1 . Advice for Cooking on a Tight Schedule

From my experience, there are three main reasons why people don’t cook more often: ability, money, and time.

    1    Money is a topic that I’ll talk about another day. So today I want to give you some advice about how to make the most of the time in the kitchen. Here are three tips for great cooking on a tight schedule:

Think ahead. I usually think cooking is a pain when I’m already hungry and there is nothing ready to eat. So think ahead of the coming week. When will you have time to cook? Do you have the right materials already?    2    

Make your time worth it. When you do find time to cook a meal, make the most of it and save yourself time later on. Are you making one loaf of bread?    3    It takes around the same amount of time to make more of something. So save yourself the effort for a future meal.

    4    This may surprise you, but one of the best ways to make cooking worth your time is experimentation. It gives you the chance to hit upon new ideas and recipes that can work well. The more you learn and the more you try, the more ability you have to take control of your food and your schedule.

Hopefully that gives you a good start.    5    And don’t let a busy schedule disappoint you and stop you from making some great changes in your life!

4 . Bill White’s father is a lawyer. In his _______ time, he likes to get out in the country.

For a long time, Bill had wanted to go with his father on one of his trips. But his father didn’t take Bill along with him _______ he was fifteen.

He and Bill drove to the farm which _______ to his uncle in the afternoon. They _______ the night there, so that they could _______ out early the next morning. Uncle Steve and his son Larry, who was sixteen, were going to go out with them.

It was still dark when Bill heard the alarm _______ the next morning. He wondered why it was running so early. It was 5 o’clock. Then he _______ that he was at the farm and that he was going out to take pictures with his father. He jumped out of bed and got _______ quickly.

He ran downstairs. The others were already in the _______. Uncle Steve was cooking bacon and eggs. There was a pot of coffee on the stove. It ________ good.

They ate breakfast quickly. They didn’t talk ________, because they didn’t want to ________ up the other people in the house. They filled a thermos bottle ________ hot coffee and took some sandwiches ________ Aunt Grace, Uncle Steve’s wife, had made for them. They gathered their camera ________ and started out.

5 . Can you remember the first time you learned to ride a bike or drive a car? Learning these skills changed your life forever and opened up new horizons (眼界；范围). Learning about computers can be like learning how to ride a bike or drive a car. Once you have invested the time to master the skills, you will never go back to the old days. The new technology is simply too convenient and too powerful.

Technological developments through the years have enabled us to do more with less effort. We have continuously looked for better ways of doing things. Each invention and new development has allowed us to extend our capabilities. Today we see one of the most dramatic technologies ever developed the computer. It extends the capabilities of our minds.

Computers have saved organizations millions of dollars. Furthermore, these same computer systems have opened up new opportunities that would have gone undiscovered or neglected. The computer may multiply what we can do, and the return on investment is high. The growth of computer usage is surprising. On the other hand, the computer can do serious damage. Invasion of privacy (侵犯隐私), fraud (欺诈), and computer-related mistakes are just a few shocking examples.

The computer is like a double-edged sword. It has the ability to cut us free from some activities, but it can also cut deep into profits, personal privacy, and our society in general. How it is used is not a function of technology. It is strictly a function of how people decide to use or misuse this new technology. The choice is yours, and only through a knowledge of computer systems will you be able to avoid the dangers while enjoying the many, many benefits of the computer age.

7 . Maybe you are an average student. You probably think you will never be a top student. This is not necessarily so, however.     1     Here’s how:

1) Make plans carefully. You should make a list of things that you have to do. After making this list, you should make a schedule. First make a plan for eating, sleeping, dressing, etc. Then plan your study well.     2    . A weekly schedule may not solve all your problems, but it will force you to be aware of what is happening to your life.

2)     3    . Look around the house for a good study area. Keep this space, which may be simply a corner of your room with only study materials. No games, radios, or television! When you sit down to study, concentrate on the subject.

3) Make good use of your time in class. Take advantage of class time to listen to everything the teachers say. Take notes if necessary, because the notes will help you remember what the teacher says and study better.

4) Study regularly. When you get home from school, go over your notes. Review the important points that your teacher mentioned in class. If you know what your teacher is going to discuss the next day, reading that material. This will help you understand the next class.    4    .

5) Develop a good attitude towards tests.     5     They help you remember your new knowledge. The world won’t end if you don’t pass a test, so don’t be overly worried.

There are other methods that might help you with your study. You will probably discover many others after you have tried these methods.

8 . Elephants might be the most well-known well-loved animal in African wildlife. But conservation (保护) of the African elephant still faces special difficulties. While the elephant population is half of what it was 40 years ago, some areas of Africa have more elephants than populated areas can support. That’s why AWF scientists are studying elephant behavior, protecting habits and finding ways for humans to live peacefully with elephants in Africa.

Years ago, overhunting and the ivory trade were the biggest threats to elephants’ survival. Luckily, ivory bans (禁令), hunting rules and protected areas protect elephants from these dangers today.

The 21st century brings a different challenge to elephant conservation—land-use. Elephants walk across borders and outside parks and other protected areas. So they often destroy crops, causing conflicts (冲突) between local farmers and these big animals.

Successful conservation strategies (策略) must allow elephants to walk freely in their natural habitats while reducing conflicts between elephants and local people.

AWF researchers are searching for a way to give both elephants and people the space they need. The AWF is collecting information on elephant habitats and behavior. The information they gather will help to develop the widest possible space for elephants.

The AWF is helping elephants by protecting their habitats. And they also work with local farmers to improve their life in order to encourage them to protect rather than destroy elephants.

In order to realize his dream, Bill Gates, richest man in the world, gave up studying in Harvard University, that is the most famous in the world. He set up a company and researching the computer software. As an old saying go, “interest is the best teacher”. I quite agree. I began to be crazy about English when I was a little girl. I got extreme interested in foreign cultures or customs. To meet me curiosity, I read in English stories every day. It seemed to be the best “meal” of a day. As a result, I always did very well in English exam. Interest is the key of success.

10 . Foreigners with basic Chinese language skills can generally ask for advice on restaurants or how     1     (get) to the subway. But the fact is, many still find it     2     (challenge) to use the language in real-life settings. Some even think that no one in China actually speaks Putonghua, at least not     3     (nature). This is an opinion that many Chinese themselves would be quick to agree with.

However, in a small county     4     (name) Luanping, Chengde City, Hebei Province, you can meet the locals, young and old,     5    , despite their education level, talk exactly in       6     same manner as the language recordings you became used to in class. For       7       (generation) , they have known no other mother tongue other than the standard Chinese.

Elderly residents in Luanping still remember the experts from the capital

    8     (record) the way they spoke in the 1950s, which began being promoted nationally in 1955. The county     9     turn proudly calls       10       (it) the “hometown of Putonghua”.