虚空打字3.2

名字是朋友起的，哈哈哈。
主界面

import wx
from pykeyboard import PyKeyboard
from pymouse import PyMouse
from time import sleep as time_sleep
from threading import Thread
from webbrowser import open as web_open

class TypeThread(Thread):# 线程类
    def __init__(self,window,content,pos_x,pos_y,sleep_time):
        Thread.__init__(self)
        self.content = content
        self.sleep_time = sleep_time
        m = PyMouse()# 鼠标对象
        self.k = PyKeyboard()# 键盘对象
        m.click(pos_x, pos_y)  # 鼠标位置
        self.flag = True# 标志位，用于结束线程

    def stop(self):
        self.flag = False

    def run(self):  # 重写run方法
        for i in self.content:
            if(self.flag):
                time_sleep(self.sleep_time/1000)# 给一定延时
                self.k.type_string(i)# 以字符串形式输入
            else:
                break# 标志位False则跳出循环，终止线程

class ModifyXYFrm(wx.Frame):# 更改鼠标坐标框架
    def __init__(self,parent,pos_x,pos_y,call):
        wx.Frame.__init__(self,parent,pos=(pos_x-20,pos_y-20),size=(40,40),style=wx.SIMPLE_BORDER)# 设置Frame为无边框样式
        btn_ok = wx.Button(self,wx.ID_OK,'O',(20,0),(20,20))# 设置确定按钮
        self.SetBackgroundColour('blue')# 设置背景颜色蓝色
        # 绑定相关事件（无边框Frame默认不能移动）
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_LEFT_DOWN,self.evt_left_down)
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_LEFT_UP, self.evt_left_up)
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_MOTION,self.evt_move)
        btn_ok.Bind(wx.EVT_BUTTON,self.evt_record)
        self.call = call

    def evt_record(self,e):
        self.call(self.GetPosition())# 本窗口位置信息回调到主框架中
        self.Destroy() # 摧毁本窗口

    def evt_left_down(self,e):
        self.CaptureMouse()
        pos = self.ClientToScreen(e.GetPosition())
        origin = self.GetPosition()
        self.delta = wx.Point(pos.x-origin.x,pos.y-origin.y)

    def evt_left_up(self,e):
        if self.HasCapture():
            self.ReleaseMouse()

    def evt_move(self,e):
        if e.Dragging() and e.LeftIsDown():
            pos = self.ClientToScreen(e.GetPosition())
            newPos = (pos.x-self.delta.x,pos.y-self.delta.y)
            self.Move(newPos)

class MyFrame(wx.Frame):# 主窗口
    def __init__(self):
        wx.Frame.__init__(self,None,-1,'虚空打字V3.2',size=(300,200),style=wx.CAPTION|wx.MINIMIZE_BOX|wx.CLOSE_BOX)
        self.Center()
        self.init_menubar()
        self.thread = None
        self.title = "Anne's best friend"
        self.read_contents()
        self.pos_x = 675  # 鼠标位置x
        self.pos_y = 238  # 鼠标位置y
        self.sleep_time = 310  # 休眠时间310毫秒
        self.init_panel()
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_CLOSE, self.close_window_event)# 绑定窗口关闭事件

    def init_panel(self):# 创建面板组件
        panel = wx.Panel(self)
        self.start_btn = wx.Button(panel, -1, '开始', (100, 80), (100, 50))
        self.label = wx.StaticText(panel, -1, '选择文档：', (120, 10))
        self.start_btn.Bind(wx.EVT_BUTTON, self.start_evt)
        self.choice = wx.Choice(panel, -1, (10, 30), (265, 30), self.titles)
        self.choice.SetStringSelection("Anne's best friend")
        self.choice.Bind(wx.EVT_CHOICE, self.choice_event)

    def init_menubar(self):# 创建所有菜单
        menuBar = wx.MenuBar()
        setmenu = wx.Menu()
        sleep = setmenu.Append(-1,'更改延时')
        position = setmenu.Append(-1,'更改坐标')
        reset = setmenu.Append(-1,'恢复默认设置')
        setmenu.AppendSeparator()
        check = setmenu.Append(-1, '查看当前设置')
        menuBar.Append(setmenu,'设置')
        helpmenu = wx.Menu()
        help = helpmenu.Append(-1, '查看帮助')
        menuBar.Append(helpmenu,'帮助')
        self.SetMenuBar(menuBar)
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_MENU, self.sleep_event, sleep)
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_MENU, self.position_event, position)
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_MENU, self.reset_event, reset)
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_MENU, self.check_event, check)
        self.Bind(wx.EVT_MENU, self.help_event, help)

