Passage 1

    The Information Highway is the road that links computer users to a large number of on-line services: the Web, e-mail, and software, to mention just a few. Not long ago, the information Highway was a new road, with not many users. Now, everyone seems to want to take a drive, with over 30 million families connected worldwide. Not surprisingly, this well-traveled highway is starting to look like a well-traveled highway. Traffic jams can cause many serious problems, forcing the system to close down for repair. Naturally, accidents will happen on such a crowded road, and usually victims are some files, gone forever. Then, of course, there's Mr. Cool, with his new broad-band connection, who speeds down the highway faster than most of us can go. But don't trick yourself; he pays for that speeding.

Passage 2

    Want to know more about global warming and how you can help prevent it? Doctor Herman Friedman, who is considered a leading expert on the subject, will speak at Grayson Hall next Friday. Friedman studied environmental science at three well-known universities around the world before becoming a professor in the subject. He has also traveled around the world observing environmental concerns. The gradual bleaching (变白) of the Grate Barrier Reef, which came into the public eye in 2002, is his latest interest. Signed copies of his colorful book, which was published just last month, will be on sale after his talk.

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    A private sixth grade is set to start its lessons at 1.30 pm every day because the school's teacher thinks his students will study better after a morning lie-in (懒觉).

    Instead of rising early for a 9 am start, students at the ￡15,000-a-year Hampton Court House, in East Molesey, Surrey, will get to enjoy a lie-in and work from 1.30 pm until 7pm. Head teacher Guy Holloway says the move for all sixth grade students, set to begin from September, has been made according to research by scientists. He predicts (预测) that not only will his students aged 16 and upwards get great night's sleep, but their productivity (效率) will also be improved.

    The co-educational school will have the latest start time in the UK, and will be the only one to begin lessons in the afternoon.

    Experts say young people are programmed to get up later, and that rather than laziness it is simply a shift (转变) in their body clocks.

    There are 168 hours in a week and how productive they are depends on how they choose to use those hours,' said Mr Holloway. 'At Hampton Court House we don't think we have the answer for everybody; it's about what works in our school. We want to get them into a condition where they can get great sleep and study well.' He said students would also benefit from reduced journey times as they travel to and from school after rush hour (上下班高峰时间).

    Year 10 student Gabriel Purcell-Davis will be one of the first of 30 A-level students to start at the later time. 'I want to wake up in my bed, not in my maths lesson,' said the 15-year-old. Lessons for all other students at the school will still begin at 9 am as usual.

    Wearing a red nose for a day may seem like a strange way to raise money for charity. However, it seems to work in Britain

Red Nose Day (RND) is well-known in the UK. The aim of the day is to raise money for a charity called Comic Relief which helps people in need in Africa and in the UK.

    Red nose?

    Comic Relief was started in 1985 by the scriptwriter Richard Curtis. It's called Red Nose Day, as on this day many people buy a plastic red nose to wear! The money made from selling red noses goes to the charity.

    When is RND?

    Red Nose Day takes place every two years in the spring and is now so famous that many people consider it to be an unofficial national holiday. For example, many schools have non-uniform days. This year Red Nose Day was on 13^th March 2015.

    Money

    Across Britain, people are encouraged to “Do Something Funny for Money”. The money that is collected helps children to go to school, and educates the adults with HIV and AIDS. Comic Relief also works closely with disabled and elderly people to make sure they have equal rights and a better life.

    So, if you are ever in the UK on Red Nose Day, now you know why you may find normal people wearing red noses and doing silly things! It's all for a good cause! If you want to find out more about the day, have a look at the official Read Nose Day website.

    In the depths of the French Guianese rainforest, there still remain unusual groups of (土著的）people. Surprisingly, these people live largely by their own Laws and their own social customs. And yet, people in this area are in fact French citizens because it has been a colony of the French Republic since 1946. In theory，they should live by the French law. However, their remote locations mean that the French law is often ignored or unknown, thus making them into an interesting area of “lawlessness” in the world.

    The lives of these people have finally been recorded thanks to the effects of a Frenchman form Paris called Gin. Gin spent five months in early 2015 exploring the most remote comers of thin area, which sits on the edge of the Amazon rainforest, with half its population of only 250,000 living in its capital, Cayenne.

    “I have a special love for the French Guianese people. I have worked there on and off for almost ten years," says Gin. "I've been able to keep firm friendships with them. Thus I have been allowed to gain access to their living environment. I don't see it as a lawless Und. But rather I Me it as an area of freedom."

    “I wanted to show the audience a photographic record touching upon the uncivilized life," continues Gin. “I prefer to work in black and white, which allows me to show different specific worlds more clearly.”

    His black-and-white pictures present a world almost lost in time. These pictures show people seemingly pushed into a world that they were unprepared for. These local citizens now have to balance their traditional self-supporting hunting lifestyle with the lifestyle offered by the modern French Republic, which bring with it not only necessary state welfare, but also alcoholism, betrayal and even suicide.

    For generations, cereal（麦片） has been the base of the American breakfast, but it now seems to be losing some of its advantages. Sales of breakfast cereal in the US are not so popular.

    The consumer's desire for a healthier way to start the day is now at its highest ever. Shoppers are seeking out “high protein(蛋白质) and fiber content and natural ingredients,” an expert said in a report. “Consumers today believe cereal is overly processed and doesn't contain enough nutrients.” That means cereal is facing the competition from fresh fruit, yogurt, breakfast bars and drinks, and even all-day breakfast meals at McDonald's or other fast-food chains.

    Consumers are increasingly seeking products that match their personal definition of real food, and that can mean foods that are less processed. Another big challenge for the industry is the ever-changing pattern of breakfast eaters, with an emphasis increasingly being placed on satisfying time-squeezed lifestyles. This desire for convenience seems to be especially increasingly being placed on satisfying time-squeezed lifestyles. This desire for convenience seems to be especially evident among young people who believe that cereal is inconvenient because it involves cleaning a dish afterward.

    Then there's the issue of price. Brand-name cereal prices jumped after the financial crisis in 2008, owing largely to the higher prices of grains and other ingredients. It's only in the last two years that prices have stabilized（稳定）.

    However, manufacturers and industry analysts say that if breakfast cereal makers can keep on adapting to consumers' changing needs, especially among young people, the business can grow again; besides, young people are still eating a lot of cereal, just not always for breakfast. Ready-to-eat cereal is in 90 percent of all households and nearly 94 percent of young households. For this group, cereal is more than just a breakfast item. It is also a popular snack option.

Welcome to Student Voice

    What is it?

    Student Voice aims to promote student engagement and success in Ontario's schools by listening to and learning from students. Student Voice provides you, the students, with a variety of ways to share your ideas with your school, the education community and the ministry about what would help support your engagement in your learning. Student Voice can help you take action to shape your learning environment while you build your skills.

    Check out this video to get an idea of what's changing for Ontario students!

    It all starts with you.

    Speak up! You have a voice and we want to hear what you have to say about your education. Your ideas and actions can make a difference in Ontario's publicly funded education system. We want to help you make your school a place where everyone feels welcome and where you are empowered to speak your mind, get involved and become active citizens and leaders.

    Students told as that you want to:

    ●share your ideas with government on how to strengthen student engagement and make Ontario's publicly funded education system even better.

     ●have a school culture where all students feel and know that they belong.

    ●work as partners with your teachers, and participate in school decisions that will shape your lives and the lives of other students.

    This is your education. Speak up and get involved! Let's all work together to ensure Ontario's publicly funded education system remains among the best in the world.

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