Kangkang: Why are you unhappy today, Tony?
Tony: It's hard for me to learn Chinese. Could you help me with it?
Kangkang: Yes, I'd love to.
Tony:
Kangkang: Don't be shy. You should be brave and believe in yourself. If necessary, just take a deep breath and smile before speaking. You'd better speak Chinese as often as possible.
Tony: Really? I'll try that way.
Kangkang: I often read Chinese stories and novels. It's a good way to read aloud or retell a passage yourself to practice more.
Tony: But I'm still.
Kangkang: Cheer up. You can do a good job.
Tony: OK, I'll do as you said and never give up.
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A. What's your problem? B. I did badly in the Chinese exam. C. First, I'm always afraid of speaking Chinese in public. D. Thank you for your advice. E. Then, how do you improve your reading? |
Some people say they have a solution to the problems of car crowding and pollution. In many cities, hundreds of people 1 bikes to work every day. In the New York City, some bike riders have even founded a group: Bike for a Better City. They say if more people ride bikes to work, there would be 2 cars and less dirty air.
For several years this group has tried to gather help for bike riders. They want to have special roads 3 bikes only, because when bikes and cars use the same roads, there may be accidents. Bike for a Better City thinks if there were bike roads, more people would use bikes.
But no bike roads have been established 4. Not everyone thinks it is a good 5. Drivers don't like it, and some shop owners don't like it, 6. And most people live 7 far from the city to travel by bike. Still, 8 has been done about it. On Saturdays and Sundays, the largest open park in New York is 9 to cars, and the roads may be used by bikes only, but the group still says this is not enough and goes on fighting 10 bike roads. I think there will be more bike roads in the future.
Inventions usually make a big difference to people's lives. Do you have any great inventions at home? Do they help you a lot in your life or bring you much fun? Here are some of the most useful inventions in families according to a survey.
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| The most helpful and creative invention for kids is the reading pen. With the specially-designed pen, kids find it convenient and fun to learn. Little kids can learn a lot including story-telling, poems and music. They start learning by touching the contents in the books with the pen. This way kids can learn by themselves. They are also great helpers for primary school students after school. |
| | Mopping robots (扫地机) are popular with people who are too busy to do housework. They are more popular with office ladies. They can help people clean dirt, dust and hair easily. With the help of them, people don't need to spend much time on housework. They can enjoy a more relaxing life after work. |
| | As for old people, an electric foot basin (电动洗脚盆) is the best invention. It's a good choice to buy one for your grandparents. It can help keep their blood pressure normal and improve blood circulation (循环). The special basin can keep the water help old people become healthier and warm. So washing feet with it will more relaxed. |
Pisces is the twelfth star sign. There is a legend about its name.
Long, long ago, there was a war between gods and a bad monster (怪物). It lasted ten years. One day, the gods were surprised to find that the monster was coming towards them. The goat god Pan shouted a warning and tried to change himself into a fish. One god, Aphrodite, took her little boy Eros and tried to hide among the bushes near Euphrates River. She was the god of love and her son was the god of war. It is said that two fish swam to carry Aphrodite and her child to safety. Some people also believe that Aphrodite and Eros changed into fish themselves and swam away to safety. Later the fish represent Aphrodite and her son Eros.
As they appeared in the sky, the two fish were tied together by a rope (绳子). Some said that Aphrodite tied the little boy to her body so that he would not get lost as they swam away to safety. That's the story about Pisces.
In Western countries, some people believe people will share similar characteristics if they have the same star sign. So if you're born between February 19th and March 20th, your star sign is Pisces. It means that you are generous, easy-going and creative.
You are visiting the Eiffel Tower in France, but the next second you are in Thailand. Then, suddenly you may have dinner with Barack Obama in America. But you are not dreaming. This is what might happen in the near future. With the help of virtual reality(Vr,虚拟现实) technology, lots of changes are taking place in our life.
