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　　A research team from Finland, the United States, China and Scotland is hopeful about the future of forests．Six experts in forestry science and economics say forest growth is on the increase in some countries and the number is rising．Professor Kauppi says the findings suggest the world may be able to reach a turning point away from deforestation(毁林)．Many experts have considered that impossible．But the researchers say it may be possible to expand the world’s forests by ten percent, or an area about the size of India, by 2050．

　　They used information released last year by the Food and Agriculture Organization．The new study looked at the fifty nations with the most forests．The researchers used a new way to measure forest resources．They considered more than just the amount of land covered by trees．They also considered forest density, tree sizes, biomass(生物量)and the amount of atmospheric carbon captured in forests．The biomass represents all plants and tree growth．

　　The researchers say growing stock increased in twenty-two of the fifty countries．And, in about half of the fifty countries, biomass and carbon storage also increased．The researchers say forest areas and biomass are still being lost in such important countries as Brazil and Indonesia．But they found gains in others, including the world’s most populous nations．They say China and the United States have had the greatest gains．And they say India has reached the right balance between forested and non-forested land．

　　In percentage terms, though, the study says that forest areas have expanded fastest in the last fifteen years in Vietnam, Spain and China．And they have shrunk fastest in Nigeria and the Philippines．Professor Kauppi says the main obstacle to forest growth is fast-growing poor populations that burn wood for cooking fuel, or sell it for quick money or clear forest for crops．But a number of scientists criticized the use of information that came from governments．They said some governments didn’t keep good records about their forests, and might not tell the truth．

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　　Frank Lloyd Wright probably is the greatest architect(建筑师)that the United States has ever produced．He was very talented and had a natural ability to design buildings．His buildings were not only beautiful, but they were also functional(实用的)．They fit their purposes very well．Wright's churches, for example, make people feel like thinking and praying．His office buildings make people enjoy working, and his houses make people feel comfortable at home．However, Frank Lloyd Wright's beautiful, functional buildings are not the only reason that he is famous．There is another reason．

　　Frank Lloyd Wright is called the greatest American architect because he started an American style in architecture．More of the architecture in the United States before Wright was really European, not American．Wright's buildings do not look like those in old European States and in other parts of the world．

　　The most important idea in Frank Lloyd Wright's style of architecture is that a building must fit its purpose and the land around it．His houses are often called "grass-land houses" because their lines are similar to the lines on the grass-land．Both the lines of the grass-land and the lines of Wright's houses are parallel(平行的)to the horizon, the place where the earth and sky seem to meet．

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　　The first reality TV show in the world was called Expedition Robinson and it was shown in Sweden in 1997．Half the population of the country watched the final event and a new kind of TV program was born．Two years later in Holland, the first series of Big Brother was filmed．Again, it was a great success and the final program was watched by 15 million people．Now more than 20 countries around the world have Big Brother or Expedition Robinson on their TV screens．The ordinary people who take part in the programs are known by millions of people in their own countries and reality TV has become big, big business．

　　For the TV producers, reality TV is a dream which comes true because many of the programs cost nothing to make．At some point, the television viewers are asked to telephone the program to vote or to apply to take part in the show．It is the cost of these telephone calls that pays for the shows．One of the most popular shows is Pop Idol．In the show a group of attractive young people are made into pop stars．TV viewers vote for their favorite person on the show．The winner makes a record and millions of copies of the record are sold．His or her pictures are published on the covers of magazines or on the front pages of newspapers, and then, they are quickly forgotten．

　　But not everyone is happy about reality TV．In Portugal, two TV channels got into trouble because they showed too much of the personal lives of the people in the shows．In France, reality TV is called “rubbish TV” and the TV studios of Big Brother were attacked three times in one week．In Greece, Big Brother was described as “ against human rights and civilization”．

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　　People often say, “The hand that rocks the cradle(摇篮)rules the world．” and “Behind every successful man there is a woman．” Both these sayings mean the same thing．Men rule the world, but their wives rule them．

　　Most American women like making their husbands and sons successful, but some of them want more for themselves．They want good jobs, and when they work they want to be paid．They also want to be as successful as men．

