My folks bought their first house in the early 1940s after Dad got a better job in Marquette, Michigan. We lived just inside the city limits in what was still a rural area.

    In the spring of 1948, when I was 6 years old, my parents bought a calf (小牛) to replace our cow, which had been killed the year before. So one day we drove to a local farm and returned with a white and brown calf we named Tubby.

    We didn't own a truck, so Tubby rode home in the backseat of Dad's car with my 9-year-old brother Steve, and me. As you can imagine, the trip was a lot of fun for us kids.

    Later that summer, Mom thought it would be cute to take a picture of me sitting on Tubby's back. All went well unti1 the snap of the camera shutter sent Tubby charging off on a run, with me holding on for dear life. I lasted for about 30 feet before I hit the ground. Mom was quick enough to shoot a follow-up picture, so we had photos of me both on and off Tubby!

    When summer had passed, the day arrived for poor Tubby to fill our freezer I must have been somewhere else with my Mom on the fateful day, because I have no memory of how it happened. All I knew was that the barn was empty, and that we had plenty of meat for dinners.

    I hadn't lived on a farm like my mother, so I didn't understand that what happened to Tubby was not unusual. Livestock aren't meant to be pets, and most farm kids know and accept that truth.

    Whenever we had beef for dinner, I would tearfully, “Is this Tubby” This went on for a couple of weeks until Dad had finally had enough and declared, “No more cows!” That made me feel a little better about poor Tubby.

    Sound travels very well through water-much better, in fact, than it does through air. So it shouldn't be surprising that many ocean animals make noise. They use sound to communicate and hunt. As biologist Brandon Southall says, “Their whole world is related to sound.”

    Dolphins whistle, organizing hunts. Lovesick whales sing so loudly they can be heard hundreds of miles away. But these days they aren't the only ones sounding off. They have more and more competition from human machines.

    Every day, thousands of huge container ships sail across the world's oceans. On top of the engine noise, the ships' propeller (螺旋桨) make a loud noise all the time. All that can make it hard for ocean animals trying to listen out for friends, or dinner. Animals swimming nearby a ship can be deafened or even killed.

    Underwater construction can also be dangerously loud. When construction machines called pile drivers were used during repairs to the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, dead fish appeared.

    Geologist (地质学家) pound on the seafloor too, trying to find oil wells and map Earth's surface. The results are useful lo science, but all that hammering probably gives ocean animal a headache.

    As people realize how important sound is to ocean animals, they are looking for ways to reduce human noise. Ships could get quieter just by slowing down. Engineers are also trying to find quieter propeller ships.

    Now some companies are using a simple invention called a bubble curtain, which makes sound waves passing through it lose energy and gel quieter. It seems to work - when bubble curtains were fixed on the San Francisco bridge project fish deaths dropped.

    We still have a lot to learn about sound in the oceans, but together we can help keep the sea a quieter place.

    Many years later, when people recall the 2018 Russia World Cup, they will remember many things. With the tragic ending of the defending champion Germany, Mexico has triumphantly and suddenly lost three goals in the face of Sweden. But people will never forget the back of a lonely person. That is Lionel Messi.

    31-year-old Messi took off the green armband of his left arm and suddenly fell out. In the recent match, he and his team lost the game against France. The 19-year-old striker Mbappé relentlessly ripped apart the Argentine defense line and scored twice, which made a great contribution to the victory of France.

    On this planet, anyone who knows a little about football knows the name Lionel Messi and his golden years from 2007 to 2017.

    In 2007, 19-year-old Messi tied Real Madrid three times with a hat-trick, and began his legendary career.

    In the past ten years, Mr. Football, the Golden Globe Award and the Golden Boot Award have been taken over by him.

    He led Argentina and Barcelona to make a name for themselves in the world, and has a brilliant record in the Champions League, America's Cup and World Cup.

    Eleven years later, Messi stood on the Kazan Stadium. After four World Cups, he knew that this might be the last time he led Argentina to the World Cup.

    Since 1986, Argentina has never won a championship again. As a captain, he has a great responsibility, even stating that he would withdraw from the national team if he did not win the championship this year.

    This is a prophecy.

    Messi, who eventually failed to save the game, did not receive any interview after standing up on the lawn; leave behind only a legendary image for the world.

    School uniforms are becoming more and more popular across the USA. That's no surprise, because they offer many benefits. If all students are dressed in the same way, they will not pay too much attention to their clothing, and some of them will not be laughed at for wearing the "wrong" clothes.

Some people are against the strict rule of school uniforms, but they do not realize that students already accept a kind of rule —- wanting to look just like their friends. The difference is that the clothing students choose for themselves creates social barriers(阻碍）; school uniforms tear those barriers down.

    Some parents are unhappy about uniforms, saying that school uniforms will affect their children's "creativity". First, as noted above , the clothes students choose to wear do not necessarily express their individuality(个性). They just copy their classmates. Second, students have the rest of the day to be as creative as they like. While they're in school, their job is to master reading, writing, and math; this should take up all the creativity they have. Mastery of those skills will be good for the students to build up their creativity in every way.

    As in other places, uniforms remind the wearers of their purpose and duties. For example, when a man or woman puts on a police uniform, he or she becomes, for a time, the symbol(象征) of law and order. The uniform means to the wearer his or her special duties and sends the same message to everyone the wearers meets. People with different jobs wear uniforms of one kind or another. For students, the school uniform reminds them that their task for the six or seven hours they are in school is to get an education.

    A recent documentary produced by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has caused a stir in China and in the UK.

    The documentary, titled Are Our Kids Tough Enough? focuses on five Chinese teachers who are sent to teach 50 UK teens at a school in Hampshire.

    The teachers instruct the students for a month. The pupils are then tested, and the results are compared to the ones of those who have continued in the regular UK education system. The idea is to see if the Chinese method improves academic performance.

    The Chinese teachers use their own teaching methods but receive strong resistance from the students. A clip from the documentary online shows some problems, with Chinese teachers calling their students lazy and lacking in discipline, while the students say the high pressure and harsh teachers are driving them crazy.

    This has aroused a new debate in both China and the UK, with some arguing the teenagers need more regulation and discipline. Others say Chinese methods encourage rote learning (死记硬背) instead of independent thinking. For instance, Chinese language teachers should do more than pass on knowledge about words and characters. They should inspire students, helping them feel the sentiment from Chinese literature. This is a higher level of teaching.

    Yang Dongping, dean of the 21st Century Education Research Institute, says, "The Chinese teaching methods are designed to strictly train the majority. Foreign teaching methods, however, are more natural and relaxing, and designed to inspire students' interest in learning. Education methods are based on culture. That is why a successful education method in one place may not work that well when simply 'transplanted' into another place."

    Yang Dongping says, "The documentary does reflect some problems rooted in traditional Chinese teaching methods. Nobel prize winner, Yang Zhenning, gave a very fair comment on this issue. He said the Chinese-style education method works for most ordinary qualified students effectively, helping them reach high standards. However, it may weaken the training for high-potential outstanding students."