Languages have been coming and going for thousands of years, but in recent times there has been less coming and a lot more going. When the world was still populated by hunter-gatherers, small, tightly knit (联系)groups developed their own patterns of speech independent of each other.Some language experts believe that 10,000 years ago, when the world had just five to ten million people, they spoke perhaps 12,000 languages between them.

Soon afterwards, many of those people started settling down to become farmers, and their languages too became more settled and fewer in number. In recent centuries, trade, industrialization, the development of the nation-state and the spread of universal compulsory education, especially globalisation and better communications in the past few decades, all have caused many languages to disappear, and dominant languages such as English, Spanish and Chinese are increasingly taking over.zxxk

At present, the world has about 6,800 languages. The distribution of these languages is hugely uneven. The general rule is that mild zones have relatively few languages, often spoken by many people, while hot, wet zones have lots, often spoken by small numbers. Europe has only around 200 languages; the Americas about 1,000; Africa 2 400; and Asia and the Pacific perhaps 3,200, of which Papua New Guinea alone accounts for well over 800. The median number (中位数)of speakers is a mere 6,000, which means that half the world’s languages are spoken by fewer people than that.

Already well over 400 of the total of, 6,800 languages are close to extinction(消亡), with only a few elderly speakers left. Pick, at random, Busuu in Cameroon (eight remaining speakers),Chiapaneco in Mexico(150), Lipan Apache in the United States(two or three)or Wadjigu in Australia (one, with a question-mark): none of these seems to have much chance of survival.

In 1812， the year Charles Dickens was born， there were 66 novels published in Britain． People had been writing novels for a century﹣most experts date the first novel to Robinson Crusoe in 1719﹣ but nobody wanted to do it professionally． The steam﹣powered printing press was still in its early stages； the literacy（识字）rate in England was under 50%． Many works of fiction appeared without the names of the authors， often with something like "By a lady．" Novels， for the most part，were looked upon as silly， immoral or just plain bad．

    In 1870， when Dickens died， the world mourned him as its first professional writer and publisher， famous and beloved， who had led an explosion in both the publication of novels and their readership and whose characters﹣from Oliver Twist to Tiny Tim﹣were held up as moral touchstones． Today Dickens' greatness is unchallenged． Removing him from the pantheon （名人堂）of English literature would make about as much sense as the Louvre selling off the Mona Lisa．

    How did Dickens get to the top？ For all the feelings readers attach to stories， literature is a numbers game， and the test of time is extremely difficult to pass． Some 60，000 novels were published during the Victorian age， from 1837 to 1901； today a casual reader might be able to name a half﹣dozen of them． It's partly true that Dickens' style of writing attracted audiences from all walks of life． It's partly that his writings rode a wave of social， political and scientific progress．But it's also that he rewrote the culture of literature and put himself al the center． No one will ever know what mix of talent， ambition， energy and luck made Dickens such a distinguished writer． But as the 200th anniversary of his birth approaches， it is possible﹣and important for our own culture﹣to understand how he made himself a lasting one．

  As cultural symbols go， the American car is quite young． The Model T Ford was built at the Piquette Plant in Michigan a century ago， with the first rolling off the assembly line （装配线）on September 27， 1908． Only eleven cars were produced the next month． But eventually Henry Ford would build fifteen million of them．

    Modern America was born on the road，behind a wheel． The car shaped some of the most lasting aspects of American culture： the roadside diner， the billboard， the motel，even the hamburger． For most of the last century， the car represented what it meant to be American﹣going forward at high speed to find new worlds． The road novel， the road movie， these are the most typical American ideas， born of abundant petrol， cheap cars and a never﹣ending interstate highway system， the largest public works project in history．

    In 1928 Herbert Hoover imagined an America with "a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage．" Since then， this society has moved onward， never looking back， as the car transformed America from a farm﹣based society into an industrial power．

    The cars that drove the American Dream have helped to create a global ecological disaster． In America the demand for oil has grown by 22 percent since 1990．

    The problems of excessive（过度的） energy consumption， climate change and population growth have been described in a book by the American writer Thomas L． Friedman． He fears the worst， but hopes for the best．

    Friedman points out that the green economy（经济）is a chance to keep American strength． "The ability to design， build and export green technologies for producing clean water， clean air and healthy and abundant food is going to be the curreney of power in the new century．"

Summer Activities

Students should read the list with their parents/carers, and select two activities they would like to do. Forms will be available in school and online for them to indicate their choices and return to school. Before choices are finalised, parents/carers will be asked to sign to confirm their child’s choices.

Many of us love July because it’s the month when nature’s berries and stone fruits are in abundance. These colourful and sweet jewels from British Columbia’s fields are little powerhouses of nutritional protection.

