Zhalong is a nature reserve in Heilongjiang in northeast China. It is one of the world's most important wetlands. The reserve offers food and places to live in for wildlife. It is an ideal home for different kinds of plants, fish and birds.

    Many birds live comfortably in Zhalong Nature Reserve all year round, but some only stay there for a short time. There are many fish in the wetlands, and the birds can easily catch them for food. Zhalong Nature Reserve is an important living area for red-crowned cranes. There are not many red-crowned cranes in the world. Some of them live in Zhalong.

    Some people want to change the wetlands to make more space for farms and buildings. This means there will be less and less space for wildlife.

    More and more birds are in danger because they do not have enough living space. Many of them died. The Chinese government wants to protect these endangered* birds, and they can be safe in Zhalong.

    Every year, a lot of visitors go to Zhalong to watch birds. This year, members of our Birdwatching Club are going to study the different kinds of birds in Zhalong and the changes in their numbers.

    We do a bird count once a year. We are now inviting middle school students to help. We need more people to help us count and do something to help the birds. Many people do not understand the importance of the wetlands. We hope this information will help them understand and make them do something to protect wildlife. 

Dear friends,

    I am writing this letter to draw your attention to the disasters（灾难）these days. Too much rain destroyed the crops and washed the earth away. Sometimes it was too little and made plants dead. Also there was too much dust in the air. All these did great damage to our life.

    However, we made them! So it is time for us to try our best to save the Earth.

    The most important thing is to plant trees as many as possible. At the same time, we should stop cutting down trees and protect the forests. And we can save our planet through many other ways, such as saving water and using both sides of paper. Besides, don't keep TVs or computers on when you are not using them. When you leave a room, turn off the lights.

    A small action is very helpful to our planet. Please join us in the action of protecting the Earth. Let's start from the little things right around us.

Bruce

Leader of the Students' Union

    What's a spacewalk? Any time an astronaut gets out of a spacecraft(航天器) while in space, it is called a spacewalk. Astronauts go on spacewalks for many reasons. For example, experiments can be placed on the outside of a spacecraft. This lets scientists learn how being in space affects(影响) different things. By going on spacewalks, astronauts can also fix things instead of bringing them back to the earth to fix.

    When astronauts go on spacewalks, they wear spacesuits to keep themselves safe. Inside spacesuits, astronauts have the oxygen(氧气) they need to breathe and the water they need to drink. To keep the astronauts and the spacecraft safe, the astronauts must leave and go back to the spacecraft through a special door. When on a spacewalk, astronauts use safety  tethers to stay close to their spacecraft. Tethers are like ropes, connect the spacewalkers with the spacecraft. They keep astronauts from floating(漂浮) away into space. Another way astronauts stay safe during spacewalks is by wearing a SAFER. SAFER is worn like a backpack. It helps an astronaut move around in space.

    How do astronauts train for spacewalks? One way is by going for a swim. Floating in space is a lot like floating in water. Astronauts practice spacewalks underwater in a huge special swimming pool. For every one hour they will spend on a spacewalk, astronauts need to train seven hours in the pool. Another way astronauts practice for a spacewalk is by using virtual reality(虚拟现实). It looks and feels just like a spacewalk.

    Today, only three countries have finished spacewalks independently. They are Russia, the United States and China. The first person to go on a spacewalk in the world was Alexei Leonov from Russia. Zhai Zhigang is the first Chinese astronaut to go on a spacewalk. The world record of spacewalks is held by Russian astronaut Anatoly Solovyev. He has been on 16 spacewalks and spent more than 82 hours outside in space.