1 . On June 9, 1870, Charles Dickens died at the age of 58. The next day, a headline in The New York Times read: “Death of the Great Novelist...Mourned by the People of Two Continents.”    1     Even today, the British novelist is loved by readers all over the world. Dickens created some of the most unforgettable characters in English literature. You must have heard of or even read some of his novels: Oliver Twist and A Tale of Two Cities.    2    Since 1897, there have been more than 300 film and television adaptations of Dickens’ works.  

Natalie McKnight is a professor of humanities who studies Dickens and his works. She explains why the novelist has remained so popular. One important reason, she says, is that Dickens wrote from his heart.    3    Some of his works were written to make every reader think about how they could make a difference to their society. People always enjoy works that make them laugh out loud, cry and think, as Dickens’ novels do. Many other novelists in the 19th century wrote entertaining works.    4    Dickens wrote about situations and emotions that still interest people today.    5    His works led to many important social changes.  

It’s meaningful to remember this great writer. Will you read(or reread)some of his famous works?

2 . How to Avoid an Internet Addiction

It may seem like everyone surfs the web these days. But if you can’t have interest in other aspects of your life because of the Internet, you may be on your way to an Internet addiction. You might fear you’re the only one who has experienced that feeling.    1     Luckily, there are some ways to avoid living your life in front of the computer.

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More and more people in the world are becoming addicted to the Internet, and you are not the only one with this problem. So do not be embarrassed. Just be brave to admit that you are on your way to an Internet addiction. And then find others with the same problem and help each other beat it.

Set aside limited time for computer use.

Make sure not to turn it on too many times a week. If you have a laptop, make sure to put it somewhere that you can remember but not somewhere that you see every day. Try keeping the lid closed when you are not using it.     3       If you have a desktop PC, try not to go near it or put something over it like a sheet.

Call people instead of sending instant messages or texts.

If you are free on weekends, call friends and ask them to go outside to do something you enjoy, like playing a sport. This will take your mind off the computer.     4    

Use an alarm clock or timer (计时器).

Before using your computer, decide on a time limit such as 30 minutes. Set the clock or timer and make sure that you get away from the computer when the time is up. Alternatively create a shutdown timer on your desktop.     5    

3 . Good news for all Wes Anderson fans — the US director is back with the film The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar which hit Netflix, an online film provider, on Sept 27. It is a film adaptation of UK novelist Roald Dahl’s novel under the same name.

The film stars UK actor Benedict Cumberbatch. Adaptations are currently popular in the movie industry.     1     But what about book adaptations of films? Book adaptations of films aren’t that common, but it’s a medium that certainly takes skills to master.

The most well-known version of a film being adapted to books is via the novelization. Movie novelizations went through a boom period before the Internet era. Fans wanted to know more about the fictional worlds and experience the story again in a new way.     2     Thus, the novelization was a great solution.

Meanwhile, the screen to page process has also opened up the possibility of sequels (续篇). Perhaps there simply wasn’t financial investment to create a follow-up to a film. Maybe a sequel idea simply felt more appropriate for a novel.     3     In recent years, for example, the film Heat, released in 1995 has received its own novel. ET: The Book of the Green Planet continued the extra-terrestrial’s journey after the completion of the film’s narrative.

But what are the benefits of reading a novel instead of waiting for the big screen version? Well, a novel can take its reader deeper into the mind of the characters that the film had to represent in a more visual way.     4     Although a film might characterize a fantastic scene or a specific costume choice, it doesn’t always tell why those things are important. Novelizations and sequels can take that extra step and shine a light on some of those movie-making choices.

Book adaptations of films obviously won’t ever replace cinema, and there’s no need to choose one or the other.     5    

4 . A Plastic Ocean is a documentary to make you think. Think, and then act. We need to take action on our dependence on plastic. We’ve been producing plastic in huge quantities. Some bottles, shopping bags and toys are made of plastic.     1     What happens to all the rest? This is the question the documentary A Plastic Ocean answers.

The documentary begins with a journey to film the largest animal on the planet, the blue whale. But during the journey, the producers made a shocking discovery of a huge, thick layer of plastic floating in the Indian Ocean.     2     In total, they visited 20 locations around the world during the four years to make the documentary.

In the documentary there are beautiful shots of the seas and marine life.     3     We see how marine species (海洋物种) are being killed by all the plastic we are dumping (倾倒) in the ocean. The message about our use of plastic is painfully obvious.

    4     In the second half, the producers look at what we can do to deal with the problem. They present short-term and long-term solutions. These include avoiding plastic containers and recycling plastic as much as you can. The producers also stress the need for governments to work more on recycling programmes.

