PART THREE　READING COMPREHENSION

　　When Omega was born in Uganda, she did two things：Smile and then sing．When Omega was 4 years old, her talent(天赋)for music was recognized, so she became one of the youngest members of the first African Children’s Choir(合唱团)．She traveled the world with the choir, and it was from this experience that she grew into a singer today．

　　Although having a beautiful voice, she had to find other ways besides music to earn a living at first．When she was 16, her parents sent her to the USA to study．Like her mother, Omega wanted to become a doctor and do something meaningful in her country of Uganda．

　　However, like many artists, music was so much a part of her that she had to choose．With encouragement from her family and friends, she opened her own production company(制作公司)after graduation．Since then, she has been working as an artist．Her songs make people feel good about life．Apart from that, she is also interested in health care and education．Omega is one of those Ugandan females who are showing the world their valuable talents．

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PART THREE　READING COMPREHENSION

　　Peter King, 15, and Mary King, 13, went to see a doctor．Peter had a bad cold, so the doctor gave him some pills to take．Mary had a bad cough, so the doctor gave her some cough medicine．

　　There are the words on the bottle of the medicine：

　　Cough Medicine

　　Shake well before use．

　　Take three times daily after meals．

　　At one time：

　　Children(4－7)－1/2 teaspoonful(茶匙的量)

　　Children(8－14)－1 teaspoonful

　　Adults－2 teaspoonfuls

　　Not suitable for children below the age of 4

　　Store in a cold place

　　Use before Oct．2012

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Reading Comprehension

　　More than 200 scientists have completed a two-year study to identify the most natural and undeveloped areas on Earth．Their findings are reported in a new book called Wilderness：Earth’s Last Wild Places．The book describes 37 wilderness areas around the world．Each has an area greater than 10,000 square kilometers．The study considered only areas where at least 70％ of all plants are native．

　　North and South America are home to the largest number of wilderness areas．There are 16 such areas, from southern Argentina to Alaska and northern Canada．Africa has 8 wilderness areas, including the thick forests and the grasslands．Australia and New Guinea(几内亚)share 6 areas．Europe has 3 areas and Asia has 2．The Arabian Desert and Antarctica also are considered wilderness areas．

　　The largest wilderness area is the Boreal Forest(北方森林)．It extends for 16-million square kilometers south of the Arctic Circle．The Boreal Forest extends across Alaska, Canada, northern Europe and Russia．The smallest of the 37 wilderness areas is the Sundarbans．It is the world’s largest tidal mangrove forest(红树林)．It covers 10,000 square kilometers of land at the mouth of the Ganges River in India and Bangladesh(孟加拉国)．

　　The study found that wilderness areas cover about 46％ of the Earth’s land surface．However, they are home to less than 2.5％ of the world’s population．Nineteen of the wilderness areas have only about one person for each square kilometer．Native people usually live in these areas．

　　Wilderness areas help to influence the world’s weather systems and rainfall．They are also home to many plants and animals．Population growth and the spread of agriculture and mining operations threaten wilderness areas．But just 7％ of all such areas have some form of official protection．

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Reading Comprehension

　　Paul, the oracle octopus(神算章鱼), was given a replica(复制品)of the World Cup as a reward for his perfect eight-for-eight record in predicting the results of matches．

　　The two-year-old octopus with possible supernatural powers turned into a worldwide celebrity for accurately predicting the German team’s five World Cup wins as well as their two defeats．Paul also tipped Spain to beat Netherlands in the final．

　　“We have had a lot of offers for Paul but he will definitely be staying with us and returning to his usual job-making children smile,” Sea Life spokeswoman Tanja Munzig in Oberhausen said after presenting Paul with the World Cup replica．

　　There’s no rational(合理的)reasons why Paul always got it right．Bettors around the world made small fortunes based on Paul’s guess, said Graham Sharpe, media relations director at William Hill in London．“I’ve seen a lot of things in my lifetime but this is the first time I’ve ever seen people making their picks based on what an octopus tells them．We had people coming in saying they didn’t know how to place a bet but heard about this German octopus and wanted to bet with him．It’s funny．But he kept getting it right．” said Sharpe．

　　Sharpe said that anyone who had placed a 10-pound accumulator bet(累计下注)on Paul’s prediction from the start of the World Cup would have won 3,000 pounds(＄4,500)by the end of the tournament．

　　Paul’s home at Sea Life aquarium(水族馆)in Oberhausen has been crowded with visitors and media from across Europe．Many networks broadcast his predicting live．Many networks broadcast his picks live．Hundreds were on hand to watch the World Cup replica lowered into his tank on Monday, 12 July, 2010．