    def read_contents(self):# 读取数据
        self.contents = {"Anne's best friend": 'Do you want a friend whom you could tell everything to, like your deepest feelings and thoughts? Or are you afraid that your friend would laugh at you, or would not understand what you are going through? Anne Frank wanted the first kind, so she made her diary her best friend.Anne lived in Amsterdam in the Netherlands during World War II. Her family was Jewish so she had to hide or they would be caught by the German Nazis. She and her family hidden away for two years before they were discovered. During that time the only true friend was her diary. She said, "I don\'t want to set down a series of facts in a diary as most people do, but I want this diary itself to be my friend, and I shall call my friend Kitty." Now read how she felt after being in the hiding place since July 1942.Thursday 15, June, 1944Dear kitty,I wonder if it\'s because I haven\'t been able to be outdoors for so long that I\'ve grown so crazy about everything to do with nature. I can well remember that there was a time when a deep blue sky, the song of the birds, moonlight and flowers could never have kept me spellbound. That\'s changed since I was here.For example, when it was so warm, I stayed awake on purpose until half past eleven one evening in order to have a good look at the moon for once by myself. But as the moon gave far too much light, I didn\'t dare open a window. Another time some months ago, I happened to be upstairs one evening when the window was open. I didn\'t go downstairs until the window had to be shut. The dark, rainy evening, the wind, the thundering clouds held me entirely in their power; it was the first time in a year and a half that I\'d seen the night face to face...Sadly... I am only able to look at nature through dirty curtains hanging before very dusty windows. It\'s no pleasure looking through these any longer because nature is one thing that really must be experienced.Yours,AnneReading and listening1)Read the letter that Lisa wrote to Miss Wang of Radio for Teenagers and predict what Miss Wang will say. After listening, check and discuss her advice.Dear Miss Wang,I am having some trouble with my classmates at the moment. I\'m getting along well with a boy in my class. We often do homework together and we enjoy helping each other. We have become really good friends. But other students have started gossiping. They say that this boy and I have fallen in love. This has made me angry. I don\'t want to end the friendship, but I hate others gossiping. What should I do?Yours,Lisa', 'The road to modern english': "At the end of the 16th century, about five to seven million people spoke English. Nearly all of them lived in England. Later in the next century, people from England made voyages to conquer other parts of the world and because of that, English began to be spoken in many other countries. Today, more people speak English as their first, second or foreign language than ever before.Native English speakers can understand each other even if they don't speak the same kind of English. Look at this example:British Betty: Would you like to see my flat?American Amy: Yes, I'd like to come up to your apartment.So why has English changed over time? Actually all languages change and develop when cultures meet and communicate with each other. At first the English spoken in England between about AD 450 and 1150 was very different from the English spoken today. It was based more on German than the English we speak at present. Then gradually between about AD 800 and 1150, English became less like German because those who ruled England spoken first Danish and later French. These new settlers enriched the English language and especially its vocabulary. So by the 1600's Shakespeare was able to make use of a wider vocabulary than ever before. In 1620 some British settlers moved to America. Later in the 18th century some British people were taken to Australia too. English began to be spoken in both countries.Finally by the 19th century the language was settled. At that time two big changes in English spelling happened: first Samuel Johnson wrote his dictionary and later Noah Webster wrote The American Dictionary of the English Language. The latter gave a separate identity to American English spelling.English now is also spoken as a foreign or second language in South Asia. For example, India has a very large number of fluent English speakers because Britain ruled India from 1765 to 1947. During that time English became the language for government and education. English is also spoken in Singapore and Malaysia and countries in Africa such as South Africa. Today the number of people learning English in China is increasing rapidly. In fact, China may have the largest number of English learners. Will Chinese English develop its own identity? Only time will tell.", 'Standard english and dialects': 'What is standard English? Is it spoken in Britain, the US, Canada, Australia, India and New Zealand? Believe it or not, there is no such thing as standard English. Many people believe the English spoken on TV and the radio is standard English. This is because in the early days of radio, those who reported the news were expected to speak excellent English. However, on TV and the radio you will hear differences in the way people speak.When people use words and expressions different form "standard language", it is called a dialect. American English has many dialects, especially the midwestern, southern, African American and Spanish dialects. Even in some parts of the USA, two people from neighbouring towns speak a little differently. American English has so many dialects because people have come from all over the world.Geography also plays a part in making dialects. Some people who live in the mountains of the eastern USA speak with an older kind of English dialect. When Americans moved from one place to another, they took their dialects with them. So people from the mountains in the southeastern USA speak with almost the same dialect as people in the northwestern USA. The USA is a large country in which many different dialects are spoken. Although many Americans move a lot, they still recognize and understand each other\'s dialects.', 'Journey down the mekong': 'My name is Wang Kun. Ever since middle school, my sister Wang Wei and I have dreamed about taking a great bike trip. Two years ago she bought an expensive mountain bike and then she persuaded me to buy one. Last year, she visited our cousins, Dao Wei and Yu Hang at their college in Kunming. They are Dai and grew up in western Yunnan Province near the Lancang River, the Chinese part of the river that is called the Mekong River in other countries. Wang Wei soon got them interested in cycling too. After graduating from college, we finally got the chance to take a bike trip. I asked my sister, "Where are we going?" It was my sister who first had the idea to cycle along the entire Mekong River from where it begins to where it ends. Now she is planning our schedule for the trip.I am fond of my sister but she has one serious shortcoming. She can be really stubborn. Although she didn\'t know the best way of getting to places, she insisted that she organize the trip properly. Now, I know that the proper way is always her way. I kept asking her, "When are we leaving and when are we coming back?" I asked her whether she had looked at a map yet. Of course, she hadn\'t; my sister doesn\'t care about details. So I told her that the source of the Mekong is in Qinghai Province. She gave me a determined look-the kind that said she would not change her mind. When I told her that our journey would begin at an altitude of more than 5,000 metres, she seemed to be excited about it. When I told her the air would be hard to breathe and it would be very cold, she said it would be an interesting experience. I know my sister well. Once she has made up her mind, nothing can change it. Finally, I had to give in.Several months before our trip, Wang Wei and I went to the library. We found a large atlas with good maps that showed details of world geography. From the atlas we could see that the Mekong River begins in a glacier on a Tibetan mountain. At first the river is small and the water is clear and cold. Then it begins to move quickly. It becomes rapids as it passes through deep valleys, travelling across western Yunnan Province. Sometimes the river becomes a waterfall and enters wide valleys. We were both surprised to learn that half of the river is in China. After it leaves China and the high altitude, the Mekong becomes wide, brown and warm. As it enters Southeast Asia, its pace slows. It makes wide bends or meanders through low valleys to the plains where rice grows. At last, the river delta enters the South China Sea.Reading and discussing', 'practice health': "Although it was autumn, the snow was already beginning to fall in Tibet. Our legs were so heavy and cold that they felt like blocks of ice. Have you ever seen snowmen ride bicycles? That's what we looked like! Along the way children dressed in long wool coats stopped to look at us. In the late afternoon we found it was so cold that our water bottles froze. However, the lakes shone like glass in the setting sun and looked wonderful. Wang Wei rode in front of me as usual. She is very reliable and I knew I didn't need to encourage her. To climb the mountains was hard work but as we looked around us, we were surprised by the view. We seemed to be able to see for miles. At one point we were so high that we found ourselves cycling through clouds. Then we began going down the hills. It was great fun especially as it gradually became much warmer. In the valleys colorful butterflies flew around us and we saw many yaks and sheep eating green grass. At this point we had to change our caps, coats, gloves and trousers for T-shirts and shorts.In the early evening we always stop to make camp. We put up our tent and then we eat. After supper Wang Wei put her head down on her pillow and went to sleep but I stayed awake. At midnight the sky became clearer and the stars grew brighter. It was so quiet. There was almost no wind-only the flames of our fire for company. As I lay beneath the stars I thought about how far we had already travelled.We will reach Dali in Yunnan Province soon, where our cousins Dao Wei and Yu Hang will join us. We can hardly wait to see them!", "A night the earth didn't sleep": "Strange things were happening in the countryside of northeast Hebei. For three days the water in the village wells rose and fell, rose and fell. Farmers noticed that the well walls had deep cracks in them. A smelly gas came out of the cracks. In the farmyards, the chickens and even the pigs were too nervous to eat. Mice ran out of the fields looking for places to hide. Fish jumped out of their bowls and ponds. At about 3:00 am on July 28,1976,some people saw bright lights in the sky. The sound of planes could be heard outside the city of Tangshan even when no planes were in the sky. In the city, the water pipes in some buildings cracked and burst. but the one million people of the city, who thought little of these events, were asleep as usual that night.At 3:42 am everything began to shake. It seemed as if the world was at an end! Eleven kilometers directly below the city the greatest earthquake of the 20th century had begun. It was felt in Beijing, which is more than two hundred kilometers away. One-third of the nation felt it. A huge crack that was eight kilometres long and thirty metres wide cut across houses, roads and canals. Steam burst from holes in the ground. Hard hills of rock became rivers of dir. In fifteen terrible seconds a large city lay in ruins. The suffering of the people was extreme. Two-thirds of them died or were left without parents. The number of people who were killed or injured reached more than 400,000.But how could the survivors believe it was natural? Everywhere they looked nearly everything was destroyed. All of the city's hospitals,75%of its factories and buildings and 90% of its homes were gone. Bricks covered the ground like red autumn leaves. No wind, however, could blow them away. Two dams fell and most of the bridges also fell or were not safe for travelling. The railway tracks were now useless pieces of steel. Tens of thousands of cows would never give milk again. Half a million pigs and millions of chickens were dead. Sand now filled the wells instead of water. People were shocked. Then, later that afternoon, another big quake which was almost as strong as the first one shook Tangshan. Some of the rescue workers and doctors were trapped under the ruins. More buildings fell down. Water, food, and electricity were hard to get. People began to wonder how long the disaster would last.All hope was not lost. Soon after the quakes, the army sent 150,000 soldiers to Tangshan to help the rescue workers. Hundreds of thousands of people were helped. The army organized teams to dig out those who were trapped and to bury the dead. To the north of the city, most of the 10,000 miners were rescued from the coal mines there. Workers built shelters for survivors whose homes had been destroyed. Fresh water was taken to the city bus train, truck and plane. Slowly, the city began to breathe again.", 'Office of the city government': 'Office of the City GovernmentTangshan, HebeiChinaJuly5,2007Dear Lilei,Congratulations! We are pleased to tell you that you have won the high school speaking competition about new Tangshan. Your speech was heard by a group of five judges, all of whom agreed that it was the best one this year. Your parents and your school should be very proud of you!Next month the city will open a new park to honour those who died in the terrible disaster. The park will also honour those who helped the survivors. Our office would like to have you speak to the park visitors on July 28 at 11:00 am. As you know, this is the day the quake happened thirty years ago.We invite you to bring your family and friends on that special day.Sincerely,Zhang Sha', "Elias' story": 'My name is Elias. I am a poor black worker in South Africa. The time when I first met Nelson Mandela was a very difficult period of my life. I was twelve years old. It was in 1952 and Mandela was the black lawyer to whom I went for advice. He offered guidance to poor black people on their legal problems. He was generous with his time, for which I was grateful.I needed his help because I had very little education. I began school at six. The school where I studied for only two years was three kilometers away. I had to leave because my family could not continue to pay the school fees and the bus fare. I could not read or write well. After trying hard, I got a job in a gold mine. However, this was a time when one had got to have a passbook to live in Johannesburg. Sadly I did not have it because I was not born there, and I worried about whether I would become out of work.The day when Nelson Mandela helped me was one of my happiest. He told my how to get the correct papers so I could stay in Johannesburg. I became more hopeful about my future. I never forgot how kind Mandela was. When he organized the ANC Youth League, I joined it as soon as I could. He said:"The last thirty years have seen the greatest number of laws stopping our rights and progress, until today we have reached a stage where we have almost no rights at all."It was the truth. Black people could not vote or choose their leaders. They could not get the jobs they wanted. The parts of town in which they had to live were decided by white people. The places outside the towns where they were sent to live were the poorest parts of South Africa. No one could grow food there. In fact as Nelson Mandela said:"... we were put into a position in which we had either to accept we were less important or fight the government. We chose to attack the laws. We first broke the law in a way which was peaceful; when this was not allowed... only then did we decide to answer violence with violence.As a matter of fact, I do not like violence... but in 1963 I helped him blow up some government buildings. It was very dangerous because if I was caught I could be put in prison. But I was happy to help because I knew it would help us achieve our dream of making black and white people equal.', "The rest of elias' story": 'You cannot imagine how the name of Robben Island made us afraid. It was a prison from which no one escaped. There I spent the hardest time of my life. But when I got there Nelson Mandela was also there and he helped me. Mr Mandela began a school for those of us who had little learning. He taught us during the lunch breaks and the evenings when we should have been asleep. We read books under our blankets and used anything we could find to make candles to see the words. I became a good student. I wanted to study for my degree but I was not allowed to do that. Later, Mr Mandela allowed the prison guards to join us. He said they should not be stopped from studying for their degrees. They were not cleverer than me, but they did pass their exams. So I knew I could get a degree too. That made me feel good about myself.When I finished the four years in prison, I went to find a job. Since I was better educated, I got a job working in an office. However, the police found out and told my boss that I had been in prison for blowing up government buildings. So I lost my job. I did not work again for twenty years until M r Mandela and the ANC came to power in 1994. All that time my wife and children had to beg for good and help from relatives or friends. Luckily Mr Mandela remembered me and gave me a job taking tourists around my old prison on Robben Island. I felt bad the first time I talked to a group. All the terror and fear of that time came back to me. I remembered the beatings and the cruelty of the guards and my friends who had died. I felt I would not be able to do it, but my family encouraged me. They said that the job and the pay from the new South African government were my reward after working all my life for equal rights for the Blacks. So now at 51 I am proud to show visitors over the prison, for I helped to make our people free in their own land.', 'In search of the amber room': "Frederick William I, the King of Prussia, could never have imagined that his greatest gift to the Russian people would have such an amazing history. This gift was the Amber Room, which was given this name because several tons of amber were used to make it. The amber which was selected had a beautiful yellow-brown colour like honey. The design of the room was in the fancy style popular in those days. It was also a treasure decorated with gold and jewels, which took the country's best artists about ten years to make.In fact, the room was not made to be a gift. It was designed for the palace of Frederick I. However, the next King of Prussia, Frederick William I ,to whom the amber room belonged, decided not to keep it. In 1716 he gave it to Peter the Great. In return, the Czar sent him a troop of his best soldiers. So the Amber Room because part of the Czar's winter palace in St Petersburg. About four metres long, the room served as a small reception hall for important visitors.Later, Catherine II had the Amber Room moved to a palace outside St Petersburg where she spent her summers. She told her artists to add more details to it. In 1770 the room was completed the way she wanted. Almost six hundred candles lit the room, and its mirrors and pictures shone like gold. Sadly, although the Amber Room was considered one of the wonders of the world, it is now missing.In September 1941, the Nazi army was near St Petersburg. This was a time when the two countries were at war. Before the Nazis could get to the summer palace, the Russians were able to remove some furniture and small art objects from the Amber Room. However, some of the Nazis secretly stole the room itself. In less than two days 100,000 pieces were put inside twenty-seven wooden boxes. There is no doubt that the boxes were then put on a train for Konigsberg, which was at that time a German city on the Baltic Sea. After that, what happened to the Amber Room remains a mystery.Recently, the Russians and Germans have built a new Amber Room at the summer palace. By studying old photos of the former Amber Room, they have made the new one look like the old one. In 2003 it was ready for the people of St Petersburg when they celebrated the 300th birthday of their city.", 'A fact or an opinion': 'What is a fact? Is it something that people believe? No. A fact is anything that can be proved. For example, it can be proved that China has more people than any other country in the world. This is a fact.Then what is an opinion? An opinion is what someone believes is true but has not been proved. So an opinion is not good evidence in a trial. For example, it is an opinion if you say "Cats are better pets than dogs". It may be true, but it is difficult to prove. Some people may not agree with this opinion but they also cannot prove that they are right.In a trial, a judge must decide which eyewitnesses to believe and which not to believe. The judge does not consider what each eyewitness looks like or where that person lives or works. He/she only cares about whether the eyewitness has given true information, which must be facts rather than opinions. This kind of information is called evidence.', 'An interview': 'Pausanias, who was a Greek writer about 2,000 years ago, has come on a magical journey on March 18th 2007 to find out about the present-day Olympic Games. He is now interviewing Li Yan, a volunteer for the 2008 Olympic Games.P: My name is Pausanias. I lived in what you call "Ancient Greece" and I used to write about the Olympic Games a long time ago. I\'ve come to your time to find out about the present-day Olympic Games because I know that in 2004 they were held in my homeland. May I ask you some questions about the modern Olympics?L: Good heavens! Have you really come from so long ago? But of course you can ask any questions you like. What would you like to know?P: How often do you hold your Games?L: Every four years. There are two main sets of Games: the Winter and Summer Olympics, and both are held every four years on a regular basis. The Winter Olympics are usually held two years before the Summer Games. Only athletes who have reached the agreed standard for their event will be admitted as competitors. They may come from anywhere in the world.P: Winter Games? How can the runners enjoy competing in winter? And what about the horses?L: Oh no! There are no running races or horse riding events. Instead there are competitions like skiing and ice skating which need snow and ice. That\'s why they\'re called the Winter Olympics. It\'s in the Summer Olympics that you have the running races, together with swimming, sailing and all the team sports.P: I see. Earlier you said that athletes are invited from all over the world. Do you mean the Greek world? Our Greek cities used to compete against each other just for the honour of winning. No other countries could join in, nor could slaves or women!L: Nowadays any country can take part if their athletes are good enough. There are over 250 sports and each on has its own standard. Women are not only allowed, but play a very important role in gymnastics, athletics, team sports and...P: Please wait a minute! All those events, all those countries and even women taking part! Where are all the athletes housed?L: For each Olympics, a special village is built for them to live in, a main reception building, several stadiums for competitions, and a gymnasium as well.P: That sounds very expensive. Does anyone want to host the Olympic Games?L: As a matter of fact, every country wants the opportunity. It\'s a great responsibility but also a great honour to be chosen. There\'s as much competition among countries to host the Olympics as to win Olympic medals. The 2008 Olympics will