Cats are the most popular pets among Americans. So it is not surprising that there are many expressions about cats. Some cats like to catch small birds, like canaries (金丝雀). If someone looks very proud or satisfied with himself, we say he looks like the cat that eats the canary.

       Sometimes, a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches. So if you play cat and mouse with someone, you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with another person. For example, a child might offer something sweet to his little brother and then take it away when he reaches for it.

       You may have known that cats spend most of their time sleeping. Sometimes people sleep for a short time during the day. This is called a cat nap.

       If you tell about something that was supposed to be a secret, we say you let the cat out of the bag. If you are not able to speak or answer a question, someone might ask if the cat has got your tongue.

       Have you ever watched children in classroom when their teacher leaves for a few minutes? “When the cat’s away, the mice will play” will best describe that situation.

       You may have heard this expression: curiosity killed the cat. This means being too concerned about things that are not your business might cause problems.

If your home is very small, you might say there is not enough room to swing a cat. But you probably should not try this at home!

Greeting cards first appeared as simple pieces of paper by both the Egyptians and Chinese to show their messages of goodwill. As time went by, Europeans began to send them to one another for holidays such as Valentine’s Day --- and that happened as early as in the 1400s. Of course, these cards were handmade and they were big ticket items, so not everyone could afford to send them with their best wishes in holidays.

Greeting cards became really popular in the 1850s when printing as well as the invention of stamps made people all over the world send greeting cards to their loved ones. Now, the greeting card is a billion-dollar business, with people buying and sending cards for holidays, religious celebrations or birthdays, and even just as a simple thank-you. The two largest greeting card companies--- Hallmark and American Greetings, offer cards that are perfect for any occasion, with themes and illustrations that are great for all tastes.

Of course, you don’t need to buy your greeting cards in a store. Computers and home printers have made it easy to create and print out your own cards at home. Many people have also started to make paper crafts and their own greeting cards out of many different materials, which costs a lot of time but certainly shows strong emotion.

Greeting cards have developed from an item used only by the rich to an everyday tradition. Whether you want to communicate with relatives far away, or just let your sweethearts know how much you love them, greeting cards make a great way to brighten up their day!

I have never understood the importance of parties in the classroom. As a mother of two school age children, I believe that public schools should no longer   (1)   classroom parties during the school day.

  (2)   is very important to students in school today. Our school year is already too short. Teachers can only just get all the basics of the courses (课程) into the   (3)   instructional minutes of the day.   (4)  , there is no time for anything useless or silly.   (5)   time is best spent focusing on the primary goal — learning.

And what about food? For health and safety reasons, schools often require that   (6)   for these activities should be bought from a store. This   (7)   a real problem for many families. Biscuits for a class of students, plus drinks and napkins can   (8)  what it costs a family to eat a meal at home. The   (9)  of a classroom party is   (10)   a problem for many people, especially in these difficult times.   (11)  , we all know that our children have eaten enough sugar and junk food without the school   (12)   such unhealthy choices.

All the   (13)   that a party can create is unacceptable! I   (14)   those birthday parties held at home for my children. I would just buy the disposable (一次性的) plates, cups, and napkins   (15)   I didn’t need to do any cleaning up. But even so, I just   (16)   to fit all the party time rubbish into the rubbish bin (垃圾桶).   (17)  the trash thrown out by a school of 16 classrooms and over 400 students. It only adds to the   (18)   of our planet’s environment.

I am not sure when our public schools decided that classroom   (19)  needed to become a part of the school calendar (日历), but I do not see the   (20)  . So I do believe schools should forbid (禁止) classroom celebrations.

The meaning of silence varies among cultural groups. Silences may be thoughtful, or they may be empty when a person has nothing to say. A silence in a conversation may also show stubbornness, uneasiness, or worry. Silence may be viewed by some cultural groups as extremely uncomfortable; therefore attempts may be made to fill every gap (间隙) with conversation. Persons in other cultural groups value silence and view it as necessary for understanding a person's needs.

Many Native Americans value silence and feel it is a basic part of communicating among people, just as some traditional Chinese and Thai persons do. Therefore, when a person from one of these cultures is speaking and suddenly stops, what may be implied (暗示) is that the person wants the listener to consider what has been said before continuing. In these cultures, silence is a call for reflection.

