As I walked along the Edgware Road, I felt as though the world was closing in on me. All the sounds I take for granted, had gone. I had entered a world of silence. This unsettling experience occurred a few weeks ago when I agreed to go deaf for the day to support the work of the charity Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, for which I am an ambassador.

    When I managed to take a cab to the office of my manager, Gavin, I couldn't hear what the taxi driver was saying to me. Conversation was impossible. Then, when I reached the office, I had to ring the intercom five times as I couldn't hear a response.

    Everybody said I was shouting at them—I simply wasn't aware of how loudly I was speaking as I couldn't hear my own voice. Gavin kept telling me my phone was ringing, but I didn't realize. I was too busy trying to concentrate on reading his lips. And when he tried to tell me a code to put into my phone, I had to keep asking him to repeat it, more slowly. Eventually he lost his patience and snapped at me: “Just give me the phone!” I was shocked.

    People couldn't be bothered to repeat themselves, so they kept trying to do things for me that I was perfectly capable of doing myself. I felt I'd lost control.

    Being deaf for the day was extraordinarily tiring. I had to work so hard to “listen” with my eyes, get people's attention and use my other senses to make up for my lack of hearing. It was a huge, exhausting effort.

    Until that experience I didn't realize how much I took my own hearing for granted, or the sorts of emotions and experiences deaf people go through. If a deaf person asks you to repeat something, never think: “It doesn't matter.” It does matter.

    Visitors must present all carried items for inspection upon entry. After inspection, all bags, backpacks, umbrella, parcels and other items as determined by security officers must be left at the checkrooms, free of charge, close to each entrance. All oversized bags, backpacks and luggage must be left at the checkrooms near the 4^th Street entrance of either the East or West Building. These items will have to be x-rayed before being accepted. Items of value, such as laptop computers, cameras and fur coats, may not be left in the checkrooms but may be carried into the gallery. We regret that the museum doesn't have enough space for visitors items larger than 17*26 inches in the gallery.

    Additional security procedures and checks may be taken according to the decision of the gallery.

    *For the safety of the artworks and other visitors, nothing may be carried on a visitor's back. Soft front-baby carriers are allowed, but children may not be carried on shoulders or in a child carrier worn on the back. Wheelchairs are available free of charge near each checkroom.

    *Smoking is prohibited. Food and drink are not permitted outside the food service areas. Unopened bottled water may be carried only in a visitor's bag. Cell phones may not be used in the gallery.

    *Animals, other than service animals, are not permitted.

    *Skateboarding is prohibited.

    *Picture-taking(including video) for personal use is permitted except in the special exhibits.

    *Please don't touch the works of art.

    Floods are second only to fire as the most common of all natural disasters.They occur almost everywhere in the world,resulting in widespread damage and even death.Consequently,scientists have long tried to perfect their ability to predict floods.So far,the best that scientists can do is to recognize the potential for flooding in certain conditions. There are a number of conditions,from deep snow on the ground to human error,which cause flooding.

    When deep snow melts it creates a large amount of water.Although deep snow alone rarely causes floods,when it occurs together with heavy rain and sudden warmer weather it can lead to serious flooding.If there is a fast snow melt on top of frozen or very wet ground,flooding is more likely to occur than when the ground is not frozen.Frozen ground or ground that is very wet cannot absorb the additional water created by the melting snow.Melting snow also contributes to high water levels in rivers and streams.

    Rivers that are covered in ice can also lead to flooding.When ice begins to melt,the surface of the ice cracks and breaks into large pieces.These pieces of ice move and float down the river,They can form a dam in the river,causing the water behind the dam to rise and flood the land upstream.If the dam breaks suddenly,then the large amount of water held behind the dam can flood the areas downstream too.

    Broken ice dams are not the only dam problems that can cause flooding.When a large human-made dam breaks or fails to hold the water collected behind it,the results can be devastating.Dams contain such huge amounts of water behind them that when sudden breaks occur,the great force of the water is like a great tidal wave.The dam waters can travel tens of kilometres,cover the ground in metres of mud and litter,and drown and crush every thing and creature in their path.

    Although scientists cannot always predict exactly when floods will occur,they do know a great deal about when floods are probably going to occur.Deep snow,ice-covered rivers,and weak dams are all strong conditions for potential flooding.

