Do you know "World Reading Day"? It is on April 23rd. It is the eighteenth "World Reading Day". As we know books are very important for us.

    In Germany, more than 70% of the people like reading: They often read. They read in their homes. They read in libraries. They read in parks. They even read in hospitals. Parents often read books for kids.

    It is easy to buy books in Germany. There are many bookshops in Germany. They are in big cities and small town. A bookshop can sell many books every day. Germans also like to buy books on the Internet. More and more people buy books on the Internet.

    In Germany, people often have reading parties. They are happy at the parties.

    Do you love reading? Hope you enjoy it!

A—G为七本畅销书，看完叙述后，请根据题意为每个人选择最合适的一本书。

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Today people write to, even talk to others on the computer. Nancy wants to learn more about it.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Mary is a good mother. She believes eating proper food is important. She likes to help her children grow better with proper food.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Jack often sits at the desk studying all night, but he still gets poor grades. He hopes to do better on the tests.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#}Bob's sister wants him to move to New York. But he isn't sure whether that is a good idea. He needs to know more about the country.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#}Jenny is confused that there are too many used plastic bags and old newspapers at home. She doesn't know what to do with them.

    March 20th is World Water Day every year. According to a report from the United Nations, more than half of the world's major rivers have serious water loss and are polluted.

    The Yellow River, the world's fifth longest river, watered some of the oldest farms on earth. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Its source（源头）on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is drying up. In most of the past 35 years, it didn't reach the sea.

The Nile in Egypt, running 6, 650 km, is the longest river in the world. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Now it is down to 2 billion m³ or so. Australia's Murray River reaches the sea only every other year. One fifth of America's Rio Grande has no water, either.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Mostly it's damming（筑坝）and global warming that make rivers dry. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Now about 45, 000 of them lie across the world's rivers. They hold back around 15% of the world's fresh water from running to the sea.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Warmer weather takes water away. The glacier（冰川）are becoming smaller. The source of the Yellow River is drying up because of it. Global warming has had certain effects on water sources. Droughts happening around the world make people pay more attention to this fact.

    A different culture keeps my eyes and mind open. When I stayed in Russia (A)an exchange student, I learned about it.

    One day, a Russian trend invited me to a (B)well-known restaurant in Moscow(莫斯科)I looked forward to trying local (当地的)food. After arriving there, I found nothing on the table but several small plates, on which there were nuts, a few slices(片)of tomatoes, and several pieces of onions. Although the dishes were simple, we drank a lot and I felt the passion(热情)from the bottom of his heart. In China, when we invite friends or relatives, we always treat them to a big dinner. We prepare as much food as we can(C)      show our friendliness.

    What a different culture it is l Even though we try our best, it's very (D) difficult to get used to their customs. Another Russian custom also impresses me deeply. As we know, it is very cold in winter there. When winter comes, (E)俄罗斯人喜欢游泳.They even take their kids outside together. Like their parents, (F)Russian kids rub (擦)their bodies with snow before jumping into the water. Although the water is freezing cold, they all play happily in it.

    What fun it is to know about a different culture.

    James Watt was an English boy. He liked asking questions and was always thinking hard.

    One day he was sitting in the kitchen with his grandmother. There he saw a kettle (壶) on the fire. Some steam began to come out of the kettle. The lid (盖子) was shaking. "Grandma, what's in the kettle?" he asked. "Water, my child… nothing, but water." "But I know there is something else. It pushes the lid up. How did the steam get under the lid?" "It comes from the hot water."

    The boy said to himself, "The steam must be very strong. It can push things. If there is more water, the steam will be much stronger."

    Many years later James Watt tried to make steam work for people. He gave the world the first engine.