English is a very interesting language. It has borrowed words from many other languages. Immigrants(移民) coming into the United States have contributed many words to the language, which have kept their original pronunciation. “Coolie” and “kowtow” were taken from the Chinese language, “kamikaze from the Japanese, “shampoo” from India, “blitz” from German, “amigo” and “Los Angeles” from Spanish and so on.

    Many students have studied English for years, some as many as eight. However, some students still have difficulty in speaking fluent English. Some know many words but are unable to discern them when native speakers use them. In our Oral English classes we will focus on speaking and listening to native English speakers. For this reason, because we are trying to train your ears to hear English and your mouths to speak intelligible (易理解的) English, we will have a rule that ONLY ENGLISH will be spoken in our English classes. Anyone speaking Chinese in class will be required to pay a fine in order to encourage the speaking and understanding of English. If teachers enter a classroom and discover that anyone is speaking Chinese, they will require everyone in the room to pay the fine. It is everyone's job to follow the English-Only rule. It is for your benefit. It is because we want to accustom (使习惯于) your ears to hearing English.

    Other subjects may be learned only from books but the only way to learn a foreign language is to SPEAK IT! Students are often nervous about speaking in class at first but we hope to make the classes fun, so you will forget your nervousness and learn to speak out. Enjoy your classes.

    In 1996 John Jones made an unusual discovery. He had just enlarged (扩大) a piece of paper money for a friend—a Confederate bank note, money issued (发行) by banks in Southern States of America during the Civil War. When he was face to face with the picture, he couldn't believe his eyes: slaves (奴隶) happily picking cotton in their master's fields.

    Jones grew up in South Carolina. He had heard painful stories of slavery from his greatgrandmother. The picture on the money did not match (匹配) the history of African American slaves that he'd heard all his life. “I had never seen that type of picture on money before,” he said.

    Jones wondered why slaves looked so happy. He started doing research.

    Searching for and finding the answers to his questions changed his life. During two years' search, Jones found more than 120 different bills. He discovered that the bills had several things in common. They showed slaves working in jobs related to farming. Many of them showed healthy and smiling slaves at work. None of the bills showed the hardships of slavery.

    Jones wanted to share what he had learned. “I wanted other people to see what I had seen,” he said. He decided to make large paintings of the pictures on the money. After three years of work, Jones had painted more than 80 slavery scenes (场景).He paired each painting with the money on which the picture appeared. “The Color of Money”—an exhibit (展览) of his work—has toured the country.

    Jones' paintings tell an important story about the South 150 years ago. He likes to repeat the saying. “The story is on the money.” In this case, the saying happens to be true.

    In today's Internet age, the demand for online games continues to grow. Online computer game centers exist in many cities and towns throughout Asia. Facing the pressures of school and life, people turn to the virtual world, expecting a diversion from these problems. Too often, however, they can lead to problems and unhealthy addictions.

    This is most clearly seen in the example of South Korea. The country has the world's highest percentage of high-speed Internet services. It also has a high number of online game players and related problems. In 2013, a young man collapsed and died while playing online games. He had been playing almost nonstop for 86 hours at an Internet cafe. Another young man killed his sister after becoming confused between the online world and real life. A 12-year-old boy stole US $ 16,000 from his father and ran away from home. He did this to continue his obsession with an online game. Such problems, however, don't just happen in South Korea. They are spreading to other parts of Asia, as well.

    What kinds of people develop online game addiction? What does the problem look like? Dr. SueHuei Chen, a clinical psychologist, researches Internet addiction. She discovered some signs of at-risk individuals such as lack friendships and good social skills. Those problem individuals feel it so compulsive to play online games that they could sacrifice things such as school or family. They feel the need to spend more and more time online. And they become upset if anyone tries to limit their online game playing.

    How many problem game players are there? In mainland China, the potential number of problem online gamers is alarming. In 2014, the China Daily reported that China had 13.8 million online game players. Furthermore, it stated that 80 percent of these were under 25 and had signs of addiction. Such numbers point toward a growing problem among Chinese youth.

Make sure to keep control over your online game playing. If you don't control it, it can get control of you.

