UNIT1Although they may not be the world’s fastest or strongest athletes, the 1,830 competitors in the 2005 Special Olympics World Winter Games held in Nagano, Japan, competed with all their hearts .At the closing ceremony Princess Takamado of Japan made a speech. She said, “The past week was all about smiles, gentleness and peace. I truly hope within my heart that the entire world can learn something here. We can all learn from the examples these special athletes have shown us.”The aim of the Special Olympics is clear. It is to encourage individuals with intellectual disabilities to become physically fit. They are also encouraged to be productive and respected members of society through sports training and competition. If an athlete wins in competition, it is a bonus. However, in a way everyone wins. Lily Kuhn, 12, a skier with Team USA, could hardly restrain her enthusiasm as she wrote home. She told her parents: I was proud of myself. I am happy not simply for winning, but for winning honestly, loving to compete and working the hardest for the longest time.The festival ending the games is something to remember. It isn’t complete without the hugs(拥抱). One event volunteer, while hugging and handing out sweatshirts to some of the athletes, held up his thumbs and said,” All of these athletes are super! I can’t go anywhere around here without getting a hug. I pray for more of this sort of thing. I hope that the spirit with which they have competed might touch the whole world .Watching these young people blossom over the past week has truly touched my life.At the end of the festival, the vice mayor for the city of Shanghai, which will host the 2007 summer games, accepted the flag for the Special Olympics pledging that the city of Shanghai would open its arms to the world and to the Special Olympics.Unit 2Jim Fixx had been a heavy smoker and weighed 214 pounds when he took up running in the 1960s.He soon reaped the benefits from running. His weight decreased by60 pounds by the time his book, The Complete Book of Running, was published. His book inspired millions of people. In his book and on television talk shows, he extolled(赞美) the benefits of physical exercise and how it considerably increased the average people’s life expectancy. His readers and audience became more health-conscious. However, to their shock, Fixx died at the age of 52 after his daily run. Many who opposed his beliefs said this was evidence that running was harmful. However, his supporters revealed that the real cause of Fixx’s death was a heart attack. He came from a family where men had poor health stories. His father suffered a heart attack at the age of 35 and died of one at 42.Given Fixx’s unhealthy lif estyle until he took up running, may argued that running added many years to his life.Running does have its shortcomings, acknowledges heart specialist Paul Thomas, in a recent medical journal. The impact can be hard on your knees. Runners are more at risk during their training, particularly if they run marathons(马拉松). However, the news for runners isn’t all bad.Evidence suggests in spite of its shortcomings, moderate amount of running exercise can actually result in a longer, improved life.Dr. Dale Macdonald, a certified Strength and Conditioning specialist once summed up a discussion by saying, As with all athletic endeavors, running comes with both great reward and inherent risk. More that 60% of runners will suffer an injury that causes them to take time off running---each year! He also said that improving one’s balance can reduce the likelihood of injury.Unit3Hyde was founded in 1996 to provide education based on character development rather than academic achievement. It is a place where well-to-do families can send their children who have difficultly in other educational environments. Many students are there because their parents believe in the educational theory of character before performance.Although Hyde is typically categorized as a college preparatory school, the school, the school regards its primary purpose as preparation for life. Hyde helps students learn, embrace, and adopt a character compass that will guide them for the rest of their lives.Emphasis is placed on performing arts and sports. Hyde believes that one needs to expose themselves to group and community interactions as part of the growth process. Competitive sports are played year round and have led to many championships. There are typical high school classes and academics. Many Advanced Placement course are available and encouraged Most students are accepted to four—year colleges and universities.There are Group Discovery sessions several times per week. Students are encouraged to counsel each other when they think another student’s actions or thoughts do not correspond to the school’s philosophy. These sessions focus on the individual students and their current issues and problems faced at the school. Students are encouraged to share intimate secrets, doubts and regrets, doubts and regrets about themselves and their families. These sessions are extended to parents. The purpose of these sessions is to involve the whole family into the Hyde community social structure.Truth is emphasized over harmony. Students who have difficulty with following the school rules are assigned to perform