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　　Walking down any of Shanghai's main shopping streets this week, newcomers might think the locals have been celebrating Christmas for centuries．Christmas may not be a customary holiday in China, but businessmen in Shanghai know it will bring something more valuable than tradition：people are willing to spend money．Most Chinese may feel little connection with the Christmas celebration, but with most shops offering discount(折扣), the message couldn't be clearer－it is the season to part with one's hard-earned cash．

　　Much of that marketing drive is directed towards thousands of foreigners and foreign companies that call Shanghai home．But for Shanghai's 13 million locals, regardless of personal interest, there seems no avoiding the season's commercial greetings．Along some major roads, nearly every shop window displays some symbols to the holiday：a man-made fir tree(杉树)with lights, or a snowman．

　　With an increasing number of westerners arriving in the city for work, young Shanghainese, eager to keep pace with the latest western fashions, have begun to show their interest in Christmas．But some people still don't think Christmas is an important festival in China．At least it is less important than the New Year and China's Spring Festival．

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　　Eight days for just￥12，000

　　Departs：May－October 2007

　　Includes：

　　● Return flights from 6 China's airports to Naples

　　● Return airport to hotel transport

　　● Seven nights'accommodation at the 3-star Hotel Nice

　　● Breakfast

　　● The service of guides

　　● Government taxes

　　Join us for a wonderful holiday in one of the Europe's most wonderful-Naples in Italy if you want to have a nice time in a beautiful small quiet place．The ancient Romans called the city“happy land”with attractive coastlinecolorful towns, splendid views and the warm Mediterranean Sea．Your best choice for a truly memorable holiday!

　　Choose between the peaceful traditional villages of Sant' Agata, set on a hillside six miles away from Sorrento, or the more lively and well-known international resort town of Sorrento, with wonderful views over the Bay of Naples．

　　Breathtaking scenery, famous sights and European restaurants everywhere．From the mysterious Isle of Capri to the hunting ruins of Pompeii, and from the unforgettable“Amalfi Drive”to the delightful resorts of Positano, Sorrento and Ravello, the area is a feast for the eyes!Join us, and you won't be disappointed!

　　Price based on two tourists sharing a double room at the Hotel Nice．A single room, another￥2,000．A group of ten college students, ￥10,000 for each．

　　Like to know more?Telephone Newmarket Air Holidays Ltd on：0845－226－7788(All calls charged at local rates)．

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　　The Americans believe that anybody can become President of the United States．In a recent Hollywood comedy(喜剧), that is exactly what happens．

　　Dave Kovic, played by Kevin Kline, is a kind-hearted man who runs a business that finds people jobs．He leads a typical(典型的)American way of life, except for one thing－he looks exactly like the President, Bill Mitchell．In fact, the only thing that makes him different from the nation's leader is that he is very nice!

　　The president has started using look-alikes during some public appearances．Dave is offered a chance to “serve his country” by becoming one．However, things go wrong．The President becomes very ill and Dave ends up acting as the President forever．

　　Director Ivan Reitman, who made the popular and successful comedies like Twins, Ghostbusters and Legal Eagles, could have gone for easy laughs by making fun of the American government．Instead, Dave is an attractive comedy about an ordinary man in extraordinary situations．Kevin Kline gives a double performance as Dave and the President, and Sigourney Weaver is at her best as his First Lady．The love story that develops between her role and Dave is a real classic(经典)．

　　The film is 100％American．However, if you've ever felt that anybody could do a better job running the country than the people in power, then you'll enjoy Dave!

