Now many people like to keep dogs as their pets. But how did dogs become humans' close friends?

    In some places of Europe (欧洲), about 10,000 years ago, some wild (野生的) dogs often came to human's houses to find food. The wild dogs looked different from the ones today. They looked like wolves (狼). At first, they felt ① frightened. They always stood and looked for a short time. Then they got the food and ran away. Sometimes the young dogs couldn't run fast and people caught them. People trained them and the young dogs grew up with the help of people. Slowly, the wild dogs became home dogs. They could make home safe when people were away. They helped people hunt (狩猎). They helped people keep warm on cold nights. ② Sometimes, they could smell and hear danger before people could. In some cold places, they helped people pull (拉) things people need.

    Now there are more than 400 different kinds of dogs in the world. And they look different from each other. The number and kind are growing all the time. Today, some people mainly (主要地) regard dogs as pets. In fact, dogs are really our close friends. We should protect them from being killed.

    Oldest festivals!

    Festivals and celebrations of all kinds are held everywhere. The oldest festivals would celebrate the end of the cold weather, planting in spring and harvest (丰收)in autumn. Other celebrations were held when they had food. They thought these festivals would bring a year of plenty.

    Festivals of the dead

    Some festivals are held to honor or satisfy and please the dead. In Japan the festival is called Obon. They have lamps on and play music because they think this will help the dead back to Earth. In Mexcio they have the day of the dead in early November. On this important day, people might eat food in different shapes and offer food, flowers and gifts to the dead.

    Festivals can be held as an honour to famous people. One of these is the Dragon Boat Festival in China, which honours the famous poet, Qu Yuan. Another is Columbus Day in the USA, in memory of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in America.

    Harvest festivals

    Harvest and Thanksgiving festivals can be very happy events. People are grateful because their food is gathered for the winter. In European countries people usually decorate churches and town halls with flowers and fruit, and get together to have meals. In China and Japan there are mid-autumn festivals, when people admire the moon and give gifts of mooncakes.

    Spring festivals

    The most energetic and important festivals are the ones that look forward to the end of winter and to the coming of spring. In some Western countries, Easter is an important festival in February which celebrates the return of Jesus and celebrates the coming of spring. In Japan, the Cherry Blossom Festi­val happens a little later. In China, families get together to eat, drink and have fun at the Spring Festi­val.

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Michael: I perform in the evenings, but luckily I don't have to get up early. So in the mornings I sleep in, and then practise on stage for 45 minutes. I have to do a lot of exercise before each show.

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Michael: Because it's like a dream of flying. When you do a great performance on the trapeze, it's an unbelievable feeling.

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Michael: Working at such a high level every day.

Sometimes you wake up with a stomachache, but you have to perform.

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Michael: You need to be strong to deal with physical training. You mustn't be heavy, or your partner can't catch you easily. You can't be at all nervous when there are 5，000 people watching you.

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Michael: We get paid per show and the amount depends on your contract（合同）. Of course，we can set extra money for extra performances.

    On Sept, 19,2014 Alibaba went public on the New York Stock Exchange (纽约证券交易所), raising $25 billion through an IPO (公司股票的首次公开发行), the biggest in the US history. It shows that Ma Yun has done his business successfully. The short Chinese man seems to be the tallest in the world right now. Ma, who was an English teacher, has become one of the richest men on the Chinese mainland.

    Born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, Ma grew up as a happy kid. At the age of 12, he wanted to learn English. Every morning, he woke up at 5 a. m., cycling 40 minutes to a hotel near the West Lake where he could chat with foreign tourists.

    On a trip to the US in 1995, Ma was shown the Internet for the first time. Seeing the chance, Ma returned to China and set up a website called China Pages without even knowing much about computers.

    Four years later, 18 people including Ma, his wife and his friends founded Alibaba in Hangzhou. People called him "Crazy Jack Ma". But 15 years later, Alibaba has developed into the world's largest e-commerce (电子商务) company.

    No one thinks he's mad now. Ma's favorite line has been printed on Alibaba's souvenir T-shirts. It reads, "Everybody should have a dream. What if that dream comes true?"

    Rock climbing is a popular hobby that many people enjoy doing. You can do it indoors on special walls or outdoors on real mountains. There are many advantages of rock climbing--it is fun and it also helps people forget worries.

    The most important equipment(装备) to have is good shoes. They need to be half a size smaller than your usual size. The next thing you need is a harness(保护带). This allows you to move freely, but will hold you up if you fall. It's important to know how to use your equipment. If you are a beginner, it's best to have lessons. A climber with experience can help you a lot in the beginning.

    Rock climbing is very exciting for people of different ages. Climbers, however, must be careful not to pollute the environment. Sometimes rock climbers leave rubbish on the mountains where they climb. They should take it with them and throw it away. This will allow future climbers to enjoy a clean environment.

    Jada and Jessie are twins. They were born on August 5. They are ten now and in the fourth grade. Jada and Jessie do everything together. They are in the same class. They dress alike. They look the same. People always get confused (困惑 ). This really makes Jada and Jessie laugh. Teachers always get them mixed up at school. Even their father has trouble telling them apart (分辨). Their mother doesn't, though. She always knows who they really are, Jada and Jessie often try to confuse her, but it

has never happened.

    Their elder brother, Jared, is fifteen. He can't tell the difference between the two sisters. He doesn't even try Jada and Jessie have the same friends. Their friends always mix them up. It doesn't matter to Jada and Jessie.

    One day, their father told their mother to get one of them a different haircut so that he could tell them apart. Jada and Jessie were horrified (恐惧的). They didn't want to look different. They liked looking the same. Their mother came to the rescue ( 拯救), and refused to make them cut their hair. The girls were happy just the way they were and didn't want to change. Their dad just shook his head. He would have to stay confused. Jada and Jessie didn't care. They knew who they were, and that was all that mattered .

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