    A DREAM, for me, is like a torch to light up my insipid (平淡的)life and a pair of wings to fly me into the sky. The uncertainty of my future and the heavy burden of schoolwork had driven me into a negative situation and not until I had a dream did I get out there. I decided to become a hostess.

    It was last summer. I went to Jinan, which is famous for its natural springs, and started to learn broadcast hosting. However, I found that it was not easy.

    The weather was bad. It was too hot to stay calm, which made me homesick. I called-my parents at least five times a day. But as I tried my best to adapt to the weather and living conditions there, I became more independent.

    Another thing bothered me, too. My teacher criticized all my mistakes. Grievance (委屈)and exhaustion often reduced me to tears and sweat flowed down my checks. To get her recognition, I practiced my voice skills in a park every day, even on rainy days. You can't imagine how happy I was when she praised me for the first time.

    My dream enabled me to change a lot. Without my dream, I wouldn't have had the courage and the confidence to host the New Year party at our school. On stage, I knew that it was a good beginning to my hosting dream.

    I took the arts examination in the winter. To my delight, I did well. And I was more than excited when I received the offers from Shandong Normal University, Yunnan Normal University and Yunnan Art Institute.

    My dream has powered so much energy in me that my life has become colorful every day. So, however hard it will be to stick to my dream, no way will I give it up!

    Need a fall fix? Try one from these great places.

    ⒈Mackinac Island, Michigan

    The only way to reach this famed car-free island is by boat and ferry, and once visitors arrive, they are attracted by the history, scenery and fall colors. "It's a throwback to years past, a little town, and there's a big state park as well," Blackwell says. "You're allowed to have boats all around the island."

    ⒉Tellico Lake, Tennessee

    With nearly 400 miles of shoreline, this waterway flowing out of the Great Smoky Mountains is largely unexploited, well-protected in its natural state. Fall visitors find a range of colors reflecting in the clean waters, says Blackwell, who vacationed in the area with his family as a child. "The thick forest there just allows you to see more greenery and wildlife."

    ⒊Dillon Reservoir, Colorado

    With an hour from Denver, this lake is home to what claims to be the nation's highest sailing club, at an altitude of more than 9,000 feet. Marinas in the towns of Dillon and Frisco make it easy to get out on the water and to see the bright yellows and golds of fall leaves. "People are surprised that there's boating in Colorado, and you can see the mountains just before the snowball," Blackwell says.

    ⒋Lake Monroe, Indiana

    The state's largest lake is surrounded by more than 13,000 acres of protected forest and three recreation areas, making it an ideal place to see fall colors, particularly from oaks and the tulip poplar, the state tree. " It's a gem (宝石) in southern Indiana," says Blackwell, who grew up in the area. "There are lots of different activities: canoeing, kayaking and fishing."

Rosie, a first-year university student in Beijing, entered a classroom for her oral English exam and slid her topic across the table to Joe, a foreign teacher. My Story, it read. "In middle school, my classmates laughed at me for having deaf-mute parents," she began softly. "From that moment on, I decided not to tell anybody. But today…"

It's widely considered taboo(忌讳) in Chinese to discuss the details of an unhappy family life with anyone other than very close friends. However, as Joe has noticed, many Chinese students appear surprisingly comfortable discussing emotional moments from their lives when they speak with foreign teachers in a language different from their own.

"Speaking English," one of his Chinese students told him, "I feel like another person." When speaking Chinese, he is kind of reserved; in English class, he is more open. English, to the Chinese speaker, may be like a mask, creating a buffer(缓冲物)between speaking the truth and the listener's reaction. Students focus on how to speak rather than what is being said. If there's a misunderstanding, English can take the blame.

Another reason why Chinese students are more comfortable sharing their secrets during English class may be the distinct approach to teaching used by their foreign teachers. "I always try to come to each student, make eye contact, have a 20-second conversation and see how they are doing," Joe said. Classes taught by Chinese teachers, in contrast, are more formal. Many students said they had never been asked their opinion in class.

Rosie's English vocabulary is now extensive, but she still can't find the words to describe her feelings towards the English language. "English makes me feel I am different," she said. "English is beautiful."