be held in Beijing, China. Did you know that?P: Oh yes! You must be very proud.L: Certainly. And after that the 2012 Olympics will be held in London. They have already started planning for it. A new village for the athletes and all the stadiums will be built to the east of London. New medals will be designed of course and...P: Did you say medals? So even the olive wreath has been replaced! Oh dear! Do you compete for prize money too?L: No, we don\'t. it\'s still all about being able to run faster, jump higher and throw further. That\'s the motto of the Olympics, you know-"Swifter, Higher and Stronger."P: Well, that\'s good news. How interesting! Thank you so much for your time.', 'The story of atlanta': 'Atlanta was a Greek princess. She was very beautiful and could run faster than any man in Greece. But she was not allowed to run and win glory for herself in the Olympic Games. She was so angry that she said to her father that she would not marry anyone who could not run faster than her. Her father said that she must marry, so Atlanta made a bargain with him. She said to him, "These are my rules. When a man says he wants to marry me, I will run against him. If he cannot run as fast as me, he will be killed. No one will be pardoned."Many kings and princes wanted to marry Atlanta, but when they heard of rules they knew it was hopeless. So many of them sadly went home, but others stayed to run the race. There was a man called Hippomenes who was amazed when he heard of Atlanta\'s rules," Why are these men so foolish?" he thought. "Why will they let themselves be killed because they cannot run as fast as this princess?" However, when she saw Atlanta come out of her house to run, Hippomenes changed his mind." I will marry Atlanta--or die!" he said.The race started and although the man ran very fast, Atlanta ran faster. As Hippomenes watched he thought, "How can I run as fast as Atlanta?" He went to ask the Greek Godness of Love for help. She promised to help him and gave him three golden apples. She said," Throw an apple in front of Atlanta when she is running past. When she stops to pick it up, you will be able to run past her and win."Hippomenes took the apples and went to the King. He said," I want to marry Atlanta." The King was sad to see another man die, but Hippomenes said," I will marry her------or die!" So the race began.', 'Who am i': 'Over time I have been changed quite a lot. I began as a calculating machine in France in 1642. Although I was young I could simplify difficult sums. I developed very slowly and it took nearly two hundred years before I was built as an analytical machine by Charles Babbage. After I was programmed by an operator who used cards with holes, I could "think" logically and produce an answer quicker than any person. At that time it was considered a technological revolution and the start of my "artificial intelligence". In 1936 my real father, Alan Turing, wrote a book about how I could be made to work as a "universal machine" to solve any difficult mathematical problem. From then on, I grew rapidly both in size and in brainpower. By the 1949s I had grown as large as a room, and I wondered if I would grow any larger. However, this reality also worried my designers. As time went by, I was make smaller. First as a PC(personal computer) and then as a laptop, I have been used in offices and homes since the 1970s.These changes only became possible as my memory improved. First it was stored in tubes, then on transistors and later on very small chips. As a result I totally changed my shape. As I have grown older I have also grown smaller. Over time my memory has developed so much that, like an elephant, I never forget anything I have been told! And my memory became so large that even I couldn\'t believe it! But I was always so lonely standing there by myself, until in early 1960s they gave me a family connected by a network. I was able to share my knowledge with others through the World Wide Web.Since the 1970s many new applications have been found for my. I have become very important in communication, finance and trade. I have also been put into robots and used to make mobile phones as well as help with medical operations. I have even been put into space rockets and sent to explore the Moon and Mars. Anyhow, my goal is to provide humans with a life of high quality. I am now truly filled with happiness that I am a devoted friend and helper of the human race!', 'Andy – the android': 'I\'m part of an android football team. About once a year we are allowed to get together to play a game of football. I\'m as big as a human. It fact, I look like one too. On the football team I\'m a striker so I have to be able to run very fast. My computer ships help me to move and think like a human. For example, I have learned to signal to my teammates in computer language to give me the ball when I am open and have a good for a goal.My first football competition was in Nagoya, Japan several years ago. Last year our team went to Seattle, Washington in the USA. We won second place. Personally, I think the team that won first place cheated. They had developed a new type of program just before the competition. So we need to encourage our programmer to improve our intelligence too. We are determined to create an even better system. In a way our programmer is like our coach. She programs us with all the possible moves she has seen while watching human games. Then she prepares reliable moves to use if a new situation arises. In this way I can make up new moves using my "artificial intelligence". I could like to play against a human team, for I have been programmed to act just like them. After all, with the help of my electronic brain which never forgets anything, using my intelligence is what I\'m all about!', 'How daisy learned to help wildlife': 'Daisy had always longed to help endangered species of wildlife. One day she woke up and found a flying carpet by her bed. "Where do you want to go?" it asked. Daisy responded immediately. "I\'d like to see some endangered wildlife," she said. "Please take me to a distant land where I can find the animal that gave fur to make this sweater." At once the carpet flew away and took her to Tibet. There daisy saw and antelope looking sad. It said, "We\'re being killed for the wool beneath our stomachs. Our fur is being used to make sweaters for people like you. As a result, we are now an endangered species." At that Daisy cried, "I\'m sorry I didn\'t know that. I wonder what is being done to help you. Flying carpet, please show me a place where there\'s some wildlife protection."The flying carpet traveled so fast that next minute they were in Zimbabwe. Daisy turned around and found that she was being watched by and elephant. "Have you come to take my photo?" it asked. In relief Daisy burst into laughter. "Don\'t laugh," said the elephant, "We used to be an endangered species. Farmers hunted us without mercy. They said we destroyed their farms, and money from tourists only went to the large tour companies. So the government decided to help. They allowed tourists to hunt only a certain number of animals if they paid the farmers. Now the farmers are happy and our numbers are increasing. So good things are being done here to save local wildlife."Daisy smiled, "That\'s good news. It shows the importance of wildlife protection, but I\'d like to help as the WWF suggests." The carpet rose again and almost at once they were in a thick rainforest. A monkey watched them as it rubbed itself. "What are you doing?" asked Daisy. "I\'m protecting myself from mosquitoes," it replied. When I find a millipede insect, I rub it over my body. It contains a powerful drug which affects mosquitoes. You should pay more attention to the rainforest where I live and appreciate how the animals live together. No rainforest, no animals, no drugs."Daisy was amazed. "Flying carpet, please take me home so I can tell WWF and we can begin producing this new drug. Monkey, please come and help." The monkey agreed. The carpet flew home. As they landed, things began to disappear. Two minutes later everything had gone-the monkey, too. So Daisy was not able to make her new drug. But what an experience! She had learned so much! And there was always WWF...', 'Animal extinction': 'Many animals have disappeared during the long history of the earth. The most famous of these animals are dinosaurs. They lived on the earth tens of millions of years ago, long before humans came into being and their future seemed secure at that time.There were many different kinds of dinosaur and a number of them used to live in China. The eggs of twenty-five species have been found in Xixia, County, Nanyang, Henan Province. Not long ago a rare new species of bird-like dinosaur was discovered in Chaoyang County, Liaoning Province. When scientists inspected the bones, they were surprised to find that these dinosaurs could not only run like the others but also climb trees. They learned this from the way the bones were joined together.Dinosaurs died out suddenly about 65 million years ago. Some scientists think it came after an unexpected incident when a huge rock from space hit the earth and put too much dust into the air. Others think the earth got too hot for the dinosaursto live on any more. Nobody knows for sure why and how dinosaurs disappeared from the earth in such a short time.We know many other wild plants, animals, insects and birds have died out more recently. According to a UN report, some 844 animals and plants have disappeared in the last 500 years. The dodo is one of them. It lived on the Island of Mauritius and was a very friendly animal. Please listen to a story of the dodo and how it disappeared from the earth.', "The band that wasn't": "Have you ever wanted to be part of a band as a famous singer or musician? Have you ever dreamed of playing in front of thousands of people at a concert, at which everyone is clapping and appreciating your music? Do you sing karaoke and pretend you are a famous singer like Song Zuying or Lin Huan? To be honest, a lot of people attach great importance to becoming rich and famous. But just how do people form a band?Many musicians meet and form a band because they like to write and play their own music. They may start as a group of high-school students, for whom practicing their music in someone's hours is the first step to fame. Sometimes they may play to passers-by in the street or subway so that they can earn some extra money for themselves or to pay for their instruments. Later they may give performances in pubs or clubs, for which they are paid in cash. Of course they hope to make records in a studio and sell millions of copies to become millionaires!However, there was one band hat started in a different way. It was called the Monkees and began as a TV show. The musicians were to play jokes on each other as well as play music, most of which was based loosely on the beatles. The TV organizers had planned to find four musicians who could act as well as sing. They put an advertisement in a newspaper looking for rock musicians, but they could only find one who was good enough. They had to use actors for the other three members of the band.As some of these actors could not sing well enough, they had to rely on other musicians to help them. So during the broadcasts they just pretended to sing. Anyhow their performances were humorous enough to be copied by clubs in order to get more familiar with them. Each week on TV, the Monkees would play and sing songs written by other musicians. However, after a year or so in which they became more serious about their work, the Monkees started to play and sing their own songs like a real band. Then they produced their own records and started touring and play their own music. In the USA they became even more popular than the Beatles and sold even more records. The band broke up about 1970, but happily they reunited in the mid-1980s. They produced a new record in 1996, with which they celebrated their former time as a real band.", 'Freddy the frog(ii)': 'Not long after Freddy and the band became famous, they visited Britain on a brief tour. Fans showed their devotion by waiting for hours to get tickets for their concerts. Freddy was now quite confident when he went into a concert hall. He enjoyed singing and all the congratulations afterwards! His most exciting invitation was to perform on a programme called "Top of the Pops." He had to go to London, wear an expensive suit and give a performance to a TV camera. It felt very strange. But as soon as the programme was over, the telephones which were in the same room started ringing. Everybody was asking when they could see Freddy and his band again. They were truly stars.Then things went wrong. Freddy and his band could not go out anywhere without being followed. Even when they wore sunglasses or beards people recognized them. Fans found them even when they went into the toilet. They tried to hide in the reading rooms of libraries, but it was useless. Someone was always there! Their personal life was regularly discussed by people who did not know them but talked as if they were close friends. At last feeling very upset and sensitive, Freddy and his band to which they were never to return, and went back to the lake.', 'Festivals and celebrations': 'Festivals and celebrations of all kinds have been held everywhere since ancient times. Most ancient festivals would celebrate the end of cold weather, planting in spring and harvest in autumn. Sometimes celebrate would be held after hunters had caught animals. At that time people would starve if food was difficult to find, especially during the cold winter months. Today\'s festivals have many origins, some religious, some seasonal, and some for special people or events.Festivals of the DeadSome festivals are held to honour the dead or to satisfy the ancestors, who might return either to help or to do harm. For the Japanese festival. Obon, people should go to clean graves and light incense in memory of their ancestors. They also light lamps and play music because they think that this will lead the ancestors back to earth. In Mexico, people celebrate the Day of the Dead in early November. On this important feast day, people eat food in the shape of skulls and cakes with "bones" on them. They offer food, flowers and gifts to the dead. The Western holiday Halloween also had its origin in old beliefs about the return of the spirits of dead people. It is now a children\'s festival, when they can dress up and to their neighbours\' homes to ask for sweets. If the neighbours do not give any sweets, the children might play a trick on them.Festivals to Honour PeopleFestivals can also be held to honour famous people. The Dragon Boat Festival in China honours the famous ancient poet, Qu Yuan. In the USA Columbus Day is in memory of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in New World. India has a national festival on October 2 to honour Mohandas Gandhi, the leader who helped gain India\'s independence from Britain.Harvest FestivalsHarvest and Thanksgiving festivals can be very happy events. People are grateful because their food is gathered for the winter and the agricultural work is over. In European countries, people will usually decorate churches and town halls with flowers and fruit, and will get together to have meals. Some people might win awards for their farm produce, like the biggest watermelon or the most handsome rooster. China and Japan have mid-autumn festivals, when people admire the moon and in China, enjoy mooncakes.Spring FestivalsThe most energetic and important festivals are the ones that look forward to the end of winter and to the coming of spring. At the Spring Festival in China, people eat dumplings, fish and meat and may give children lucky money in red paper. There are dragon dances and carnivals, and families celebrate the Lunar New Year together. Some Western countries have very exciting carnivals, which take place forty days before Easter, usually in February. These carnivals might include parades, dancing in the streets day and night, loud music and colourful clothing of all kinds. Easter is an important religious and social festival for Christians around the world. It celebrates the return of Jesus from the dead and the coming of spring and new life. Japan\'s Cherry Blossom Festival happens a little later. The country, covered with cherry tree flowers, looks as thought it is covered with pink snow.People love to get together to eat, drink and have fun with each other. Festivals let us enjoy life, be proud of our customs and forget our work for a little while', 'A sad love story': 'Li Fang was heart-broken. It was Valentine\'s Day and Hu Jin had said she would meet him at the coffee shop after work. But she didn\'t turn up. She could be with her friends right now laughing at him. She said she would be there at seven o\'clock, and he thought she would keep her word. He had looked forward to meeting her all day, and now he was alone with his roses and chocolates, like a fool. Well, he was not going to hold his breath for her to apologize. He would drown his sadness in coffee.It was obvious that the manager of the coffee shop was waiting for Li Fang to leave-he wiped the tables, then sat down and turned on the TV-just what Li Fang needed! A sad Chinese story about lost love.The granddaughter of the Goddess of Heaven visited the earth. Her name was Zhinv, the weaving girl. While she was on earth she met the herd boy Niulang and they fell in love.("Just like me and Hu Jin," thought Li Fang.)They got married secretly, and they were very happy.("We could be like that," thought Li Fang.)When the Goddess of Heaven knew that her granddaughter was married to a human, she became very angry and made the weaving girl return to Heaven. Niulang tried to follow her, but the river of stars, the Milky Way, stopped him. Finding that Zhinv was heart-broken, her grandmother finally decided to let the couple cross the Milky Way to meet once a year. Magpies make a bridge of their wings so the couple can cross the river to meet on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. People in China hope that the weather will be fine on that day, because if it is raining, it means that Zhinv is weeping and the couple won\'t be able to meet.The announcer said," This is the story of Qiqiao Festival. When foreigners hear about the story, they call it a Chinese Valentine\'s story. It\'s a fine day today, so I hope you can all meet the one you love."As Li Fang set off for home, he thought, "I guess Hu Jin doesn\'t love me. I\'ll just throw these flowers and chocolates away. I don\'t want them to remind me of her." So he did.As he sadly passed the tea shop on the corner on his way home, he heard a voice calling him. There was Hu Jin waving at him and calling, "why are you so late? I\'ve been waiting for you for a long time! And I have a gift for you!"What would he do? He had thrown away her Valentine gifts! She would never forgive him. This would not be a happy Valentine\'s Day!', 'Come and eat here (1)': 'Wang Peng sat in his empty restaurant feeling very frustrated. It had been a very strange morning. Usually he got up early and prepared his menu of barbecued mutton kebabs, roast pork, stir-flied vegetables and fried rice. Then by lunchtime they would all be sold. By now his restaurant ought to be full of people. But not today! Why was that? What could have happened? He thought of his mutton, beef and bacon cooked in the hottest, finest oil. His cola was sugary and cold, and his ice cream was made of milk, cream and delicious fruit. "Nothing could be better," he thought. Suddenly he saw his friend Li Chang hurrying by. "Hello, Lao Li," he called. "Your usual?" But Li Chang seemed not to hear. What was the matter? Something terrible must have happened if Li Chang was not coming to eat in his restaurant as he always did.Wang Peng followed Li Chang into a new small restaurant. He saw a sign in the window.Tired of all that fat? Want to lose weight?Come inside Yong Hui\'s slimming restaurant.Only slimming foods served here.Make yourself thin again!Curiosity drove Wang Peng inside. It was full of people. The hostess, a very thin lady, came forward. "Welcome," she said. "My name is Yong Hui. I\'ll help you lose weight and be fit in two weeks if you eat here every day." Then she gave a menu to Wang Peng. There were few choices of food and drink on it: just rice, raw vegetables served in vinegar, fruit and water. Wang Peng was amazed at this and especially at the prices. It cost more than a good meal in his restaurant! He could not believe his eyes. He threw down the menu and hurried outside. On his way home he thought about his own menu. Did it make people fat? Perhaps he should go to the library and find out. He could not have Yong Hui getting away with telling people lies! He had better do some research!At the library Wang Peng was surprised to find that his restaurant served far too much fat and Yong Hui\'s far too little. Even though her customers might get thin after eating Yong Hui\'s food, they were not eating enough energy-giving food to keep them fit. They would become tired very quickly. Wang Peng felt more hopeful as he drove back home. Perhaps with a discount and a new sign he could win his customers back. So he wrote:Want to feel fit and energetic?Come and eat here! Discounts today!Our food gives you energy all day!The competition between the two restaurants was on!', 'Come and eat here(2)': 'COME AND EAT HERE(2)A week later, Wang Peng\'s restaurant was nearly full and he felt happier. Perhaps he would be able to earn his living after all and not have to close his restaurant. He did not look forward to being in debt because his restaurant was no longer popular. He smiled as he welcomed some customers warmly at the door but the smile left his face when he saw Yong Hui walking in. She did not look happy but glared at him. "May I ask what you were doing in my restaurant the other day? I thought you were a new customer and now I know that you only came to spy on me and my menu," she shouted. "Please excuse me," he calmly explained," I wanted to know where all my customers had gone last week. I followed one of them and found them in your restaurant. I don\'t want to upset you, but I found your menu so limited that I stopped worrying and started advertising the benefits of my food. Why don\'t you sit down and try a meal?"Yong Hui agreed to stay and soon they were both enjoying dumplings and breast of chicken cooked with garlic. When they were served the ice cream, Yong Hui began to look ill. "I feel sick with all this fat and heavy food," she said, "I miss my vegetables and fruit. "Wang Peng was enjoying a second plate of dumplings so he sighed. "Yes," he added," and I would miss my dumplings and fatty pork. Don\'t you get tired quickly?" "Well, I do have to rest a lot," admitted Yong Hui. "But don\'t you think it would be better if you were a bit thinner? I\'m sure you\'d feel much healthier. "They began to talk about menus and balanced diets. "According to my research, neither your restaurant nor mine offers a balanced diet," explained Wang Peng." I don\'t offer enough fibre and you don\'t offer enough body-building and energy-giving food. Perhaps we ought to combine our ideas and provide a balanced menu with food full of energy and fibre. "So that is what they did. They served raw vegetables with the hamburgers and boiled the potatoes rather than frying them. They served fresh fruit with the ice cream. In this way they cut down the fat and increased the fibre in the meal. Their balanced diets became- such a success that before long Wang Peng became slimmer and Yong Hui put on more weight. After some time the two found that their business cooperation had turned into a personal one. Finally they got married and lived happily ever after!', 'The million pound bank note(1)': "Act I, Scene 3NARRATOR: It is the summer of 1903. Two old and