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　　After a discussion last week．“Do SCHOOL Libraries Need Books?” the comments from readers included some first-hand views from students．Below are excerpts(摘录)from their observations on how studying has changed and how they use libraries．

　　It makes little difference whether the books you are reading is electronic or paper．But if you want a place to read, a library is still the place to go．As a kid in school, I often avoid the study hall noises and go to the quiet school library．The library is a place．A learning place．Modern technology won't change the library as long as things are learned．

　　-Scott

　　Being a student I am aware that many of us seldom look at the books in the library unless told to do so by a teacher as a requirement for an assignment．It takes time to find the very book you want at the library, and it may not be necessary to do so．More and more students, such as myself, use the internet for nearly every assignment．There are countless online resources for us to use with a click of the mouse．What's more, books are very expensive and schools could put that money towards charities．

　　-Hayley H

　　I hope schools continue to have libraries．As a student, I know there is a difference between reading something on a screen and something printed．When I read something in a book that I do not understand or want to look further into．I record it and will research later or discuss with someone．With a screen(especially online)I will instantly access the information and look into the question at hand, which interrupts my reading and especially my imagination．

　　-Allie

　　To me, it depends on the purpose of the books．As a student, I prefer to do research online．Online research is faster and more efficient．But when I'm reading for pleasure, I absolutely refuse to give up a real book．The tactile sensation(触感)and freedom that real books give you really makes the reading experience more enjoyable．So my suggestion is that schools have more digital collections for research and scholarly work, and a good selection of interesting and age-appropriate fiction and nonfiction for pleasure reading．

　　-CM

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　　The way Westerners communicate tends to(倾向于)be relatively explicit(直率的)and direct．In other words, Westerners tend to put most of their ideas and feelings into words, and then state these ideas and feelings clearly and openly．It is generally considered a good thing to “get to the point ”and “say what you mean,” and it is largely the speaker's responsibility to ensure that his/her message is stated in a way that is clear and easy to understand．

　　In contrast(比照), Chinese people tend to communicate in a way that is more indirect and subtle．They often view direct, explicit communication as unsophisticated(不成熟的)or even rude．They are more likely to preserve good feelings and relationships by not saying something that might upset or offend(冒犯)another person．If a Westerner makes a request and a Chinese person responds by saying something like “I'll think it over”, the Westerner may assume that there is a good chance that the answer will be “yes”．In fact, there is a better chance that the implied answer is “no”．

　　One interesting example of the Western preference for very direct communication can be seen in what Western students are taught about how they should organize their writing．Writers are generally expected to state their point as clearly as possible, generally right at the beginning．Students are taught to begin paragraphs with a “topic sentence” that states the point of the paragraph．Also, articles should generally begin with a brief statement of the points to be made –and also conclude with a review of those same points．In contrast, in Chinese writing it is more acceptable to build up to the point rather announcing it right form the start, although it is also acceptable to state the point up front．

　　It is important to note that Westerners are not all equally direct in their communication styles．For example, the direct communication style is more typical of Western men than of Western women．Furthermore, even in Western culture it is generally not considered good to communicate so directly that you hurt other people's feelings, offend them, or create conflict．

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　　It is the summer of 1776．Thomas Jefferson is not happy．He'd rather be home in Virginia than attending Philadelphia's Continental Congress(大陆会议)

　　Thomas Jefferson knew he had a job to do．Important men throughout the American colonies(殖民地)were meeting in Philadelphis to discuss and debate the war with Great Briain．The colony of Virginia sent Thomas Jefferson to Philadelphia．But Jefferson wasn't happy．Jefferson wanted to be home that hot summer of 1776．he missed his wife, Martha．She hadn't been feeling well when he left, and he worried about her．

　　On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee from Virginia stood up at the Congress and announced that “these American colonies ought to be free and independent states．” Jefferson probably knew what was coming next．Here was another resolution(决议)to debate．And whenever there was a resolution, there was a declaration．