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　　When someone gives you advice, listen without judgment, try to find value in what you're hearing, and say “Thank you”．This wise advice is easy to understand yet hard to practice．I'll give you an example from my life when I totally blew it in terms of practicing what I teach．

　　In my work I travel constantly．I always put off going to the airport until the last second．My wife, Lynda, was sitting next to me in the front seat．I was racing along and not paying much attention．Lynda cried out, “Look out!There is a red light up ahead．”

　　Being a trained behavioral science professional－who teaches others the value of encouraging advice－I naturally screamed at her, “I know there is a red light up ahead!Don't you think I can see?” When we arrived at the airport, Lynda didn't speak to me．I wondered why she seemed mad at me．

　　During the flight to New York, I did a cost-benefit analysis．I asked myself, “What was the cost of just listening when Lynda called out the warning?Zero．” I then reasoned, “What was the potential benefit?What could have been saved?” Several potential benefits came to mind, including her life, my life, and the lives of other people．

　　I landed in New York feeling ashamed of myself．I immediately called Lynda and told her my cost-benefit story．I convinced her, “The next time you help me with my driving, I am just going to say, ‘Thank you．'”

　　A few months passed, and I had long forgotten the incident．Again, I was racing off to the airport, when Lynda cried out, “Look out for the red light!” I was embarrassed, and then shouted, “Thank you!”

　　I'm a long way from perfect, but I'm getting better．My suggestion is that you get in the habit of asking the important people in your life how you can do things better．And be ready for an answer．Some people may tell you things like “Look out for the red light．” When this happens, remember that there is possibly some potential benefit．Then just say, “Thank you．”

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　　Even if you are naturally shy, these three tricks will help you to quickly build a new social circle in any new city．

　　1．Take pictures

　　One of the great things about taking pictures at an event or party is that it gives you an excuse to get in touch with a person．Everybody loves seeing pictures of themselves, and it’s very easy after taking a picture to say “If you’d like I can email it to you”．This can be the seed that leads to new connections．The next time you hear about a fun event email your new contacts to let them know about it．

　　2．Eat alone in public

　　You might feel self-conscious eating by yourself but it has an important benefit：you are much easier to approach when you are alone．People may be afraid of interrupting you or being rude if you are in a conversation with someone else．Bring a book or newspaper to read(this will make　you feel less self-conscious)．Plus, having an interesting book with you will give others an excuse to start a conversation if they’ve read it．

　　3．Join a class, sports team, or club

　　Yoga, salsa dancing, volleyball, Toastmasters(a public speaking club), a class for work, etc．Take up a new hobby or continue an old one!

　　These are all great places to meet new people, primarily because you will be forced to see the same people over and over again in the class．You will automatically make friends with them if you have a common interest and are forced to see each other again．

　　Tips：

　　* In the beginning．never turn down an invitation from someone, even if it’s something you wouldn’t normally do．

　　* Email your new friends with fun things to do instead of always asking what their plans are, If they have a better plan you can drop(放弃)yours and join them．This will help establish(建立)you as someone who is contributing value instead of just taking it(people want this in a friend)．

　　*Don’t let little things in life upset you or be a negative person．People don’t want to be around someone like that！

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Why do parents deny their kids’ weight？

　　Experts in childhood nutrition aren’t surprised by an investigation this summer that shows 50％of parents who have overweight children don’t realize their children Weigh too much．Many parents deny their children’s weight because they don’t want to have to change their own eating and exercise habits，says Keith Ayoob, a doctor who works with overweight children and their families in New York City．

　　Parents frequently ask him whether their children have a thyroid(甲状腺)problem, but that’s rarely the case．“1t’s usually a dietary(有关饮食的)and lifestyle issue．It’s very difficult for parents to deal with their own food issues，”Ayoob says．An estimated 25 million children in the USA are overweight, which puts them at risk of developing diabetes(糖尿病), high blood Pressure and other health problems．A Consumer Reports magazine investigation released on July 25，2009 of 3．048 parents who have children aged 5 to 17 found that 91％ say childhood obesity(肥胖)is a problem in the USA．

　　Only 36％of the parents with heavy children say their family doctors have suggested their children lose weight；the other 64％say the doctors didn’t mention it．“Many parents simply don’t realize their children are overweight．”says Keith Ayoob．“The doctors never told them．Other kids in the class look like their children．and their kids seem pretty healthy．”he says．

　　He has parents go to the calculator on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website to figure out whether their children are too heavy．

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　　There is probably no field of human activity in which our values and lifestyles are shown more clearly and strongly than they are in the clothes that we choose to wear．The dress of an individual is a kind of “sign language” that communicates a set of information and is usually the basis on which immediate impressions are formed．Traditionally, a concern for clothes was considered to be an affair of females, while men took pride in the fact that they were completely lacking clothes consciousness．

