The story took place in a small town in winter. One day a man met an old lady standing by an expensive car. It was clear that her car broke down. So he stopped his old truck and got out. Although he was smiling, the old lady was worried. “Is he going to hurt me?”

The man could see that she was frightened, so in his friendliest voice he said, “I'm here to help you, madam. Why don't you wait in the car to get warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.” It took Bryan about fifty minutes to fix the car. The lady felt quite thankful and she asked how much she should pay him.

 But Bryan wanted no money. ①对他来说，帮助别人很正常。He said, “If you want to repay me, next time you see someone in need, just give out your friendly hand.”

 After saying goodbye, the lady continued down the road till she reached a small café. She stopped for something to eat. As the pretty waitress stood next to her, the lady noticed she was nearly eight months pregnant (怀孕). ②Although she looked tired, she still served the customers with a smile on her face. As the old lady was going to pay the $10 bill, she remembered Bryan's words.

The old lady paid one hundred-dollar bill. But when the waitress returned with the change, the lady was gone. On the table she saw a small note. Her eyes were filled with tears when she read it, “Somebody once helped me the way I'm helping you. If you want to pay me back, continue being kind to others. ” Under the note were nine more $100 bills.

 Was the old lady an angel? The waitress was so excited that she called her husband to tell the story. “Bryan…Bryan Anderson my dear… you're not going to believe what has happened… ”

 Love needs to be passed on. Everyone can be an angel.

    Bamboo is one of the nature's most surprising plants. (1) 许多人称这种植物为树，但它是一种草。

Like other kinds of grass, a bamboo plant may be cut very low to the ground, but it will grow back very quickly. A Japanese scientist recorded one bamboo plant that grew almost 1.5 meters in 24 hours! Bamboo grows almost everywhere in the world except Europe.

（2）There are more than 1 ， 000kinds of bamboo that grow around the world on both mountains and plains （平原）．

      Not all bamboo looks the same．Some bamboo plants are very thin．They may only grow to be a few centimeters wide while others may grow to more than 30centimeters across．This plant also comes in different colors，from yellow to black to green．

      Many Asian countries have been using bamboo for hundreds of years．They often use bamboo for building new buildings．As a matter of fact，the cables （绳索） that hold up the hanging bridge across the Min River in Sichuan are made of bamboo．The bridge has been in use for more than 1，000years，and is still holding strong．

      In Africa，（3）engineers are teaching poor farmers how to use bamboo to find water ． These African countries need cheap ways to find water because （4 ）they have no money，and their fields often die from no rain and no water．It seems that bamboo is one of the best things they can use．Bamboo pipes and drills （钻） can help to make the poor thirsty fields be watered．

    In North America, people are always in a hurry. Children have special lessons or sports activities after school. Parents often work late and don't get home until 7 or 8 o'clock at night. More than 50% of women work at full—time jobs, and many people do part—time work.

    When a family wants to eat a meal together, often(A) there isn't enough time to prepare the food.  That is why fast food is so popular in North America.(B) People spend about 40% of their money buying fast food.

    Fast food is the food ____(C)___ pizza, sandwiches or fried chicken. People can buy the food from a restaurant chain(连锁) like Pizza Hut, McDonald's or KFC. (D) Fast food saves work and time, but it is usually junk food.

    Fast food is popular in many countries. American fast food companies(公司) now have restaurants all over the world. But not everyone is happy about the spread(扩张)of North American fast food. Some people in Italy want to fight against(抵制) it . (E)They don't want any more fast food chains to open in their country. They also want to fight against the spread of fast food everywhere in the world.

    Earthquakes often happen and you may hear about the earthquake in Songyuan of Jilin Province these days. So we must know some advice about protecting ourselves.

⑴You should do earthquake practice and teach your children about earthquake safety. Everyone in the family should do some earthquake practice often. It's very important.  {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

⑵It's necessary to prepare yourself and your family. All family members should know how to turn off gas, water and electricity and know useful telephone numbers(120, 110, 119, etc)  {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

⑶If you are indoors, quickly move to a safe place in the room such as under a strong desk or a strong table. The purpose is to protect yourself from falling objects. Stay away from windows, large mirrors and so on. If you are cooking, turn off the gas.  {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

⑷If you are outdoors, move to an open area like a playground. Move away from buildings, bridges and trees. If you are driving, stop the car as soon as possible, stay away from bridges and tall buildings. Stay in your car.  {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

⑸Once the shaking has stopped, DO NOT run out of the buildings at once. It's better to wait and leave when it is safe. If your building is badly broken, you should leave it.  {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    A music club was set up in Class One, Grade Eight. The students who like music can join the club. There are some students in it now.

    Li lei likes rock music best. He says, "Rock music is my favorite, because it makes me happy and exited. It sounds exciting and most people like it. I am going to become a famous singer of a band when I grow up."

    Wang Ming says, "I am from the country. So I liked country music when I was young, and I still like it now. I will sing a song when I'm sad, and then I'll get better."

    The twins like jazz best because they can dance to the music.

    Jack says, "I like pop music, but I do well in playing musical instruments, so I like classical music best. I want to continue studying classical music."

    Han and Xue like folk music best, they say it sounds wonderful. They are ready for the next school concert.

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