阅读理解

　　Ed Jocelyn and Andy McEwen might have appeared to be a bit mad－the two set off on their own“Long March”through the remotest regions of China on October 16．The idea was to take a year to retrace one of the epic movements of modern military history．

　　The two British men in their mid-30s were working as editors in Beijing when they decided to reexperience the tales of the original marches．“We hold these people in such respect,”McEwen says．

　　They plan to keep diaries but will not share the contents during the trip．“When we get to the end we'll put our heads together and try and come up with a book,”Jocelyn said．

　　Their trip has had some auspicious beginning, they have already met two Long March veterans(老战士)in less than a month of travel．

　　In this modern version, the pair are aided by high-tech equipment including a satellite phone, mini-computer, video camera and solar panels to recharge batteries．A mountain tent and portable stove will help them in the remoter stretches．

　　They plan to average 35-40 kilometers a day, and rest about every third day．Ed admitted that their trip would be very tough．

　　If they succeed, they will be the first foreigners to complete the entire Long March route since Otto Braun, the German military advisor who accompanied the Red Army on the Long March．

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阅读理解

　　In 1971 a young man who grew up very poor was traveling across the country, trying to make a new start for himself．Along the way he had completely run out of money and was forced to spend the night in his car．

　　This continued until one morning, after a week of sleeping in his car, he walked nervously into a diner and ordered a big breakfast．After eating his first good meal in weeks, he found himself lying to the waiter, telling him he had“lost his wallet”．The waiter, who was also the owner, walked behind the stool where the man was sitting．

　　He bent down, and came up with a ＄20 bill that looked as if it had fallen on the floor．“Son, you must have dropped this,”the owner said．The young man couldn't believe his luck!He quickly paid for the breakfast, left a tip, bought gas with the change and headed west．

　　On the way out of the town, it dawned on(使开始明白)him．“Maybe that fellow just knew I was in trouble and he helped me in a way that didn't embarrass(使尴尬)me．I'd been praying for a few days before that, and right then I just made a little promise．”I said,“if ever you put me in a position to help other people, I will do it．”

　　Now older, the man lives near Kansas City．Each year he gives away thousands of dollars．He's known as the“Secret Santa”, because at Christmas time each year, he personally hands money out to those on the street．Last year, he gave more than ＄50,000 away in Kansas City and New York City

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阅读理解

　　Recently I paid a visit to Harvard University, where there are top class scientists and professors and the best academic system in the world．

　　I was pretty shocked when I first stepped onto the campus．Well, it's not even really a campus．It's more like a district in a small town．

　　Harvard's main buildings are from the 18^th century．They look very old and simple．You might even say they're a little shabby．They don't fit the modern idea of university at all．The buildings are surrounded by grass and trees, so I felt as if I had walked into a medieval castle．But when I looked across the street, busy shops and in-fashion students made me feel like I was in the 21^st century again．It creates a strong contrast(对照)and brings a special atmosphere to the school．

　　Our tour guide Gary took us around and told us,“You see this grass field in the center of the school?Here is where they host their graduation ceremony．They just set up tents and benches and have a very simple ceremony．Unbelievable!Who would think the most talented students just graduate on the lawn?”

　　I saw some students put a blanket on the grass and lie down to read a book．When I listened to the soft sound of pages turning, along with the chirping(鸟叫声)of the birds, I felt very calm．There was no competitive feeling at all．

　　Harvard has the world's first computer in its science center and there are hundreds of high-end computers too．Its religion and the literature departments are also among the best．It is the perfect mix of tradition and new technology．It makes Harvard a very attractive place to study in．

　　I hope one day I'll attend my dream school－Harvard．

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阅读理解

　　China news, Beijing, Feb 9－Housing price in China has always aroused heated discussions among property(房地产)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 that in the United States．This shows that there are some bubbles(泡沫)in Chinese real estate(房地产)market, the International Finance News reported．

　　Although the average price of residential houses in the United States, after converted(兑换)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 the 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 the 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 the real estate market by raising tax on property industry and controlling the release of loans(贷款)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 by multiple(多样的)ways, it is expected that the high housing prices per square meter can be lowered．

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Reading Comprehension

　　Having spent five years searching for her older brother, Miss Lund was unbelievable to think she had been working in the same building for five months．

　　Mr．Philips, 33, and Miss Lund last saw each other almost twenty years ago after their father, also called Stephen, 56, lost contact with his son from a previous relationship．Miss Lund, only five at that time, moved to India with her father and mother Rose, while Steven lived with his mother in Wolverhapton．

