My grandmother is over eighty years old. She always complains about how greatly things have changed, and she often says that life used to be better.

    Families aren't families the way they used to be. If a husband and wife are having problem with their marriage, they don't stay together any more. They choose to divorce. Mothers used to stay at home and take care of their children, but now everyone is busy working; no one has time to look after children at home.

    And the cars! No one walk any more; people get richer and richer, and more and more people buy cars and drive. We used to walk five miles to school every day, even in winter. But now children don't.

    And in school, children don't have to think any more. When I was at school, I used to add, subtract, multiply and divide using my head in math class, but now, children use calculators instead.

    Most families have computers and TVs now. In the past we didn't have computers or TVs, we spent a lot of time talking with our family members. But now, people are too busy to talk to each other. If they have time, they'd watch TV or surf the Internet rather than talk to family members. They are even too busy to eat and think.

    Life used to be simple, but it isn't any more.

Information Card

A. People might grow plants and vegetables in the sea in about 50 years.

B. A child in Hainan fell from the seventh floor but luckily he was not hurt at all.

C. The lost world is an exciting American film. People, especially school students, may like it better.

D. Even if you could buy the world, you could not buy a happy family, good friends or knowledge.

E. For families with children, an important problem is getting the children away from the television to do their homework.

F. When you need help for your homework, go to the library. You may find magazines, newspapers, and big dictionaries there. They can always help you.

(T=Tony B=Betty)

T: Hello! Are you Betty?

B: Yes, I am. What's your name, please?

T: My name is Tony. I'm in Class 3, Grade 8. I'm in Row 15.

B: I'm in Class 1, Grade 7. I'm in Row 2. Can you tell me your telephone number?

T: Yes. My telephone number is 5605688. And what's your telephone number?

B: Oh, it's 3839833. I'm thirteen. And how old are you?

T: I'm fourteen.

    Hello! I'm Jim Green. I'm English. This is my mother. Her first name is Mary. This is my father .His name is Steven. My telephone number is seven six zero nine one seven six .My friend is Li Lei .His English name is Tony. He is a Chinese boy. His telephone number is 2815248. My Chinese teacher is Jenny Wang. She is from China. She is a good teacher.

    Information Card

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Its name is Price low.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} You can buy school things, like notebook, pens, rulers, pencils, erasers and pencil-boxes.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}You can also buy clothes. Some of the things there ate cheap.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}The supermarket is open every day from 7:00am to 8:00 pm .The worker there are very good.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}They will help you if you want to buy anything.

    More than one million international students are studying in the United States. Many of them find it helpful to have a smart phone and an American credit card(信用卡).

    These things make it easy to pay for many kinds of goods and services. But getting a credit card as an international student is not a simple process. Normal US lenders ask for a social security number(社会保障号码). In addition, they ask to see a person's credit history. This helps the lenders fully believe that someone is responsible and make timely payments. These are the things most international students do not have.

    But one company is trying to make the process easier and fairer for them.

    Jack Guo is from China. He now studies at a university in California. He says having an American credit card makes it easier for students to get around town. And, he says, credit cards are important for international students who hope to live in the country in the future.

    Kalpesh Kapadia came from India to study at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He faced the same difficulties that many international students face when trying to get an American credit card. He decided to open SelfScore(万事达信用卡).

    Without asking for credit history and a social security number, SelfScore looks at materials such as passports，visas, and acceptance letters to American schools. The company also considers a student's ability to pay.

    About 10, 000 international students from more than 66 countries now have credit cards through SelfScore. Kalpesh says less than one percent of SelfScore's credit card holders are late for their payments because of different kinds of reasons.