　　The American women’s liberation movement was started by women who didn’t want to stand behind successful men．They wanted to stand beside men and have the same chances for success．They didn’t want to be told that certain jobs or offices were closed to them．They refused to work side by side with men who did the same work for a higher pay．

　　A liberated woman must be proud of being a woman and have confidence in herself．If somebody says to her, “You have come a long way, baby．” She will smile and answer, “Not nearly as far as I’m going to go, baby．” This movement is quite new, and many American women don’t agree with it．But it has already made some important changes in women’s lives and in men’s lives, too．

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　　A person’s nose is important for breathing and smelling．The nose is also used in many popular expressions．

　　Some people are able to “Lead other people by the nose”．For example, if a wife “leads her husband by the nose”, she makes him do whatever she wants him to do．

　　It is always helpful when people “keep their nose out of other people’s business”．They do not interfere(干涉)．The opposite of is someone who “noses around” all the time．This kind of person is interested in other people’s private matters．He is considered “nosey”．

　　One unusual expression is “that is no skin off my nose”．This means that a situation does not affect or concern me．We also say that sometimes a person “cuts off his nose to spite his face”．That is, he makes a situation worse for himself by doing something foolish because he is angry．

　　More problems can develop if a person “looks down his nose” at someone or something．The person acts like someone or something is unimportant or worthless．This person might also “turn up his nose” at something that he considers not good enough．This person thinks he is better than everyone else．He has his “nose in the air”．

　　In school, some students “thumb their nose “at their teacher．They refuse to obey orders or do any work．Maybe these students do not know the correct answers．My mother always told me, if you study hard, the answers should be “right under your nose” or easily seen．

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　　Robots have been a part of the manufacturing work force for decades－one in 10 auto-workers, for instance, is now made of metal and electronics．Robots for the house have been slower to come．Household chores(家务杂事)are less predictable and repetitive than those of the assembly line(装配线), making them difficult to explain in the simple language of a machine．Then how can we solve this problem? One answer is to design robots that are flexible for specific tasks, such as cacuuming(用真空吸尘器清扫)．Another is to figure out a way to make robots simple－and cheap－enough that ordinary people can build their own from parts and program them to do whatever they please．

　　With funding from Google, Intel and Microsoft, scientists at Carnegie Mellon University(CMU)in Pittsburgh have created a series of build-it-yourself robots which they say are simple and cheap enough for almost anyone to create．

　　It starts with a black box called Qwerk－the robot “brain” that CMU built and sells for ＄349 on its Website．Using off-the-shelf parts(wheels, screwdrivers, electrical tape)and some simple instructions, anybody can build a 10-centimeter-high robot and program the Qwerk brain．You might make a wheeled robot with a video camera that can keep an eye on your house and sound the alarm in case someone enters．

　　Scientists hope that by bringing simple robot technology to the marketplace, they can open up the industry to the greater public－maybe even make robotics fun．They’ve tested prototypes(原型)in classrooms and workshops, and even tried them out with young kids．While most of the robots serve practical uses, their goal, scientists say, is to get the public to start contributing its own designs, and even make robots a form of self-expression．One student, for example, made a robot that sits on the side of the road and when it sees a car going too fast, puts up a sign that says slowly down!

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　　The key to reaching or staying at a healthy weight is regular exercise and good eating habits．Teens should get 60 minutes or more of physical activity a day．Note the word “activity”．As long as you’re getting your body moving, it doesn’t have to mean doing complicated exercises or going to the gym every day．All that matters is that each week you get the right balance of activity, including aerobic(有氧健身法的), strength building, and flexibility(柔韧性)exercise．Make exercise a habit by scheduling some every day．

　　On days when you have soccer practice or an aerobics class, you may have no trouble exercising for an hour or more．But most of us are busy, and 60 minutes a day of activity seems like a lot of time．The good news is that it’s OK to divide it into shorter “exercise breaks” throughout the day．

