Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what life would be like if you had a hundred dollars less．Also imagine what it would be like spending the rest of your life with you eyes closed．Imagine having to read this page, not with your eyes but with your finger-tips．

    With existing medical knowledge and skills, two-thirds of the world's 42 million blind should not have to suffer．Unfortunately, rich countries posses most of this knowledge, while developing countries do not．

    ORBIS is an international non-profit organization which operates the world's only flying teaching eye hospital．ORBIS intends to help fight blindness worldwide．Inside a DC-8 aircraft, there is a fully-equipped teaching hospital with television studio and classroom．Doctors are taught the latest techniques of bringing sight back to people there．Project ORBIS also aims at promoting peaceful cooperation（合作） among countries．

    ORBIS tries to help developing countries by providing training during three-week medical programs．ORBIS has taught sight-saving techniques to over 35,000 doctors and nurses, who continue to cure tens of thousands of blind people every year．ORBIS has conducted 17 plane programs is China so far．For the seven to ten million blind in China ORBIS is planning to do more for them．At the moment an ORBIS is working on a long-term plan to develop a training center and to provide eye care service to Shanxi Province．ORBIS needs your help to continue their work and free people from blindness．

    For just US$38,you can help one person see; for $380 you can bring sight to 10 people; $1,300 helps teach a doctor new skills; and for $13,000 you can provide a training program for a group of doctors who can make thousands of blind people see again．Your money can open their eyes to the world．Please help ORBIS improve the quality of life for so many people less fortunate than ourselves．

    Getting older is a natural part of life. Changes as you get older are usually gradual. Certain physical changes are common. How fast your body can burn calories slows over time, which means that your body needs less food energy than before.

    How much and how well you sleep will likely change. Most people start needing reading glasses around forty, and many have some hearing loss later in life. Starting in your fifties, bone aging increase. How you feel as you get older depends on many things, including what health problems run in your family and the choices you make.

    If your family members have diseases or chronic (慢性的) health problems like high blood pressure, then you may have a greater chance of having those problems yourself. But it doesn't mean you will definitely have the same problems. Actually, the lifestyle choices you make can help reduce your chances of getting illness that run in your family. And even if you do get a family illness, choosing to be physically active, to eat healthy foods, and to learn how to deal with stress can keep the illness from destroying your ability to enjoy your golden years.

    What do you need to do to feel your best as you age? One of the most important things you can do for your health at any age is to be physically active. Physical activity keeps your body strong, and it helps with how you feel. People who stay active are less likely to get depressed.

    Your mental and emotional health is also important. Protect or improve your emotional health by staying in touch with friends, family, and the community. People who feel connected to others are more likely to feel happy than those who do not.

Urban Transportation in Canada

    Public transportation & Transit passes

    All cities and most major towns in Canada have a public transportation system with one or more modes of transportation (bus, subway, train, etc.). The bus is the most common form of urban transportation in Canada. To use public transportation, you must purchase a ticket or a transit pass. Transit passes allow you unlimited use of public transportation for a specific period (one month or more). They are usually cheaper than buying many tickets if you plan to use public transportation often.

    Transportation for people with disabilities

    Public transportation often has features to assist people with disabilities. In many cities and towns, there are also transportation services available specifically for people with limited mobility, such as specially equipped buses. You can find out about these services in the same way you would learn more about other public transportation options.

    Etiquette on public transportation

When taking public transportation such as a bus or train, it is important to understand the unspoken rules of conduct in the shared space. Here are a few things to note:

    Be polite and respectful to others around you. For example, maintain an appropriate noise level when talking or making a phone call.

    If you are carrying a backpack or a large shoulder bag in a crowded public transit vehicle, keep it close to you, preferably at your feet to avoid hitting people with it as you walk by.

    Avoid pushing or touching others in order to make more room for yourself. Sometimes public transit can become very crowded, but it is important to keep calm and give others appropriate personal space.

    Have your proof of payment accessible in case you are asked to show it.

    I was reading these interesting stories behind a group of great logos（商标） in the world. Personally Nike is my favorite one﹣it's so simple. And I liked the stories behind them, which made me forget all other things. McDonald's, Apple, and Mercedes Benz own great logos as well, and they are among my favorites.

    Nike

    In the Greek myth, Nike is the goddess of victory and the source of inspiration for soldiers. This logo represents the wing in the famous statue of the Greek goddess.  Nike's logo was designed by Carolyn Davidson in 1971 for﹩35, and was registered as a trademark in 1995.

