阅读理解

　　Silence is unnatural to map. He begins life with a cry and ends it in stillness. In between be does all he can to make a noise in the world, and be fears silence more than anything else. Even his conversation is an attempt to prevent a fearful silence. If be is introduced to another person, and is number of pauses occur in the conversation, he regards him self as a failure ,a worthless person, and is full of envy of the emptiest headed chatterbox（喋喋不休的人）.He knows that ninety nine percent fo human conversation means no more than the buzzing of a fly, but he is anxious to join in the buzz and to prove that he is a man and not a waxwork figure（蜡塑人像）.

　　The aim of conversation is not. For the most part, to communicate ideas ; it is to keep up the buzzing sound. There are, it must be admirted, different qualitics. of buzz;there is even a buzz that is as annoying as the continuous noise made bu a mosquito(蚊子).But at a dinner party one would rather be a mosquito than a quiet person. Most buzzing,forlunately,is pleasnnt to the ear,and some of it is pleasant even to the mind.He would be a foolish man if he waited until he had a wise thought to take pert in the buzzing with his neighbors.

　　Those who hate to pick up the weather as a conversational opening seem to me not to know the reason why human beings wish to talk. Very few human beings join in a conversation in the hope of learning anything new. Some of them are content it they are merely allowed to go on making a noise into other people's ears, though they have nothing to tell them except that they have seen two or three new plays or that they had food in a Swiss hotel. At the end of an evening during which they have said nothing meaningful for a long time. they just prove themselves to be successful conversationists.

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　　An environmental group ralled the Food Commission is unhappy and dixappointed beeause of the sale of bottled water form Japan. The water is angrily argues in public, has traveled 10,000“food miles”before it reaches Western customers.“transporting water halfway across the world is surely the extremely stupid use of fuel when there is plenty of water in the OK.”It is also worried that we are wasting our fuel by buying prauns（对虾）from Indonesia(7,000 food miles) and carrots from South Africe(5,900 food miles).

　　Counting the number of miles traveled done by a product is a strange way of trying to tell the true situation of the environmental damage done by an industry. Most food is transported around the world on container ships that are extremely energy efficient（高能效的）. It should be noted that a ton of butter transported 25 miles in a truck product transported hundreds of miles by sea Besides ,the idea of “of miles”ignores the amount of fuel used in the production. It is possible to cut down your food miles by buying tomatoes grown in Britain rather than those grown in Ghana; the difference is that the British one will have been raised in heated greenhouses and the Ghanaian ones in the open sun.

　　What the idea of“food miles”does provide, however, is the chance to cut out Third World Countries from First World food markers. The number of miles traveled by our food should, as I see it, be regarded as a sign of the success of the global（全球的）trade system, not a sign of damage to the environment.

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　　The young boy saw me, or rather, he saw the car and quickly ran up to me ,cager to sell his bunches（串）of bananas and bags of peanuts. Though he appeared to be about twelve, he seemed to have already known he bitterness of life.“Banans 300 mira Peaouts 200 naira

”He said in a low voice. I hargained him down to 200 that for the fruit and nuts, When he agreed, I handed him a 500 nairu bill. He didn't have change. So I tole him not to worry. He said thanks and smiled a row of perfect teeth.

　　When, two weeks later, I saw the boy again, I was more aware of my position in a society where it's not that uncommon to see a little boy who should be in school standing on the corner selling fruit in the burning sun. My parents bad raised me to be aware of the advantage we had been afforded and the responsibility it brought to us.

　　I pulled over and rolled down my window, He had a bunch of bananas and a bag of peanuts ready. I waved them away.

　　“What't up?”asked him.

　　“I don't have money to buy books for school.”I reached into my pocket and abnded him two fresh 500 naira bills.“Will this help?”I asked. He looked around nervously before taking the money. One thousand naira was a lot of money to someone whose family probably made about 5,000 naira or less each year.“Thank you, sir.”he said.“Thank you very much!”

　　When driving home. I wondered if my little friend actually used the money for schoolbooks. What if he's a cheat（骗子）?And then I wondered why I did it. Did I do it to make myself feel better? Was I using him? Later, I rcalized that I wondered why I did it, Did I do it to make myself feel better? Was I using him? Later, I rcalized that I didn't know his name or the least bit about him, nor did I think to ask.

