PASSAGE TWO

How we die, as well as how we live, has profound and lasting effects on the environment. China now is advocating environmentally friendly funerals, hut most people still prefer traditional burial ceremonies. The following excerpt reveals the development of eco-funeral in China. Write an article of NO LESS THAN 300 words, in which you should: 1. summarize briefly the article; 2. express your opinion towards this practice. Go Green, in Death as in Life A new type of funeral—the "ecological funeral"—is being advocated by China's government and media, with suitable memorial parks established in many areas. Ecological funerals refer to new "tree funerals", "flower funerals", "grass funerals" and "water funerals". In the first three types, the ashes of the deceased person are spread on earth in which trees, flowers or grass is planted. In water funerals, the ashes are scattered over a river or the sea. Such funerals represent China's second reform of funeral customs. In the first reform, cremation replaced burials. Now the ashes are not retained, but are returned to nature. In many ways, ecological funerals meet the needs of the times, especially in our cities. The Chinese population is getting older faster, and there is a shortage of land, so there is a risk of having nowhere to build traditional cemeteries. With the Chinese tradition of lavish funeral ceremonies, burial costs are spiralling. In some cases, a funeral can cost more than a house, and people speak of being able to afford to live, but not to die. Ecological funerals use little or no land. What they do use is not covered with a gravestone, but with plants. As it happens, China's Tomb-Sweeping Festival fell in April, just as plants are growing and flowering. Memorial parks will double as green spaces. Popularising this practice would save both costs and land, and increase the amount of green space. Despite all this, however, many media reports published after this year's Tomb-Sweeping Festival showed that only a minority of people choose ecological funerals. "The old burial practices have existed for thousands of years. You can't replace them overnight," says Zhu Huamin, head of the Shanghai Burial Culture Institute. "I think for some time to come, ecological funerals will only be accepted by some people." Attachment to the idea of traditional funerals is the greatest current obstacle to ecological funerals in China. Despite the earlier reforms, cremation still is not accepted in rural areas, and 50% of Chinese funerals involve burial. The success or failure of this second round of reform rests on changing those deep-rooted cultural beliefs. In order to meet targets during the earlier reforms, local governments attempted to make cremation compulsory, but to little effect. Burials took place in secret, and corruption resulted, especially in rural areas. Di Yingqi, a representative in the National People's Congress, argues that a funeral law should be drafted, providing for a range of funeral styles. China's long-standing sustainable development strategy requires a shift to the environmentally friendly in the economic, social and cultural sectors. Funeral practices are no different, but using legal and administrative measures to do so will have little effect, at best. You cannot force cultural changes. It is not a matter of law and institutions, but of raising environmental awareness among the people. Then will choose more environmentally friendly ways of life—and death—of their own accord.