We make a shocking amount of plastic. Over 300 million tons of plastic is produced every year, and at least 8 million of it is dumped into the oceans. The results are disastrous, but it isn’t too late to change.     5    

5 . Last week when I was reading at home, my younger sister rushed in and told me an old man was lying on the ground in front of our house. I immediately took my first- aid kit and ran downstairs. He was suffering a slight heart attack. And I performed CPR on him. Luckily, an ambulance came soon and he was taken to the hospital. Later that day I was told by the hospital what I did helped rescue the old man’s life. I was happy to hear that.     1     There were many people who wanted to help around the old man then, yet no one gave him first aid as they hadn’t attended a first-aid course.

    2     Here are my reasons.

You can gain the knowledge, skills and confidence. You never know when you might need them—you could be at home, at work, at school or on holiday. If you have the skills, you can act whenever you’re needed.

    3     For your family, your neighbours or the broader community, having more people with first-aid skills helps build a stronger and more harmonious community.

You can stay safe at work.     4     With first-aid knowledge you can create a safe work environment and help meet your workplace’s safety requirements.

It’s helpful in choosing your future career. The first-hand experience you gain through learning first aid and using your skills could help you decide if you want to pursue a career in the health profession.     5    

6 . Courage is a quality that everyone has, but it sometimes disappears because of bad experiences or memories.     1     So, how can people build courage? By identifying the source of any lack of courage and actively changing your behavior, you can build courage.

Determine your specific fears. People are often unwilling to admit that they are afraid of something. In order to begin building courage, you need to determine your specific fears.     2     This may help you to work out a plan to overcome them and build your courage.

Recognize your courage. Just as it’s important to identify your fears, you should also recognize that you also have courage in many situations.     3     It can help you to figure out how to apply this quality to situations that cause fear. It can also help improve your behavior and build your courage.

Make a practical plan to build your courage. Once you’ve identified your specific fears and recognized situations where you exhibit courage, make your plan to build your courage and update it when necessary.     4     The reason for that is it helps you be on track if you have difficulties and you will see your progress over time.

Avoid comparing yourself with others. Every person is different and comparing yourself with other people can minimize your self-confidence. Focusing on yourself is essential to building your confidence and courage.

    5     Two characteristics of courageous people are that they not only have confidence, but also they believe in their ability to succeed and overcome fears. By developing and projecting confidence in yourself, you set yourself on the path to building and maintaining courage.

7 . It sounds like something from the field of science fiction — a space exploration into vast outer space, heading towards the Red Planet While we’re not quite ready to put a person on it, the question we ask today is:     1    

The space race saw the USSR (the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) and USA compete to achieve firsts in spaceflight. The USSR released Sputnik 1, an artificial satellite, before anyone else,     2     Now it appears that Mars is the body of desire. While to be the first nation to land on it is an obvious draw, there are other reasons why we want to get there.

    3     You only have to look at the fossils of the dinosaurs to see the benefit of finding another habitable planet. While Mars doesn’t have the right conditions to call it home just yet, there's always the concept of terraforming-changing the environment of a planet to suit our needs.

However, not everyone agrees. Leading astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson has said the concept of changing habitability of a planet is not always practical.     4    

It seems that the main reason at the moment is the search for alien (外星的) life.    5     Now seemingly dead, the potential fossils could answer questions about our own evolution and that of our planet. One theory is that bacterial life on our planet didn't start here, but was brought here via asteroid from Mars.

9 . Self­acceptance is to accept yourself unconditionally (无条件地).     1     Accepting yourself can help you become more natural and real. However, if you don’t accept yourself, you will constantly feel unhappy about your past or yourself.So read on to get some practical suggestions on how to do it.

Positive relationships are the first part of self­acceptance. People around you play an important role in your life. You need to surround yourself with people who accept you for whom you are.     2    

Learn to forgive yourself for all your past faults or regrets. Everyone has their weaknesses and everyone makes mistakes. Accept all your choices or decisions you have made until now.     3     You might have had many dreams which were unrealized, but you need to forgive yourself now. Understand that you cannot control your past.

Self­compassion (自我同情) and gratitude are two most important things for achieving self­acceptance.     4     That means being kind to yourself, treating yourself well and celebrating every win. Gratitude includes thanking and appreciating yourself for the person who you are and the things you achieve. Value all the good things you have about yourself.

    5     Talk to yourself as you would talk to a friend. Encourage yourself by patting your shoulder for your achievements. Include positive statements in your day, such as “You are beautiful” and “Well done”. After all, only when you accept yourself can you accept others.