Paparazzi, (狗仔队)or “paps”, are photographers who take pictures of famous people when they are not at the center of public attention. Paps are different from professional photographers or journalists because they never take ordinary photos.

    The goal for paparazzi is to get pictures that no one else will get and then sell the pictures to the buyer who offers the most money — normainly a small newspaper, magazine or website.

    There is no law against paparazzi taking pictures in public places. However, there are laws that protect certain individuals. For example, child protection laws stop improper pictures of anyone under 16 from being published.

    There is also no law that stops paparazzi from following celebrities（名人） and taking their pictures either. However, if paps are secretly following them and taking pictures of their faces, they could get into trouble.

    Most paparazzi hang out on streets and hot spots for celebrities, waiting for the opportunity to take a picture of a star. Many stay on the streets until the early hours of the morning when celebrities are leaving nightclubs and looking a little worse for wear. However, some have other ways to make sure they get pictures. Many paps are in contact with “informers” who know the locations of celebrities at any given time. They then pass the information on to paparazzi. An informer could be anyone — from a restaurant waiter to a salesman.

    Most of the time, paparazzi get a bad reputation for following celebrities. But sometimes stars or their managers will contact paps themselves and tell them exactly where and when they will go. What a love-hate relationship between paparazzi and celebrities!

    The Pacific island nation of Nauru used to be a beautiful place. Now it is an ecological disaster area. Nauru's heartbreaking story could have one good consequence — other countries might learn from its mistakes.

    For thousands of years, Polynesian people lived the remote island of Nauru, far from western civilization. The first European to arrive was John Fearn in 1798. He was the British captain of the Hunter, a whaling ship. He called the island Pleasant Island.

    However, because it was very remote, Nauru had little communication with Europeans at first. The whaling ships and other traders began to visit, bringing guns and alcohol. These elements destroyed the social balance of the twelve family groups on the island. A ten-year civil war started, which reduced the population from 1,400 to 900.

    Nauru's real troubles began in 1899 when a British mining company discovered phosphate (磷酸盐)on the island. In fact, it found that the island of Nauru was nearly all phosphate, which a very important fertilizer for farming. The company began mining the phosphate.

    A phosphate mine is not a hole in the ground; it is a strip mine. When a company strip-mines, it removes the top layer of soil. Then it takes away the material it wants. Strip mining totally destroys the land. Gradually, the lovely island of Nauru started to look like the moon.

    In 1968, Nauru became one of the richest countries in the world. Every year the government received millions and millions of dollars for its phosphate.

    Unfortunately, the leaders invested the money unwisely and lost millions of dollars. In addition, they used millions more dollars for personal expenses. Soon people realized that they had a terrible problem — their phosphate was running out. Ninety percent of their island was destroyed and they had nothing. By 2000, Nauru was financially ruined. Experts say that it would take approximately $433,600,000 and more than 20 years to repair the island. This will probably never happen.

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

    The Gold Coast family holidays are always great fun whether you are from Australia or from abroad. There are beautiful beaches, adventure (冒险) parks, nature parks and so much more.

    There are so many sights to see here. It is a pity to drive in a car and you'll miss a great part of it. Australia is home to many animals and birds that can only be seen when moving slowly and going into the areas where they live.

    When you are on a bicycle, you have the advantage of being able to stop whenever you want to see an interesting animal or bird that you have never seen before. It is a quieter way of transportation as well, so you might even be able to take a picture. When you are on the beach, you can breathe that clean air and view the beauty of the water and sand. It is a totally different experience from passing it in a car.

    There are many choices of hiring (租用) a bicycle to experience the Gold Coast. There are stores that will fit a bike perfectly to your size. These bikes for both adults and children are in many kinds and colors to please any taste. If you have ever wanted to try a tandem bike (双人单车), now is your chance, because they have those too.

    A bicycle hire on Gold Coast is something that everyone should try at least once. This is a wonderful chance for anyone who likes to cycle and it is also a cheap way to travel with your family.

