many Sun Belt cities increase．Los Angeles and Houston are cities where population shifts(转移)to and from the city reflect the changing values of American society．In the late 1940s and early 1950s, city residents became wealthier．They moved out of their apartments in the city to buy their own homes．They bought houses in the suburbs．

　　Now things are changing．The children of the people who left the cities in the 1950s are now adults．Many, unlike their parents, want to live in the cities．They continue to move to Sun Belt cities and older ones of the Northeast and Midwest．Many young professionals are moving back into the city．They prefer the city to the suburbs because their jobs are there; or they just enjoy the excitement and possibilities that the city offers．

　　This population shift is bringing problems as well as benefits．Countless poor people must leave their apartments in the city because the owners want to sell the buildings or make apartments for sale instead of for rent．In the 1950s, many poor people did not have enough money to move to the suburbs; now many of these same people do not have enough money to stay in the cities．

　　Only a few years ago, people thought that the older American cities were dying．Some city residents now see a bright, new future．Others see only problems and conflicts．One thing is sure：many dying cities are alive again．

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　　Britain's oldest man made his first visit to London yesterday at the age of 110．Mr．John Evans had never found the time or the money-to make the trip from his home near Swansea．But, when British Rail offered him an all-expenses-paid birthday trip to the capital, he just could not refuse．

　　Until yesterday he had never been far from home, except for one trip to Aberdeen．Mr．Evans, who spent 60 years working as a miner in South Wales, almost made the journey to London once before, at the turn of the century．“There was a trip to the White City but it was ten shillings(1 shilling＝1/20 pound)return from Swansea－too much I thought．All my money went to the family then．”he said．

　　During the next two days Mr．Evans will be taken on a whistle-stop tour of London to see the sights．Top of his list is a visit to the Houses of Parliament(国会)．

　　The only arrangement he does not care for is the wheelchair provided to move him about if he gets tired．“I don't like the chair business－people will think I am getting old,”he said．

　　His secret for a long and healthy life has been well publicized-no alcohol, no cigarette and no anger．Before setting off from Swansea with his 76-year-old son, Amwel, he quipped,“I'm glad to see they've given me a return ticket．”

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　　High-tech machines have made life easier for millions around the world．However, some people still prefer low-tech ways of doing things．Here's an example of why this is happening．You can microwave a frozen hamburger in 60 seconds．However, it won't taste as good as one you cook on the stove．And if you're in that much of a hurry, you probably won't take time to toast the bun．High-tech cooking saves time, but it doesn't make for better-tasting meals．

　　Most people get their news from high-tech sources like television or the Internet．This has many advantages．For example, electronic news is more up to date than newspapers or magazines．It's also more exciting to see live and videotaped news events than photographs．However, newspapers and magazines have some important advantages．They give more background and details．They also let you read the parts that are important to you and skip the rest．

　　Other high-tech timesavers have similar disadvantages．For examples, most people use the phone or e-mail to stay in touch with friends and family members who live in other places．But when you use the Internet or the phone, you don't always think carefully about what you are saying, and sometimes you forget the important things you want to communicate．Similarly, when you word-process a homework assignment instead of handwriting it, you can check your spelling electronically and put in fancy headings．However, some students are so busy with the computer that they don't pay enough attention to the actual words they are writing．

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　　What's on stage

　　An acrobatic(杂技)show：To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the China Acrobatic Troupe(剧团)will present“The Soul of China”, where the seemingly impossible is made real．Chills(寒意)will run down your spine(脊柱)as you watch breathlessly as performers take their art and their bodies to the edge．

　　Time：7∶30 p.m., September 13-19

　　Place：Capital Theatre, 22 Wangfujing Dajie, Dongcheng District

　　Exhibitions

　　Joint show：A group ink painting exhibition is running at the Huangshicheng Art Gallery in Beijing．About 50 works by 25 young artists including Ge Yun and Yu Yang are on display．

　　Time：9∶00 a.m.－5∶00 p.m.until September10

　　Place：Huangshicheng Art Gallery, 136 Nanchizi Dajie, Dongcheng District

　　Oil paintings：The Wangfung Art Gallery will host a joint show of oil painting by 10 young and middle-aged artists．On display are more than 30 of their latest works, which capture the wondrous variety of life in unique styles．

　　Time：9∶00 a.m.－4∶00 p.m.until September15

　　Place：136 Nanchizi Street, Dongcheng District

　　Literature museum：The National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature offers an in-depth study of the evolution of Chinese contemporary literature from 1919 to 1949．

　　Time：9∶00 a.m.－4∶00 p.m., daily

　　Place：45 Anyuan Donglu, Chaoyang District(shaoyaoju area)

　　Concerts

　　Beijing rocks：“The Fashion Night of Chinese Rock”is set to bring rock fans out by the thousands next month．Nine Chinese rock bands will perform at the concert, including older generation bands, middle generation and some recent arrivals．The audience will be given a chance to decide what songs they want to hear, which is sure to bring a storm．

