America's holiday shopping season started on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Shoppers make the most money this time of year, about 20 percent to 30 percent of all revenue all year. About 136 million people shopped during the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} In an era of instant information, shoppers can use their mobile phones to find deals. Nearly 80 percent of this year's holiday shoppers, or about 183.8 million people, shopped on Cyber Monday. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Online spending on Black Friday rose 15 percent to hit $2.7 billion this year. Cyber Monday spending increased 12 percent to $3 billion. NBC News reported that for many, shopping online was a more comfortable alternative than crowded malls.

    The shift to online shopping has had a big impact on solid shopping malls. Since 2010, more than 24 shopping malls have closed and an additional 60 are struggling. Fortune says the weakest of the malls have closed. However, the business in malls is thriving again, it adds.  According to a survey, 94.2percent of malls were full with shops by the end of 2014. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    The average American consumer will spend about $805 on gifts. That's about $630.5 billion between November and December – an increase of 3.7 percent from last year.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}That goes to China's Singles' Day, celebrated on November 11, which posted record sales of $14.3 billion in 2015.

A．More and more people shop online nowadays.

B．That is the highest level in 27 years.

C．It is the busiest shopping day of the year.

D．One-in-five Americans used a tablet or smart-phone.

E．The traditional mall industry can hardly survive.

F．Cyber Monday falls on the Monday after Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

G．Nonetheless, Cyber Monday is not the biggest online shopping day in the world.

    Lemon water is pretty popular. It's offered as a free upgrade to regular water at pretty many restaurants.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}, others are devotees of the possible health benefits. Here's what may happen if you take up the lemon water habit.

    Easier weight loss

    Studies in mice indicate that the antioxidants(抗氧化剂) in lemons can reduce weight gain despite a high-fat diet. More studies are needed to determine if the results can be applied to humans, but anecdotal evidence is favorable. People who drink lemon water regularly report easier weight loss, though it is unclear if the combination of lemon and water is the fundamental driver.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

    Get enough vitamin C

    Vitamin C is an important antioxidant that has a ton of health benefits. It can only be gotten from food as our bodies don't produce it alone. Getting your RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) of vitamin C can lower the risk of heart disease, stroke, and high blood pressure. Vitamin C is good for your skin and bonds with free radicals (自由电子) that accelerate aging.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}, but they're a great source nevertheless.

    Stabilized moods

    Studies have found that smelling lemon scent reduces stress hormones that regulate mood. Drinking lemon water offers this benefit as well as the vitamins and potassium(钾) in the fruit. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}, and high blood pressure is related to stress, so not getting enough potassium can certainly affect your mood. All in all, lemon water can be a calming drink.

    In the end, drinking water is never a bad call, and there is absolutely no reason not to add lemon to it. Drinking lemon water provides some helpful nutrients and antioxidants. Give it a try!{#blank#}5{#/blank#}.

A. Lemon is a common smell in all manner of cleaning products

B. Potassium plays a huge part in regulating blood pressure

C. There is nothing to lose

D. Lemons aren't the highest in vitamin C

E. While some people drink it simply because of its taste

F. If adding lemon to water can encourage people to drink more

G. It could be that drinking more water helps dieters to feel full and avoid overeating

How You Open Your Car Door Matters to Cyclists

    The "Dutch reach” isn't a new dance move or a random YouTube challenge. It's a simple move that can help prevent harm to cyclists. And you might keep your car door safe in the process, too. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Typically, a person sitting in the driver's seat of a car opens the door with the hand closest to it. It makes sense since doors are designed to be opened that way.  {#blank#}2{#/blank#}But if you happen to do that at the wrong time, you may unknowingly create an obstacle for a passing cyclist. The cyclist might be knocked down off the bike. The car door is likely to be damaged by the fast-moving bicycle.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} However, the car door design and long-time habits have made the process automatically. Luckily, there's a simple way to solve the problem. Open your car door with your other hand, using the Dutch reach. So instead of using your left hand, reach for the door handle with your right hand. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}At the very least, you'll look into your side view mirror to check for any traffic.

    The Dutch are used to opening their car doors this way. All Dutch are taught it. It's part of regular driver education. The technique dates back about 50 or 60 years in the Netherlands. In 2016 an American named Michael Charney started the Dutch Reach Project. He wanted to popularize the practice in the United States. Charney's efforts may be paying off. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. This will force you to turn your body.

