Andrew Holleman, a 12-year-old boy, loved playing in the open land near his home. The land was wet and forested, and made a home for birds, other animals and many different plants. It made the perfect place for him to study and get to know the nature. He had seen some red-tail hawks, red foxes, wood turtles and other animals. He also found special native flowers.

      Suddenly it was announced that the “empty” land would be improved by a lot of houses on it. The plants would be removed, the animals would run away and most would probably die. Then the wet soil(土壤) would be covered with extra grounds. When he heard about the news, he was not happy. He was very worried that the land and water would be polluted.

      Andrew wrote down clearly all the research he had done about the area, and how the houses would affect the local environment. He sent letters to members of local government and television reporters. He also called on his neighbors to oppose the building of the houses.

Although he was only 12 years old, he had the courage and wisdom of a person much older. Andrew's teachers described him as gentle, shy and active. His classmates also admired how much he knew about local animals and plants and the environment. Each day after school, Andrew went door-to-door, to ask the people to sign, who did not want the houses to be built. In only one month, he got the signatures of 250 people. In the end, the land remained a safe place for birds, animals and plants that belonged there.

      Andrew won many prizes for his brave and great work to stop the houses being built, and thus help save the environment.

C

    This year's winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine is from Japan. According to his research, cells (细胞) sometimes "eat" themselves to keep healthy. In other words, cells can break down old ones and use the useful parts to make new cells, or to fight off viruses (病毒). This new finding could help scientists fight many diseases.

Small machines

    Three scientists from France, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands (荷兰) won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work on small machines. How small? Well, they are a thousand times thinner than a strand (缕) of hair. We can't see them with only our eyes! This technology will open a whole new world for us. For example, we could make very small robots in the future. A doctor could put them into our body. Like policemen, the robots look for the ill parts in our body, and send the medicine right there.

Super-state

As teachers said in your physics class, most things in the world are in three states: solids (固体), liquids (液体) and gases . But at very low or high temperatures, things can turn into a strange state. For example, break down things to their smallest pieces and we get "atoms" (原子). Like Lego building blocks, atoms usually add up to become a 3-D thing, like a box. But atoms in the strange state don't. They stay together and become a flat thing, like a piece of paper.

    This is a new finding of three British-born scientists. And they won the Nobel Prize in Physics this year. They hope to use things in this strange state to make new materials.

About the Prize

    The Nobel Prize was started by Swedish inventor, Alfred Nobel in 1895. It gives prizes to great science research and the people behind it. Every year in October, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences decides who wins. It includes six prizes: chemistry, physics, physiology (生理学) or medicine, peace, literature (文学) and economic. This year each winner gets a medal and prize money of more than 6 million yuan.

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No one knows when the first kite was made. The first record of a kite was more than 2,000 years ago in China. Han Xin, the leader of an army, wanted to bring down a king. He decided to dig a tunnel (隧道)into the king's palace. He flew a kite over the wall of the palace to make sure the length (长度)of its string (线).In this way, he could determine how long the tunnel should be. His men in the tunnel took the kite string with them. When they reached the end of the string, they knew to dig up.

    Kites have been flown in Japan for hundreds of years. In the 1700s, kites were flown in autumn to give thanks for a good harvest. They were also flown to send good wishes to couples who had their first son. Today in Japan, kites are often flown as part of a celebration, such as the beginning of a new year. And kite festivals are held each year in many parts of the country.

    Kites have been used for scientific purposes in the western world. In 1752，Benjamin Franklin tied a key to a kite and flew it in a storm to find out that lightening was a form of electricity. In the 1890s, Lawrence Hargrave invented the box kite to test ideas about flight. From 1898 until 1933, the United States Weather Bureau (气象局) used box kites to collect weather data. The Wright brothers also experimented (试验)with kites. What they learned helped them make the first airplane flight in 1903.

    Everyone knows the strange feeling of your fingers wrinkling up (起皱) when they're wet. Sometimes when in water, it seems as if your hands have aged 30 years in a second. But is this an accident? Or is it something that nature has built into our bodies?

    Scientists at the University of Newcastle in the UK recently did a test. They asked people to pick up things (some wet and some dry). And take them from one place to another. Some people did this with dry hands, while others had to leave their hands in water for 30 minutes first so that their skin was wrinkled. The study found the second group with wet hands had an advantage when carrying things that were also wet.

    The scientist Tom Smulders said that "this wrinkling of our fingers in wet conditions could have helped with gathering food from wet vegetation or streams". Wrinkling happens when blood vessels contract (血管收缩) and pull the skin back.

    A long time ago, humans lived a very difficult life in a brutal world, where the smallest advantage could make a huge difference. Having wrinkled skin might have helped people catch fish. This would help them get through the winter. These humans would then have had an advantage. Their genes would be accepted by natural selection.

Chinese chess，also known as Xiangqi，is a traditional game in China. It is a 2﹣player game played on a board. It is believed that Xiangqi first appeared in the Warring States Period（战国时期）， p{#blank#}1{#/blank#}of people like playing Xiangqi. 

Chinese chess is played with "red" and "black" pieces. The two players take turns，and the player holding the red pieces goes first. Both players need to be c{#blank#}2{#/blank#}to make one move each time. In the end，one player will b{#blank#}3{#/blank#}the other. 

Xiangqi is both an educational game and a part of Chinese culture. The ways to play it show the wisdom of Chinese people. T{#blank#}4{#/blank#}playing Xiangqi is challenging，players can improve their minds and thinking skills. Therefore，some adults{#blank#}5{#/blank#}that students should try playing Xiangqi. 

Happiness is important for everyone. Most people want to be happy, but few know how to find happiness. Money and {#blank#}1{#/blank#} alone do not bring lasting happiness. Happiness {#blank#}2{#/blank#} on ourselves. 

The {#blank#}3{#/blank#} secret of happiness is to enjoy the simple things in life. You should enjoy life's simple pleasure such as reading a good book, listening to your favorite music or spending time with close friends. People who have several good friends tend to live {#blank#}4{#/blank#} and happier lives. 

The second secret to {#blank#}5{#/blank#} a happy life is to be active. Many people experience this by dancing, or playing a sport. You can forget about your problems, and only think about the activity. 

Finally, many people find happiness in helping others. According to studies, people feel good when they volunteer their time to do many meaningful things for other people. So if you want to feel happier, just try to help others.