Many of us just laugh it away when they are told incredible (难以置信的) stories about other people, but I have a deep interest in these stories and I prefer to believe they are true. Here's one I collected from a total stranger.
"Well, I was 11 when my family arrived at Fern Lake overlooking Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was so beautiful to look miles across the Rockies and thousands of feet below into the valley. My parents were busy getting lunch out of the trunk so I climbed over the wooden fence to get closer to the cliff edge in the hope that I wouldn't miss any beautiful sight down there.
I started down a little hill but soon started sliding on loose pebble rocks(鹅卵石). I fell on my back, but kept going faster and faster to what seemed the edge of the world (a 2,000 foot drop). In seconds I knew I was going to die. My feet and legs went first over the edge at a high speed. Then suddenly I felt two hands push hard on my chest and stopped me dead. My heart was racing and I slowly inched my body back to where I finally could make it back up the hill.
My father was waiting there and screaming at me for doing such a dangerous stunt (特技). I tried to tell him and my mom about the hands that held me back, but to this day they don't believe me. They thought I was just trying to get out of trouble with a made-up story.”
We parted ways, but I assured her that I believed every word of her story. I could see a little surprise and happiness on her face.
That's why I always ask people to share their miracles (奇迹). Each real story makes my days full of hope and gratefulness.
People like to post their selfies(自拍照) on social media. To know more about it, scientists at Syracuse University in New York recently did a research and came up with some surprising findings.
People who post selfies and use editing software to make themselves look better show behavior connected to narcissism(自恋), the researchers said. Makana Chock, a professor from Syracuse University, said because social media is mostly used by people to share unimportant information about their lives, it is a good place for people to "work towards satisfying their own vanity." Those "likes" under their Facebook selfies make them feel good.
Besides, people who post group selfies show a need for popularity and a need to belong to a group, the research found. Some people feel "peer(同伴) pressure" to post selfies and some follow the popular belief that if there is no picture of an event or experience, it did not really happen. "Anyway, it shouldn't be seen as negative. People get sense of satisfaction especially when they get likes. And it does no harm," Chock said.
Other findings from the study include: There are no major differences on how often men and women post selfies and how often they use editing software. But men who post selfies showed more of a need to be seen as popular than women who posted selfies.
Chock said posting selfies on social media is not all that different from what people have done for many years. On trips and special events, our parents and grandparents used cameras instead of phones to take photos. They would bring back photos to show friends and family. You had no choice but to look at them. You probably commented about how nice everyone in the photos looked, especially children and the person showing the photos. They were happy to hear your comments. That was the old way of "clicking like". On social media, however, people can decide not to look at photos — even if they click "like".
On a recent spring morning. Susan Alexander, a retired government intelligence analyst, left her Maryland home, climbed into her Volkswagen Passat and drove about three miles to pick up two strangers. She battled rush-hour traffic on the Capital Beltway and George Washington Memorial Parkway before dropping them off at Reagan National Airport. She didn't earn a cent for her trouble, and that was the point.
Alexander is a member of the Silver Spring Time Bank— one of more than 100 such exchanges around the world trying to build community by exchanging time credits for services instead of dollars and cents. "I have time," she said. "I like giving the gift of time to other people."
In Alexander's case, passengers Mary and Al Liepold were grateful for the ride, but it wasn't charity. Mary, a retired writer and editor for nonprofit organizations, used time credits she banked for editing work and baking. Senior citizens who don't drive, the Liepolds cashed in their credits to catch a flight to Montreal for a five-day vacation.
Without money changing hands or shifting between virtual accounts, the airport drop-off was more like a coffee party than a taxi ride. Driver and passengers chatted about projects they've completed for the time bank, and no one raised an eyebrow when Mary said she likes "to avoid the conventional economy."
"The beauty of this is that you make friends," Mary Liepold said. "You don't just get services."
The Silver Spring Time Bank formed in 2015 and has about 300 members, said co-founder Mary Murphy. Last year, she said, l,000 hours were exchanged for basic home repairs, dog walking, cooking and tailoring, among other services, without the exchange of money." You get to save that money that you would have spent," she said. "You get to meet somebody else in your community and get to know that person. That's a bonus that's part of an exchange."
A deal performed partly to make friends would seem to go against classical economics and one of Benjamin Franklin's most memorable sayings: "Time is money." To those at the forefront of modern time-banking, that is the appeal.
Growing up in Kenya was amazing because I learned so much, though the poverty and lack of resources were sometimes frustrating. I knew I didn't have much, but I was 1.
There was only one thing I wasn't happy with: 2. I wanted to go to high school and university. I had the drive, the will and the grades, 3 I didn't have the resources. Even 4 things like food, water and shelter weren't readily available. Young people in poverty have little or no 5 to high schools and universities. Where I lived, it was challenging 6 someone helped. When I left primary school, I was in the same 7 as many other poor disadvantaged youth. 8, during that year, a charitable high school for girls, Starehe Girls Centre, was 9 and I received a scholarship. Today, I am 10 record as being the first student to be enrolled in this school.