    BA0059 to Cape Town

    BRITISH AIRWAYS

    27^th AUGUST

    Dear customer,

    I am sorry for the disruption(扰乱) to your journey today. When flying Morocco, your aircraft changed its course and flew to Barcelona due to a medical emergency. As a result, the cabin crew are legally out of flying hours to continue on to Cape Town. The service has therefore returned to Heathrow Airport, London to allow for a change of crew.

    Your new departure time will be 18:00 on 28^th August, arriving in Cape Town at 06:40 on 29^th August.

    We have arranged rooms for you to stay at the Renaissance Hotel. Breakfast, lunch and a three-minute telephone call will also be provided for you.

    We suggest that you take your hold luggage with you when you go to the hotel. For your transport to the hotel, you will need to make your way to bus stop 15. This is located outside the main Terminal (航站楼) building.

    Transport back to Heathrow Terminal 4 has been arranged at 14:15 on 28^th August. Check-in will be available at Zone A from 15:00. Passengers travelling in First or Club World may check in at Zone D.

    I again apologize for the inconvenience and frustration you have been caused. I can assure you we are doing our best to make your wait as comfortable and brief as possible. Thank you very much for your understanding.

    Yours faithfully,

    Reg Harper

    Customer Service Duty Manager

    PO Box 10 Heathrow Airport

    Hounslow Middlesex TW6 2JA

Wonderful Experiences in Australia

Phillip Island Nature Park

Adult: ￡79. 00

Child: ￡67. 00

Location: Melbourne

Have fun at Phillip Island Nature Park. You will spend half a day there. You can see many animals, such as koalas, kangaroos and penguins at the peak.

Balloon Flight

Adult: ￡209. 00

Child: ￡161. 00

Location: Melbourne

Enjoy an early morning balloon flight over the beautiful city of Melbourne. After the flight you will enjoy a wonderful breakfast at the Hilton Hotel.

Amazing Sailing

Adult: ￡168. 00

Child: ￡126. 00

Location: Sydney

Relax and enjoy the wonderful sights of the heart of Sydney as you sail across the sea in a large boat.

Restaurant Tour—Lunch

Adult: ￡56. 00

Child: ￡50. 00

Location: Melbourne

Having lunch in Melbourne can be a wonderful experience, specially in old trams that have become restaurants.

A surprising new research from Auckland University of Technology (AUT), New Zealand contradicts the commonly held view that surfers are folks only focused on their own fun. Instead, they often play an important role in saving lives. The research reveals that these thrill seekers selflessly save people they see struggling in the ocean as swimmers or after boating incidents, and so actually reduce deaths from drowning (溺水), playing a key role in making beaches safer. 

According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 236,000 people drown worldwide each year, with drowning the third leading cause of unintentional death. 

However, according to a survey, at the heart of the research, life-saving acts of heroism by surfers who save others in difficulty in the ocean waters around them, are surprisingly common. In fact, based on the sample of 418 surfers, respondents reportedly rescue an average of three people drowning or struggling in the water over the course of their lives, and some even report taking part in 10 to 20 rescues. This makes surfers the under-recognized guardians of the beach rather than the self-centered images shown in movies like Fast Times at Ridgemont High, or Point Break. 

In addition, the survey found that in almost 90 percent of rescues, people aided by the responding surfers required no further treatment after the incident, making their help unlikely to be reported and so recorded, As one of the survey's co-authors Jamie Mead says, "We need to get surfers the recognition they deserve and do more research to accurately quantify (用数量表述) how many rescues they're actually doing."

Since this research was published, there has been a growing interest in the training of surfers in life-saving skills. Sonia Keeper, an experienced surfer and instructor, explains that the insights provided by the survey have motivated surfing organizations to expand their reach and connect with an even broader community of surfers. "If life-saving skills are rolled out (正式推出) to the broader coastal surfer communities around the world, this preparation can help ensure that a good day at the beach doesn't turn into a sad one," she adds.