wealthy brothers, Roderick and Oliver, have made a bet. Oliver believes that with a million pound bank note a man could survive a month in London. His brother Roderick doubts it. At this moment, they see a penniless young man wandering on the pavement outside their house. It is Henry Adams, an American businessman, who is lost in London and does not know what he should do.RODERICK: Young man, would you step inside a moment, please?HENRY: Who? Me, sir?RODERICK: Yes, you.OLIVER: Through the front door on your left.HENRY: (A servant opens a door) Thanks.SERVANT: Good morning, sir. Would you please come in? Permit me to lead the way, sir.OLIVER: (Henry enters) Thank you, James. That will be all.RODERICK: How do you do, Mr... er...?HENRY: Adams. Henry Adams.OLIVER: Come and sit down, Mr Adams.HENRY: Thank you.RODERICK: You're an American?HENRY: That's right, from San Francisco.RODERICK: How well do you know London?HENRY: Not at all, it's my first trip here.RODERICK: I wonder, Mr Adams, if you'd mind us asking a few questions.HENRY: Not at all. Go right ahead.RODERICK: May we ask what you're doing in this country and what your plans are?HENRY: Well, I can't say that I have any plans. I'm hoping to find work. As a matter of fact, I landed in Britain by accident.OLIVER: How is that possible?HENRY: Well, you see, back home I had my own boat. About a month ago, I was sailing out of the bay... (his eyes stare at what is left of the brother's dinner on table)OLIVER: Well, go on.HENRY: Oh, yes. Well, towards nightfall I found myself carried out to sea by a strong wind. It was all my fault. I didn't know whether I could survive until morning. The next morning I'd just about given myself up for lost when I was spotted by a ship.OLIVER: And it was the ship that brought you to England.HENRY: Yes. The fact is that I earned my passage by working as an unpaid hand, which accounts for my appearance. I went to the American embassy to seek help, but... (The brothers smile at each other.)RODERICK: Well, you mustn't worry about that. It's an advantage.HENRY: I'm afraid I don't quite follow you, sir.RODERICK: Tell us, Mr Adams, what sort of work did you do in America?HENRY: I worked for a mining company. Could you offer me some kind of work here?RODERICK: Patience, Mr Adams. If you don't mind, may I ask you how much money you have?HENRY: Well, to be honest, I have none.OLIVER: (happily) What luck! Brother, what luck! (claps his hands together)HENRY: Well, it may seem lucky to you but not to me! On the contrary, in fact. If this is your idea of some kind of joke, I don't think it's very funny. (Henry stands up to leave) Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'll be on my way.RODERICK: Please don't go, Mr Adams. You mustn't think we don't care about you. Oliver, give him the letter.OLIVER: Yes, the letter. (gets it from a desk and gives it to Henry like a gift) The letter.HENRY: (taking it carefully) For me?RODERICK: For you. (Henry starts to open it) Oh, no, you mustn't open it. Not yet. You can't open it until two o'clock.HENRY: Oh, this is silly.RODERICK: Not silly. There's money in it. (calls to the servant) James?HENRY: Oh, no. I don't want your charity. I just want an honest job.RODERICK: We know you're hard-working. That's why we've given you the letter. James, show Mr Adams out.OLIVER: Good luck, Mr Adams.HENRY: Well, why don't you explain what this is all about?RODERICK: You'll soon know. (looks at the clock) In exactly an hour and a half.SERVANT This way, sir.RODERICK: Mr Adams, not until 2 o'clock. Promise?HENRY: Promise. Goodbye.", 'The million pound bank note(2)': "THE MILLION POUND BANK NOTEAct I, Scene 4(Outside a restaurant Henry looks at the envelope without opening it and decides to go in. He sits down at a table next to the front window.)OWNER: (seeing Henry's poor appearance) That one's reserved. This way, please. (to the waiter) Take this gentleman's order, Horace.HENRY: (after sitting down and putting the letter on the table) I'd like some ham and eggs and a nice big steak. Make it extra thick. I'd also like a cup of coffee and a pineapple dessert.WAITER: Right, sir. I'm afraid it'll cost a large amount of money.HENRY: I understand. And I'll have a large glass of beer.WAITER: OK. (The waiter leaves and soon returns with all the food.)HOSTESS: My goodness! Why, look at him. He eats like a wolf.OWNER: We'll see if he's clever as a wolf, eh?HENRY: (having just finished every bit of food) Ah, waiter. (waiter returns) Same thing again, please. Oh, and another beer.WAITER: Again? Everything?HENRY: Yes, that's right. (sees the look on the waiter's face) Anything wrong?WAITER: No, not at all. (to the owner) He's asked for more of the same.OWNER: Well, it is well-known that Americans like to eat a lot. Well, we'll have to take a chance. Go ahead and let him have it.WAITER: (reading the bill after the meal) All right. That's two orders of ham and eggs, two extra thick steaks, two large glasses of beer, two cups of coffee and two desserts.HENRY: (looking at the clock on the wall) Would you mind waiting just a few minutes?WAITER: (in a rude manner) What's there to wait for?OWNER: All right, Horace. I'll take care of this.HENRY: (to owner) That was a wonderful meal. It's amazing how much pleasure you get out of tile simple things in life, especially if you can't have them for a while.OWNER: Yes, very interesting. Now perhaps, sir, if you pay your bill I can help the other customers.HENRY: (looking at the clock on the wall again) Well, I see it's two o'clock. (he opens the envelope and holds a million pound bank note in his hands. Henry is surprised but the owner and waiter are shocked) I'm very sorry. But... I... I don't have anything smaller.OWNER: (still shocked and nervous) Well.. er... just one moment. Maggie, look! (the hostess screams, the other customers look at her and she puts a hand to her mouth) Do you think it's genuine?HOSTESS: Oh, dear, I don't know. I simply don't know.OWNER: Well, I did hear that the Bank of England had issued two notes in this amount... Anyway, I don't think it can be a fake. People would pay too much attention to a bank note of this amount. No thief would want that to happen.HOSTESS: But he's in rags!OWNER: Perhaps he's a very strange, rich man. (as if he has discovered something for the first time) Why, yes! That must be it!HOSTESS: (hits her husband's arm) And you put him in the back of the restaurant! Go and see him at once.OWNER: (to Henry) I'm so sorry, sir, so sorry, but I cannot change this bank note.HENRY: But it's all I have on me.OWNER: Oh, please, don't worry, sir. Doesn't matter at all. We're so very glad that you even entered our little eating place. Indeed, sir, I hope you'll come here whenever you like.HENRY: Well, that's very kind of you.OWNER: Kind, sir? No, it's kind of you. You must come whenever you want and have whatever you like. Just having you sit here is a great honour! As for the bill, sir, please forget it.HENRY: Forget it? Well... thank you very much. That's very nice of you.OWNER: Oh, it's for us to thank you, sir and I do, sir, from the bottom of my heart. (The owner, hostess and waiter all bow as Henry leaves.)", 'How life began on the earth': 'No one knows exactly how the earth began, as it happened so long ago. However, according to a widely accepted theory, the universe began with a "Big Bang" that threw matter in all directions. After that, atoms began to form and combine to create stars and other bodies.For several billion years after the "Big Bang", the earth was still just a cloud of dust. What it was to become was uncertain until between 4.5 and 3.8 billion years ago when the dust settled into a solid globe. The earth became so violent that it was not clear whether the shape would last or not. It exploded loudly with fire and rock. They were in time to produce carbon, nitrogen, water vapour and other gases, which were to make the earth\'s atmosphere. What is even more important is that as the earth cooled down, water began to appear on its surface.Water had also appeared on other planets like Mars but, unlike the earth, it had disappeared later. It was not immediately obvious that water was to be fundamental to the development of life. What many scientists believe is that the continued presence of water allowed the earth to dissolve harmful gases and acids into the oceans and seas. This produced a chain reaction, which made it possible for life to develop.Many millions of years later, the first extremely small plants began to appear on the surface of the water. They multiplied and filled the oceans and seas with oxygen, which encouraged the later development of early shellfish and all sorts of fish. Next, green plants began to grow on land. They were followed in time by land animals. Some were insects. Others, called amphibians, were able to live on land as well as in the water. Later when the plants grew into forests, reptiles appeared for the first time. They produced young generally by laying eggs. After that, some huge animals, called dinosaurs, developed. They laid eggs too and existed on the earth for more than 140 million years. However, 65 million years ago the age of the dinosaurs ended. Why they suddenly disappeared still remains a mystery. This disappearance made possible the rise of mammals on the earth. These animals were different from all life forms in the past, because they gave birth to young baby animals and produced milk to feed them.Finally about 2.6 million years ago some small clever animals, now with hands and feet, appeared and spread all over the earth. Thus they have, in their turn, become the most important animals on the planet. But they are not looking after the earth very well. They are putting too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which prevents heat from escaping from the earth into space. As a result of this, many scientists believe the earth may become too hot to live on. So whether life will continue on the earth for millions of years to come will depend on whether this problem can be solved.', 'A visit to the moon': 'A VISIT TO THE MOONLast month I was lucky enough to have a chance to make a trip into space with my friend Li Yanping, an astronomer. We visited the moon in our spaceship!Before we left, Li Yanping explained to me that the force of gravity would change three times on our journey and that the first change would be the most powerful. Then we were off. As the rocket rose into the air, we were pushed back into our seats because we were trying to escape the pull of the earth\'s gravity. It was so hard that we could not say anything to each other. Gradually the weight lessened and I was able to talk to him. "Why is the spaceship not falling back to the earth? On the earth if I fall from a tree I will fall to the ground." I asked. "We are too far from the earth now to feel its pull," he explained, "so we feel as if there is no gravity at all. When we get closer to the moon, we shall feel its gravity pulling us, but it will not be as strong a pull as the earth\'s." I cheered up immediately and floated weightlessly around in our spaceship cabin watching the earth become smaller and the moon larger.When we got there, I wanted to explore immediately. "Come on," I said. "If you are right, my mass will be less than on the earth because the moon is smaller and I will be able to move more freely. I might even grow taller if I stay here long enough. I shall certainly weigh less!" I laughed and climbed down the steps from the spaceship. But when I tried to step forward, I found I was carried twice as far as on the earth and fell over. "Oh dear," I cried, "walking does need a bit of practice now that gravity has changed." After a while I got the hang of it and we began to enjoy ourselves.Leaving the moon\'s gravity was not as painful as leaving the earth\'s. But returning to the earth was very frightening. We watched, amazed as fire broke out on the outside of the spaceship as the earth\'s gravity increased. Again we were pushed hard into our seats as we came back to land. "That was very exhausting but very exciting too," I said. "Now I know much more about gravity! Do you think we could visit some stars next time?" "Of course," he smiled, "which star would you like to go to?"', "A trip on 'the true north'": 'Li Daiyu and her cousin Liu Qian were on a trip to Canada to visit their cousins in Montreal on the Atlantic coast. Rather than take the aeroplane all the way, they decided to fly to Vancouver and then take the train west to east across Canada. The thought that they could cross the whole continent was exciting.Their friend, Danny Lin, was waiting at the airport. He was going to take them and their baggage to catch "The True North", the cross-Canada train. On the way to the station, he chatted about their trip. "You\'re going to see some great scenery. Going eastward, you\'ll pass mountains and thousands of lakes and forests, as well as wide rivers and large cities. Some people have the idea that you can cross Canada in less than five days, but they forget the fact that Canada is 5,500 kilometres from coast to coast. Here in Vancouver, you\'re in Canada\'s warmest part. People say it is Canada\'s most beautiful city, surrounded by mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Skiing in the Rocky Mountains and sailing in the harbour make Vancouver one of Canada\'s most popular cities to live in. Its population is increasing rapidly. The coast north of Vancouver has some of the oldest and most beautiful forests in the world. It is so wet there that the trees are extremely tall, some measuring over 90 metres."That afternoon aboard the train, the cousins settled down in their seats. Earlier that day, when they crossed the Rocky Mountains, they managed to catch sight of some mountain goats and even a grizzly bear and an eagle. Their next stop was Calgary, which is famous for the Calgary Stampede. Cowboys from all over the world come to compete in the Stampede. Many of them have a gift for riding wild horses and can win thousands of dollars in prizes.After two days\' travel, the girls began to realize that Canada is quite empty. At school, they had learned that most Canadians live within a few hundred kilometres of the USA border, and Canada\'s population is only slightly over thirty million, but now they were amazed to see such an empty country. They went through a wheat-growing province and saw farms that covered thousands of acres. After dinner, they were back in an urban area, the busy port city of Thunder Bay at the top of the Great Lakes. The girls were surprised at the fact that ocean ships can sail up the Great Lakes. Because of the Great Lakes, they learned, Canada has more fresh water than any other country in the world. In fact, it has one-third of the world\'s total fresh water, and much of it is in the Great Lakes.That night as they slept, the train rushed across the top of Lake Superior, through the great forests and southward towards Toronto.', 'The ture north from toronto to montreal': 'THE TURE NORTH"FROM TORONTO TO MONTREALThe next morning the bushes and maple trees outside their windows were red, gold and orange, and there was frost on the ground, confirming that fall had arrived in Canada.Around noon they arrived in Toronto, the biggest and most wealthy city in Canada. They were not leaving for Montreal until later, so they went on a tour of the city. They went up the tall CN Tower and looked across the lake. In the distance, they could see the misty cloud that rose from the great Niagara Falls, which is on the south side of the lake. The water flows into the Niagara River and over the falls on its way to the sea.They saw the covered stadium, home of several famous basketball teams. As they walked north from the harbour area, Li Daiyu said, "Lin Fei, one of my mother\'s old schoolmates, lives here. I should phone her from a telephone booth."They met Lin Fei around dusk in downtown Chinatown, one of the three in Toronto. Over dinner at a restaurant called The Pink Pearl, the cousins chatted with Lin Fei, who had moved to Canada many years earlier. "We can get good Cantonese food here," Lin Fei told them, "because most of the Chinese people here come from South China, especially Hong Kong. It\'s too bad you can\'t go as far as Ottawa, Canada\'s capital. It\'s approximately four hundred kilometres northeast of Toronto, so it would take too long."The train left late that night and arrived in Montreal at dawn the next morning. At the station, people everywhere were speaking French. There were signs and ads in French, but some of them had English words in smaller letters. "We don\'t leave until this evening," said Liu Qian. "Let\'s go downtown. Old Montreal is close to the water." They spent the afternoon in lovely shops and visiting artists in their workplaces beside the water. As they sat in a buffet restaurant looking over the broad St Lawrence River, a young man sat down with them."Hello, my name is Henri. I\'m a student at the university nearby," he said, "and I was wondering where you are from." The girls told him they were on a train trip across Canada and that they had only one day in Montreal. "That\'s too bad," he said. "Montreal is a city with wonderful restaurants and clubs. Most of us speak both English and French, but the city has French culture and traditions. We love good coffee, good bread and good music."That night as the train was speeding along the St Lawrence River toward the Gulf of St Lawrence and down to the distant east coast, the cousins dreamed of French restaurants and red maple leaves.', 'A student of african wildlife': 'It is 5:45 am and the sun is just rising over Gombe National Park in East Africa. Following Jane\'s way of studying chimps, our group are all going to visit them in the forest. Jane has studied these families of chimps for many years and helped people understand how much they behave like humans. Watching a family of chimps wake up is our first activity of the day. This means going back to the place where we left the family sleeping in a tree the night before. Everybody sits and waits in the shade of the trees while the family begins to wake up and move off. Then we follow as they wander into the forest. Most of the time, chimps either feed or clean each other as a way of showing love in their family. Jane warns us that our group is going to be very tired and dirty by the afternoon and she is right. However, the evening makes it all worthwhile. We watch the mother chimp and her babies play in the tree. Then we see them go to sleep together in their nest for the night. We realize that the bond between members of a chimp family is as strong as in a human family.Nobody before Jane fully understood chimp behaviour. She spent years observing and recording their daily activities. Since her childhood she had wanted to work with animals in their own environment. However, this was not easy. When she first arrived in Gombe in 1960, it was unusual for a woman to live in the forest. Only after her mother came to help her for the first few months was she allowed to begin her project. Her work changed the way people think about chimps. For example, one important thing she discovered was that chimps hunt and eat meat. Until then everyone had thought chimps ate only fruit and nuts. She actually observed chimps as a group hunting a monkey and then eating it. She also discovered how chimps communicate with each other, and her study of their body language helped her work out their social system.For forty years Jane Goodall has been outspoken about making the rest of the world understand and respect the life of these animals. She has argued that wild animals should be left in the wild and not used for entertainment or advertisements. She has helped to set up special places where they can live safely. She is leading a busy life but she says: "Once I stop, it all comes crowding in and I remember the chimps in laboratories. It\'s terrible. It affects me when I watch the wild chimps. I say to myself, \'Aren\'t they lucky?" And then I think about small chimps in cages though they have done nothing wrong. Once you have seen that you can never forget..."She has achieved everything she wanted to do: working with animals in their own environment, gaining a doctor\'s degree and showing that women can live in the forest as men can. She inspires those who want to cheer the achievements of women.', 'Why not carry on her good work': "WHY NOT CARRY ON HER GOOD WORK?I enjoyed English, biology, and chemistry at school, but which one should I choose to study at university? I did not know the answer until one evening when I sat down at the computer to do some research on great women of China.By chance I came across an article about a doctor called Lin Qiaozhi, a specialist in women's diseases. She lived from 1901 to 1983. It seemed that she had been very busy in her chosen career, travelling abroad to study as well as writing books and articles. One of them caught my eye. It was a small book explaining how to cut the death rate from having and caring for babies. She gave some simple rules to follow for keeping babies clean, healthy and free from sickness. Why did she write that? Who were the women that Lin Qiaozhi thought needed this advice? I looked carefully at the text and realized that it was intended for women in the countryside. Perhaps if they had an emergency they could not reach a doctor.Suddenly it hit me how difficult it was for a woman to get medical training at that time. That was a generation when girls' education was always placed second to boys'. Was she so much cleverer than anyone else? Further reading made me realize that it was hard work and determination as well as her gentle nature that got her into medical school. What made her succeed later on was the kindness and consideration she showed to all her patients. There was story after story of how Lin Qiaozhi, tired after a day's work, went late at night to deliver a baby for a poor family who could not pay her.By now I could not wait to find out more about her. I discovered that Lin Qiaozhi had devoted her whole life to her patients and had chosen not to have a family of her own. Instead she made sure that about 50,000 babies were safely delivered. By this time I was very excited. Why not study at medical college like Lin Qiaozhi and carry on her good work? It was still not too late for me to improve my studies, prepare for the university entrance examinations, and... .", 'A pioneer for all people': "Although he is one of China's most famous scientists, Yuan Longping considers himself a farmer, for he works the land to do his research. Indeed, his sunburnt face and arms and his slim, strong body are just like those of millions of Chinese farmers, for whom he has struggled for the past five decades. Dr Yuan Longping grows what is called super hybrid rice. In 1974, he became the first agricultural pioneer in the world to grow rice that has a high output. This special strain of rice makes it possible to produce one-third more of the crop in the same fields. Now more than 60% of the rice produced in China each year is from this hybrid strain.Born into a poor farmer's family in 1930, Dr Yuan graduated from Southwest Agricultural College in 1953. Since then, finding ways to grow more rice has been his life goal. As a young man, he saw the great need for increasing the rice output. At that time, hunger was a disturbing problem in many parts of the countryside. Dr Yuan searched for a way to increase rice harvests without expanding the area of the fields. In 1950, Chinese farmers could produce only fifty million tons of rice. In a recent harvest, however, nearly two hundred million tons of rice was produced. These increased harvests mean that 22% of the world's people are fed from just 7% of the farmland in China. Dr Yuan is now circulating his knowledge in India, Vietnam and many other less developed countries to increase their rice harvests. Thanks to his research, the