People normally think of dogs as man's best friend, but to Brian Wilson, his two pet parrots are his best friends.

    It all began in 1995, when Brian was still a firefighter. A car accident caused serious damage to his brain. After several months of treatment, Brian's doctors said that he would never talk again and that he would have to spend the rest of his life in a nursing home.

    However, according to Brian, his two pet parrots didn't give up easily. They kept talking to him day and night, until one day, he said one word, then another, and all of a sudden was talking like a normal person again!

    Brian was so thankful that he decided to set up a home for birds which are not wanted by their owners. Now, his house is home to about 80 birds, including a great variety of birds like several macaws, cockatoos and African gray parrots. The birds fly around from room to room, some cackling (咯咯叫), others talking like humans. Though they all have big cages, Brian lets them fly freely inside the house.

    Over the years, Brian has developed a special relationship with birds. The birds that bite other humans, seem to like him and can get along with him well. He is now called a bird whisperer (鸟语者). Brian pays for most of the costs of looking after the birds with his own money, but has recently established a foundation (基金会) to accept donations. He and his birds also earn money by performing at birthday parties, weddings and other social events.

    For people who want to adopt (领养) Brian's birds, they have to volunteer at the foundation for three months before they can take the pet home.

    It's March, 2050. Frank and Mary Smith wake up in their comfortable house in the morning and turn on the bedroom computer to get the latest news. They get used to reading The Times over the years. The only difference is that they changed to electronic newspapers many years ago.

    After breakfast, as they watch the screen, Mary orders the household robot to make coffee for them. Frank is a computer engineer, working for several companies. He goes into the study to take part in a video conference with his partners around the world.

    Mary takes a quick look at the shopping channels at home before beginning the video call to talk to her assistant. She also has a job and she is doing medical researches.

    Frank and Mary have one daughter, Louise, who also has her own work station at home. She goes to school only one day a week, mainly to play with other students. Louise is studying Chinese at present. Chinese has become an important language in the world.

    According to the family doctor, Louise will live to at least 130 years old. Her wish is to work for a few decades(十年)and then spend her time on music and painting.

    Have you ever {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (hear) of the Stonehenge? Every year it {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (receive) more than 750, 000 visitors. People like to go to this place especially {#blank#}3{#/blank#}June as they want to see the sun {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (rise) on the longest day of the year.

    For many years, historians believed Stonehenge was a temple where ancient leaders {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (try) to communicate with the gods.

    {#blank#}6{#/blank#}, historian Paul Stoker thinks this can't {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (be) true because Stonehenge was built so {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (much) centuries ago. Other people believe the stones have a medical purpose. They think the stones can prevent illness and keep people {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (health).

    No one is sure what Stonehenge was used for. Some think it might be a burial place or a place to honour ancestors. Others think {#blank#}10{#/blank#}was built to celebrate a victory over an enemy.

Mobile phones are becoming more and more popular not only with adults but also with students. However, they also have become a problem for middle schools in the last few years.

Some children have got mobile phones as Christmas or birthday gifts, and more will ask their parents to buy phones for them.

Many students like mobile phones because they are easy and quick. Some parents feel it convenient because they can get in touch with their children. Some teachers think using mobile phones is a distraction(分心的事)to students during school hours and mobile phones also give them much trouble in their classrooms. Sometimes students send phone messages to cheat(作弊)during exams. A new study says that some teenagers even hurt their fingers because of the over-use of mobile phones. They keep using mobile phones for more than ten hours during a day.

Many teachers suggest that students should not have phones at school, but if there is a good reason, they can leave their phones at the school office. Many people think they understand why parents would want their children to have them, but they agree school should let the students know when they can use their mobile phones.

A lot of primary schools in China are doing something to improve naptime conditions (午休条件)for students.

Recently, Dongxing Experimental Primary School in Quanzhou, Fujian, is popular on the Internet. Why? Because the school uses adjustable(可调整的) sleep desks to help students have a better nap. With a simple turn of a knob(旋钮), desks become comfortable beds. In this way, students can rest in a proper way.

Longteng Primary School in Zhengzhou, Henan, is another example. At school, there are some unused classrooms. These classrooms are now naptime rooms with beds and pillows.

For classroom usage, Tianqi Primary School in Wuhan, Hubei, is planning to make unused indoor sports fields and activity rooms future nap spaces. Teachers in Tianqi said, "Students are excited to hear this news. They are looking forward to having a comfortable place to rest."

In the town of Chashan, Liling, Hunan, Meixia Wanquan Primary School plays an important role for a great number of left-behind children who live too far away to return home for a nap. An organization gave them 130 folding beds to make sure every child could have a proper nap.

The new way of napping at school is not only comfortable but also good for health. Medical experts warn, "If students take naps with their face down, it will increase(增加)their eye pressure and finally lead to some eye problems. The lying-down way of napping addresses these worries, and protects the children's health."

When Barbara was young, she dreamed of being a writer. In 1972, she {#blank#}1{#/blank#} a children's book and wanted to get it published. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}, she failed. Barbara finally made the hard decision to give {#blank#}3{#/blank#} her dream.

Luckily, Barbara's grandson Chad made her dream come {#blank#}4{#/blank#} last Christmas. Chad discovered his {#blank#}5{#/blank#} old manuscript (手稿) by accident. Reading the pages, he was {#blank#}6{#/blank#} by the story. He decided to give his grandmother a perfect Christmas gift—the publication of her book.

{#blank#}7{#/blank#} Christmas morning, Chad handed Barbara a gift bag. As Barbara carefully opened the gift, she couldn't believe {#blank#}8{#/blank#} eyes. It was {#blank#}9{#/blank#} beautiful printed book! She was so excited that she didn't realize Chad was {#blank#}10{#/blank#} a video. Since Chad posted the video online, it has had over 4 million views and about 800000 likes. "This is probably the {#blank#}11{#/blank#} thing someone has ever done for me." Barbara says in the video.