　　The American colonies had been at war with Great Britain for more than a year, but surprisingly．The colonies had not formally announced their independence．So the Congress appointed a five-man committee to crate a document declaring America's independence．And the committee chose Thomas Jefferson to write it．

　　Jefferson knew he was to list the unfair things Great Britain had done to the colonies．For days and days,, Jefferson wrote and rewrote about the king and his unfair laws．About independence．About freedom．He borrowed ideas from other political writers, but he wrote these thoughts in words that all people could understand．He wanted his ideas to be shared with everyone．

　　And they were．The Continental Congress voted to adopt the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776．on July 8, it was read out loud to a cheering crowd．No one knew who the author was, but they knew what the Declaration stood for-independence and freedom for all．

　　Still, Thomas Jefferson dreamed of home．In late July he begged Richard Henry Lee to replace him in the Congress．In September, Jefferson's dream finally came true, and he traveled home．

　　Since then, the words Thomas Jefferson wrote during that hot Philadelphia summer have inspired people throughout the world．Thank goodness Jefferson didn't go home．

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　　Step into Pat Lundin's home and you'll be greeted by 500 smiling faces of dolls．Lundin, 82, describes herself as “doll crazy”．And she's not alone．

　　As a member of Timeless Treasures Doll Club of Largo, she frequently meets with 25 other women who share her hobby．Once a month, they gather at the Palms of Largo to show off their latest finds and catch up on news in the world of doll collecting．

　　On Saturday, the club will hold the Palms of Largo Fifth Annual Doll Show．The program will include 37 vendors(卖主)with both classic and contemporary dolls for sale．

　　“Timeless Treasures is a club that's open to doll lovers regardless of the age of the doll,” said Judy Smith, president of the organization．“Some doll clubs require members have a certain number of antique dolls, but we don't．we make sure we are not terribly formal．”

　　Smith, 71, is a retired schoolteacher who owns Judy's Doll Hospital, a part-time business she operates out of her home．She will have a table offering repair and appraisal(鉴定)services．

　　Smith firs began studying and collecting dolls in her early 20s,in Glassboro, New Jersey, she does not know how many dolls she owns, or how many repairs she has made over the years．But she does know the age of her oldest doll．

　　“She's 129,” Smith said．“It is a German-made doll that belonged to my grandmother, and it sits in my living room．”

　　The show is for both the beginner as well as the experienced collector, said Anita Munson, one of the show's organizers．

　　Over the years, Munson, 82, has learned how to identify a valuable doll．“Generally speaking porcelain(瓷制的)dolls are the most valuable,” she said．“But the porcelain will not be shiny．”

　　Smith believes many people will attend to find out how much their dolls are worth．She wants them to know more．

　　“Because the dolls reflect what the children were wearing and doing at a particular period of time, they can be a great history lesson for children now,” she said．

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　　In this fast-shifting world, there can be no guarantees attached to any particular job．But there is much that you can do to protect yourself from the change of society, by equipping yourself with the skills to manage your career more effectively．You need to be a career activist．

　　If you lost your main source of income tomorrow, could you find a different source to replace it? The most important thing in protecting yourself now and in the future is ensuring that you have choices．Don't let yourself be held back by a lack of skill development, or fear of change．Some people have been good performers in their own organization but discovered that they are stuck．Because they are so closely related to a particular company or industry, their skills are not readily transferred to other jobs．

　　Don't put all your eggs in one basket．If you limit yourself to one particular area or sector, you limit your opportunity, too．In a global market place, many jobs come and go quickly as changes in the stock market．Today's hottest job may not exist tomorrow．If you love computers, then this work represents a great choice．But don't enter a field just because you think that's where the hot jobs are; even if the job is available, it may not match well with your own skills and abilities．Start with entry of your own strengths and interests, then see where you may match up best in the job market．

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Hey there,

　　So you're about to spend four years of your life and tens of thousands of dollars of your parent's money, and all you really know about college is that all of your friends are going．Do you ever stop to wonder why you're going?

