Wearing Helmet
Some kids ride through city bicycle lanes like a professional, and others set out alone down quiet country lanes. However, every day, an average of more than 500 children with bike-related injuries are treated in U.S. emergency departments, according to an analysis of injury data from 2006 to 2015. Those wearing helmets were significantly less likely to have head and neck injuries, the study found. And although children tend to wear helmets more consistently than adults, many still ride without one.
Along with calling for safer, more bike-friendly streets, it’s important to choose a helmet that will help protect your child from injury in a fall or a crash. When you’re choosing a helmet, focus primarily on ensuring the correct fit. “A poor fit will impact the protection a helmet can provide,” says Angela Lumba-Brown, an emergency medicine physician at Stanford Health Care.
The best way to find the right size is to take your child into a bike shop and have them try on helmets with a sales associate who’s familiar with the options, says Brad Bowman, product manager at Gregg’s Cycle. If you choose to buy online, Bowman suggests measuring your child’s head with flexible measuring tape about an inch above the eyebrows before choosing a size.
Helmet sizes are measured by head circumference (圆周), and helmets usually come with adjustable dials to accommodate a range of circumferences. For example, a 3-to-5-year-old child might wear a helmet with a 50-to-52-centimeter circumference. Bowman suggests choosing one that fits comfortably but also allows for a bit of growth. Once a sales associate helps you identify the right-sized helmet, adjust the dial until the helmet feels tight but isn’t causing the child discomfort. “After you dial in the fit, if you pull up lightly on top of the helmet, it shouldn’t come off their head,” he says.
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Cell phones are used everywhere, but on the road they are a dangerous distraction (分心) to drivers and should be forbidden.
The New England Journal of Medicine reported that "drivers using a cell phone were four times more likely to have an accident than those not using a phone." The major problem is that the driver is not focused on the road, but on his or her conversation. Cell phone drivers are very unpredictable: they drive too fast or too slow, make improper turns, run red lights and even stop at green ones. It's not only annoying; it's dangerous. Accidents related to cell phones include off a road and crashing into a tree, fences, and buildings and even turning over.
In October at the California Traffic Safety Summit, experts showed that "cell phones used by drivers lead to at least 1,000 deaths per year in California." These are the same problems that occur with drunk driving, which is against the law and strictly enforced. For the same reasons, California needs laws that ban the use of cell phone in cars.
Until we take action to pass new laws, drivers at least need to be more responsible when using cell phones. The American Automobile Association recommends that drivers pull off the road before using a cell phone, have a passenger use it for them, or use voice mail to answer calls. Another suggestion is to keep the phone off while moving or simply not to use it in the car. Before using a cell phone, drivers should ask themselves, "Is this call really that important?"
Cell phones can be a very important link in emergencies, but drivers need to use them wisely. As professional NASCAR racer John Andretti says, "Driving safely is your first responsibility." The best road to safety is to just hang up and drive.
What are you going to do with your old computer after you buy a new one? You have paid high prices for the old computer, but how much do you think it is worth now? Few people want to buy an old computer. Unfortunately, the only thing you can do is to throw it away.
What do many people do when they try to sell their old computers? Foolishly, they think about its original cost and then reduce the price according to the age of computer---- rather like a second hand car. They are wrong. They forget that new computers are becoming cheaper every day, making old computers almost worthless. In 1985, for example, a good computer cost over US $4,000. Ten years later its owner would be lucky to get $400.
You must be careful about buying a second hand computer. The microchips in a computer may last a long time, but the hard disk will not. It will probably cost more to replace the hard disk with a new one than the computer itself is worth. So saving or repairing an old computer is like building a car from spare parts. It is far cheaper to buy a new car.
One magazine recently listed some suggestions. One suggestion was to give it to charity. The final one was to store it somewhere and hope that it would become a collector’s item in fifteen or twenty years. But in fifteen or twenty years there may be so many old computers that they will all be worthless.
Whatever you decide to do with an old computer will not change the fact that it will be useless soon. The world of computers is quickly changing and eventually all computers will not only be integrated with video telephones and run DVD ROM disks, but also be able to perform many tasks which as yet we cannot even imagine. All these uses will require much more advanced computers today to the garbage can of the next century.
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At first, Michael Surrell didn’t see the black smoke or flames shooting from the windows of his neighbors’ home. He and his wife had just parked around the comer from their own house when they got a call from one of his daughters: “The house next door is on fire!” He went to investigate. That’s when he saw two women and a girl screaming on the porch (门廊).
“The baby’s in there!” one of the women cried. Though the fire department had been called, Surrell, then 64, immediately ran inside. “The baby” was 8-year-old Tiara Roberts, the woman’s granddaughter and a playmate of Surrell’s three youngest kids.
Entering the burning house was like running into a bucket of black paint. The thick smoke caused Surrell to stumble blindly around, burned his eyes, and made it impossible for him to breathe. The conditions would have been dangerous for anyone, but for Surrell, who has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (慢性阻塞性肺病), they were life-threatening.