　　This type of American culture is gradually changing as man’s dress takes on greater variety and color．Even as early as 1955, a research in Michigan said that men considered that the value of clothing in daily life was very important．White－collar workers in particular viewed dress as a symbol of ability, which could be used to impress or influence others, especially in the work situation．The white-collar worker was described as extremely concerned about the impression his clothing made on his boss．Although blue-collar workers were less aware that they might be judged on the basis of their clothing, they recognized that any difference from the accepted pattern of　dress would be made fun of by fellow workers．

　　Since that time, of course, the patterns have changed, the typical white-collar worker may now be wearing the blue shirt, while the blue-collar may be wearing a white shirt, but the importance of dress has not become less．Other researchers in recent years have helped to prove its importance in the lives of individuals at various age levels and in different social and economic status groups．

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　　Whatever we may need to buy，we can use our credit cards．This is a change from the older days when we had to first check whether cards were accepted．Today，everybody, from retailers(零售商)to lenders，accepts credit cards．Attitudes towards credit cards have also changed a lot．People used to be

　　very careful of using their cards；but this is no longer the case．People today prefer to take out their cards as soon as they get to the cash counter．A swipe(刷卡)and a sign are all it takes，and you can walk home with the bill and all the things you buy．

　　The credit card is much easier to carry than cash and it is not at all surprising that the former becomes the most preferred way of payment．A credit card takes up very little space in our wallets，and yet，it holds the power of a large sum of cash．Paying by credit cards is also a good way of keeping bills on where all of our money goes．

　　Moreover，it has become much easier to get credit cards these days．I constantly have cold callers calling up to offer me “great new credit card deals”．Salesmen occasionally walk into our office offering discounts if a group of people decide to sign up a certain kind of credit card plan at the same time．However，this can also cause a problem．Nowadays，we always run the

　　risk of getting some kinds of wastes．When the terms seem too good to be true，we should make sure that we always read the printed items carefully．Before signing for a credit card，it is necessary to know its advantages and disadvantages．The only way to deal with this is to do our homework, before we go credit card hunting．

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　　One genetic mutation(基因突变)occurs on average for every 15 cigarettes that a typical lung-cancer patient smokes, according to a study that has found for the first time all of the mutations happen during the lifetime of a cancer patient．

　　Scientists have completed a full genetic examinations of the genomes(基因组)of cancer patients, and hope the information will lead to a basic understanding of the causes of cancer－and possibly drugs and treatments－by making out the mutations that turn a healthy cell into a cancerous tumor cell．

　　They studied a lung-cancer patient who had about 23,000 DNA mutations in his lung cells that were connected with exposure(暴露)to the toxins found in cigarette smoke and had built up over his lifetime．

　　They also looked at a patient with malignant melanoma(恶性黑色肿瘤), the most dangerous form of skin cancer, who had got 30,000 special mutations known to be connected with exposure to sunlight．

　　Scientists believe this new finding into the genetics of cancer will finally lead to new drugs and perfect treatments that aim at the specific changes to the gene that cause the disease, as well as new techniques for discovering following cancers that have escaped from treatment in other parts of the body．

　　“For the first time, we have a complete map of all mutations in a cancer cell,” said Dr．Peter Campbell, who led the Cancer Genome project to work out the whole DNA system of tumor cells in order find the mutations．

　　A similar method was performed on the cells of a patient with skin cancer, which is how the researchers were able to show that the malignant skin cells contained changes that resulted from exposure to light．

　　“These are the two main cancers in the developed world for which we know the chief exposure．For lung cancer it is cigarette smoke, and for malignant melanoma it is exposure to sunlight,” Professor Campbell said．

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King's College Summer School

　　King's College Summer School is an annual(每年的)training program for high school students at all levels who want to improve their English．Courses are given by the teachers of King' s College and other colleges in New York．Trips to museums and culture centers are also organized．This year's summer school will be from July 25 to August 15．

　　More information is as follows：