Mum: Let"s go and see Grandma some time during the break. Daughter: Great. What time? Mum:______.

There is virtually no limit to how one can serve community interests, from spending a few hours a week with some charitable organizations to practically fulltime work for asocial agency. Just as there are opportunities for voluntary service【1】(VSO) for young people before they take up fulltime employment, so there are opportunities for overseas service for【2】technicians in developing countries. Some people, particularly those who retire early, offer their technical and business skills in countries【3】there is a special need. So in considering voluntary or paid community service there are more opportunities than there ever were when one first began work. Most voluntary organizations have only a small fulltime【4】, and depend very much on volunteers and part-timers. This means that working relationships are different from those in commercial organizations, and values may be different.【5】some ways they may seem more casual and less efficient, but one should not judge them by commercial criteria. The people who work with them do so for different reasons and with different【6】, both personal and organizational. One should not join them【7】to arm them with professional expertise; they must be joined with commitment to the cause, not business efficiency. Because salaries are small or non-existent. Many voluntary bodies offer modest expenses. But many retired people take part in community service for【8】, simply because they enjoy the work. Many community activities possible【9】retirement were also possible during one"s working life but they are to be undertaken no less seriously for that. Retired people who are just looking for something different or unusual to do should not consider【10】community service.

The climate of Earth is changing. Climatologists are confident that over the past century, the global average surface temperature has increased by about half a degree Celsius. This warming is thought to be at least partly the result of human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels and the clearing of forests for agriculture. As the global population grows and national economies expand, the global average temperature is expected to continue increasing by an additional 1.0℃ to 3.5℃ by the year 2100. Climate change is one of the most important environmental issues facing humankind. Understanding the potential impacts of climate change for natural ecosystems is essential if we are going to manage our environment to minimize the negative consequences of climate change and maximize the opportunities that it may offer. Because natural ecosystems are complex, nonlinear systems, it follows that their responses to climate change are likely to be complex. Climate change may affect natural ecosystems in a variety of ways. In the short term, climate change can alter the mix of plant species in land ecosystems such as grasslands. In the long term, climate change has the potential to dramatically alter the geographic distribution of major vegetation types—savannas, forests, and climate change can also potentially alter global ecosystem processes, including the cycling of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur. Moreover, changes in these ecosystem processes can affect and be affected by changes in the plant species of the ecosystem and vegetation type. All of the climate change—induced alterations of natural ecosystems affect the services that these ecosystems provide to humans. The global average surface temperature increase of half a degree. Celsius observed over the past century has been in part due to differential changes in daily maximum and minimum temperatures, resulting in a narrowing of the diurnal temperature range. Decreases in the diurnal temperature range were first identified in the United States, where large-area trends showed that maximum temperatures have remained constant or increased only slightly, whereas minimum temperatures have increased at a faster rate. In this issue, Alward et al report on the different sensitivities of rangeland plants to minimum temperatures increases.

Now, our biggest summertime question has been answered: Why do people look so much better in sunglasses? Vanessa Brown, a senior lecturer of art and design at Nottingham Trent University, gave an inside look into the connection between shades and sex appeal. According to Brown, sunglasses do a wide variety of positive things. They make up for any asymmetries(不对称), which relates directly to research proving that symmetrical faces are the most attractive ones. If you put on a pair of sunglasses, the lenses will instantly create a perfectly symmetrical face. Sunglasses also create the appearance of a defined bone structure on top of a relatively softer face. Additionally, people often form quick judgments about others by looking into their eyes. Through eye contact, we can determine someone"s confidence, sincerity and intelligence. If those eyes are shielded, though, a person is automatically unreadable. We take them for granted today, but sunglasses are a relatively modem everyday accessory(饰件). Sales started to pick up in the 1920s, but they didn"t become commonplace until about two decades after that. In their early days sunglasses were primarily used during risky water and snow sports, and were also associated with new technologies like airplane travel, which made them seem " daring and thoroughly modem. " Later, Hollywood stars of the 1950s and 60s started wearing sunglasses to defend themselves from being recognized by the public or harassed by paparazzi(狗仔队). Movie stars" adoption of the accessory strengthened the link between sunglasses and appeal.

