A Little Is A Lot For Those With Nothing
Each year, 22 million people die from preventable causes, such as polluted water or the lack of nutrition, according to a new report from the World Health Organization. These groups are taking some of the top lights:
**** A child dies every eight seconds from water-borne disease. Global Water builds wells in very poor communities in Romania, Central America and Africa. Go to global www. water. org.
**** As much as 80 percent of the world's population may be lacking in iron. UNICEF supplies iron supplements (补充) to women and children in more than 100 countries, preventing anemia (贫血症), low birth weight and death. Their greeting cards, calendars and gifts help fund the program; visit www. unicef. org
**** Mercy Corps fed more than 150,000 mouths in 2003. Still, more than one-quarter of children worldwide are underweight. One dollar helps feed 15 kids in developing countries like India; learn more at www. mercycorps. org.
When I was 17, I read a magazine article about a museum called the McNay, once the home of a watercolorist named Marian McNay. She had requested the community to turn it into a museum upon her death. On a sunny Saturday, Sally and I drove over to the museum. She asked, "Do you have the address? ""No, but I'll recognize it, there was a picture in the magazine. "
"Oh, stop. There it is!"
The museum was free. We entered, excited. A group of people sitting in the hall stopped talking and stared at us.
"May I help you?" a man asked. "No, "I said. "We're fine. " Tour guides got on my nerves. What if they talked a long time about a painting you weren't that interested in? Sally had gone upstairs. The people in the hall seemed very nosy(爱窥探的), keeping their eyes on me with curiosity. What was their problem? I saw some nice sculptures in one room. Suddenly I sensed a man standing behind me. "Where do you think you are? " he asked. I turned sharply. "The McNay Art Museum!" He smiled, shaking his head. "Sorry, the McNay is on New Braunfels Street. " "What's this place?" I asked, still confused. "Well, it's our home. " My heart jolted(震颤). I raced to the staircase and called out, "Sally! Come down immediately! "
"There's some really good stuff(艺术作品)up there. " She stepped down, looking confused. I pushed her toward the front door, waving at the family, saying, "Sorry, please forgive us, you have a really nice place. " Outside, when I told Sally what happened, she covered her mouth, laughing. She couldn't believe how long they let us look around without saying anything.
The real McNay was splendid, but we felt nervous the whole time we were there. Van Gogh, Picasso. This time, we stayed together, in case anything else unusual happened.
Thirty years later, a woman approached me in a public place. "Excuse me, did you ever enter a residence, long ago, thinking it was the McNay Museum? "
"Yes. But how do you know? We never told anyone. "
"That was my home. I was a teenager sitting in the hall. Before you came over, I never realized what a beautiful place I lived in. I never felt lucky before. You thought it was a museum. My feelings about my home changed after that. I've always wanted to thank you. "
As a result of pollution, Lake Erie, on the borders of the USA and Canada, is now without any living things.
Pollution in water is not simply a matter of "poisons" killing large numbers of fish overnight. Very often the effects of pollution are not noticed for many months or years because the first organisms (生物体) to be affected are either plants or plankton(浮游生物). But these organisms are the food of fish and birds and other creatures. When this food disappears, the fish and birds die too. In this way a whole food chain can be wiped out, and it's not until dead fish and water birds are seen at the river's edge or on the seashore that people realize what is happening.
Where do the substances which pollute the water come from? There are two main sources of sewage (污水) and industrial waste. As more detergent (洗涤剂) is used in the home, so more of it is finally put into our rivers, lakes and seas. Detergents harm water bird, dissolving the natural substances which keep their feathers waterproof. Sewage itself, if not properly treated, makes the water dirty and prevents all forms of life in rivers and the sea from receiving the oxygen they need. Industrial waste is even more harmful as there are many highly poisonous things in it, such as copper and lead (铅).
So, if we want to stop this pollution，the answer is simple: sewage and industrial waste must be made clear before flowing into the water. It may already be too late to save some rivers and lakes, but others can still be saved if the correct action is taken at once.
Su Min, a 56-year-old retiree from Henan Province in central China, has become famous online because of her solo road trip. She posted video updates as she drove and in October, one of them went viral on Douyin, the Chinese TikTok. In it, she described how oppressed she had felt by housework and her husband. Millions watched the video, sharing it with labels like "runaway wife."
Her main appeal is not the scenic views she captures, but her accounts of her abusive marriage, dissatisfaction with domestic life and newfound freedom. Older women send her messages about how painfully familiar her story feels; for younger women, she is an adviser about marriage. "I wish my mother could be like Auntie Su and live for herself, instead of being trapped by life," read a comment on one of her videos. Her unexpected popularity demonstrates a flourishing awareness of gender equality in China.
