Thumbs Down to Texting （屈指发短信）

       Do you have a mobile phone? Do you send text messages to your friends and family?

       Text messaging or “texting” is becoming very popular. But, scientists have discovered that texting can give us problems with our hands. Be careful! Too much texting can cause swelling in our thumbs. Our thumbs were not made for pushing small buttons, over and over. Scientists call this problem RSI. We spoke to a doctor called Harriet Wilson, who treats many sick people with RSI. She says we need to see how much time we are spending in typing text messages. If we are spending more than 10–15 minutes at once, we could have problems in the future.

       As mobile phones develop, they are getting smaller with buttons closer together. Texting with a smaller phone is worse than using a larger phone with bigger buttons. Using a computer keyboard and playing video games can cause the same problem. So more and more people could find themselves with RSI. Among them, most are university students and teenagers, as they do not know the risks of spending so much time using computer, video games and mobile phones. If we don't do something about this, too many young people could grow up in terrible pain.

请阅读下面短文,并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。每个空格只填一个单词。

    What is a hurricane?

    You may already know that hurricanes are storms that can cause devastating (毁灭性的) waves, wind, and rain. They happen during “Hurricane Season,” which is from June 1st until November 30th in the Atlantic Ocean and from May 15th until November 30th in the Pacific Ocean.

    Types of Hurricanes

    There are five types of hurricanes, which are based on wind speeds. The categories help people know how much damage a hurricane may cause because the greater the wind speed, the more dangerous the storm. For example, a Category 5 hurricane has winds over 155 miles per hour, which are strong enough to destroy the buildings along the shorelines completely.

    Hurricane Dangers

    When a hurricane happens together with heavy rainfall, there can be a devastating flood. The centre of a hurricane is called the eye. While most of a hurricane has dangerously strong winds, the eye is actually a calm area in the storm. When the eye of a hurricane passes over land, people might think that it's over, but before long the wind and rain increase again as the second part of the hurricane moves through.

    Hurricane Safety Tips

    There is no way to stop a hurricane or make it change direction, so if you ever find yourself in the path of a hurricane, be sure to remember the following safety tips.

    Be sure you have a radio, batteries, fresh drinking water, and enough food.

    Tell neighbours, friends, and family members your emergency plans. Tell them where you'll go if you need to leave your home.

    If you live near the ocean, leave your home and travel to a safe place. You could stay with a friend or a family member, in a hotel／motel, or in an emergency shelter area.

    Stay inside during the storm. You could be seriously injured if you go outside.

    In the past, many people used horses for traveling，farming and other kinds of work．A lot of people still like to ride horses．And horse racing is also popular．So it is not surprising that Americans use this animal when they talk．

    Long ago，rich or important people rode horses which were very tall．Today, if a girl acts like she is better than everyone else，you might say she should get off her high horse ．

    Yesterday my children wanted me to take them to the playground．But I had to finish my work, so I said．"Hold your horses ． Wait until I finish what I am doing." My two boys like to compete against each other and play in a noisy and not very careful way．I always tell them to stop horsing around or someone could get hurt． Last night，I got a telephone call while I Was watching my favourite TV show．I decided not to answer it because wild horses could not drag(拖，拽)me away from the television．There was nothing that could stop me from doing what I wanted to do．

    Sometimes you get information straight from the horse's mouth ． Let us say your teacher tells you there is going to be a test tomorrow．You could say you got the information straight from the horse's mouth ．

    You can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink ． That means you can give someone advice but you cannot force him to do something he does not want to do．

    根据材料内容，从下面方框中选出恰当的短语或句子完成五个小题，使句子通顺、意思完整，将其标号填入题前括号内。每个短语或句子限用一次。

    Conan Doyle, a famous writer, the creator of the famous character Holmes, was telling a story about himself in which he was the laughing-stock（笑柄）.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} When a taxi pulled up, he placed his suitcase in the car and took a seat next to it. 'Where can I take you, Mr. Doyle?" asked the taxi driver politely. Doyle was very surprised. He asked, {#blank#}2{#/blank#}"The driver answered, 'No, sir, I have never seen you before."

    Doyle couldn't believe and asked him how he knew he was Conan Doyle. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} People who return from Marseilles always come to the taxi-stop. Your skin tells me you have been on vacation.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Your clothing is very English, and not French. And so, I deduce（推论） that you are Sir Conan Doyle," said the driver.

    Doyle was astonished by the driver's words and said, "This is truly amazing. Your are talented and a real-life counterpart（对应的人） to my creation, Holmes." "Thanks to another thing," the driver said. "What is that?" {#blank#}5{#/blank#}"

A. Have we met each other before?

B. One day he was waiting at a taxi-stop outside the railway station in Paris.

C. This morning's paper had a report about you being on vacation in Marseilles.

D. Your name is written on your suitcase.

E. Your right finger suggests to me that you're a writer.

    Paper cutting is one of the traditional folk arts in China. It is a kind of popular folk arts and has been popular for about 1, 500 years. Let's learn about paper cutting.

    Wonderful meanings

    Paper cutting has some wonderful meanings, In our mind, paper cuttings can always bring us happiness and good luck. At the Spring Festival, people put up "Fu "on doors or windows. At a wedding, people also put up "Xi".

    The largest paper cutting in the world

    The largest paper cutting was made by Guo Xiaodong. It has an area of about 456 square meters. It is as large as a basketball court.

    Why are most paper cuttings red?

    In old times, people respected the sun. Red is the color of the sun. We always regard red as the symbol of hope and good luck. Now, we can still see red everywhere in China. The walls of old palaces are red. Lanterns are red. Weddings are always full of red things, too.

    Black paper cutting in Shanzhou

    It's true that most paper cuttings are red. But paper cuttings in Shanzhou, Henan Province are black. Black is the best color there. Shanzhou is a dry place. The local people make black paper cuttings to wish for rain.

    Here is a picture of my birthday party. My friends and I are all very happy at the party. Peter is eating the birthday cake. My mother makes it for us and it's delicious. My sister Molly is singing. And Selina is playing the guitar for her. Selina's father is a music teacher and he teaches Selina to play the guitar. Dave is talking about basketball with my brother. Where am I? I'm in front of Dave.