Paul: Why did you tell the whole world about my past? Jeffrey: ______.

Is there something as truth? For a good many centuries "the search for truth" has been【B1】the noblest activity of the human mind, but the seekers after truth have come to such【B2】conclusions that it often seems that very little progress has been made.【B3】, there are many people who reel that we are actually going backward. They【B4】, often contemptuously, that we have accumulated more "knowledge" than our ancestors, but they think we are farther from the truth than ever, or even that we have【B5】the truth that we once possessed. If people look for anything long enough without finding it, the question naturally arises【B6】the thing is really there to find. You have seen a picture of an animal with a lion"s head, a goat"s body, and a serpent"s tail—and maybe an eagle"s wings for good【B7】There is plenty of evidence that each part of this animal【B8】—but there is no【B9】evidence that the parts ever occur in this combination. It is at least conceivable that the seekers after "truth" have made a similar mistake and invented an【B10】combination.

Experts predict that China"s healthcare market will have an annual growth of 6 to 8 per cent in the next few years, making it one of the potentially most prosperous. In Shanghai, annual medical expenditure is estimated to be 16 billion yuan (U. S. 93 billion). With an increasingly【C1】______population, the growing consumption power and longer life【C2】______of local residents, the medical market has great opportunities. However, limited medical resources cannot meet people"s needs【C3】______financial deficits in State-owned hospitals. 【C4】______, there is room for a range of different medical organizations. As is the case with many State-owned enterprises, public hospitals in the past half century have learned a lot of bad habits: 【C5】______management, over-staffing and bureaucratic operating procedures. Being a member of World Trade Organization (WTO), China has to【C6】______its promise to open the health industry to foreign capital in coming years. By then, public hospitals will be facing fierce competition from Western giants they have never prepared for. So it"s quite urgent【C7】______them to learn how to operate as an enterprise and how to survive in the competitive market economy of the future. As a【C8】______, the healthcare sector was first opened to domestic private investors. Since the first private hospital opened in 1999, private investors from Shenzhen, Sichuan and Zhejiang provinces have been scrambling to enter Shanghai. 【C9】______show that about 20 private hospitals have been set up in the city, although this number, 【C10】______with more than 500 public hospitals, is still quite low.

It is said that in England death is pressing, in Canada inevitable and in California optional Small wonder. Americans" life expectancy has nearly doubled over the past century. Failing hips can be replaced, clinical depression controlled, cataracts removed in a 30-minutes surgical procedure. Such advances offer the aging population a quality of life that was unimaginable when I entered medicine 50 years ago. But not even a great health-care system can cure death—and our failure to confront that reality now threatens this greatness of OURS. Death is normal; we are genetically programmed to disintegrate and perish, even under ideal conditions. We all understand that at some level, yet as medical consumers we treat death as a problem to be solved. Shielded by third-party payers from the cost of our care, we demand everything that can possibly be done for us, even if it"s useless. The most obvious example is late-stage cancer care. Physicians-frustrated by their in- ability to cure the disease and fearing loss of hope in the patien—too often offer aggressive treatment far be- yond what is scientifically justified. In 1950, the U.S. spent $12.7 billion on health care. In 2002, the cost will be $1,540 billion. Anyone can see this trend is unsustainable. Yet few seem willing to try to reverse it. Some scholars conclude that a government with finite resources should simply stop paying for medical care that sustains life beyond a certain age—say 83 or so. Former Colorado governor Richard Lamm has been quoted as saying that the old and infirm "have a duty todie and get out of the way", so that younger, healthier people can realize their potential. I would not go that far. Energetic people now routinely work through their 60s and beyond, and remain dazzlingly productive. At 78, Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone jokingly claims to be 53. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O"Connor is in her 70s, and former surgeon general C. Everett Koop chairs an Internet start-up in his 80s. These leaders are living proof that prevention works and that we can manage the health problems that come naturally with age. As a mere 68-year-old, I wish to age as productively as they have. Yet there are limits to what a society can spend in this pursuit. Ask a physician, I know the most costly and dramatic measures may be ineffective and painful. I also know that people in Japan and Sweden, countries that spend far less on medical care, have achieved longer, healthier lives than we have. As a nation, we may be overfunding the quest for unlikelycures while underfunding research on humbler therapies that could improve people"s lives.

