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    Now many people like to keep dogs as their pets. But how did dogs become humans' close friends?

    In some places of Europe (欧洲), about 10,000 years ago, some wild (野生的) dogs often came to human's houses to find food. The wild dogs looked different from the ones today. They looked like wolves (狼). At first, they felt ① frightened. They always stood and looked for a short time. Then they got the food and ran away. Sometimes the young dogs couldn't run fast and people caught them. People trained them and the young dogs grew up with the help of people. Slowly, the wild dogs became home dogs. They could make home safe when people were away. They helped people hunt (狩猎). They helped people keep warm on cold nights. ② Sometimes, they could smell and hear danger before people could. In some cold places, they helped people pull (拉) things people need.

    Now there are more than 400 different kinds of dogs in the world. And they look different from each other. The number and kind are growing all the time. Today, some people mainly (主要地) regard dogs as pets. In fact, dogs are really our close friends. We should protect them from being killed.

      Why are so many people so afraid to fail? Quite simply because no one tells us how to fail so that failure (失败) becomes an experience that means growth. We forget that failure is part of the human condition and that every person has the right to fail.

      Most parents work hard at preventing failure or protecting their children from the knowledge that they have failed. One way is to lower standards. 60% of the parents choose this way. When a child finishes making a table, the mother describes it as “perfect” even though it doesn't stand still. Another way is to blame (责怪) others. If John fails in science, his teacher is unfair or stupid.

      There's a problem with the two ways. It makes a child unprepared for life in the real world. The young need to learn that no one can be best at everything, no one can win all the time, and that it's possible to enjoy a game even when you don't win. A child who's not invited to a birthday party, who doesn't make the honour list on the baseball team, feels terrible, of course. But parents should not offer a quick consolations (安慰), prize or say, “It doesn't matter.” Because it does. The young should be allowed to experience failure and be helped to come out of it.

     Failure never gives people pleasure. It hurts both grown-ups and children. But it can be really good to your life when you learn to use it. You must learn to ask “Why did I fail?” Don't blame anyone else. Ask yourself what you did wrong and how you can improve. If someone else can help, don't be shy about asking them.

    Nina wants to join the animal protection (保护) club. She writes a letter to the head of the club and tells him about her interests and how she can help the club. Here is her letter:

Dear Mr. Smith,

    I listened to your talk last week and I would like to become a member of the club.

    I am a student and I am in Grade Eight. My favorite subjects are PE and English. I like playing ping pong. Every Monday and Friday, I play ping pong with my classmates. I also like singing and dancing.

    I would like to become a member of the club because I like animals very much. I think it is important for me to do something to protect animals. I want to know more about animals, too. I can participate in (参加) club activities from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

    I will be very happy if I can become a member of your club. You can call me at 6543 8895 or email me at nina@126.com.

Yours,

    On Nov. 18, 1908, three men went up in a balloon. They started early in London. The headman was Augusta Gaudron, and the other two men were Tannar and Maitland. They had a big balloon and they were ready for a long way.

    Soon they heard the sea. They carried a usual rope, and it was hanging down from the basket of the balloon. At the end of the rope they had tied(系) a metal box. This could hold water, or it could be empty. So they were able to change its weight. It was for use over the sea. They also carried some bags of sand.

    After the Sun rose, the balloon went higher. It went up to 3,000 metres, and the air was very cold. The water in the box became ice. Snow fell past the men's basket, and they could see more snow on the ground. The men tried to throw out some more sand; but it was hard. They tried to break the icy sand with their knives, but it was not easy. The work was slow and they were still falling, so they had to drop(投下) some whole bags of sand.

    One of them fell on an icy lake and made a black hole in the ice.

At last they pulled the box into the basket. They rose to 5, 100 metres! Everything became icy. They were so cold that they decided to land. They came down in Poland safely. They had travelled 1,797 kilometres from London!