UN has more tools in the battle to rid the world of hunger. Using his hybrid rice, farmers are producing harvests twice as large as before.Dr Yuan is quite satisfied with his life. However, he doesn't care about being famous. He feels it gives him less freedom to do his research. He would much rather keep time for his hobbles. He enjoys listening to violin music, playing mah-jong, swimming and reading. Spending money on himself or leading a comfortable life also means very little to him. Indeed, he believes that a person with too much money has more rather than fewer troubles. He therefore gives millions of yuan to equip others for their research in agriculture.Just dreaming for things, however, costs nothing. Long ago Dr yuan had a dream about rice plants as tall as sorghum. Each ear of rice was as big as an ear of corn and each grain of rice was as huge as a peanut. Dr Yuan awoke from his dream with the hope of producing a kind of rice that could feed more people. Now, many years later, Dr Yuan has another dream: to export his rice so that it can be grown around the globe. One dream is not always enough, especially for a person who loves and cares for his people.", 'Chemical or organic farming': "CHEMICAL OR ORGANIC FARMING?Over the past half century, using chemical fertilizers has become very common in farming. Many farmers welcomed them as a great way to stop crop disease and increase production. Recently, however, scientists have been finding that long-term use of these fertilizers can cause damage to the land and, even more dangerous, to people's health.What are some of the problems caused by chemical fertilizers? First, they damage the land by killing the helpful bacteria and pests as well as the harmful ones. Chemicals also stay in the ground and underground water for a long time. This affects crops and, therefore, animals and humans, since chemicals get inside the crops and cannot just be washed off. These chemicals in the food supply build up in people's bodies over time. Many of these chemicals can lead to cancer or other illnesses. In addition, fruit, vegetables and other food grown with chemical fertilizers usually grow too fast to be full of much nutrition. They may look beautiful, but inside there is usually more water than vitamins and minerals.With these discoveries, some farmers and many customers are beginning to turn to organic farming. Organic farming is simply farming without using any chemicals. They focus on keeping their soil rich and free of disease. A healthy soil reduces disease and helps crops grow strong and healthy. Organic farmers, therefore, often prefer using natural waste from animals as fertilizer. They feel that this makes the soil in their fields richer in minerals and so more fertile. This also keeps the air, soil, water and crops free from chemicals.Organic farmers also use many other methods to keep the soil fertile. They often change the kind of crop in each field every few years, for example, growing corn or wheat and then the next year peas or soybeans. Crops such as peas or soybeans put important minerals back into the soil, making it ready for crops such as wheat or corn that need rich and fertile soil. Organic farmers also plant crops to use different levels of soil, for example, planting peanuts that use the ground's surface followed by vegetables that put down deep roots. Some organic farmers prefer planting grass between crops to prevent wind or water from carrying away the soil, and then leaving it in the ground to become a natural fertilizer for the next year's crop. These many different organic farming methods have the same goal: to grow good food and avoid damaging the environment or people's health.", 'A master of nonverbal humour': 'As Victor Hugo once said, "Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face", and up to now nobody has been able to do this better than Charlie Chaplin. He brightened the lives of Americans and British through two world wars and the hard years in between. He made people laugh at a time when they felt depressed, so they could feel more content with their lives.Not that Charlie\'s own life was easy! He was born in a poor family in 1889. His parents were both poor music hall performers. You may find it astonishing that Charlie was taught to sing as soon as he could speak and dance as soon as he could walk. Such training was common in acting families at this time, especially when the family income was often uncertain. Unfortunately his father died, leaving the family even worse off, so Charlie spent his childhood looking after his sick mother and his brother. By his teens, Charlie had, through his humour, become one of the most popular child actors in England. He could mime and act the fool doing ordinary everyday tasks. No one was ever bored watching him -his subtle acting made everything entertaining.As time went by, he began making films. He grew more and more popular as his charming character, the little tramp, became known throughout the world. The tramp, a poor, homeless man with a moustache, wore large trousers, worn-out shoes and a small round black hat. He walked around stilly carrying a walking stick. This character was a social failure but was loved for his optimism and determination to overcome all difficulties. He was the underdog who was kind even when others were unkind to him.How did the little tramp make a sad situation entertaining? Here is an example from one of his most famous films, The Gold Rush. It is the mid-nineteenth century and gold has just been discovered in California. Like so many others, the little tramp and his friend have rushed there in search of gold, but without success. Instead they are hiding in a small hut on the edge of a mountain during a snowstorm with nothing to eat. They are so hungry that they try boiling a pair of leather shoes for their dinner. Charlie first picks out the laces and eats them as if they were spaghetti. Then he cuts off the leather top of the shoe as if it were the finest steak. Finally he tries cutting and chewing the bottom of the shoe. He eats each mouthful with great enjoyment. The acting is so convincing that it makes you believe that it is one of the best meals he has ever tasted!Charlie Chaplin wrote, directed and produced the films he starred in. In 1972 he was given a special Oscar for his outstanding work in films. He lived in England and the USA but spent his last years in Switzerland, where he was buried in 1977. He is loved and remembered as a great actor who could inspire people with great confidence.', 'English jokes': 'ENGLISH JOKES1 There are thousands of jokes which use "play on words" to amuse us. One person asks a question which expects a particular reply. Instead, what he gets is another kind of answer which makes the situation funny. Now read some of these customer and waiter jokes. Can you match the joke with the explanation?1C: What\'s that fly doing in my soup?W: Swimming, I think!2C: What\'s that?W: It\'s bean soup.C: I don\'t want to know what it\'s been. I wantto know what it is now.3C: Waiter, will the pancakes be long?W: No, sir. Round.2 Some jokes are longer and tell a short, funny story. The following is one of those jokes about the famous detective Sherlock Holmes and his friend Doctor Watson. Read it and decide which of these two kinds of jokes you like better. Give your reasons.Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson went camping in a mountainous area. They were lying in the open air under the stars. Sherlock Holmes looked up at the stars and whispered, "Watson, when you look at that beautiful sky, what do you think of?" Watson replied, "I think of how short life is and how long the universe has lasted." "No, no, Watson!" Holmes said. "What do you really think of?" Watson tried again. "I think of how small I am and how vast the sky is." "Try again, Watson!" said Holmes. Watson tried a third time. "I think of how cold the universe is and how warm people can be in their beds." Holmes said, "Watson, you fool! You should be thinking that someone has stolen our tent!"', 'Communication no problem': 'Yesterday, another student and I, representing our university\'s student association, went to the Capital International Airport to meet this year\'s international students. They were coming to study at Beijing University. We would take them first to their dormitories and then to the student canteen. After half an hour of waiting for their flight to arrive, I saw several young people enter the waiting area looking around curiously. I stood for a minute watching them and then went to greet them.The first person to arrive was Tony Garcia from Colombia, closely followed by Julia Smith from Britain. After I met them and then introduced them to each other, I was very surprised. Tony approached Julia, touched her shoulder and kissed her on the cheek! She stepped back appearing surprised and put up her hands, as if in defence. I guessed that there was probably a major misunderstanding. Then Akira Nagata from Japan came in smiling, together with George Cook from Canada. As they were introduced, George reached his hand out to the Japanese student. Just at that moment, however, Akira bowed so his nose touched George\'s moving hand. They both apologized - another cultural mistake!Ahmed Aziz, another international student, was from Jordan. When we met yesterday, he moved very close to me as I introduced myself. I moved back a bit, but he came closer to ask a question and then shook my hand. When Darlene Coulon from France came dashing through the door, she recognized Tony Garcia\'s smiling face. They shook hands and then kissed each other twice on each cheek, since that is the French custom when adults meet people they know. Ahmed Aziz., on the contrary, simply nodded at the girls. Men from Middle Eastern and other Muslim countries will often stand quite close to other men to talk but will usually not touch women.As I get to know more international friends, I learn more about this cultural "body language". Not all cultures greet each other the same way, nor are they comfortable in the same way with touching or distance between people. In the same way that people communicate with spoken language, they also express their feelings using unspoken "language" through physical distance, actions or posture. English people, for example, do not usually stand very close to others or touch strangers as soon as they meet. However, people from places like Spain, Italy or South American countries approach others closely and are more likely to touch them. Most people around the world now greet each other by shaking hands, but some cultures use other greetings as well, such as the Japanese, who prefer to bow.These actions are not good or bad, but are simply ways in which cultures have developed. I have seen, however, that cultural customs for body language are very general - not all members of a culture behave in the same way. In general, though, studying international customs can certainly help avoid difficulties in today\'s world of cultural crossroads!', 'Showing our feelings': 'SHOWING OUR FEELINGSBody language is one of the most powerful means of communication, often even more powerful than spoken language. People around the world show all kinds of feelings, wishes and attitudes that they might never speak aloud. It is possible to "read" others around us, even if they do not intend for us to catch their unspoken communication. Of course, body language can be misread, but many gestures and actions are universal.The most universal facial expression is, of course, the smile – its function is to show happiness and put people at ease. It does not always mean that we are truly happy, however. Smiles around the world can be false, hiding other feelings like anger, fear or worry. There are unhappy smiles, such as when someone "loses face" and smiles to hide it. However, the general purpose of smiling is to show good feelings.From the time we are babies, we show unhappiness or anger by frowning. In most places around the world, frowning and turning one\'s back to someone shows anger. Making a fist and shaking it almost always means that someone is angry and threatening another person.There are many ways around the world to show agreement, but nodding the head up and down is used for agreement, almost worldwide. Most people also understand that shaking the head from side to side means disagreement or refusal.How about showing that I am bored? Looking away from people or yawning will, in most cases, make me appear to be uninterested. However, if I turn toward and look at someone or something, people from almost every culture will think that I am interested. If I roll my eyes and turn my head away, I most likely do not believe what I am hearing or do not like it.Being respectful to people is subjective, based on each culture, but in general it is probably not a good idea to give a hug to a boss or teacher. In almost every culture, it is not usually good to stand too close to someone of a higher rank. Standing at a little distance with open hands will show that I am willing to listen.With so many cultural differences between people, it is great to have some similarities in body language. We can often be wrong about each other, so it is an amazing thing that we understand each other as well as we do!', 'Theme parks - fun and more than fun': "Which theme park would you like to visit? There are various kinds of theme parks, with a different park for almost everything: food, culture, science, cartoons, movies or history. Some parks are famous for having the biggest or longest roller coasters, others for showing the famous sights and sounds of a culture. Whichever and whatever you like, there is a theme park for you!The theme park you are probably most familiar with is Disneyland. It can be found in several parts of the world. It will bring you into a magical world and make your dreams come true, whether traveling through space, visiting a pirate ship or meeting your favourite fairy tale or Disney cartoon character. As you wander around the fantasy amusement park, you may see Snow White or Mickey Mouse in a parade or on the street. Of course Disneyland also has many exciting rides, from giant swinging ships to terrifying free-fall drops. With all these attractions, no wonder tourism is increasing wherever there is a Disneyland. If you want to have fun and more than fun, come to Disneyland!Dollywood, in the beautiful Smoky Mountains in the southeastern USA, is one of the most unique theme parks in the world. Dollywood shows and celebrates America's traditional southeastern culture. Although Dollywood has rides, the park's main attraction is its culture. Famous country music groups perform there all year in indoor and outdoor theatres. People come from all over America to see carpenters and other craftsmen make wood, glass and iron objects in the old-fashioned way. Visit the candy shop to try the same kind of candy that American southerners made 150 years ago, or take a ride on the only steam- engine train still working in the southeast USA. You can even see beautiful bald eagles in the world's largest bald eagle preserve. And for those who like rides, Dollywood has one of the best old wooden roller coasters, Thunderhead. It is world-famous for having the most length in the smallest space. Come to Dollywood to have fun learning all about America's historical southeastern culture!If you want to experience the ancient days and great deeds of English knights and ladies, princes and queens, then England's Camelot Park is the place for you. Every area of the park is modelled after life in the days of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. In one place, you can watch magic shows with Merlin the Wizard. If you want to see fighting with swords or on horseback, then the jousting area is a good place to visit. If you do well there, King Arthur may choose you to fight in the big jousting tournament. Do you like animals? Then visit the farm area, and learn how people in ancient England ran their farms and took care of their animals. To enter a world of fantasy about ancient England, come to Camelot Park!", 'Futuroscop -excitement and learning': "FUTUROSCOP -EXCITEMENT AND LEARNINGLast week I took a journey deep into space, to the end of the solar system, and was pulled into a black hole. Then I took a trip to Brazil and experienced surviving an airplane crash in the jungle. After that, I joined some divers and went to the bottom of the ocean to see strange blind creatures that have never seen sunlight. For a break, I took part in some car racing and then skied down some of the most difficult mountains in the world. I ended my travels by meeting face to face with a dinosaur, the terrible T-Rex, and survived the experience!I did all this in one great day at Futuroscope. Opened in 1987, Futuroscope is one of the largest space-age parks in the world. This science and technology-based theme park in France uses the most advanced technology. Its 3-D cinemas and giant movie screens provide brand new experiences of the earth and beyond. Visitors can get close to parts of the world they have never experienced, going to the bottom of the ocean, flying through the jungle or visiting the edges of the solar system. The amazing, up-to-date information together with many opportunities for hands-on learning makes the world come to life in a completely new way for visitors. Learning centres throughout the park let visitors try their own scientific experiments, as well as learn more about space travel, the undersea world and much mote.I bought tickets for myself and my friends at the park's entrance, but tickets are also available online. Futuroscope is not only for individuals, but is also the perfect mix of fun and learning for class outings. Classes or other large groups that let Futuroscope know their plans in advance can get the group admission rate. For anyone coming from out of town, Futuroscope has many excellent hotels nearby, most of which provide a shuttle service to the park. If driving, Futuroscope is within easy reach of the freeway. Plan your trip well before starting, since Futuroscope has so many shows, activities and great souvenir shops that it is difficult to see them all. Come ready to walk a lot - be sure to wear some comfortable sneakers or other walking shoes!", "Johh show defeats 'king cholera'": 'John Snow was a famous doctor in London - so expert, indeed, that he attended Queen Victoria as her personal physician. But he became inspired when he thought about helping ordinary people exposed to cholera. This was the deadly disease of its day. Neither its cause nor its cure was understood. So many thousands of terrified people died every time there was an outbreak. John Snow wanted to face the challenge and solve this problem. He knew that cholera would never be controlled until its cause was found.He became interested in two theories that possibly explained how cholera killed people. The first suggested that cholera multiplied in the air. A cloud of dangerous gas floated around until it found its victims. The second suggested that people absorbed this disease into their bodies with their meals. From the stomach the disease quickly attacked the body and soon the affected person died.John Snow suspected that the second theory was correct but he needed evidence. So when another outbreak hit London in 1854, he was ready to begin his enquiry. As the disease spread quickly through poor neighbourhoods, he began to gather information. In two particular streets, the cholera outbreak was so severe that more than 500 people died in ten days. He was determined to find out why.First he marked on a map the exact places where all the dead people had lived. This gave him a valuable clue about the cause of the disease. Many of the deaths were near the water pump in Broad Street (especially numbers 16, 37, 38 and 40). He also noticed that some houses (such as 20 and 21 Broad Street and 8 and 9 Cambridge Street) had had no deaths. He had not foreseen this, so he made further investigations. He discovered that these people worked in the pub at 7 Cambridge Street. They had been given free beer and so had not drunk the water from the pump. It seemed that the water was to blame.Next, John Snow looked into the source of the water for these two streets. He found that it came from the river polluted by the dirty water from London. He immediately told the astonished people in Broad Street to remove the handle from the pump so that it could not be used. Soon afterwards the disease slowed down. He had shown that cholera was spread by germs and not in a cloud of gas.In another part of London, he found supporting evidence from two other deaths that were linked to the Broad Street outbreak. A woman, who had moved away from Broad Street, liked the water from the pump so much that she had it delivered to her house every day. Both she and her daughter died of cholera after drinking the water. With this extra evidence John Snow was able to announce with certainty that polluted water carried the virus.To prevent this from happening again, John Snow suggested that the source of all the water supplies be examined. The water companies were instructed not to expose people to polluted water any more. Finally "King Cholera" was defeated.', "Copernicus' revolutionrry theory": "COPERNICUS' REVOLUTIONRRY THEORYNicolaus Copernicus was frightened and his mind was confused. Although he had tried to ignore them, all his mathematical calculations led to the same conclusion: that the earth was not the centre of the solar system. Only if you put the sun there did the movements of the other planets in the sky make sense. Yet he could not tell anyone about his theory as the powerful Christian Church would have punished him for even suggesting such an idea. They believed God had made the world and for that reason the earth was special and must be the centre of the solar system.The problem arose because astronomers had noticed that some planets in the sky seemed to stop, move backward and then go forward in a loop. Others appeared brighter at times and less bright at others. This was very strange if the earth was the centre of the solar system and all planets went round it.Copernicus had thought long and hard about these problems and tried to find an answer. He had collected observations of the stars and used all his mathematical knowledge to explain them. But only his new theory could do that. So between 1510 and 1514 he worked on it, gradually improving his theory until he felt it was complete.In 1514 he showed it privately to his friends. The changes he made to the old theory were revolutionary. He placed a fixed sun at the centre of the solar system with the planets going round it and only the moon still going round the earth. He also suggested that the earth was spinning as it went round the sun and this explained changes in the movement of the planets and in the brightness of the stars. His friends were enthusiastic and encouraged him to publish his ideas, but Copernicus was cautious. He did not want to be attacked by the Christian Church, so he only published it as he lay dying in 1543.Certainly he was right to be careful. The Christian Church rejected his theory, saying it was against God's idea and people who supported it would be attacked. Yet Copernicus' theory is now the basis on which all our ideas of the universe are built. His theory replaced the Christian idea of gravity, which said things fell to earth because God created the earth as the centre of the universe. Copernicus showed this was obviously wrong. Now people can see that there is a direct link between his theory and the work of Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking.", 'Puzzles in geography': 'People may wonder why different words are used to describe these four countries: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. You can clarify this question if you study British