The rude antics of some Chinese tourists have embarrassed many in the country, and sparked debate about how the government could discourage bad behavior. What's your idea towards this issue? The following are opinions from different people. Read the excerpts carefully and write your response in about 300 words, in which you should: 1. summarize briefly the different opinions; 2. give your comment. Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.Sivarnee (China) Not every Chinese tourist is a rude one, and educated people are usually better behaved than those who have had a lower standard of education. This could be why the middle-aged or older tourists who have been deprived of or received little education tend to act more unruly. Many of them do not speak English, and some are not fluent putonghua speakers. Their knowledge of the destination country and its culture is often at best outdated or non-existent.Michael (the US) Like many commentators, I am not convinced that Chinese travelers on the whole behave worse than other groups when traveling abroad. We Yanks, along with our German and Israeli friends, for instance, have long suffered poor reputations when traveling. My personal worst embarrassment for a compatriot happened in Rome, where I witnessed a loud American in a cowboy hat, black socks, and sandals look down at the Roman Forum and say to his wife, " more ruins—if you've seen one ruin, you've seen them all. "Chang Jun (the US) As China rises to the second largest economy in the world, Chinese visitors are also traveling everywhere including Europe, Australia, Southeast Asia and Latin America. Although destination countries and regions welcome the tourism dollars and the buying power, they are upset with the chaos, hassles and bad behavior some Chinese tourists bring upon their cities. In light of the Chinese tourism boom, some industry insiders believe the government should implement educational programs. For example, mandatory etiquette classes for visitors prior to their departures are encouraged to help them better behave in foreign countries and cultures.Gavin (the UK) As a nation that has quadrupled its income over the last decade, you're dealing almost exclusively with people who aren't used to being abroad, and as a consequence, the Chinese don't particularly know how to holiday. They are seldom to be seen playing beach-bat with the kids, or reading Dan Brown in a sun lounger, because they don't switch off like that. The high-flyers who make it out don't strictly "do" downtime. Hence you find them shuffling around beachfronts in packs, wondering what exactly they're meant to be doing when the answer is right in front of them. They've got the money. So they're going on holiday "because they can".Sophie (Australia) Why have the Chinese risen so rapidly to join the ranks of the world's most boorish tourists? In their defense, they are not the only tourists in the world considered to be rude. Despite all the recent media spotlight on Chinese misbehavior, Americans still rank as the world's worst tourists, according to a recent opinion poll. And Chinese have gained wealth so quickly that they have become thrust into global tourist culture without the time to create guideposts that other nationalities might enjoy. For instance, there is no Chinese equivalent of Lonely Planet, encouraging young Chinese to go explore the world and respect the cultures and communities they enter. In many countries, Chinese are still viewed with suspicion during visa review processes. Chinese tourists always seem to travel in huge packs because joining a tour group makes getting a visa easier. Write your response on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.