VR is a computer technology that makes an environment and allows users to see and even interact with it. Just wear a pair of VR glasses joined to your computer and you can experience a lot of things without stepping out of your room. "The most interesting part of virtual reality is that it offers an immersive(身临其境的)experience," said Wang Bing, leader ,leader of the Chinese entertainment company Funshow. "That's why VR movies are popular among users. You become a part of the story. "According to the Report on Chinese VR Users' Behaviour last month, over 960, 000 people in China have bought VR products and 83. 2 percent of them have watched VR movies.
VR can also be used in some other ways. It can help to train workers before they have to work in highly dangerous environments. VR also helps patients with acrophobia(恐高症) by making them think they are standing on the top of a tall building.
However, VR technology still has a long way to go. Users report feeling sick while wearing VR glasses. Maybe it could take a period of time for VR to be widely used around the world.
Do you look like your name? Scientists say there's a good chance you do.
This comes from a new study published in a magazine. Researchers from Israel found that our given names may have something to do with our facial (面部的) appearances.
Lead writer Yonat Zwebner of a university, along with her team, did eight different experiments (实验) in Israel and France. The different experiments were set up to answer two main questions: whether people can correctly guess a person's name based only on a photo of a face and what is behind this matching effect.
During the experiments, researchers asked students to look at photos of people's faces and guess each person's name from a list of four choices. They correctly guessed the right name 38 percent of the time, which was better than the 25 percent of a random (随机的) guess.
What's more, when the faces the students looked at came from within their own country, they were able to best match the faces to the names. French students were better at matching only French names and faces while Israeli students were better at matching only Hebrew names and Israeli faces.
Researchers believe it is possible that people change their appearances without paying attention to it, to match their names. One study especially backed up this idea, showing that a hairstyle, something that can be changed by people easily, was enough to guide others in correctly guessing their names.
“Earlier research has shown there are cultural stereotypes (偏见) carried by names, including how someone should look. For example, people are more likely to imagine a person named Bob to have a rounder face than a person named Tim. We believe these stereotypes can, over time, influence people's facial appearances,” Zwebner said.
The results of the experiments may even make parents think twice when choosing a name for their children.
“If a name can influence appearance, it can influence many other things. This research opens an important direction that may suggest how parents should consider better the names for their children,” said Zwebner, who recently had a baby herself.
“As parents, it was really difficult for us to name our 12-day-old daughter as we know the meanings of names.”
Li Bai was born in 701. He was also given the name "Taibai". The name meant "Venus" in ancient Chinese. Legend says that before Li Bai was born, his mother dreamt that Venus fell into her arms. Some people believed that Li Bai was a god. When Li Bai was five years old, his family settled in a town in today's Sichuan province.
• Making Iron into a Needle
There is a legend about Li Bai. He was not a very hard-working student when he was young. He often skipped school
One day when he was walking by the river, he saw an old woman. She was working on a large piece of iron.
He asked, "What are you doing? "
She said, 'Tm making a needle. "
"But how can you make a large piece of iron into a needle? " She replied, "I must work hard every day. "
Li Bai suddenly understood the importance of hard work, and he started to work hard at school.
• Friendship with Meng Haoran
When Li Bai travelled to Xiangyang in Hubei, he went to visit a famous poet called Meng Haoran. He was twelve years older than Li Bai, but they became friends. They both loved travelling to beautiful mountains and rivers. When Meng Haoran left for today's Yangzhou, Li Bai wrote a poem about it. Seeing Meng Haoran off at Yellow Crane Tower.
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Information about Li Bai |
•He was born in 701 . •He was also called , which meant "Venus" in ancient Chinese. •His family settled in a town in today's Sichuan province when he was five. |
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about Li Bai |
Making Iron into a Needle One day when he was walking by the river, he saw an old woman working on a large piece of iron. After the communication, he understood it was important . |
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Friendship with Meng Haoran They became friends because they have . The poem named Seeing Meng Haoran off at Yellow Crane Tower shows . |