　　Over the next six months, I was busy working in a news agency in northern Nigeria Sometime after I returned ,I went out For a drive. When I was about to pull over, the boy suddenly appeared by my window with a big smile ready on his face.

　　“Oh, gosh! Long time.”

　　“Are you in school now?”I asked.

　　He nodded.

　　“That's good,” I said. A silence fell as we looked at each other, and then I realized what he wanted.“Here,”I held out a 500 naira bill.“Take this.”He shook his head and stepped back as if hurt.“What's wrong?”I asked.“It's a gift.”

　　He shook his head again and brought his had form bchind his back. His face shone with sweat（汗水）. He dropped a bunch of banans and a bag of peanuts in the front seat before he said,“I've been waiting to give hese to you .”

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　　阅读理解

　　Have you ever received a gift that was so clearly not your taste that you wondered if perhaps it had been handed to you by mistake?Worse,have you ever given a present and watched your friend look as though she had opened the wrong box?Maybe she responded with a polite “Why, thank you,”but you knew you had missed the mark. Why do presents sometimes go wrong? And what do your choices (good and had) reflect about your personal qualities?

　　Choosing the right is an art, I believe. It calls for empathy－the ability to put yourself into someone else's feelings as sharply. We're all able to do this; ih fact,we've born with a kind of natural empathy. After the earliest period of childhood,however,it needs to be reinforced（加强）－by our parents,teachers,friends.When it isn't, we're not able to understand other people's feelings as sharply. This can show in the gifts we select, and so can many other emotional（情感的）qualities.

　　Think back to the presents you've given over the past year, the time and effort you put into your selection, how much you spent,yiu thoughts while you were shopping ,and your feelings when the receiver opened the package. Keep in mind that what you choose displays your inner world. Of course, you may express yourself differently with different friends, reaatives, and other people you know.

　　We live in a society where exchanging presents is an important patt of communicartion. Lgnoring the rtadition won't make it go away. If you really dislike such a tradnion, tell your friends abead of time.

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　　Indian's snake charmers are to be retrained as wildlife teachers under a plan to prevent their unique skills and knowledge from being lost. The charmers, who make snakes dance to the sound of flutes(笛子), used to be a traditional feature of Indian life, performing in towns and villages, until they were banned in 1972 to control the trade in snake skins.

The government is now considering a plan to train the saperas, as they are known, to visit schools and zoos to tell children about forests and wildlife. There is also a proposal to set up a “dial a snake charmer” service to help householders to deal with unwelcome intruders.

“For generations they have been a feature of Indian life but now they can't earn a living for fear of arrest,” said Behar Dutt, a conservationist behind the plans, “if a policeman doesn’t catch them, animal rights activists report them.”

　　Many snake charmers have continued to work clandestinely since the ban, despite the threat of up to three years in jail. But their trademark cloth-covered baskets, hung from a bamboo pole carried across their shoulders, make them an easy target for police.

　　The fate of Shisha Nath, 56, from Badarpur, a village just outside of Delhi, is typical of practitioners(从业者) of the dying art. “I used to earn enough to support my family and send my children to school, "he said. "Now it's hard to earn even f, 1 a day. My children want to be snake charmers. It’s our identity. We love the work. But it s become impossible.

　　Next month Dutt’s project to train 30 snake charmers will begin at a snake park in Pune, western India, where experts will enrich their home-grown skills with some formal knowledge.

　　More than the law, though, it is the dishonest attitude of their fellow countryman that angers many snake charmers.

　　“We're disturbed all the time but when people want a snake removed from the house, they rush to us,” said Prakash Nath, who was ordered recently to the home of Sonia Gandhi, the Congress party leader.

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　　In some children who go blind, certain parts of the brain that normally control vision appear to switch jobs and focus instead on sound, a new study has found.

　　The study, by researchers at the University of Montreal, involved 7 adults who could see and 12 adults who had lost their vision when they were children. Each participant sat in a room with 16 loudspeakers at different locations. The room was designed so that there were no echoes. During the experiment, the speakers irregularly produced sounds. Participants had to point to where the sounds were coming from. Meanwhile, the researchers monitored blood flow in the brains of the participants to see which brain structures were working during the task.

