New Orleans, Louisiana, was established as part of the French Empire in 1718.

    Its location on the east bank of the Mississippi River gave it control of the American hinerland and it became strategically important to many nations. It was transferred from France to Spain, returned to France, and finally sold by Napoleon to the United States in 1803. The city was the site of a famous battle fought in 1815 between the British, who hoped to control it, and the Americans under General Andrew Jackson.

    The riverbed of the Mississippi is constantly silting（淤积）and the river is now actually higher than the city. Levees hold back the river and giant pumps are used to move water from the city into the river.

    Although New Orleans has been a part of the United States for almost two centuries, its population takes great pride in its French heritage. Louisiana still retains parts of the Code Napoleon which, for many years, was its only law.

    New Orleans is carefree city and it boasts its hot, spicy Creole seafood and its native Dixieland Jazz. The Jackson Square neighborhood maintains its French colonial homes and in other sections are pre-Civil War mansions. Visitors are surprised to find that behind this interesting surface of yesteryear is a busy industrial and port city. Grain and coal come from the Midwest and foreign goods are unloaded here. New Orleans is no longer a sleepy Southern town—but it's still fun to visit.

    Sharon, Aged 22

    The most important thing to keep in mind when going into high school is to be yourself. Besides, I don't know what your middle school was like, but high school teachers will not care about things such as how much homework you already have in one night. It's best to just learn to deal with things and manage your time wisely so you can achieve everything you need to.

    Frank, Aged 21

    I think almost every kid feels both nervous and excited before their first day. You will probably love it. I know I did. You should join some sports or activities that will make your high school experience more enjoyable.

    Good luck!

    Eddie, Aged 20

    When I started high school I was really nervous too, especially since I had been homeschooled all through middle school and didn't really know anyone. I suppose the best advice would be to just relax. The first couple of days can be a little bit hard, but things will become easier before you know it.

    David, Aged 19

    I am not going to lie. The first day is kind of frightening. But you'll get used to it. Don't be afraid of anyone; upperclassmen will pick on you more if you let them know you're afraid. Just take it easy. Making some friends and staying with them will greatly help you get used to high school quickly. After the first week it's really not bad at all. Don't worry.

    Wolves are important animals in the traditions and stories of most Native American tribes. To Native Americans, wolves often represent bravery. The animals also are signs of strength, loyalty, and success at hunting. Other cultures--such as the ancient Celtic and Nordic peoples-also placed high value on wolves.

    However, from the wolves in horror films to the wolves in children's stories, wolves get a bum rap(不公正的惩罚) in both literature and English expressions.

    To begin with, there is the term lone wolf. The lone wolf isn't a bad person. But they like to do things on their own. However, the term can mean something less than desirable. Lone wolf makes you think the person doesn't want to be around people because he or she dislikes them.

    Now, let's move on to the home.

    Parents might criticize their children for wolfing down their food. In other words, the child eats very quickly and without care. And if someone says a child was raised by wolves, that child has bad manners and is behaving like a wild animal. A wolf at the door means someone to whom you owe money is waiting just outside your door.

By the way, there are two popular wolf-related expressions that come from Aesop, the ancient Greek storyteller.

    The first is a wolf in sheep's clothing. A wolf in sheep's clothing describes someone who acts and looks nice on the outside but is bad on the inside.

    Aesop's other wolf fable also involves a shepherd, but not a hardworking one. He is known as the boy who cried wolf. People who cry wolf are not trusted. People are so familiar with this story, you simply have to say cry wolf for them to know what you mean.

    Reading can be a social activity. Think of the people who belong to book groups. They choose books to read and then meet to discuss them. Now, the website Book Crossing.com turns the page on the traditional idea of a book group.

    Members go on the site and register the books they own and would like to share. Book Crossing provides an identification number to stick inside the book. Then the person leaves it in a public lace hoping that the book will have an adventure, traveling far and wide with each new reader who finds it.

    Bruce Pederson, the managing director of BookCrossing, says, "The two things that change your life are the people you meet and books you read. BookCrossing combines both."

    Members leave books on park benches and buses, in train stations and coffee shops. Whoever finds their book will go to the site and record where they found it.

    People who find a book can also leave a journal entry describing what they thought of it. E-mails are then sent to the BookCrossing to keep them updated about where their books have been found. Bruce peterson says the idea is for people not to be selfish by keeping a book to gather dust on a shelf at home.

    BookCrossing is part of a trend among people who want to get back to the "real" and not the virtual(虚拟). The site now has more than one million members in more than one hundred thirty-five countries.

    John Blanchard was studying the crowd making their way through the station. He was looking for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he didn't, the girl with the rose.

    When reading a book in a Florida library a year before, John became interested not in the contents of the book, but in the notes penciled in the margin (空白处). The handwriting reflected a thoughtful soul and beautiful mind. He discovered the former owner's name in the front of the book: Miss Hollis Maynell.

    He located her address and wrote a letter introducing himself. The next day he was shipped overseas to serve in the army. During the next year, they grew to know each other through the mail and their friendship developed. John requested a photograph, but she refused, saying if he really cared, it wouldn't matter what she looked like. When the day finally came for him to return home, their first meeting was suggested-7:00 pm at the Grand Central Station in New York.

    She wrote, "You'll recognize me by the red rose I wear on my coat." So now John was in the station to meet the girl with a rose.

    As a pretty and slim girl in green came over, John noticed her blue eyes like flowers in spring. He walked directly towards her, entirely forgetting she was not wearing a rose. As John came closer to her, he saw another woman with a red rose stood nearby. Well past 40, this woman had graying hair done under a worn hat. Seeing the girl in green walk quickly away, John felt as if he were split (劈开) in two. He desired to follow that girl, but longed for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned and supported him.

    The woman looked gentle and sensible. John went to her, saying, "I'm Captain John Blanchard. You must be Miss Maynell. I am glad to meet you here. May I take you to dinner?"

    She replied with a smile, "I don't know what this is about. But the lady in green who just went by, begged me to wear this rose on my coat. She said if you asked me out to dinner, I'd tell you she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was some kind of test!"

    The San Francisco Giants added a special pitcher(投球手)for the day. It was small—yet fierce—Hailey Dawson, who has a 3D-printed hand.

    The energetic 8-year-old from Nevada was invited to throw out the first pitch at the Giants game on Sunday. Dawson was born with Poland syndrome(综合症), a disorder in which affected individuals are born with missing or underdeveloped muscles on one side of the body. It affected her hand.

    With a traditional prosthetic(假肢)potentially costing thousands of dollars, Hailey's mom, Yong Dawson turned to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas for help. She emailed UNLV engineering, and they accepted the challenge. Brendan O'Toole, chairman of the mechanical engineering department, said he and his team had got a lot of requests, "but this one was different." They got to work using a 3D-printer.Several prototypes(原型)and fittings later, Dawson got her first hand about four years ago.

    Hailey's mother said the hand had given her daughter a wonderful lift. "When she puts this robotic hand on, it changes her personality and confidence level," Yong Dawson told CBS San Francisco. "I love seeing that. I just wanted her to have an even playing field."

    When she arrived at AT&T Park on Sunday, Hailey got to hang out with players in the shelter at the side of the sports field. They even let her try on their World Series rings.

    Using her 3D-printed hand, Dawson threw out the perfect first pitch. Then with a wave and a smile, she headed into the stands to cheer on her newfound friends on the Giants.