Ask beautiful American singer Beyonce Knowles what she wants people to hear when they listen to her songs and the answer is a simple one.  "My range," she says. "I want them to hear all of the musical influences from hip-hop (street dancing music) to rock to jazz. I want them to hear the talent. I know that fans love me as a pop star. Now I want them to understand me as an artist. "

    It is this quality that sets the 22-year-old apart from the likes of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, who have the looks but not the same level of talent. And now the music industry says the same thing:  Knowles leads the field at the Grammy Awards with six nominations(提名), including ones for record of the year and the best R&B song.

    She started her music career as the founding member and chief songwriter of Destiny's Child. Since appearing onto the stage in 1997, the group has become one of the most successful female acts of all time, selling over 33 million records worldwide. Although 2003 has seen the release of her first sole album, Dangerously in Love, Knowles is not about to leave her band-mates. "I love Destiny's Child and I'm not trying to get away from it," she said. "I just wanted to explore a different style and show how I've developed as a musician." She took an active role in recording the album, from writing the material to mixing the final songs. And her family have played a big part in her success and she thanks her father very much. "My father stopped working to become my full-time manager. We also had to downsize our house to an apartment", she said.

    Knowles has done her own personal "downsizing" too—she has given up lots of food and runs six miles a day so she can fit into the famous hot pants she wears on stage.

A

Smokers will be stopped in the street and asked to take a test in England. “Smoking police” will find smokers at betting shops (彩票经理部), bus stops and shopping centers to help them give up cigarettes.

Smokers will be asked to have a breath test to show how much carbon monoxide (一氧化碳) is in their bodies. They could then join local stop-smoking services and some people will help them to stop smoking. Ealing Primary Care Trust, which is supporting the project, said it could help 2,400 people to give up smoking.

A team of 11 young people have been employed to approach smokers. Projectspokeswoman Fran Pearce admitted, “They will have to be careful when approaching smokers in case they become angry, but we are interested to see if it works. If someone says no, they will not continue to ask them to take the test.”

Project manager Phil Robinson said, “The law to ban smoking in public places was very successful, but since then some focus has been lost. We want to put stopping smoking back on the agenda(议程), so 50 percent of our activity is about takingour message direct to smokers.” He added, “We will be focusing on betting shops, bus stops and shopping centers where most smoking takes place.”

However, some people don’t support the project and think it is against civil liberties (公民自由).

If you want to fully enjoy your vacation, then you’d better check the Durban City Tours! This is actually one of the best choices in South Africa today.

There is nothing more relaxing than to think about it that there is a place to go and relax, right? City life is stressful, but you can escape this situation and be in the place where there is noting but fun. Here in Durban you will get to see all the amazing tourist attractions. If you love animals and want to see some elephants wandering around the streets, then Durban is the place to go. You can even get to ride one if you want!

Here you will also get to taste all the delicious South African food. You can choose from Italian cooking to its native dishes. Durban is a great place to tour with your friends and family. You will learn a lot about its history through the landmarks you will see down the streets. Tourists and even the local villagers just can’t get enough of these treats!

However, it is important that you make the necessary arrangements. There are actually lots of tour guides that will help you as you make your journey along the streets of Durban. But if you prefer the best tour guides here in Durban, then you’d better settle for the Street Scene Tours. Their staff are all well-trained and professional. They will certainly make your stay here an unforgettable one. No wonder tourists prefer the Street Scene Tours when it comes to Durban City Tours.

It gives me great pleasure today to say a few words in praise of a man we will all miss very much. To be honest, I can’t imagine we will do without him when he’s go-ne.  Bill Masters almost single–handed built up our sales force in the  Houston area and developed the market position that we enjoy today. In only six years, he has brought the firm from a very low fifth position in the area sales to the point where we now outsell all but one of our competitors. Not only have we got 37 percent of the 

market under Bill’s leadership; we are increasing our share with each passing month.   As you know, the company has moved Bill to northern California to work his sales magic in one of this company’s most competitive(竞争的) areas. But we know

 that if anyone can do it, Bill Masters can, and I know you all join me in wishing him the best of luck in his new work. 

B

    Kenya is losing an average of 100 of its 2,000 lions each year because of growing human settlements, increasing farming, climate change and diseases, accounting to the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).

    "Lions have a special place in Kenyans' life," said Paul Udoto, a spokesman for the organization.  "Other than being the symbol of national strength, they are among the Big Five, a main attraction for visitors to Kenya. "

    There were 2,749 lions in Kenya in 2002 and their population dropped to 2,280 by 2004 and to about 2,000 today, according to KWS figures.

    "The fall of the lion population is worrying and every effort needs to he made to make sure that Kenya either protects its population of 2,000 lions at present or increases the numbers to an ecologically acceptable level," said Mr. Udoto.