The Government has therefore agreed to pay authorities extra sums to ______ for their financial losses.

Passer-by： Is there a taxi stand on this street?Local resident： Let me see. Oh, yes, ______.Passer-by： Oh yes, I see it.

A land free from destruction, plus wealth, natural resources, and labor supply—all these were important factors, in helping England to become the center for the Industrial Revolution.【31】they were not enough. Something else was needed to start the industrial process. That "something special" was men―【32】individuals who could invent machines, find new sources of power, and establish business organizations to reshape society. The men who【33】the machines of the Industrial Revolution came from many backgrounds and many occupations. Many of them were【34】inventors than scientists. A man who is a pure scientist is primarily interested in doing his research【35】. He is not necessarily working so that his findings can be used. An inventor or one interested in applied science is【36】trying to make something that has a concrete idea. He may try to solve a problem by using the theories【37】science or by experimenting through trial and error. Regardless of his method, he is working to obtain a specific result: the construction of a harvesting machine, the burning of a light bulb, or one of【38】other objectives. Most of the people who developed the machines of the Industrial Revolution were inventors, not trained scientists. A few were both scientists and inventors. Even those who had【39】or no training in science might not have made their inventions if a groundwork had not been laid by scientists years【40】.

In recent years, railroads have been combining with each other, merging into super systems, causing heightened concerns about monopoly. As recently as 1995, the top four railroads accounted for under 70 percent of the total ten-miles moved by rails. Next year, after a series of mergers is completed, just four rail roads will control well over 90 percent of all the freight moved by major rail carriers. Supporters of the new super systems argue that these mergers will allow for substantial cost reductions and better coordinated service. Any threat of monopoly, they argue, is removed by fierce competition from trucks. But many shippers complain that for heavy bulk commodities traveling long distances, such as coal, chemicals, and grain, trucking is too costly and the railroads therefore have them by the throat. The vast consolidation within the rail industry means that most shippers are served by only one rail company. Railroads typically charge such "captive" shippers 20 to 30 percent more than they do when another railroad is competing for the business. Shippers who feel they are being overcharged have the right to appeal to the federal government"s Surface Transportation Board for rate relief, but the process is expensive, time consuming, and will work only in truly extreme cases. Railroads justify rate discrimination against captive shippers on the grounds that in the long nm it reduces everyone"s cost. If railroads charged all customers the same average rate, they argue, shippers who have the option of switching to trucks or other forms of transportation would do so, leaving remaining customers to shoulder the cost of keeping up the line. It% theory to which many economists subscribe, but in practice it often leaves railroads in the position of determining which companies will flourish and which will fail. "Do we really want railroads to be the arbiters of who wins and who loses in the marketplace?" asks Martin Bercovici, a Washington lawyer who frequently represents shipper. Many captive shippers also worry they will soon be his with a round of huge rate increases. The railroad industry as a whole, despite its brightening fortuning fortunes, still does not earn enough to cover the cost of the capital it must invest to keep up with its surging traffic. Yet railroads continue to borrow billions to acquire one another, with Wall Street cheering them on. Consider the $10.2 billion bid by Norfolk Southern and CSX to acquire Conrail this year. Conrail"s net railway operating income in 1996 was just $427 million, less than half of the carrying costs of the transaction. Who"s going to pay for the rest of the bill? Many captive shippers fear that they will, as Norfolk Southern and CSX increase their grip on the market.

