Cars make our lives more convenient. But they can also be a problem. For example, fossil fuel(化石燃料) cars mainly cause air pollution.

    To improve the environment, many countries are developing electric vehicles (EVs,电动车). Among them, China is taking a leading role and has created the world's largest EV market.

    Last year, over 40 percent of the 753,000 EVs sold in the world were sold in China, more than twice as many as the number sold in the United States.

    "Filling up a fossil fuel car with gas(汽油) is more expensive than charging( 充电) an electric car，" said Wu Hao，who bought an electric car this year.

    However, there are still some problems. It can be hard to find charging piles(充电桩) and the cars can't go far before needing to be recharged.

    Some of these problems are being solved. In 2014，China had 31,000 charging piles. Now China has the world's largest EV charging network, with more than 167, 000 charging piles in total.

    Developing EVs is one of many efforts that China has made to cut down pressure on its environment after the government promised to stop increases in carbon dioxide emissions(二氧化碳排放量) by 2030.

    "As China goes, so will the world's car industry," The Wall Street Journal said. China has taken a leading role in the world's electric vehicle industry.

    There are many ways for us to reduce waste. For example, we can reuse paper and plastic bags. We can also recycle newspapers, glass, and cans (易拉罐) make new things. Here are some useful ways to reduce waste.

    ◆Write on both sides of paper. Many people write on only one side of their paper. Why not stop wasting the other side? Some students only use half the pages of their notebooks before getting new ones. Try to use up all the paper. People often give cards on birthdays or festivals. How about trying to send e-cards instead?

    ◆Don' t throw away your old batteries. Maybe you do not know that old batteries make the Earth dirty. This is because they have poisonous parts. So, don't throw away batteries. Keep them together. Try to use rechargeable (可充电的) batteries for your game machines and CD players.

    ◆Donate (捐赠) all your unwanted clothes. There are many poor families in China, You may ask your mother to collect your unwanted clothes. Then you can pass them on to those poor children who do not have clothes to wear. You will feel happy that you are helping someone else. Also, you can ask if your friends or relatives want them before throwing them away.

My brother Cody and I were in the back seat playing the guessing game I See when the snowstorm started.

"I see something green," Cody said. "The green highway sign?" I guessed, although it was hard to read it. I looked around. "The green hat on the girl in the car behind us?"

"Yes!" Cody laughed. "Your turn."

Dad spoke to Mom. "I don't like the looks of this. It's getting harder to see anything."

Suddenly, Dad stopped the car. We found the car nearly hit the tree on the roadside. Nobody talked. Cody and I stopped playing I See. It was like we were all helping Dad by holding our breath.

"We need to get off and wait out this storm," Dad said. "But I can hardly see the road, not to mention an exit (出口)."

Just then, I saw a red, blinking light high in the sky. "I see something red!" I shouted.

"Not now, Kenny," Dad scolded.

"I hey were red words," I continued.

"Let's forget about the games," Mom said.

But I had seen it. "It was like one of those really tall signs that flash GAS or FOOD like we've seen near exits."

"You're right. There's an exit!" Mom cried, pointing ahead. Dad carefully drove the car toward it. Finally we could see the red sign clearly enough: EAT HERE. Dad let out a big breath. We slipped and slid our way into the parking lot. Then we got off and moved into the small restaurant. A moment later, another family came in behind us. I saw the girl with the green hat.

"We followed your car's taillights here," her mom told us. "We would never have found this place without you."

"We wouldn't have found it either," Dad said, winking at me, "if we weren't riding with someone who's very good at I See."

①Have you ever thought about what's more important, looking fashionable or feeling comfortable? You might have noticed many people choosing style over comfort and some even go to extremes (极端) to follow fashion. But we should remember: being fashionable isn't everything. It's more important to be healthy.

②Some people believe that they need to be a certain size to look good. So, they start extreme diets (日常饮食) that are not good for their health. They might not eat meals or eat too little, which can make them feel sick. Is it a healthy way to live?

③Also, many girls wear shoes with very high heels. They might think high heels make them look taller. But these shoes can actually hurt their feet and make it hard to walk comfortably, and it can increase risks of falls. Some even wear tight (紧的) clothes that influence blood circulation (循环), making it hard to breathe. Should we put fashion over comfort and physical health?

④Besides, some boys and girls spend a lot of time and money changing their hair color. The material they use is usually harmful to their health. To make their hair straight or curly, they also use tools that are hot enough to burn their hair. But using these tools too often or at very high temperatures can make the hair dry or even burnt. Is it really worth it to risk our health, spending so much time and money?

⑤So, let's rethink what's really important. Is it fashion or is it our well-being? Clothes or hairstyles don't tell us anything about a person's character. Instead of spending a lot of time choosing clothes, we could use that time to do fun things with friends. And instead of following extreme diets, let's eat properly and exercise regularly. Remember, your worth is not decided by your appearance, but by who you are as a person.

Different people have different colors of skin*. Some have black skin, some have yellow skin, and some have white skin. There is a woman in Alaska. Her skin is an orange color, It is almost the color of orange juice. 

How does this woman become orange? She eats lots of tomatoes, carrots and squashes. She eats too many orange things. That's why she turns orange. 

The woman doesn't want to be orange. She goes to the doctor. The doctor says, "Stop eating orange things; eat some green things. " The woman does so, and she is not orange now. 

Here is a notice board(公告栏) in No.1 Middle School.