Many people may not know the name of the girl in the photo but her large and clear eyes can often be seen in newspapers.

    Her name is Su Mingjuan and now she's more than 30 years old. In 1991, when Su was only 8 years old, Xie Hailong, a photographer from China Youth Daily, took a picture of her in a classroom which was in a poor condition in Anhui.

    The photo was later used as a poster for Project Hope. It has become a symbol of the country's efforts to make more people realize the importance of education. Her large and clear eyes crying for knowledge in the picture have moved a big number of people across China, who have donated (捐赠） money to help children continue their schooling since then.

    Having received help from Project Hope, Su herself has also been helping poor students. She began to study at Anhui University in 2003. After entering college, she wrote to the China Youth Development Foundation, the organizer of Project Hope, to transfer her living allowance (补助) of 900 yuan a term to other students in need. And she began to do part-time jobs to make money. After graduation, Su found a job in a bank. Since she started working, she has donated 1,000 yuan every year.

    Since it was started in 1989, Project Hope has received about 13 billion yuan in donations from home and abroad. And the money has been used to build over 19,000 primary schools and help over 5. 5 million children.

    Deserts are found where there is little rainfall or where rain for a whole year falls in only a few weeks' time. Ten inches of rain may be enough for many plants to survive (存活) if the rain is spread throughout the year, If it falls within one or two months and the rest of the year is dry, those plants may die and a desert may form.

    Sand begins as tiny pieces of rock that get smaller and smaller as wind and weather wear them down. Sand dunes (沙丘) are formed as winds move the sand across the desert. Bit by bit, the dunes grow over the years, always moving with the winds and changing the shape. Most of them are only a few feet tall, but they can grow to be several hundred feet high.

    There is, however, much more to a desert than sand. In the deserts of the southwestern United States, cliffs (悬崖) and deep valleys were formed from thick mud that once lay beneath (在……之下) a sea more than millions of years ago. Over the centuries, the water dried up. Wind, sand, rain, heat and cold all wore away at the remaining rocks. The faces of the desert mountains are always changing--very, very slowly--as these forces of nature continue to work on the rock.

    Most deserts have a surprising variety of life. There are plants, animals and insects that have adapted (适应) to life in the desert. During the heat of the day a visitor may see very few signs of living things, but as the air begins to cool in the evening, the desert comes to life. As the sun begins to rise again in the sky, the desert once again becomes quiet and lonely.

    In America, the school life is not easy for us students. There are so many rules we have to follow. When we start school, we get a rule book. There are always teachers looking out for people who are breaking the rules and prefects (长官) are everywhere too.

    The most rules are in the classroom and in the hallways. For example, you can't run or dance around in the hallways. We can't put our bags everywhere in the hallways.

    You can't eat or drink in the classroom or the hallways. Prefects watch you, They can give out duty slips (cleaning the dining hall for about 2 hours).

    If you make mistakes, you will get a detention. You may have to do some work for school. A detention is the most painful. You have to do a lot of tiring and boring things. There are rules for students out of school as well. Boys should not buy take away food in the street if they wear the school uniforms. The school also expects good behavior on public transport and in public places.

    "How can I improve my English?" A lot of my students have been asking me about this same question again and again.1 the answer won't be suitable for everyone, I'm still going to tell you some of my experience. I hope that you will improve your English learning skills.

    One thing I can tell you is that, once you start learning, you should try to think in English as

    2as you can. If you see something when you're riding your bike or walking down the street, just3"How would I say them in English?" At first, you may think with simple words but later with longer sentences. Now I'm in America, and for4the time, I would think in English and   speak it directly. It's amazing how much this helps.

    When I started learning, I was5 afraid of talking with others in English because I didn't want to make mistakes. Finally, I had a chance to6. And while traveling in America, I'd try to hang out with American friends,7 I'd have no choice but to speak English. Also, I decided if I said anything stupid and other people would look8 me, then so be it. After that, my English started to9 much more quickly.

    Besides, it may be a good idea to ask your American friends to look at the way you're writing, and give you some10 for improvement.

Until the beginning of July, there has been no rain in northern Italy for over 100 days. Add to that the high temperatures, and the locals get very dry conditions. This is the most serious dry spell（干旱期）for that area in the past 70 years. Because of this situation, the country's longest river, the Po, is drying up!

This is bad news for several different reasons. The fresh water of the Po provides drinking water for northern Italy. Besides, farmers in this area need the water of the Po to keep their crops growing. What's more, the flowing river water is used to create about half of the hydroelectric power（水力发电）for Italy. Its drying up means that more natural gas（天然气） will be used, which is bad for the environment.

There have been some interesting discoveries from this lack of rain, however. Between Florence and Milan, a long ship sunk （沉没）in 1943 appeared because of the low water levels of the river. Now many tourists and locals come to see this ship. A German tank has also appeared out of water near Mantua. At other places along the river, people can even walk on the sandy river bed. Although this may be interesting, people in Italy and around the world are hoping for the return of rain to refill the Po!

What will our life be like in the future? Each family will have a  1  I in the future. You can ask it to do everything  2  you. It will serve you  3  hours a day. The robot will look like a (n)  4 . It can talk with you when you are  5  You won't know whether （是否）it is a human （人类）  6  a robot when you meet it on the street.

People will have  7  time to work and more time to travel. The vehicles （交通工具） in the future will fly freely in the sky because every vehicle will have wings with it. They will 8  you toa lot of places. You can go to  9  during your travels when you feel tired. All vehicles will not be  10  because the robots drive them.