阅读理解

　　The cars were honking(鸣叫)on the road one morning as I was walking to the park．I walked on and soon found the cause－a little taxi that had got stuck in the middle of the road．There was sweat on the driver's face as he tried to start the engine again and again－nothing happened．"No petrol,"

　　I said to myself and then found myself getting angry．"Why doesn't the fool move his taxi to the side?" I thought, so did all the others who honked and shouted．

　　He got up tiredly, and the passenger in the taxi got out．He was a young man in a white shirt, who watched the driver try to push it to the side．"Stupid guy!" I said．"Can't he lend a helping hand?"

　　I watched as the poor driver pushed it to the side．Cars, buses and trucks went past cursing(咒骂)the poor man．The young man took another taxi and went off．

　　The taxi driver began mending his taxi．"Stupid passenger!" I said to him．"He didn't help you!" The taxi driver slowly got up．"Sir!" he asked, "Did you?" I looked at him guiltily, then looked away, and walked away fast, asking myself, "Did I help the poor man push his taxi?"

　　What had I been doing as the traffic jam took place? How had I helped deal with the problem? Did I help the poor man push his taxi? I’d done my bit, with my mouth．But never had I moved to solve the problem．I was shocked with guilt as I heard him asking, "Sir! Did you?"

阅读理解

　　A popular saying going," Sticks and stone may break my bones, but words will never hurt me．" However, that's not really true．Words have the power to build us up or tear us down．It doesn't matter if the words come from someone else or ourselves--the positive and negative effects are just as lasting．

　　We all talk to ourselves sometimes．we are usually too embarrassed to admit it, though．But we really shouldn't be, because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit．

　　This "self-talk" helps us motive ourselves, remember things, solves problems, and calm ourselves down．Be aware, though, that as much as 77％ of self-talk tends to be negative．So in order to stay positive, we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves．We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back．The next time you finish a project, do well on a test, or finally clean your room, join me in saying, "Good job"!

　　Often, words came out of our mouths without us thinking about the effects they will have; but we should be aware that our words cause certain responses to others．For example, when returning an item to a store, we might use warm friendly language during the exchange．And the clerk will probably respond in a similar manner．Or we can use harsh, critical language, which will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive．

　　Words possess power because of their lasting effects．Many of us regret something we once said．And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking, we should always ask ourselves："Is it true? Is it loving? Is it needed?" If what we want to say doesn't pass this test,then it is better left unsaid．

　　Words possess ower：both positive ad negative．Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively．We can offer hope, build self-esteem and motive others to do their best．Negative words destroy all those things．Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours．

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Attractions in Wisconsin

　　30 N．Carroll Street on Madison’s Capitol Square

　　Discover Wisconsin’s history and culture(文化)on four floors of exhibits．Open for public program．Admission is free．

　　Open Tuesday through Saturday, 9∶00am－4∶00 pm．

　　(608)264-6555 www．wisconsinhistory．org/museum

　　612 Seventh Ave．, New Glarus

　　The Swiss Historical Village offers a delightful look at pioneer life in America’s heartland．14 buildings in the village give a full picture of every day life in the nineteenth-century Midwest．

　　Tue．－Fri．, May 1st－October 31st, 10∶00 am－4∶00 pm．Admission is ＄20．

　　(608)527-2317 www．swisshistoricalvillage．com

　　6858 Paoli Rd．, Paoli, WI

　　One of the largest collections of fine arts and crafts(手工艺品)in Wisconsin．Over 5000 sp．ft．of exhibition space in a historic creamery．While visiting enjoy a wonderfully prepared lunch at our café overlooking the Sugar River．Just minutes from Madison!

