There is distinction between reading for information and reading for understanding. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    The first sense is the one in which we read newspapers, magazines, or anything else. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Such materials may increase our store of information, but they cannot improve our understanding. And clearly we don't have any difficulty in gaining the new information, for our understanding was equal to them before we started. Otherwise, we would have felt the shock of puzzlement.

    The second sense is the one in which we read something that at first we do not completely understand. Here the thing to be read is at the first sight better or higher than the reader. The writer is communicating something that can increase the reader's understanding. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Otherwise one person could never learn from another. Here “learning” means understanding more, not remembering more information.

    What are the conditions in this kind of reading? First, there is inequality in understanding {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Besides, his book must convey something he possesses and his potential readers lack. Second, the reader must be able to overcome this inequality in some degree. And he should always try to reach the same level of understanding with the writer. If the equality is approached, success of communication is achieved.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} It is the least demanding and requires the least amount of effort. Everyone who knows how to read can read for entertainment if he wants to. In fact, any book that can be read for understanding or information can probably be read for entertainment as well.

A．Thus, we can employ the word “reading” in two distinct senses.

B．Such communication between unequals must be possible.

C．We can get access to the content of those materials easily.

D．The writer must be “superior” to the reader in understanding.

E. The writer should have a better communicating skill.

F. Besides gaining information and understanding, there's another goal of reading—entertainment.

G. Reading for entertainment is capable of increasing our understanding for   information.

    I was never very neat, while my roommate Kate was extremely organized. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled(贴标签) everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Kate got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.

    War broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming. “Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!” Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.

    The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled(爬under her covers, sobbing. Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.

    Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn't notice Kate had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, “Thanks.”

    Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn't always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.

    Energy goes from one plant or animal to another. A food chain shows how this energy moves. Each time an animal gets eaten, its energy is passed onto the animal that eats it. The food chain is very important because it keeps the balance of nature. If one part of the food chain disappears, it can affect all the other plants and animals. Any threat to the food chain is a threat to the environment's biodiversit(生物多样性). The food chain helps keep animal populations in balance. However, if something happens to increase or decrease one of the links in the food chain, that balance is broken. If one animal becomes endangered, it puts all the animals above it at risk.

    Some of the threats are natural, such as wildfires, hurricanes, tornados, floods and so on. But the biggest threats to the food chain come from you and me. These threats include overhunting, overfishing, logging, farming, development, pollution, etc. The food chain is endangered anywhere humans have had an effect on the natural environment.

    A recent study shows that the overfishing of large sharks is damaging the food chain along the US Atlantic coast. Canadian and American scientists say sharks are being killed in great numbers for their meat and fins(鳍). Now, not enough sharks are around to eat the cownose(牛鼻) ray. The ray's population has increased and they have eaten up the shellfish to the point where it has hurt commercial(商业的) fishing.

    Many of us disturb the natural environment in our own backyards. It's up to us to take care of the environment and try not to disrupt the natural food chain. If we don't act responsibly, animals will start disappearing.

    Doctors in hospital emergency rooms often see accidental poisonings. A frightened parent arrives with a child who swallowed a cleaning liquid. Or perhaps the harmful substance is a medicine. Or it might be a product meant to kill insects. These are common causes of accidental poisoning.

    In cases like this, seek medical help as soon as possible. Save the container of whatever caused the poisoning. And look on the container for information about anything that stops the effects of the poison. Save anything expelled from the mouth of the victim. That way, doctors can examine it.

    Millions of people know how to give abdominal thrusts(腹部按压)to save a person choking on something trapped in the throat. The American Red Cross says a rescuer should first hit the person on the back five times between the shoulder bones. If the airway is still blocked, the Red Cross suggests pushing hard five times along the victim's abdomen. You can do these abdominal thrusts by getting directly behind a sitting or standing person.

    The Mayo Clinic health centers suggest several steps if bleeding is severe. First, if possible, remove dirt from the wound and press on it with a clean cloth or piece of clothing. In the past, people were advised to stop severe bleeding with a tourniquet(止血带). But experts now say tourniquets are dangerous because they can crush(挤压) major arteries and nerves. If a wound seems infected, let the victim rest. Physical activity can spread the infection. Treat the wound with a mixture of salt and water until medical help arrives.

    To learn more about first aid, ask a hospital or an organization like the Red Cross or the Red Crescent Society for information. Training may be offered in your area.

    If you know first aid methods, you can be calmer and more helpful in case of emergency. 

    Carrots are grown on farms and in family gardens throughout the world. Carrots are easy to raise and easy to harvest. They taste good.

    When people think of carrots, they usually picture in their minds a vegetable that is long, thin and orange in colour. But carrots come in many different sizes and shapes. And not all carrots are orange. For the best results, carrots should be grown in sandy soil that does not hold water for a long time. The soil also should have no rocks. To prepare your carrot garden, dig up the soil, loosen it and turn it over. Then, mix in some plant material or animal fertilizer. Weather, soil conditions and age will affect the way carrots taste. Experts say warm days, cool nights and a medium soil temperature are the best conditions for growing carrots that taste great.

    Carrots need time to develop their full sugar content. This gives them their taste. But carrots loose their sweetness if you wait too long to remove them from the ground. The best way to judge if a carrot is ready to be harvested is by its colour. Usually, the brighter the colour, the better the taste.

    Carrots are prepared and eaten in many different ways. They are cut in thin pieces and added to other vegetables. They are cooked by themselves or added to stews. Or, once they are washed, they are eaten just as they come out of the ground.