Four Great Persons
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Born in Austria in 1756, Mozart was the son of a successful musician. He wrote his first piece of published music at five. Within the year, he began playing for the public, which included a tour of Europe where people admired the young boy's talent. By the time he was a teenager, Mozart had written several operas. He wrote over 600 pieces of music in his lifetime.
Shirley Temple (1928-2014)
Shirley Temple received her first acting chance at the age of three and starred in Carolina, her first film, at six. She quickly caught attention and by 1940, she had starred in 43 films, including Bright Eyes for which she won a special award for "Outstanding Personality". As an adult, Temple became a US diplomat(外交官) for the United Nations.
Nkosi Johnson (1989-2001)
South African Nkosi Johnson was born HIV-positive(携带艾滋病毒). His story caught the media's attention when his local public school refused to admit him because of his condition. Soon he traveled the world, telling his story wherever he could, encouraging other patients to speak out. Besides, he founded Nokie's Haven, a safe place for HIV-positive mothers and their children. In 2005, he was award the International Children's Peace Prize.
Alexandra Scott (1996-2004)
Alexandra Scott had cancer before she celebrated her first birthday. At the age of four, she decided to raise money for other children going through the same thing. So she set up a lemonade stand(摊位), which inspired others to start lemonade stands, too. They raised over $1 million before Scott died of cancer. Her family carries on her legacy(遗产) through Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, which has raised over $150 million.
Last year Justin met a great difficulty in his life: Where should he work after graduation? He had two great offers. The first was a government job in his hometown, a 10-minute bike ride from his apartment. It wouldn't pay much, but he'd have time to spend with his wife, nephew, and aging parents. The second was a job in the biggest neighboring city. It would pay a lot more, but he'd have to travel four hours a day.
We know surprisingly little about how people do when they make more money at the expense of having less time or have more time at the expense of earning less money. My colleagues-PhD student Lucia Macchia,
Professor Elizabeth Dunn and I set out to do a study. We asked more than 1, 000 college students. What we found was that students who rioritized time were happier than those who prioritized money. Those who valued time were happier and more satisfied with their lives and careers one to two years after graduation.
People who live in more unequal areas feel less financially secure and are more likely to value money.
People who grew up in families fighting about money also are more likely to focus on money instead of time as adults, even if they now have a lot of money. Of course, debt also plays a role.
Sometimes we cannot choose our priorities; we might need to choose the better-paying job and sacrifice (牺牲) having more time to socialize with our friends and family. Society needs to work harder to make us all feel like we have the choice to prioritize time over money. However, when we do have the ability to choose which resource to prioritize, the data is clear: Valuing time is likely to bring us greater joy both in the moment and in the long term.
Our world's forests are becoming isolated and broken. In fact, today we have only two remaining continuous forests systems in the world-the Amazon and the Congo. The rest of the world's forests are becoming eparated-kind of like islands.
Why should that concern most of us city dwellers? It turns out that forests affect us in ways more than we can see and experience. If you had your breakfast this morning, blew your nose on a tissue, switched on a light or are reading this article, you have one thing to thank for-the world's forests and the products they supply us. Forest products are used by us in our daily lives either directly or indirectly. Think of paper and wood-your school textbook, newspaper your parents read, or the furniture you are sitting on. Even for our medicines and cosmetics we depend on forest products.
But that is only one way of looking at it. In another sense, forests are habitats for diverse plant and animal species; many people around the world depend on forests for their livelihood. Forests give us our rivers, help maintain the water cycle, act as a carbon sink and help prevent soil erosion.
For all that forests provide us, humans are using its resources faster than the forests can regain themselves, so much so that we are losing them fast—too fast for our own good! Forests today make up 30% of the land area of the world. But just in the last 50 years, more than one half of the world forests are gone. It is believed that forest areas, about half the size of Singapore, are being lost every day!
Forests don't disappear in a day. It is gradually eroded (侵蚀) away. The biggest cause is roads and man-made developments, as well as natural events such as wildfires. Did you know that when an area of a forest gets broken-up by artificial barriers, these areas tend to lose about 50% of all their species within a couple of decades?
The areas that are exposed by the disappearing forests now begin to experience extreme temperature, pressure and wind. Now add to it, invasive species that destroy the habitat.
It is in our hands to do something about it. If government officials and local populations can work together to reconnect the mini forests by planting linking trees, it may not be too late to preserve what we already have.
An Italian company has created the world's first underwater farm. The station named Nemo's Garden consists of five biospheres (生物圈) fixed to the bottom of the sea off the coast of Savona, Italy. They're being used to grow strawberries, beans, garlic, and lettuce.
"The main target of this project is to create other sources of plant production in areas where environmental conditions make it difficult to grow crops through traditional farming, including lack of fresh water, fertile soil, and extreme temperature changes, " said project spokesperson Luca Gamberini.
The five biospheres, currently floating between depths of 18 and 36 feet, are constantly watched by Ocean Reef Group—a diving equipment company—from a control center on dry land. According to various news reports, the plants are watered by drips of water on the inner walls of the biospheres. With a constant temperature of 79 degrees day and night, and humidity (湿度) at around 83 percent, the conditions are ideal for plants to grow well.
The high amount of carbon dioxide also encourages growth.
Ocean Reef president Sergio Gamberini said he came up with the idea of growing plants underwater during a summer vacation in Italy. In his own words, he wanted to do something that's different and to show the beauty of the ocean. After two years of failed attempts, they finally were able to get these five biospheres working. Their success may lay the foundation for a new form of crop production that can be done without harming the environment.