    "There is no doubt that the numbers are in free fall. I'd he surprised if they even last as long as 20 years," said Laurence Frank, project director of Living With Lions, a Kenya-based animal protection organization.  "When I first came here 30 years ago, I would always hear lions roaring across the land at night and see their tracks in the morning.  Now that is very rare."

    "The reason is simple. As the numbers of people grow and the numbers of cows increase, they take up much of the lion's space. Alongside that there  are  other ways, including poisoning, to kill lions. "

    Animal lovers are making a new strategy to save the animals.  Part of the measures will include tracking lions fitted with radio collars in the Amboseli area in southern Kenya, close to the border with Tanzania.

    Wildlife officials in Tanzania face similar challenges in protecting their lions, hut there is far less human encroachment(侵入) on the animals' homeland there than in Kenya.

D

   Sports can help you keep fit and get in touch with nature. However, whether you are on the mountains, in the waves, or on the grassland, you should be aware that your sport of choice might have great influence on the environment.

   Some sports are resource-hungry(渴求资源的). Golf, as you may know, eats up not only large areas of countryside, but also tons of water. Besides, all sorts of chemicals and huge amounts of energy are used to keep its courses(球场)in good condition. This causes major environmental effects. For example, in the dry regions ofPortugaland Spain, golf is often held responsible for serious water shortage in some local areas.

   There are many environment-friendly sports. Power walking is one of them that you could take up today.

   You don't need any special equipment except a good pair of shoes and you don't have to worry about resources and your purse. Simple and free, power walking can also keep you fit. If you walk regularly, it will be good for your heart and bones. Experts say that 20 minutes of power walking daily can make you feel less anxious, sleep well and have better weight control.

   Whatever sport you take up, you can make it greener by using environment-friendly equipment and buying products made from recycled materials. But the final goal should be "green gyms". They are better replacements for traditional health clubs and modern sports centers. Members of green gyms play sports outdoors, in the countryside or other open spaces. There is no special requirement for you to start your membership. And best of all, it's free.

C

I Am a Pencil

Children's book author Sam Swope took a job teaching writing to third-graders in the New York City．His students were immigrants from 21 countries，having many different beliefs (信仰)．But there were a few things they had in common．Family troubles，for one．And Poetry．Every student，with the help of this creative teacher，made great progress in writing．

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What It Takes to Help Me Out

As an editor for US News&World Report，David L．Marcus takes us inside a boarding school for troubled teens．The great stresses are put on these teens，which makes them lose their nature．

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The Most Scenic Drives in America

Updated (再版) and translated into several languages for the first time since 1997．this travel book includes over 200 new photographs of the wonderful places．The updated edition (版本) also provides maps and other information．

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Our Brother's Keeper

Author Jedwin Smith's brother．Jeff，was killed in Vietnam．He tells what happened when he met his brother's old marine (海军的) friends，who were all hurt by the past they share．Together they visited the place where Jeff died．Surprisingly，their Vietnamese guide was the former commander(指挥官) of the Viet Cong platoon carrying out the attack that killed Jell…

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Have you ever been ill? When you are ill，you must be unhappy because your body becomes hot，and there are pains all over your body. You don't want to work，you stay in bed，feeling very sad.

What makes us ill? It is germs(细菌). Germs are everywhere. They are very small and you can't find them with your eyes，but you can see them with a microscope. They are very small and there could be hundreds of them on a very small thing.

Germs are always found in dirty water. When we look at dirty water under the microscope，we shall see them in it. So your father and mother will not let you drink dirty water.

Germs aren't found only in water. They are found in air and dust. If you cut your finger，if some of the dust from the floor goes into the cut(割开处)，some of the germs would go into your finger. Your finger would become big and red，and you will have much pain in it. Sometimes the germs would go into all of your body，and you would have pain everywhere.

   A good reader becomes sooner or later a good book buyer．The sooner，the better. The reading done in a book drawn from a library can not be so pleasant at the moment nor so  permanently useful as the reading done in our own copy．

    A book which is worth reading is likely to be read more than once，and at each reading     some idea or some statement makes such an impression that we wish to refer to it again． Some readers underline the page as they read，but I find that a page which I have underlined can not give me so many fresh impressions as one which has no marks on it．My habit is to make my own index(索引)of a book as I read．I put down the number of the page and a word or two to identify the thought or the fact which I get from it．On a second or third reading I am likely to double or triple the size of this index．This is my substitute for underlining．Most of the books in my library are so indexed that I can find quickly the passage which from time to time I wish to look up．

    To use a book in this way，organizing it for continued usefulness year after year, we must，of course，do our reading in a copy which belongs to us．The books I buy are chiefly those of less expensive editions．

    As I have grown older and the number of books on my shelves has increased，I appre ciate editions which do not take much room．By careful and continuous selection I keep my librarv down to ten thousand books．This would be，of course，too large a number for any but a professional scholar or writer．But my advice to a book lover is to weed but his library at least once every two years，giving away the books which are not likely to be read again. And never never buy a book which you will not immediately read．A library bought only for looks is not literature，but indoor decoration．