Notice

There will be a lecture on

Classic American Literature (文学)

By Visiting Professor (教授) Cornell

from Stanford University

In The Fifth Building,

Classroom No. 102

On Sep. 4th. 2019. at 2 pm

All are warmly welcome!

The Office of the Foreign Language Department (系)

Sep. 2nd. 2019

    Imagine you are taking a walk on thebeautiful beach. Just then, your feet step over something and you hear a crack(噼啪声) —an emptyplastic bottle. Things like this are happening more often because of searubbish.

    Studies show that 80% of all the waste isfrom the land. The waste is mainly plastics (塑料制品)which are really hard to degrade (降解). So the rubbishwill remain there for a long time. Some of the pollution is causedaccidentally. For example, about 10,000 product-filled boxes are lost at seaevery year from business ships. Sometimes people just throw things into thewater from boats or land. Many large rubbish areas are formed in the NorthPacific Ocean.

    Thankfully, the situation isn't ignored (忽视). Groups like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)are taking action to help clean the sea. Since 2006,76 projects have clearedout 3,814 metric tons (公吨) of rubbish from the sea.Methods of rubbish cleaning include using machines to remove (移除) the waste away from the surface of sea water. Besides, specialnets are set by the mouths of rivers to stop the rubbish before it reaches thesea. If everyone does his part, sea rubbish seems like a problem that can besolved.

We all enjoy the colors of autumn leaves．Did you ever wonder how and why a leaf changes color？Where do the yellows and oranges come from？To answer those questions，we first have to understand what leaves are and what they do．

Leaves are the world's food factories．Plants take water from the ground through their roots and take CO₂ from the air．Plants use sunlight to turn water and CO₂ into glucose（葡萄糖），a kind of sugar．Plants use it as food for energy and growing．

A chemical called "chlorophyll（叶绿素）" in the leaves gives plants their green color．As summer ends and autumn comes，the days get shorter and shorter，and trees "know" it's time to begin getting ready for winter．

During winter，there is not enough sunlight or water．Trees rest during this time and live on the food they store during the summer．They begin to shut down their foodmaking factories．As the green chlorophyll disappears from the leaves，we begin to see yellow and orange leaves．

The bright reds and purples we see in leaves are made mostly in autumn．In some trees，like maples（枫树），sunlight and the cool nights of autumn turn the glucose in the leaves into a red color．And we can enjoy the beautiful red leaves during autumn．

Confidence is very important in daily life. It can help you to develop a healthy attitude (态度). A study shows that the people who are more confident are much happier. They can have more chances to make themselves successful. But how to be more confident? Here are some suggestions: 

Speak loud 

When you are not confident, you can't do well what you want to do. You speak in such a low voice that other people can hardly hear you. Try to speak loud enough so that people can hear you clearly. The high voice can help you become more confident. 

Play sports 

Physical exercise makes you tired but completely relaxed. A strong body helps you be full of confidence. 

Encourage yourself Write down a list of things you did during the day to see how many things you have done well. Did you finish your homework? Did you tell a joke that made everybody happy? Give yourself praise for the good things you've done. 

 Get rid of (消除) fear 

Fear comes along with failure (失败). But it's easy to overcome (克服) if you know that failure is part of your life. Don't hide your head just because you said something stupid last time. Try to start again and believe you can do better. 

Pick up a hobby 

If you like singing, sing as much as you can. In some ways, a hobby can make you outstanding. And it will make you happy and confident. 

Trains are great for getting around cities and traveling long distances (距离). Here are some of the world's fastest trains.

Jack: Ann, do you know the girl Ella?

 Ann: Yes, she is my new friend. 

 Jack: {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

 Ann: She is from America. But she lives in Beijing now. 

 Jack: {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

 Ann: She lives with her parents and her sister. 

 Jack: Which school does she study at? 

 Ann: She studies at Beijing No. 4 Middle School. 

 Jack:{#blank#}3{#/blank#} 

 Ann: It's large and beautiful. 

 Jack: {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

 Ann: Yes, she is tall. And she has long hair and blue eyes. 

 Jack: What is her hobby?

 Ann: {#blank#}5{#/blank#} She's good at it and she is in the piano club.