history.First there was England. Wales was linked to it in the thirteenth century. Now when people refer to England you find Wales included as well. Next England and Wales were joined to Scotland in the seventeenth century and the name was changed to "Great Britain". Happily this was accomplished without conflict when King James of Scotland became King of England and Wales as well. Finally the English government tried in the early twentieth century to form the United Kingdom by getting Ireland connected in the same peaceful way. However, the southern part of Ireland was unwilling and broke away to form its own government. So only Northern Ireland joined with England, Wales and Scotland to become the United Kingdom and this was shown to the world in a new flag called the Union Jack.To their credit the four countries do work together in some areas (eg, the currency and international relations), but they still have very different institutions. For example, Northern Ireland, England and Scotland have different educational and legal systems as well as different football teams for competitions like the World Cup!England is the largest of the four countries, and for convenience it is divided roughly into three zones. The zone nearest France is called the South of England, the middle zone is called the Midlands and the one nearest to Scotland is known as the North. You find most of the population settled in the south, but most of the industrial cities in the Midlands and the North of England. Although, nationwide, these cities are not as large as those in China, they have world-famous football teams and some of them even have two! It is a pity that the industrial cities built in the nineteenth century do not attract visitors. For historical architecture you have to go to older but smaller towns built by the Romans. There you will find out more about British history and culture.The greatest historical treasure of all is London with its museums, art collections, theatres, parks and buildings. It is the centre of national government and its administration. It has the oldest port built by the Romans in the first century AD, the oldest building begun by the Anglo-Saxons in the 1060s and the oldest castle constructed by later Norman rulers in 1066. There has been four sets of invaders of England. The first invaders, the Romans, left their towns and roads. The second, the Anglo-Saxons, left their language and their government. The third, the Vikings, influenced the vocabulary and place-names of the North of England, and the fourth, the Normans, left castles and introduced new words for food.If you look around the British countryside you will find evidence of all these invaders. You must keep your eyes open if you are going to make your trip to the United Kingdom enjoyable and worthwhile.', 'Sightseeing in london': 'SIGHTSEEING IN LONDONWorried about the time available, Zhang Pingyu had made a list of the sites she wanted to see in London. Her first delight was going to the Tower. It was built long ago by the Norman invaders of AD 1066. Fancy! This solid stone, square tower had remained standing for one thousand years. Although the buildings had expanded around it, it remained part of a royal palace and prison combined. To her great surprise, Zhang Pingyu found the Queen\'s jewels guarded by special royal soldiers who, on special occasions, still wore the four-hundred-year-old uniform of the time of Queen Elizabeth I.There followed St Paul\'s Cathedral built after the terrible fire of London in 1666. It looked splendid when first built! Westminster Abbey, too, was very interesting. It contained statues in memory of dead poets and writers, such as Shakespeare. Then just as she came out of the abbey, Pingyu heard the famous sound of the clock, Big Ben, ringing out the hour. She finished the day by looking at the outside of Buckingham Palace, the Queen\'s house in London. Oh, she had so much to tell her friends!The second day the girl visited Greenwich and saw its old ships and famous clock that sets the world time. What interested her most was the longitude line. It is an imaginary line dividing the eastern and western halves of the world and is very useful for navigation. It passes through Greenwich, so Pingyu had a photo taken standing on either side of the line.The last day she visited Karl Marx\'s statue in Highgate Cemetery. It seemed strange that the man who had developed communism should have lived and died in London. Not only that, but he had worked in the famous reading room of the Library of the British Museum. Sadly the library had moved from its original place into another building and the old reading room was gone. But she was thrilled by so many wonderful treasures from different cultures displayed in the museum. When she saw many visitors enjoying looking at the beautiful old Chinese pots and other objects on show, she felt very proud of her country.The next day Pingyu was leaving London for Windsor Castle. "Perhaps I will see the Queen?" she wondered as she fell asleep.', 'First impressions': 'Spacemall: [email protected]/11/3008 (Earthtime)Dear Mum and Dad, I still cannot believe that I am taking up this prize that I won last year. I have to remind myself constantly that I am really in AD 3008. Worried about the journey, I was unsettled for the first few days. As a result, I suffered from "Time lag". This is similar to the "jet lag" you get from flying, but it seems you keep getting flashbacks from your previous time period. So I was very nervous and uncertain at first. However, my friend and guide, Wang Ping, was very understanding and gave me some green tablets which helped a lot. Well-known for their expertise, his parents\' company, called "Future Tours", transported me safely into the future in a time capsule.I can still remember the moment when the space stewardess called us all to the capsule and we climbed in through a small opening. The seats were comfortable and after a calming drink, we felt sleepy and closed our eyes. The capsule began swinging gently sideways as we lay relaxed and dreaming. A few minutes later, the journey was completed and we had arrived. I was still on the earth but one thousand years in the future. What would I find?At first my new surroundings were difficult to tolerate. The air seemed thin, as though its combination of gases had little oxygen left. Hit by a lack of fresh air, my head ached. Just as I tried to make the necessary adjustment to this new situation, Wang Ping appeared. "Put on this mask," he advised. "It\'ll make you feel much better." He handed it to me and immediately hurried me through to a small room nearby for a rest. I felt better in no time. Soon I was back on my feet again and following him to collect a hovering carriage driven by computer. These carriages float above the ground and by bending or pressing down in your seat, you can move swiftly. Wang Ping fastened my safety belt and showed me how to use it. Soon I could fly as fast as him. However, I lost sight of Wang Ping when we reached what looked like a large market because of too many carriages flying by in all directions. He was swept up into the centre of them. Just at that moment I had a "time lag" flashback and saw the area again as it had been in the year AD 2008. I realized that I had been transported into the future of what was still my hometown! Then I caught sight of Wang Ping again and flew after him.Arriving at a strange-looking house, he showed me into a large, bright clean room. It had a green wall, a brown floor and soft lighting. Suddenly the wall moved - it was made of trees! I found later that their leaves provided the room with much-needed oxygen. Then Wang Ping flashed a switch on a computer screen, and a table and some chairs rose from under the floor as if by magic. "Why not sit down and eat a little?" he said. "You may find this difficult as it is your first time travel trip. Just relax, since there is nothing planned on the timetable today. Tomorrow you\'ll be ready for some visits." Having said this, he spread some food on the table, and produced a bed from the floor. After he left, I had a brief meal and a hot bath. Exhausted, I slid into bed and fell fast asleep.More news later from your loving son,Li Qiang', 'I have seen amazing things': 'I HAVE SEEN AMAZING THINGSMy first visit was to a space station considered the most modem in space. Described as an enormous round plate, it spins slowly in space to imitate the pull of the earth\'s gravity. Inside was an exhibition of the most up-to-date inventions of the 31st century. A guide (G) showed us around along a moveable path.G: Good morning to all our visitors from 2008. First we\'re going to examine one of the latest forms of communication among our space citizens. No more typists working on a typewriter or computer! No more postage or postcodes! Messages can now be sent using a "thoughtpad". You place the metal band over your head, clear your mind, press the sending button, think your message and the next instant it\'s sent. It\'s stored on the "thoughtpad" of the receiver. It\'s quick, efficient and environmentally friendly. The only limitation is if the user does not think his or her message clearly, an unclear message may be sent. But we cannot blame the tools for the faults of the user, can we?During the explanation I looked at the pair of small objects called "thoughtpads" on a table. They just looked like metal ribbons. So ordinary but so powerful! While I was observing them, the path moved us on.G: And now ladies and gentlemen, we are in the "environment area". People used to collect waste in dustbins. Then the rubbish was sent to be buried or burned, am I fight? (We nodded.) Well, now there\'s a system where the waste is disposed of using the principles of ecology. A giant machine, always greedy for more, swallows all the waste available. The rubbish is turned into several grades of useful material, such as "fertilizer" for the fields and "soil" for deserts. Nothing is wasted, and everything, even plastic bags, is recycled. A great idea, isn\'t\' it?I stared at the moving model of the waste machine, absorbed by its efficiency. But again we moved on.G: Our third stop shows the changes that have happened to work practices. Manufacturing no longer takes place on the earth but on space stations like this one. A group of engineers programme robots to perform tasks in space. The robots produce goods such as drugs, clothes, furniture, hovering carriages, etc. There is no waste, no pollution and no environmental damage! However, the companies have to train their representatives to live and work in space settlements. They have to monitor the robots and the production. When the goods are ready they\'re transported by industrial spaceship back to earth.My mind began to wander. What job would I do? My motivation increased as I thought of the wonderful world of the future.', 'My first work assignment': 'MY FIRST WORK ASSIGNMENT"Unforgettable", says new journalistNever will Zhou Yang (ZY) forget his first assignment at the office of a popular English newspaper. His discussion with his new boss, Hu Xin (HX), was to strongly influence his life as a journalist.HX: Welcome. We\'re delighted you\'re coming to work with us. Your first job here will be an assistant journalist. Do you have any questions?ZY: Can I go out on a story immediately?HX:(laughing) That\' s admirable, but I\' m afraid it would be unusual ! Wait till you\'re more experienced. First we\'ll put you as an assistant to an experienced journalist. Later you can cover a story and submit the article yourself.ZY: Wonderful. What do I need to take with me? I already have a notebook and camera.HX: No need for a camera. You\'ll have a professional photographer with you to take photographs. You\'ll find your colleagues very eager to assist you, so you may be able to concentrate on photography later if you\'re interested.ZY: Thank you. Not only am I interested in photography, but I took an amateur course at university to update my skills.HX: Good.ZY: What do I need to remember when I go out to cover a story?HX: You need to be curious. Only if you ask many different questions will you acquire all the information you need to know. We say a good journalist must have a good "nose" for a story. That means you must be able to assess when people are not telling the whole troth and then try to discover it. They must use research to inform themselves of the missing parts of the story.ZY: What should I keep in mind?HX: Here comes my list of dos and don\'ts: don\'t miss your deadline, don\'t be rode, don\'t talk too much, but make sure you listen to the interviewee carefully.ZY: Why is listening so important?HX: Well, you have to listen for detailed facts. Meanwhile you have to prepare the next question depending on what the person says.ZY: But how can I listen carefully while taking notes?HX: This is a trick of the trade, If the interviewee agrees, you can use a recorder to get the facts straight. It\'s also useful if a person wants to challenge you. You have the evidence to support your story.ZY: I see! Have you ever had a case where someone accused your journalists of getting the wrong end of the stick?HX: Yes, but it was a long time ago. This is how the story goes. A footballer was accused of taking money for deliberately not scoring goals so as to let the other team win. We went to interview him. He denied taking money but we were skeptical. So we arranged an interview between the footballer and the man supposed to bribe him. When we saw them together we guessed from the footballer\'s body language that he was not telling the truth. So we wrote an article suggesting he was guilty. It was a dilemma because the footballer could have demanded damages if we were wrong. He tried to stop us publishing it but later we were proved right.ZY: Wow! That was a real "scoop". I\'m looking forward to my first assignment now. Perhaps I\'ll get a scoop too!HX: Perhaps you will. You never know.', "Getting the 'scoop'": 'GETTING THE "SCOOP""Quick," said the editor. "Get that story ready. We need it in this edition to be ahead of the other newspapers. This is a scoop." Zhou Yang had just come back into the office after an interview with a famous film star. "Did he really do that?" asked someone from the International News Department. "Yes, I\' m afraid he did," Zhou Yang answered. He set to work.His first task was to write his story, but he had to do it carefully. Although he realized the man had been lying, Zhou Yang knew he must not accuse him directly. He would have to be accurate. Concise too! He knew how to do that. Months of training had taught him to write with no wasted words or phrases. He sat down at his computer and began to work.The first person who saw his article was a senior editor from his department. He checked the evidence, read the article and passed it on to the copy-editor. She began to edit the piece and design the main headline and smaller heading. "This will look very good on the page," she said. "Where is a good picture of this man?" Then as the article was going to be written in English Zhou Yang also took a copy to the native speaker employed by the newspaper to polish the style. She was also very happy with Zhou Yang\'s story. "You are really able to write a good front page article," she said. Zhou Yang smiled with happiness. Last of all, the chief editor read it and approved it. "Well done," he said to Zhou Yang. "But please show me your evidence so we\'re sure we\'ve got our facts straight." "I\'ll bring it to you immediately," said Zhou Yang excitedly.The news desk editor took the story and began to work on all the stories and photos until all the pages were set. All the information was then ready to be processed into film negatives. This was the first stage of the printing process. They needed four negatives, as several colours were going to be used on the story. Each of the main colours had one negative sheet and when they were combined they made a coloured page for the newspaper. After one last check the page was ready to be printed. Zhou Yang waited excitedly for the first copies to be ready. "Wait 611 tonight," his friend whispered. "I expect there will be something about this on the television news. A real scoop!"', 'First aid for burns': "FIRST AID FOR BURNSThe skin is an essential part of your body and its largest organ. You have three layers of skin which act as a barrier against disease, poisons and the sun's harmful rays. The functions of your skin are also very complex: it keeps you warm or cool; it prevents your body from losing too much water; it is where you feel cold, heat or pain and it gives you your sense of touch. So as you can imagine, if your skin gets burned it can be very serious. First aid is a very important first step in the treatment of bums.Causes of burnsYou can get burned by a variety of things: hot liquids, steam, fire, radiation (by being close to high heat or fire, etc), the sun, electricity or chemicals.Types of burnsThere are three types of burns. Burns are called first, second or third degree burns, depending on which layers of the skin are burned.First degree burns These affect only the top layer of the skin. These burns are not serious and should feel better within a day or two. Examples include mild sunburn and burns caused by touching a hot pan, stove or iron for a mordent.Second degree burns These affect both the top and the second layer of the skin. These bums are serious and take a few weeks to heal. Examples include severe sunburn and bums caused by hot liquids.Third degree burns These affect all three layers of the skin and any tissue and organs under the skin. Examples include burns caused by electric shocks, burning clothes, or severe petrol fires. These burns cause very severe injuries and the victim must go to hospital at once.Characteristics of burnsFirst degree burnsdry, red and mildly swollenmildly painfulturn white when pressedSecond degree burnsrough, red and swollenblisterswatery surfaceextremely painfulThird degree burnsblack and white and charredswollen; often tissue under them can be seenlittle or no pain if nerves are damaged; may be pain around edge of injured area.First aid treatment1 Remove clothing using scissors if necessary unless it is stuck to the burn. Take off other clothing and jewellery near the burn.2 Cool burns immediately with cool but not icy water. It is best to place burns under gently running water for about 10 minutes. (The cool water stops the burning process, prevents the pain becoming unbearable and reduces swelling.) Do not put cold water on third degree burns.3 For first degree burns, place cool, clean, wet cloths on them until the pain is not so bad. For second degree burns, keep cloths cool by putting them back in a basin of cold water, squeezing them out and placing them on the burned area over and over again for about an hour until the pain is not so bad.4 Dry the burned area gently. Do not rob, as this may break any blisters and the wound may get infected.5 Cover the burned area with a dry, clean bandage that will not stick to the skin. Hold the bandage in place with tape. Never put butter, oil or ointment on bums as they keep the heat in the wounds and may cause infection.6 If bums are on arms or legs, keep them higher than the heart, if possible. If bums are on the face, the victim should sit up.7 If the injuries are second or third degree bums, it is vital to get the victim to the doctor or hospital at once.", 'Heroic teenager receives award': 'Seventeen-year-old teenager, John Janson, was honoured at the Lifesaver Awards last night in Rivertown for giving lifesaving first aid on his neighbour after a shocking knife attack.John was presented with his award at a ceremony which recognized the bravery of ten people who had saved the life of another.John was studying in his room when he heard screaming. When he and his father rushed outside, a man ran from the scene. They discovered that Anne Slade, mother of three, had been stabbed repeatedly with a knife. She was lying in her front garden bleeding very heavily. Her hands had almost been cut off.It was John\'s quick action and knowledge of first aid that saved Ms Slade\'s life. He immediately asked a number of nearby people for bandages, but when nobody could put their hands on any, his father got some tea towels and tape from their house. John used these to treat the most severe injuries to Ms Slade\'s hands. He slowed the bleeding by applying pressure to the wounds until the police and ambulance arrived."I\'m proud of what I did but I was just doing what I\'d been taught," John said.John had taken part in the Young Lifesaver Scheme at his high school. When congratulating John, Mr Alan Southerton, Director of the Young Lifesaver Scheme said, "There is no doubt that John\'s quick thinking and the first aid skills he learned at school saved Ms Slade\'s life. It shows that a knowledge of first aid can make a real difference."Before receiving their awards last night, John and the nine other Life Savers attended a special reception yesterday hosted by the Prime Minister.', 'Forever': 'FOREVERI do know that birds continue to live and procreate as long as the weather is amenable if it were a deal between them, the weather and the crops. No questions asked. And the birds are in earnest about it, as I am in earnest about finding a reason for their lives, for what reason I myself do not understand. So I too in my way am ignorant of myself, my purpose, to perform simply the role of questioner.If I were to say that it is because I want to know, I will again surely be carrying out my function of questioner, as the birds carry out theirs of eating and procreating.I must call it good because to deny it is not one of my functions, or is it? And here I am asking a question once again, carrying out the function I have been assigned.Meditation is its name, to meditate on practically nothing and to find something to say about it, this that I have written, its own purpose in being, for the sake of living with questions forever.', 'The body': "THE BODYWhat would the body of Saint Francis be like? They say it was so delicate that it might have disappeared in the wind. It cast very little shadow: one's shadow is like pride in earthly possessions, like the shadow of a tree painting the grass, or the shadow of a woman who passes through a fountain and is instantly drenched. The humble one hardly casts a shadow.He was small in stature. Just like a whitecap crossing the water, he traveled and sensed the presence that watched over his body.His arms were light, so light. He did not feel them at his sides when they dropped. His head was like the small stamen inside a flower.He walked gracefully: his legs passed lightly over the grass without trampling it, and his chest was narrow, although wide for love (love is the essence and not water which requires great vessels!) And his shoulders... they were narrowed by humility; they made one think of a very small cross, one smaller than the other.", 'Hurt all over': 'Hurt all overA young woman went to her doctor complaining of pain."Where are you hurting?" asked the doctor."You have to help me, I hurt all over", said the woman."What do you mean, all over?" asked the doctor, "be a little more specific."The woman touched her right knee with her index finger and yelled, "Own, that hurts." Then she touched her left cheek and again yelled, "Ouch! That hurts, too." Then she touched her right earlobe, "Own, even THAT hurts", she cried.The doctor checked her thoughtfully for a moment and told her his diagnosis, "You have a broken finger."', 'Change will': 'CHANGE WILLSeems an elderly gentleman had serious hearing problems for a number of years.He went to the doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman to hear 100%. The elderly gentleman went back in a month to the doctor and the doctor said, "Your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased you can hear again."To