We live on the earth. We use the sea around us. What do we take from the ocean? And what do we give to it?

    We take fishes from the ocean—millions of kilograms of fish, every year, to feed millions of people. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}We take minerals (矿物) from the ocean. We can get salt by evaporating (蒸发) seawater. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}such as gold. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Seaweed (海草) becomes food of many kinds—even candy and ice cream—as well as medicine. Believe it or not, fresh water is another gift from the sea. We can't drink ocean water. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}But ocean water becomes fresh water when the salts are removed. In the future, we will find ourselves depending more and more on fresh water from the sea.

    The sea gives us food, fertilizer, minerals, water and other gifts. What do we give the sea? We pollute the ocean all the time. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Throwing waste into the ocean is killing off sea life. Yet as the world population grows, we may need the sea and its gifts more than ever.

    We are finally learning that if we destroy our sea, we might also destroy ourselves. Hopefully, it is not too late.

Until the beginning of July, there has been no rain in northern Italy for over 100 days. Add to that the high temperatures, and the locals get very dry conditions. This is the most serious dry spell（干旱期）for that area in the past 70 years. Because of this situation, the country's longest river, the Po, is drying up!

This is bad news for several different reasons. The fresh water of the Po provides drinking water for northern Italy. Besides, farmers in this area need the water of the Po to keep their crops growing. What's more, the flowing river water is used to create about half of the hydroelectric power（水力发电）for Italy. Its drying up means that more natural gas（天然气） will be used, which is bad for the environment.

There have been some interesting discoveries from this lack of rain, however. Between Florence and Milan, a long ship sunk （沉没）in 1943 appeared because of the low water levels of the river. Now many tourists and locals come to see this ship. A German tank has also appeared out of water near Mantua. At other places along the river, people can even walk on the sandy river bed. Although this may be interesting, people in Italy and around the world are hoping for the return of rain to refill the Po!

Some animals can easily find their way home after a long journey. How do they make it? Scientific research shows that they are born with certain unusual abilities for direction. 

A certain kind of ants, for example, can count their steps to avoid getting lost. They can go as far as 110 meters and bring food home. These ants live in the open desert, so they have nothing to guide them along the way. It's like someone walking six kilometers through a dark forest. 

Some fish have an unbelievable sense of smell. They can smell even a single drop of their home water in a large sea area. Some sea birds have a similar ability. They are able to make a smell map of their flying area. 

Some animals can sense the earth's magnetic field (磁场), while humans can't. This magnetic field guides a certain kind of fish when they swim a long way to a place and then back, How can this kind of fish do that? It is still a mystery. Scientists have no good answers yet. 

However, animals with such unusual abilities still have difficulty dealing with environmental changes caused by human activities. For example, many birds depend on stars for direction, but they get lost easily at night when city lights are kept on all night. To solve this problem, we can simply turn off some lights at night. Clearly, one small act of humans may mean a lot to animals.

The Lantern Festival is an important festival in China. It {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (begin) during the Han Dynasty 2,000 years ago. It falls on the 15thday of the first lunar month {#blank#}2{#/blank#} it marks the end of the Spring Festival celebrations. 

People celebrate the festival in many ways. The lantern show is {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (important) part of the festival. On the eve of the festival many lanterns {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (hang) in the streets and parks. These lanterns light up {#blank#}5{#/blank#} night during the festival. People often go out and watch the lantern show {#blank#}6{#/blank#} family or friends. 

Lantern riddle games are also popular during the Lantern Festival. People write riddles on colorful lanterns. You will get a nice little gift {#blank#}7{#/blank#} you get the right answer. 

Tangyuan is the {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (tradition) food of the Lantern Festival. It can have many kinds of fillings and {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (taste). The shape of tangyuan indicates family reunion. 

People enjoy {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (they) during the Lantern Festival. 

Hard-working horses have always been man's best friends, but the playful pony is a kid's best friend.

A pony is a small horse. Like horses, they have a lot of hair. The most well-known is the small Shetland pony, only as tall as a six-year-old child! Shetland ponies can pull twice their own weight (重量), with only their thick hair to protect them from the cold.

Ponies eat grass, oats and bran (燕麦和糠) and they also love carrots and apples. They don't eat meat, ponies can sleep both lying down and standing up.

They are very playful, which is why they get on so well with children! They are happy to hang with their friends and go for rides. They enjoy having fun as much as their riders.

Like you and your friends, every pony is different. Some are quiet and some are cheeky (嬉皮笑脸的). Some are hard-working and others can be a bit lazy. Ponies are sensitive and often try to cheer you up when you feel sad. Just like you, they prefer to be spoken to kindly rather than shouted at!

A pony makes a great playmate but remember that it is not a toy. It is a living animal that needs care and lots of loving attention. You have to learn how to feed and groom (刷洗) it every day, how to clean its feet so that they stay healthy, are they?

I am John. My family and I move to a new house. In my room, the books are always in the bookcase. My computer games are always there, too. My balls are always in the box under the bed. My schoolbag is always on the sofa. I clean my room three times a week. 

I have a brother. His name is Alan. His room is always in a mess. His books are everywhere. They are on the bed, on the sofa and under the desk. His computer games are on the bed. His jacket is on the sofa. Where is his schoolbag? Oh, it's under the bed. Our parents say, "Alan, come in. Look at your room. You must learn to be a tidy boy. "