    HOLLAND & BARRETT

    Valerian capsules

    A traditional herbal medicinal product used for the temporary relief of symptoms of mild anxiety and to aid sleep. This is based on traditional use only.

    Active Ingredients:

    Each capsule contains 337mg of extract (as dry extract) from Valerian root (Valerian officinalis L) (equivalent to 1683mg-2020mg of Valerian root).

    Dosage（剂量）:

    For oral use only.

    For adults and elderly:

    Mild anxiety — Take 1 capsule 3 times daily.

    To aid sleep — Take 1 capsule 30 minutes to 1 hour before bedtime with an earlier dose during the evening if necessary.

    Swallow the capsule with water. As the effects of this product may not occur immediately, the capsule should be taken continuously for 2-4 weeks.

    Duration of use: If symptoms worsen or do not improve after 4 weeks, a doctor or a qualified healthcare practitioner should be consulted.

    Warnings:

    Do not exceed the stated dose.

    Do not take this product if you are:

    a. Under 18 years of age

    b. Pregnant or breastfeeding

    c. Allergic to Valerian or any of the excipients in this product

    d. Already taking a medicine for sleep or anxiety

    Storage:

    Store the capsules below 25℃.

    Keep the bottle tightly closed.

    Keep out of sight and reach of children.

    Registration Holder:

    NBTY Europe Limited, Samuel Ryder House, Barling Way, Nuneaton, Warwickshire, CV10 7RH, United Kingdom

    My sister Alice and I have been trying to get people to stop dropping cigarette (香烟)butts(烟头)for seven years. One day, we were walking in our hometown and saw hundreds of cigarette butts on the ground. They made the town look so ugly that we decided to start a group to make people dropping butts. We called it "No Butts About It".

    At first, we drew pictures with "The Earth is not your ashtray(烟灰缸)"written on them. We put the pictures around our hometown—in parks, by beaches, and along roads. We wanted to make people understand that dropping butts hurts the environment. Most smokers don't think that dropping butts hurts the Earth. But it does, and all rubbish does!

    Later, we wrote to companies and asked them for money to help us. We used the money to buy ashtrays to give to smokers. We wanted smokers to carry the ashtrays with them so they didn't have to drop butts.

    At the moment, we are trying to get cigarette companies to put an ashtray in each pack of cigarettes. Some companies want to do it. Many people have started to join our group since it began. Today there are 45 other "No Butts About It" groups in America.

    Now there even groups in England, Australia, and India! Many newspapers have written about my sister and me over the last seven years. And we have won many prizes for what we do. But we are not interested in prizes. We just want to make the Earth a better and cleaner place for animals, plants and people.

    One day, it will be.

    Many seniors feel pressured to go straight from high school to college, but Camden Olson, who graduated from the Latin School of Chicago in the US last year, didn't give in. She decided to spend a gap year-taking a year off before college-raising a guide dog for Guiding Eyes for the Blind in Maine. The non - profit provides trained guide dogs to blind and visually - impaired (视力障碍的) people. "This is something I've always wanted to do." Olson said.

    It is becoming more and more popular among American teenagers to have a gap year. Some students use the year off to figure out what they want to do: travel the world or save money for college.

    Olson is using her time to follow a passion she's had since 7th grade. For years, she kept an eye on guide dog services until she came across the opportunity at Guiding Eyes. With support from her friends, family and teachers, Olson went for it. Olson's volunteer work centers around Derby, a one-year-old black dog.

    "My job is to raise him to be well-mannered and socialized," she said. "Guide dogs can't be distracted. They go everywhere with their visually-impaired owner. They give a blind person a lot of support, too."

    Of course, there's an end in sight for Derby and Olson's close bond. When Derby celebrates his own graduation, Olson will have to say goodbye to him.

    "No doubt there will be tears, but, if he passes, I will be so happy for him to become a working dog," she said.

    While some do not agree that gap years are a good choice, Olson said she's seen major success. In fact, she'll be attending Princeton University soon and is thinking about majoring in biology.

    "I think I'm already so much more mature than I was," she said. "So many kids come back from gap years a lot more focused and prepared."