Ireland now has one of the best education systems in the world. Class sizes are small, exam results are good and most children are happy to stay at school after the minimum(最低的) leaving age of sixteen. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    For years, Ireland had one of the most complicated(复杂的) education systems in the world. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Classes were large and the teaching was very traditional. As in many countries, teachers used to hit the children if they made mistakes. Fortunately, the punishment was not allowed in 1982.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} As a result, there were schools for the rich and schools for the poor. Boys and girls went to different schools. Nowadays, most schools are free and only about half the schools are either for girls or boys. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Girls do better than boys in their exams; more girls go to university and most teachers are women.

    At the end of secondary school, students take their final exams. Compulsory(必修的)subjects are maths, Irish and English. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Some of these, like business organization, help to prepare them for the world of work. This is very different from the past when Latin and Greek used to be the most important subjects.

A. In many ways, education is now a woman's world.

B. Parents used to pay for their children's education.

C. In addition, they must choose two or three extra subjects.

D. Public schools in Ireland are not run by the government.

E. It is easy to forget that the picture used to be very different.

F. Here, children do not learn any subjects but some basic skills.

G. There were many different kinds of school, but most of them had a lot in common.

    Before there was the written word, there was the language of dance. Dance expresses love and hate, joy and sorrow, life and death, and everything else in between.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}We dance from Florida to Alaska, from north to south and sea to sea. We dance at weddings, birthdays, office parties and just to fill the time.

    "I adore dancing," says Lester Bridges, the owner of a dance studio in Iowa. "I can't imagine doing anything else with my life." Bridges runs dance classes for all ages. "Teaching dance is wonderful. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}It's great to watch them. For many of them, it's a way of meeting people and having a social life."

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}"I can tell you about one young couple," says Bridges. "They're learning to do traditional dances. They arrive at the class in low spirits and they leave with a smile. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}"

    So, do we dance in order to make ourselves feel better, calmer, healthier? Andrea Hillier says, "Dance, like the pattern of a beating heart, is life. Even after all these years, I want to get better and better.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} I find it hard to stop! Dancing reminds me I'm alive."

    Someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with blood cancer every three minutes. And although about three in ten blood cancer patients can find a matching donor in their families, 70 percent of patients depend on a stranger to step in. That was enough for me to know I wanted to help.

    I registered online with Delete Blood Cancer. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Four years later I got an e-mail from the organization and it said I had a possible match. To make sure all systems were a go, I had a couple of extra blood tests. I needed to donate bone marrow (骨髓).{#blank#}2{#/blank#}And my bone-marrow recipient was a little girl.

    Four months later, donation day arrived. At 9 a.m., the procedure started. By noon, I was already on my way home from the hospital. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}My legs were sore, like I had bruised my bone or something. The doctors said the pain would gradually disappear a few days later.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}The discomfort was secondary to the emotional high of helping a little girl with cancer. To me, it doesn't matter that I've never met the girl who received my bone marrow or that I don't even know her name. I still feel like I have such a powerful connection with her.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    A year later, I haven't heard how my bone-marrow recipient is doing, Delete Blood Cancer hasn't come back to me asking for another bone marrow donation, so I hope that's a good sign. But if they do call me back, whether it's for her or someone else, I'd do it again.

A. I won't lie—for a while, I was in pain.

B. I immediately broke down into tears on the phone.

C. There's something in our DNA that brought us together.

D. That's most often the case with young blood-cancer patients.

E. Even though the doctors gave me painkillers, I didn't try any.

F. I met with all of the doctors who would be performing the procedure.

G. Then my DNA was collected to see if I was a match for any patients in need.

    When your pet is sick, you know it needs medication. But pets, like babies, don't know the pill you want them to take will help them. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Here are some tips to help get your pet to take liquid medicine.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} If the answer is yes, then your easiest path is to mix it with canned food. First give your hungry pet a small amount of canned food without the medication. It's important that the pet nibbles (一点一点地吃) at the food and sees that there's nothing wrong.

    Next, while the pet is still hungry, mix the medication in a small amount of food and present it. Repeat as necessary to get the entire dose (剂量) down. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} If the pet decides not to finish the meal, the dose will be wasted.