　　By the time Miss Lund and her parents returned to Leeds, the family had lost all contact with Mr, Philips．On turning 18, Lund started to track down her long-lost half brother, even asking customers at the shop where she worked．But despite checking on Internet sites such as Friends Reunited and MySpace, it wasn't until the pair started working together at Loop Customer Management where she went on asking everyone if they knew a Stephen Philips that she tracked him down in March, 2007．

　　She couldn't believe it when she was told someone by that name worked there．After she checked on the Internet database, it suggested he wasn't her brother as his name Steven instead of Stephen．Then a friend came up to her and said Steven's surely her brother．They checked parents' names and it turned out they were related．She wanted to scream but they were at work so they just hugged and chatted．

　　Mr．Philips, a father of four children, said he was delighted, adding：“I never thought we would meet again．I can't wait to get to know my sister．We have so much to know．”

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Reading Comprehension

　　Tanzania Tarangire is a national Park which lies in Tanzania．The park itself covers an area of around 2,850 square kilometers, making it the sixth largest park of its kind in the country．I recently visited Tarangire to see what it was like…．

　　One of the first sightings upon entering the park which I found was a huge herd(群)of elephants． Our guide told us that Tagrangire was probably the best place in Tanzania to find large herds of elephants, and that their population in the park was around 2,500．We continued to watch the elephants as they stood under trees and scratched themselves against the trees to hit the spot of an itch(痒处)．

　　To the right of the elephant herd, we noticed a big tree!Our guide informed us that this was a Baobab tree and that they could live for hundreds of years．Compared with this tree, the elephant just looked like dwarfs(侏儒)!We were informed that Tarangire was one of the best National Parks in Africa to see so many Baobab trees．

　　As we continued our drive through the park, we finally reached a watering hole．Our guide warned us that there were lions all around us．It took us all a while to find them, but there they were!Most of them are resting in the shade under brushes, but there was one that was drinking from the watering hole directly in front of us．We then noticed just to our right, there were a couple of fresh zebra corpses(尸体)－it seemed as if the lions which were resting had killed them!We were unlucky not to have seen the actual kill, as our guide had mentioned that the zebra corpses were fresh and the kill had occurred within the last hour．

　　Our final big sighting was one that none of us were expecting to see, even our guide!We pulled over to where there was a large gathering of cars, with a sleeping leopard(美洲豹)there!We took photos happily and excitedly and observed its surprising body before returning to our hotel as it was getting late．

　　So, I hope you enjoyed my description of Tarangire, and that I have inspired you to add this amazing park to your very own Tanzania travel route．

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Reading Comprehension

　　Since my son is getting ready for first grade, I asked a friend where she shops for school supplies．For price and convenience, she had a quick answer：schoolpak.com．Parents can buy items or packaged equipment for all grades．The Generic Elementary School-pak for first through fifth graders, for example, is ＄23.28．(Teachers can also e-mail their grade's or school's whole list for a price on customized kits(销售包)．Shipping(运送)is free for 75 or more kits)

　　________

　　Teachers thinks highly of educationalwarehouse.com for its learning tools and games－everything from puzzles and puppets to software and chalks．Classroomdirect.com has great prices on over 10.000 products and a special corner offering even deeper discounts．

　　Pick your lunch box

　　The second-most-difficult back-to-school decision, right after what to wear on the first day, is what kind of lunch box to buy．Jonas Brothers or Hannah Montana?Ariel or Elmo?Your kids can examine their(and your)lunch boxes at platesplus4kids.com and lunchboxes.com．

　　Trade in sports tools

　　My garage is a tangle(混乱)of bikes and balls, sticks and clubs, so I was excited to find playitagainsports.com－a company that helps you sell quality, name-brand sporting equipment．You'll have to visit one of its 320 stores, located in 46 states and the District of Columbia．

　　3 sites for saving

　　Feedthepig.org

　　Think about the savings if your kids(and you)stopped buying lunch out every day and brown-bagged(自带午餐)it．

　　Goodshop.com

　　Support your favorite school by shopping at more than 1,000 participating shops．Up to 30 percent of every purchase is donated．And you'll find hundreds of deals and coupons(优惠券)．

　　Taxadmin.org

　　Click on 2009 State Sales Tax Holidays to see if your state has a tax-free shopping day．Check what's included before going to the store．

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阅读理解

　　Should doctors ever lie to benefit their patient－to speed recovery or to cover the coming of death?In medicine as in law, government, and other lines of work, the requirements of honesty often seem dwarfed(变矮小)by greater needs：the need to protect from brutal news or to uphold a promise of secrecy; to advance the public interest．

　　What should doctors say, for example, to a 46-year-old man coming in for a routine physical check up just before going on vacation with his family who, though he feels in perfect health, is found to have a form of cancer that will cause him to die within six months．Is it best to tell him the truth?If he asks, should the doctor reject that he is ill, or minimize the gravity of the illness?Should they at least hide the truth until after the family vacation?

