Dikembe Mutombo grew up in Africa among great poverty and disease．He came to Georgetown University on a scholarship(奖学金)to study medicine－but Coach(教练) John Thompson got a look at Dikembe and had a different idea．Dikembe became a star in the NBA, and a citizen of the United States．But he never forgot the land of his birth, or the duty to share his fortune with others．He built a new hospital in his old hometown in the Congo．Af friend has said of this good-hearted man：“Mutombo believes that God has given him this chance to do great things．”

　　Success and kindness

　　After her daughter was born, Julie Aigner-Clark searched for ways to share her love of music and art with her child．So she borrowed some equipment, and began filming children’s videos(录像)in her own house．The Baby Einstein Company was born, and in just five years her business grew to more than ＄20 million in sales．And she is using her success to help others－producing child safety videos with John Walsh of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children．Julie says of her new program：“I believe it’s the most important thing that I have ever done．I believe that children have the right to live in a world that is safe．”

　　Bravery and courage

　　A few weeks ago, Wesley Autrey was waiting at a Harlem subway station with his two little girls when he saw a man fall into the path of a train．With seconds to act, Wesley jumped onto the tracks, pulled the man into the space between the rails(铁轨)，and held him as the train passed right above their heads．He insists he’s not a hero．He says：“We have got to show each other some love．”

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阅读理解

　　I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles”(风格)of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”

　　Foreign tourists are often confused(困惑)in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people use landmarks(地标)in their directions instead of street names．For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner．Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market．The post office is across from the bus stop．”

　　In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks．There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles．Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances．In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles．Turn east, and then go another mile．”

　　People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles．“How far away is the post office?” you ask．“Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here．” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know．

　　It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes．What happens in such a situation?A new Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea．” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know．” People in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite．They usually give an answer, often a wrong one．A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!

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　　Most people, when they travel to space, would like to stay in orbit for a few days of more．And this stands to reason, if you’re paying ＄20,000 for your trip to orbit! Strain order for tourism to reach its full potential there’s going to be a need for orbital accommodation－or space hotels．What would a space hotel actually be like to visit? Hotels in orbit will offer the services you expect from a hotel－private rooms, meals, bars．But they’ll also offer two unique experiences：impressive views－of Earth and space－and the endless entertainment of living in zero gravity－including sports and other activities that make use of this．

　　The hotels themselves will vary greatly－from being quite simple in the early days to huge luxury structure at a later date．It’s actually surprising that as later as 1997, very few designs for space hotels were published．This is mainly because those who might be expected to design them haven’t expected launch costs to come down far enough to make them possible．

　　Lots of people who’ve been to space have described vividly what it’s like to live in zero gravity．There are obviously all sort of possibilities for dancing, gymnastics, and zero-G sports．Luckily, you don’t need to sleep much living in zero gravity, so you’ll have plenty of time for relaxing by hanging out in a bar with a window looking down at the turning Earth below．

　　Of course all good things have come to an end．Unfortunately, And so after a few days you’ll find yourself heading back enough you’ll be much more expert at exercising in zero gravity than you were when you arrived．You’ll be thinking how soon you can save up enough to get back up again－or maybe you should change jobs to get to work in an orbiting hotel．

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　　Intellectual property(IP)is a product of the mind that has commercial value．The concept dates back to 1623 when the first patent law to protect IP sights was passed．IP rights protect the artist from having his/her creative ideas copied by another．For example, if somebody generated an idea for a novel, that idea is protected by IP rights．If someone else wishes to represent the idea or develop it further, he/she must consult the original artists, who will normally be rewarded financially for its use．Back in the 17^th century, IP rights were primarily carried out to protect newly developed manufacturing processes against stealing．But today, intellectual property rights, are also enjoyed by those who creative music, art and literature．

　　In recent years, IP rights have been the focus of a great deal of discussion because of a technology which looks set to weaken them altogether; the Internet．Many years ago, if you wanted a recording of a song, you would have to purchase it from a music store; if a novel, form a book store．In those days, IP rights were easily protected since it was very difficult to obtain intellectual property without paying for it．However, a lot of IP, including songs, films, books and artwork, can be downloaded today free of charge using the Internet．This practice has now taken the world by storm, dramatically affecting the way in which we view IP rights．

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　　Topping the class academically was certainly an advantage．Studying was a breeze for Nigel．The reward was certainly incomparable to the little effort that he had to put it．It begin when he was selected to help the teachers in the computer laboratories．

　　The peak of his school career came not when he topped the school but when he was selected for the nationwide competition．Unlike everyone else, Nigel wanted to join the contest because he liked playing with the Lego sets and making something out of them．Nigel spent the next two months rebuilding the robot．It was during the time that Nigel found out about the prizes for the competition．Its well us auspices competitor．Alicia, from a neighboring school．His early intentions were forgotten．Getting the thousand-dollar prize was more important than anything else．Nigel decided to befriend Alicia．Unaware of his intentions, she told him all about the robot that she had been building for the competition．He even helped her to put the finishing branches to her robot．He was glad with the way things had progressed．His robot looked even better than Alicia’s and it was able to become a ball with its arms, something Alicia had failed to do．