　　Relax．You're making the right decision．First of all, you'll discover what interests you by taking courses in many subjects．For example, it's hard to decide if you want to be a painter if you've never painted any picture; once you're in a drawing-room on campus, you'll know one way or the other．College is also a lot of fun－after you graduate, you'll be working every weekday for 50 or so years．And remember that college graduates earn about twice the income of those who never attended college．

　　Finding the right college can be difficult．Fortunately, Johnson Review is here to help you every step of the way．

　　*Researching Schools．To us, the most important decision you'll make is to choose the school that really fits you best－not the one that is the most competitive or has the best-equipped rooms．

*Applying to School．On JohnsonReview．com．you'll find hundreds of actual college applications and links to many more．

　　*Raising Your Scores．American College Test is one of the most difficult parts of the admissions course．It's not the most important, though, and not everyone needs to prepare for the test．But, if you think you can do better, find the right course for better scores．

　　* Paying for School．Most families need financial aid for the high cost of college．The problem is that financial aid seems difficult to get and many families get caught up in the price of college rather than learning the ways to get financial aid．If you really do your research, you'll learn that you can afford to attend any college, no matter the cost．For more information, call 600-3681 or visit JohnsonReview．com．Wherever you go, have a nice trip!

Johnson Smith

Founder and CEO

Johnson Review

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　　As a professor at a large American university, there is a phrase that I hear often from students; "I'm only a 1050．" The unlucky students are speaking of the score on the Scholastic Aptitude Test(SAT), which is used to determine whether they will be admitted to the college or university of their choice, or even if they have a chance to get a higher education at all．The SAT score, whether it is 800, 1100 or 1550, has become the focus at this time of their life．

　　It is obvious that if students value highly their test scores, then a great amount of their self-respect is put in the number．Students who perform poorly on the exam are left feeling that it is all over．The low test score, they think, will make it impossible for them to get into a good college．And without a degree from a prestigious university, they fear that many of life's doors will remain forever closed．

　　According to a study done in the 1990s, the SAT is only a reliable indicator of a student's future performance in most cases．Interestingly, it becomes much more accurate when it is set together with other indicators－like a student's high school grades．Even if standardized tests like the SAT could show a student's academic proficiency(学业水平), they will never be able to test things like confidence, efforts and willpower, and are unable to give us the full picture of a student's potentials．This is not to suggest that we should stop using SAT scores in our college admission process．The SAT is an excellent test in many ways, and the score is still a useful means of testing students．However, it should be only one of many methods used．

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　　Public schools in Washington, D．C．provide students with musical instruments for free．When something goes wrong with an instrument, Charles West and Larry Jernigan do the repairs．Both men approach their work with a passion．For them, it's important that students have a joyful experience with music．

　　The two have worked together for almost 20 years．This year alone, they've fixed about 450 instruments．Both men are musicians and music lovers, so learning to do repairs came naturally．

　　“I have been a musician all my life．” says West．“I played in an orchestra here in the city．I majored in music in college．I played in an army band．”

　　Jernigan's musical interests are varied．“I was formerly trained in the piano and guitar．The alto sax, and the flute, I picked up while working here．”

　　In addition to fixing instruments, the two also go to schools to instruct teachers and students on how to make minor repairs on their own．

　　West believes if children start early and stay involved with music, it enriches other areas of their lives．“I see that in other kids．I see it in myself．I have seen it hundreds of times and it works,” he says．“They learn teamwork．They learn patience and respect．”

　　But West has concerns about the future of music in the electronic age．

　　“This instant age has taken away from the sit-down, the patience．And to learn to play an instrument, it takes patience, it takes diligence, it takes time．”

　　Being able to enjoy music on the job is one of the benefits of the job．Both men agree their best rewards are the students' performances．