We considered a list of the best American books — but we'd need a whole issue to do them justice. Here are 5 that helped define the national character. Most from a century or so ago, they still entertain, teach and inspire American people.

    Moby-Dick by Herman Melville

    First published in 1851, the book tells the adventure stories of Captain Ahab and his continuous hunting for the white whale and draws us into a universe full of fascinating characters and stories.

    The Education of Henry Adams by Henry Adams

    Awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1918, the book provides insight into Adams' family, including his experience as a private secretary to his father, minister to England during the American Civil War.

    Leaves of Grass by Walt Whiteman

    When Whiteman published Leaves of Grass in 1855, he wanted to define the American experience— sing for the new country in a new voice, reflecting the great changes in the American literary world that had taken place during his lifetime.

    Poems by Emily Dickinson

    An enthusiastic poet whose works have had a considerable influence on modern poetry, Dickinson's frequent use of dashes(破折号)，sporadic(零星的)capitalization of nouns, and unusual metaphors(隐喻) has contributed to her reputation as one of the most innovative poets of the 19^th-century American literature.

    The song of Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

    First published in 1855, this is Longfellow's most popular and most recognized poem, showing the heroic life and death of a magic American Indian sent by the Great Spirit to guide the nations in the ways of peace.

    There are two great trends on parents bringing up children today．First，children are now praised to an unbelievable degree．As Dorothy Parker once joked，American children aren't raised；they are motivated．Children are constantly told how special they are．The second is that children are honed(磨砺) to an unimaginable degree．Parents spend much more time than in past generations on their children's development．

    These two great trends—greater praise and greater honing—combine in close ways. Parents shower their kids with affection，but it is intermingled with the desire to help their children achieve success．Parents are happy when their child studies hard，practices hard，wins first place，gets into a famous college．

The wolf of conditional love is hidden in these homes．The parents feel they love their children in all circumstances．But the children often think differently．They feel that childhood is a performance—on the athletic field，in school and beyond．The shadowy presence of conditional love produces a fear，the fear that there is no completely safe love．

    Meanwhile，children who are uncertain of their parents' love develop a great hunger for it. This conditional love is1ike an acid that affects children's criteria to make their own decisions about their own colleges，majors and careers．At key decision-points，they unconsciously imagine how their parents will react．

    These children tell their parents those things that will bring praise and hide the parts of their lives that won't. Studies suggest that children who receive conditional love often do better in the short run．They can be model students．But they suffer in the long run. They come to hate their parents．They are so influenced by fear that they become afraid of risk．

    Parents today are less likely to demand obedience(顺从) with explicit rules and lectures．But they are more likely to use love as a tool to exercise control. But parental love is supposed to ignore achievement. It's meant to be an unconditional support -a gift that can not be bought and cannot be earned．

    Feet help us walk, run, dance, and jump. The words feet and foot are also used in everyday speech.

    To be under someone's feet means to be troublesome. In other words, you are standing too close to someone and are getting in their way. Some adults criticize (批评) children for being under foot.

    Speaking of children, if someone says their home will soon have the pitter-patter of tiny feet, it means the family is expecting a baby!

    Now, people who are active do not let grass grow under their feet. They are never in one place for very long. People who can think and take action at the same time are said to be able to think on their feet.

    Some people appear to have it all. They have money, a good education, good looks, a great family and a large circle of friends. You could say they have the world at their feet. This means whatever they want seems to be there for them.

    People who have both feet firmly on the ground are realistic and practical. They are not dreamy. You might say such a person is well grounded. If you are a bad dancer, you might be described as having two left feet. To dance well, it is better to have a right foot and a left foot.

    Sam loves skiing. He thinks that it would be fun to own a ski resort (滑雪场) high in the mountains. But he knows nothing about running a business. So, he decides to get his feet wet. In other words, he wants to get used to a new situation.

    He joins an organization for resort owners and attends their meetings. He travels to ski areas all over the United States. This helps Sam get his foot in the door. Having a foot in the door is a starting point. This expression comes from people selling things door-to-door. They would block the door with their foot so people couldn't close the door on them.

