LONDON—Terror struck in the heart of London on Thursday as explosions ripped through three subway trains and blasted(炸开)the roof off a crowded red double-decker bus. At least 37 people were killed and more than 700 wounded in the deadliest attack on the city since the blitz(闪电战)in World War II.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair blamed Islamic extremists and said the bombings were designed to coincide with the opening in Scotland of a G-8 summit of the world's most powerful leaders. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said the bombings—which came the day after London won the bid to host the 2012 Olympics— have the “hallmarks(特点)of an al-Qaida-related attack”.

    Trapped passengers in the Underground railway threw themselves on the floor, some sobbing. As subway cars quickly filled with smoke, people used their umbrellas try to break the windows so that they could get air. Passengers emerged from the Underground covered with blood and soot(黑烟). On the street, in a light rain, buses ferried the wounded, and doctors used a hotel as a hospital.

     “I didn't hear anything, just a flash of light, people screaming, no thoughts of what it was. I just had to get out of the train,” said subway passenger Chris Randall, 28, who was hospitalized with cuts and burns to the face, the legs and hands.

     “It was chaos(混乱),” said Gary Lewis, 32, evacuated(撤离)from a subway train at King's Cross station. “The one haunting(萦绕)image was someone whose face was totally black( with soot) and pouring with blood.”

    Police said there had been no warning and that the blasts at three subway stations went off within 26 minutes, starting at 8:51 a.m. in an Underground train just outside the financial district. Authorities initially blames a power failure but realized it was a terror attack after the bus bombing near the British Museum at 9:47 a.m.—less than an hour after the first explosion.

    We've talked about snails（蜗牛）and their slow move.But much of the time snails don't move at all.They're in their shells（壳）—sleeping.

    Hot sun will dry out a snail's body.So at the least sign of hot sun,a snail draws its body into its shell and closes the opening with a thin cover.Then it goes to sleep.A snail will die in a heavy rain.So whenever it rains,it goes inside its shell house and goes to sleep.A snail can sleep for as long as it needs to.It can take a short sleep.Or it can sleep for days at a time.And it spends all the winter months in its shell,asleep.

    the shell.When hungry,the snail looks for food.It can't see very well.Its eyes,at the ends of the top feelers（触角）are very weak.But its sense of smell is very strong.It helps the snail to the new greens.Then the snail's little mouth goes to work.

    A snail's mouth is no longer than the point of a pin（针）.Yet it has 256,000 teeth!The teeth are so small that you can't see them.But they do their work.If you put a snail in a hard paper box,it will eat its way out.And if a snail wears out its teeth,it will grow new ones.

    Mostly,a snail looks for food at night.But on cloudy days it eats in the day time.It cats all day long.A snail can go on eating for hours and never feel full.

    When thinking about quitting（停止）smoking...

    List all the reasons why you want to quit.Every night before going to bed,repeat one of the reasons 10 times.

    Decide positively that you want to quit.Try to avoid negative thoughts about how difficult it might be.Develop strong personal reasons as well as your health and responsibility to others.For example,think of all the time you waste taking cigarette breaks,rushing out to buy a pack,hunting a light,etc.Set a date for quitting—perhaps a special day like your birthday,a holiday.If you smoke heavily at work,quit during your vacation.Make the date holy seriously, and don't let anything change it.Begin to condition yourself physically;start a modest（适当的）exercise;drink more water;get plenty of rest.

    Immediately after quitting...

    The first few days after you quit,spend as much free time as possible in places where smoking is prohibited,e.g. libraries,museums,theatres,department stores,etc.

    Drink large quantities of water and fruit juice.Try to avoid wine,coffee,and other drinks which remind you of cigarette smoking.

    Strike up a conversation with someone instead of a match fora cigarette.

    If you miss the feeling of having a cigarette in your hand,play with something else—a pencil,a pen,a ruler.If you miss having something in your mouth,try a fake（仿制的）cigarette.

