The government in China plans to end its one-child policy (政策) and let families have two children instead. The plan was meant to balance (平衡) population development and stop a falling birth rate (出生率).

China started the one-child policy in the 1980s. But the government allowed only a small number of couples to have two children. For example, some families in the countryside could have two children, if the first-born child is a girl. In 2013, the Chinese government gave other couples a chance to have two children if one of them was an only child.

Jiang Quanbao, a population expert, explained how Chinese families react to the newest policy. “Lots of young people in the cities are no longer interested in having a second child,” he said.

At the end of 2014, China had a population of 1.37 billion people. But the labor market population will drop in 35 years. That is to say, the country will be in great need of labor by the year 2050. With the “two children” policy, an increase in births can solve this problem.

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We can’t remember clearly since when we started to take our mobiles to a dinner table. This happens a lot, especially when we eat out. Once a dish comes, instead of  lifting our chopsticks（筷子）, we take out our mobiles and click. Later, we         

post the photos onto Weibo or Wechat, waiting to be “liked.” Then we check our mobiles from time to time during the meal, to see whether we get “liked” or not. We just cannot leave our mobiles for simply a meal. Does that sound familiar（熟悉的） to you? Do you do that often? If not, how do you feel when others do that when having dinner with you?

A recent study suggests that what we are used to doing is not that good. Spending time taking photos of food makes the food less pleasant(令人愉快的). To test this, some researchers did an experiment. Some people were asked to take photos before they could enjoy food. It turned out that the more photos they took,     . So, why not stop taking photos and just enjoy the food ahead of you?

Besides（除…之外） the scientific result, there are also some other bad influences of taking photos of food before meals. After posting the photos onto the Internet, one will be unable to control himself and check his mobile many times. “Does everyone accept my photo? I hope a lot of people like it!” It seems like your mobile secretly calls your name all the time, even when you are with real people.

So, next time you go out to have dinner with your family or friends, how about not taking photos of food? Let the food be delicious as it is and share your life with people around you. Trust me, it will be a wonderful time.

We can’t remember clearly since when we started to take our mobiles(手机) to a dinner table. This happens a lot, especially when we eat out. Once a dish comes, instead of lifting our chopsticks, we take out our mobiles and click. Later, we post the photos onto Weibo or Wechat（微信）, waiting to be“liked”. Then we check our mobiles from time to time during the meal, to see whether we get“liked”or not. We just cannot leave our mobiles for only a meal.

Does that sound familiar to you? Do you do that often? If not, how do you feel when others do that when having dinner with you?

A recent study suggests that what we are used to doing is not so good. Spending time taking photos of food makes the food less pleasant. To test this, some researchers did an experiment. Some people were asked to take photos before they could enjoy food. As a result, it showed that the more photos they took ________________. So, why not stop taking photos and just enjoy the food in front of you?

Besides the scientific result, there are also some other bad influences of taking photos of food before meals. After posting the photos onto the Internet, one will not be able to control himself and check his mobile many times. “Does everyone like my photos? I hope a lot of people like them!” It seems that your mobile secretly calls your name all the time, even when you are with real people.

So, next time you go out to have dinner with your family or friends, how about not taking photos of food? Let the food be delicious as it is and share your life with people around you. Trust me, it will be a wonderful time.

“You should stop when the light is red. You can go if the light is green. And you have to wait a moment when the light is yellow.” Even kids know that we should wait for the traffic light to turn green before crossing a road, but not everybody follows this basic rule. A CCTV news program showed that in only an hour, more than 600 people jumped red lights when crossing a road in Shijiazhuang, Hebei. “Chinese style road crossing” has become a hot expression recently. Chinese people “cross roads without thinking about traffic lights, so long as they are part of a crowd”, said a post on Sina Weibo.

Many people say that they jaywalk（乱穿马路）because the red light lasts too long. “People are likely to ignore(忽略) the light when the waiting time is longer than they can bear (忍受),” said Zhang Ming , a member of the research team. However, a survey on Sina Weibo showed that nearly half of the people in the survey believe that people jaywalk mainly because they don’t respect rules. Some Chinese cities have started taking some actions, too. For example, the first three people in a jaywalking group will be fined 50yuan in Shijiazhuang. But calling on people to obey rules is more important. To completely solve the problem, everyone should realize the importance of obeying the traffic rules.

Some people love going to museums, while others really hate it and would rather stay at home, enjoying their fav ourite TV shows. So museums are being seen as outdated (过时) and boring by today’s young people. I have just returned to the UK after travelling around the USA. While I was there, I visited lots of museums.  I must say, museums are educational, either to develop knowledge learned at school, or to improve knowledge of other cultures.

   In Chicago, we visited the world-famous Art Institute of Chicago. It was  full of paintings, drawings and sculptures by a large number of artists, such as Picasso, Monet, Matisse and Dali. There was a mixture of traditional and modern art.