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Reading Comprehension

　　?Health, Wellness and the Politics of Food

　　9∶00－9∶45 a. m．Blue Tent

　　Panelists(成员)：Jami Bernard, David Kamp, Marion Nestle and Peter Singer．

　　Hosted by Denise Grady, science writer for The New York Times．

　　How does what we eat not only affect our bodies, but also the world？The food and nutrition experts debate the role that the diet plays in both personal and global health, and present a look at food politics．

　　? Sports Writing：For the Love of the Game

　　9∶50－10∶35 a. m. Blue Tent

　　Panelists：Christine Brennan, Ira Rosen, Joe Wallace and Joe Drape．

　　Hosted by William C．Rhoden, sports writer for The New York Times．

　　Whether catching that key moment of victory or defeat, or covering breaking news, sports writers are anything but audience．Listen as some professionals discuss the special experience in reporting of sports news．

　　?The Art of the Review

　　11∶15－12?00 a. m．Green Tent

　　Panelists：John Freeman, Barry Gewen, David Orr, Celia McGee and Jennifer Schuessler．

　　Hosted by Sam Tanenhaus, editor for The New York Times Book Review．

　　How much of an effect does the book review have on book sales？Join this group of critics(评论家)as they discuss the reality of book review and bestseller lists, and how they choose books for review．

　　?New York Writers, New York Stories

　　3∶00－3∶45 p. m．Green Tent

　　Panelists：Cindy Adams, Richard Cohen, Ric Klass and Lauren Redniss．

　　Hosted by Clyde Haberman, columnist(专栏作家)for the City Section of The New York Times．

　　Join this inspiring group of New York－centric writers as they talk about why New York is a gold mine of ideas for their work．

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阅读理解

　　Wal-Mart is not just the world's largest retailer(零售商)．It's the world's largest company, which sells in three months what number-two retailer Home Depot sells in a year．

　　Wal-Mart exercises its power for just one purpose：to bring the lowest possible prices to its customers．At Wal-Mart, that goal is never reached．The retailer has a clear policy for suppliers：On basic products that don't change, the price Wal-Mart will pay, and will charge shoppers, must drop year after year．But what almost no one outside the world of Wal-Mart and none of its 21,000 suppliers know is the high cost of those low prices．To survive in the face of its pricing demands, makers of everything from bikes to jeans have had to close US plants in favor of obtaining products from abroad．

　　Indeed, the real story of Wal-Mart, the story that never gets told, is the story of the pressure the biggest retailer constantly applies to its suppliers in the name of bringing us "every day low prices"．

　　The giant retailer's low prices often come with a high cost．Wal-Mart's pressure can crush(制服)the companies it does business with and force them to send jobs overseas．Are we shopping our way straight to the unemployment line? Of course, US companies have been moving jobs offshore for decades, long before Wal-Mart was a retailing power．But there is no question that the chain is helping accelerate(加速)the loss of American jobs to low-wage countries such as Thailand．

　　People ask, "How can it be bad for things to come into the US cheaply?" Sure, it's great to have bargains．But you can't buy anything if you're not employed．

　　There is no question that Wal-Mart's drive to squeeze(挤出)out cost has benefited consumers．By now, it is accepted wisdom that Wal-Mart makes the companies it does business with more efficient and focused．Wal-Mart itself is known for continuous, improvement in its ability to handle, move, and track goods．It is legendary(传奇)for forcing its suppliers to redesign everything from their packaging to their computer systems．It is also legendary for quite straightforwardly telling them what it will pay for their goods．

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阅读理解

The Loss of Innocence

　　Innocence is such a precious gift．It's explained as freedom from guilt or wrong doing．Just imagine never having to worry about anything and having a guilt free mind．Some people wish to save this kind of innocence from being lost from childhood to adulthood．

　　What would the world be like if innocence were never lost? One way it would benefit humanity is the lack of hatred(仇恨)among the world．During youth, there may be an occasional argument, even a little physical fight, but nothing like firing a handgun at a fellow human being．And children are blind towards the racial differences of others．A kid will hang out with any other kid．It is the lack of innocence and the ignorance we learn from adults that influence children otherwise．Another benefit is the constant desire for fun and adventure．With very little if any time at all for fun, the adventurous mind is lost in time with the responsibilities placed upon adults．If innocence were kept alive, these ambitions would never depart from our lives．

　　However, other people actually hate the idea of innocence lasting for ever．They feel that the lack of organization and mental power of those with innocence would cause extremely destructive consequences to society in general．A large number of individuals would never have the urge to learn, work, and act upon the necessary needs for humanity to survive．Without a proper education which is usually provided by those who no longer live in a world of innocence, people would not have the desire to succeed, get a good job in life, or provide income for their families, which would hurt the lives of children．

