2 . Tea and coffee are two of the most popular drinks in the world. However, people usually like one more than the other. These drinks also have very different uses.

Tea drinking started in China over 4,000 years ago. Tea is made from leaves. These days, some people drink tea for health, using it to help with stress(压力) or losing weight. However, most people in tea-drinking countries think of tea as more than just a healthy drink. In fact, tea drinking in some countries is a part of the culture. In Turkey(土耳其), tea is always there when people meet. Whether in someone’s home or a company, tea is always offered as a way of welcoming. In the UK, homes and offices usually have tea time. Tea and other dishes are served at tea time in the afternoon. It is a way of relaxing with friends or co-workers(同事).

Coffee came much later than tea, just over 1,000 years ago. Coffee is made from beans. Something in the coffee beans makes a person feel active. Most people do not drink coffee to relax. Instead, they drink coffee to get going. Many people drink coffee in the morning to help them wake up. Others will also drink coffee during short breaks in the afternoon to keep going through the working day. Some people may visit coffee shops just to meet and talk with friends. However, many people in coffee shops drink coffee while working on their computers.

Is tea or coffee more common in your country? Between the two, which do you like to drink more?

The Horsetail Fall (瀑布) is one of Yosemite National Park’s most amazing views. Around the second week of February, the setting sun hits the Horsetail Fall at just the right angle (角度) to light the upper parts of the waterfall. And when conditions are right, the Horsetail Fall becomes orange and red at sunset. It is like red-hot lava (熔岩) pouring down from the top of the El Capitan. So, it got the name “firefall”.

The firefall is a perfect match of the weather, the fall, the time and the watching place. It usually appears on dry, warm and cloudless days. There must be enough flowing water to make a firefall too. So there must be enough snow on the mountain top, and it turns into water on warm afternoons.

The sun goes to the best place before the fall in late February. And the best time to watch the fall is 5 to 15 minutes before the sunset. Only at this time can visitors see the firefall. The El Capitan Picnic Area is the best place to watch, because it is close to the fall and is perfect to set up cameras and tents.

Every year in February, thousands of photographers come to watch the firefall. Although the view may appear just minutes before sunset, many of them have to come hours earlier to get a right place to set their cameras in time. “I’m just saying that the Yosemite Firefall is something you don’t want to miss during the winter,” says Kate Moore, a traveller and the lead content creator for ParkedInParadise.com.

4 . Nobody wants to lose, but we must accept that losing is a part of life. After all, we can’t win all the time. However, we can learn something valuable from every failure（失败）. This may help us succeed in the future. So we must know how to be a good loser.

We must not be afraid of losing. When we lose, just take it with a smile and look on the bright side of it. Failure can’t be avoided in our life. Edison failed 10,000 times before he invented the light bulb（灯泡）. When he was asked how he felt, he said that he hadn’t failed 10,000 times but had learned 10,000 things which didn’t work. We must know that history is full of examples of men and women who achieved success although they failed many times.

Losing is not very disgraceful. We must accept our failure and learn to take advantage of it. Remember that it can be helpful. Take action to walk out of it. When we lose, think about what we did and how we can improve. If someone else can help, we’ll be lucky enough. Maybe he or she has been through the same experience before. Many people enjoy helping others solve problems. This can save us a lot of time in learning how to avoid the same mistakes in the future.

We should face our failure when we lose. There is only one winner in every competition. Some win, while some lose. That is a usual way of life. If we offer our congratulations（祝贺）to the winners and share in their happiness, we won’t feel sorry for our failure.

In a word, being a good loser will help us to succeed in life. It might be painful at the beginning, but there are many advantages. Good losers set examples to us, and most importantly, they finally win.

8 . Wetlands are any land that is flooded with shallow water all or most of the time. They are a natural water holding system.

There are many types of wetlands. Among them, bogs, marshes and swamps are the three main types. The different types of wetlands have different kinds of plants. Only mosses(苔藓)and a few other kinds of plants can grow in bogs. Grassy plants like cattails（香蒲）and reeds(芦苇)are the most common plants in a marsh. A swamp is a forest whose ground is underwater all or most of the time. Unlike bogs or marshes, a swamp is full of trees and bushes. It’s not a good idea to go exploring a swamp without a guide. There are hidden pools of water, thick mud, and sometimes big crocodiles(鳄鱼)looking for their next meal.

Hungry crocodiles aren’t the only animals that make the wetlands their home. Otters, turtles, frogs, snakes and many other animals do too. The water is home to many kinds of fish and crabs. Birds, including ducks, geese and cranes, use wetlands seasonally during their long migrations.

Wetlands are important because they provide habitats for plants and animals. A wetland system can also protect shorelines, make polluted waters clean, prevent floods, and restore underground water supplies.

According to WWF, more than half of the world’s wetlands have disappeared since the beginning of the 20th century. If this continues, countless plant and animal species will surely die out. Without wetlands, cities have to spend more money treating water. Don’t feel helpless. Try to do your part to protect them right now. Here are some ideas.

9 . Free time is a good chance for teenagers to have fun. What about free time with parents around? Some teenagers want free play without parents’ supervision(监管) while parents and experts(专家) may think differently.

Lin Tao, a middle school student, thinks teenagers should be free to play. “Last time I played with my parents around, I was nervous and just couldn’t enjoy myself to the fullest,” Lin says. “And my friend Chen Xiaoxin has similar experiences. Once, he went out to play with his classmates. Everyone felt uncomfortable with his mother’s supervision.”

Wang Min, a mother of a 14-year-old boy, thinks playtime needs supervision. She explains, “People usually say I like to control my kid, but that’s not true. I am just worried that he will get into trouble. Some guys may have a bad influence on him and some games like LARP(剧本杀) may mislead him. He might even get indulged in the stories and can’t get back to real life.

Mr. Ma, a doctor of social studies, says it’s understandable for teenagers to wish for freedom. Free play helps them to be independent. Parents can give them more space. They don’t have to supervise them all the time. However, teenagers should find out the exact details(细节) about the activities before playtime. Then they can communicate with their parents and decide together whether they can go out to play alone.

10 . What does it mean to be green? Green is more than just a color. It also means taking special steps to protect the environment. Buying a green product is a small step everyone can take. Deciding whether a product is green, however, isn’t always easy. We need to consider the whole life cycle of the product even after it’s of no use. Here is what we may keep in mind.

The materials of a product are usually our first focus (关注). What is it made of? Are there any harmful chemicals in it? Green products are made of more natural materials which are free from harmful chemicals, so they can be good for our physical health.

Packaging is important. How is a product packaged? Is it over packaged? We’d better choose glass, metal and paper packaging, as these can be reused or more easily recycled (回收利用). We can also look for less packaging or even choose unbagged products whenever possible.

Location (地点) matters. Where was a product produced? Where are we buying it? Think about how much energy was used to get it to us try to choose local products. When it comes to food, it is a good idea to order directly from local farmer, shop at markets and buy fruits in season. Buying from stores near our houses is also a good choice, because we can go there without driving a car.

Look into what the company tells us about their product. It’s easy to say that a product is “green” or “all natural” but the words may be too good to be true. So, much of the information about a product should be taken with a grain of salt. After all, companies try to make us believe that their products are environmentally responsible.

The greenest thing is certainly the one we don’t buy. Things like food and clothing are necessary for life. But many others are not. Better than buying is choosing to leave an unnecessary product in the store and doing without. It sends a message to the producer, keeps money in our pockets, reduces (减少) waste and keeps the planet healthy.