Other cultures may use silence in other ways, particularly when dealing with conflicts among people or in relationships of people with different amounts of power. For example, Russian, French, and Spanish persons may use silence to show agreement between parties about the topic under discussion. However, Mexicans may list silence when instructions are given by a person in authority rather than be rude to that person by arguing with him or her. In still another use, persons in Asian cultures may view silence as a sign of respect, particularly to an elder or a person in authority.

Nurses and other care-givers need to be aware of the possible meanings of silence when they come across the personal anxiety their patients may be experiencing. Nurses should recognize their own personal and cultural construction of silence so that a patient's silence is not interrupted too early or allowed to go on unnecessarily. A nurse who understands the healing (治愈) value of silence can use this understanding to assist in the care of patients from their own and from other cultures.

What does the author advise nurses to do about silence?

Every people uses its own special word to show its ideas and feelings. Some of these expressions are commonly used for many years. Others are popular for just a short time. One such American expression is “Where’s the beef?” It is used when something is not as good as it is said to be. In the early 1980s “Where’s the beef?” was one of the most popular expressions in the United States. It seemed as if everyone using it at the time.

Beef, of course, is the meat from a cow, and food is more popular in America than a hamburger made from beef. In the 1960s a businessman named Ray began building small restaurants that sold hamburgers at a low price. Ray called this “McDonald’s”. Ray became one of the richest businessmen at last in America.

Other business people watched his success. Some of them opened their own hamburger restaurants. One company called “Wendy’s” said its hamburgers were bigger than those sold by McDonald’s or anyone else. The Wendy’s Company began to use the expression “Where’s the beef?” to make people know that Wendy’s hamburgers were the biggest. The Wendy’s television advertisement showed three old women eating hamburgers. The bread that covered the meat was very big, but inside there was only a bit of meat. One of the women said she would not eat a hamburger with such a little piece of beef. “Where’s the beef?” she shouted in a funny way. The advertisement for Wendy’s hamburger restaurants was a success. As we said, it seemed everyone began using the expression “Where’s the beef?”

   English is full of colorful phrases to describe shyness. Someone shy might be called shrinking violet or a wallflower, while for especially nervous types we have the curious expression: they wouldn’t say boo to a goose.

       None of these are traditionally seen as positive descriptions, even if you like geese. In a culture of go-getting, high achievers, shy people don’t come first. Or that’s what the self-help industry would have you believe. Bookshops are filled with vital tomes(巨著) that promise to help beat social fears and find success in life, love and business. That is why one book, Shrinking Violets: A Field Guide to Shyness, bucks the trend. It became a sudden success across English-language media recently for its new take-on shyness.

       Author Joe Moran says that despite struggling with shyness and longing for loneliness all his life, being shy can also be “a gift”. Freed from the constant urge to participate and compete in social situations, people are liberated to look at the world in new ways, and gain fresh insights.

       Indeed, many of the world’s great thinkers and artists are introverts(内向的人). Scientists Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein preferred their own company; actress Keira Knightley often finds herself tongue-tied at parties; and Harry Potter author JK Rowling claims she used to be too nervous to even borrow a pen.

       Moran told BBC Future: “I think shyness probably does turn you into an amateur anthropologist(人类学家), really—you are more likely to be an observer.”

       So, while extroverts make all the noise, they don’t necessarily have the best ideas.

       If you’re shy, you’ve probably known this for a long time. You just don’t shout about it.

Why do Chinese people love hot pot (火锅）so much? As the winter months are coming in, more and more people are sitting around a table, enjoying this kind oftraditionalmeal. I find myself wondering what it is about this traditional meal, which has existed for more than 1,000 years. What makes it a Chinese food favorite? It seems that the answer lies beyond the dish itself.

Hot pot isn’t just designed to keep you warm during the cold months; it’s also asocialexperience. It’s a “theater” cooked food that turns a meal into an event. There is a lot of fun for everyone to have in adding some foods to the hot pot.

Hot pot is eaten over two to three hours. For this reason, it is often considered an evening’sentertainment，and a time to spend with friends and families. However, many Westerners would beput offby the idea of other people sticking chopsticks in their food. When we come to eat at the table in the UK, we tend to have our own shares, although the experience is still a social one.

    Asimilarexperience to the hot pot can be found in Korean barbecue restaurants, which let you cook your own meat.This allows people to have their meat done .

