【推荐3】Looking out of the window of his truck, Bob Fitzgerald sees dying forests and empty farmland. Fitzgerald says the land has been in his family since the 17th century. “I can show you land around here that people grew tomatoes on when I was a little boy. And now it’s gone.”

Climate change is making things worse. As sea levels rise, salt water is entering rivers and other waterways. As a result, the land is becoming too salty for crops to grow on. Hundreds of millions of people will be forced to move inland because of rising waters.

Kate Tully, a researcher in the University of Maryland, wants to keep coastal（沿海的） farmers in business as the seas rise. She has seen the forests filled with pine trees killed by the increasingly salty soil. The United States Department of Agriculture gave Tully and other researchers $1.1 million to study the problem. She and her team hope to give farmers ways to stay on their land.

They are testing different crops on pieces of land around the Eastern Shore. “Sorghum is my new favorite crop because it can grow without rain and it can also grow with lots of rain.” The grain（谷类） crop may be a good choice to feed the nearly 600 million chickens kept in the area each year. As farmers know, chickens can deal with salt, dry weather conditions and heavy rains. Yet just being able to grow a crop is not enough. The crop has to bring in money.

Some people believe the land should be given back to nature. They say the fields should be turned into wetlands, which are popular with duck hunters（猎人）. “There’s money in duck hunting,” Tully said. “Hunting organizations will pay farmers for hunting on their land. Farmers could make a lot of money from duck hunting.”

Tully and her team are just getting started. It will be a few years before they really understand how to save the farms.

【推荐3】African elephants are very large animals. They are the largest animals living on land. An adult African elephant can be twice as tall as the man and weigh six tons or more.

African elephants have very large ears. Some people think their ears are like the shape of Africa. The large ears help keep them cool.

African elephants have long trunks (象鼻). They use their trunks to drink water and then spray (喷洒) themselves. This is another way to keep cool. They also spray dust (尘土) on their bodies to protect them from the hot sun. They use trunks for many other things. The trunk is a nose for smelling. Elephants make a sound through their trunks. They can use trunks for picking up things, such as food.

African elephants usually feed on bananas, tree leaves and other plants. They often spend about sixteen hours having food a day. An adult African elephant can have 150 kg to 200 kg of food a day.

African elephants are in danger because people kill too many African elephants for their ivory. Only in the last year people killed more than 20, 000 of them! They are becoming fewer and fewer now. We should protect them now!

【推荐1】One day, I took my seat in a stadium to watch an Australian football game. It was crowded with fans. Suddenly, I heard some great commentary (现场解说) from a boy. He was bringing the game to life. I turned and saw him. There was another boy sitting next to him and listening to him carefully.

Then I heard about their stories from others. The two boys named Mark and Jerryd are best friends. When Mark was nine, he had an illness which took away his sight and his ability to play Australian football. However, during the years, Jarryd has always been with his closest friend and watched every game with him. They still share their love of it.

After knowing that, I hardly watched the game. Instead, I was looking back at Jarryd and Mark. Jarryd told Mark about the game clearly and excitedly sometimes. Mark listened carefully. He was lost in the magic of Australian football.

Sports can be interesting. However, they can also allow us to share wonderful moments with others. Here, the two boys have moved me with their great friendship.

Have you ever argued with a friend, and said or done something you regretted? How to repair the broken relationship?     1     Before doing that, here is something you have to know.

Why do we argue?

We argue for all kinds of reasons. You might think your football team is fantastic, but your friend disagrees.     2     Sometimes, especially when you are angry, things can be out of control and you’ll say or do something you regret. Arguing and disagreeing with others are normal in our lives.

What does saying sorry mean?

We all make mistakes. Apologizing(道歉) is a way of admitting(承认) we’ve got something wrong and will try not to do it again. Ted, age 12, said, “Sometimes it’s hard to say sorry.     3    ” Dr. Jennifer Thomas, an expert in thoughts and feelings, believes an apology needs to show the other person that we’re really sorry.

What if it’s not my mistake?

Sometimes another person may pressure you into taking the blame(责备) when it’s not your mistake. When you feel this is happening, there are some things you can do.     4     Then, you can explain to him or her how it made you feel. If you two still can’t agree with each other, you could ask a parent or teacher for help.

Does apologizing always work?

An apology isn’t a magic stick.     5     So even after you say sorry, you will still feel sad sometimes. But you can feel good about trying to fix things and promising to do better next time.