　　Gallery open Tue．－Sun．, 10∶00 am－5∶00 pm．

　　Café open Wed．－Sat．, 11∶00 am－3∶00 pm．

　　Sun．brunch with wine, 10∶00－3∶00 pm．

　　(608)845-6600　www．artisangal．com

　　239 Whitney St．, Columbus

　　World-class exhibit –2000 quality souvenirs(纪念品)marking Chicago’s 1893 World Columbian Exhibition．Tour buses are always welcome．

　　Open daily, 8∶15 am－4∶00 pm．

　　(920)623-1992　www．columbusantiquemall．com

阅读理解

　　Getting rid of dirt, in the opinion of most people, is a good thing．However, there is nothing fixed about attitudes to dirt．

　　In the early 16^th century, people thought that dirt on the skin was a means to block out disease, as medical opinion had it that washing off dirt with hot water could open up the skin and let ills in．A particular danger was thought to lie in public baths．By 1538, the French king had closed the bath houses in his kingdom．So did the king of England in 1546．Thus began a long time when the rich and the poor in Europe lived with dirt in a friendly way．Henry IV, King of France, was famously dirty．Upon learning that a nobleman had taken a bath, the king ordered that, to avoid the attack of disease, the nobleman should not go out．

　　Though the belief in the merit of dirt was long-lived, dirt has no longer been regarded as a nice neighbor ever since the 18^th century．Scientifically speaking, cleaning away dirt is good to health．Clean water supply and hand washing are practical means of preventing disease．Yet, it seems that standards of cleanliness have moved beyond science since World War Ⅱ．Advertisements repeatedly sell the idea; clothes need to be whiter than white, cloths ever softer, surfaces to shine．Has the hate for dirt, however, gone too far?

　　Attitudes to dirt still differ hugely nowadays．Many first-time parents nervously try to warn their children off touching dirt, which might be responsible for the spread of disease．On the contrary, Mary Ruebush, an American immunologist(免疫学家), encourages children to play in the dirt to build up a strong immune system．And the latter position is gaining some ground．

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　　Blue is the most attractive eye colour according to a new research．

　　Blue eyes like those belonging to sexy star Angelina Jolie are the most appealing colour according to a poll of 3,000 18-24 year olds by Fresh Look One Day Colour．Angelina, her partner Brad Pitt and his ex-wife Jennifer Aniston all have blue eyes and have all been named in a top twenty of the world's most desirable eyes．

　　The survey found that young folk with blue eyes are generally seen as being more sexy and kind．

　　And when asked if they would change the colour of their eyes if they could, only one in ten blue-eyed people wanted to, significantly less than people with other colour eyes．

　　One in three people who didn't have blue eyes wanted a change．

　　One quarter of respondents have considered wearing coloured contact lenses(隐形眼镜)to change their eye colour temporarily－and blue is most wanted colour．

　　Green was the second most popular colour for those wanting a new look, with respondents saying green-eyed people were usually mysterious and creative．

　　People with brown or hazel eyes were perceived to be more trustworthy than people with other eye colours．

　　People with grey eyes were generally thought to be more intelligent than other people, and they were also described as usually being shy．

　　Blue was the most common eye colour among respondents, with 41 per cent of those who answered the survey having baby blue peepers and 39 per cent having brown or hazel eyes．

　　The survey also found that 18 percent of people don't know what colour eyes their partner has!

阅读理解：

　　Nowadays more and more people are interested in aerobic(adj．健身操)exercises．There are many such programs on TV or you can just go to a club to learn the exercises．But here is some advice for you to follow once you decide to take them up or are just about to start．

　　First, get your doctor's permission to start an aerobic exercise program．He or she will check your physical condition and tell you whether it's safe to start exercising．

　　Make sure that each time you start with a warm-up period．You should stretch(伸展)your muscles and get them ready for your workout．Warm up for at least five minutes．

　　Then start actual training．Jog, bike, or do exercises that get your heart rate up to the target range．Depending on your age and your physical condition, aim to raise your pulse rate to be to between 140 and 160 beats per minute．Take your pulse during exercises to make sure that your heart rate doesn't get too fast．After the 20-minute aerobic exercises, start cooling down．Do a few gentle stretches while you catch your breath．If your heart rate does not return to a resting rate(about 70)within five minutes, you're working out too hard．Finally, during the recovery period, sit down and relax．The following graph(图表)will help you to learn about the safe pulse rate in each period．

阅读理解：

　　In the old days, children were familiar with birth and death as part of life．This is perhaps the first generation of American youngsters who have never been close by during the birth of a baby and have never experienced the death of a family member．