　　The lack of a good education and career would also harm the economy．As long as innocence is kept alive, no one would be terribly angered at the lack of effort people put out in the workplace, resulting in a strong decline in production and quality of needed goods．

　　Maybe it is wrong in wanting to save innocence．It sure is a nice thought, though．Perhaps innocence was meant to be lost．It was god's will to make things the way they are, and there is a good purpose for everything．All that remains to be said about innocence is to enjoy it while it lasts．

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阅读理解

How Many Lies Do the Children Tell You？

　　Mothers who feel their children don' t appreciate them can add another grievance to the list：half the time, their children are lying to them．A study designed to expose the truth about lying shows that undergraduates lie to their mothers in 46％ of their conversations．Still, mums should feel better than total strangers, who are told lies an astonishing 77 ％ of the time．

　　Bella Depaulo and a team of psychologists from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, asked 77 undergraduates to keep a record of all their conversations for a week, and write down whether they lied at any time．DePaulo named lying broadly as "when you intentionally try to mislead someone", so she would catch the smallest of lies．

　　The students told an average of two lies a day．They said they had been studying when they had been out drinking．One told his parents that a textbook cost ＄50 rather than ＄20 so that they would send him extra money．Female students constantly told their plain-looking roommates that they were pretty．"They are everyday lies," says DePaulo．

　　DePaulo and her colleagues conclude that people tend to tell fewer lies to those they feel closest to．College students lied to their best friends 28％ of the time but lied to acquaintances 48％ of the time．In close relationships, people were more likely to tell "kind-hearted" lies, designed to protect feelings, rather than self-serving lies．

　　Romantic partners are somewhere between close friends and acquaintances．Students lied to romantic partners about a third of the time．DePaulo thinks that unmarried lovers can expect less honesty than best friends because of the insecurity that comes with romance．

　　Mothers can take heart from one other finding．They may have been lied to, but at least their children talked to them．The students were recorded telling few lies to their fathers because they had little interaction with them．

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阅读理解

　　Thinking is something you choose to do as a fish chooses to live in water．To be human is to think．But thinking may come naturally without your knowing how you do it．Thinking about thinking is the key to critical thinking．When you think critically, you take control of your thinking processes．Otherwise, you might be controlled by the ideas of others．Indeed, critical thinking is at the heart of education．

　　The word “critical” here has a special meaning．It does not mean taking one view against another view, as when someone criticizes another person for doing something wrong．The nature of critical thinking is thinking beyond the easily seen－beyond the pictures on TV, the untrue reports in the newspapers, and the faulty reasoning．

　　Critical thinking is an attitude as much as an activity．If you are curious about life and desire to dig deeper into it, you are a critical thinker．If you find pleasure in deep thinking about different ideas, characters, and facts, you are a critical thinker．

　　Activities of the mind and higher-order reasoning are processes of deep and careful consideration．They take time, and do not go hand in hand with the fast speed in today’s world：fast foods, instant coffee, and self-developing film．If you are among the people who believe that speed is a measure of intelligence, you may learn something new from a story about Albert Einstein．The first time Banish Hoffman, a scientist, was to discuss his work with Albert Einstein, Hoffman was too nervous to speak．But Einstein immediately put Hoffman at ease by saying, “Please go slowly．I don’t understand things quickly．”

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阅读理解

　　Walking down a path through some woods in Georgia, I saw a small pool of water ahead on the path．I angled my direction to go around it on the part of the path that wasn't covered by water or mud．As I reached the pool, I was suddenly attacked! Yet I did nothing for the attack．It was so unpredictable and from somewhere totally unexpected．I was surprised as well as unhurt though I had been struck four or five times．I backed up a foot and my attacker stopped attacking me．Had I been hurt I wouldn't have found it amusing．And I was laughing．After all, I was being attacked by a butterfly!

　　Having stopped, laughing, I took a step forward．My attacker rushed me again．He charged towards me at full speed, attempting to hurt me but in vain．For a second time, I took a step backwards while my attacker paused．I wasn't sure what to do．After all, it's just not every day that one is attacked by a butterfly．I stepped back to look the situation over．My attacker moved back to land on the ground．That's when I discovered why my attacker was charging me only moments earlier．He had a mate and she was dying．

　　Sitting close beside her, he opened and closed his wings as if to fan her．I could only admire the love and courage of that butterfly in his concern for his mate．He had taken it up on himself to attack me for his mate's sake, even though she was clearly dying and I was so large．He did so just to give her those extra few precious moments of life, should I have been careless enough to step on her．His courage in attacking something thousands of times larger and heavier than himself just for his mate's safety seemed admirable．I couldn't do anything other than reward him by walking on the more difficult side of the pool．He had truly earned those moments to be with her, undisturbed．

　　Since then, I've always tried to remember the courage of that butterfly whenever I see huge barriers facing me．

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