There was a time when New York City buildings were almost all the same height.

3.Today you can see buildings of different heights that seem to touch the sky. They are called skyscrapers(摩天大楼). They shape the famous New York City skyline.

 It started about 90 years ago. It began like a race. This wasn't a race down the street or around a track(跑道). It was a race for the sky. Who was racing? Buildings were.Their builders were actually racing to build the world's tallest skyscraper.

 The race started slowly.

 First came the Woolworth Building, in 1913. It rose 792 feet(英尺) on the southern side of the city. Then the race heated up.In1930, two skyscrapers were nearing completion. The Bank of Manhattan Building was finished first. It rose up to 927 feet into the sky. Builders were then putting a round roof（屋顶）on the top of the Chrysler Building. It rose up t0 925 feet. The Bank of Manhattan, two feet taller, seemed to be the winner.

 A few weeks later, New Yorkers saw a strange sight（景象）.  The day that the Chrysler Building was to be completed, workers raised a shiny metal, spire（尖顶）through the top of the building, adding 121 feet to the building's height! At l,048 feet,the Chrysler Building was now the world's tallest.

 But the race was not over.  A year later, in 1931, the Empire State Building became the new winner.4.At l,250 feet, it was the world's tallest building.

 In 1973, even that record was broken. Builders finished the World Trade Center. At 1,368 feet high, it rose above all other buildings in New York City.

 Time goes on. As technology improves, taller buildings are being built. The race is still on.

    Now, many young people like shopping on line. But for most people, they still like shopping in the market. Let's see some famous markets around the world.

    There is an unusual market at a place called Damnoen Saduak in Thailand. In this market, people sell fresh fruits on their boats. It's open from 6: 00 in the morning to the noon every day.

    Many Belgians(比利时人) say that the Grand Place is the most beautiful square in the world. It is home of a colorful flower market. It's open every day except Mondays. On Mondays, instead of flowers, there's a wonderful bird market!

    One of the world's most famous markets is the Sonora Market in Mexico. You can buy toys, birds, herbs and medicine. There are all kinds of things. It's open every day from early in the morning till late at night.

    In England, every weekend, thousands of young people t ravel to the Camden Market to go for street fashion CDs and tapes. Many people also go there for fun.

Keep More Food on the Table

    It's said that in some parts of the world, people are facing the problem of hunger. So what can we do to help them? Here are some suggestions:

    Cook from the fridge

    Start with the fresh foods. If you have some in the fridge, use them first. Make a meal with what you have got instead of running out to the supermarket for something else.

    Learn to read the labels

    “Best-before” and“use-by” dates are more important. Learn to know the different periods of foods and know how to cook them in the right way. For example, black bananas are proper for baking, fresh vegetables are good in soups, and bread that is not fresh can be turned into small pieces.

    Use the freezer(冷冻室)

    The freezer can keep foods fresh until you are ready to cook them, and store the cooked foods until you're ready to eat them. It's also the best place for the remaining food. Mark the date of the food nearby, so it's easy to find the foods you need to eat first and you will never leave them there for too long.

    Shop with a list

    Plan meals ahead of time so that you know exactly what to buy. Doing this helps reduce food waste because it's possible to buy too much of a certain food and then forget to eat or cook it later.

    Title: Keep More Food on the Table

    Mr. Johnson lives outside of the town. His wife is often ill and his six children are studying at school. He works hard but he is often short of money. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    One afternoon, on Mr. Johnson's way home, it suddenly began to rain. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} His wife washed the clothes and shoes for him and aired them outside. Before she went to bed, she brought the clothes into the room but forgot the shoes.

    The next morning Mr. Johnson couldn't find his shoes. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Then he went to the police station and told the policemen about it.

   "I paid ten dollars for my shoes, sir," said the man." Look! I have to wear such a pair of worn-out shoes now!"

    Several days later, the police caught a thief and found the shoes. They were worn-out, too.

    "{#blank#}4{#/blank#}" said a policeman." The shopkeeper told me a pair of new shoes like them costs only seven dollars!"

    "You're right, sir," said Mr. Johnson." I've had them for five years and I had them fixed six times. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}"

    When it comes to the letter grade on your test or homework, you might notice that there is no letter E. Have you ever thought about why that is so?

    In the A. B. C. D and F grading system, the first four letter are typically considered passing grades. An F in this system simply stands for "fail". The word "fail" happens to start with the letter F, which seems to leave out the letter E, The fact of the matter is that any letter can mean "not-passing" or "fail". Some schools have U grade for unsatisfactory", or I grade for "incomplete."

    Even with all this said, we should also point out that E grade actually has been used pretty commonly throughout the history of letter grades in the US.

    The first college in the US to use a letter grading system like the ones we use today is Mount Holyoke College. In 1897, they began to use the following grading scale:

A: 95-100% (excellent)   B: 85-94%(good)   C: 76-84%(fair)

D: 75%(barely passed)   E: below 75%(failed)

    We can see the inclusion of E instead of F.

    Gradually, the letter grading system became more popular throughout the US. However, many schools decided to drop the E grade and go straight to F. There is no evidence(证据)to really support this, but one possible explanation is that teachers were worried that some students and parents might mistake E for "excellent".

    Why do we have letter grades? Well, part of the reason is that they made grading simpler during n time of great change for schools. As the 20th century began, growing cites and an increase in immigration led to larger school classrooms. Most teachers at that time thought this new letter grading system was an easy, fair and clear way to grade students.

    Today, more and more people argue that letter grades don' t fully reflect(反映)student learning. However, as teachers try to improve grading methods, many parents continue to favor the letter grades they got as kids. They are familiar(熟悉) and easy for parents to understand. So while they might not be perfect, the letter grades probably aren't going away any time soon.