A young man went to visit a wise man who lived deep in the mountain{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    "Excuse me!{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Is it the day we were born or the day we die？Is it the day we fall in love or the day we are successful？"the young man asked．

    "None．The most important day in our lives is today．The wise man replied calmly．

    "Why？"the young man was very surprised．

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    "So is it because of my visit？"

    "Even if nobody visited me today，today is still very important，because today is the only wealth we have．No matter how important yesterday is，it has gone by；{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    No matter how ordinary and boring today is，it is in our hands．"

    The young man still wanted to ask something，but the wise man stopped him and said，"When we are talking about the importance of today，we have wasted a lot of it．That is to say，part of‘today'has passed．"

    Having understood this，the young man nodded and then went down the mountain．

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Therefore，what we should do now is to forget yesterday and tomorrow and catch hold of today!

A．Is it because there is some unusual event taking place today？

B．Actually today is the only wealth and chance we have．

C．No matter how wonderful tomorrow may be，it hasn't come

D．Could you tell me what is the most important day in our lives？

E．He wanted to ask for the wisdom of life．

    About one hundred years ago many educated people learned and spoke French when they met people from other countries. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} It has become the new international language. There are more people who speak English as a second language than people who speak English as a first language. Why is this?

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} One of them is that English has become the language of business. Another important reason is that popular American culture (like movies, music, and McDonald's) has quickly spread all over the world. It has brought its language with it.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} I don't know. It's important to have a language that the people of the earth have in common. Our world has become very global(全球性的) and we need to communicate with one another. On the other hand, English is quite a difficult language to learn and it brings its culture with it. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Scientists have already tried to create an artificial(人造的) language that isn't too difficult and doesn't include any one group's culture. It is called Esperanto. But it hasn't become popular. But maybe the popularity of English won't last that long either. Who knows? There are more people in the world who speak Chinese than any other language. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. Do we really need that?

B. So it is important for people to learn French.

C. There are many reasons why English has become so popular.

D. Today most people speak English when they meet foreigners.

E. Maybe someday Chinese will be the new international language.

F. More than six thousand languages are spoken in the world today.

G. Is it good that English has spread to all parts of the world so quickly?

Why Live Near the River?

Imagine pioneers traveling west in the 1800s. In those days, it was hard to find running water and shops where to buy things. As time went by, most pioneers had to make their homes near a river so that they could get water easily.

How did rivers help people live in the past?

Back in the pioneer days, people grew their own food, caught their own fish, and collected their own water.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}People also used rivers as roads, traveling on boats. Traders shipped goods (货物) to people from other areas.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

When building many factories right next to rivers for the water's power to make machines work, some people choose to live near a river for working. They use the river to ship large goods, and some of them work at these factories where power factories provide electricity for homes and businesses.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

Who wouldn't want to live near a river?

Some people are nervous about living near rivers because rivers can cause floods (洪水). Every once in a while, floodwaters rise higher than a house, ruining (毁坏) many things in the house.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Such waste causes water to smell bad and pollutes the crops (作物) we eat. Water and crops in polluted areas can make people very sick.

How do people decide where to live?

 {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Rivers can provide jobs and fun activities in a beautiful place. However, those living by rivers should be willing to accept possible problems as well.