Our village carpenter（木匠）, John Hill, came one day and made a dining table for my wife. He made it just the right size to fill the space between the two windows. When I got home that evening, John was drinking a cup of tea and writing out his bill（账单）for his job.

My wife said to me quietly, “That's his ninth cup of tea today.” But she said in a loud voice, “It's a beautiful table, dear, isn't it?” “I'll decide about that when I see the bill,” I said. John laughed and gave me his bill for the work. I read:

One dining table                        10^th November, 2011

      Cost of wood                  ＄17.00

      Paint                         ＄1.50

      Work, 8 hours(＄1 an hour)       ＄8.00

      Total                         ＄36.50  

When I was looking at the bill, John said, “It's been a fine day, hasn't it? Quite sunny.”

“Yes,” I said. “I'm glad it's only the 10^th of November.”

“Me, too,” said John, “you wait—it will be a lot colder by the end of the month.”

“Yes, colder—and more expensive! Dining tables will be ＄20 more expensive on November 30^th, won't they, John?”

John looked hard at me for half a minute. Was there a little smile in his two blue eyes? I gave his bill back to him.

“If it's not too much trouble, John,” I said, “please add it up again. You can forget the date…”

I paid him ＄26.50 and he was happy to get it.

C

My name is Mary. I am an English girl. I'm twelve. My dad and mom are English teachers. I have a brother. His name is Tom and he is thirteen years old. We are in China now. Tom and I are in Beijing No.4 Middle School. Tom is in Class 4, Grade 8 and I am in Class 9, Grade 7.I have a dog. It looks strong(强壮的)．It has a big mouth and two black ears. We have many Chinese friends here. They are kind(和善的).

根据短文内容，判断正误。

    Chopsticks were invented in China. There are many stories about who may have invented them. One of them is about Dayu.

    Dayu was an ancient Chinese leader who helped his people fight floods. He was always busy and often ate in the wild. He used a pot to boil (煮沸)water and cook animal meat. Most of the time, he was in a hurry and didn't want to wait to eat. But the meat was too hot to pick up with his hands. In those days, people ate only with their hands.

    So Dayu picked up some twigs (树枝)to help him hold the meat. The twigs later became the chopsticks we know today.

    But of course, this is just one story. The earliest chopsticks we have found so far are more than 3,000 years old, dating back to the Shang Dynasty (朝代).The six bronze chopsticks were found in the Ruins of Yin (殷墟)in Anyang, Henan.

    At first, chopsticks were just used as cooking tools. It was only after some time that people started to use chopsticks to eat.

Did you know that the Beijing Winter Olympic Village had a rooftop (屋项) farm? It covered 4, 620 square meters. To relax, athletes and coaches could try growing vegetables there.

It shows just how much Chinese people love growing vegetables.

China has a lot of available land for planting things. For centuries, Chinese people made a living through farming. The Book of Songs(《诗经》), written 2, 500 years ago, records many kinds of vegetables.

Nowadays, even though some Chinese people no longer have a lot of land, they still grow vegetables where they can.

Xue Ling, 35, is one of them. Since 2010, she has been planting vegetables on the balcony (阳台) of her apartment in Jinan, Shandong province. "It's the only way to keep my food, at least the vegetables, clean and safe," she told China Daily.

Caroline Ma from Hong Kong grows vegetables as a hobby. In 2020, Ma started farming on her rooftop and began planting seeds collected during her trips. For Ma, farming is a great experience.

"I am in my own little world and I can forget about the world's problems," she said.

It seems that planting vegetables brings more than just food for Chinese people.

As the weather gets warmer，there are few things that are better to do than travel．But traveling might not be that fun for everyone，especially for those who have motion sickness（晕动症）．

Motion sickness is also called travel sickness．It is a common experience for many people．Depending on how you travel，it can be called carsickness or seasickness．People with motion sickness feel very uncomfortable while they are in motion．They feel sick and dizzy，like the room around them won't stop spinning．

It is generally believed that motion sickness happens when your senses become confused （困惑的）with each other，Scientific American reported．

We use different parts of our body to sense movement．Our eyes tell us if we are moving．The inner ears （内耳） contain a special liquid that helps us sense our direction and balance．Our muscles react to movement．

When you move around，these body parts work well together．But when you are in a car or an airplane，they get confused．Your inner ear signals that you're moving．This mismatch gives us motion sickness．

But some people are less sensitive to motion sickness．This may be because they have certain genes （基因） that prevent mismatching senses，Bethann Hromatka，told the Atlantic．

Although there are many ways to deal with motion sickness，scientists believe that the key is to simply try to adapt to it．For example，some astronauts do special exercises that give them mild motion sickness．After a week or two，the astronauts become used to it and don't feel uncomfortable anymore，a NASA flight doctor，told the BBC．

Plants are more than just pretty to look at. They give us fruits, vegetables and food we eat. Some plants even provide materials for medicine or building things. But do you know that plants can do something even more amazing? They can make our homes, schools and workplaces much healthier. we spend a large part of our day indoors. Unluckily, the air inside buildings can often be full of chemicals(化学物质)from many things around us. This poor ap quality(质量) can make us feel sick，causing sore eyes and throats, and even making it hard for us to breathe. When the air inside buildings gets really bad, people even call them"sick buildings". 

The good news is that plants are like nature's little superheroes. They have a magic power fighting against bad air. Plants breathe in carbon dioxide( CO2) and breathe out oxyen ( 02) which we humans need to live. They can also add moisture to the air if it's too dry, making it more comfortable for us to breathe. 

    ▲    Scientists have discovered that plants have the ability to take in harmful chemicals, making the air around us safer to breathe. They set up a completely closed building called "bio-home" for experiments. Before they added plants, the air inside was full of chemicals and people found it hard to breathe. But after they added plants, the air got much cleaner and it became easier to breathe. To make the air inside even better, the scientists used different kinds of plants. After a while, the building wasn't a"sick building"any more. People could go inside without feeling unwell. 

So you see, plants are fantastic! They are not only beautiful to look at, but they also provide us with food, help create materials and play an important role in our health. They make our indoor environments cleaner and healthier, making us feel better. Next time you see a plant, remember all the amazing things it can do for us!