maintenance jobs and lawn care for the school. The practice is not solely punitive(惩罚性的) but also serves to illustrate that the transgressor(违规者) has separated him/herself from the community by their actions. The idea behind it is to earn acceptance by the group, and work back into the trust of the community.Unit 4When Henry Ford announced he was going to produce an automobile that would be affordable to the general population, he probably did not realize what a great impact his achievement would have on life in the United States and, eventually, the world. Ford’s use of mass production strategies to manufacture the Model T started a new era in personal transportation. As a result,roads were built for the sake of cars and the greater mobility of people. With cars and the roads, ha ving a business of one’s own became a lot more feasible. Every type of business sprung up Customers could easily get to the stores no matter where they were in town, provided there was a road, so businesses no longer had to be located at a town’s center.And what about the family vacation? Families packed into their cars and drove across the country to explore the new frontier, stopping at every possible roadside attraction on the way. There was no limit to where you could go and what you could see. The car offered a sense of independence and, as Americans particularly hated to be restricted, they fell in love with the automobile instantly. On average, each Americans household owns two or more cars. As the world gets more complicated, driving cars around helps people cope with the demands of modern life.If you ask people what qualities define Americans, they will probably say that the two dominating characteristics of an American are inventiveness and independence. America is truly the land of cars and car culture.Unit 5Aging is a natural process. Although medical advancements have come up with ways to cover signs of aging, there is no stopping the process. During the closing period in the lifespan of human being, people tend to “move away”from more desirable previous periods, often known as “usefulness”.Age sixty is usually considered the combining line between middle and old age. It is the time where you are considered an “elderly”, meaning somewhat old or advanced beyond middle age. Period of decline comes partly from physical and partly psychological factors. The physical cause of decline is a change in the body cells due to the effects of the aging process. The psychological cause of decline has something to do with unfavorable attitudes toward oneself, other people, work and life in general. Senility(衰老), a more or less complete physical breakdown, will take place when there is mental disorganization. The individual becomes careless, absent-minded, socially withdrawn, and poorly adjusted.Due to the unfavorable social attitudes toward the elderly, treatment toward then in America, unlike other cultures, makes them feel no longer useful and unwanted. People who come from countries where respect for the elderly is customary usually treat elder people with more consideration and respect.In fact, old people are a treasure of experience to society. It is expected that old people will play a(n) increasingly active role and community affairs as well as in the business and professional worlds. Because of the reduction in the number of roles the elderly are able to play, it is very likely that they will develop a feeling of inferiority It is our duty to make them better realize their value and help them lead a life of comfort.Unit 6Earthquakes have plagued our lives for as long as people have inhabited the Earth. These dangerous acts of the Earth have resulted in great damage to human beings.Earthquakes damage depends on what area is hit. If an unpopulated region is struck, there will be low loss of life or property. If it hits a large city which is densely populated, there may be serious injuries and destruction.Earthquakes have the power to uproot trees and send them crashing into buildings. They can trigger landslides and cause flooding and tsunamis. Buildings and structures are also at risk. It is interesting to note that tall buildings will suffer the least damage if they are located directly at the epicenter(震中). This is because they can withstand the up-and-down motion of P-waves. S-waves, on the other hand, occur far away from the epicenter, and cause the greatest stress by shaking buildings from side to side. These buildings are often knocked off their foundations.Buildings with thick, heavy walls do not resist shock waves very well. Violent earthquakes often cause structures to collapse, burying people underneath. Brick buildings are most vulnerable. The shaking of the earth is sometimes not the greatest disaster. It is in the subsequent fires and floods that often the greatest damage occurs.Predicting an earthquake until now has almost been technologically impossible. With improvements in technology, lives have been saved and many more will. All that remains is to research what takes place before, during, and after an earthquake. This has been done for years to the point that a successful earthquake prediction is theoretically possible. However, accurate prediction of earthquake may take more years.1.无论你是多么富有经验的演说家，无论你做了多么充分的准备，你都很难在这样嘈杂招待会上发表演讲。
