Any car accident is frightening, but an accident in which your vehicle is thrown into the water, with you trapped inside, is absolutely terrifying. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    However, most deaths result from panic, without a plan or understanding what is happening to the car in the water. By adopting a brace position (防冲击姿势), acting decisively and getting out fast, you can save yourself from a sinking vehicle.

Brace yourself for impact. As soon as you're aware that you're going off the road and into a body of water, adopt a brace position. The impact could set off the airbag system in your vehicle, so you should place both hands on the steering wheel in the “ten and two” position.

Undo your seatbelt. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Unbuckle the children, starting with the oldest first. Forget the cellphone call. Your car isn't going to wait for you to make the call.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Leave the door alone at this stage and concentrate on the window. A car's electrical system should work for up to three minutes in water, so try the method of opening it electronically first. Many people don't think about the window as an escape option either because of panic or misinformation about doors and sinking.

Break the window. If you aren't able to open the window, or it only opens halfway, you'll need to break it with an object or your foot. It may feel counter-intuitive (有悖常理的) to let water into the car. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Escape when the car has equalized. If it has reached the dramatic stage where the car cabin has been filled with water and it has become balanced, you must move quickly and effectively to ensure your survival. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} 

While there is still air in the car, take slow, deep breaths and focus on what you're doing.

A. Open the window as soon as you hit the water.

B. Surviving a sinking car is n ot as difficult as you think.

C. It takes 60 to 120 seconds for a car to fill up with water usually.

D. Such accidents are particularly dangerous due to the risk of drowning.

E. In conclusion, if you know what to do in the water, you'll be safe.

F. This is the first thing to attend to, yet it often gets forgotten in the panic.

G. But the sooner the window is open, the sooner you can escape directly through it.

    No fight can end, and no friendship can move on, until everyone says these little words: I'm sorry. Sometimes, though, they can be difficult to say.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

     It's not about winning.

    Friendship aren't like the Super Bowl, and there should never be a winner and a loser. When you start fighting with a friend, it may feel important that you “win” the fight by proving（证明）you're right and he is wrong, or by making him be the first to apologize（道歉）.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    You may have heard the expression “His pride（骄傲）stood in the way.” It is usually used to describe a person who is so determined（意志坚定）to be “right” that he lets an opportunity（机会）for happiness pass him by forever.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Remember: as time goes on, we usually forget who was right and who was wrong in a disagreement, and only remember the sadness of losing a friend. Take the first step.

    Are you sick of fighting? Do you think this fight is just not important enough to ruin（毁灭）your friendship?{#blank#}4{#/blank#} You don't have to take full responsibility（责任）for starting the fight, or even say that your feelings were wrong. But you should find something you did or said that's worth apologizing for. Maybe you're sorry that you let the fight go for so long, of that you overreacted（反应过度）to something your friend did. If you say you are sorry, it's like an invitation for your friend to do the same.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A.Stop thinking about your pride.

B.Then try to be the first to apologize.

C.It's about taking some responsibility for the argument.

D.Once you've both said it, you'll both feel a million times better.

E.There are some special cases when you shouldn't be the one to apologize first.

F.Here are some things to keep in mind.

G.Don't let this happen to a friendship you care about.

    Speaking English is not only about using proper grammar.To use English effectively,you need to understand the culture in which it is spoken.Here are a number of important tips to remember when speaking English in the United States.

    Conversation tips.

    Talk about location{#blank#}1{#/blank#}When speaking to strangers,ask them where they are from and then make a connection with that place.For example:“Oh,I have a friend who studied in Los Angeles.He says it's a beautiful place to live in.”  Most Americans will then willingly talk about their experiences living or visiting that particular city or area.

    Talk about work{#blank#}2{#/blank#}It's not considered impolite and is a popular topic of discussion between strangers.

    Talk about sports.Americans love sports!{#blank#}3{#/blank#}When speaking about football,most Americans understand “American Football”,not soccer.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Many Americans prefer first names.Americans often prefer using first names,even when dealing with people in very different positions.Americans will generally say,“Call me Tom.”and then expect you to remain on a first name basis.

