阅读理解

　　Stacey Hillman, who is 10 years old, was reading a magazine about police dogs needing bulletproof vests(防弹背心)．She thought that someone should start raising money for the police dogs．

　　After she got permission from Chief LaBrusciano, she went to the County Sheriff Don Eslinger．She got busy visiting all the police dogs and telling the departments about her new charity．She made "collection boxes" out of bottles and put a picture of her with a police dog on it．She put these bottles in vet's(兽医的)offices and pet stores．

　　The Chief from her hometown police department helped make Stacev's idea an official Charity－Pennies to Protect Police Dogs．The more money she collected, the more popular she became, and the more people offered to donate(捐赠)and help her with her goal of giving every police dog effective protection．

　　Stacey travels all around her state to raise money and tell people how important the police dogs are．She speaks at schools, and they donate to her charity, too．Since Stacey started her charity, she has bought bullet-proof vests for the police dogs with all the 140 thousand dollars she has raised．But she has many more K-9 friends that still need to be protected and she promises to keep doing her charity until every police dog in the whole country has a bulletproof vest．

　　Each vest costs ＄700, and every police dog deserves one．There are not always tax dollars to provide K-9s with these vests, and very few departments have them．The police dogs save lives just like police officers do, and often the police dogs are the first to go in．Stacey relies on donations from everyone to provide the dogs with bulletproof vests．

阅读理解

　　A few months ago I was at a bus stop in town in the evening．The bus came on time and I took the window seat．The bus route was by the seashore and I was enjoying the breeze(微风)while watching the sea waves．After a few minutes the bus made its next stop．A young boy and a girl got on．They were standing on my left when the bus pulled off．I looked at them curiously and realized that all the window seats were occupied(占据)．They could sit but not together．Suddenly a different wave passed through my body and my inner mind gave me the advice to get up．I got up and offered them my seat．The young lady smiled kindly and said thanks．I occupied another seat and we parted our ways．I don't remember whether I got off the bus before them or not．

　　Months passed by．Suddenly one day while I was standing at the same bus stop waiting some time for the bus to arrive I heard a voice．

　　"Excuse me, Uncle．" I looked in the direction of the voice．It was a beautiful young lady．

　　Puzzled, I said, "I do not recognize you．"

　　She said, "Do you remember you gave us your window seat?"

　　Puzzled, I said, "Maybe, but what is so great in that?"

　　She said, "If you had not given your seat that day, perhaps I would have not sat with my friend．By sitting together it helped us bridge a misunderstanding that had been between us forever．Do you know we are getting married next month?"

　　"Good! God bless both of you," I replied．

　　The young lady again said thank you and went on her journey．I realized the importance of giving that day．

阅读理解

Be Happy

Lioyd Morris

　　“The days that make us happy make us wise．”－John Masefield．

　　When I first read this line by England’s Poet Laureate(桂冠诗人), I was amazed．What did Masefield mean? Without thinking about it much, I had always assumed that the opposite was true．But his calm assurance(自信)was remarkable．I could not forget it．

　　Finally, I seemed to grasp his meaning and realized that here was a profound(意义深远的)observation．The wisdom that happiness makes possible lies in clear understanding, not fogged by anxiety nor dimmed(变暗淡)by despair and boredom, and without the blind spots caused by fear．

　　Active happiness–not more satisfaction or contentment-often comes suddenly, like an April shower or the unfolding of a bud(蓓蕾)．Then you discover what kind of wisdom has accompanied it．The grass is greener; bird songs are sweeter; the shortcomings of your friends are more understandable and more forgivable．Happiness is like a pair of eyeglasses correcting your spiritual vision．

　　The insight of happiness are not limited to what is near around you．Unhappy, with your thoughts turned in upon your emotional sadness, your vision is cut short as though by a wall．Happy, the wall crumbles(倒塌)．

　　The long vista(展望)is there for the seeing．The ground at your feet, the world about you-people, thoughts, emotions, pressures-are now fitted into the larger scene．Everything assumes a fairer proportion(比例、关系)．

　　And here is the beginning of wisdom．

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Part I

　　If you are hunting a chance to improve yourself in English, TOP ENGLISH CITY will be a smart choice．We are members of "the International Language Workshop" and enjoy both of the good honor in English teaching and high quality of our teaching team．We are devoted to providing affordable, excellent English training programs for those who want to improve both their English knowledge and their language skills．

　　In TOP ENGLISH CITY, you will be a top English-speaker among your competitors and enjoy the advantage that your competitors have not．You will be proud of being a member of TOP ENGLISH CITY．

