How do ultra-processed (超加工的) foods harm our health?

Food types when it comes to processing (加工)

   Whole: foods that have gone through zero or little processing such as boiling

   Processed: foods that have something added, such as salt and sugar

   Ultra-processed: foods that have many additives (添加剂)

Identifying ultra-processed foods

   According to studies that followed the health of people who eat large amounts (大量) of ultra-processed foods, researchers found that such people are:

             39 percent more likely to develop high blood pressure;

             24 percent more likely to have serious heart problems.

Addictive (使人上瘾的) power

   People may have bad feelings if they stop eating ultra-processed foods. The addiction is a problem for 14 percent of adults and 12 percent of children.

After Christmas, it is one of the biggest holidays in the western world. Easter, which fell on April 21 this year, is celebrated in many countries.

Easter is a religious (宗教的) holidays. Most adults celebrate it by going to church. But for children, it's way more fun.

Candy is a big part of Easter. Children receive big pieces of chocolate that are shaped like rabbits during the holiday. The Easter bunny is a symbol of the holiday.

Jelly beans are another common Easter candy. They come in all kinds of different colors and flavors, such as strawberry or cinnamon (肉桂). There's even a black jelly bean that tastes like licorice (甘草) -most kids don't like these because of their strong flavor, but some kids love them. The jelly beans, along with the chocolate Easter bunnies, are usually placed in a basket and given to kids on Easter morning.

Another fun Easter tradition is hunting for eggs. The night before Easter, parents and their children   get together and decorate eggs with colorful paint and stickers. The next morning, parents will hide these eggs all over the house. Kids can't get their Easter baskets until they find all of the eggs. It's a fun tradition for children and parents to celebrate together.

It seems that more and more Americans want schools to teach foreign language to children younger than five years old. The most popular way to teach these young children another language is called immersion.

Children in immersion programmes only hear the new language in the classroom. The children play games, sing songs and talk to one another in the new language. Some experts (专家) say immersion programmes are the most effective (有效的) way for young children to learn a language. But there can be a problem when children in the United States begin to learn another language at such an early age. Not many elementary schools continue to teach a foreign language. Only seven of the fifty states require schools to teach a foreign language to students between the ages of six and twelve. Language experts say it is easier for younger children to learn a language. Still, American schools generally do not begin to teach foreign language until secondary school. By then, students are about thirteen years old.

American schools face difficult choose about the cost of educational programmes. However, the government has taken some steps to help solve the problem. It has increased investment for foreign language study in its educational law called No Child Left Behind.

At the college, the Modern Language Association says more students than ever are studying foreign languages and more languages are being studied now than in the past. Foreign language learning is better at the college today than in the past. Spanish is the most widely taught in American colleges and universities. French, German, Chinese and Italian are also popular.

Slavery (奴隶制) was one of the darkest periods in American history. It cannot be ignored (忽视). This term, we are reading a novel called The Longest Memory by British author Fred D’Aguiar. Its story is told through the eyes of many different people. From their narration (讲述), we can see what the society looked like during the period before the American Civil War.

The Longest Memory tells the story of a brave and wise young slave, Chapel, who falls in love with the daughter of a plantation owner (种植园主). They decide to go to the north, where black men can marry white women. However, the boy’s father, White Chapel, doesn’t agree with him and causes him to be caught. Chapel is then whipped (鞭打) to death.

Why does White Chapel report his son’s plan to the plantation owner? This is one thing that confuses many readers. But as we understand each character in depth, we can find it out White Chapel teaches young slaves to follow their owners. So his owner respects him a lot. He starts to think that slaves can live comfortably as long as they listen to the plantation owner.

This thought is based on (以……为依据) the idea that slavery will never end. However, Chapel is educated. He sees a more colourful world in the books he reads and wants to be free. He represents (代表) the change for the future, which his dad fears. White Chapel’s thought might be a good way for slaves to protect themselves. But that doesn’t change the fact that slavery is inhumane (不人道的) and must end. Pioneers like Chapel should be encouraged.