I read some stories about amazing people today. Here I'd like to share something interesting with you. Xie Qiuping, a Chinese woman, has the longest hair in the world. Her hair is 5,085 meters long! How amazing! Before I got to know this, I thought my hair was quite long. It is nearly 50cm long. I don't know how she washes her hair.

    The tallest man in the world lived in the USA. His name was Robert Pershing Wadlow. He was 2.72 metres tall. I want to know if he lived in a flat like mine, how could he go into the room? The tallest man died in 1940.

    There is a man in France called Michael Lotito. He eats such items as metal(金属), glass and rubber. He even once ate a model plane! How strange! I don't think metal is as tasty(美味的) as sweets or chocolates.

    James William comes from America. People call him “Big Cat” because he's two meters tall. He is famous because he plays for the Chicago Bears, an American football team . American football is different from European  football . American football players need to be big and strong , so James needs to eat a lot .

    Every day James has three big meals . For breakfast ,he has orange juice , fruit , bread , milk , eggs and cakes. For lunch , he has fish , meat ,vegetables and ice cream. He loves ice cream best.

In the evening he has his big meal, tomato soup, pork and beef, potatoes, chicken, rice and his favorite chocolate cakes.

    But that isn't everything , James also eats between meals, bread, hamburgers, sweets and two or three bars of chocolates.

    In the 1920s, the airlines were just beginning. It was unusual for people to travel by air because it was expensive and dangerous. In those days, there were no flight attendants (服务生) to look after the passengers. Young men, or “stewards” helped the passengers onto the airplane and carried the passengers' bags but they did not provide food and drinks. But then in 1930, a woman called Ellen Church invented the “stewardess”.

    Ellen Church was born in 1904 on a farm in Iowa. She was a different child. She didn't want to work on a farm or marry a farmer. She wanted a more adventurous (冒险的) life. Ellen studied to be a nurse at the University of Minnesota and then got a job in a hospital. For the next few years she stayed at the hospital and at the same time took flying lessons and got her pilot's license.

    Ellen was 25 years old when she first got in touch with BAT (Boeing Air Transport). She loved flying but she understood that airlines were a man's world. Though women like Emelia Earheart were becoming famous, she realized it was impossible for a woman to have a career as a pilot. But she had another idea. Most people were afraid of flying because flying was still not a very safe way to travel. There were often delays (延误), many crashes and the bad weather made many passengers sick. Ellen thought nurses could take care of passengers during flights and BAT agreed.

    The young woman from Iowa and seven other nurses became the first air stewardesses.

    At first pilots were unhappy because they did not want stewardesses on airplanes, but passengers loved the stewardesses. In 1940 there were around 1000 of them working for different airlines. The early “stewardesses” had to be under twenty-five-year-old, single and slim. When a woman joined an airline, she had to promise not to get married or have children. It was a hard job and not well paid. They worked long hours and was paid $1 an hour.

    In the 1970s, stewardesses were unhappy in their job and airlines had to make some changes. Since the 1970s, “stewardesses” have been called flight attendants. They are well paid and work fewer hours than in the past.

    I believe that we can have an important effect on anyone we meet. The right words at just the right time could change someone's life. When I was three years old, my parents discovered I was deaf. After asking many doctors and parents of other deaf children, they decided to put me in a normal school.

    On my first day in the school, the other kids made fun of me because of my hearing aid. And then I saw myself as an ugly kid.

    Mrs. Jordan, my teacher changed all of that with a simple three-word phrase. One morning, she asked the class a question. I read her lips（嘴唇） and raised my hand right away. She called me. I took a deep breath and nervously answered Mrs. Jordan's question.

    I will never forget what happened next. Mrs. Jordan pointed directly at me. With a big smile she cried,

    "That's right, Stephen! "For the first time in my young life, my confidence soared（剧增）.At that moment, I decided that no matter how many difficulties I may face, I can overcome（克服） them. Just from those three simple words, my life changed from that moment.

    When I was three years old, my parents discovered I was deaf. After asking many doctors and parents of other deaf children, they decided to put me in a normal school.

    On my first day in the school, the other kids made fun of me because of my hearing aid. And then I saw myself as an ugly kid.

    Mrs. Jordan, my teacher changed all of that with a simple three-word phrase. One morning, she asked the class a question. I read her lips（嘴唇） and raised my hand right away. She called me. I took a deep breath and nervously answered Mrs. Jordan's question.

    I will never forget what happened next. Mrs. Jordan pointed directly at me. With a big smile she cried, "That's right, Stephen!" For the first time in my young life, my confidence soared（剧增）. At that moment, I decided that no matter how many difficulties I may face, I can overcome（克服） them. Just from those three simple words, my life changed from that moment.

    Everyone faces difficulties in their life. Daniel Kish was born with a special eye illness and lost his eyesight before he was only 14 months old.

Soon after, however, he started to do an amazing thing. He learned to make clicks (咔哒声) with his tongue to help him move around. Kish now moves about using sonar (声呐). He is so good at it that he can ride a bicycle by himself on public roads. And he started the organization World Access for the Blind (WAFTB) in 2000, teaching others how to use sonar. In the interview with National Geographic, he explains how the sonar works.

    "When I make a click sound, it produces sound waves. These waves reflect (反射) off surfaces all around and return to my ears. My brain then deals with the sound and turns it into pictures in my mind. Each click is like a camera flash, which helps me make a 3-D picture of my surroundings for hundreds of feet. It's like having a conversation with the environment."

    Kish feels it is exciting to ride a bike using sonar, although he needs to click twice a second, much more than he usually does. "It may sound a bit dangerous to move around the world in this way," he says. "But most people in the world live in fear of things that they imagine. I love hiking and mountain-biking. I go almost everywhere. And I've never had an accident and hurt myself."

    He is happy to be able to help more blind children to improve their life. "We've served over 10, 000 students in nearly 40 countries," he tells the reporter. "Many students are surprised how quickly results come. Seeing isn't in the eyes. It's in the mind."

    On a farm lived a father and a son. The father always got up early and read by the window. One morning, the son came up to him and said, Dad, I read books at night but forget most of them the next morning. What's the good of reading?

    The father didn't reply to his question at once. He passed him a basket that was used to carry coal (煤). He said, "Get some water from the river with the basket and then I'll tell you the answer."

    The son felt surprised but he did as his father said. He tried many times but every time the water leaked(漏掉) from the basket.

    An hour later, the son came back with the empty basket and told his father it was impossible to hold water with the basket. The father said with a smile, "Yes, you are right, my son. The basket can't hold water. But did you notice the basket was different?" The son found the dirty basket had become clean. The father continued, "Reading is like holding water with the basket. Although we can't remember all we read, we have changed while reading."