   When we were in Washington D.C., we visited a few of the Smithsonian museums. These are all free to visitors, which is great if you just want to see a few things, and not spend all day inside. The Air and Space Museum was especially good: it had lots of planes on show, interesting information and also some interactive (互动) parts. We also went to the National U. S. Holocaust (纳粹大屠杀) Memorial Museum. Naturally, it was sad to read about the horrors which influenced so many people in World War II. However, it was also interesting to read the stories of those who survived the Holocaust, as well as those who helped others.

   Last but not least, I also found the 9/11 Memorial and Museum to be of great interest. This museum is for those who lost their lives, as well as their families, when the Twin Towers in New York City were attacked by terrorists (恐怖分子) in 2001. It tells you how the terrorists planned the attack and what happened as a result of their actions. Surviving pieces of the towers are shown in the museum. It was a truly meaningful visit, which made me value my own life that little bit more.

   I think museums play an important role in realizing historical importance for future people. Whatever your interests, there may be a museum for you. You can visit waxwork (蜡像)museums to see models of famous people (and get photos with the Queen!), science museums for an interactive visit and a little bit more! Best of all, if you’re ever in the UK, many of them are free!

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Social customs and ways of behaving change all the time．Things that were considered impolite many years ago are now acceptable．Just a few years ago，it was considered to be impolite behavior for a man to smoke on the street．No man who thought of himself as being a gentleman would make a fool of himself by smoking when a lady was in the room．
Customs also differ from country to country．Does a man walk on the left or the right of a woman in your country？Or doesn't matter？What about table manners？
The Americans and British people not only speak the same language but also share a large number of social customs．For example，in both America and England，people shake hands when they meet each other for the first time．Also most Englishmen will open a door for a woman or offer their seats to women，and so will most Americans．Promptness（准时） is important both in England and in America．That is，the dinner guest either arrive close to the time that has been made or calls up to explain his delay（耽误）．
The important thing to remember about social customs is not to do anything that might make other people feel uncomfortable-especially if they are your guests．There is an old story about a man who gave a very formal dinner party．When the food was served，one of the guests started to eat his peas with a knife．The other guests were amused or greatly surprised，but the host calmly picked up his knife and began eating in the same way．It would have been bad manners to make his guest feel foolish or uncomfortable．

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Whether you like it or not, your parents are responsible*for you at least till you`re out of high school. But does it seem that your parents are stressing you out with their love? Are you often angry with them?

    Hu Muqing, 16, of Shenyang, complains*that his parents only care about his grades and not his other needs. He and his parents fight the most about the time he spends watching TV and on the Internet. The Shenyang teenager said, “They think I should focus on my study because I`m in middle school. However, I also need time to relax. Most of my friends can watch TV and surf the Internet a lot. Sometimes it`s hard to talk to them.” After some negotiations*, Hu has been allowed to watch TV for 15 to 20 minutes every evening, but has been told to keep away from the computer.

     Shen Ying, 17, of Jianyang, Sichuan Province, feels she has grown up now. So she wants more respect*from her parents. “My father shouted at me when he`s in a bad mood. He doesn`t listen to me, but instead acts like, ‘I’m the boss’!” said the teenager ‘I’d like my parents to treat me like a friend and understand that respect is a two-way street.”

      It`s the age when teenagers are becoming more independent*, but their parents care very much about their kids` futures, said Sun Yunxiao, a senior 2 researcher at the China Youth and Children Research Center. Sun suggests that teenagers should learn to communicate with their parents effectively. “Find the right time for a talk. On Mother`s Day or Father`s Day, say  “Thank you” to your parents or give them a small gift with a letter so they can get inside your head a little,” he advised. Sun also believes that teenagers have to work to get trust and respect from their parents. “You need to make sure they know that you` re not going to screw up*your exams or let them down. Let them know that you want to do well, and that you will do well” he said.

I think it is safe to say that snakes are not popular among most people. It would be hard to find a person who is neutral (中立的), or simple doesn't care one way or the other. What I wonder is why something even without legs causes such great fear.

    Snakes are quite useful, but that doesn't seem to matter. Snakes help control the population of mice. Without snakes, perhaps we would find mice everywhere. Most of us, however, would rather see a mouse than a snake.

    The poison argument is a strong one. Some snakes are poisonous(有毒的), and this causes people's death. However, the poisonous snakes are only a small number. We can't say all the snakes are bad just because of a few dangerous ones.

    And what do we do with the people who really like snakes? They like snakes even more strongly than we dislike them. These people learn about them, find them out, and watch them carefully. Why? The only reason I can think of is that these people are open-minded. They are able to put aside differences and welcome the snake as a friend.

    Whatever the reason for our like or dislike, snakes do something good in the circle of life. They would prefer to be left alone, and that is what we should do. If you're lucky, you might not run across more than a few of them in a lifetime. That would be fine with most of us.