　　The results showed that five of the blind participants were very good at pointing to where sounds were coming from. In these people, blood flow increased in the visual cortex- an area at the back of the right side of the brain. This part of the brain is usually associated with vision.

　　The other seven blind participants showed no increase in activity in the visual cortex. These people didn't do very well at picking out where sounds were coming from. Now, the researchers are looking at whether these people have gained an enhanced sense of touch instead of sound to replace their lost vision.

　　The scientists say that their study shows how adaptable parts of the brain can be.

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　　You can make the difference

　　between

　　this…and this

　　This summer, join the International Conservation Scouts on a fun - filled holiday with a difference. Year after year, young people from all around the world get together at one of our sixteen conservation (环境保护) camp. Their shared aim? To help protect the countryside and its wildlife.

Many animals and plants are in danger of disappearing forever. The dormouse, a kind of mouse, for example, needs woodland plants for food and trees to stay in. Its habitat (栖息地) is being destroyed by man and it needs our help to survive.

　　On a conservation camp holiday you will learn all about nature and how to protect it. Our trained leaders will accompany you and tell you everything you need to know. Because of this you don' t need any experience, just energy and enthusiasm. You will explore the countryside and work to ensure the survival of hundreds of animals and plants and still have plenty of time to enjoy the camp’s excellent sports facilities and organized nature paths through beautiful scenery.

　　The International Conservation Scouts is a worldwide organization, so there must be a camp near you, You can spend a splendid holiday at any of the camps for as little as f 60 including accommodation and food.

　　For more information send for a free conservation camps handbook today.

　　International Conservation Scouts

　　Stanton St John

　　Oxford shire OX7 1TL

　　THEKEY TO SAVING WILDUFE IS TO

　　FROTECT NATURAL HABITATS： YOUR WORK

　　WILL MAKE A DIFFERCNCE

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　　A lot of people are familiar with the story of Brave Gelert, a dog that faithfully defended the prince’s son, but which was then killed while it was fast asleep through a terrible misunderstanding. However, only a few people know that the story is really a pack of lies. Let me explain.

　　About a hundred or so years ago there was a hotel owner in Wales who was fed up with business being so bad. His hotel was stuck in the middle of nowhere and hardly anyone came to stay. Then, one day, he had an idea. A famous prince called Llewellyn had lived in the area during the Middle Ages and had been keen on dogs. This is hardly surprising as hunting was extremely popular at that time. So what he did was to make up the story of the brave and faithful Gelert and how he had been killed by his ungrateful master.

　　Of course, people would be far more likely to believe the story if there was something they could see. So one day, the hotel keeper went to the top of a high hill and built a sort of monument from the stones he found lying around A friend of his, who was an accountant, helped him to construct it .The "tale" soon caught on and developed a life of its own. Afterwards, people came from far and wide to see the spot where the dog was buried. Needless to say, business became very good for the hotel owner.

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　　The flag, the most common symbol(象征) of a nation in the modern world, is also one of the most ancient. With a clear symbolic meaning, the flag in the traditional form is still used today to mark buildings, ships and other vehicles related to a country.

　　The national flag as we know it today is in no way a primitive(原始的)artifact. It is, rather, the product of thousands of years' development. Historians believe that it had two major ancestors, of which the earlier served to show wind direction.

　　Early human beings used very fragile houses and boats. Often strong winds would tear roofs from houses or cause high waves that endangered travelers. People's food supplies were similarly vulnerable. Even after they had learned how to plant grains, they still needed help from nature to ensure good harvests. Therefore they feared and depended on the power of the wind, which could bring warmth from one direction and cold from another.

　　Using a simple piece of cloth tied to the top of a post to tell the direction of the wind was more dependable than earlier methods, such as watching the rising of smoke from a fire. The connection of the flag with heavenly power was therefore reasonable. Early human societies began to fix long pieces of cloth to the tops of totems(图腾) before carrying them into battle. They believed that the power of the wind would be added to the good wishes of the gods and ancestors represented by the totems themselves.

　　These flags developed very slowly into modern flags. The first known flag of a nation or a ruler was unmarked：The king of China around 1000 BC. was known to have a white flag carried ahead of him. This practice might have been learned from Egyptians even further in the past, but it was from China that it spread over trade routes through India, then across Arab lands, and finally to Europe, where it met up with the other ancestor of the national flag.

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