茶花 (camellia)的自然花期在12月至翌年4月，以红色系为主，另有黄色系和白色系等，花色艳丽。本届花展充分展示了茶花的品种资源和科研水平，是近三年来本市规模最大的一届茶花展。为了使广大植物爱好者有更多与茶花亲密接触的机会，本届茶花展的布展范围延伸至整个园区，为赏花游客带来便利。 此次茶花展历时2个月，展期内200多个茶花品种将陆续亮相。

China's law makers are considering banning children under the age of 10 from appearing in advertisements. Do you think this ban will do more good than harm? The following are opinions from different sides. Read the excerpts carefully and write your response in about 300 words, in which you should: 1. summarize briefly the opinions from different sides; 2. give your comment. Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.Children care experts Joe (China) : While adults who appear in advertisements might know the details, including materials, the manufacturing process and the service life of the products that they promote, children who are under 10 might not completely grasp such information. In most cases, they don't even actually know what the products are for. They say and do what the promoters pay them to say and do. Therefore, it's quite doubtful whether the products these child stars speak for are reliable or not. Lee (the US): The ban aims to protect minors from being negatively impacted by commercial activities and I think it is good. When a child rises to fame by acting in movies or in televised entertainment programs, he or she will be able to capitalize on his or her reputation. Too much entertainment engagement may be more than a child can bear, psychologically and physically. Even if they are talented in acting, their talent should not be overused. Otherwise, they may end up paying for this lost time when they grow up.Media workers AlexfromAmerica (the US) : I'm more libertarian about the idea. Don't restrict advertising. We don't need more laws on this subject. If an advertisement "crosses the line" in the way it uses children, the market will shame that company to stop using the advertisement. The law is unnecessary here. David (Japan) : The minors and their parents should be given the right to decide whether to do the job after fully analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of being an advertising endorser. Otherwise, instead of protecting the minors' interests, the law will restrict their freedom and rights. Bill (the UK) : Endorsing a product does not necessarily violate the minors' rights and interests. It's thus wrong to forbid all such commercial activities for children. An endorsement means that the endorser recommends a product to the public in his or her own name. In this sense, children can still appear in advertisements without recommending a product in their own names. Even if the product is not as good as is advertised, they don't need to take responsibilities for it. Davidjames28 (China) : One unintended result of this would be the sufferings of most children's magazines, websites and TV channels. And children are always the best choice in whether cultural or commercial promotion. And apart from children's media, think about the children's organizations, activities and distributed reading materials which are dependent on commercial involvement and sponsorship. I couldn't imagine the scene in which a parent-like adult tells children what to read or what to choose. It's much too patriarchal. I don't mean there shouldn't be rules on children advertisements. What I don't like most is that we always impose uniformity in all cases. Austrorus ( China) : Children advertisements shouldn't be banned. Some of them are also educational and very informative. I understand that some ads are misleading but to be honest, everything has a risk. It is not the children who endorse the products on commercials to be blamed for the bad influence of the advertisements aiming at children. Write your response on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.