　　Doctors face such choices often．At times, they see important reasons to lie for the patient's own sake; in their eyes, such lies differ sharply from self-serving ones．

　　Studies show that most doctors sincerely believe that the seriously ill patients do not want to know the truth about their condition, and that informing them risks destroying their hope, so that they may recover more slowly, or deteriorate(恶化)faster, perhaps even commit suicide．

　　But other studies show that, contrary to the belief of many physicians; a great majority of patients do want to be told the truth, even about serious illness, and feel cheated when they learn that they have been misled．We are also learning that truthful information, humanly conveyed, helps patients cope this illness：help them tolerate pain better, need less medicine, and even recover faster after operation．

　　There is urgent need to debate this issue openly．Not only in medicine, but in other professions as well, practitioners may find themselves repeatedly in difficulty where serious consequences seem avoidable only through deception(欺骗)．Yet the public has every reason to know professional deception, for such practices are peculiarly likely to become deeply rooted, to spread, and to trust．Neither in medicine, nor in law, government, or the social sciences can there be comfort in the old saying,“What you don't know can't hurt you．”

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阅读理解

　　Is it time to kick Russia out of the BRICs(金砖四国)?If so, it may end up sounding like a famous ball-point pen maker－BIC．An argument is being made that Goldman Sach's famous marketing device(策略), the BRICs, should really be the BICs．

　　“Is Russia really worth the name BRICs?”asks Anders Aslund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, in an article for Foreign Policy．Aslund, who is also co-author with Andrew Kuchins of“The Russian Balance Sheet”, thinks the Russia of Putin and Medvedev is just not worthy of inclusion alongside Brazil, India and China in the list of future economic powerhouses．He writes：

　　“The country's economic performance has fallen to such a weak level that one must ask whether it has any say at all on the global economy, compared with the other members of its group．I have just returned from Moscow, which is always dull around this season．For the last seven years, Russia has taken very few measures to improve its economy．Instead, the state has been living on oil and gas．”

　　Economically, Aslund has the numbers on his side．The International Monetary Fund figures that the Russian economy will fall by 6.7 percent in 2009, while China will grow 8.5 percent and India 5.4 percent．There is less of a case for Brazil, with a fall of 0.7 percent, but it is still doing far better than Russia．

　　But the BRICs are not just about economy．As is mentioned above, it is a marketing device to encourage investors(投资者)to focus on the big promising players．From an investment standpoint, it could be argued that Russia is leading the BRICs．Its stock market is up 128 percent this year while around 80 percent is for the other three．

　　At very least, despite Russia's economic underperformance, its stock market outperformance does suggest it is indeed one of the group．

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阅读理解

　　It is normal for parents to question their children's hairstyle or the clothes they wear．But today teenagers and their parents argue over something else：money．

　　Children are spending lots of it．Parents used to say to their children,“You're wearing that?”Now they say,“You paid how much for that?”

　　Children in the US today spend five times more money than their parents did when they were young．

　　So what are all these children buying?The list is long：iPods, trainers, cell phones and jeans are typical items that children“have to”buy．And they will do anything to get them．They ask their parent's over and over until they buy them．

　　But parents also need to take the blame for spending so much money．They want their children to have the best stuff．They end up competing with other parents over what their children have．

　　So no wonder children find it hard to learn the importance of saving money rather than spending it all the time．

　　And it's hard to save when companies use advertising and clever slogans to encourage young people to buy their products．They even encourage children to keep asking their parents for something until they get it．

　　Today, you don't even need to have money in order to buy something．Banks give out credit cards and loans all the time so people are saving less and less．We are used to there being lots of money around．And if you don't have much you can always borrow some．

　　But this hasn't always been the case．When our grandparents were young there was very little money and everyone had to save hard for things they bought．They only bought things they needed, not things they just wanted．

　　The older generation made the wise expression,“Money doesn't grow on trees．”This is as true now as it was 50 years ago．They give money a great deal of value．And we all have a lot to learn from them．

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