The USA is the fourth largest country in the world in size after Russia, Canada and China. The population(人口) of the USA is the third largest in the world.

   The Mississippi River is the longest river in America. It's over 6,000 kilometers long. The Mississippi River has been called the "Father of Waters" or "Old Man River". The most important lakes in the United States are the Great Lakes. They are Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. All of them are between Canada and the United States except(除了) Lake Michigan.

   Let us talk about American education(教育). There are two kinds of schools in the United States: public schools and private schools. Most children go to public schools. Their parents do not have to pay for their education. If a child goes to a private school, his parents have to pay for their schooling. Children start school when they are five years old. Most students are eighteen years old when they leave secondary(中级) schools.

    17-year-old Brennan Agranoff, a colorblind boy, started his custom sock business in middle school, with a small loan(贷款)he got from his parents. Up till now, he has sold over $1 million worth of socks online in the last four years.

    Brennan thought of the idea for his custom sock company at just 13 years old. He was attending a high-school basketball game in his hometown of Sherwood, Oregon, and noticed that many kids his age were wearing the same white Nike sport socks. The boy told himself that if these white plain sacks were so popular with kids, then some cool custom designs would surely be an even greater hit.

    But the boy didn't tell his parents about the business idea immediately. He spent six months researching things like printing machines and technology and drawing up a business plan. Only when he had everything planned out did he ask his parents for a loan. "They thought the idea was a little out there," Brennan recently told CNN Money, but he kept pushing, and finally received a $3,000 loan to start his company. Then he began to work on his own designs. The fact that he was colorblind didn't stop him and he has created aver 200 designs now.

    Business was slow the first year, but then Brennan started pushing his HoopSwagg products heavily on the Internet. Orders soon started coming in in large numbers, and HoopSwagg became a popular brand among custom sock lovers. Right now, his designs can be found on HoopSwagg website, Amazon and eBay.

    Four years after starting his business, Brennan has achieved great success while balancing(平衡)school, house chores and his social life. And he says he loved every minute of it.

    In Los Angeles, a waiter served a group of teens. The waiter remembered his experience as a young high school prudent. So he made sure the teens had a pleasant experience at the restaurant. The waiter made sure of it.

    After serving all the teens doing a great job, he was left a tip（小费）,only $3.28. That was hardly enough to buy a drink at Roebucks.

    The waiter went home. And he felt hatred for the students who did not know the value of hard work. They looked down on people like him. Or so he thought.

    After several days, the waiter forgot about it. His life went on as usual. But ten days later, he received a letter from the teens.

    “About a week and a half ago, on October 7, my three friends and I came to eat at this restaurant as our own homecoming celebration. It was an exciting experience for us to be here alone, and it was all new to us. And you were the best waiter we could ask for. You were kind, helpful, and didn't treat us like babies! So I want to say thank you for making our 'groan-up' experience so amazing and fun.

    “I would also like to say sorry on behalf of(代表) my group. Since we were new to all of this, reasonable(合乎情理)，but we had completely forgotten(and didn't know, to be honest) what a tip even was, let alone how much to give. So we emptied our pockets, and all our money added up to $3.28.

    “Having no idea of how small this really was, we left. Later, we realized our mistake and felt terrible. We knew we had to make it right.

    “So together with this letter, you will find the correct 18% tip + extra for simply being amazing. Thank you for your help and patience and also thank you for making our night fun. Thank you!”

    Ali, who was working a long way from his home, wanted to send a letter to his wife, but he could neither read nor write, and he had to work all day, so he could only look for somebody to write his letter late at night. At last he found the house of a letter writer whose name was Nasreddin.

     Nasreddin was already in bed. "It is late," he said. "What do you want?" "I want you to write a letter to my wife," said Ali. Nasreddin was not pleased. He thought for a few seconds and then said, "Has the letter got to go far? What does that matter?" answered Ali.

    "Well. My writing is so strange that only I can read it, and if I have to travel a long way to read your letter to your wife, it will cost you a lot of money. "Ali went away quickly.

    Abraham Lincoln was born in a log cabin (小木屋) in Hardin County, Kentucky, on February 12th, 1809: When Abraham was young, his family was very poor. His mother, Nancy, died of "milk sickness" when Abraham was nine, and the family moved to Indiana. One year later, his father Thomas Lincoln married Sarah Bush Johnston, and she was good to him. Though Lincoln had little formal (正规的) schooling, he could read and write.

    In 1830, his family moved again, this time to Illinois, and Abraham decided to go his own way. Abraham joined the Illinois militia (民兵组织) during the Black Hawk War. In 1834 he was elected as a Whig and served for four terms(任期). After receiving his law license(执照) in 1836, Lincoln married Mary Todd on November 4th, 1842.

    In 1847, Lincoln was elected to and served one term in the US House of Representatives. In 1856, Lincoln changed his political alliance (联盟) to the Republican Party(共和党), but lost a Senate election to Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglas. By 1860, Lincoln was a well-known presidential candidate (总统候选人). He was elected as the sixteenth President of the United States in November of 1860.

    "It looks so good on you," said my friend. I was trying on a bathing suit. Then the topic of conversation turned to going on a diet(节食).

    I wanted to become pretty and thin. So I decided to stick to the diet. I didn't eat my lunch. Some people asked me where my lunch was. I lied to them and made up excuses.

    I did the same with breakfast. I tricked(欺骗) my dad into thinking that I ate my bread, but I fed it to the cat. My weight dropped fast, but when I looked at myself in the mirror, I still thought I was not thin enough.

    Finally, dark circles formed under my eyes. I wore thick clothing in hot weather, but I was still cold. That didn't matter. I still needed to be thinner.

    About a month after I bought the bathing suit, I tried it on again, and it fell right off me. My mother told me to look in the mirror. I could see my eye sockets(眼窝). That was the day I realized how skinny I was.

    I went to see a doctor. My total weight loss was about twenty-five pounds in one month. It took one year for my body to start working normally again.

    Sometimes I want to go back to being thin, but I will never do what I did again. It's not worth it. Please don't go on a diet when you're young. You will regret it. Don't judge and compare yourself with others. Try to love yourself for who you are, not for what you look like.