At long last, Stefano Boeri Architects' brilliant Bosco Verticale towers are finally completed. The “world's first vertical forest” consists of a fantastic pair of costly towers that add nearly 2.5 acres of lush vegetation to the sky line of Milan, a city notorious (声名狼藉的) for its air pollution. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Like a pair of green lungs, its forested appearance of 21,000 plants will absorb CO₂, control noise pollution, lessen the urban heat island effect, and create oxygen and favorable micro-climates.

    The Bosco Verticale mixed-use towers are constructed with a $2.5 billion public-private investment as part of the re-development of Milan's Porta Nuova district. The towers, measuring 260 feet and 367 feet, house 800 trees between 9 and 30 feet tall, over 4,000 shrubs (灌木) and 15,000 ground cover plants. Bosco Verticale is created with LEED Gold Certification (绿色建筑黄金认证) in mind. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} 

    The buildings shrub have welcomed their first residents. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}  A fast-growing bird population has already begun to nest in Bosco Verticale's rich leaves, of which over a hundred different species of trees and shrubs are represented. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} 

    The superstructure is also selected for the world famous International Highrise Building Award as one of the five most beautiful and original high-rises in the world that is completed. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} 

A. “We take great pride in this project, which may earn us an award” says Boeri.

B. Boeri is currently in China, where he plans to build another Bosco Verticale project.

C. It is also equipped with a gray water recycling and irrigation system.

D. However, Bosco Verticale will be more than just a beautiful sight to enjoy.

E. “The real key to this project is biodiversity,” says Boeri.

F. It is also well received by the Chinese experts in the field.

G. But those families aren't the only ones to call the vertical forest home.

    Many parents would like to teach their children English at home, but don't know how to start. It doesn't matter if your own English is not perfect. The most important thing is that you give your children lots of encouragement and praise.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} They will need some time to learn the language.

Make it a rule

    Try to do certain activities at the same time every day.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} For example, you could read an English story with your children before bedtime. Repetition (重复) is important — children often need to hear words many times before they say them themselves.

Playing games

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Cards are a great way to teach words and there are many different games which you can play with cards, such as Memory and Happy Families.

Using everyday situations

    The advantage of teaching English at home is that you can use everyday situations to practice the language naturally. For example:

    Talk about clothes when your child is getting dressed (＂Let's put on your blue socks＂, etc.).

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}When you go to the supermarket, give your child a list of things to find.

    Using songs

    Songs are a really good way to learn new words. Songs with actions are especially good for very young children because they are able to join in.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. Fifteen minutes is enough for very young children.

B. Children learn naturally when they are having fun.

C. Teach food words when you are cooking or going shopping.

D. The actions often show the meaning of the words in the song.

E. With younger children, there is no need to teach grammar rules.

F. Don't worry if your child doesn't start speaking English immediately.

G. Children feel more comfortable and confident when they know what to expect.

    These days when someone says a computer has a bug (小虫子) in it, usually they mean that there's a problem with one of its programs. Maybe your computer crashed when you were in the middle of a game.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    But back in the early days of computers, a woman named Grace Hopper was part of a team that discovered the very first computer bug.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} She had been invited to help program a new computer, the job of which was to quickly deal with the math problems ships used to find their way.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Then it translated the patterns of holes into the math problems it was supposed to solve.

    One afternoon in 1947 Hopper and her team were running a program. But the computer wasn't giving them the right results.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} They finally ended up taking the computer apart, looking for problems. What did they find? It was a moth (飞蛾)! The moth was blocking some of the holes in the paper—{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Some people think Hopper was the first person to use the word “debug” to mean “get rid of the problems in a computer”.

    In a few months you'll go to college. Are you ready for some of the newness that is about to come your way? Take a look at this “mental preparation” checklist and make sure you have given these topics some thought.

    ⒈Remind yourself that it's new for everyone.

    Going to college is a big change, and it's important not to get overwhelmed (压垮). {#blank#}1{#/blank#} That's OK. Accept that you're in a new stage of life and it won't feel familiar for a bit.

