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　　These days, there's a popular cartoon named happy sheep and gray wolf．It's an excellent Chinese cartoon, which tells the stories of happy sheep and gray wolf．The poor gray wolf is always trying hard to catch the sheep, but the sheep could always run away from the danger．The sheep are so clever and lovely that the cartoon gets all the children's love．At the same time, the cartoon is full of humor．The children could learn more knowledge and enjoyment from it．

　　The cartoon is shown repeatedly on many TV channels．The Zhejiang Channel broadcasts the cartoon on weekends and the vacations; the Sichuan Channel broadcasts the cartoon for an hour in the evening; the Shandong Channel broadcasts it in the morning, while CCTV－3 broadcasts it at noon every day．

　　On one hand, the cartoon gets the children's love because the happy sheep is really clever．He always has a way to work out any problem and save his friends．What's more, there're many things about happy sheep and gray wolf, such as the books, the toys, the pencil-box, the clothings, and so on．Children are happy to buy them．On the other hand, many adults(大人)also like the cartoon, for the gray wolf is regarded as the perfect husband with skills and effort．He invents many things just to catch a sheep for his wife．Though he is often hit by his wife, he always makes her happy without complaining(抱怨)．

　　We can learn more from the cartoon, including the skills, the stories, the details, the humor, and so on．We could see the humor of Chinese type during the cartoon．But I don't like its being shown so often．It may make the children spend more time on watching TV and it is bad for their health and study．

阅读理解

　　The following are the world-renewed attractions in London, so don't miss them while touring there．

　　Shakespeare's Globe

　　Shakespeare's Globe, which officially opened in 1997, is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, built in 1599, and brings Shakespeare's world to life．As a visitor to the exhibition，you'll discover how shows were produced in the theatres during Shakespeare's time．The guide-storytellers take you on a fascinating half-hour tour．

　　Price：Adult ￡9.00；Child(5－15)￡6.50; Student ￡7.50; Under 5 FREE．

　　The Tower of London

　　The tower, nearly 100 feet high, with walls 15 feet thick, was built in the early 1080s．King Henry Ⅲ made this tower his home．King Edward V and his younger brother were murdered inside by their uncle．Queen Elizabeth I was shut up in the tower for two months by her half sister Mary who felt that her throne(王位)was being threatened(威胁)．In 1603, part of the tower became a museum．

　　Price：Adult ￡16.50; Child(5－15)￡9.50; Under 5 FREE; Student ￡13.50; Family(two adults with three children)￡46.00．

　　Banqueting(宴会)House

　　Banqueting House is the remains of Whitehall Palace which was built in 1529 and was home to the English kings．It was destroyed by fire．Famous for its architecture and painting, the building is also known for being the scene of Charles I's execution(处决)．

　　Price：Adult ￡4.50; Child ￡2.25; Student(with ID)and senior citizen(60＋)￡3.00; Under 5 FREE．

　　Tower Bridge Exhibition

　　Tower Bridge has stood over the River Thames in London since 1894 and is one of the finest, most recognizable bridges in the world．At the Tower Bridge Exhibition you can enjoy breath-taking views from the high-level walkways and learn about the history of the bridge and how it was built．You can then visit the Victorian engine rooms, home to the original steam engines that used to power the bridge．

　　Price：Adult￡6.00; Child(5－15)￡3.00; Under 5 FREE; Senior citizen(60＋)￡4.50; Student￡4.50．

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　　About three hundred words in the English language come from the names of people．Many of these words are technical words．When there is a new invention of discovery, a new word may be coined(杜撰)after the inventor or scientist．

　　It is interesting to observe how many common words have found their way into the language from the names of people．Lord Sandwich, who lived from 1718－1792, used to sit at the gambling(赌博)table eating bread with meat in between．As the Lord was the only one among his friends who ate bread in that way, his friends began to call the bread “sandwich” for fun．Later on，the word became part of the English language．

　　The word “boycott” means to refuse to have anything to do with somebody or something．It comes from a man called Captain Boycott．He was a land agent in 1880 and he collected rents and taxes for an English landowner in Ireland．But the Captain was a very harsh(苛刻的)man．He treated his poor tenants(佃户)very badly．His tenants decided not to speak to him at all．Eventually word got back to the landowner and the Captain was removed(免除)．The word “boycott” became popular and was used by everyone to mean the kind of treatment that was received by Captain Boycott．

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　　Three Central Texas men were honored with the Texas Department of Public Safety's Director's Award in a Tuesday morning ceremony for their heroism in saving the victims of a serious two car accident．

　　The accident occurred on March 25 when a vehicle lost control while traveling on rainsoaked State Highway 6 near Baylor Camp Road．It ran into an oncoming vehicle, leaving the occupants trapped inside as both vehicles burst into flames．

　　Bonge was the first on the scene and heard children screaming．He broke through a back window and pulled Mallory Smith, 10, and her sister, Megan Smith, 9, from the wreckage．