Of the common berries, strawberries are highest in vitamin C, although, because of their seeds, raspberries contain a little more protein (蛋白质), iron and zinc (not that fruits have much protein). Blueberries are particularly high in antioxidants (抗氧化物质). The yellow and orange stone fruits such as peaches are high in the carotenoids we turn into vitamin A and which are antioxidants. As for cherries (樱桃), they are so delicious who cares? However, they are rich in vitamin C.

When combined with berries or slices of other fruits, frozen bananas make an excellent base for thick, cooling fruit shakes and low fat “ice cream”. For this purpose, select ripe bananas for freezing as they are much sweeter. Remove the skin and place them in plastic bags or containers and freeze. If you like, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice on the bananas will prevent them turning brown. Frozen bananas will last several weeks, depending on their ripeness and the temperature of the freezer.

If you have a juicer, you can simply feed in frozen bananas and some berries or sliced fruit. Out comes a “soft-serve” creamy dessert, to be eaten right away. This makes a fun activity for a children’s party; they love feeding the fruit and frozen bananas into the top of the machine and watching the ice cream come out below.

Two weeks earlier, my son, Ben, had got in touch. He’d moved to England with his mum when he was three and it had been 13 years since I’d   (1)    seen him. So imagine my  (2)    when he emailed me saying he wanted to come to visit me.

I was  (3)   ! I arrived early at Byron Bay where we were supposed to  (4)    . The bay was   (5)    in sunshine, and there was a group of kayakers around 150m off the shore. Getting a little  (6)   , I realized one kayak (皮划艇) was in  (7)   . “Something’s not   (8)   !” I took off my T-shirt and   (9)    into the water. I saw there were two instructors on board and a man lying across the middle. He was   (10)    violently. Linking arms with one of the instructors, I helped   (11)   the young man out of the water. He was unconscious and as I looked at his face, something   (12)    to me. Those brown eyes were very  (13)   . “What’s his name?” I asked the instructor. “Ben,” he replied, and immediately I  (14)   . That stranger was my son!

The instructors called for an ambulance.   (15)   , after a brief stay in hospital, Ben was well enough to be allowed to   (16)    and later the family met up for dinner. We chatted about everything and then Ben   (17)   to me. “I just want to say thank you,” he said. “You  (18)    my life!”

I still can’t believe what a   (19)    it was. I’m just so glad I was there   (20)    to help my son.

Teens and younger children are reading a lot less for fun, according to a Common Sense Media report published Monday.

While the decline over the past decade is steep for teen readers, some data in the report shows that reading remains a big part of many children’s lives, and indicates how parents might help encourage more reading.

According to the report’s key findings, “the proportion (比例) who say they ‘hardly ever’ read for fun has gone from 8 percent of 13-year-olds and 9 percent of 17-year-olds in 1984 to 22 percent and 27 percent respectively today.”

The report data shows that pleasure reading levels for younger children, ages 2-8, remain largely the same. But the amount of time spent in reading each session has declined, from closer to an hour or more to closer to a half hour per session.

When it comes to technology and reading, the report does little to counsel (建议) parents looking for data about the effect of e-readers and tablets on reading. It does point out that many parents still limit electronic reading, mainly due to concerns about increased screen time.

The most hopeful data shared in the report shows clear evidence of parents serving as examples and important guides for their kids when it comes to reading. Data shows that kids and teens who do read frequently, compared to infrequent readers, have more books in the home, more books purchased for them, parents who read more often, and parents who set aside time for them to read.

As the end of school approaches, and school vacation reading lists loom (逼近) ahead, parents might take this chance to step in and make their own summer reading list and plan a family trip to the library or bookstore.

Cities usually have a good reason for being where they are, like a nearby port or river. People settle in these places because they are easy to get to and naturally suited to communications and trade. New York City, for example, is near a large harbour at the mouth of the Hudson River. Over 300 years its population grew gradually from 800 people to 8 million. But not all cities develop slowly over a long period of time. Boom towns grow from nothing almost overnight. In 1896, Dawson, Canada, was unmapped wilderness(荒野). But gold was discovered there in 1897, and two years later, it was one of the largest cities in the West, with a population of 30,000.

Dawson did not have any of the natural conveniences of cities like London or Paris. People went there for gold. They travelled over snow-covered mountains and sailed hundreds of miles up icy rivers. The path to Dawson was covered with thirty feet of wet snow that could fall without warming. An avalanche(雪崩) once closed the path, killing 63 people. For many who made it to Dawson, however, the rewards were worth the difficult trip. Of the first 20,000 people who dug for gold, 4,000 got rich. About 100 of these stayed rich men for the rest of their lives.

But no matter how rich they were, Dawson was never comfortable. Necessities like food and wood were very expensive. But soon, the gold that Dawson depended on had all been found. The city was crowded with disappointed people with no interest in settling down, and when they heard there were new gold discoveries in Alaska, they left Dawson City as quickly as they had come. Today, people still come and go — to see where the Canadian gold rush happened. Tourism is now the chief industry of Dawson City — its present population is 762.