 For most Westerners, the idea of going to a restaurant to cook their own food is very strange. But I find it’s now one of my favorite meals in Beijing. The steam from the pot left my clothes smelling of food when I got home, but perhaps this was also part of the experience. When the cold wind is blowing outside, I am sitting aroundwith my good friends, eating and drinking. For me it’s like a dinner party where my taste buds (味蕾)and myappetiteare equally satisfied in the warm company of friends.

The requirements for high school graduation have just changed in my community. As a result, all students must  (1)  sixty hours of service learning,   (2)  they will not receive a diploma. Service learning is academic learning that also helps the community.   (3)   of service learning include cleaning up a polluted river, working in a soup kitchen, or tutoring a student.   (4)  a service experience, students must keep a journal and then write a   (5)   about what they have learned.

Supporters claim that there are many   (6)   of service learning. Perhaps most importantly, students are forced to think   (7)   their own interests and become   (8)   of the needs of others. Students are also able to learn real-life skills that   (9)   responsibility, problem-solving, and working as part of a team.  (10)  , students can explore possible careers   (11)   service learning.For example, if a student wonders what teaching is like, he or she can choose to work in an elementary school classroom a few afternoons each month.

First, they   (14)   that the main reason why students go to school is to learn core subjects and skills.

Because service learning is time-consuming, students spend   (15)   time studying the core subjects.

Second, they believe that forcing students to work without  (16)   goes against the law. By requiring service, the school takes away an individual’s freedom to choose.

In my view, service learning is a great way to   (17)   to the community, learn new skills, and explore different careers.   (18)  , I don’t believe you should force people to help others – the   (19)   to help must come from the heart. I think the best  (20)  is one that gives students choices: a student should be able to choose sixty hours of independent study or sixty hours of service. Choice encourages both freedom and responsibility, and as young adults, we must learn to handle both wisely.

People in the United States honor their parents with two special days: Mother’s Day, on the second Sunday in May, and Father’s Day, on the third Sunday in June.

Mother’s Day was proclaimed a day for national observance(庆祝) by President Woodrow Wilson in 1915. Ann Jarvis from Grafton, West Virginia, had started the idea to have a day to honor mothers. She was the one who chose the second Sunday in May and also began the custom of wearing a carnation（康乃馨）.

In 1909, Mrs. Dodd from Spokane, Washington, thought of the idea of a day to honor fathers. She wanted to honor her own father, William Smart. After her mother died, he had the responsibility of raising a family of five sons and a daughter. In 1910, the first Father’s Day was observed in Spokane. Senator Margaret Chase Smith helped to established Father’s Day as a national commemorative （纪念的）day, in 1972.

These days are set aside to show love and respect for parents. They raise their children and educate them to be responsible citizens. They give love and care.

These two special days are celebrated in many different ways. On Mother’s Day people wear carnations. A red one symbolizes a living mother. A white one shows that the mother is dead．Many people attend religious services to honor parents. It is also a day when people whose parents are dead visit the cemetery. On these days, families get together at home, as well as in restaurants. They often have outdoor barbecues for Father’s Day. These are days of fun and good feelings and memories.

a. The first Father’s Day was observed

b. Mother’s Day was proclaimed a day for national observance

c. Father’s Day became a day for national observance.

d. The idea of honoring fathers was bought up

Putting a dinosaur skeleton together is not easy. The skeletons are usually very incomplete. Many dinosaur fossils are discovered badly damaged. Bones are often found crushed (压碎) or bent by the great weight of the dirt and rock above. Sometimes parts from different creatures are mixed together. This just adds to the confusion.

    Unfortunately, some scientists have not been careful enough in their descriptions of dinosaurs. They have told grand stories of how dinosaurs looked and behaved. All of these descriptions are based on guesswork — the imaginations of people who have never seen a living dinosaur. Some scientists have made complete pictures of dinosaurs based on just a single bone or tooth or leg. Such pictures are based on many guesses and very little facts. The scientists’ ideas often turn out to be wrong when more facts are discovered.

    Dinosaur fossils are not found with labels attached showing what the animals looked like. That is why no pictures of dinosaurs are exactly right. Every dinosaur painting is sure to contain at least some wrong information. No artist in the twentieth century ever saw the living, breathing animals — complete with skin, flesh, and color.

    For instance, imagine never having seen or heard of a peacock. One day you find the jumbled bones of it buried in the ground. You try to put the bones together to form a skeleton. And then you try to draw a picture of what the animal looked like when it was alive. But bones cannot tell the whole story. Even if you are a very good artist, it would be a miracle if you drew a true picture of a peacock just from the bones and your imagination.