　　Time：September 16

　　Place：The Olympic Center

　　Belgium Orchestra(管弦乐队)：La Petite Bande, the Baroque Orchestra of Belgium, will perform in Beijing at the Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities as part of activities across the world to commemorate(纪念)the 250th anniversary of Bach's death．

　　Time：7∶30 p.m.September 11-14

　　Place：Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities

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　　For photographers lacking training, experience and even the ability to click a shutter button, they produce remarkable pictures．Under the sea, deep in the woods and high in the sky, furry, feathery and leathery-skinned creatures are opening up vistas(远景)by taking cameras where no human can go．

　　This is the world of animal-borne imagine celebrated last month at a conference sponsored(supported)by the National Geographic Society for the 20th anniversary of its Crittercam, the device that started it all．

　　Since its debut(首次公开露面)in 1987 on the back of a turtle, the Crittercam and similar devices developed by others have grown smaller and more powerful．

　　“It's more than just a camera now,”said Greg Marshall, the marine biologist and now filmmaker who invented the Crittercam．“We are now including more instruments to gather more data while at the same time reducing everything in size．”

　　The idea of attaching video cameras to animals came to Mr．Marshall in 1986 on a dive off Belize when a shark apporached him．When the animal quickly turned away, he noticed a shark with a sucker fish on its belly．He came up with the idea that putting a camera in place of the sucker fish would allow people to witness the shark's behavior without disturbing it．

　　Crittercams have been attached to sharks, sea lions and other marine animals, and, more recently, to land animals．

　　Birds are a new addition, Mr．Marshall said．Dr．Christian Rutz of Oxford recently reported on tiny cameras called feathercams that monitor the crows in the South Pacific．It has discovered that crows are smarter than anyone knew they not only use twigs(嫩枝)and grass stems as tools to root out food, but they also save their favorite tools to use again．

　　Tracey L．Rogers, director of the Australian Marine Mammal Research Center in Sydney, said crittercam was a powerful tool in her work with leopard seals(豹斑海豹)in Antarctica．“In studying animals,”Dr．Rogers said at the meeting,“you want to see how our animal models align(与……一致)with reality．With a camera, you actually see what they do．You don't have to guess．”

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　　“BANG!”the door caused a reverberation(回声)．It was just standing there, with Father standing on one side, and I on the other side．

　　We were both in great anger．“Never set foot in this house again!”stormed Father．With tears welling up in my eyes, I rushed out of the flat and ran along the street．

　　The street lights were shining rather desolately(凄凉的)．I wandered aimlessly．

　　A young father who held a child in his arms walked past me．I felt as if I saw my childhood from another space：happy and harmonious．

　　But now…I don't know whether it is because I have grown up or because dad is getting old．We differ in our ways of thinking．He always imposes his opinions and codes of behavior on me．Whenever I do something wrong, he never admits it．We are just like two people coming from two different worlds．It feels like there is an iron door between us that can never be opened．

　　I wandered the streets, without a destination in mind．My heart was frozen on this hot summer night．As I walked on there were fewer and fewer people on the streets, until I had only the street lights to keep me company．When I finally reached the high-rise apartment block in which I lived, I saw that the light was still on．

　　In fact, it was nothing．Perhaps, dad was throwing away some of his old stamps．Perhaps he thought they were useless．I never had the courage to tell him that I liked collecting stamps．I can't stand his outrageous(蛮横的)words：“I can throw you away, let alone these old papers．”

　　All the lights were off except father's．

　　Dad was always like this．Maybe he didn't know how to express himself．After shouting at me, he never showed any mercy or any moments of regret．After an argument he has the habit of creeping up in my sleep and then tucking me underneath the covers．

　　This was how he always was．He has been a leader for so long that telling everyone else what to do has become his second nature．

　　The light was still on．“Am I wrong?”I whispered, maybe…With the key in hand, I was as nervous as I had ever been．At last, I decided to open the door．As soon as I opened the door, tears ran down my cheeks．I suddenly realized that the iron door that I had imagined between us did not exist at all．Love is second to none．

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　　Music is an international language．The songs that are sung or played by instruments are beautiful to all people everywhere．

　　Popular music in America is what every student likes．Students carry small radios with earphones and listen to music before class, after class and at lunch．Students with cars buy large speakers(扬声器)and play the music loudly as they drive on the street．

　　Adult drivers listen to music on the car radio as they drive to work．They also listen to the news about sports, the weather, politics, and activities of the American people．But most of the radio broadcast is music．

　　Pop or popular music singers make much money．They make a CD or tape which radio stations use in every state．Once the popular singer is heard throughout the country, young people buy his or her tapes．Some of the money from these tapes comes to the singer．Wherever the singer goes, all the young people want to meet him or her．Now the singer has become a national star．

　　Besides pop music, there are two other kinds of music that is important to Americans．One is called folk music．It tells stories about the common life of Americans．The other is called western or country music．This was started by cowboys who would sing at night to the cows they were watching．Today, any music about country life and the love between a country boy and his girl is called western or country music．