When I was 17， I read a magazine article about a museum called the McNay， once the home of a watercolorist named Marian McNay． She had requested the community to turn it into a museum upon her death． On a sunny Saturday， Sally and I drove over to the museum． She asked， "Do you have the address？ ""No， but I'll recognize it， there was a picture in the magazine．

    "Oh， stop． There it is！"

    The museum was free． We entered， excited． A group of people sitting in the hall stopped talking and stared at us．

    "May I help you？" a man asked． "No， "I said． "we're fine．" Tour guides got on my nerves． What if they talked a long time about a painting you weren't that interested in？ Sally had gone upstairs． The people in the hall seemed very nosy（爱窥探的）， keeping their eyes on me with curiosity． What was their problem？ I saw some nice sculptures in one room． Suddenly I sensed a man standing behind me． "Where do you think you are？" he asked． I turned sharply． "The McNay Art Museum！" He smiled， shaking his head． "Sorry， the McNay is on New Braunfels Street． ""what's this place？" I asked， still confused． "Well， it' s our home．"My heart jolted（震颤），I raced to the staircase and called out，" Sally! Come down immediately!

    "There' s some really good stuff（艺术作品） up there．" She stepped down， looking confused． I pushed her toward the front door， waving at the family， saying， "Sorry， please forgive us， you have a really nice place． "Outside， when I told Sally what happened， she covered her mouth， laughing． She couldn't believe how long they let us look around without saying anything．

    The real McNay was splendid， but we felt nervous the whole time we were there． Van Gogh， Picasso． This time， we stayed together， in case anything else unusual happened．

    Thirty years later， a woman approached me in a public place． "Excuse me， did you ever enter a residence， long ago， thinking it was the McNay Museum？"

    "Yes． But how do you know？ We never told anyone．"

    "That was my home． I was a teenager sitting in the hall． Before you came over， I never realized what a beautiful place I lived in． I never felt lucky before． You thought it was a museum． My feelings about my home changed after that． I've always wanted to thank you．"

Children as young as ten are becoming dependent on social media for their sense of self﹣worth，a major study warned．

    It found many youngsters（少年）now measure their status by how much public approval they get online， often through "like"． Some change their behavior in real life to improve their image on the web．

    The report into youngsters aged from 8 to 12 was carried out by Children's Commissioner （专员）Anne Longfield． She said social media firms were exposing children to major emotional risks，with some youngsters starting secondary school ill﹣equipped to cope with the tremendous pressure they faced online．

    Some social apps were popular among the children even though they supposedly require users to be at least 13．The youngsters admitted planning trips around potential photo﹣opportunities and then messaging friends﹣and friends of friends﹣to demand "likes" for their online posts．

    The report found that youngsters felt their friendships could be at risk if they did not respond to social media posts quickly， and around the clock．

    Children aged 8 to 10 were "starting to feel happy" when others liked their posts． However，those in the 10 to 12 age group were "concerned with how many people like their posts"， suggesting a "need" for social recognition that gets stronger the older they become．

    Miss Longfield warned that a generation of children risked growing up "worried about their appearance and image as a result of the unrealistic lifestyles they follow on platforms， and increasingly anxious about switching off due to the constant demands of social media"．

    She said： "Children are using social media with family and friends and to play games when they are in primary school． But what starts as fun usage of apps turns into tremendous pressure in real social media interaction at secondary school．"

    As their world expanded． she said，children compared themselves to others online in a way that was "hugely damaging in terms of their self﹣identity， in terms of their confidence， but also in terms of their ability to develop themselves"．

    Miss Longfield added： "Then there is this push to connect﹣if you go offline， will you miss something， will you miss out， will you show that you don't care about those people you are following，all of those come together in a huge way at once．"

    "For children it is very， very difficult to cope with emotionally．" The Children's Commissioner for England's study﹣Life in Likes﹣found that children as young as 8 were using social media platforms largely for play．

    However， the research﹣involving eight groups of 32 children aged 8 to 12﹣suggested that as they headed toward their teens， they became increasingly anxious online．

    By the time they started secondary school﹣at age 11﹣children were already far more aware of their image online and felt under huge pressure to ensure their posts were popular， the report found．

    However， they still did not know how to cope with mean﹣spirited jokes， or the sense of incompetence they might feel if they compared themselves to celebrities（名人）or more brilliant friends online． The report said they also faced pressure to respond to messages at all hours of the day﹣especially at secondary school when more youngsters have mobile phones．

    The Children's Commissioner said schools and parents must now do more to prepare children for the emotional minefield（雷区）they faced online． And she said social media companies must also "take more responsibility"． They should either monitor their websites better so that children do not sign up too early，  or they should adjust their websites to the needs of younger users．

    Javed Khan， of children's charity Bamardo's， said： "It's vital that new compulsory age﹣appropriate relationship and sex education lessons in England should help equip children to deal with the growing demands of social media．

    "It's also hugely important for parents to know which apps their children are using．"