    According to new research from the University of Cambridge in England, sheep are able to recognize human faces from photographs.

    The farm animals, who are social and have large brains, were previously known to be able to recognize one another, as well as familiar humans. However, their ability to recognize human faces from photos alone is novel.

    The recent study, the results of which were published in the journal Royal Society; Open Science, show the woolly creatures could be trained to recognize still images of human faces, including those of former President Barack Obama and actress Emma Watson.

    Initially, the sheep were trained to approach certain images by being given food rewards. Later, they were able to recognize the images for which they had been rewarded. The sheep could even recognize images of faces shown at an angle, though their ability to do so declined by about 15 percent—the same rate at which a human's ability to perform the same task declines.

    “Anyone who has spent time working with sheep will know that they are intelligent and individual animals who are able to recognize their handlers.” said Professor Jenny Morton, who led the Cambridge study. “We've shown with our study that sheep have advanced face-recognition abilities, close to those of humans and monkeys.”

    Recognizing faces is one of the most important social skills for human beings, and some disorders of the brain, including Huntington's disease, affect this ability.

    “Sheep are long-lived and have brains that are similar in size and complexity to those of some monkeys. That means they can be useful models to help us understand disorders of the brain, such as Huntington's disease that develop over a long time and affect cognitive (认识的) abilities. Our study gives us another way to monitor how these abilities change.” Morton said.

    Nowadays, especially in China, everything seems to favor social intercourse, such as gatherings of friends, KTV, group travel, dining togethter, playing cards and Mahjong, plus the Chinese-style “street-crossing group.” Back home, discussions can still be boisterously carried on within the “circle of friends” of WeChat.

      However, these scenes cannot always ease a sense of loneliness. Zhu Ziqing, a well-known professor of Tsinghua University, signed with emotion: “My loneliness increases as scene becomes much busier.” One popular song today is also called “A lonely man in crowds.” Actually, engaging in social intercourse requires ability, while being alone involves the whole character.

    These days, it is not easy to calm down totally and return to one's true self. Willpower, intellect and discipline are required. Einstein said: “It is not your working time but your spare time that determines the possibility of whether you will be successful or not.” The “spare time” he referred to could be taken as “spending time by yourself.”

    Lonely life could be either dull, boring and tasteless or abundant, interesting and colorful, depending on one's quality, ambition and inspiration.

    Just as the body constantly requires energy, the mind and soul also demand unceasing inputs. However, information, to processed and integrated(融入)into knowledge, thoughts and feelings, instead of bustle(忙碌)seems to be the right condition. Successful careers in all walks of life worldwide have proved that “the soul grows in peace and talent is nurtured in loneliness”. In a sense, it may be reasonable to say that “Happiness tends to be shallow while loneliness involves profundity”.

    Man, in fact, needs loneliness more than happy time, and only abundant loneliness can produce quality happiness.

    Last Sunday, my whole family went to the amusement park near our hometown. As we planned the day before, on my brother's 13th birthday. David was two years older than I.

The weather was perfect and everyone was happy. The park was not too crowded. "Fioda," said my brother, "do you want to go on that ride with me?" "Of course," I said. The ride was brand new. I saw commercials(广告) for this huge roller coaster(过山车） on television. I was so excited to ride it. As we got in line, we talked excitedly about what we might experience. We decided that we would both try to keep our hands in the air the whole time. We believed that would make it even more enjoyable. I was so busy talking to my brother that I missed the most important sign—-Empty your pockets before going on the ride. Something bad happened!

    The ride started. It was a really fast roller! Before I knew it, we were upside down. I felt my phone slipping（滑落） from my pocket. My hands were in the air, just as we had promised, and I didn't catch my phone in time. It hit me on the head, fell down to the ground and broke. My parents said I wouldn't have a new phone until I had enough money to pay for it. I need to be more careful. Next time, I'll pay better attention the warning signs as we wait in line for the ride.