Have you ever been to the world's smallest bookstore?

    The World's Smallest Bookstore, whose official name is just these three words, sits quietly about 100 miles northeast of Toronto.

    The bookstore is about 10 feet by 10 feet，so it is easy to imagine how tiny it really is. The bookstore is open 24 hours a day. Inside the bookstore are various books, especially literary books and classic authors' works. So if you are looking for something less popular, you may get a bit disappointed there.

Another special feature of this bookstore is that each book only costs three dollars. All the expenses are paid on the honor system, which means buyers should make a note of what they've bought and leave their money by themselves. So the tools of the trade in this bookstore are quite simple: pens, papers, light bulbs and a label-maker.

    In order to catch passers-by's attention, the billboards (广告牌) of the bookstore are several times bigger than the store itself. With these large eye-catchers, many people are willing to stop by and have a visit.

    Dry Ice is a unique substance which has many uses. Essentially, dry ice is frozen CO2. The first report of what we now call dry ice came from the French chemist Charles Thilorier in 1834. In 1924, the Drylee Corporation of America named the solid form of CO2 as "Dry Ice", which is what it is popularly called today.

    At normal atmospheric pressure, CO2changes directly from solid to gas. It skips the liquid phase（阶段）which makes regular ice wet. Frozen CO2is also much colder than regular ice. But regular ice freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, CO2 changes from gas to solid at -109.3 degrees Fahrenheit. This extremely cold temperature makes it very dangerous to handle with bare hands. It can cause frostbite in a very short period of time.

    Dry ice has been used for a variety of purposes throughout the past century. Its primary use is to refrigerate food when electrical refrigeration isn't available. Through the process of sublimation (when CO2 changes from solid to gas), it can maintain cold food for a long time.

    If you've ever been to a play and seen heavy fog on the ground, it is likely that you have seen dry ice in action. This effect can be achieved because CO2 is heavier than air, so evaporated （挥发的）CO2 will sink and accumulate on the ground.

    Another interesting use for this substance is to bait（诱杀）insects like mosquitoes. These insects have sensors which guide them to CO2. They find the high concentration of CO2 in dry ice quite attractive.

    Mars has long been a mystery for human beings. We have been looking for evidence of life on Mars. In the 1960s scientists guessed that the polar ice cap of Mars was made of frozen CO2. More recent observations have shown that while the topmost layer consists of frozen CO2, the most of it is probably regular frozen water.

    We all know that the cost of heating our homes will continue to be a significant burden on the family budget. Now millions of people are saving on their heating bills with the EP portable heater. With over one million satisfied customers around the world, the new EP heats better and faster, saves more on heating bills, and runs almost silent.

    The EP has no exposed heating parts that can cause a fire. The outside of the EP only gets warm to the touch so that it will not burn children or pets.

    The EP will not reduce oxygen in the room. With other heaters, you'll notice that you get sleepy when the heat comes on because they are burning up oxygen.

    The advanced EP also heats the room evenly, wall to wall and floor to ceiling. It comfortably covers an area up to 350 square feet. Other heaters heat rooms unevenly with most of the heat concentrated to the center of the room. And they only heat an area a few feet around the heater. With the EP, the temperature will not vary in any part of the room.

    The EP comes with a 3-year warranty (保修) and a 60-day, no questions asked, satisfaction guarantee. If you are not totally satisfied, return it at our expense and your money will be given back to you.

    Now we have a special offer for 10 days, during which you can enjoy a half price discount and a free delivery. If you order after that, we reserve the right to either accept or reject order requests at the discounted price.

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    The best-known example of external( 外部的)influence causing language change is the "Americanization" of world culture, which has caused English words to appear in city streets all over the world. The effect is most noticeable in pop music. Foreign groups often record in English, and the words are picked up and repeated in the same language everywhere, even by children who otherwise have little or no command of the language. I once met a Brazilian child of about ten who could count 'one, two, three', but only by adding the words 'o'clock, four o'clock rock 'at the end.

Some people are often strongly critical of the influence of English on their language — especially when an English word replaces a traditional word. In 1977, France passed a law banning the use of English words in official situations if an equivalent( 意义相同的)French expression existed — but the law seemed to be honored more in the breaking than in the observing. Some other countries have considered introducing a similar law despite the evidence that such laws have very little effect, and that the arrival of loan words( 外来词) can greatly enrich a language (as indeed in the case of English itself, which has a long history of welcoming foreign words).

    However, not everyone is critical. In particular, commercial firms and advertisers are well aware of the potential selling power that the use of English vocabulary can bring. In Japan, English is even used in television commercials, despite the fact that the majority of viewers would not understand exactly what was being said: the excellence implied by the mere use of English is apparently enough to command the strategy to the advertisers.

    Most of the influence of English is upon the vocabulary of foreign languages, but surveys are slowly bringing to light several cases where word order or word structure has been affected. Sentences of the type “The book sells well”, using an active construction for a passive meaning, have begun to appear in Danish (Bogen soelger godt). Several languages keep the English plural ending when they make use of a loan word, and do not translate it into the native form, e.g. drinks. There are many other such cases.

History Fair Competition

    Understanding history is vital to understanding ourselves as a people and as a nation.

    History is much more than the study of dusty old objects and events long past. It is an essential part of who we are today and who we will become. Thornton fiddle School History Fair Competition makes understanding history exciting, engaging, and fun！

    This Year's Theme

    All participants must address how communication or transportation technology has promoted the quality of life for Americans throughout history. To many people, technology means computers, hand-held devices, or vehicles that travel to distant planets. However, technology is also the application of scientific knowledge to solve a problem, touching lives in countless ways.

    Individuals or groups may enter one of the following categories:

    Performance

    Documentary（纪实作品）

    Essay Writing

    Category Requirements

    Performance: A dramatic presentation of the topic no more than 10 minutes long. If special clothes are used, they should truly represent a given period.

    Documentary: A visual presentation（such as a video, slide show, or computer project）no more than 10 minutes long. A desktop computer, screen, projector, and loudspeakers will be available. Students must provide their presentations on CDs before Friday, March 23.

    Essay Writing: An academic paper of 2, 000 to 2, 500 words. No illustrations（图解）are allowed. Please do not include covers. A list of references must be included.

    Important Dates

    January 5      Submit a topic proposal to your history teacher. The teacher may require a second proposal if the first is off-topic or unclear.

    February 5      Submit a first draft of your essay, performance script（剧本）, or documentary highlights.

    February 19    A committee of teachers will evaluate materials and give opinions. Students then have an opportunity to improve their products.

    March 9          Submit a final draft of your essay.

    March 15          Performance and documentary committee preview

    March 24          Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition

    7:00A. M-9:00A. M          Participants signing in at the gym

    10:00A. M. -6:00PM.        Competition and judges' review

    7:00P.M.                   Awards ceremony and picnic