【推荐1】Earthquakes are something that people fear. There are some places that have few or earthquakes. Most places in the world, however, have them regularly. Countries that have a of earthquakes are usually quite mountainous.

The most-talked-about earthquake in the United States was in San Francisco in 1906.Over 700 people died in it. The strongest one in North America was in 1964. It happened in Alaska.

Strong earthquakes are not always the ones that kill the most people. In 1755, one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded was felt in Portugal. Around 2,000 people died. In 1923, a very strong earthquake hit Tokyo, Yokohama area of Japan. 140,000 people died. Most of them died in fires which followed the earthquake.

One of the worst earthquakes ever was in China in 1976. It killed a large number of people. The worst earthquake ever reported was also in China, in which 830, 000 people were killed. This earthquake happened in 1556.

Earthquakes worry people a lot. The reason is that we often do not know when they are coming. People cannot prepare for them beforehand.

【推荐2】Starting in 1972, the National Park Administration set up a policy for forest fires called Natural Burn. It was acknowledged that some forest fires, such as those caused by lightning, were necessary for forests to maintain balanced ecosystems, so the fire should be allowed to burn.

However, a big fire in Yellowstone National Park in 1988 caused this policy to be abandoned since the fire was at first allowed to burn yet soon out of control. As a result, the fire of 1988 destroyed much of Yellowstone, which is America’s oldest and most beloved national park. Massive areas of plants were destroyed, and large empty spaces and acres of burned and blackened trees greeted visitors. The rivers and streams were choked with ash, and the ecosystem of the park was changed beyond repair.

In addition, great numbers of animals were killed by the fires that burned out of control. The fires were driven by high winds, moving as many as ten miles a day. Many small animals died in the flames. The fires’ rapid advances gave the wildlife little chance to escape. Even today, few of these small forest animals have returned to live in the park.

In the years immediately following the fires, the numbers of visitors declined rapidly. No one was interested in seeing a blackened and treeless park on vacation. Yellowstone had previously been famous for its amazing views and unique geological formations such as the Old Faithful Geyser. But now its reputation as America’s wonder is damaged permanently.

【推荐1】Popeye the Sailor first became a popular cartoon in the 1930s. The sailor in that cartoon ate lots of spinach to make him strong. People watched him, and they began to buy and eat a lot more spinach. Popeye helped sell 33 percent more spinach than before! Spinach became a necessary part of many people’s diets. Even some children who hated the taste began to eat the vegetable.

Many people thought that the iron in spinach made Popeye strong, but this is not true. Spinach does not have any more iron than any other green vegetable.

People only thought spinach had a lot of iron because the people who studied the food made a mistake. In the 1890s, a group of people studied what was inside vegetables. This group said that spinach had ten times more iron than it did. The group wrote the number wrong, and everyone accepted it.

Today, we know that the little iron there is in spinach cannot make a difference in how strong a person is. However, spinach does have something else which the body needs—folic acid.

It is interesting to point out that folic acid can help make a person strong. Maybe it was really the folic acid that made Popeye strong all along.

【推荐2】Spain is a country that lies in southwestern Europe. It’s surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the south and the east, while to the north and northeast of Spain lie France, Andorra and the Bay of Biscay. The west and northwest of Spain are surrounded by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean.

The official name of the state is the Kingdom of Spain. Madrid is the capital city, which is also one of the famous places in Spain. Spain, which covers 505，925 square kilometres, is one of the largest countries in Europe.

The weather in Spain differs from one area to another. Most of the rain that happens in Spain is in the mountainous areas. The plains hardly receive any rainfall.

Soccer is an important part of life in Spain. It’s said that Spanish children learn to walk and play soccer at exactly the same time. Real Madrid and FC Barcelona are two Spanish soccer teams, which are respected by soccer fans not only in Spain, but all over the world. The popularity of the sport can be judged from the fact that three major soccer teams, which are Real Madrid, Atletico de Madrid, and Rayo Vallecano, were born in Madrid.

If you are a tourist, then you will want to know about the driving rules in Spain. If you’re not from the European Union, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, or Liechtenstein, then for you to drive you’ll have to carry your international driver’s license. Bad news if you haven’t celebrated your 18th birthday. If you want to rent a car, then you must have completed 21 years of age. If you’re driving, make sure you take all the documents at all times during your stay in Spain.