which the gentleman said, "Oh, I haven\'t told my family yet. I just sit around and listen to the conversations. I\'ve changed my will five times!"', 'Letter from the cabin': "LETTER FROM THE CABINI've watched all week, but it seems the eagles really haven't returned this year. The heron's nest on the other side of the inlet is deserted, too, though high water and tricky winds make it impossible to get out in the boat most days. Still, it s enough to look up from whatever page I m turning and watch the lake he long trajectory of loons skimming the water, wings beating waves, echoing cries. You know how they always thrill us, especially at night.It's humid today, the thick clouds seeming to grow from the shore where friends are here, it's what we scarcely notice, up late, talking quietly on the screened-in porch. In the morning there is always time to take turns stretching out on the dock, to be alone with birds and sky and water. And now, as dinner wine is cooling in the refrigerator, you're here again, all of us peering out into the fading light, amazed by wind in leaves, full of smiles for this other life where we're totally thankful.", 'The accident': "THE ACCIDENTSpud, that was her name. It said so in black ink on the strip of adhesive tape stuck to front of her pink and white checked shirt. Spud. I had just rolled over a little girl named Spud.I was backing the car, this old Sport about wagon. The car picked up speed, the brakes couldn't slow it down, and the back window was so fogged I couldn't see anything. The car kept going faster and I did it. I rolled over something. It felt like squash, something starting to rot. Then the car stopped.He came running up to the car, this man with the little girl in his arms. He looked Japanese, but I wasn't sure. He said nothing, not a word, but he had this look on his face. He wanted to cry and he wanted to kill me. I don't blame him.He brought the girl to the driver's door. But I wouldn't open it. I reached back to the door behind me, unlocking it. I didn't want him to place the girl in my lap. No, anything but that.That's when I saw her name. He placed her on the back seat. And I saw it. Spud, it said. She was blond, five or six years old. Maybe this man had adopted her, or maybe he was simply looking out for her today.In his hand, I could see he held something. Something for the little girl? No, a can of mace. He sprayed me in the face. I knew he had to.", 'Night fishing': "NIGHT FISHINGWe were eating Milk Duds and drinking some kind of colas on the screen porch, a moth bopping the light bulb overhead, me still wearing my itchy wool skirt and knee socks with penny loafers. You wanted to take me over the hill past the barn and show me something. Like what? That old dog you keep locked up? Out back Dad was using the chain saw in the dark. Jimmy was chopping wood. We snuck down to Milton's Pond where the moon slid on the water. See that? You asked me. See what? I asked. I didn't want any part of you touching me. Like the moon was some kind of excuse, you tore off your clothes and dove in. I remember how you looked, buck naked and belly white, like a fish jumping, once he's hooked.", 'After the weather': 'AFTER THE WEATHERYesterday a man was sucked out of an airplane over the blue tipped mountains of Bolivia. He didn\'t cry "emergency." He didn\'t buzz the stewardess. He just dropped his fork, opened his mouth, and let the wind gather him inch by inch.The other passengers agreed. This was real life, better than the movie or chicken salad. They leaned out of their seats, envying the man, arms and legs spread like a sheet, discovering raw air and the breath of migrating angels.Below, an old peasant woman beats her tortilla. She never dreamed that above her a man was losing his heart. Perhaps she was a barren woman and, when he landed, she\'d say, "Yes, this is my son, a little old and a little late, but still my son."And the man, he thought of wind and flocks of severed wings, then closed his eyes and arched himself again. He didn\'t understand. His head began to ache. He understood Buicks, red hair, the smell of day old beer. But not these clouds, this new, white sunlight, or the fate of a man from Sandusky, Ohio.', 'In this moment': "In this momentIn this moment, in the twilight of a cold room, thunder approaches from a distance, through storm windows and dusty panes, in late afternoon, the water in the pot doesn't boil, when fish gasp under the ice, when half-asleep you tremble, as if without hope, when a pack--a herd of shivering stags left the dried marshes deep in the woods and came to the gardens in town, this fleeting instant, when the cold slices through your spine, when hardened honey cracks in jars, when the thought of a woman's hand--laid on the forehead of the dying--comes closer and closer, when from the depths of memory destroyed villages you wanted to forget begin to rise, when guilt and truth burn your stomach, when frightened pheasants are flushed from tapestries hanging on the wall, when guards leaving their posts whistle to one another, piercing the air, when a sharp stone breaks your skull, should I remind you now that your wounded body won't be any different than the shadow a solitary bush cast across the trampled earth, east of Eden?", 'Leaving the roadside motel': "LEAVING THE ROADSIDE MOTELA ventriloquist sat in his car and tried to start it, but it wouldn't turn over. He was in a dreadful fix to be going, and I asked if he needed a jump, but he didn't answer. He just looked straight ahead and ground on the starter. The others talked among themselves, back and forth over the seat, and as they posed their bodies a certain way, or held their heads at a familiar angle, I could tell these were famous people, most of whom were now dead.The three in back were actors, and the woman beside him an actress who in real life had been beheaded in a car crash. They were each dressed according to the role that had made them famous on the screen. But as they continued to talk lightly about what I couldn't hear with the windows rolled down, I could see these were not the famous ones, but models who in some way resembled the famous. This was how near they had come, and how far they had missed by. As the driver turned the key, sometimes the battery sparked, and everyone lurched forward. When they did, an eyelash dropped from one of the women, or a monocle shattered, and one man in the back seat wept over the aristocratic nose that had come off in his hand.I used to wonder what the ventriloquist s doll did at night, alone in its box, but I see now that it must have done no more than cherish the silence, a few hours without manipulation. And the ventriloquist, what does he feel, at a loss for words? Everyone is endangered.", 'The river of life': "THE RIVER OF LIFEThe more we live, more brief appearOur life's succeeding stages;A day to childhood seems a year,And years like passing ages.The gladsome current of our youth,Ere passion yet disorders,Steals lingering like a river smooth,Along its grassy borders.But as the care-worn cheetah grow wan,And sorrow's shafts fly thicker,Ye stars, that measure life to man,Why seem your courses quicker?When joys have lost their bloom and breathAnd life itself is vapid,Why, as we reach the Falls of Death,Feel its tide more rapid?It may be strange-yet who would changeTime's cores to slower speeding,When one by one our friends have goneAnd left our bosoms bleeding?Heaven gives our years of fading strengthIndemnifying fleetness;And those of youth, a seeming length,Proportioned their sweetness.", 'To daffodils': "TO DAFFODILSFair Daffodils, we weep to seeYou haste away so soon;As yet the early-rising sunHas not attained his noon.Stay, stay,Until the hasting dayHas runBut to the even-song;And, having prayed together, weWill go with you along.We have short time to stay, as you;We have as short a spring;As quick a growth to meet decay,As you, or anything.We die,As your hours do, and dryAwayLike to the summer's rain,Or as the pearls of morning's dew,Ne'er to be found again.", 'The daffodils': "THE DAFFODILSI wandered lonely as a cloudThat floats on height o'er vales and hills,When all the once I saw a crowd,A host, of golden daffodils,Beside the lake, beneath the trees,Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.Continuous as the stars that shine,And twinkle on the milky way,They stretched in never-ending lineAlong the margin of a day:Ten thousand saw I at a glanceTossing their heads in dance.The waves beside them danced, but theyOut-did the sparking waves in glee:A poet could not but be gayIn such a jocund company!I grazed and grazed--but little thoughtWhat wealth the show to me had brought;For oft, when on my couch I lieIn vacant or in pensive mood,They flash upon that inward eyeWhich is the bliss of solitude;And then my heart with pleasure fills,And dances with the daffodils.", 'A red, red rose': "A RED, RED ROSEO my Luve's like a red, red roseThat's newly spring in June:O my Luve's like the melodiesThat's sweetly played tune.As fair art thou, my bonnie lass.So deep in luve am I:And I will luve thee still, my dear,Till the seas gang dry.Till the seas gang dry, my dear,And the rocks melt within sun;O I will luve thee still, my dear,While the sands o'life shall run.And fare thee week, my luve!And fare thee awhile!And I will come again, my Luve,It was ten thousand mile.", 'The moon': 'THE MOONThy beauty haunts me heart and soul,O thou fair moon so close and bright;Thy beauty makes me like the childThat cries aloud to own thy light:The little child that lifts each armTo press thee to her bosom warm.Though there are birds that sing this nightWith thy white beams across their throats,Let my deep silence speak for meMore than for them their sweetest notes:Who worships thee till music failsIs greater than nightingales.', 'The shepherdess': 'THE SHEPHERDESSShe walks--the lady of my delight--A shepherdess of sheep.Her flocks are thoughts.She keep them white;She guards them from the steep.She feeds them on the fragrant heightAnd folds them in for sleep.She roams maternal hills and bright,Dark valleys safe and deep.Into that tender breast at nightThe chaste stars may peep.She walks--the lady of my delight--A shepherdess of sheep.She holds her little thoughts in sight,Though gay they run and leap.She is so circumspect and right;She has her soul to keep.She walks--the lady of my delight--A shepherdess of sheep.', 'The soul': "THE SOULMy soul's the sky--my flying soul!The light night flare the thunder roll,The sun and moon and stars go by,And great winds sweep my soul the sky!My brooding soul--my soul's the sea!The snaky weed and whishing screen,The white wave's surge from pole to pole,And still green depth--the sea's my soul!My soul's the Spring--my love soul!Will dance and leap and drain the bowlOf love and longing twine and clingTo all the world--my soul's the Spring!My fevered soul! My soul's the Town!The flaring street goes up and down;The bells of feast and traffic tollAnd maze their music in my soul.My tranquil soul! My soul too wideFor sky or Spring, or Tide!Thou traveler to outer strandOf Home Serene--my soul so grand!", 'Meditation': 'MeditationI saw the stars against the summer nightStill trembling as they trembled when the lightFirst fell upon them from the further world.I could not bend my proud humanityTo kneel before the cold immensity,I, who had youth and love, I, who could know,--They,--flotsam on the ethereal ebb and flow,Dead things unmoved by immaterial fireOf hope and anguish and divine desire.They were not more omnipotent than I,They could not see and dream and change and die.I could not bow before infinity,The silent grandeur could not conquer me.', 'The reaper': "The reaperBehold her, single in the field,Yon solitary Highland Lass!Reaping and singing by herself;Stop here, or gently pass!Alone she cuts and binds the grain,And sings a melancholy strain;O listen! For the vale profoundIs overflowing with the sound.No nightingale did ever chauntMore welcome notes to weary bandsOf travelers in some shady haunt,Among Arabian sands:No sweeter voice was ever heardIn spring-time from the cuckoo-bird,Breaking the silence of the seasAmong the farthest Hebrides.Will no one tell me what she sings?Perhaps the plaintive numbers flowFor old, unhappy, for-off things,And battles long ago:Or is it some humble lay,Familiar matter of today?Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,That has been, and may be again!Whatever the theme, the maiden sangAs if her song could have no ending,I saw her singing at her work,And o'er the sickle bending;I listened, motionless and still;And, as I mounted up the hill,The music in my heart I boreLong after it was heard no more.", 'When you know': "When You KnowWhen you know that you know who you love, you can't deny it.Or go back, or give up, or pretend that you don't buy it.When it's clear this time you've found the one, you'll never let him goBecause you know and you know that you know.When you feel in your skin in your bones and the hollowOf your heart, there's no way you can wait till tomorrow.When there isn't any doubt about it once you come this closeBecause you know and you know that you know.You can feel love's around you like the sky 'round blueThis is how love has found you, now you know what to do.When you know that you know who you need, you can't deny it.Or go back, or give up, or pretend that you don't buy it.When it's clear this time you've found the one, you'll never let him goBecause you know and you know that you know.And it's time you come in from the cold.And you know that you know.", 'Never a day': "Never A DayDon't go standin' thereBlockin' my viewAnd spoilin' my nightYou know why we're hereShe's an old flameI'm tryin' to layAnd if beauty sleepCan really workShe must of just woken upSo rub your eyesNever a day goes byWithout somethingStopping me hard in my tracksI could be happyAnd I'll never know itTill never a day comes backIf words alone sound cheapWhen I come aroundYou'll wanna be outI want that window seatIf I'm goin' downI wanna see outAnd she's happy nowI'm goin' homeAnother dayAnother cruel reminderNever a day goes byWithout somethingStopping me hard in my tracksI could be happyAnd I'll never know itTill never a day comes backNever a day goes byWithout somethingStopping me hard in my tracksI could be happyAnd I'll never know itTill never a day comes backCould be a song on the radioCould be that feeling from long agoCould be that accidental photo I findWhen I'm looking for something elseBut I found youNever a day goes byWithout somethingStopping me hard in my tracksI could be happyAnd I'll never know itTill never a day comes backNever a day goes byWithout somethingStopping me hard in my tracksI could be happyAnd I'll never know it", 'Northern sky': "Northern SkyI never felt magic crazy as thisI never saw moons knew the meaning of the seaI never held emotion in the palm of my handOr felt sweet breezes in the top of a treeBut now you're hereBrighten my northern sky.I've been a long time that I'm waitingBeen a long that I'm blownI've been a long time that I've wanderedThrough the people I have knownOh, if you would and you couldStraighten my new mind's eye.Would you love me for my moneyWould you love me for my headWould you love me through the winterWould you love me 'til I'm deadOh, if you would and you couldCome blow your horn on high.I never felt magic crazy as thisI never saw moons knew the meaning of the seaI never held emotion in the palm of my handOr felt sweet breezes in the top of a treeBut now you're hereBrighten my northern sky.", 'Success is dangerous': "Success is dangerous. One begins to copy oneself, and to copy oneself is more dangerous than to copy others. It leads to sterility.Hope is the companion of power, and the mother of success; for who so hopes has within him the gift of miracles.Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.Quality questions create a quality life. Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.My play was a complete success. The audience was a failure.A true friend is one who overlooks your failures and tolerates your success.Good people are good because they've come to wisdom through failure. We get very little wisdom from success, you know.Keep in mind that neither success nor failure is ever final.If a man loves the labour of his trade, apart from any question of success or fame, the gods have called him.No-one gets an iron-clad guarantee of success. Certainly, factors like opportunity, luck and timing are important. But the backbone of success is usually found in old-fashioned, basic concepts like hard work, determination, good planning and perseverance.", 'Life affords no higher pleasure': 'Life affords no higher pleasure than that of surmounting difficulties, passing from one step of success to another, forming new wishes and seeing them gratified.Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life... as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.It is possible that the scrupulously honest man may not grow rich so fast as the unscrupulous and dishonest one; but the success will be of a truer kind, earned without fraud or injustice. And even though a man should for a time be unsuccessful, still he must be honest: better lose all and save character. For character is itself a fortune...Pray that success will not come any faster than you are able to endure it.Success means doing the best we can with what we have. Success is the doing, not the getting; in the trying, not the triumph. Success is a personal standard, reaching for the highest that is in us, becoming all that we can be.', 'Failure': "We learn wisdom from failure much more than from success. We often discover what will do, by finding out what will not do; and probably he who never make a mistake never make a discovery.As a rule, he -or she- who has the most information will have the greatest success in life.It is a mistake to suppose that men succeed through success; they much oftener succeed through failures. Precept, study, advice, and example could never have taught them so well as failure has done.A loving heart is the truest wisdom.Wise men are instructed by reason; men of less understanding, by experience; the most ignorant, by necessity; the beasts, by nature.A wise man is superior to any insults which can be put upon him, and the best reply to unseemly behavior is patience and moderation.Love is the wisdom of the fool and the folly of the wise.To be wise and love exceeds man's might.A prudent question is one half of wisdom.", 'A wise man': "A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.Peace and friendship with all mankind is our wisest policy, and I wish we may be permitted to pursue it.The mintage of wisdom is to know that rest is rust, and that real life is in love, laughter, and work.Wisdom stands at the turn in the road and calls upon us publicly, but we consider it false and despise its adherents.Wise are they who have learned these truths: Trouble is temporary. Time is tonic. Tribulation is a test tube.Pain and foolishness lead to great bliss and complete knowledge, for Eternal Wisdom created nothing under the sun in vain.To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.Poverty makes you wise but it's a curse.Life is a festival only to the wise.", 'Self-pity': "Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world.On life's journey faith is nourishment, virtuous deeds are a shelter, wisdom is the light by day and right mindfulness is the protection by night. If a man lives a pure life, nothing can destroy him.The finest emotion of which we are capable is the mystic emotion. Herein lies the germ of all art and all true science. Anyone to whom this feeling is alien, who is no longer capable of wonderment and lives in a state of fear is a dead man. To know that what is impenetrable for us really exists and manifests itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty, whose gross forms alone are intelligible to our poor faculties - this knowledge, this feeling ... that is the core of the true religious sent impend. In this sense, and in this sense alone, I rank myself among profoundly religious men.", 'All truly wise thoughts': 'All truly wise thoughts have been thought already thousands of times; but to make them truly ours, we must think them over again honestly, till they take root in our personal experience.The wise man always throws himself on the side of his assailants. It is more his interest than it is theirs to find his weak point.All truly wise thoughts have been thought already thousands of times; but to make them truly ours, we must think them over again honestly, till they take root in our personal experience.The wise man always throws himself on the side of his assailants. It is more his interest than it is theirs to find his weak point.More wisdom is latent in things as they are than in all the words men use.In the vain laughter of folly, wisdom hears half its applause.', 'The surest evidences of friendship': "One of the surest evidences of friendship that one individual can display to another is telling him gently of a fault. If any other can excel it, it is listening to such a disclosure with gratitude, and amending the error.If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.A friend is one who knows all about you and likes you anyway.It is not so much our friends' help that helps us as the confident knowledge that they will help us.A true friend is the greatest of all blessings, and the one that we take the least care of all to acquire.To fail is a natural consequence of trying; to succeed takes time and prolonged effort in the face of unfriendly odds. To think it will be any other way, no matter what you do, is to invite yourself to be hurt and to limit your enthusiasm for trying again.", 'Make more friends': 'You can make more friends in two months by becoming really interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.Silence is the true friend that never betrays.True friendship is like sound health; the value of it is seldom known until it be lost.Friendship often ends in love; but love in friendship - never.Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art...it has no survival value; rather, it is one of those things that give value to survival.No person is your friend who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow.The only service a friend can really render is to keep your courage by holding up to you a mirror in which you can see a noble image of yourself.', 'Friendship': 'Without friends no one would choose to live, though he had all other goods.Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing: I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end, when I come to lay down the reins of power, I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside me.Nothing so fortifies a friendship as a belief on the part of one friend that he is superior to the other.Friendship is constant in all other things, Save in the office and affairs of love.Friendship should be more than biting time can sever.Friendship doubles our joy and divides our grief.', 'Friendship is precious': 'Friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life; and thanks to a benevolent arrangement of things, the greater part of life is sunshine.An ounce of blood is worth more than a pound of friendship.How rare and wonderful is that flash of a moment when we realize we have discovered a friend.For to fear death, my friends, is only to think ourselves wise without really being wise, for it is to think that we know what we do not know. For no one knows whether death may not be the greatest good that can happen to man. But men fear it as if they knew quite well that it was the greatest of evils.Nothing makes the earth seem so spacious as to have friends at a distance; they make the latitudes and longitudes.'}
        self.titles = list(self.contents.keys())# 所有文章名列表
        self.content = self.contents[self.title]# 文章内容

