Joy Mangano was 33 and divorced. She had three kids under age 7, and was hardly keeping up payments on her small two-bedroom home by working extra hours as a waitress. "There were times when I would lie in bed and think. I don't know how I'm going to pay that bill," Mangano says.
But she had a special ability for seeing the obvious thing. She knew how hard it was to mop the floor. "I was tired of bending down, putting my hands in dirty water, wringing (拧) out a mop," Mangano says. "So, there's gotta be a better way."
How about a "self-wringing" mop? She designed a special tool that you could twist in two directions at once, and still keep your hands clean and dry. She set out to sell it, first a few at flea markets.
Then Mangano met with the media. But would couch potatoes buy a mop? The experts on shopping TV were less than certain. They gave it a try, and it failed. Mangano was sure it would sell if they'd let her do the on-camera display. She said, "Get me on that stage, and I will sell this mop because it's a great item."
So QVC, a multinational corporation specializing in televised home shopping, took a chance on her. "I got onstage and the phones went crazy. We sold every mop in minutes."
Today she's president of Ingenious Designs, a multimillion-dollar company, and one of the stars of HSN, the Home Shopping Network. Talking about the household invention, Mangano says, "It is as natural for me as it is for a parent to talk about his/her child."
The first person in the world to receive two facial transplants says he is feeling well, three months after his latest groundbreaking operation.
Jerame Hamon had his first transplanted face removed last year after signs of rejection following a treatment with an antibiotic (抗生素) during a cold.
The 43 year old remained in a hospital in Paris without a face for two months while a compatible donor was sought.
He said: “The first face I accepted immediately. This time it's the same.”
Mr. Hamon suffers from neurofibromatosis (多发性神经纤维瘤), a genetic condition that spoiled his face severely.
His first transplant, in 2010, was a success, but he caught a common cold in 2015 and was given antibiotics. The drug was incompatible with the immunosuppressive (免疫制疫的) treatment he was having to prevent a rejection of the transplanted material.
The first signs of rejection came in 2016 and last November, the face, suffering from the death of most of cells, had to be removed.
Mr. Hamon lived without a face in a room at Georges-Pompidou hospital in Paris without being able to see, speak or hear until January, when a face donor was found and the second transplant carried out.
To avoid further rejection, Mr. Hamon—dubbed “the man with three faces” by French media ―had special treatment to clean the blood prior to the transplant.
His new face remains smooth and motionless, and his skull, skin and features are yet to be fully matched. But he is positive about his recovery.
“If I hadn't accepted this new face it would have been terrible. It's a question of identity… But here we are, it's good, it's me,” he told AFP news agency from the hospital, where he is still recovering.
The hours-long operation was led by Prof Laurent Lantieri, a specialist in hand and face transplants who carried out Mr. Hamon's initial surgery eight years ago.
“Today, we know that a double transplant is practicable, it's no longer in the field of research,” he told Le Parisien newspaper.
Anaesthetist Bernard Cholley said: “Anyone who loses their face and then has to wait for a possible and imagined transplant for an unknown length of time—that's something that nobody has ever had to go through here.”
“I'm amazed by the courage of a patient who has been able to get through such a different experience.”
The first face transplant was carried out in 2005 in northern France. Since then, some 40 operations have been performed around the world.
a. His first transplanted face had to be removed.
b. He was given antibiotics.
c. He suffers from neurofibromatosis.
d. He received the first transplant.
e. He caught a common cold.
It seems that no one can live a happy life without friendship. While a great number of people expect others to be their friends, they don't give friendship back. That is why some friendships don't last long. To have a friend, you must learn to be one. You must learn to treat your friend the way you want your friend to treat you. Learning to be a good friend means learning three rules: be honest; be generous; be understanding.
Honesty is where a good friendship starts. Friends must be able to trust one another. If you do not tell the truth, people usually find out. If a friend finds out that you haven't been honest, you may lose your friend's trust. Good friends always depend on one another to speak and act honestly.
Generosity means sharing and sharing makes a friendship grow. You do not have to give your lunch money or your clothes. Naturally you will want to share your ideas and feelings. These can be very valuable to a friend. They tell your friend what is important to you. By sharing them, you help your friend know better.
Sooner or later everyone needs understanding and help with each other. Something may go wrong at school. Talking about the problem can make it easier to solve. Turning to a friend can be a first step in solving the problem. So to be a friend you must listen and understand. You must try to put yourself in your friend's place so that you can understand the problem better.
No two friendships are exactly alike. But all true friendships have three things in common. If you plan to keep your friends, you must practice honesty, generosity and understanding.
Cultures are based on social and linguistic(语言的) communities.