    McDonald's

    The logo was designed in 1962 by Jim Schindler to resemble the arch shaped （拱形的） signs on the side of the company's then walk﹣up hamburger stand. Later on, the two golden arches were combined together to form the M. The McDonald's name was added to the logo in 1968.

    Apple

    There are different stories behind Apple's logo. The first logo was a reference to the religious story of Adam and Eve, in which the apple represented the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. One year later, the second logo was designed in 1977 by Steven Jobs and Ronald Wayne, and it described Sir Isaac Newton sitting under an apple tree. This logo didn't stay long. One year later it was replaced almost immediately by graphic designer Rob Janoff's "rainbow apple",  a rainbow﹣colored silhouette （轮廓） of an apple with a bite taken out of it. And then the rainbow﹣colored apple was replaced by the one﹣colored logo in 1998. It has not been changed so far.

    Mercedes Benz

    The Mercedes Benz logo, which was originally created by Gottlieb Daimler in 1909, consists of a simple description of a three﹣pointed star that represents its rule of the land, the sea and the air. The company was founded by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach. Mercedes is the name of Maybach's elder daughter, while Benz came as a result of a combination with Benz Cie and DMG in 1926.

In the early 1990s, Ashok Kumar and I ran TRAFFIC-India, an organisation that worked to stop illegal wildlife trade in India. That was when the first letter from the famous American conservationist (自然环境保护主义者), George Schaller, arrived on our desk. Tibetan antelopes were being killed in their thousands, he wrote, and their wool (毛) was taken illegally to India. "No use in India for antelope wool," we wrote back, not knowing the seriousness of the illegal trade here. Schaller sent us back pictures to prove it and asked us to begin a Tibetan investigation.

We dug around and found that Schaller was right. We realised that antelope wool was the same as shahtoosh, the famous Kashmiri shawl (披肩). The shawl was made from the underwool of Tibetan antelopes, considered the warmest and softest wool in the world. A single shawl needed the wool of three to five antelopes. We had to save the animal.

Then began India's first campaign (运动) to protect Tibetan antelopes. A lot of designers and models joined us. Slowly, the message was being driven home: shahtoosh was out of style, shahtoosh was illegal and alternative (可替代的) shawls would save the antelopes from extinction.

There were, of course, those who tried to buck the campaign. The wife of a well-known army officer of India refused to give up her shahtoosh till she was forced out of it. She said: "I know the lovely antelope is dying and I so want to save it. But, the shawl is so light on my shoulders!"

Someone suggested farming the antelopes, but studies showed that it was an impractical idea. The antelopes could not even survive in low altitude zoos. The underwool is nature's gift to the animal to keep it warm at great heights. Later, we set up a business to process high quality pashmina wool and make an alternative shawl.

In 2000, good news came in from China. With strict policies in place, the number of Tibetan antelopes was on the rise again.

For centuries Antarctica has attracted people from around the world. Explorers sought to travel there. Scientists have studied weather, wildlife, and geology there for decades. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} In the last few decades, though, scientists have reported that the ice is melting.

 {#blank#}2{#/blank#} That's a difficult question to answer. The loss of ice in Antarctica has not been linear (直线的). That means it isn't a steady decrease. In fact, the rate of melting can vary greatly from year to year. Still, scientists warn that the continent's ice sheet is shrinking.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Climate change is warming the world's oceans and affecting the currents (洋流) of the Earth's oceans. These currents are bringing more warm water to Antarctica than ever recorded.

Today, the planet is warming at a rate that alarms scientists. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} The effects of such a rise could cause major problems. It will increase flooding, especially in areas near shores. A large rise in sea level could even make some regions uninhabitable. This could cause millions around the world to become climate refugees (难民).

Can humans stop Antarctica from melting? Probably not — but experts do believe people can slow the process. How can you help? Pay attention to your carbon footprint. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Only changes on a large, global scale (范围) can truly make a difference to Antarctica.

A. How quickly is Antarctica melting?

B. Is human activity contributing to the melting of Antarctica's ice?

C. The ice of Antarctica is the result of thousands of years of snow.

D. West Antarctica is the region most affected by these warm waters.

E. Talk with your family about ways to reduce your use of fossil fuels.

F. If this continues, melting ice could lead to a serious rise in sea level.

G. Experts say the melting of Antarctica's ice sheet is caused by rising temperatures.