Ms. Su used to work in a fertilizer factory and she married her husband at 23. She thought marriage might be a way out of the endless chores she shouldered. But instead she found herself laden with even more housework, as well as verbal and physical abuse She resigned herself to her unhappy life at home. Then, in late 2019, she came across a video online of someone introducing their solo road trip. She remembered her childhood dream of driving—the freedom and comfort it had represented. Over the following months, she devoured every video she could find about road trips and made up her mind: Once her grandsons entered preschool, she would set out on a trip of her own. On Sep. 24, she fixed her tent to the top of her Polo car and set off from her home in the city of Zhengzhou.
Ms. Su journeyed across the country while making her videos, in which she was grateful for her newfound freedom. In March. Net-a-Porter, the luxury shopping website, even featured Ms. Su in an advertisement for International Women's Day. Still, Ms. Su blushed when asked about her new fume and said she was not yet qualified to be called a feminist (女权主义者). "It took me so many years to realize that I had to live for myself."
How to Create a Study Schedule—Summer Study Routine
Summer is here and for a lot of people it's a time to have a vacation and relax. But if you need to study. it's very important to create a study schedule so you have enough time for your studies as well as time to enjoy your break. When you're making your own study schedule, here are some tips to keep in mind.
The first is to start early. Some students leave all their work until the last few days of the summer. As soon as you're able, get started with your schedule. The sooner you start, the sooner all your work is done and you're free to do whatever you want during the holidays.
The second tip is to create a list of everything that needs to get done. You can, for example, write everything in the order of time and separated by subject.
The third tip is to plan it out. Make a schedule using a calendar or Excel. Design it to what suits you the best and make it something you want to follow. When you're doing this, plan your time using two kinds of time blocks: free time and fixed time. Free time is when you have other summer activities and relax. Fixed time is when you need to do something which you've determined beforehand regardless of most situations. That's up to you to decide and depends on the goals you've set up for yourself.
The last tip is to stick with it. The best way to follow your study plan is by being motivated to use it! Reward yourself for completing the things and cross them off your schedule. If you can get something done sooner, go ahead. But if you miss a day, don't feel guilty about it. Remember that this is your break and you don't need to work 24/7.
What are your plans for this summer?
A. It could be daily, weekly or monthly.
B. You might need fewer hours or more hours.
C. However, don't be afraid to make changes to it.
D. As a result, they panic about not having enough time.
E. You should schedule one hour of fixed time each day.
F. Where possible, put your fun activities in advance of study hours.
G. This way you can see everything you need to cover in the study plan.
My father was raised in a fatherless home at a time when government assistance was unheard of. The family of five struggled hard to1, which caused my father to be extremely mean with his money.
When we children—two older brothers and myself—asked him for spending money, his face turned cold, saying "If you are old enough to ask, you are old enough to2". So when the need3, we tried to seek jobs in the neighborhood or sell produce from the garden.
His attitude didn't soften as we grew into adulthood and went to jobs or college. Since none of us had a car, we had to ride the bus whenever we came home. Though the bus stopped about two miles from home, father never4us, even in5weather. If someone6, he would say, "That's what your legs are for! "For me, the walk didn't bother me as much as the 7of walking alone along the highway and country roads. I also felt that my father didn't seem concerned about my safety. That feeling disappeared one spring evening.
It had been an extremely 8week at college. Tests and long hours in labs had left me9. I longed for home and a soft bed. As other students were met at their stops, I gazed10 out of the window. Finally, the bus stopped at my destination. I stepped off and walked home with my luggage.
A row of hedge edged the driveway that climbed the hill to our house. Once I turned off the highway and saw the hedge, I was always 11because it meant that I was almost home. On that particular evening, the hedge had just come into 12when I saw a(an)13moving toward the house along the top of the hedge. Upon closer 14, I realized it was my father. Then I knew each time I came home, he stood 15 the hedge, watching until he knew I had arrived safely. I swallowed hard against the tears. He did care, after all.
I always have my own ways to learn English. First, I always read the text in advance so that I can know I must pay much attention to in class my delight, when my teacher raises a question, I know how to answer more often. And whenever I answer a question correctly, I have a strong sense of (achieve).
Besides, I always try to take notes in class. Important language points, grammar rules, useful (express) and key words are what we want to take down. After class, I organize the notes so that I can have better understanding of them. Of course, I will (certain) read aloud the notes in the morning. (develop) my interest in English, after class I widely read English materials. By this means I can also develop my ability to read.
Chatting with my teachers and classmates (be) also one of my ways to learn English. We often talk in English about different topics concerning friendship, sports, ect. That I can express myself freely in English always gives me a sense of pride, in turn inspires me to learn English (well).
