Thomas Edison was born in 1847. When he was five, his father saw him sitting on some eggs, and asked what he was doing that for. He did not reply(回答). Instead he asked why he was not able to hatch(孵化)chickens while the hens could.

    Edison liked asking a lot of strange questions. His teacher did not understand him and said that he was not bright and was not worth teaching. His mother took him out of school and taught him herself.

    By the time he was ten, he had already built a small chemistry(化学) lab of his own. He planted vegetables in his garden and sold them.

    Once his mother was ill. The doctor said she needed an operation at once. But it was the night and the oil lamp in the room gave off poor light. Edison thought hard and had an idea. He put all the oil lamps he could find on a long table. Then he placed a big mirror(镜子)behind them. The room became quite bright. So the doctor could operate, and his mother was saved. At the age of twelve, Edison began selling candies, sandwiches and newspapers on the train. One day in August, 1862, Edison saw a boy playing on the tracks at a station. A train was coming near quickly, and the boy was too frightened to move. Edison rushed out and carried the boy to safety. The boy's father was the station master. He was so thankful that he taught Edison railway telegraphy(电报通讯术). This gave him a start in his life.

    Hans said to his friend Kurt, "I'm going to take my car and drive to London." Kurt said," Driving to London is very difficult. You aren't going to find your hotel." But Hans was not afraid. He drove to Calais, put his car on his ship, took it off at Dover and drove to London.

    He stopped near the city and looked at his map. Then he drove into London, but he didn't find his hotel. He drove round and round for an hour, and then he stopped and got out of his car. A taxi came, and Hans stopped it. "Take me to the Brussels Hotel." he said. But he didn't get into the taxi; he got back into his car. The taxi man laughed, but then he drove to the Brussels Hotel and Hans followed him in his car. They got to the hotel in two minutes.

    Long long ago, there was a small village in the mountains, and many people lived there. Mike was one of them. He was a middle-aged man. The people in the village always laughed at him. They liked to show visitors how stupid Mike was. They thought this was an amusing thing to do.

    One day, a visitor came to the village. "Watch this!" a villager said and called to Mike." Come and play a game, Mike." he shouted. Mike walked slowly towards him, with a silly smile on his face. "Look, Mike, "the villager said, "I have got something for you." He showed Mike a $1 coin and a much larger 50￠（美分） coin." Which one would you like？" he asked Mike, holding them both out. Mike immediately took the 50￠coin. The villager laughed." See how stupid he is!" he said," He always does that. How stupid he is!" He walked away, leaving Mike with the visitor.

    The visitor felt sorry for Mike." Mike, listen," he said," Although the 50￠ coin is bigger than the 1 coin, the 1 coin is worth much more. Twice as much." "I know that," Mike said," But the very first time I take the $1 coin, they will stop playing the game. "Mike went away and left the visitor in silence.

Leeks are so common that you have probably never thought much about them. They grow easily in our gardens and don't look very special, but that doesn't mean they are not interesting! Leeks belong to the Allium family of vegetables, which also includes onions. Like onions and other members of the Allium family, leeks are a kind of vegetable with white soft parts and leafy green tops. The bulb(鳞茎), however, is not round, but just slightly larger than the stem nearest the roots. The more rounded the bulb, the older the leek. Leeks are usually about 30 cm long, but they can grow much bigger. Do you know growing leeks can win you a prize? Some gardeners grow big leeks and hold competitions to find the biggest type of leek. The heaviest leek ever weighed more than 8 kg. 

People have been eating leeks for thousands of years. The Ancient Roman Emperor Nero ordered his cooks to serve him leeks every day, as he believed they would improve his singing voice! People in Wales loved leeks so much that they made them their national symbol. As the story goes, about 400 years ago, Welsh soldiers were fighting in a war. They put leeks in their hats so that they could tell their friends from their enemies. 

Leeks are especially loved by cooks all over the world, as they give flavor(味道) to lots of dishes. Leeks taste a bit like onions, but their flavor is much weaker. They taste especially good in soups. In France, a leek and potato soup is eaten cold. Leeks go well with meat. 

So now we know that leeks are delicious, but are they good for you? Yes! Leeks are full of iron(铁). Experts now believe that eating leeks and other members of the Allium family can also help people keep their blood pressure under control and their hearts healthy.