　　On the day of the competition, he says Alicia．Everything dawned on her the minute she saw him among the competition．She stared at him, puzzled at first, then angry and finally a look of helplessness came over her．

　　The flashbulbs of the camera exploded in Nigel’s try．The robot bird performed actions so unique and different that the specialist judgments were the same．Nigel was so personal with himself that he did not even notice the girl standing a few feet away from him．Without her, he would never win the competition．

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阅读理解

　　Despite the fact that it has never been seen almost everyone is familiar with the legendary unicorn(独角兽)．Descriptions of unicorns have been found dating from ancient times．The great philosopher Aristotle theorized that there were two types of unicorn－the so-called Indian Ass and the Oryx, a kind of antelope．Unicorns are often used in the logo of a noble family, town council or university as their special sign．Even Scotland is represented by a unicorn．

　　According to the legend, anyone attempting to catch a unicorn had to be extremely cautious as it has a reputation for being very fierce．A clever trick suggested by unicorn-trappers, in order to catch this magnificent beast without being hurt by its horn, was for the hunter to stand in front of a tree and then to move quickly behind it as the unicorn charged．Hopefully, the creature could then be captured when its horn was stuck in the tree．

　　When hollowed out and used as a drinking-cup, the unicorn’s horn was said to have the power to offer protection against person．It was believed that nobody could be harmed-by drinking the contents of a unicorn’s horn．Right up until the French Revolution in 1789, the French court was said to have used cups made of “unicorn” horn in order to protect the king．In addition, the horn was said to have medicinal value, so much so that it could be sold for more than ten times the price of the same weight of gold．What, then, was “unicorn” horn? We know at times the rhino(犀牛) was confused with this legendary creature．A drinking-cup supposedly made of “unicorn” horn was discovered to be made of the horn of a rhino．

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　　It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man．College, career, and life itself got in the way．In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams．There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son．He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him．

　　Over the phone, his mother told him, “Mr．Belser died last night．The funeral is Wednesday．” Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days．

　　“Jack, did you her me?”

　　“Oh, sorry, Mom．Yes, I heard you．It’s been so long since I thought of him．I’m sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,” Jack said．

　　“Well, he didn’t forget you．Every time I saw him he’d ask how you were doing．He’d reminisce(回忆)about the many days you spent over ‘his side of the fence’ as he put it,” Mom told him．

　　“I told that old house he lived in,” Jack said．

　　“You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr．Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man’s influence in your life,” she said．

　　“He’s the one who taught me carpentry．I wouldn’t be in this business if it weren’t for him．He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important…Mom, I’ll be there for the funeral,” Jack said．

　　Busy as he was, he kept his word．Jack caught the next flight to his hometown．Mr．Belser’s funeral was small and uneventful．He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away．

　　The night before the had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time, which was exactly as he remembered．Every step held memories．Every picture, every piece of furniture…Jack stopped suddenly．

　　“What’s wrong, Jack?” his Mom asked．

　　“The box is gone,” he said．

　　“What box?” Mom asked．

　　“There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk．I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside．All he’d ever tell me was ‘the thing I value most’,” Jack said．

　　It was gone．Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box, He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it．

　　“Now, I’ll never know what was so valuable to him,” Jack said sadly．

　　Returning to his office the next day, he found a package on his desk．The return address caught his attention．

　　“Mr．Harold Belser” it read．

　　Jack tore open the package．There inside was the gold box and an envelope．Jack’s hands shook as he read the note inside．

　　“Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett．It’s the thing I valued most in my life．” A small key was taped to the letter．His heart racing, and tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box．There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch．Running his fingers slowly over the fine cover, he opened it．

　　Inside he found these words carved：“Jack, Thanks for your time!Harold Belser．”

　　“Oh, My God!This is the thing he valued most…”

　　Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his assistant and cleared his appointments for the next two days．“Why?” his assistant asked．

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　　We experience different forms of the Sun’s energy every day．We can see its light and feel its warmth．The Sun is the major source of energy for our planet．It causes the evaporation(蒸发)of water from the oceans and lakes．Sunlight also provides the energy used by green plants to make their own food．These green plants then provide food for all organisms(生物)on the Earth．

　　Much of the energy that comes from the Sun never reaches the Earth’s surface．It is either reflected or absorbed by the gases in the upper atmosphere．Of the energy that reaches the lower atmosphere, 30％ is reflected by clouds or the Earth’s surface．The remaining 70％ warms the surface of the planet, causes water to evaporate, and provides energy for the water cycle and weather．Only a tiny part, approximately 0.023％, is actually used by green plants to produce food．

　　Many gases found in the atmosphere actually reflect heat energy escaping from the Earth’s surface back to the Earth．These gases act like the glass of a greenhouse in that they allow energy from the Sun to enter but prevent energy from leaving．They are therefore called greenhouse gases．

　　When sunlight strikes an object, some of the energy is absorbed and some is reflected．The amount reflected depends on the surface．For example, you’ve probably noticed how bright snow is when sunlight falls on it．Snow reflects most of the energy from the Sun, so it contributes to the low temperatures of winter．Dark-coloured surfaces, such as dark soil or forest, absorb more energy and help warm the surrounding air．

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