In fact, the biosphere seems to be attracting wildlife. Octopuses (章鱼) and endangered seahorses are taking shelter under the structure, while crabs (螃蟹) are climbing up the anchors and into the greenhouses. None of the creatures have damaged the plants so far. "It's so kind of science-fiction to see these two different forms of life interact, " Gamberini said.
People have always wanted to know what the future will look like. Then, how can we?
The world has changed a lot in the last 150 years, but we humans are driven by the same basic needs as we were 150 years ago, such as food, sleep, the feeling of being appreciated and loved. No. In addition, generally speaking, the inventions in the last 150 years have been a human effort for freedom (自由) and communication. Since there is still much to do in this area, this will be the focus at least for the next 150 years.
But why do we need to predict the future? Predicting the future is important for two reasons: First, we need to start to think about what kind of future we would like for ourselves and to pass on to the next generation.
How about the virtual worlds? It might be that in the future people can feel the sand between their toes, and hear the waves, just lying in the bed at home. So, even if a great invention is an affordable price, it'll never take the place of the common experience if it is not real.
What we'll see in the next 50 years is the transition from an oil-dependent society to a new society. Here there'll be new medicine, continued exploration of space, challenges in the climate change, and new inventions that make life a little easier.
A. Will this change in the next 150 years?
B. So what will the future look like then?
C. Predicting the future can help us in many ways.
D. However, you'll get the feeling of being there.
E. Well, to understand the future, you must know the past.
F. However, no matter how real the experience is, it doesn't happen for real.
G. Then we need to know what decisions we need to make today will give the best result in the future.
I was informed that my four-grade daughter was not going to make it to the fifth grade. The teacher said, "She may not be1 what we're trying to accomplish." He was actually saying she didn't have the2 . I got mad because I knew she was smart, just as my father had known I was smart when I was3 in school. We had her tested and found that the trouble she was having was dyslexia—difficulty in reading, which was4 what I had had. By then I was a successful television writer, and had5 an Emmy Award for "The Rockford Files. "
Writing and writing, I worked so hard in my late 20s and early 30s, 6 to hear people praise me, because I did badly in all my courses. Eventually, I did become successful, and people now say to me, "So you've7 dyslexia. "
No. I don't overcome it, but just switch to something within my8 . Some easy things are very hard for me. Most people who go through college9 twice as fast as I do. I avoid10 a phone if I can, because I sometimes have to try three times to get the number right.
Despite my weaknesses I view dyslexia as a11 , not a misfortune. Many dyslexics are12 at right-brain, abstract thought, and that's what my kind of creative writing is. And I can write quickly, and can get up to 15 pages a day. Writing is my13 .
The real fear I have for dyslexic children is not that they14 in school, but that they will quit on themselves before they get out of school. Parents have to create15 for them, whether it's in music, sports or art. You can make your dyslexic child able to say, "Yeah, reading is hard. But I have other things I can do. "
NASA has got some good news for us. The world is a（green）place today than it was 20 years ago. How does this happen? Well, it appears China and India are leading the change.
NASA researchers compared satellite data (卫星数据) from the mid-1990s to today. They found that global green leaf area（increase）by five percent since the early 2000s. That's about the same area as the entire Amazon rainforest. At first, the researchers were unsurecaused the large increase in greening around the planet.
After further(investigate), they found that greening was mostly located in China and India. China and India have the world's biggest populations. In the past, they(consider) to have overexploited land, water and other resources for economic growth. But now, the two countries are responsiblethe largest greening of the planet in the past two decades.
China has carried out programs(protect) and expand forests. These programs were developed to reduce the(effect) of soil erosion(水土流失)，air pollution and climate change. India continues to break world records in tree planting. was reported that 800, 000 Indians planted 50 million trees in one day in 2016. However, the researchers warned that we should not be content with situation. The gain in global greenness does not offset（抵消）the losses.
I keep a two dollar bill in my wallet that was given to me by my mother when I was six years old. I am not superstitious but the bill goes with me wherever I go.
My mother gave it to me so that luck would follow me everywhere. She looked at me and said "I want you to carry this two dollar bill for extra good luck. ""Thanks mom. "I replied. "I will keep it close to me always. " Every morning I would get dressed and my two dollar bill went into my pocket. My mother passed away when I was 17 years old and I remember taking out my two dollar bill. I held it in my hand for the longest time and knew that she would be watching over me the rest of my life. Each time I felt I had a crisis on my hands I would reach for my two dollar bill and set it on the table. I would stare at it for several hours and could always come up with a solution. When I applied for my first job I was thirty years old and very shy The thought of being interviewed for a job was scary but I had to work. On my first interview, as I sat in the waiting room, I noticed there were five women ahead of me. All of the women were younger and very well dressed. One of them was impeccable in her blue striped suit with matching purse and shoes. I knew I was up against women better qualified by looking at the length of their resumes.
Mrs. Martin. the office manager, summoned me into her office"What makes you feel you are qualified for this job?"she asked. "I really need this job and there is nothing I cannot do, I responded. She asked me a series of questions and the interview was over. As I exited her office, I turned around and said, "Mrs. Martin, I know that I am not qualified like your other applicants but please give me a chance. I learn quickly and can be a very productive member of your team. "I thanked her and went home exhausted. Oh well, I thought tomorrow would be another day.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150词左右。 2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
That evening as I was getting ready for bed, I received a phone call from Mrs. Martin.
I got my wallet and took out my two dollar bill.