    def choice_event(self,e):# 列表框内容改变事件
        self.title = self.choice.GetStringSelection()
        self.content = self.contents[self.title]

    def sleep_event(self,e):# 更改延时菜单事件
        dlg = wx.TextEntryDialog(self,'单位为毫秒','输入新的延时值：',str(self.sleep_time))
        if dlg.ShowModal()==wx.ID_OK:
            try:
                value = int(dlg.GetValue())
                self.sleep_time = value
            except ValueError:
                wx.MessageBox('不是一个int型的数！')

    def position_event(self,e):# 更改鼠标坐标菜单事件
        frm = ModifyXYFrm(self,self.pos_x,self.pos_y,self.callBack)
        frm.Show()

    def callBack(self,value):
        self.pos_x=value[0]+20
        self.pos_y=value[1]+20
        wx.MessageBox('坐标修改成功！')

    def reset_event(self,e):# 重置菜单事件
        self.title = "Anne's best friend"
        self.pos_x = 675
        self.pos_y = 238
        self.sleep_time = 310
        self.choice.SetStringSelection(self.title)# 列表框也要重置为默认值
        wx.MessageBox('成功恢复默认设置！')

    def check_event(self,e):# 查看菜单事件
        wx.MessageBox('当前文档名:'+self.title+'，鼠标位置：('+str(self.pos_x)+','+str(self.pos_y)+')，'+'休眠时间：'+str(self.sleep_time)+'ms')

    def help_event(self,e):# 帮助菜单事件
        wx.MessageBox('请自己查阅本软件提供的帮助文档', '帮助')

    def start_evt(self,e):# 按钮点击事件
        self.start_btn.Unbind(wx.EVT_BUTTON, handler=self.start_evt)
        self.start_btn.SetLabel('停止')
        self.start_btn.Bind(wx.EVT_BUTTON,self.stop_evt)
        self.choice.Hide()# 列表框隐藏
        self.label.Hide()# 标签隐藏
        self.thread = TypeThread(self,self.content,self.pos_x,self.pos_y,self.sleep_time)# 传递参数
        self.thread.start()# 启用线程

    def stop_evt(self,e):
        self.choice.Show()
        self.label.Show()
        if (self.thread):
            self.thread.stop()  # 如果线程还在运行，终止线程
        self.start_btn.Unbind(wx.EVT_BUTTON,handler=self.stop_evt)
        self.start_btn.Bind(wx.EVT_BUTTON,self.start_evt)
        self.start_btn.SetLabel('开始')

    def close_window_event(self,e):# 关闭窗口事件
        if(self.thread):
            self.thread.stop()# 如果线程还在运行，终止线程
        self.Destroy()# 摧毁窗口

if __name__=='__main__':
    app = wx.App()
    frame = MyFrame()
    frame.Show()
    app.MainLoop()