(1)The senior partner, Oliver Lambert, studied the resume for the hundredth time and again found nothing he disliked about Mitchell Y. McDeere, at least not on paper. He had the brains, the ambition, the good looks. And he was hungry; with his background, he had to be. He was married, and that was mandatory. The firm had never hired an unmarried lawyer, and it frowned heavily on divorce, as well as womanizing and drinking. Drug testing was in the contract. He had a degree in accounting, passed the CPA exam the first time he took it and wanted to be a tax lawyer, which of course was a requirement with a tax firm. He was white, and the firm had never hired a black. They managed this by being secretive and clubby and never soliciting job applications. Other firms solicited, and hired blacks. This firm recruited, and remained lily white. Plus, the firm was in Memphis, and the top blacks wanted New York or Washington or Chicago. McDeere was a male, and there were no women in the firm. That mistake had been made in the mid-seventies when they recruited the number one grad from Harvard, who happened to be a she and a wizard at taxation. She lasted four turbulent years and was killed in a car wreck. (2)He looked good, on paper. He was their top choice. In fact, for this year there were no other prospects. The list was very short. It was McDeere, or no one. (3)The managing partner, Royce McKnight, studied a labeled "Mitchell Y. McDeere—Harvard." An inch thick with small print and a few photographs; it had been prepared by some ex-CIA agents in a private intelligence outfit in Bethesda. They were clients of the firm and each year did the investigating for no fee. It was easy work, they said, checking out unsuspecting law students. They learned, for instance, mat he preferred to leave the Northeast, that he was holding three job offers, two in New York and one in Chicago, and that the highest offer was $76,000 and the lowest was $68,000. He was in demand. He had been given the opportunity to cheat on a securities exam during his second year. He declined, and made the highest grade in the class. Two months ago he had been offered cocaine at a law school party. He said no and left when everyone began snorting. He drank an occasional beer, but drinking was expensive and he had no money. He owed close to $23,000 in student loans. He was hungry. (4)Royce McKnight flipped through the dossier and smiled. McDeere was their man. (5)Lamar Quin was thirty-two and not yet a partner. He had been brought along to look young and act young and project a youthful image for Bendini, Lambert Locke, which in fact was a young firm, since most of the partners retired in their late forties or early fifties with money to burn. He would make partner in this firm. With a six-figure income guaranteed for the rest of his life, Lamar could enjoy the twelve-hundred-dollar tailored suits that hung so comfortably from his tall, athletic frame. He strolled nonchalantly across the thousand-dollar-a-day suite and poured another cup of decaf. He checked his watch. He glanced at the two partners sitting at the small conference table near the windows. (6)Precisely at two-thirty someone knocked on me door. Lamar looked at the partners, who slid the resume and dossier into an open briefcase. All three reached for their jackets. Lamar buttoned his top button and opened the door.

As inevitably as human culture has changed with the passing of time, so does the environment.

