Edison had quick mind about inventions, but not always about other things.

    One day he received a notice. It said he must pay some money to the government by the next day. If he was late, {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. Edison went to the city office. Many people were waiting there in line to pay. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}, his mind was busy with ideas about a new invention. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}, the man behind it said to Edison “Young man, what's your name?”

    Edison looked at the man in surprise. “ I don't know,” he said.

    “Then I can't help you,” the man said, and told him to leave.

    Other people paid the money, but Edison stood there, and tried to remember his name. The day ended, {#blank#}4{#/blank#}.

    In the street, {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. He had to ask the friend what his name was.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Our dance club wants a dancer. If you are interested in dancing, you can join our club.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}We need five students to help repair bikes for students in our school.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Our college radio station needs four reporters. If you have experience in it, you can join us.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#}Our school soccer team wants two coaches. If you want to get the job, please call 88556677.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#}Our city library needs a librarian. We want a woman.

A. Celina started to learn to dance when she was five years old. She dances well. She wants to join a dance club.

B. Sam was a soccer player one year ago. He wants to work as a soccer coach.

C. Jerry is interested in reporting and he has much experience. He was a news reporter when he was in high school.

D. Ken is good at writing. He has published two books. He wants to be a famous writer.

E. Victory can repair bikes. He learned to mend bikes from his father. He wants to help the students repair their broken bikes.

F. Jenny is 35 years old. She is a quiet woman and she used to work for a school library.

    Tom is a 14-year-old middle school student in the USA.  He has a lot of good habits. For example. He exercises every day, He likes running and playing basketball. He eats healthy food. He eats vegetables and fruits every day. He thinks they are good for his health. He sleeps nine hours a night. He never stays up late. He also likes reading book. He reads for at least half an hour a day. Because it is good for his mind. But he never drinks milk, because he doesn't like milk. As for junk food. He hardly ever eats it. He likes watching TV, but not often. Maybe two or three times a week. He uses the Internet every day. He only use it for school work .So he thinks he has a healthy lifestyle.

    My challenge for you is this: to read a book for 15 minutes a day. Let me explain where the challenge came from.

    I have many things in common with my dad, like music taste and sense of humor, but sadly reading isn't one of them. I can happily spend a whole day reading a book. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} He reads e-mails, websites and papers for work, but not books. He is a busy person, with a short attention span, so I think that sitting down to read for just 15 minutes a day is a good way to introduce him to reading. Giving yourself a goal or challenge is a good way to change a habit or achieve something, so why not try to develop a new habit of reading?

     {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Everyone is different and has their own interests, but I think there are lots of benefits of reading, which screen-based activities (games, films,

TV) don't have.

     {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Looking at screens can cause tire eyes, and you should avoid looking at screens for a long time.

    Another thing I love about reading is being transported to another world. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} So you go to bed. Because you think more about the world of the book, rather than the real world and the problems you have during the day, so you can truly relax.

    I also love people. I enjoy hearing what people are doing and finding out what people think.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} It also teaches me to see things from other people's point of view, and understand other people's decisions or opinions.

    So give it a try! Include 15 minutes of reading in your daily schedule and see the difference you can make.

A. Firstly, it's better for your eyes.

B. But my dad can't read a book for longer than 5 minutes.

C. I often forget the time or things that are going on around me.

D. Reading ten thousand books is like travelling ten thousand miles.

E.  Reading gives me the chance to get to know hundreds of new people.

F. You can download free e-books online and read them on your computer.

G. I know lots of people would rather relax at the computer or in front of the TV.

   In thetime it takes you to read this sentence, the population of the Earth will have grownby 10 people. That may not sound much, but it is about 14,000 people an hour. Thatis the same as adding most of the population of Germany to the world every year!

   Most of these new people are born in developing countries. These countriesare found in much of Africa, South America, and parts of Asia. In the developedcountries of Europe and North America, the population is growing very slowly. Thisis because women in these countries have, on average, only one or two children.In the developing countries, many women have five or more children. In 1950, aroundone quarter of the world's population lived in the developed countries. By 2050,these countries will be the home to only around one tenth of the world's people.

   In the developing countries, more than one billion people already live belowthe poverty line (贫困线).These people don't have enough food to eat and they live in poor housing;children get little or no time at school and suffer from many kinds of diseases.

   The United Nations (UN) tries to guess population growth. At the beginningof the 21st century, the world's population was around six billion people. The UNhas said that the world's population will level off at 12. 5 billion people by theyear 2100. Other people think the world's population will continue to grow, reaching14 billion people before it becomes stable or even falls.