A recent study found people's lives are made shorter in North China. It is showed the life expectancy(平均寿命) had been cut down by 5.5 years there. Researchers（研究者）think that the heavy air pollution in China should be to blame(承担责任). It's really the truth. Our government has already done something. However, it doesn't seem to work so well.

    “Air pollution in China is doing harm to people's health. The harm is much more serious than we can imagine,” said Chen Yuyu of Beijing University, one of researchers of this study.

    Dirty air brings serious problems in North China. In January this year, the air pollution was worse than that in other places. That was caused by rising temperature and waste gas（气体）from coal heating（燃煤）.

    Chinese government should strongly fight with air pollution. They should think of more proper ways to deal with the problem. People should be encouraged to take buses, ride bicycles or walk, instead of driving cars. The factories that pollute heavily should be closed.

    “We need to improve our environment, although it might be expensive. Protecting our environment means protecting ourselves,” Li Hongbin, another researcher of the study said.

Is It Better to Read Books or Listen to Them?

    We often think how fast we learn something depends on how smart we are. If your brain is taking in material quickly, you're clever; if not, well, that doesn't say great things about your IQ. But science shows context (上下文) and technique (技术) actually play a big role in how fast we learn, and even small changes – like the way you use to read – can make a big difference.

    Audio (音频的) books have plenty of advantages: you can enjoy them anywhere, even in the car, and not printing books saves trees. Poor readers also often find them more interesting. But according to the latest research, if your goal isn't to pass the time in traffic, but instead to learn something difficult, you should choose a physical book.

    In a recent opinion piece in the New York Times, psychology (心理学) professor Daniel T.

    Willingham mentioned a 2010 study where 48 students either read or listened to an article about child psychology. Although the students spent the same amount of time with their material and did about the same number of distracting (分散注意力) activities while they absorbed the information, they scored very differently on a 10-item quiz later. Generally, the readers scored 81 percent but while the listeners scored 59 percent. Why does listening vs reading material have such a great effect on learning?

    Willingham explains that first, most of us read more slowly than we listen (especially when pausing and rereading), and when you're trying to absorb new information, slower seems to be better. "About 10 to 15 percent of eye movements during reading are actually regressive – meaning the eyes are going back and re-checking," he explains to TIME. "This happens very quickly…"

    Second, books offer visual cues (可视线索) that help our brains organize and understand new information. Things like chapter breaks, subheadings, and lists help us in making sense of the material and understanding how it fits together. You lose all that when you go the audio way.

    The bottom line is simple: Don't feel shame about passing your time in traffic with an audio book. However, be aware of audio's limitations when it comes to studying, and seriously consider choosing good old-fashioned reading instead.

Doing morning exercises is a daily activity in every Chinese school. For the adults, however, familiar schoolyards have already {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (take) place of by public parks. 

The morning scenes in central parks around China are {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (live). At every corner of the park, you can also see people practising many kinds{#blank#}3{#/blank#} sports: square dancing, badminton and so on. 

But the most eye-catching groups in the park are the so-called "Kung Fu Grandpas/ Grannies". Most of them are common workers from different industries who didn't start morning exercises {#blank#}4{#/blank#} they retired. They say age is just a number as long as they expect {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (be) healthy. 

The {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (advantage) of exercise are endless: a healthier body together with a slimmer figure and a {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (happy) mood. No matter how old they are or when during the day they exercise, they will always strengthen the body. 

Social connection is also {#blank#}8{#/blank#}the olds search for. Feng, who is seventy-two years old, plays Taichi every day. He {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (keep) this exercise for six years and now he is managing a WeChat group of 270 members who share the same hobby. 

"What I like about this place is that newcomers are always welcomed. Everyone in the park feels {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (include)," said Feng. It is like a special party of later life. 

How much do you know about terraces (梯田) in China? Imagine mountains are in silver (银色) water, shining in the spring sun.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} During autumn, these same mountains are gold, and in winter they are covered with white frost (霜冻 ). These are the amazing colours of the Longji Rice Terraces. 

It was hard to build these terraces for the local Zhuang and Yao people in Guangxi.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Reaching as far as the eye can see, these terraces cover tall mountains, often from the bottom to the very top. 

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} First, building the terraces meant that they could have more fields to grow rice. Second, the flat (平坦的) terraces catch the rainwater and stop the soil from being washed away. 

People have worked in harmony (和谐) with nature to make these terraces. The terraces have hundreds of waterways (河渠). During the rainy season, rainwater along these waterways moves down the mountains and into the terraces.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} This forms clouds and then rain falls down onto the mountain terraces once again. 

Though modern technology could help produce more crops (庄稼), these terraces still mean a lot to the local people. For them, traditions have too much value (价值). 

Mark is a famous stamp collector. He {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(tell) us about his stamp collection yesterday. His father gave him an {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(usual) stamp as a birthday present{#blank#}3{#/blank#} he was nine. He became {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(interest) in stamps from then on. He spends {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(much) of his free time on his stam p collecting. Now he{#blank#}6{#/blank#}(have) over 2, 500 stamps. His favourite stamps have great works {#blank#}7{#/blank#}art on them. Many newspapers have interviewed (采访) him. He also writes articles about stamp{#blank#}8{#/blank#}(collect) for some magazines. His dream is to collect stamps from everywhere and build {#blank#}9{#/blank#} stamp museum one day. We all think his dream {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(come) true. 

 Lychee(荔枝) is a kind of delicious fruit. It comes from warm and wet places in southern China. The sound of the word"lychee" comes from its Chinese name. Lots of people love eating it because it's delicious and full of vitamins(维生素). It can help people keep healthy and strong. However, ▲. Low temperature lychee preservation(保存) technology can help to solve the problem. Zhu Zhiwei is a teacher at South China University of Technology. He said"With this technology, the preservation period of lychee can be increased to one year. It allows people to enjoy the fresh fruit all year round."

 Once picked, the fruit only lasts around two or three days. In the fridge, lychee   can be stored for about 10 days. But the new technology can quickly freeze lychee below - 35℃ to store for one year. People now try to use the method to keep more than2000 tons of the fruit fresh. The technology will help solve the problem of selling bad lychee and selling them in high prices. And it will improve the quality of lychee in the future. With the help of it, lychee can keep the bright color and the good taste for a long time. It can be sold to other countries, including the United States, Japan, England and so on.

 The technology is safe and easy to use. It can also be used to keep other foods and vegetables fresh in the following years.