A crisis is on the way．Global warming? The world economy? No，the decline of reading．People are just not doing it anymore，especially the young．Who's responsible? What is responsible? The Internet，of course，and everything that comes with it—Facebook，Twitter，etc..

    There's been a warning about the coming death of literate civilization for a long time．In the 20th century，first it was the movies，then radio，then television that seemed to end the written world．None did．Reading survived；in fact it not only survived，it has developed better．The world is more literate than ever before — there are more and more readers．and more and more books．

    The fact that we often get our reading material online today is not something we should worry over．The electronic and digital revolution of the last two decades has arguably shown the way forward for reading and for writing．Interconnectivity allows for the possibility of a reading experience that was barely imaginable before．Where traditional books had to make do with photographs and illustrations，an e-book can provide readers with an unlimited number of links：to texts，pictures，and videos．

    On the other hand，there is the danger of trivialization(碎片化)．One Twitter group is offering its followers single-sentence-long“digests”of the great novels．War and Peace in a sentence? You must be joking．We should fear the fragmentation(碎片)of reading．There is the danger that the high-speed connectivity of the Internet will reduce our attention span—that we will be incapable of reading anything of length or which requires deep concentration．

    In such a fast-changing world，in which reality seems to be remade each day，we need the ability to focus and understand what is happening to us．This has always been the function of literature and we should be careful not to let it disappear．Our society needs to be able to imagine the possibility of someone entirely in pace with modern technology but able to make sense of a dynamic，confusing world．

    If you see a group of people dancing and singing on the street or in the railway station, you don't need to feel surprised. They are a flash mob(快闪族). Who are they Are they mobs? Don't be confused by their name. Actually, a flash mob is a group of people who gather suddenly in a public place, do something unusual for a brief period of time, and then quickly disappear.

    They are usually organized with the help of the Internet or other digital communications networks. The messages may be sent to friends, who send to more people. At a predetermined time, they gather and perform some activities such as exchanging books, coming together to look at the sky, waving their hands and yelling something at the top of their voice for 30 seconds. Then, they quickly disappear before the police can arrive Using mobile phones, the flash mob can change its place if the first one has been cancelled for any reason.

    Bill Wasik, senior editor of Hamper's Magazine, organized the first flash mob in Manhattan in May 2003 and the first successful flash mob gathered on June 3, 2003. Wasik claimed that he created the flash mob as a social experiment designed to laugh at fashion seekers and stress the cultural atmosphere of wanting to be an insider or part of "the next big thing”.

    Flash mob gatherings can sometimes shock people. Such an activity might seem amusing and magical, but it also might frighten people who are not aware of what is taking place. Undoubtedly, flash mob can serve as good political tools and have great potential, such as using flash mob to advertise a product.

    The flash mob is now becoming more and more popular. People use it to do many things. Flash mobs give people from all walks of life an opportunity to come together to create a memory.

    Six months ago,Jack came to china to study.He has heard that Yanghou is famous for its gardens. And he plans to visit some gardens in July, so he has collected information about them online as follows:

    The Slender West Lake named National AAAAA Tourist Area in 2010, includes the Great Rainbow Bridge, the White Pagoda, Five-pavilion Bridge, the Twenty-four Bridge, the Small Golden Hill and so on. The best time to tour the Slender West Lake is in March. During the visit to the park, the boat travels on the water and visitors travel in the picture.

    Ticket: Mar. - May. ¥ 150; Other months ¥90

    Time: 8:30 - 17:00

    Bus: No. 4, 5, 6, 17, 61 buses

    Tel: 0514-87357803; 0514-87370091

    Website: http://www.shouxihu.com

    Ge Garden, one of the four lop famous Chinese gardens, got its name from bamboo. The bamboo in the garden forms the green scenery. The centre of the garden is well known for man-like hills. Four seasons can be experienced here at a time.

    Ticket: Mar. - May. ¥ 10; Other months ¥30

    Time: Mar. - May. 7:15 - 18:00; Other months 7:15 - 17:30

    Bus: No. 8, 30, 61 buses

    Tel: 0514-87935285

    Website: http://www.gy-garden.net

    He garden, the most famous garden in the late Qing Dynasty, is known for its long double-way corridor(走廊), which is regarded as the earliest footbridge.

    Ticket: Mar. - May. ¥ 40; Other months ¥30

    Time: 7:30 - 17:15

    Bus: No. 19, 61 buses

    Te: 0514-87900345; 0514-87222353

    Website: http://www.he-garden.net

    Nola (August 21, 1974 -November 22, 2015) was a northern white rhino who lived at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park near Escondido, California. At her death, she was one of only four remaining northern white rhinos in the world. The other three lived in Kenya. World Rhino Day, held on September 2, is to raise awareness(意识) of the less than 30,000 other rhinos left on Earth.

    “Rhinos need our help today, not tomorrow,” Nola's lead keeper Jane Kennedy said. “Last year we lost over 1,200 rhinos just in South Africa. If we continue to lose more than 1,000 rhinos a year, in 10 to 20 years all the rhinos on the planet will be gone.”

    “Unfortunately, most animals are in danger of dying out because of humans,” Kennedy says.“ Humans have either poached animals, or because there are over seven billion of us, we've taken up too much of the world's resources”. Poachers illegally hunt rhinos for their horns. They sell the horns for thousands of dollars per pound, to be used for art, jewelry, and decorations. Experts believe that one rhino is poached every eight hours.

    In 1975, the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research started the Frozen Zoo, a program through which researchers have collected cell (细胞) samples from more than 8,000 different types of animals, including the northern white rhino. Scientists hope that by studying the rhino cells, they will get greater understanding of it, and will find ways to increase its numbers.

    Jane Kennedy describes World Rhino Day as “a celebration of rhinos along with an awareness campaign for everybody across the world to know that rhinos need our help.”At the San Diego Zoo, children and adults are welcome to visit and speak with zookeepers to learn about rhinos. But you don't have to live in San Diego to celebrate World Rhino Day. It is observed around the world, with zoos and wildlife parks holding special events and programs to teach people about rhinos, and enable them to see the animals up close. For more information, go to www.worldrhinoday.org.

Powerisers

    The ability to jump two meters in the air may not be something you have thought too much about. And most people have never considered running at 30 kilometers an hour. But just stop for a moment and think about how our new product could change your life.

    Your daily journey to your place of work is probably a mad dash for the bus. There is no point in taking your car because there are traffic jams, and anyway the car parks are probably very expensive or, worse still, full. Here is where Powerisers can help. It takes just a couple of minutes to put them on and then you are away, going past others or even jumping over the object which blocks your way.

    That is the practical use for our product, but then there is sport and exercise. Powerisers are set to be the next extreme sport and the deep-fit tools. You can imagine the 100 meters, the high jump or basketball performed by athletes wearing Powerisers. And what better way to build your muscles and keep fit?

    Our product is very simple. It is powered by a superlight spring, which uses the gravitational(重力的) pull from your body weight and pushes you with superhuman strength. There have been no records of serious injury related to the use of Powerisers, but extreme caution is recommended. We strongly advise the wearing of protective clothing, including at least a helmet(头盔).

    Powerisers make you feel as if you were walking on the moon. Now we make two different models: Basic and Professional. The Basic model is designed for the occasional users and costs around $ 500. The Professional model, which is designed for the competitive use, has a strongly-made structure and different springs, though that comes at the increased price of $800. Our Powerisers are guaranteed for two years and will be replaced without question if they fail during that period. That is how confident we are.