    ⒉Commit to time management.

    Organizing your time properly will make your life in college much easier.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Create a detailed daily schedule that blocks out time for classes, homework, studying, and anything else. Stay organized and spend a few minutes each evening planning ahead for the next day.

    ⒊Be open to new things.

    College will open your eyes in more ways than one. It's a time to find yourself, discover new passions, challenge old ways of thinking, and meet new people from all backgrounds and places.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Embrace (欣然接受) the idea of exploration!

    ⒋Don't be afraid to ask for help.

    With anything new, it's best to go in with a positive attitude. But life has its ups and downs.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Take a moment to find out the college services that can help you: disability services, tutoring services, and any other services that will give you support when you need it.

    Congratulations on this exciting time of your life.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} You'll be glad you have done.

A. So, try something different.

B. Knowing where to turn for help is important.

C. Things might feel a bit uncomfortable for a while.

D. Plan to pay them a visit early in your first semester.

E. Get yourself a time planning app or a good old day planner.

F. Remember that you're in college to build a foundation for your future job.

G. As you get prepared for the first day of classes, get mentally ready for this new life stage too.

    After a long day at work, coming home is a breath of fresh air. Home is a comfortable place to sit back and relax. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Below are a number of things we can do to create a healthy home environment that will help to ease the workday stress and promote our physical and mental health.

    Cleaning the house regularly is the first thing we should do. It may seem like a tiring thing to clean but there is a reason for doing so. We can remove dust by cleaning the house. Leaving layers of dust everywhere means that there is a build-up of dust. And where do these layers of dust go?{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Making sure the rooms are full of sunlight is also important. We may not realize it but sunlight is an important part of our growth. We all know that sunlight promotes better working conditions. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Think about using a Parans system where sunlight does not reach. This technology gathers the sunlight by using solar panels. It can send out sunlight wherever we are.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Going green will help to remove toxins(毒素)in the air. They also give off oxygen, which can lower stress and improve our moods.

    Along the lines of being green, it can also be vital to think about what things we are bringing into the house. Try to avoid specific plastics that are harmful to health. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} They may contain poisonous chemicals that can be breathed in, or simple absorbed through the skin.

A. However, is it as healthy as it can be?

B. Is our home as comfortable as it used to be?

C. Into our lungs.

D. The same thing applies to certain carpets and paint.

E. Besides, it can reduce both stress and high blood pressure.

F. It is also a good idea to add more plants in our house.

G. It is acknowledges that a greener lifestyle is linked to better health.

    Recently, I've been following a simple rule that is helping me crush procrastination(拖延症) and making it easier for me to stick to good habits at the same time. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} There are two parts to the 2-Minute Rule.

    Part 1­If it takes less than two minutes, then do it now.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} For example, washing your dishes immediately after your meal, tossing the laundry in the washing machine, taking out the garbage, sending that email, and so on.

    If a task takes less than two minutes to complete, then follow the rule and do it right now.

    Part 2­When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do.

    Can all of your goals be accomplished in less than two minutes? Obviously not. But, every goal can be started in 2 minutes or less. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It might sound like this strategy is too basic for grand life goals, but I beg to differ. The 2-Minute Rule works for big goals as well as small goals because of the inertia(惯性)of life. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}  I love the 2-Minute Rule because it embraces the idea that all sorts of good things happen once you get started.

    The most important part of any new habit is getting started­not just the first time, but each time. It's not about performance, it's about consistently taking action.

    I can't guarantee whether or not the 2-Minute Rule will work for you. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}  Anyone can spare the next 120 seconds. Use this time to get one thing done. Go.

A. I call this little strategy the "2-Minute Rule".

B. And that's the purpose behind this little rule.

C. Here's what you need to know to stop procrastinating.

D. Once you start doing something, it's easier to continue doing it.

E. But, I can guarantee that it will never work if you never try it.

F. The goal is to make it easier for you to get started on the things you should be doing.

G. It's surprising how many things we put off that we could get done in two minutes or less.