Different weather makes people feel different. It influences health, intelligence(智力) and feelings.

    In August, it is very hot and wet in the southern part of the United States. People there have heart trouble and other kinds of health problems during this month. In the Northeast and the Middle West, it is very hot at some times and very cold at other times. People in these states(州) have more heart trouble after the weather changes in February or March.

    The weather can also influence intelligence. For example, in a 1983 report by scientists, IQ(智商) of a group of students was very high when a very strong wind came, but after the strong wind, their IQ was 10% lower. The wind can help people have more intelligence. Very hot weather, on the other hand, can make it lower. Students in many schools of the United States often get worse on exams in the hot months of the year (July and August).

    Weather also has a strong influence on people's feelings. Winter may be a bad time for thin people. They usually feel cold during these months. They might feel unhappy during cold weather. But fat people may have a hard time in hot summer. At about 18℃, people become stronger.

    Low air pressure(气压) may make people forgetful(健忘). People leave more bags on buses and in shops on low-pressure days. People feel best at a temperature of about 18℃.

    Are you feeling sad, tired, forgetful, or unhappy today? It may be the weather's problem.

    Alice Lee is a high school student studying at a private school. She is doing some voluntary work at an after-school program to help students from poor families.

    On the first day of her work, she noticed that many kids were lining up for free sandwiches and fruits. She was surprised. One of the organizers explains that many of these students don't get enough to eat at home. So a school lunch or an after-meal might be the most food they would get all the day. She has also been told that some hungry kids can receive free lunches, but others are only allowed reduced-price meals, and those students' families have to pay for the part of their food.

    Lee was shocked, she decided to offer help to those who are suffering from hunger, "I want other kids to understand that if you see a problem, you don't have to wait to be an adult to fix it," says Lee. She and a group of friends are using their programme skill to create a new app called Food of Thought, which will allow parents, students, and even kind-hearted strangers to donate money to lunch accounts for students in a nearby school.

Leonardo da Vinci was a famous artist who was born in Italy. He was also a great inventor. Many of his inventions have become important in modern life. Although Leonardo hated war. he invented many different machines used for war. His most special invention was the machine gun, which was produced and used in war. Besides, Leonardo spent days thinking about how to save time. He developed ideas for something like cutting machines.

Leonardo was a strange man. He never ate meat. That was very unusual in those times. He never published(发表) discoveries about science. He usually used mirror writing, which looks like usual writing in a mirror, starting from the right side of the page and moving to the left side。

Only a few of his paintings are left today. Many paintings were not finished because he thought they were not perfect.

Leonardo was talented and creative. He was regarded as one of the most intelligent men in the world.

Meeting a polar bear

I put my day's supply of food into my bag and then began to take down the tent. Suddenly I heard a deep, long growl (嚎叫) from my dog Charlie. I looked at him and then in the direction he was watching closely. A polar bear!

It was a mother 1 by two cubs coming slowly towards me. They were 200 meters away. With a pounding (狂跳) heart, I picked up my flare (照明) gun and 2 walked sideways a few steps to Charlie. Without taking my eyes off the bear, I untied Charlie and, again walked sideways.

The bear, now only 150 meters aways, wasn't stopping. Her cubs had dropped back but she kept going, while I tried to remember all the 3 that had been given. Keep eye contact, move sideways or forward, never backward, stay calm, don't show 4 . Don't wound a bear and you'll make it 5 to control it. Never run. Repeating to myself, "Stay calm, stay calm," I fired a warning shot (射击) to the bear's left. The loud noise had no 6 . She came around. I fired a flare, landing it a little to her right. Her head moved in its direction but she didn't stop. I fired another, this time dropping it right in front of her. She stopped, looked at the flare. She was only 30 meters away now.

By this time, I was so nervous that my heart could have been heard at base camp. The bear began to step around the flare, and I dropped another a meter in front of her. again she 7 , and then she fixed her tiny black eyes on Charlie, who was trying to reach her. She looked back at her cubs, waited, and then moved to my left in a half circle. I fired two more flares, trying to draw a line between her and me. She stopped again and seemed to want to 8 the line of flares but was unsure of the result and of Charlie, so she decided to stay 9 . Finally, with a last long look, she walked north with her cubs behind her.

My hands were still shaking, but I now knew that I could 10 a bear in the wild bravely and stay calm enough to act properly.