[此试题无题干]

Passage Four

(1)Improving the balance between the working part of the day and the rest of it is a goal of a growing number of workers in rich Western countries. Some are turning away from the ideals of their parents, for whom work always came first: others with scarce skills are demanding more because they know they can get it. Employers, caught between a falling population of workers and tight controls on immigration, are eager to identify extra perks that will lure more "talent" their way. Just now they are focusing on benefits(especially flexible working)that offer employees more than just pay. (2)Some companies saw the change of mood some time ago. IBM has more than 50 different programmes promoting work-life balance and Bank of America over 30. But plenty of other firms remain unconvinced and many lack the capacity to cater to such ideas even if they wanted to. Helen Murlis, with Hay Group, a human-resources consultancy, sees a widening gap between firms at the creative end of employment and those that are not. (3)The chief component of almost all schemes to promote work-life balance is flexible working. This allows people to escape rigid nine-to-five schedules and work away from a formal office. IBM says that 40% of its employees today work off the company premises. For many businesses, flexible working is a necessity. Globalization has spread the hours in which workers need to communicate with each other and increased the call for flexible shifts. (4)Nella Barkley, an American who advises companies on work-life balance, says that large firms are beginning to understand the value of such schemes, "but only slowly". For most of them, they still mean little more than child care, health care and flexible working. (5)Yet some schemes go well beyond these first steps. American Century Investments, an investment manager in Kansas City, pays adoption expenses and the cost of home-fitness equipment for its employees. Rob Marcolina, a consultant with Bain & Company based in Los Angeles, was allowed time off to marry his partner in Canada Mr Marcolina, who has an MBA from the high-ranked Kellogg business school, says his employer's understanding makes him want to be "part of Bain for some time". (6)Businesses have other good reasons for improving employees' work-life balance. Wegmans Food Markets, a grocery chain based in Rochester, New York, frequently appears near the top of lists of the best employers in America It has a broad range of flexible-work programmes, which gives it one of the lowest rates of employment turnover in its industry — 8% a year for full-time workers, compared with 19% across the industry. (7)Simple programmes can be surprisingly cost-effective. IBM, for instance, is spending $50m over five years on "dependant-care" facilities for its employees. Although that sounds generous, it is the e-quivalent of little more than $30 for each IBM employee every year. That is far cheaper than a pay rise and probably a better way to retain talented mothers and fathers. Ernst & Young, a global accounting firm, has a low-cost range of initiatives called "People First". It provides breaks for people to provide care and has over 2,300 flexi-time employees in the United States. James Freer, a senior executive, says he is "absolutely convinced" the initiatives help produce better financial results. (8)DeAnne Aguirre, a mother of four and a senior partner in San Francisco with Booz Allen Hamil-ton(BAH), says "it is easy to make the business case" for work-life balance,programmes at the consultancy by looking at attrition rates. BAH calculated that it was investing more than $2m in turning a raw recruit into a partner, an investment it should be reluctant to write off. Coming, an American glass company, reckons that it costs 1.5 times a worker's salary and benefits to replace him. If it can retain just 20 workers a year who would otherwise have left, Corning reckons it would produce annual savings of $2.6m. (9)The spread of flexible work has come about at least partly as a result of initiatives to keep women workers. Companies have had to offer extended periods of leave for them to look after dependants(young and old), and flexible working in between. At BAH, women partners take an average of eight-and-a-half extended breaks during their careers. Men take an average of one-and-a-half. Ernst & Young, keen to show that part-time workers can also become partners, recently made the first such appointment in Houston, Texas. (10)Some of these initiatives are spreading even to the castles of binge working, such as investment banks. Business schools are now climbing on the bandwagon, too. In October Tuck School at Dartmouth, New Hampshire, will start a course on returning to corporate life after an extended absence. Called "Back in Business", the 16-day, $12,000 re-entry programme is open only to students with "work experience in a high-potential career". (11)The majority will inevitably be mothers wanting to rejoin the workforce. But fathers are also asking for sabbaticals(公休假). Work-life balance "is not just a women's issue" any more, says Ted Childs, who is in charge of workforce diversity at IBM. "Men, too, are very concerned about it." (12)The demand is being stoked by the "Generation Y", the under-28s. They look sceptically at the idea of lifetime employment within a single organisation and they are wary of the commitment they believe too often drove their parents to the divorce courts. Hay's Ms Murlis says that today's business-school graduates are "looking for a workstyle to go with their lifestyle", not the other way round. They are happy to binge-work for a while, but in return want extended sabbaticals. (13)Many of the more imaginative schemes come from organisations that are not under pressure to report quarterly to Wall Street. Wegmans and American Century Investments are family-controlled businesses and the big accounting firms and consultancies, such as Ernst & Young, KPMG, Bain and BAH, are partnerships. This allows them to take a longer-term view of growth and costs. (14)To some extent, the proliferation of work-life-balance schemes is a function of today's labour market. Companies in knowledge-based industries worry about the shortage of skills and how they are going to persuade talented people to work for them. Although white-collar workers are more likely to be laid off nowadays, they are also likely to get rehired. Unemployment among college graduates in America is just over 2%. The same competition for scarce talent is evident in Britain. (15)For some time to come, talented people in the West will demand more from employers, and clever employers will create new gewgaws to entice them to join. Those employers should note that for a growing number of these workers the most appealing gewgaw of all is the freedom to work as and when they please.

