Color is everywhere in lives. But what does color mean? Why are people more relaxed in green rooms? Why do people do their best in blue gyms? That's the magic of color!

    Scientists from the US did an experiment. They asked two people to go into two different rooms. One went into a room painted in pink, and the other went into a blue room. They had to stay in the rooms for one hour. But they had to guess the time, because they didn't have a watch or any other thing to see the time. In the end, the person in the pink room came out in about 40 to 50 minutes. The person in the blue room came out after 70 to 80 minutes.

    The results show that color can change people's feelings about time. Warm colors make people feel that time is going faster than cool colors.

    Have you ever heard someone use the phrase"once in a blue moon"？People use this expression to describe something that they do not do very often．For example，someone might say that he tries to avoid eating sweets because they are unhealthy，but will eat chocolate"once in a blue moon"．Or someone who does not usually like to go to the beach might say"I visit the shore once in a blue moon．"While many people use this phrase，not everyone knows the meaning behind it．

    The first thing to know is that the moon itself is never really blue．This is just an expression．In fact，the phrase"blue moon"has to do with the shape of the moon，not the color．

    As the moon travels around the earth，it appears to change shape．We connect names with certain shapes of the moon．For example，when we can see a small part of the moon，it is called a crescent moon．A crescent is a shape that looks like the tip of a fingernail（指甲尖）．When we cannot see the moon at all，it is called a new moon．When we can see the whole moon，it is called a full moon．Usually，there is only one full moon every month．Sometimes，however，there are two full moons in one month．When this happens，the second full moon is called"a blue moon"．

    Over the next 20years，there will only be 15blue moons．So you can seldom see a blue moon． This fact has led people to use the expression"once in a blue moon"to describe things they don't often do in their lives．

Hello! Welcome to our programme! I'm John. I'm in a health club now. I'm having a talk with four students. They are members of this club.

What do people do with their old, out of date but still useful computers? Most people don't know how to deal with them. Many old computers are put away. Many more are simply thrown away as rubbish.

Finally, some companies are thinking of ways to bring down the number of old computers. Sony has agreed to help recycle old Sony products(产品). Dell, Hewlett Packard and other companies now also take back some old computers of their own brands.

In some countries, laws have been passed, too. Computer companies have to pay for collecting and recycling their used products. And 70% of computer waste must be recycled. The idea behind the laws is that computer companies themselves should pay for the cost. That will encourage them to make computers which are easier and cheaper to repair and upgrade(升级).

Yet many people are throwing away good computers, while others cannot afford them at all. Hundreds of organizations are working on this problem. They collect and repair old computers. Some also teach others how to repair computers. These repaired computers then go to schools, charities(慈善团体) or people who need them. Giving a used computer to one of these organizations can turn one person's rubbish into someone else's useful things and cut down waste, too.

Mr. Han was a teacher of English. There was a large international gym near his home. On a sunny Saturday afternoon Mr. Han was taking his two little boys to play tennis in the gym. He walked up to the American man at the ticket box and asked, "How much is it to get in?"

"Nine yuan for you and nine yuan for any child over six years old," the American man answered. "We will let them in for free if they are six or younger. How old are they?"

Mr. Han said, "The younger one is three and the other one is seven, so I think I should give you eighteen yuan."

The American man said with a surprised look on his face, "Hey, did you win the lottery （彩票）or something? You need to give me only nine yuan if you tell me the older one is six. You see, I don't check your ID cards （身份证） today. And the man at the ticket gate won't either（也不）. In fact, it is difficult for anyone to tell the difference between kids of six and seven."

"Yes, that may be true, but the children would know the difference." Mr. Han said. "And that is the most important thing."

It was reported in May 2024 that the China Wildlife Conservation Association(CWCA. 中国野生动物保护协 会 )will sound giant pandas Yun Chuan and Xin Bao to the San Diego Zoo in the United States. which is a symbol of a new 10-vear period of international conservation partnership. The CWCA has organized experienced caretakers and doctors to go with the pandas to the US. The zoo is getting ready to provide the pandas with a largerandunore comfortable living environment. It has also formed a team with special skills related with panda. Ming and scientific research

The cooperation（合作）between the CWCA and the San Diego Zoo dates back to 1996 when Bai Yun and Shi Shi became the first pair of pandas to live in the zoo. Giant pandas Hua Mei, born in 1999, and Mei Sheng,born in 2003,who used to live there,are the result of China-US giant panda research cooperation. Over the past twenty years the two sides have cooperated and solved many technical problems,including important discoveries in key areas like panda raising. 

Since the 1990s, China has cooperated on giant panda conservation with 20 countries. "International cooperation in fields such as disease prevention and control,treatment,and wild training and reintroduction to the wild,has achieved good results. Giant pandas will facilitate communication between peoples and let people around the world know China better,"said Li,the leader of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda

"Scientific and educational outreach（延伸服务）also serves as a key role in international giant panda exchanges,allowing more people to understand giant pandas,which provides very good support for our efforts in protecting wild giant pandas,"Li said.