    Uber

    Uber is available in over 70 cities throughout 40 countries worldwide. You can either choose a typical Uber unmarked car or a regular taxi. The app can show you where drivers are, so you know how long you'll be waiting. You can also get fare quotes(报价)in advance. Your payment source is linked to the app and is automatically charged, so no physical money is ever needed.

    Lyft

    Lyft is a service that is also available in many large cities in the US. However, it offers something different, one of which is Lyft Line. With this service, you can find people that take the same route on a daily basis as you and split the fare with them. Lyft's regular service lets you easily see where rides are, catch one, and easily pay right within the app.

    Easy Taxi

    Easy Taxi is available in 86 cities across 26 countries and lets you quickly browse through maps and find locations you'd like to be picked up at. From there, just make sure there are taxis in your area. Confirm your ride and then pay for it within the Easy Taxi app. Once you book a ride, you should see the taxi's plate number and phone number appear on the map, making it easy for you to pick out both the car and the driver.

    Curb

    Curb, formerly Taxi Magic, is currently available in around 60 cities across the United States as well as select cities in the United Kingdom, Canada, and Mexico. It ties in with taxi companies and their drivers. As your taxi makes its way to your location, you'll be able to track its progress inside the app. You can link a payment account to Curb to pay your fare through the app. You can also pay in cash.

    A California family drives a car that could help protect the environment. When Jon and Sandy go to the store or to their daughters' soccer games, they drive in high-tech style. They drive a $1 million, fuel-cell-powered car. It may be the world's most expensive car and one of the most environmentally friendly cars. The FCX is the first fuel-cell-powered car to be used by a family anywhere in the world. The FCX uses hydrogen and oxygen for fuel. Car makers have been working to develop vehicles that are better for the environment. They are developing cars that use fuel other than gasoline.

    And then what is fuel cell technology? Fuel cell technology works by changing the chemicals hydrogen and oxygen into water. This process produces electricity, and water vapor which comes out of the exhaust pipe. Most cars release dangerous gases such as carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. Many scientists say these gases are major contributors to global warming. “The FCX is driven just like any other vehicle on the road, but without the gases which pollute the environment,” scientists say. Fuel cell technology has been around since the 1800s, but scientists have yet been to perfect it. They say it may take years before the technology is ready for widespread use. Another earth-friendly car is already on the market. Hybrid cars use both gasoline and an electric motor. They are becoming more popular with customers because they cut pollution and improve fuel efficiency.

    Sitting has been called the new smoking for its supposed Public health risks, especially for people with sitting down office jobs. Over the past 15 years or so sitting has been connected with heart disease and diabetes (糖尿病). But is sitting really that risky?

    In our latest study we examined if not only the total amount of sitting, but different types of sitting, were connected with developing type 2 diabetes. We wanted to see if there was any difference among sitting watching TV, sitting at work, or sitting at home but not watching TV.

    We studied sitting habits of 4. 811 middle-aged people, who didn't have diabetes or heart problems at the start of the study. Over the next 13 years, 402 people developed diabetes. Once we considered obesity (AE RF), Physical activity, and other things that may develop type 2 diabetes, neither total sitting time, sitting at work nor sitting at home but not watching TV were connected with developing diabetes. We found only a weak connection with the time spent sitting watching TV and an increased risk of developing diabetes.

    This is different from the results of five older TV studies that showed a stronger connection. But hardly any of the included studies mentioned obesity, a major cause of diabetes.

    For people who are physically inactive, though, the story's different. Two recent studies show the total time spent sitting a day is connected with developing diabetes, but only in people who are physically inactive or both physically inactive and obese.

    That's not the whole story. At least two things determine if sitting is a risk factor in its own right: the type and situation of sitting.

    For example, sitting down at work isn't strongly connected with long-term health risks, Perhaps that's because higher position jobs needs more sitting, and higher socioeconomic (社会经济) position is connected with a lower risk of disease. It's a different case for sitting watching TV, the type of sitting most possibly connected with long-term health risks. People who watch a lot of TV tend to (a) be of lower socioeconomic positions, unemployed, have poorer mental (精神上的) health, eat unhealthy foods and face more unhealthy food advertising.