Advice for Students: How to Talk to Professors I. IntroductionA. Professors: normal people, just like everyone elseB. Students: learn to interact with themwith basic respect and【T1】______【T1】______C. Finding: professors react with the same II. Things for you to keep in mindA. Call them by the【T2】______ title【T2】______— "Professor" is usually acceptable, unless told otherwiseB.【T3】______【T3】______— try to be【T4】______ to professors【T4】______— otherwise they're not going to respond as expectedC. Be prepared to do the work—【T5】______ an assignment or test you missed【T5】______— don't expect professors to say "don't worry about it"D. Be clear and【T6】______【T6】______— get to the point quickly— tell professors【T7】______ and be done with it【T7】______E. Pay social calls— talk to your professors— build【T8】______ with them【T8】______— at least let them remember you III. Things for you to remember not to doA. Do not【T9】______ under any circumstances【T9】______— flirtation will make professors【T10】______【T10】______B. Do not always prepare for【T11】______【T11】______— sometimes professors won't or can't help you— you need to【T12】______ into damage control【T12】______C. Do not threaten— professors aren't going to respond very well to【T13】______【T13】______IV. SummaryA. Professors usually respond in kind ifthey receive open and decent【T14】______【T14】______B. They respect commitment and【T15】______【T15】______

In today's competitive world when parents are busy accomplishing their career goals, more and more children are being brought up by their grandparents. It is reported that 90 percent of children under 3-year-old in Shanghai are being looked after by a grandparent. The following are opinions from different sides. Read the excerpts carefully and write your response in about 300 words, in which you should: 1. summarize briefly the opinions from different sides; 2. give your comment. Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.Parents RexTEC (China) : I'd like to take care of my child by myself, but the reality is that my wife and I have to work in another city which is far away from our hometown. We have to leave our child in the hometown with my parents before we have the ability to move our baby and parents to the city. I think most young couples who are working far away from home face a similar predicament. RAJEE (India) : Grandparents are indeed an important part of a growing child's life. But in my case they are so indulgent that it can really get very annoying. I am unable to discipline my daughter and inculcate good habits as they indulge her every whim and it is to them that she runs when she gets in trouble.Grandparents Austin (the UK) : As a grandparent in the UK of four, ages 12, 9, 8 and 4, I can say that a fairly high percent of grandparents that have close contact with their own children do take steps to "day sit" their grandchildren while their own children go to work. My children, two girls, live very close to me, both living on the same street. We do look after children very often, because both my girls work in our business so we all pull together as and when needed. ROGERINCA (the US) : I think that whenever possible a child should be raised by his or her parents. This is what is most natural and what is best for the child. Taking me myself as an example, with advancing age I find I am not having enough energy or able to physically do all the things to my grandson that younger parents are able to do with their child.Experts Wyldsyde (Australia) : Grandparents raised their children and should not be the everyday parents of their grandchildren. Raising children is the parents' job. I see people all too often dumping their children off on other people for no other reason than they want to go partying or for other reasons. You had the kids, now raise them. If it means that one of you works nights while the other works days then so be it. Stop pushing your duties off on other people. Bex ( China) : It is not a good phenomenon that grandparents look after grandchildren. Grandparents have been working all their lives so they deserve a break. Most importantly, the parents should take more responsibilities of their own children. If you decide to have a kid, you'd better be capable to look after him or her. SharkMinnow (Canada) : In Canada, children are not brought up by their grandparents. Young adults are taught to be independent and take care of their own kids. Grandparents can visit, but they do not live in the house or raise the children. If young people in Canada are not independent, financially stable to have children, then they are discouraged from doing so. Many Westerners think Chinese are immature and spoil this way in the fact that they just have their parents raise their kids. Write your response on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.

文人是可嘉奖的，因为他虚心，知道上进，并不拿身份，并不安本分。真的，文人对于自己，有时比旁人对于他还看得轻贱；他只恨自己是个文人，并且不惜费话、费力、费时、费纸来证明他不愿意做文人，不满意做文人。在这个年头儿，这还算不得识时务的俊杰么?所谓文人也者，照理应该指一切投稿、著书、写文章的人说。但是，在事实上，文人一个名词的应用只限于诗歌、散文、小说、戏曲之类的作者。

Writing a Literature ReviewI. Definition of Literature Review— It's a(n)【T1】_____ and discussion of the literature【T1】______in a given area of study.— It is organized in time order or in【T2】_____ order.【T2】______— It is not an【T3】_____, nor a summary.【T3】______II. Purpose and Audience of a Literature Review— to【T4】_____specific arguments and ideas in a field of study【T4】______— to examine the【T5】_____ or areas needing further study【T5】______— to demonstrate the【T6】_____ and validity of the research【T6】______— different audience will require different types of literature review III. Questions a Literature Review Should Answer— What have been done?— What【T7】_____ have been used? Are they improved?【T7】______— What could be improved?— What are the future directions in this subject?— What could you【T8】_____to the field?【T8】______V. Length of a Literature Review— A full chapter or at least【T9】_____pages for a thesis or dissertation【T9】______— A few pages for an assignmentVI.【T10】_____ of a Literature Review【T10】______— Group sources in order of【T11】_____【T11】______Papers focusing on【T12】_____, historiographical papers etc.【T12】______Example: reviews on mental illness— Group sources in terms of topics they coverA stronger method, because it helps avoid【T13】_____the sources【T13】______Example: If a paper is about changes in popular music, possiblesections are researches about production of music,dissemination of music,【T14】_____【T14】______and historical studies of popular music.— REMEMBER:Literature review is the discussion of【T15】_____ among previous【T15】______researches and your work

