To help the environment, many Americans have made the change from paper and plastic bags to reusable shopping bags.But a report by a Florida newspaper says that reusable shopping bags sold by some supermarkets have high levels of lead(铅), which can be dangerous to humans, especially young children.Now, there's a call for a rethink about the use of reusable shopping bags.

     “When our families go to the store looking for safe and healthy foods, the last thing they should be worrying about is a bag，”Charles Schumer, a government official said.“Quick and complete research will allow everyone to make right decisions.”

    The newspaper bought more than a dozen bags sold at Publix supermarkets from Florida supermarkets to test them for lead.The results showed that certain bags had lead levels that worried health officials.Some bags had enough lead in them to be considered dangerous waste if people were to throw the bags out with other rubbish.Lead in the bags is not likely to move onto food.But over time, paint (油漆) on the bags can break off and the bags can wear out.When this happens, lead can be freed.

    The affected (受影响的) bags were found in Florida.But Publix has more than 1，000 stores across America.Publix says that its bags don't break any laws about lead levels, but that they have asked the makers of the bags to reduce(降低) the lead levels in them.

    The bags with the highest levels of lead had beautiful designs and many pictures.Plain reusable bags without them are found to have little lead.People worried about lead levels in reusable bags can turn to cloth.Paper bags are also a good choice, since paper can be reused.

    Susan was born as the ninth child in a Catholic family. She suffered from learning disabilities ever since her birth because of her mother's poor health.

    School was difficult for Susan and she was bullied because of her different behaviors. Her siblings, who were much older, had life experiences that were unknown to their little sister. From the time of her birth, Susan was a screamer. The only really safe place that she would use as a repeat was her bedroom. There she would hang posters of her musical idols on the wall and sing popular music into a hairbrush that she pretended was a microphone.

    One by one the siblings moved away from home and then Susan's father died. This left her alone with an aging mother and a cat. The siblings accused her mother of not expecting more out of Susan. She had seen many professionals and remembered hearing the word “borderline” but didn't know what it meant. She tried volunteer work. Her best state of mind, however, was found when she was singing and so she would regularly join others in karaoke or pubs where she could show her skills and receive appreciation from the crowd.

    When Susan announced at Christmas that she was planning to compete in the Britain's Got Talent contest, her siblings tried to discourage her. It was a wonder that she was even able to do the audition considering the troubles she faced just physically getting to the right place.

    “The Woman I Was Born to Be” is a beautiful story written in the simple but humorous voice of the author, Susan Boyle. She tells her story from birth to the present in an interesting and educational manner. The writing is supplemented by photos from her albums.

    I love this book! In fact, I read the whole thing in one day!

There is something in the stories that not only teaches the reader but also inspires us to reach for our dreams — no matter how impossible they may seem to be!

    There is an old Chinese proverb that states "One Generation plants the trees; another gets the shade," and this is how it should be with mothers and daughters. The relationship between a mother and daughter is sometimes confusing. If close, the relationship can be similar to friendship. However, the mother and daughter relationship has unique characteristics that distinguish it from a friendship. These characteristics include a hierarchy (等级) of responsibility and unconditional love, which preclude mothers and daughters from being best friends.

    Marina, 27 years old, says, "I love spending time with my mom, but I wouldn't consider her my best friend. Best friends don't pay for your wedding. Best friends don't remind you how they carried you in their body and gave you life! Best friends don't tell you how wise they are because they have been alive at least 20 years longer than you." This doesn't mean that the mother and daughter relationship can't be very close and satisfying.

    While some adult relationships are still troubled, many find them to be extremely rewarding. This generation of mothers and adult daughters has a lot in common which increases the likelihood of shared companionship. Mothers and daughters have always shared the common experience of being homemakers, responsible for maintaining and passing on family values and traditions. Today contemporary mothers and daughters also share the experience of the workforce and technology, which may bring them even closer together.

    Best friends may or may not continue to be best friends, but for better or worse, the mother and daughter relationship is permanent, even if for some unfortunate reason they aren't speaking. The mother and child relationship is closer than any other. There is not an equal relationship. Daughters should not feel responsible for their mother's emotional well-being. It isn't that they don't care deeply about their mothers. It's just that they shouldn't be burdened with their mother's well being.

    The mother and daughter relationship is a relationship that is not replaceable by any other. Mothers never stop being mothers, which includes frequently wanting to protect their daughters and often feeling responsible for their happiness. Mother always "trumps"(王牌) friend.

    Once there was an old man, who was completely broke (破产的), living in a tiny house. He had to live on a $105-a-month social security (保障) check.