　　Nowadays when people grow old, we often send them to nursing homes．When they get sick, we send them to a hospital, where children are forbidden to visit terminally(晚期的)ill patients – even when those patients are their parents．This deprives(剥夺)the dying patient of significant family members during the last few days of his and it deprives the children of an experience of death, which is an important learning experience．

　　Some of my colleagues and I once interviewed and followed about 500 terminally ill patients in order to find out what they could teach us and how we could be of more benefit, not just to them but to the members of their families as well．We were most impressed by the fact that even those patients who were not told of their serious illness were aware of its possible result．

　　It is important for family members, and doctors and nurses to understand these patients’ communications in order to truly understand their needs, fears and fantasies．Most of our patients welcomed another human being with whom they could talk openly, honestly, and frankly(坦白地)about their trouble．Many of them shared with us their great need to be informed, to be kept up-to-date on their medical condition and to be told when the end was near．We found out that patients who had been dealt with openly and frankly were better able to deal with the coming of death and finally to reach a true stage of acceptance prior(在先的)to death．

阅读理解：

　　Have you ever imagined what kind of car we will be driving in 2020? It will be rather different from the type we know today, with the next 20 years bringing greater change than the past 50．The people who will be designing the models of tomorrow believe that environmental problems may well accelerate(促进，加快)the pace of the car's development．Today they are students on the transport design course at London's Royal College of Art．

　　Their vision is of a machine with three wheels instead of four, electrically powered, environmentally clean, and able to drive itself along "intelligent" roads equipped with built-in power supplies．Future cars will pick up their fuel during long journeys from a power source built into the road, or store it in small quantities for traveling in the city．

　　Instead of today's seating arrangements--two in front, two or three behind, all facing forward－the 2010 car will have a versatile interior with adults and children in a family circle．

　　This view of the future car is based on a much more sophisticated(复杂的)road system, with strips built into motorways to supply power to vehicles passing along them．Cars will not need drivers, because computers will provide safe driving control and route finding．All the driver will have to do is to say where to go and the computer will do the rest．It will become impossible for cars to crash into one another．The technology already exists for the car to become a true automobile．

阅读理解：

　　CHICAGO－Bill Clinton's eagerly awaited memoir(自传), My Life, will be published this June, and is sure to ignite(点燃)a firestorm of interest in an already politically charged election year．Bill Clinton said that most presidential memoirs are thought to be "dull and self-serving, but I hope mine is interesting and self-serving．”

　　My Life, which is being published by Knopf and will sell for ＄ 35, is expected by many industry watchers to rise to the top of the best-seller lists．

　　Clinton said the book tells the story of his life from his birth and childhood in Arkansas to his years in the White House．From the book readers can have a look at his successes and setbacks．

　　He tells the story “as it happens to me, so you see what it's like to be president．．．to see how everything happens at once．”

　　Without offering specifics or mentioning Monica Lewinsky, Clinton said, "I don't spare myself" in the book．

　　"I have no idea if this is a great book," he said, "but it's a pretty good story．"

　　Clinton was reportedly paid an advance of ＄10 million for the book, which was supposed to be done a year ago．

　　"The minute that book goes on sale, people will be lined up buying the book," said Bob Wietrak, a vice-president(副总统)and chief merchant for Barnes & Noble．

　　Some predict the 957-page book will be one of the few presidential memoirs to fly off shelves．

　　Booksellers have already taken pre-orders．The 1.5 million-copy first printing is bigger than the first run for Hillary Clinton's memoir Living History, which sold 1.8 million copies．

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Brief News Report

Castle fire

　　Winton Castle was damaged in a fire last night．The fire, which was discovered at about 9 o’clock, spread very quickly．Nobody was injured but two people had to rescue from an upstairs room．A number of paintings are believed to have been destroyed．It isn’t known how the fire started．

Road delays

　　Repair work started yesterday on the Paxham-Longworth road．The road is being resurfaced and there will be long delays．Drivers are asked to choose another way if possible．The work is expected to last two weeks．Next Sunday the road will be closed and traffic will be diverted(改道)．

Accident

　　A woman was taken to hospital after her car collided(碰撞)with a truck near Nor-stock yesterday．She was allowed home later after treatment．The road was blocked for an hour after the accident and the traffic had to be diverted．A policeman said afterwards, “The woman was lucky．She could have been killed．”