In June of 1836, Nathan Rothschild left London for Frankfurt to attend the wedding of his son Lionel to his niece (Lionel's cousin Charlotte), and to discuss with his brothers the entry of Nathan's children into the family business. Nathan was probably the richest man in the world, at least in liquid assets. He could, needless to say, afford whatever he pleased. Then 59 years old, Nathan was in good health if somewhat portly, a bundle of energy, untiring in his devotion to work and indomitable of temperament. When he left London, however, he was suffering from an inflammation on his lower back, toward the base of his spine. (A German physician diagnosed it as a boil, but it may have been an abscess.) In spite of medical treatment, this festered and grew painful. No matter: Nathan got up from his sickbed and attended the wedding. Had he been bedridden, the wedding would have been celebrated in the hotel. For all his suffering, Nathan continued to deal with business matters, with his wife taking dictation. Meanwhile the great Dr. Travers was summoned from London, and when he could not cure the problem, a leading German surgeon was called in, presumably to open and clean the wound. Nothing availed; the poison spread; and on 28 July 1836, Nathan died. We are told that the Rothschild pigeon post took the message back to London: He is dead. Nathan Rothschild died probably of staphylococcus or streptococcus septicemia—what used to be called blood poisoning. In the absence of more detailed information, it is hard to say whether the boil (abscess) killed him or secondary contamination from the surgeons' knives. This was before the germ theory existed, hence before any notion of the importance of cleanliness. No bactericides then, much less antibiotics. And so the man who could buy anything died, of a routine infection easily cured today for anyone who could find his way to a doctor or a hospital, even a pharmacy. Medicine has made enormous strides since Nathan Rothschild's time. But better, more efficacious medicine—the treatment of illness and repair of injury—is only part of the story. Much of the increased life expectancy of these years has come from gains in prevention, cleaner living rather than better medicine. Clean water and expeditious waste removal, plus improvements in personal cleanliness, have made all the difference. For a long time the great killer was gastrointestinal infection, transmitted from waste to hands to food to digestive tract; and this unseen but deadly enemy, ever present, was reinforced from time to time by epidemic microbes such as the vibrio of cholera. The best avenue of transmission was the common privy, where contact with wastes was fostered by want of paper for cleaning and lack of washable underclothing. Who lives in unwashed woolens—and woolens do not wash well—will itch and scratch. So hands were dirty, and the great mistake was failure to wash before eating. This was why those religious groups that prescribed washing—the Jews, the Muslims—had lower disease and death rates-, which did not always count to their advantage. People were easily persuaded that if fewer Jews died, it was because they had poisoned Christian wells. The answer was found, not in changed religious belief or doctrine, but in industrial innovation. The principal product of the new technology that we know as the Industrial Revolution was cheap, washable cotton; and along with it mass-produced soap made of vegetable oils. For the first time, the common man could afford underwear, once known as body linen because that was the washable fabric that the well-to-do wore next to their skin. He (or she) could wash with soap and even bathe, although too much bathing was seen as a sign of dirtiness. Why would clean people have to wash so often? No matter. Personal hygiene changed drastically, so that commoners of the late 19th and early 20th century often lived cleaner than the kings and queens of a century earlier. The third element in the decline of disease and death was better nutrition. This owed much to increases in food supply, even more to better, faster transport. Famines, often the product of local shortages, became rarer; diet grew more varied and richer in animal protein. These changes translated among other things into taller, stronger physiques. This was a much slower process than those medical and hygienic gains that could be instituted from above, in large part because it depended on habit and taste as well as income. As late as World War Ⅰ, the Turks who fought the British expeditionary force at Gallipoli were struck by the difference in height between the steak- and mutton- fed troops from Australia and New Zealand and the stunted youth of British mill towns. And anyone who follows immigrant populations from poor countries into rich will note that the children are taller and better knit than their parents.

我以为，快乐的面貌总有成千上万，且是变化多端的。有时候它的出现过于意外，令人大喜大悲，但更多时候，它出现的方式却又是那么隐蔽，甚至让人觉得它平淡得近乎不存在。当然意外式的快乐，出现的几率微乎其微。而平淡式的快乐却正好相反，它产生于生活的角角落落，只待人们去发掘，去感悟。所以在寻找快乐的同时，更要享受生活，这才是快乐的不二秘诀。

为什么要保护物种和语种?首先在于权利。 每一物种都有在地球上生存的权利，每一个小民族都有使用祖先传递给他们的语言的权利，那几乎是他们最重要的特征。其次，这种保护对其他物种，对其他人，对全人类都有好处。文化储藏和积淀在语言中。人类文化的多样性储藏在其多样的语种中。一个强健的生态系必然是多样的，反过来这种多样性又可以帮助它适应和安渡环境的变迁。正如同一个愚钝的村妇宁愿牺牲一点便利，也会拒绝将她的全部鸡蛋放在一个篮子里。

Many of the companies with commercial products are experiencing the unusual hard-time of pioneers, including production kinks, cautious customers, and the impact of the recessions.

