【推荐1】Levi Strauss was the man who invented jeans. He was born in Germany in 1829, but he went to the USA in 1847. At first, he lived in New York, there was a Gold Rush in California. Thousands of people went there for gold washing. And Strauss wanted to have a try, too.

However, after he got there, he found it very difficult to make big money because there were too many gold diggers. So he gave up looking for gold and started selling things to gold diggers with his brother. Later, Strauss came up with an idea of producing special trousers for them. He made these trousers with a special cloth called “denim”（蓝粗棉布）. It was difficult to be worn-out（磨破的）. They soon became very popular. Not only gold diggers, but also cowboys and working men in the factories liked to wear these trousers.   

In the early 20th century, most people that wore the trousers were the working men. But after the Second World War, the trousers became popular with the young in schools. They called the trousers “jeans”. In the 1960s, more young Americans started wearing them as informal, casual clothes outside the workplace and denim jeans became fashionable.       

At that time, jeans were usually flared（向外展开的）, but today, there are many different styles of jeans: straight, baggy, flared, low-waisted—almost any style you can imagine.

Today, jeans are very popular. Millions of people wear them to go to work, as well as to go out. But no one is really sure why they are called “jeans”.

【推荐2】In modern times, we get our weather report scientifically. The meteorologists(气象学家) use information from satellites (卫星) to tell us what the weather will be like. They make predictions about the weather for today, tomorrow and even for the whole season. Will it rain? Will it snow? Will it be hot or will it be a long and cold winter?

But what did people do before modern technology? Well, not so long ago, people lived much closer to nature. Using the power of observation (观察), humans made predictions about the weather according to what was happening in the insect world. Sometimes their predictions were correct, and sometimes they weren’t.

My grandfather spent his whole life as a farmer in Canada. He is long gone now. But I still remember his stories about how to predict the weather. For example, in summer, he would often stop to observe the anthills — those little sandy mounds (沙堆) at the entrance (入口) to the ants’ nest.

“Look closely at the anthills in July,” Grandpa used to say. “If the anthills are high in July, expect a snowy winter.” Of course, as a kid, I believed my grandfather. But you know what? The anthills are often correct. Not always, but often enough to make me a believer.

In September, Grandpa would often point out a woolly caterpillar (毛毛虫) in a sunny location, “Observe the orange circle around its belly (腹部). If it’s wide and full, we’re sure to have a warm and easy winter. If it’s thin, be careful! The winter will be severe.”

I am older now. I get my weather mostly from the television or radio. Scientists hardly get it wrong. After all, they have the latest scientific instruments to help them.

But I still stop to observe the anthills in July, and of course, the woolly caterpillars in September. The older generation (老一辈) can teach us many things. My grandfather was not a meteorologist, but he knew a lot about insects and the weather.

Christmas for Americans is like the Spring Festival for Chinese people. It is a time when families get together and everyone is happy.     1     Before Christmas, everyone goes shopping to buy the gift for a family member, or a friend. Then they put the gifts under the Christmas tree.     2    

In the weeks before Christmas, the shops are full of wonderful things that children want.     3    Pets look cute, and some pets are not too expensive to buy — it is easy to buy one quickly. But before you buy a pet, you should ask yourself some important questions, such as “How long do I love this pet?” “Do I have enough time to keep it? “ “Can the pet be happy in my family? “     4    Because the family thinks the pets are not interesting any more, or they don’t have enough time or money for the pets. So in the UK at Christmas time, you can see many signs (标牌) in pet shops:     5     Think before you buy one!

【推荐3】According to a new report in 2022, of 30,000 Chinese people who join in a survey (调查), 59.5% say that their pets are cats. But in 2021, there are 580,000,000 pet cats in China’s city households and there are 540,000,000 pet dogs.

Around the world, dogs are still more common (平常的) pets, like in the US and the UK, but cats become the most popular pets in the European countries lately.

Many people in cities have busy lives and smaller houses, so it makes cats their ideal pets. It’s easy to keep cats. Dogs need more love and outdoor activities (户外活动).

Cai is a 27-year-old girl and she works in Beijing. She now has a cat named Nanako. She says cats are good pets for people. “I want to keep a dog at first, but I’m quite busy and wouldn’t have enough time to spend with it,” she says. “A cat can stay alone (单独的) when I go to work. But you can’t leave your dog alone at home.”

If you can have a pet, would you like to choose a cat or a dog?