　　Courses designed：

　　Basic Studies…Sat．8∶00－10∶00 a. m．

　　Intermediate(中级)Spoken English…Sun．8∶00－10∶00 a. m．

　　Standard Spoken English…Sat．8∶00－10∶00 a. m．

　　Basic Business English…Sun．8∶00－10∶00 a. m．

　　Intermediate Business English…Sun．7∶00－9∶00 p. m．

　　TOEFL Super Studies…Sun．7∶30－9∶30 p. m．

　　Children's Weekend…Sat．&．Sun．8∶00 a. m. －5∶00 p. m．

　　For more information, please contact：

　　Room 806 American Plaza Tianhexi Rd, 510150 Guangzhou

　　Tel：86668888-8806

Part II

　　ENGLISH SALON

　　A place for you to practise your English, to exchange your English learning experiences, to know more about the culture of English-speaking countries, to make more friends who can speak very good English．

　　You will have free talks, famous English films and songs appreciation, English lectures and games; all are for you to improve yourself in English in the special, full-of-fun Salon．

　　How to Join：

　　We are a group with membership system, so if you want to join our group, please make an application to the Tianhe Office of Top English City, filling in the applying forms．You will be given a salon ID card, and becomes our member．

　　The Qualifications(条件)：

　　You must be fluent in English-speaking or/and an English lover．Those who are now learning English in the Top English City will be advantageous．

　　For more information, please contact：

　　Mr Jiu Chan at：47129198

　　English Salon, your best friend! Join Right Now!

阅读理解

　　If you’re training for a marathon, a proper plan for water intake(摄入)is important．Of course, there’s the risk of dehydration(脱水)．But athletes now know they can also get into trouble by drinking to much．To much water intake can lower levels of sodium(钠)in the blood．The death of a 28-year-old woman following the Boston Marathon caught the attention of many runners and led to new research．

　　Experts advise long distance runners to replace the liquids they sweat out．Their goal is to try to keep someone from not getting dehydrated by more than 2 percent of their body weight．

　　One technique for deciding how much water you need is to get the exact numbers．Runners have to weight themselves before and after a run to determine how much water they’ve lost．If their weight drops by more than 2 percent, they have not drunk enough water．

　　Hyponatremia occurs when runners drink so much water that blood salt levels drop off．A study published last year tested 488 runners who completed the Boston Marathon and found 13 percent of them had dangerously low blood salt levels．The first sign that runners may notice is slightly swelling in the hands．They can’t get their rings off, and then they might feel sick．They may not remember where they are．In fact, most runners get enough salt to get back to normal levels by eating just one meal after a run．Contrary to the old advice that runners should drink as much as they can to prevent dehydration, the new research has shown that the body is a remarkable machine that actually tells you via thirst when you need water．

阅读理解

　　The words “timetable” and “schedule” make most final year students want to eat their own vomit(呕吐物)．Unfortunately, the harsh reality is that final year students must develop a timetable．If you don’t have a schedule or plan for studying, you will have no way of allocating your valuable time when the unexpected arises．A well-thought-out timetable can be a lifesaver．It is up to you to learn how to develop a schedule that meets your needs．Change it if necessary, but most important, follow it．All timetables should be made with the idea that they can be changed．A good one will keep you from wandering off course．

　　A good timetable should make every hour count－every class, social event and other activity you engage in．You must focus on the other “free time” available and how you will use it．Make a weekly schedule and divided each day into one-hour increments．Indicate times for classes, socializing, and work time．Also block off a period for sleeping every day．In the precious hours left over, plan time for study．This gives you a rough road map of the time available．Of course, you can change your schedule as circumstances need．

　　The timetable you develop should guide you in how to distribute the available time in the most productive manner．Sticking to your schedule can be tough, but don’t dribble away valuable time．Avoiding study is the easiest thing in the world．It is up to you to follow the schedule you’ve prepared．A good deal of your success in high school and with any future study depends on this simple truth．

　　Remember, there is a learning curve．You learn the most in the first 30 minutes of study; after that, it progressively deteriorates(减弱)．After four or five hours of studying the same material in the same way, you are learning virtually nothing．The solution is to keep switching subjects and study styles．

阅读理解

　　Psychologists tell us that there are four basic stages that human beings pass through when they enter and live in a new culture．This process, which helps us to deal with culture shock, is the way our brain and our personality react to the strange new things we encounter when we move from one culture to another．

　　Culture begins with the "honeymoon stage"．This is the period of time when we first arrive in which everything about the new culture is strange and exciting．We may be suffering from "jet lag" but we are thrilled to be in the new environment, seeing new sights, hearing new sounds and language, eating new kinds of food．This stage can last for quite a long time because we feel we are involved in some kind of great adventure．

　　Unfortunately, the second stage can be more difficult．After we have settled down into our new life, we can become very tired and begin to miss our homeland and our family, friends, pets．All the little problems in life seem to be much bigger and more disturbing when you face them in a foreign culture．This period of cultural adjustment can be very difficult and lead to the new arrival rejecting or pulling away from the new culture．

　　The third stage is called the "adjustment stage"．This is when you begin to realize that things are not so bad in the host culture．Your sense of humour usually becomes stronger and you realize that you are becoming stronger by learning to take care of yourself in the new place．Things are still difficult, but you are now a survivor!