    If the chemist says the medication cannot be taken with food, you need a syringe (注射器) or a dropper to get the liquid down your pet's throat.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Keep a cheerful tone in your voice so the pet doesn't sense your stress or hesitation. Position your pet where it cannot run away, perhaps having a dog sit with his back against a wall or chair – or a cat on your lap.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Use your other hand to insert the syringe or dropper between the cheek and back teeth. Slowly squeeze the medication so the pet won't choke. Try to keep your pet's mouth closed for about 30 seconds until you see it has swallowed. If your pet is being obstinate (倔强的), stroke its throat gently or blow on the face.

    Be sure you end the process with praise and perhaps a treat so your pet will not associate medication with a bad experience.

A. Before you call your pet in, be sure to have the medication and any other materials you'll need ready.

B. Once the pet is in position, use one hand to gently open the pet's mouth from above, tilting back the head slightly.

C. Ask the vet if the liquid medication can be given with food.

D. You should know the reason why the pet refuses to take medicine.

E. Never mix the medication with the full meal.

F. They just know it smells funny and they don't want it.

G. Don't force your pet to swallow all the medicine.

    If you need to interview someone for an article but you have never interviewed before, it can be frightening. Here are some tips for preparing for and conducting a successful interview.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} If the person is a known author or speaker, take the time to read or listened to his/her work, or at least get familiar with his/her most recent or most important work. If the interview will cover events, review whatever is known publicly about those events.

    Being a recording device(录音设备). You can use your phone or an audio recorder. In this way you needn't struggle to write things down. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} And this will make it easier to include direct quotes when you start writing.

    Remember to make it a conversation rather than a list of questions. Prepared questions are just a guideline. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. You can also try to ask your interviewee about his/her personal thoughts and reactions to events and people they deal with.

Appropriate feedback(反馈) is also important. Feel free to say words that show you are listening, like “yeah” and “Mmmm”. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You can also give more facial feedback like smiling.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} If the interviewee changes suddenly from one line of thought to another, lead them back to the area you are focusing on. Guide the interview but don't keep interrupting with many questions.

A. Politely ask if you can interview them.

B. Do your homework before you pick up the phone.

C. Then you can focus all your attention on the interview.

D. Consider how all the questions can be asked in a short time.

E. Nodding your head can be an encouragement to the interviewee.

F. In order to get the information you need, you should guide the interview.

G. You can try to ask questions based on what they have said to you in previous responses.

    Although problems are a part of our lives, it certainly doesn't mean that we let them rule our lives forever. One day or the other, you'll have to stand up and say – problem, I don't want you in my life.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Problems with friends, parents, girlfriends, husbands, and children – the list goes on. Apart from these, the inner conflicts within ourselves work, too. These keep adding to our problems. Problems come in different shapes and colors and feelings.

    But good news is that all problems can be dealt with. Now read on to know how to solve your problems.

    Talk, it really helps. What most of us think is that our problem can be understood only by us and that no talking is going to help. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Talking helps you move on and let go.

    Write your problems. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} When you write down your problems, you are setting free all the tension from your system. You can try throwing away the paper on which you wrote your problems. By doing this, imagine yourself throwing away the problems from your life.

    Don't lose faith and hope. No matter what you lose in life, don't lose faith and hope. Even if you lose all your money, family，you should still have faith. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} 

    Your problems aren't the worst. No matter what problem you get in life, there're another one million people whose problems are huger than yours. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Your problems might just seem big and worse, but in reality they can be removed.

    Go about and solve your problems because every problem, however big or small, always has a way out.

A. When we have a problem, a pressing, critical, urgent, life-threatening problem, how do we try and solve it?

B. But the truth is that when you talk about it, you're setting free the negative energies that have been gathering within you.

C. Having a personal diary can also be of huge help if you don't want a real person to talk with.

D. We can often overcome the problem and achieve the goal by making a direct attack.

E. Of course, we've been fighting troubles ever since we were born.

F. With faith and hope, you can rebuild everything that you lose.

G. Tell yourself: when they can deal with them, why can't I?