　　The girl's mother, Beckie Smith, was not with them at the time of the wreck, as they were traveling with their body sitter, Lisa Bowbin．

　　Beckie Smith still remembers the sickening feeling she had upon receiving the call informing her of the wreck and the despair as she drove to the scene．

　　Bozeman and Clemmons arrived shortly after Bonge and helped rescue the other victims and attempted to put out the fires．

　　“I was nervous，”Bozeman said．“I don't feel like I'm a hero．I was just doing what anyone should do in that situation．I hope someone would do the same for me．”

　　Everyone at the accident made it out alive, with the victims suffering from nonlife threatening injuries．Mallory Smith broke both femurs, and Megan had neck and back injuries．Bowbin is still recovering from a broken pelvis, ankle and foot．

　　The rescuers also were taken to the hospital and treated for cuts and smoke breathing, Bonge said．

　　In addition, Bozeman got to meet accident victim Anthony Russo in the hospital after the accident, where Russo presented him with a glass frame inscribed with “Thank you”, Bozeman said．Those involved in that fateful encounter on Highway 6 credited God blessing for bringing them together．

　　“Whatever the circumstances, Tuesday's ceremony provided a time to be grateful for those who put their lives on the line for the lives of complete strangers，”Beckie Smith said，“We're calling it The Miracle on Highway 6．”

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　　How would you like to sleep with one half your brain asleep and the other half awake? Dolphins sleep this way．Recently, scientists at Indiana State University have discovered that ducks sleep this way too．They found that ducks sleep half awake so they can rest and watch for danger at the same time．

　After putting their ducks in a row and videotaping them, some researchers found ducks on the end of each row spent more time asleep with one eye open ,apparently looking for predators．

　　“The more the ducks felt threatened ,the more they slept with one eye open,” said lead author Niels C．Rattenborg ,a graduate student at Indiana State University ,Terre Haute．”the unique aspect is not that they do it ,but that they control it．When they sleep at the edge of a group ,they tend to realize greater danger ,so they spend more time sleeping with one half of their brain．” Ducks with one eye open were still awake enough to detect predators ,said the authors of the study ,which appears today in the journal Nature．

　　The researchers studied four groups of four ducks held in plastic boxes ,which were arranged in a row．Ducks on the end were found to sleep with one eye open 31．8 per cent of the time, compared to 12．4 percent of the time for ducks in the central position．

　　Also ,ducks in the central position did not open one eye more than the others, while ducks on each end kept the eye facing away from the group open 86．2 per cent of the time．Brain wave readings of the ducks showed that the half of the brain receiving signals from the closed eye indicated that half of the brain was sleeping．Signals from the half of the brain receiving signals from the open eye showed a state between fully awake and asleep．

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　　There are some very good things about open education．This way of teaching allows the students to grow as people, and to develop their own interests in many subjects．Open education allows students to be responsible for their own education, as they are responsible for what they do in life．Some students do badly in a traditional classroom．The open classroom may allow them to enjoy learning．Some students will be happier in an open education school．They will not have to worry about grades or rules．For students who worry about these things a lot, it is a good idea to be in an open classroom．

　　But many students will not do well in an open classroom．For some students, there are too few rules．These students will do little in school．They will not make good use of open education．Because open education is so different from traditional education, these students may have a problem getting used to making so many choices．For many students it is important to have some rules in the classroom．They worry about the rules even when there are no rules．Even a few rules will help this kind of students．The last point about open education is that some traditional teachers do not like it．Many teachers do not believe in open education．Teachers who want to have an open classroom may have many problems at their schools．

　　You now know what open education is．Some of its good points and bad points have been explained．You may have your own opinion about open education．The writer thinks that open education is a good idea, but only in theory．In actual fact, it may not work very well in a real class or school．The writer believes that most students, but of course not all students, want some structure in their classes．They want and need to have rules．In some cases, they must be made to study some subjects．Many students are pleased to find subjects they have to study interesting．They would not study those subjects if they did not have to．

阅读理解

　　Are you bored and lonely? Do you want to make new friends? Do long working hours

　　make it difficult for you to get out and about to meet new people? Maybe you or your friends have moved to a new area and this has left you feeling lonely．

　　Even if you are already the proverbial social butterfly, you may still find that your existing friends do not share the same interests and feelings．You may have a satisfying social life, but you still find you have no one to travel with．You may have your circle of friends, but find that none of them will join you in the activities or sports that interest you most．These are just a few of the reasons why millions of people search online to find new friends．

　　Matchmaking websites are good tools to make friends online．Profile matching technologies enable you to search for new friends by age, gender, location, interests and much more．You can make friends near you or anywhere in the world and learn about new countries, cultures and lifestyles．

　　Making friends online is easy and anonymous(匿名的)as members get to know you by your username only．You can get in touch with members by sending private messages, joining in discussion forums, or sharing online chat．

　　When you are ready, you can take your new friendships into the real world by arranging meetings to share your common interests．If you prefer to meet in numbers, you can join or create your own local group in which members share interests and activities near you．

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　　It may be one of Britain’s most successful exports – Miss World(世界小姐)．This 53-year-old event took place in China last week and attracted over 120 women worldwide with knockout looks in a mad struggle for the crown．

　　Traditional values have long kept the Chinese, especially women, from displaying beauty．But Chinese people have now changed their attitude toward beauty contest, although some men will still be shouting that the winner is no more beautiful than his wife or his former girl friend or even his mother in a sour tone．But such men are not shouting for the right reason．The question to be：Why isn’t there a Mr．World Beauty Contest?