In South Africa, we exist amongst diverse groups which are culturally different. This makes us multicultural. Toit, one sociologist in the U.S., explains that multiculturalism is more than the expression of cultural variety, and it also concerns communication. He adds that for multiculturalism to “succeed”, meaningful communication is a requisite.
In multicultural countries, it is necessary that the education system encourages learners to become interculturally competent (胜任的). The process of becoming intercultural is a “personal transformation” from being cultural to being intercultural. This does not mean that a highly intercultural person's identity is culture-free. Rather, it is not rigidly bound by membership to anyone particular culture. Furthermore for learners to become interculturally competent, it is necessary that all involvers in the education system become aware of their own cultural background.
Toit conducted a survey, the objective of which was to determine the problems experienced by learners in a multicultural learning environment. Two hundred questionnaires were administered. 55% believed that different values and beliefs were a major cause of the communication problems. Closer examination of the interactions showed that learners were in fact mostly associating with members of their own cultural groups. Toit points out that in an intercultural communication, people would be challenged by the sudden difference in culture, and this may force an evaluation or re-evaluation of their beliefs and values. 45% of the learners believed that there was lack of trust among their peers. The general lack of trust between two complete strangers leads to an uncomfortable situation. They said that when learners are asked to work in groups, they are unwilling to do so. They added that one of the many issues that contribute to such negative opinions was the language barrier.
Thanks to world-famous Colombian writer Garcia Marquez, many people think of Latin America as a land of magic. In his books, impossible things happen.
It may come from the mix of different cultures and ethnicities in Latin America. Although some of these differences have caused conflicts, they have also been a source of beauty, as well as encouraged people in Latin America to be more open-minded.
Latin America includes more than 30 countries and areas located south of the United States in the American continent. From north to south, it starts from Mexico in North America, goes through the Caribbean and ends at the southernmost tip of South America.
People can enjoy sunshine' the Caribbean islands, ride horses on the green grasslands of the Pampas, and explore volcanoes and snow-capped mountains in the Andes. It even has the world's biggest rainforest the Amazon. Many of the world's most unique plants and animals live there.
There is also diverse mix of people in Latin America. In countries like Mexico and Columbia, over half of the population is of mixed ethnicity. However, most of them speak the same languages-Spanish or Portuguese.
Latin America people have created the samba, rumba, cha cha and tango. These dance styles require dancers to hold each other closely and move passionately.
Latin America is an open and romantic place. Its impressive natural environment, historical contributions and cultural traditions have made it unique and influential.
A. It has natives, Africans and Europeans.
B. Latin America's environment is quite diverse.
C. Where does the magic in his books come from?
D. They are cheerful and can bring strangers together.
E. Many people in Latin America have open and romantic hearts.
F. The music and dance of Latin America are quite well-known.
G. To most people, Latin America is a land of happiness and passion.
Yesterday, I posted a story and afterwards donated a little money after I read others' sad stories. Later, as I got into bed and completed my1 and self-examination on the day, I came to the realization that I was 2money. Wow! It was just a 3 to see this in myself.
It is 4 enough that in the real world I have money in the bank but don't give away 5 . I don't have a lot of money,6 enough to pay my bills and help my daughters. Also I save some money for a 7 day. I know I could give more but 8 and fed some comfort in a little pile of money. I'm quite 9 to see in myself that it is hard to practice the beautiful 10 in the real world. The belief is that the needs of people 11 are more important than having a little pile of money to feel 12 with.
So here I was doing the same 13 thing-saving but not giving away much money! With so many people waiting to be helped, it was pretty terrible for me to 14 how much I 15 seeing that little pile of money in my hands. I have already16 today that even if it is hard to give it all away in the real world, I am going to guarantee more17will come my way.
There will always be enough money for me. I am not going to let 18 pile up anymore. I am going to give it away when I19 it because love is 20 what makes the world go round.
Some residents of rural Human still believe in old-style Spring Festival celebrations but fear that traditions may be lostthey're protected,Liu Xiangrui reports.
Spring Festival,(celebrate)from the first to the 15th day of the first lunar month,is undoubtedly the most (significance)cultural event in a year for Chinese.
Like in other parts of the country,preparations for the festival start early every year,with food(play)a key role.In rural Yueyang,for instance,such delicacies as tofu and smoked pork are prepared a month or two advance. Then,there are specific days for certain activities.People offer prayers to the Kitchen God on the 23rd of the last lunar month,so that he puts in a good word about the host family when hereturn)to heaven to file an"annual report"the next day.
The festival is celebrated by putting updecorate)in house,lighting firecrackers,worshipping ancestors and staying up late on the eve of the Chinese New Year.
The night before the year begins is the highlight of the festivalthose working in faraway cities try to rush homecatch)the family reunion dinner.Some families have unique menus for this special meal Fish,which symbolizes prosperity in Chinese culture,ismust