　　Just as you might have a healthy snack to stop yourself getting hungry, exercise snacks can keep energy level high．So get up 15minutes early and do some yoga or other stretching(伸展)activity．Fast walk or jog for 15 minutes at lunch．Do the same thing after school －or walk or bike home．Add to that taking the stairs, gym class, and walking between classes during the day, and you’ve probably reached your 60 minutes．

　　Here are 5 simple ways to make an exercise lifestyle change：

　　1．Start today．Go outside for a walk．

　　2．Take the stairs instead of the elevator．

　　3．Instead of driving, walk or bike to places like school or a friend’s house．

　　4．Vacuum(用真空吸尘器清扫)your room, wash the car, or mow the lawn．

　　5．Limit your time watching TV, using the computer, or playing video games－and when you do play, try interactive games that get you moving．

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　　Every year, more and more students become volunteers．The projects may be with their school, neighborhood, or town, but the work of all volunteers is important．Students find that there are many advantages to volunteering．

　　First, volunteering helps others．Many people complain about problems in our society．Volunteers are part of the solution to our problems! While it is easy to complain about things that are not right, the volunteer takes action rather than complaining．When a student spends time working at a retirement(退休)home, cleaning up a park, or teaching a younger student, the volunteer makes the world a better place．

　　Second, being a volunteer makes students feel good about themselves．When a student volunteer knows that his or her efforts have made someone else's life better, the volunteer feels great．Students always hear people saying that everyone should care about other people．Volunteers make it happen．Although some volunteer work is long or tiring, student volunteers end the day knowing they did the right thing．Their parents, teachers, and the public are proud of them．Knowing they did the right thing makes them feel better, even if they are tired．

　　Finally, students learn that volunteering is fun．A group of students might volunteer to clean up a riverbed in early spring．It is fun to be with their friends, to enjoy the weather, and to picnic later in a beautiful, clean area．Other students might read to young children in a playgroup．It is fun to spend time with children and to have them smile and laugh．No matter what their ages or talents are, every student can be a volunteer．The work of student volunteers is a powerful force that makes the world a better place．

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　　E-mail systems at thousands of companies and government offices around the world were attacked by a virus called“Mellissa”that disguises itself as“important message”from a friend．

　　Even though there was a weekend warning, more than 50,000 companies at about 100 places around the world have been attacked by the virus, computer experts said on Monday．

　　The virus began to show up last Friday and spread rapidly the next first workday by making computers send off dozens of e-mails containing the virus．Although the virus had no long-lasting damage to a computer, its effects were far-reaching．

　　Michael Vatis, a senior US official said military and government computers were damaged, along with thousands of the other institutions systems．

　　The body of e-mail message says,“here is what you ask for---”once the user opens it, the virus digs into the users address book and sends out messages to the first 50 address．The reason why the virus spreads so rapidly is that you're getting it from people you know and trust．So anyone who gets an unexpected e-mail with the“Important Message”subject line is advised not to open it and to delete it immediatel．

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　　INDEPENDENCE

　　Most people in the US believe that independence is very important．They do not think of themselves as representatives of their families, communities, or social class．Students think those who depend on their family are dependent．Teachers expect students to be independent, to work alone, and to produce original work．

　　EQUALITY

　　The Declaration of Independence states,“All men are created equal．”In many ways, people believe this; you can see equality in such common practices as waiting in line．When you go to the bank or to the post office, you will be asked to take a number and wait．No matter how important you are, you will be treated like anyone else; first come, first served．You can also see equality in the classroom．All students are the same in the eyes of the professors．Similarly, professors sometimes ask students to call them by their first names．

　　PUNCTUALITY(准时)

　　Many people in the US are very punctual and organize their activities around schedules．Being late is rude．If you cannot be on time．tell the people who are waiting for you．For business appointments, you should arrive a few minutes early．For social appointments, you should arrive 10-15 minutes after the appointed time．

　　MATERIALISM(物质主义)

　　Success in the US is often measured in dollars．Many people in the US think more about money and material possessions than people in other countries．As a result, you may think that people ignore those more important things in life, like love and friendship．This is not true：like people in every country, most people in the US still value friendship or love more than wealth．

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