　　And a further question to be asked is：Does taking part in a beauty contest show a woman’s　courage, wisdom and liberation or rather the opposite – a forced choice and a revolting act made under conditions of long-term discrimination?

　　Organizers of such beauty contests claim that the contestants are judged on qualities other than just their physical appearance．But still no answer is given to why there isn’t a Mr．Beauty or a Mr．World Contest? Or at least, why isn’t that kind of contest popular? Why is it that only women’s “qualities” need to be recognized but not men’s?

　　Think about who is always standing beside a fancy car on show? Is it a boy or a girl? And this is how “qualities” are judged：if the girl looks good, there is little reason why the car beside her is not of high quality．

　　The beauty contests go on year after year, with winners enjoying fame which quickly disappears．While such events go on and on, what never changes is the routine practice that in every fancy car show, a girl stands beside a fancy car．What never changes is the need to hold a women’s conference every year to appeal for the promotion of respect for and improvement of women．What never changes is the fate of women as a class．So let’s put more time and resources into trying to change all this rather than holding beauty contests．

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　　In the US and Britain, the slogan around colleges was “Save water．Shower with a friend．” Now, Wuhan University has come up with another system for the campus bathhouse．It charges students for the amount of time in a shower．Before entering the bathhouse, students pay for the amount of time they want in the shower with cash or their student ID card．The clock starts ticking the minute the tape is turned on．It pauses when a button is pressed for soap．An integrated circuit(IC)card reader at each tap shows the time．No money, no water．The benefits of the new system can be seen with the old system, which charged 1 Yuan for each person regardless of time in the shower．The university used about 320 tons of water daily under the old system, but only 160 tons now．

　　Many students use the new system but opinions on it are divided．Some students say it is bad because bathing had become a sort of race．Many people using it for the first time are not sure how long they need to shower．Some might be embarrassed if their time is up and they’re still covered in soap．They have to ask the bathhouse worker to help them buy extra time．

　　“It’s a flaw in the system that you can not buy extra time on the ID card,” said Ren, a freshman in Wuhan University．The university is also considering some students’ suggestions that they be allowed to pay after they’ve finished the shower．Not surprisingly, some are complaining about losing the hour shower．But many students say the move helps them develop a water-saving sense．

　　Without the time limits, most students tended to shower for 30 to an hour in the bathhouse．

　　Some even used the hot water to wash their clothes．“In my experience, 10－20 minutes is enough,” said Dai Zhihua, a third-year student who usually takes 8 minutes．

　　A similar system has been installed in other universities．Shanghai Normal University introduced it at its Fengxiang Campus in September．The bathing fee there is 0.2 Yuan per minute．One male student responded by setting a record with a two-minute shower．

阅读理解

　　Sometimes you’ll hear people say that you can’t love others until you love yourself．

　　Sometimes you’ll hear people say that you can’t expect someone else to love you until you love yourself．Either way, you’ve got to love yourself first and this can be tricky．Sure we all know that we’re the apple of our parents’ eyes, and that our Grandmas think we’re great talents and our Uncle Roberts think that we will go to the Olympics．But sometimes it’s a lot harder to think such nice thoughts about ourselves．If you find that believing in yourself is a challenge．It is time you build a positive self-image and learn to love yourself．

　　Self-image is your own mind’s picture of yourself．This image includes the way you look, the way you act, the way you talk and the way you think．Interestingly, our self-images are often quite different from the images others hold about us．Unfortunately, most of these images are more negative than they should be．Thus changing the way you think about yourself is the key to changing your self-image and your whole world．

　　The best way to defeat a passive self-image is to step back and decide to stress your successes．That is, make a list if you need to, but write down all of the great things you do every day．Don’t allow doubts to occur in it．

　　It very well might be that you are experiencing a negative self-image because you can’t move past one flaw or weakness that you see about yourself．Well, roll up your sleeves and make a change of it as your primary task．If you think you’re silly because you aren’t good at math, find a tutor．If you think you’re weak because you can’t run a mile, get to the track and practice．If you think you’re dull because you don’t wear the latest trends, buy a few new clothes．But remember, just because you think it doesn’t mean it’s true．

　　The best way to get rid of a negative self-image is to realize that your image is far from objective, and to actively convince yourself of your positive qualities．Changing the way you think and working on those you need to improve will go a long way towards promoting a positive self-image．When you can pat(拍)yourself on the back, you’ll know you’re well on your way．Good luck!．