A: What do you plan to do for the next weekeed? So far I have no plans at all. B:______

The view over a valley of a tiny village with thatched(草盖的) roof around a church; a drive through a narrow village street lined with thatched cottages painted pink or white; the sight over the rolling hills of a pretty collection of thatched farm buildings—these are still common sights in parts of England. Most people will agree that the thatched roof is an essential part of the attraction of the English countryside. Thatching is in fact the oldest of all the building crafts practiced in the British Isles(英伦诸岛). Although thatch has always been used for cottage and farm buildings, it was once used for castles and churches, too. Thatching is a solitary(独自的) craft, which often runs in families. The craft of thatching as it is practiced today has changed very little since the Middle Ages. Over 800 full-time thatchers are employed in England and Wales today, maintaining and renewing the old rods as well as thatching newer houses. Many property owners choose thatch not only for its beauty but because they know it will keep them cool in summer and warm in winter. In fact, if we look at developing countries, over half the world lives under thatch, but they all do it in different ways. People in developing countries are often reluctant to go back to traditional materials and would prefer modern buildings. However, they may lack the money to allow them to import the necessary materials.Their temporary mud huts with thatched roofs of wild grasses often only last six months. Thatch which has been done the British way lasts from twenty to sixty years, and is an effective defence against the heat.

In order to work here the foreigner needs a work permit, which must be【B1】for by his prospective employer. The problem here is that the Department of Employment has the right to【B2】or refuse these permits, and there is little that can be【B3】about it, it would be extremely unwise【B4】a foreign visitor to work without a permit, since anyone doing so is【B5】to immediate deportation. There are some【B6】to this rule, most notably people from the Common Market countries, who are【B7】to work without permits and who are often given【B8】residence permits of up to five years. Some【B9】people, such as doctors, foreign journalists, authors and others, can work without【B10】. The problem with the Act is not just that some of its rules are unfair but the way it is administered, and the people who administer it.

A: Excuse me. Where is the nearest petrol station? B: ______.

Now our biggest summertime question has been answered: Why do people look so much better in sunglasses? Vanessa Brown, a senior lecturer of art and design at Nottingham Trent University, gave an inside look into the connection between shades and sex appeal. According to Brown, sunglasses do a wide variety of positive things. They make up for any asymmetries(不对称), which relates directly to research proving that symmetrical faces are the most attractive ones. If you put on a pair of sunglasses, the lenses will instantly create a perfectly symmetrical face. Sunglasses also create the appearance of a defined bone structure on top of a relatively softer face. Additionally, people often form quick judgments about others by looking into their eyes. Through eye contact, we can determine someone"s confidence, sincerity and intelligence. If those eyes are shielded, though, a person is automatically unreadable. We take them for granted today, but sunglasses are a relatively modern everyday accessory(饰件). Sales started to pick up in the 1920s, but they didn"t become commonplace until about two decades after that. In their early days sunglasses were primarily used during risky water and snow sports, and were also associated with new technologies like airplane travel, which made them seem "daring and thoroughly modern". Later Hollywood stars of the 1950s and 60s started wearing sunglasses to defend themselves from being recognized by the public or harassed by paparazzi(狗仔队). Movie stars" adoption of the accessory strengthened the link between sunglasses and appeal.

A: Are you ready for the test tomorrow? B：______A: Come on. I am sure you will do well.

More thunderstorms.______in summer than any other time of the year.

It is curious how often sympathy for the old and infirm takes a form which actually humiliates them. Their friends, with good will, sometimes lean forward to rearrange their neckwear, touching their hair or patting their faces—things they would never presume to do, unasked, to one of their contemporaries. An equally humiliating habit is to talk about old people in front of them as if they were not there, discussing their health. It is now universally accepted that children should be encouraged to do as much as they can for themselves in order to develop their brains and muscles, but so few people today seem to have time to allow the elderly the same means of keeping their minds and muscles active. They perform innumerable services for the old that they would be much better left to do, even with a struggle, for themselves. Convenient flats, "motherly" visitors, or organized entertainments cannot make up for the fundamental need which must be satisfied the need to retain to the end of life human dignity and the respect of one"s fellows.