It is 40 meters long and 6 meters wide. This must be the biggest bus you have ever seen. It can carry 1,200 to 1,400 people.

It is China's new Super Bus. It is going for a test run in Beijing at the end of this year. Some other cities are also interested in running the Super Bus. They hope it can solve traffic problems.

    The Super Bus runs along fixed tracks (固定轨道). The bus sits on top of two 2.2-meter-tall legs. The legs have wheels at one end. Small cars can drive under the bus, so the Super Bus does not take up road space.

The bus runs on electricity and solar power. It can travel up to 60 km every hour. Its creator, Song Youzhou, says it can reduce a lot of traffic jams (堵塞).

    The Super Bus can do the work of 40 buses. In that way, it can save 860 tons of fuel (燃料) every year, according to Song.

    "To build a Super Bus and its track costs less than building subways. Subways are nearly ten times more expensive to build." Song said.

    Some people worry that the Super Bus may not be safe. However, Song says there's no need for concern. The Super Bus has laser scanners (激光扫描仪) between its legs. The scanners make sure the cars keep a safe distance.

      Our living environment is being polluted faster than before and it seems nobody can prevent it. Time brings us more people, and more people bring us more industry, more cars, larger cities and growing use of man-made materials.

      How can we understand and solve this problem? The fact is that pollution is caused by man —by his desire (欲望）for a modem way of life. So we are often ready to offer everything: clean water, good food, our health and the future of our children. There are more people from the countryside moving into the cities and enjoying the modem society. But as the technological momentum (势头) has grown in the last twenty years, pollution has become a serious problem.

      Now we have to stop to ask ourselves where we are going and why. It makes one think of the story about the airline pilot who told his passengers over the loudspeaker, “I've got some good news and bad news. The good news is that we're going at 530 miles per hour. The bad news is that we're lost and don't know where we are going.” The sad fact is that this problem becomes a true story when speaking of our modem society.

    In the Charles F. Johnson Elementary School in New York, there is a special radio. It gives people warnings about bad weather.

    One day, there came a sound from the radio. This sound brought the piece of news: a heavy storm was coming. William Tomic, principal(校长) of the school, asked teachers to bring children indoors and put them in a safe place at once.

    Minutes later, the storm came. However, because of the warning of the radio and the quick work of the principal, no one was hurt.

    "The radio really did work very well.(A)(我们对它的工作感到很满意), "William Tomic said. "The parents were happy as well."

    The U. S. government hopes there will be more such successful stories. It plans to give this kind of radio to all 97, 000 public schools in the country.

    Every year, more than 10, 000 big thunderstorms, 2, 500 floods, 1, 000 tornadoes(龙卷风) and some hurricanes(飓风) take place in the U. S., so the warning radios are very useful. They not only give people warnings about bad weather, but also give warnings about other dangerous  things.

Recently, more and more young people are riding bicycles on city roads, surfing on the land, playing Ultimate Frisbee(极限飞盘), going rock climbing and so on. Why are these new sports so popular?{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

Young people pick them up not only to keep healthy, but also to make more friends. Groups of players have online group chats, talking about the sports they are interested in or simply sharing their lives. "I like sports very much, and I think Ultimate is very suitable for me. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} It really makes me happy," said Ge Ziwei, who started playing Ultimate last April.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} "The photos are very nice and can be posted on our social media accounts to remind us of the good times," said Ge.

Traditional sports, such as soccer and basketball, usually have strict rules. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} People can enjoy them at many places in the city, from parks to sidewalks.

If you want to pick up a new sport, try the sports above.

① Here is the car of the future! This car is very different from today's cars— it is quieter and cleaner. Today's cars have wheels (轮子), but this one does not. It moves like a snail (蜗牛), but it is much faster than a snail!

② This car will use electricity instead of gasoline (电而不是汽油). It can be charged (充电) very quickly from chargers built on both sides of the road. It will also be very easy to drive. 

③ In fact, you won't need to drive it because it will drive itself. You will just need to tell the computer" Go to X" and the car will go there. Also, it will arrive there very quickly, much faster than today's cars. It will also be very safe and comfortable. 

④ It hasn't been put on the market yet. But fifty years from now, maybe sooner, some new roads will have solar energy panels (太阳能电池板). They will store energy under the road and some cars will be able to use it. 

⑤ However, you won't be able to drive a" snail car", even if you're over 20 today. Maybe this is the car of the year 2100, and your grandchildren may drive it. 

⑥  ▲  No pollution, no traffic jams, no

stress. Scientists will have lots of ideas about the cars of the future. It will be interesting to see what ideas they come up with many years from now.