In 2006, my school 11 The Global Give Back Circle, a not-for-profit organization for 12 disadvantaged girls to complete their education and gain 13 skills. After graduating from high school, I was given access to a nine-month IT course. 14, its give-back attitude had taught us to not only care about ourselves but other people. With this in mind, 10 of us created a website called "Hey Sister, Get Clued-Up". Through this educational website, aimed at networking 10,000 African 15 worldwide, all Sisters commit to sending information to their villages. This can be to 16 financial freedom, advance information 17 to health issues and provide knowledge about social networking behavior.
"Hey Sister, Get Clued-Up" is only 18 to those girls who can access the Internet, which highlights the huge challenge in 19 the divide between the haves and have-nots. But our plan is that these girls will 20 what they learn to other girls through the "power of their voice".
The world is a colorful landscape of different languages, skin colors, and different cultures. It's important to have a good understanding of different cultures in order to become a well-rounded person
One way is to read hooks written by authors from a particular culture. Reading works by authors who have a close relationship with a particular culture allows people to gain an authentic glimpse into the food, music, language, religion, and way of a life of a particular group of people.
Another way to learn about different cultures is to try to learn a foreign language. A person can choose a language she has always wanted to learn and locate learning programs to help her master the language. Besides, one can enroll in a foreign language class in order to learn in a more formal setting. One can also try to visit areas of the city to establish social connection with native speakers of the language.
Seek out restaurants that feature authentic food from a variety of countries. Food is an important part of different cultures and allows people to gain deep understanding into a particular cultural group's way of life.
Communicating with people from other countries through email or snail mail is another useful way to become familiar with different cultures. Various websites offer pen pal services, offering to connect individuals with pen friends around the world.
A. Stories based on a local culture expose one to a different culture.
B. Trying authentic food from a specific cultural group is also a great idea.
C. There are several ways to become knowledgeable about different cultures.
D. A variety of language-learning books, software, and audio programs is available,
E. The Internet has made it possible to communicate with others from different countries.
F. Making contact with native speakers of the language allows one to gain firsthand knowledge.
G. One way to develop this appreciation is to try to team about other cultures around the world.
Who are better at science in your class, girls or boys? These years, girls start to show more interest in the (subject) of science, technology, engineering and Maths (STEM), according to a recent study from the UK.
In the study, every year over the last seven years, over 20,000 students were in their final year in high school were surveyed. As for university courses, number of girls considering choosing STEM subjects has a (big) increase than that of boys. Over one-fifth of the girls surveyed said they were considering jobs (relate) to STEM, such as engineers. And the interest in engineering and science has also risen.
This is an important change for women in the UK. But at present, there are not nearly as many women men studying STEM subjects or working in the STEM fields. Only 13%～22% of people who graduate university with STEM degrees are women. And women are seen only one in eight STEM jobs.
Are men really more suited to STEM work than women? Of course not. This is (part) because of the conventional idea, which means many people think so, even though it is not correct.
"It is important that young women should (encourage) to get into these jobs. In fact, STEM subjects are fun and exciting. Studying science can do (we) good. It offers women chances of taking up fantastic careers and they will get higher pay in these areas," said Niki Yates, manager of GSK's business.
1）你推荐的城市；
2）推荐的理由(不少于两条)；
3）美好祝愿。
注意：
1）词数80左右；
2）可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Once, when I was a teenager my father and I were standing in line to buy tickets for the circus. Finally there was only one family between us and the ticket counter.
This family made a big impression on me. There were eight children, all probably under the age of twelve. You could tell they didn't have a lot of money. Their clothes were not expensive, but they were clean, the children were well-behaved, all of them standing in line, two-by-two behind their parents, holding hands. They were excitedly talking about the clowns, elephants and other acts they would see that night with their brothers or sisters in a low voice. One could sense they had never been to the circus before. It promised to be a highlight of their young lives.
The father and mother were at the head of the pack, standing proud as they could be. The mother was holding her husband s hand, looking up at him as if to say, "You are my knight in shining armor." He was smiling and responding in pride, looking back at her as if to say "You got that right". The ticket lady asked the father how many tickets he wanted. He proudly responded "please let me buy eight children's tickets and two adult tickets so I can take my family to the circus.
The ticket lady gave the price. The man's wife let go of his hand, lowered her head and her lips began to shake. The father leaned a little closer and asked, "How much did you say?" The ticket lady again told him the price. The man obviously didn't have enough money.
How was he supposed to turn and tell his eight children that he didn't have enough money to take them to the circus? Actually we were not wealthy in any sense, so I understand how the kids would feel. I felt sorry for them.
注意：
1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2）应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语：
3）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragragh 1:
Seeing what was going on, my dad seemed to have an idea.
Paragragh 2:
That day my father and I went back to our car
