You might think that “global warming” means nothing more than a rise in the world's temperature. But rising sea levels caused by it have resulted in the first evacuation (撤离) of an island nation, the citizens of Tuvalu will have to leave their homeland.

    During the 20th century, sea level rose 8~12 inches. As a result, Tuvalu has experienced lowland flooding of salt water that has polluted the country's drinking water.

    Paani Laupepa, a Tuvaluan government official, reported to the Earth Policy Institute that the nation suffered an unusually high number of fierce storms in the past ten years. Many scientists connect higher surface water temperatures resulting from global warming to greater and more damaging storms.

    Laupepa expressed dissatisfaction with the United States for refusing to sign the Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement calling for industrialized nations to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (排放), which are a main cause of global warming. “By refusing to sign the agreement, the US has effectively taken away the freedom of future generations of Tuvaluans to live where their forefathers have lived for thousands of years.” Laupepa told the BBC.

    Tuvalu has asked Australia and New Zealand to allow the gradual move of its people to both countries.

    Tuvalu is not the only country that is vulnerable (易受影响的) to rising sea levels. Maumoon Gayoon, president of the Maldives, told the United Nations that global warming has made his country of 311,000 an “endangered nation”.

    Far out in the lake was a large wooden platform(平台) on which stood an improbably high diving board- a kind of wooden Eiffel Tower. It was, I'm sure, the county's tallest wooden structure (结构) and no one had ever been known to jump from it. So it was quite a shock when our teacher, Mr. Milton, announced that he would dive off the high board that very afternoon.

    Word of his questionable plan was already spreading through town as Mr. Milton swam out to the platform. He was just a tiny, stick figure when he got there but even from such a distance the high board seemed almost to touch the clouds. Once at the top, he paced the enormously long board , then look some deep breaths and finally stood at the edge. He was going to do it.

    Several hundred people had gathered at the shore to watch. Mr. Milton stood for quite along time ;then he raised his arms, took one bounce(弹跳) and launched himself into ;perfect dive. He fell with perfect style for what seemed minutes. The crowd fell silent. But about three quarters of the way down he seemed to have second thoughts and began suddenly to panic(惊慌)，waving his arms and legs like someone having a bad dream. When he was perhaps thirty feet above the water, he gave up on waving and spread his arms and legs wide, obviously hoping that it would somehow slow his fall. It didn't. He hit the water at over six hundred miles an hour, making birds fly out of their trees three miles away. I don't think he entered the water at all. He just bounced off it, about fifteen feet back into the air. After that, he lay still on the surface , like an autumn leaf.

    He was brought to shore by two passing fishermen in a rowboat and placed on an old blanket where he spent the rest of the afternoon. Occasionally he accepted a little water, but otherwise was too shocked to speak.

    It was the best day of my life.

    Everyone needs friends. We all like to feel close to someone. It is nice to have a friend to talk, laugh, and do things with. Surely, there are times when we need to be alone. We don't always want people around. But we will feel lonely if we never have a friend.

    Sometimes friends move away. Then we feel very sad. We miss them very much. But we can call them and write to them. It could be that we would even see them again. And we can make new friends. It is surprising to find out how much we like new people when we get to know them.

    No two people are the same. Sometimes friends don't get along well. That doesn't mean that they no longer like each other. Most of the time they will make up (和解) and go on being friends.

    Families sometimes name their children after a close friend. Many places are named after men and women who have been friendly to people in a town. Some libraries are named this way. So are some schools. We think of these people when we go to these places.

    There's more good news for people who have friends. They live longer than people who don't. Why? It could be that they are happier. Being happy helps you stay well. Or it could be just knowing that someone cares about you. If someone is concerned about you, you will feel good.

    The Shiants, remote, cliff-edged islands off the coast of Scotland are home to 350,000 seabirds. This is the starting point for National Geographic contributor Adam Nicolson's new book, The Seabirds Cry. Celebrating 10 species in detail, he describes the unbelievable recovery of seabirds and the many adaptations that have enabled them to survive and navigate the oceans, while sounding a loud call for their conservation among severely falling numbers.

    Speaking from his home in Sussex, England, Nicolson explains why guillemot (海雀) colonies are information exchange centers: how new research is showing that those long-distance travelers. The shearwaters, "smell" their way across the globe; and what we can do to support seabird populations.

    National Geographic has just kicked off Year of the Bird with a cover story by Jonathan Franzen titled "Why Birds Matter ". The beginning of Year of the Bird is beneficial to birds. Nicolson said, "I'll ask you the same question-why? For me, these seabirds are symbols of uniqueness. There is so much on the land where the rest of the living world seems to be controlled by us, but when you go to seabird colonies, there is this pumping, loud and raging uniqueness. It's a glance of the untouched world. "

    "The reason why it's untouched is that, until recently, we have not controlled the oceans that the seabirds depend on. More of them have survived in greater numbers than most other creatures in the developed world, where huge amounts of the animal kingdom have been removed by us. And so one reason these birds matter is that they are symbols of what the world might be if we hadn't done so much damage to it. "He added.

    "Seabirds also tend to disappear; they're not reliably of our world, due to their migration and habits of life. Very deep in our consciousness is a sense that they are ambassadors from another world. And witnessing and feeling that is, I think, one of the great enlargers of life." Nicolson explained.

Sichuanese is China's most thrilling regional cuisine. Although it's most famous for {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(it) electrifying use of chilies (辣椒) and lip-tingling Sichuan Peppercorns (花椒)，the heart of the local style of cooking {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(lie) in the artful mixing of flavors.

Sichuanese {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(cook) specialize in combining hot, numbing, sweet, sour, savory and nutty seasonings {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(create) an astonishing variety of flavors. Some of these are {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(incredible) hot, some dishes are mildly spicy and some are not hot at all. 

While Sichuan pepper is {#blank#}6{#/blank#} ancient Chinese spice, the chili is a relatively recent import from the Americas. It wasn't widely cultivated in Sichuan {#blank#}7{#/blank#} the 19th century but went on to become one of its most indispensable local seasonings.

In Sichuanese dialect, chilies {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(know) as "sea pepper"(hai jiao) too, a reference to their foreign origins. Locals explain their preference for chilies comes from traditional Chinese medicine, {#blank#}9{#/blank#} people are advised to eat plenty of "heating foods" to counter the damp of the local climate. People {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(visit) Sichuan are often asked, "ni pa bu pa la"— "Are you afraid of Chili heat？"