    At 65 years of age, he decided things had to change. So he thought about what he had to offer. His friends thought highly of his chicken recipe (烹饪法). He decided that this was his best shot at making a change.

    He left Kentucky and traveled to different states to try to sell his recipe. He told restaurant owners that he had a mouth-watering chicken recipe. He offered the recipe to them for free, just asking for a small percentage (比例) on the items sold. Sounds like a good deal, right?

    Unfortunately, not to most of the restaurants. He heard "NO" over 1, 000 times, but he didn't give up. He believed his chicken recipe was something special. He got rejected (拒绝) 1,009 times before he heard his first yes.

    With that one success, the old man changed the way Americans eat chicken. Kentucky Fried Chicken, popularly known as KFC, was born. The old man was Colonel Harland Sanders, who was an American businessman, best known for founding fast food chicken restaurant chain Kentucky Fried Chicken. His name and image (肖像) are still symbols of KFC now.

    A T-shirt that constantly monitors the heart's activity and detects abnormalities could help protect people against stroke. The T-shirt, which can be washed up to 35 times before it needs replacing, has been developed to improve the detection of dangerous heart conditions like atrial fibrillation( 心房颤动), which causes an irregular heart rhythm and raises the risk of stroke.

    At least one million people in Britain are known to have this condition; however, it's estimated that at least another 500,000 have it but haven't yet been diagnosed because they have no obvious symptoms. Some will have symptoms such as chest pain, dizziness and fatigue; but a large number of people have no idea they're ill until they suffer a stroke.

    Detecting atrial fibrillation involves carrying out an ECG(心电图). Conventional ECGs are done in a hospital and involve highly trained teams of staff attaching up to 24 separate electrodes(电极) to different parts of the body to measure electrical signals. But most patients experience abnormal rhythms only intermittently(间歇地). This means the chance of picking them up during a short hospital check is slim.

    Doctors sometimes issue patients with a device called a Holter monitor to wear under their clothes to try to pick up cardiac( 心脏的) problems. This is an electronic box which clips onto your waistband and is connected to a series of electrodes worn on the upper part of your body. But the box itself is quite bulky, hard to hide beneath clothing and involves a dozen or more wires being attached to the patient's chest.

    The Cardioskin T-shirt, which is made from cotton, could be a much more convenient alternative and can be worn 24 hours a day — meaning it is more likely to pick up any abnormal rhythms in the patient's heart. It has 15 tiny electrodes woven into the material which are strategically placed around the chest area to track the electrical signals from the heart as they travel across the main part of your body.

    The electrodes are powered by a battery which can be removed easily when you need to wash the T- shirt and feed results to a microchip which then sends them out wirelessly to an app. This converts( 转换) the data into an easy-to-read chart showing if the heart rate is abnormal. The results are shared with the patient's doctor so they can check the patient's heart without having to call them into the hospital.

    Martin Cowie, a professor of cardiology at Imperial College London, said, “Cardioskin could be an important development for cardiologists.”

    Whatsonstage.com is the UK's biggest and best online guide to the performing arts including theatre, opera, classical music, dance and so on.

    The Lion King

    Musical: The stage adaptation of the Disney film taken from an original African story. A young lion grows up and learns that taking over the pride requires wisdom and maturity(成熟).

    Place: Lyceum Theatre, Wellington Street, London

    Telephone: 0870 243 9000

    Date: Friday, 18 Nov. 2015

    Ticket price: ￡37.5

    Oliver

    Musical: Dickens' story of a boy in a London workhouse and his adventures on the way to discovering his family. The songs include Food glorious food, You've got to pick a pocket or two, Who will buy this wonderful morning, I am reviewing the situation and Consider yourself at home.

    Place: Theatre Royal, Catherine Street, London

    Telephone: 020 7494 5061

    Date: Thursday, 17 Nov. 2015

    Ticket price: ￡25,but now save 20%

    Jersey Boys

    Musical: It tells the story of Frankie Valli and the Four seasons: the blue-collar kids from New Jersey formed a singing group and became famous. The musical features many of the group's popular songs such as Big girls don't cry, Oh, what a night and Can't take my eyes off you.

    Place: Prince Edward Theatre, Old Compton Street, London

Telephone: 0870 850 9191 —

    Date: Saturday, 19 Nov. 2015

    Ticket price: ￡22.5

    Alls Well That Ends Well

    Play: A romantic story. Helena, daughter of a poor physician, loves Bertram, son of a Countess(女伯爵).

    Place: Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, Park Street, London

    Telephone: 020 7401 9919

    Date: Sunday, 20 Nov, 2015

    Ticket price: ￡40.5