—________, sir.

          When I walked into the house after school, the first thing I noticed was a box with items I recognized from my dad's office. When he told me that he was laid off, I thought he was joking. Then I noticed his seriousness and realized he was telling the truth. My father has always been a hard worker. He has prided himself on his career.（1）{#blank#}1{#/blank#}I guess I had taken his work for granted.

          （2）{#blank#}2{#/blank#}For starters, he was home all the time. It meant my bed had to be made, my room cleaned up, and my homework done right after school. I would come home every day to find him at the computer searching for jobs. （3）{#blank#}3{#/blank#}He seemed down, though he tried to be optimistic. He asked my brother and me to spend less. I gave up my spending money, which wasn't much. I also found a part-time job.

          （4）{#blank#}4{#/blank#}He explained that he never wanted to be laid off again, so he was going to start his own business. Day by day, I watched him build it. One evening I asked if he needed help. “Only if it doesn't affect school,” he said. I showed up at his office the next afternoon, and most afternoons after that for two months.

          （5）{#blank#}5{#/blank#}The terrible experience for our family taught me how to deal with difficulties. Now I know that through creative problem-solving, I can always find Plan B. I can ask for help and take risks. What I have learned from my dad's understanding of business and his work ethic（信条）are two of the most important lessons I will ever learn. And they will be my principles for success.

    A. Providing for our family has been his joy.

    B. I made every effort to solve his problems.

    C. I began to notice how losing his job had affected him.

    D. My father's unemployment created many changes in our lives.

    E. After months of searching, my dad decided to go in a totally different direction.

    F. His courage and determination helped him to become successful in his new career.

    G. I always knew he was a hard worker, but watching him in action influenced me a lot.

                                                                                        A Manhattan Crossing

       New Yorkers like to say they can walk faster than the crosstown bus.On 34th Street, buses average about four miles an hour.For those in a hurry, pretty much everyone here, it's an icy pace for a crosstown trip.Janette Sadik­Khan, the city's transportation commissioner, is proposing an interesting fix for 34th Street.

       The city plan would close 34th Street to non­bus traffic in the block between the Empire State Building and Macy's.On the rest of the street, cars would move one way only.It would take getting used to, but for bus passengers, the city says there are more than 40，000 a day on public, tour or commuter(通勤者)buses along 34th Street.The plan should cut the commute by up to 35 percent.

       People in other vehicles or about 10 percent of the human traffic would have to zig and zag(锯齿形)to get through this section of the city.It is probably fair to say that most are not particularly pleased about the whole concept.

       So the city needs to answer important questions.Will this unrest mean more traffic on side streets that are already unbearably crowded？Will deliveries be limited to the daybreak hours？Will Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Ms.Sadik­Khan be willing to change or drop the plan if it simply won't work?

        The Bloomberg administration has worked to improve bus traffic around the city.An experiment to speed up city buses along Fordham Road in the Bronx has already reduced travel time and increased passengers' number.

        Urban planners have been studying the city's crosstown problems since the first traffic jam.Robert Moses at one point proposed a major highway just south of 34th Street, part of which would go through an office building.The question is still whether it will really make it easier to operate in Manhattan.

Notes：

①unrest n ． 动乱，动荡　②concept n ． 概念

       In Los Angeles, drivers spend sixty­one hours every year stuck in traffic. These drivers know too well how bad the traffic can be. “There're too many cars, and you can't move around a lot.”

       Professor Cyrus Shahabi also knows about traffic jams. He lives more than 65 kilometers from his office at the University of Southern     California in Los Angeles. He is always late even with the help of a navigation (导航) system.

       He decided to develop a program called ClearPath for that. He says his program uses historical data to predict traffic conditions even before the driver leaves the house.

   “What's unique is that we use a lot of data that's currently become available including traffic data, weather data, and we analyze that so that we can predict what's going to happen in front of you when you leave home.”

      Professor Shahabi says his system does more than just respond to current traffic conditions. With ClearPath, he says, a driver can decide what time he wants to leave, and ClearPath will give the fastest route. It looks at the entire road network, including surface streets as well as highways, before the driver hits the road. Professor Shahahi hopes to have ClearPath available nationwide and overseas once they can collect traffic data from other cities.

   “I always thought that Los Angeles had the worst traffic, but now I know that Shanghai, Beijing, Seoul, Tokyo, believe it or not, Singapore, Hong Kong certainly are examples that can immediately use this.”

       Professor Shahabi hopes to share this new technology with companies that already have navigation systems, such as Google and Apple.