阅读理解

　　Whoever said you cannot get something for nothing has not searched the Internet lately．An increasing number of websites offer users a chance to give things away and get things for free．The goal is to keep useful things from being thrown away．This helps people and keeps waste out of the environment．

　　Laura Gernell of Marmet, West Virginia, got a bicycle through the Freecycle Network last year．The largest give-and-take website is Freecycle．Org．Deron Beal started Freecycle as a non-profit()organization in 2003．The site says it has more than 5,500,000 members in more than 75 countries．Joining is free．And all the goods offered on the site are free without any conditions．

　　Each group is managed by a small number of moderators(版主)．They enforce the rules．For example, members can only make a request for something once a week．And everything on the site must be for all ages．

　　We spoke to a moderator in the Washington, D．Carea．She told us that there were about 100 members in her local group when she joined in 2003．Now there are more than 14,000 members．In addition to Freecycle, there are many similar websites such as reuseitnetwork．Org and freesharing．Org．

　　Other websites let users exchange goods and services, or barter(物物交换)．In this ancient form of trade, no money changes hands．Two main trade groups serve the barter exchanges industy．They are NATE`(the National Association of Trade Exchanges)and IRTA(the International Reciprocal Trade Association)．Both have separate systems of credits that make bartering easier．It is said that more than 450,000 businesses use bartering in some form．

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