　　The fourth stage can be called “at ease at last”．Now you feel quite comfortable in your new surroundings．You can cope with most problems that occur．You may still have problems with the language, but you know you are strong enough to deal with them．

　　There is a fifth stage of culture shock which many people don't know about．This is called “reverse(颠倒、交换)culture shock”．Surprisingly, this occurs when you go back to your native culture and find that you have changed and that things there have changed while you have been away．Now you feel a little uncomfortable back home．Life is a struggle!

阅读理解

　　Musa Kayairanga of Rwanda is a traditional healer．He uses natural medicines to treat his patients．He learned how to use computers at a rural telecommunications center in his country．Musa Kayairanga says he exchanges information with doctors as far away as Canada．He also says the computer has improved his knowledge of using plants to treat diseases．Many people in rural areas are now able to communicate with the rest of the world．This is one example of how technology is changing life in developing countries．

　　Andrew Burns is an economist at the World Bank in Washington, D．C．He led a recent study of technology in developing countries．The study found that technology has spread faster in such countries than in rich nations．It also found that technological progress has helped raise wages in developing countries．And it reduced the percentage of people living in extreme poverty from twenty-nine percent in 1990 to eighteen percent in 2004．

　　Progress in communications technology has aided the growth of call centers in developing countries．Call centers are offices where most telephone calls for a business can be answered．For example, a woman in the United States who calls her computer company about a problem might speak with someone in India or Pakistan．

　　Call centers serve businesses in local and international markets．And they have added to economic growth by providing well-paid jobs and new skills for workers who might not have had such employment．Ahsan Saeed is a young call center worker in Karachi, Pakistan．He says the job improves his language skills, his sales skills and his ability to deal with people．(from VOA Special English)

阅读理解

　　Some mothers in Senegal are learning a new way to save the lives of babies born too soon．The idea is borrowed from the way mother kangaroos carry their young in front in a pouch．The baby kangaroo stays in this built-in baby carrier until it can survive independently．

　　Kangaroo mother care is also known as the skin-to-skin method for premature(早产的)babies．The direct contact with the mother keeps the baby warm．It also lets the baby breastfeed(哺乳)at any time．The mother's heartbeat also helps control the baby's breathing rate．

　　Every year, seven thousand babies are born at the health center where Ousmane Ndiaye works in Guediaway, outside Dakar．One in five is underweight．But Senegal has few incubators(恒温箱)in which to keep premature babies warm．In Africa, one newborn in twenty dies．A major reason is prematurity, so the death rates are among the highest in the world．

　　Doctor Ndiaye says babies who weigh less than two kilos get special attention from midwives who assist with the births．They teach the mother how to keep the baby wrapped to her chest．The health center has a Kangaroo Clinic, a special area for teaching this method．

　　Doctor Ndiaye says they plan to expand the program throughout Senegal．But he believes the best way to get more people to use the kangaroo method is for mothers who have used the method to tell others about it．

阅读理解

　　Tourists were surprised to see a woman driving a huge orange tractor down one of Rome’s main avenues．Italy’s political leaders are said to have been even more puzzled to see that the tractor was followed by about 200,000 women in a parading procession that took more than three hours to snake through central Rome．Shouting slogans, waving flags and dancing to drumbeats, the women had come to the capital from all over Italy to demonstrate for ‘a job for each of us, a different type of job’．

　　Women, who make up 52 ％ of Italy’s population, today represent only 35％ of Italy’s total workforce and 33％ of the total number of Italian with jobs．However, their presence in the workplace is increasing．The employment of women is expanding considerably in services, next to the public administration and commerce as their principle workplace．Official statistics also show that women have also made significant progress in self-employment．More and more women are going into business for themselves．Many young women are turning to business．It is also a fact that today many prejudices have disappeared, so that banks and other financial institutes make judgments on purely business considerations without caring if it is a man or woman．Such changes are occurring in other professions too．The number of women doctors, dentists, lawyers, engineers and university professors has increased．Some of the changes are immediately visible．For example, women have appeared on the scene for the first time as state police, railway workers and street cleaners．

　　However, the present situation is far from satisfactory though some progress has been made．A breakthrough in equal opportunities for women is now demanded．