B. Pull the handle and the door is open.

C. It is easy to do once you are used to it.

D. All you have to do is change how you open your door.

E. People are trying to change the way to open the car.

F. Clearly, the solution is for the person exiting the vehicle to check for traffic.

G. Several states now include the Dutch reach in their drivers' handbooks.

    For over one hundred and fifty years, Americans of all social classes have worn blue jeans. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Whether they are worn for work or for fashion today. Strauss' invention continues to be popular not only among Americans but also among people around the world.

    Levi Strauss was born in Germany in 1829. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}He grew up in Kentucky before moving to New York in 1847. Before becoming an American citizen and moving to the West in 1853, Strauss worked in his brother's dry goods business. This gave him a chance to produce his famous invention. After the gold rush of 1849, Strauss decided to move to the West to seek his fortunes.

    Strauss did not want to be a person who searched an area for minerals. Instead, he knew he could make a good living by selling supplies to the miners. At first, he planned to sell sewing supplies and cloth. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}When he heard miners complaining that their clothes were easily broken or they usually tore their pockets during mining, he decided to use a special fabric to make pants for the miners. These pants proved so popular that he quickly ran out of materials to make more.

    In 1873, Strauss received a letter from a Jewish tailor named Jacob Davis who had invented a process of connecting pockets with copper rivets(铆钉). This made the pants last a long time. Because Davis did not have the money to patent his idea, he offered to share it with Strauss if Strauss would agree to pay for the patent. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} 

    By the time Strauss died in 1902, he had made a great contribution to American fashion. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}The business has been growing ever since and Levi Strauss' company is now one of the largest clothing companies in the world.

A. As a young boy, he moved with his family to the United States.

B. Nobody knew what kind of material was suitable.

C. He did and Levi jeans have been made with metal rivets ever since.

D. However, he did not get much business for those products.

E. He also made a great contribution to America's clothing industry.

F. Since they were invented by Levi Strauss, they have become a symbol of American consumer culture.

G. As the business grew, Strauss got much money from it.

    Recently, crazy rich Asians are posting photos of themselves facing down and surrounded by luxury goods in a new trend sweeping social media.

    Falling down in public is embarrassing for most people. However, the new social media craze(时尚)called the "Falling Stars Challenge" has turned falling into something fun to do.

    The craze began in Russia. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Items like handbags, accessories (配饰) and cash were spread out on the ground around them in the photos. People shared these photos to show off their wealth.

    The craze soon became popular around the world. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} People are using it to show off their hobbies and professional talent. The items in their pictures show what they do for a living and what they have achieved in their lives.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} For example, students fall down on textbooks and test papers. Police officers fall in front of their police cars with handcuffs (手铐) in their hands. Famous people are also taking the challenge. Writer Liu Tong took a fall with dozens of copies of his new book.

    More than 1.08 million Chinese have taken this challenge on Sina Weibo. Their pictures have been viewed more than 2.22 billion times. Internet users also comment on these posts. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} One Weibo user wrote: "This shows the positive energy of fighting and working hard. Applause for these young people!"

    However, some also think the craze is just another example of a successful internet meme (网络爆红). {#blank#}5{#/blank#} What do you think? Will you try this challenge?

A. They think people are just imitating others.

B. Most of them speak highly of the craze.

C. However, in China, it is taking on a new meaning.

D. The challenge is particularly popular among young people.

E. The biggest reason for the success of the challenge is simple.

F. People from all walks of life are taking part in it.

G. People posted pictures of themselves faking a fall.

The Four People You Don't Want to Sit Next to on a Plane

    Let me begin by promising you that I am not an angry person. I would actually vow that I am inherently happy and all-around quite friendly and nice. But one thing that really grinds my gears, is being seated next to a nightmare neighbor on an airplane.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Perhaps you normally like them, but when you are sitting next to them on a plane it's a different thing. They usually spend all the flight moving around and dropping their toys on the floor, and when they're drinking their orange juice it ends up on your trousers. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. So you can't have the little sleep that you were planning.

    Conversation makers

    You recognize this type as soon as you sit down. They immediately start talking about the plane, or the weather, or they ask you a personal question. It's very difficult not to talk to these people. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}.

    Nervous fliers

    These are the people with white faces who sit down and immediately ask for something to drink. Every five minutes they call a flight attendant to ask if there are any problems with the plane. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. The best thing to do is to pretend to sleep.

    Space invaders

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. But they have a terrible habit of taking up all their room, and some of your room too. They usually sit so that you can't move, with their arms and legs in your space.

A. Naughty kids

B. Well-behaved parents

C. They also tell you about air crash

D. Some people want to talk all the time

E. The people are not necessarily very large

F. Then they decide they want to have fun with you

G. You'll probably have to keep talking until the plane lands