(1)Government scientists listed formaldehyde(甲醛)as a Carcinogen, substance that produces cancer, and said it is found in worrisome quantities in glued board, particle board, and hair salons. They also said that styrene(苯乙烯), which is used in boats, bathtubs and in disposable foam plastic cups and plates, may cause cancer but is generally found in such low levels in consumer products that risks are low. (2)Frequent and intense exposures in manufacturing plants are far more worrisome man the intermittent contact that most consumers have, but government scientists said that consumers should still avoid contact with formaldehyde and styrene along with six other chemicals that were added Friday to the government's official Report on Carcinogens. Its release was delayed for years because of intense lobbying from the chemical industry, which disputed its findings. John Bucher, associate director of me National Toxicology Program, which produced me report, said evidence of formaldehyde's carcinogenicity was far stronger man for styrene and that consumers were more likely to be exposed to potentially dangerous quantities of formaldehyde. (3)The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration warned in April that a hair-care product, Brazilian Blowout Acai Professional Smoothing Solution, contained unacceptable levels of formaldehyde, and salon workers have reported headaches, nosebleeds, burning eyes, and vomiting after using the product and other hair-straighteners. (4)Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer at me American Cancer Society, said mat formaldehyde is both worrisome and inescapable. "It's the smell in new houses, and it's in cosmetics like nail polish," he said. "All a reasonable person can do is manage their exposure and decrease it to as little as possible. It's everywhere." Consumers can reduce their exposure to formaldehyde by avoiding pressed-wood products or buying only those that are labeled as U.L.E.F.(ultra-low-emitting formaldehyde), N.A.F.(no added formaldehyde)or C.A.R.B.(California Air Resources Board)Phase 1 or Phase 2 compliant. (5)Styrene is mostly a concern for workers who build boats, car parts, bathtubs and shower stalls. Studies of workers exposed to high levels of styrene have found increased risks of genetic damage to white blood cells. There is also some evidence that styrene increases the risks of cancer among styrene workers, the report found. Consumers can be exposed to styrene from the fumes of building materials, photocopiers and tobacco smoke. As for styrene's presence in plastic utensils and other consumer products, Dr. Brawley likened the risk from such products to that of coffee and cellphones—uncertain and slight. (6)An industry spokesman said the action will hurt small businesses. "It will unfairly scare workers, plant neighbors and could have a chilling effect on the development of new products," said Tom Dobbins of the American Composites Manufacturers Association. "And our companies are primarily small businesses, and this could hurt jobs and local economies." Cal Dooley, president and chief executive of the American Chemistry Council, a trade association that represents companies that make and use polystyrene and formaldehyde, rejected the report's conclusions. "We are extremely concerned that politics may have hijacked the scientific process," he said. Some in the industry have promised to continue fighting the report, and will appeal elements of its findings. But some already have begun using alternatives to formaldehyde in their products. (7)This is the 12th cancer list released by the toxicology program at the National Institutes of Health, and each has been controversial. In 2000, controversy erupted over the ninth report's listing of secondhand smoke and tanning beds. The 11th report's listing in 2005 of naphthalene(卫生球), caused similar concern. That this latest report would warn about formaldehyde and styrene has been suspected by industry since shortly after the release of the previous report, and industry groups have fought the process behind its release ever since. As a result, the government added numerous public comment periods to the process, and even after it was written, officials at the Department of Health and Human Services delayed the report's release for months to cope with industry complaints.

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