When Steve Jobs was born on Febuary24,1955, in San Francisco , California, his unmarried mother decided to put him for adoption because she wanted a girl. So in the middle of the night, his mother called a lawyer named Paul Jobs and said, “We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?” But his mother told his future parents to promise that they would send Jobs to college. After Steve Jobs graduated from high school, he went to college but decided to drop out because it was so expensive that he had to sleep on the floor in his friends' rooms.

At 20, he and a friend(Steve Wozniak) started a company in a garage on April 1, 1976. Jobs named their company —-Apple in memory of a happy summer he had spent as an orchard (果园) in Oregon.

    After 10 years of hard time and failures, starting from two kids working in a garage, Apple computer eventually grew into a big company with over 4000 employees.

    At 30, Jobs , however, was fired from the company he co-founded. But after he had to leave the company, Apple was under heavy pressure from rival (对手) Microsoft and in 1996 posted billions of dollars in losses. Apple needed Steve Jobs and he was appointed as Apple' CEO in1997. Under his leadership, Apple returned to profitability and introduced new products such as the iPhone and the iPod.

    Steve Jobs once said, “Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick, Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking.

    English is an excellent language to learn, whether it's for business, travel or personal reasons. Here are some important ways to improve your spoken English.

    When you have time to speak, just try your best to practice. Don't wait until you “feel more comfortable” speaking in English, so start speaking English today. You'll be surprised at how quickly your language skills improve. Find a native English speaker who is willing to spend some time speaking English with you—you may be able to offer them a language exchange, where they spend 30 minutes speaking English with you and you spend 30 minutes speaking your native language with them.

    Even if you have a good knowledge of the grammar and vocabulary, native English speakers may find it's very difficult to understand if you don't work on your pronunciation. Correct , clear pronunciation is necessary if you really want to improve your English. Listen closely to how native English speakers pronounce certain words and sounds and do your best to copy them.

    The wider your vocabulary and the more English phrases you learn, the easier speaking English will become. Once you have learned a new word or phrase, you should make an effort to use it in a sentence—this is the best way to keep it in mind. You should also start a notebook of phrases that English speakers use all the time.

    Another great way to add some more English conversation into your weekly practice is to sign up for a class of discussion group. Attending an English class is a great way to pay attention to some of the more formal aspects of speaking English. A class will teach you the correct way of speaking. Attending a discussion group is a more informal and relaxed way of learning English, where the emphasis(重点) is more on communication and relationship building than on speaking “correct” English.

    One of the best-loved American writers was William Sydney Porter, or O. Henry. From 1893 he lived with his family in a house in Austin, Texas, which is now a museum. Visitors to Austin can see the house. It was saved from destruction (破坏) and turned into a museum in1934. The museum is a good way to learn about the interesting life of the American writer.

    William Porter rented this house in Austin and lived there with his wife Athol and daughter Margaret for about two years. Many objects in the museum came from the Porters. Others did not. An important piece in the room is the original photo over here. It was taken there in the house about 1895. The piano there goes back to the 1860s. His wife took lessons on it when she first moved to Austin.

Porter wasn't a successful writer in the beginning. He worked at a farm, land office and bank. He also loved words and writing. The museum has a special proof (证明) of Porter's love of language — his dictionary. It is said that he had read every word in that dictionary.

    Later William Porter was forced to leave Austin because he was charged (指控) with wrongdoing at the bank and lost his job. Because he was afraid of a trial (审判), he left the country secretly. But he returned because his wife was dying. After her death, he faced the trial and served three and a half years in a prison in Ohio.

    William Porter would keep his time in prison a secret. But there was one good thing about it. It provided him with time to write. By the time he was freed, he had published 14 stories and became well known as O. Henry. Porter later moved to New York City and found great success there. He published over 180 stories in the last eight years of his life.

    When the natural climate changes due to global warming, it can surely affect seals. The majority of them live in the Antarctic region so as the ice is melting, their natural habitat（栖息地）can be seriously affected. These changes don't take place overnight. They can be the result of many years of additional temperatures in the area. The seals then have to find ways to adapt.

    Seals depend on the cool air currents to bring plenty of food for them. When the temperatures get higher, there is less and less food and the seal population starts to get depleted. Mothers aren't healthy enough to feed their babies. Many of them end up abandoned as the mothers have to leave to find their own source of food.

    The fact that their desire to produce young can be changed by the warmer temperatures is frightening too. It is also believed that the warmer temperatures can allow different diseases and viruses to attack the seals. This is a huge concern as they can rapidly wipe out huge numbers of seals out there.

    However, these changes in climate and temperature aren't all bad for other species of seals. Scientists have found that those living in warmer climates are producing more young due to the changes. Research also shows that the females are moving further to find food and water. When they are out of the reach of the governing males, they are more willing to accept the moves of other males in the group.

    This is good news too because it means that there will be more selection in the gene pool（基因库）for future generations. It can help the seals as a species adapt to changes in their natural environment more easily.

    The climate change problem for seals is directly linked to humans. When we take action to change what we let out into the environment, we will make positive changes for the seals. However, it is going to take a very long time to reverse（彻底改变）the effects of what has already been done.

    A person's nose is important for breathing and smelling. The nose is also used in many popular expressions. Some people are able to "lead other people by the nose". For example, if a wife "leads her husband by the nose", she makes him do whatever she wants him to do. Some people are said to be "hard-nosed". They will not change their opinions or positions on anything. If someone is "hard-nosed", chances are that he will never "pay through the nose", or pay too much money, for an object or service.

    It is always helpful when people "keep their noses out of other people's business"—they do not interfere. The opposite of this is someone who "noses around all the time". This kind of person is interested in other people's private matters. He is considered "nosey". Someone who "keeps his nose to the grindstone "works very hard. This can help a worker "keep his nose clean" or stay out of trouble.

    One unusual expression is "it is no skin off my nose". This means that a situation does not affect or concern me. We also say that sometimes a person "cuts off his nose to spite his face". That is, he makes a situation worse for himself by doing something foolish because he is angry. More problems can develop if a person "looks down his nose" at someone or something. The person acts like something is unimportant or worthless. This person might also "turn his nose up" at something that he considers not good enough. This person thinks he is better than everyone else. He is "with his nose in the air".

    In school, some students "thumb their noses" at their teacher—they refuse to obey orders or do any work. Maybe these students do not know the correct answers. My mother always told me, if you study hard, the answers should be "right under your nose" or easily seen.

    I'd like to share a story that happened when I was four. I remember it clearly. Our loving family dog was nearing the end of his life. My father picked him up and put him in a little bed we had made for him. Our dog, my companion, whom we had cared for, bit (咬) my father when he tried to help him. How could he? Why? I couldn't understand it. I didn't like him anymore.

    I hadn't thought about that story for a long time but something that happened last week brought it back to me. I went to speak with a friend. When I knocked on the door, I met an angry look and a few harsh (尖刻的) words. When the door was slammed (砰地关上) in my face, I stood there shocked, and in a rush, I was reminded of my dog bit my father 20 years ago or so. What brought that story back was that same feeling of betrayal (背叛).

    Both stories taught me something the next day. You see, when I got up in the morning and was told my dog had died, it became clear to me that he must have been in great pain. For him to have bitten a family member, he could not have been himself. Much the same for the other story when I learned that my friend's wife had just left him.

    We are all beings of our environments, our opinions and feelings. And all of those things can cause you to say and do things that can't be understood by those who are not in the same situation with you.

    If you meet someone either behaving out of character or acting in a way that doesn't seem to fit the situation, put out your hand and be patient when you think it is least possible for him to do so. You may turn around a story that has a sad ending simply by your actions.