    Public behavior.

    Always shake hands.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}This is true for both men and women.Other forms of greeting such as kissing on the cheeks is generally not appreciated.

    Smoking is out!Smoking,even in public places,is strongly disapproved of by most Americans in the modem United States.

A.Addressing people.

B.Talking with people.

C.However,they love American sports.

D.Americans love to talk about location.

E.Americans commonly ask “What do you do?” .

F.Americans prefer to make friends with foreigners.

G.Americans shake hands when greeting each other.

How to Choose a Good Book

    You love reading, and you're dying to get your hands on a book. But you've read all your books several times, and you're getting tired of reading the same ones. You're planning to go to the library, but don't know what kind of books to get. With the right knowledge, it's easy for you to choose a good book.

    Make a list answering these questions:

    What kind of books do you like? {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Is there a type of book that you would like to try? What are your interests? By doing this you will find books that you might like.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Very often good books are quietly collecting dust in your own house. Maybe you forget about one, or someone who is living with you has a couple of good books. Also by searching your house, you can find books that you can read, and they won't even cost you any money.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Read best-seller lists published in most newspapers or weekly magazines. Find out which new books are making headlines, and why.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    If it does, then use its search engine to find a certain book or books by a certain author. You can also do this at home.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    If you would rather have Book 1 over Book2，put Book2 back. If you would prefer Book 3 to Book 1, put Book 1 back.

A. Search your house.

B. What books have you read?

C. Ask someone to recommend a good book.

D. See if the library or bookstore has computers.

E. Read book reviews in newspapers and magazines.

F. Narrow down your choices.

G. What authors do you like?

    Castles(城堡)and temples wear away after hundreds of years, but the symbols and E-books came from the development of words on the stone often survive.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} science and technology, and can be read online. Many people believe that regular books will be one day replaced by e-books.

    Books and e-books share lots of similarities. They are both items created by great minds, {#blank#}2{#/blank#} .You can draw lines or highlight some details on books or e-books as notes. The notes can be kept for a long time.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. Firstly, books don't have to be charged, while e-books need electricity if we want to read them. Meanwhile, spending too much time reading e-books may do harm to our eyes. Moreover, e-books don't share the same weight when held in the hand as regular books, nor do they give that sense of fulfillment that comes from finishing a thick book. However，e-book devices(设备)are easy to carry.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}.

    A disadvantage of e-book devices is that people tend to get distracted(分心)when they're using one, as many devices often have apps or games on them.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}.

    Whichever you prefer, both books and e-books are just a way to help us gain knowledge and get to know other people's experiences. They are both necessary, so it's too early to say one will disappear.

A. But they have differences as well

B. They take less space than books

C. Indeed our lives are formed by what books we read

D. This is similar to how the words in books manage to live on

E. They all have an index to introduce the main topic of each book

F. But with a regular book, your mind is always absorbed in the words

G. Each individual can decide which reading method is best for them based on their own needs

The winner's guide to success

    Do you know what makes people successful? To find out the answers, an American scholar recently visited some of the most successful people in America.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Be responsible for yourself.

    Sometimes you may want to blame others for your failure to get ahead. In fact, when you say someone or something outside of yourself is stopping you from making success, you are giving away your own power.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Write a plan

    It is very difficult to try to get what you want without a good plan. It is just like trying to drive through strange roads to a city far away.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Without this "map", you may waste your time, money and also your energy; while with the "map" you'll enjoy the "trip" and get what you want in the shortest possible time.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Nothing great is easy to get. So you must be ready to work hard even harder than you have ever done. If you are not willing to pay the price, you won't get anything valuable.

    Never give up

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}When you are doing something, you must tell yourself again and again: giving up is worse than failure because failure can be the mother of success, but giving up means the death of hope.

A. A good plan is like a map to you.

B. It seems to us that everyone knows this. But it is easier said than done.

C. Some people achieve success much later in life because they didn't work harder earlier.

D. You are saying they have more control over your life than you do.

E. Someone else's opinion of you doesn't have to become your reality.

F. Be willing to pay the price.

G. Here are some keys to success that they give.