“The day before yesterday,” says Josh Peters, 16, “was probably the best day of my life.” On that day, Josh found out that the nation basketball team wanted him to play in the Paralympics (残奥会)!

Amazingly, two years ago, Josh didn’t use to like any sport. “I was so lazy,” says Josh. “The only exercise I did outside school was going to the shops to buy video games!”

On the day before his fourteenth birthday, Josh was crossing the road when a motorbike hit him. The motorcyclist was riding so fast that he didn’t see the red light-or Josh. Josh never walked again.

At first, Josh thought his life was over. “I didn’t hang out with friends. I didn’t answer the calls or emails. I just wanted to be alone.” Then one day he saw a You Tube video about wheelchair basketball. “It looked so exciting,” said Josh, “I wasn’t watching ‘people in wheelchairs’. I was watching great players!”

Josh joined a wheelchair basketball team in Birmingham. “My family live in the city now, but we didn’t then,” explains Josh, “so I got a bus from my village every weekend to attend training lessons. Friends often came with me. I realized how lucky I was to have such great friends.”

Josh wasn’t good at wheelchair basketball at first. “I fell over lots, and I felt like such a fool. I used to play ‘ordinary’ basketball at school, but that’s easy. Compared to wheelchair basketball, it’s slow!” However, Josh didn’t give up, and he quickly impressed his coach, Andy Martin. “Josh’s talent and determination are amazing. He’s a Paralympian already.”

How does Josh feel about his accident now? “Differently. Yes, it changed me. In a good way! Before it happened, I was just an average teenager. Now, I’m competing for my country.”

Although we all know that food should never go to waste, as much as two billion tons of it ends up in the trash.

Considering that nearly one billion people worldwide are either starving or hungry, this figure is shocking. What is perhaps more shocking is that every one of these mouths could be fed using less than a quarter of the food that is wasted in the United States and in Europe alone!

How so much food is wasted each year? Some foods may be lost in production or poor transportation and storage (储藏). Damaged or imperfect-looking fruits and vegetables may be thrown out since most supermarkets won’t buy them.

Of the items that do make it to the market, many will go bad while sitting on the shelf. Once bought and placed in the fridge at home, a certain amount of food will go bad because of improper (不恰当的) meal planning. Then, there is food that might get prepared but ends up being thrown away when we are full.

To help deal with the issue of food waste, a number of improvements need to be made. In developing countries, the problem lies mainly in production. By improving collecting, processing, storage, and transportation methods, people can save millions of tons of food each year.

In the developed world, the problem comes down to raising awareness (意识). In the United States, for example, some restaurants have begun offering smaller size dishes and are encouraging diners to take home their leftovers.

In a world with limited land, water, and energy, we need to pay more attention to the problem of food waste. With our ever-increasing population, it’s time to stop wasting food and start taking action!

In the animal world, the mother is usually the parent that does the most for the child. She gives birth to it and often raises it on her own. However, there are several aquatic animals that are turning this idea upside down.

Another father with a pouch is the Darwin’s frog. The female lays eggs and the male guards them for about two weeks. When the tadpoles (蝌蚪) come out of their eggs, the father puts them in the big pouch of skin under his chin, where they stay until they are ready to jump out into the dangerous world.

The clown fish was made famous by the Disney film Finding Nemo. After the female clown fish lays eggs, the male protects them until they hatch. That’s not all. If the mother fish dies, the dad can turn into a female and be the new mom of the family.

Another great ocean dad is the emperor penguin. These dads keep the eggs on top of their feet under a thick fold of warm skin. During the next two months of the Antarctic winter, these fantastic fathers go without food as they keep their eggs warm.

While each of these fathers is very different, they all take responsibility for their children. These dads of the water make sure their kids have a safe place to grow so they will have a good life in the future.

So, You Want to Be a Writer?

What are some tips on becoming a writer?

Most writers read whatever books they can find because they love to lose themselves in them. They like the sounds of language and the way that reading a good description can feel as satisfying as a baseball game or eating a banana split.

It’s easy to forget a good idea if you do not write it down immediately. If you get in the habit of carrying a notebook with you everywhere you go, you can write down anything you want to remember. When you are talking to friends in cafe or waiting for the bus, something might spark and idea for a character or scene in a story.

Nearly all writers agree that writers must write. It doesn’t matter if you feel like you have nothing to say; the important thing is that you write every single day. Sometimes, you need to give yourself permission to write things which won’t be your best work.

Do you have any friends who enjoy writing? Think about starting a writing group with other people who have similar interests. It helps to have the support of other writers. You will also receive valuable feedback, or suggestions, about how to make you work better.

If you decide that you would like to send your work for publication, make sure to do your research. If you are sending your writing to a magazine, look through old ones. Does it seem like your writing fits in with the other stories or articles? That’s the homework for you after writing.

At the age of twenty, Susan was found with terrible cancer. Worse still, her family couldn’t     __ the medical cost. With an empty bank account and a heart full of ___, Susan began six weeks of treatment. After the tiring treatments, Susan looked        _____, but she still kept up her spirits by her hope.

Before long, Susan became very ill, and slowly she found she couldn’t stand the terrible       _____. _____she received lots of support from people around her, the pain continued. Soon she had lost her hair. She would   ____, “I’ll save money on hair care!” On the outside she seemed positive, but I knew she was greatly short of money.

One cold February day while Susan was in hospital, an old man visited her. He said ____, “My name is Mark White, and my wife was in the bed next to you       ______your first visit to the hospital, but you weren’t here long.” The man continued, “My wife died about two days after you left, and I’m here to   ________some of her things.”

The man went on, “The nurse told me you were back in the hospital.       ______heard you talking on the phone with your mom about your money problem. My wife and I wanted to help you, and we found no        _______way than to give you this money. We don’t know you well, but we want to help. You were   ___a joy for my wife to talk to and a great encouragement to her. Please take this money and use it for your hospital bills. I know you’ll        _____, kid. Just keep believing.”

As Susan opened the envelope, she thought, “How ___that this couple gave me twenty or fifty dollars!” But inside were ten thousand dollars! Crying, she read the note, “Someone needs your encouragement today. Thanks for        _______me for the few short days I knew you. Love, Marie White.”

A lot of people drink bottled water in the world. A water bottle offers great convenience. It can     36     (buy) almost anywhere, carried around for a while, and then thrown away.

The influence of bottled water on the environment, however, is very big. About 2.7 million tons of plastic is turned into bottles which are only used     37     (one) each year. This requires a lot of oil and water. It also produces greenhouse gases. Bottled water is often carried     38     long distances to reach people who buy it. This uses even more fossil fuels(燃料) and creates more pollution. Although the bottles can be recycled, only small parts of them are. The United States only     39     (recycle) about 23 percent. The rest are part of a growing waste problem.

Convenience isn’t the only reason for bottled water     40     (become) popular. Many people believe that it must be cleaner and healthier than tap water from public water systems. But this is not true. In developed countries such as the United States and some countries in Europe, laws about safe water are often     41     (strict) for tap water than for bottled water.

It may come as a surprise that nearly 40 percent of     42     water bottled in the United States starts from tap water. Before bottling, some companies filter(过滤) it, and they might add some things for taste. What’s more, bottled water can cost from 240 to 10,000 times more than tap water.

“Back to the tap” activities start around the world. In order to save money, use fewer resources, and create     43     (little) waste, they support using tap water and reusable bottles rather than bottled water. San Francisco and other cities across the United States no longer allow their government departments to buy bottled water. Cities     44     Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom are considering similar decisions. Many bottled water     45     (company) are trying to improve, too. They have reduced the use of plastic in their bottles.