After a few minutes in the smoke-filled house, he went outside to catch his breath. “Where is Tiara?” he asked desperately.
“The second floor,” her aunt shouted back.
Surrell knew he couldn’t hold his breath for long. Taking a deep breath, he went in a second time. The darkness was overwhelming. Yet because the house had a similar layout (布局) to his, he found the stairs and made it to the second floor. He turned to the right and was met by intense heat. He was already out of breath.
“Baby girl, where are you?” His throat and lungs burned as if he’d breathed in fire instead of the smoke in the air. Every blink stung (使疼痛) his eyes. All he could hear was the cracking and popping of burning wood. Then a soft moan emerged. Still unable to see, Surrell fell to his knees on the hot wood floor. He crawled toward the sound, feeling around for any sign of the girl. A terrible thought crossed his mind: I’m probably gonna die up here.
注意：
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
Finally Surrell touched something.
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Paragraph 2:
Surrell hugged Tiara tight, saying “Uncle’s got you,” and then passed out.
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From the health point of view, we are living in a wonderful age, immunized from birth against many of the most dangerous diseases and freed from the once deadly illnesses thanks to modern drugs and surgery. But though the possibility of living a long and happy life is greater, every day we witness the unbelievable killings of men, women and children on the roads. It is a never-ending battle which man is losing against the car. Thousands of people the world over are killed each year and we are quietly sitting back and letting it happen.
It has been rightly said that when a man is sitting behind a steering wheel, his car becomes the extension of his personality. There is no doubt that the car often brings out a man’s very worst qualities. People who are normally quiet and pleasant may become unrecognizable when they are behind a wheel. All their hidden frustrations and disappointments seem to be brought to the surface by the act of driving.
The surprising thing is that society smiles gently on the driver and seems to forgive his behavior. Everything is done for his convenience. Cities are allowed to become almost uninhabitable（不宜居住的）because of heavy traffic; towns are made ugly by huge car parks; the countryside is ruined by road networks; and the mass annual deaths becomes nothing but a number, to be conveniently forgotten.
It is high time rules were created to reduce this senseless waste of human life. Here are a few examples of some of the things that might be done. The driving test should be standardized and made far more difficult than it is; all vehicles should be put through strict tests for safety; present drinking and driving laws should be made much stricter; maximum and minimum speed limits should be required on all roads. These measures may sound strict. But surely nothing should be considered as too severe if it results in reducing the annual loss of human life. After all, the world is for human beings, not cars.
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There is an old saying that goes like this, “The grass looks greener on the other side of the fence.” It means that other places often look better, more interesting than the place where you live. Nowadays, a large number of Chinese kids prefer to enjoy American food and Japanese movies. They are often heard to say to each other, “Let’s go to the KEC for dinner and then watch some Japanese cartoons!” Some people are worried when they see young Chinese buying Japanese cartoon books, watching Korean soap operas and even celebrating western holidays.
Foreign books and soap operas are good, but actually, Chinese writers and actors are just as good. As for holidays, Christmas is nice, but it can never have the meaning for Chinese that the Spring Festival has, and the West has nothing to compare with the Mid-Autumn Festival. Besides, China has lots of cool things that are unique to its culture, such as calligraphy, Beijing Opera and so on. And let’s not forget the part of Chinese culture I like best: its friendliness. Not all countries are as warm as China.
It’s good to enjoy other cultures and to learn from them, but they can never replace your own culture. It’s good to look on the other side of the fence, but make sure you take a good long look. You will find that the grass isn’t always greener.
Although some people become worried about that, I don’t think it necessary. Will we get more powerful without learning from other countries? Will Chinese people live more happily without American fast food? Besides, Chinese kids can learn about other cultures and have fun, but what is important is that they also need to learn more about their own culture and be proud of Chinese culture and of being Chinese.
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Almost all Americans are involved with sports in some way. They may play baseball or volleyball or go swimming or skiing. They may watch football or basketball on the high school, college, or professional level. In reality, sports have reached a point where they play too large a role in daily life.
The overemphasis (过度强调) on sports can be seen most obviously in the vast media coverage of athlete events. It seems as if every race, meet, or match is shown on one television channel or another. In addition, sports news make up about 30 percent of local news. Radio offers a complete list of games and a wide variety of sports shows. Furthermore, many daily papers such as USA Today are devoting more and more space to sports coverage, often in an attempt to attract more readers. The paper with the biggest sports section is the one people will buy.
The way we raise and educate our children also illustrates our sports craziness. As early as six or seven, kids are placed in little leagues, often to play under screaming coaches and pressuring parents. Later, in high school, students who are selected by the school and the community are not those who are the best academically but those who are the best athletically. And college sometimes seems to be more about sports than about learning. The United States may be the only country in the world where people often think of their colleges as teams first and schools second. The names Penn State, Notre Dame and Southern Cal mean “sports” to the public.
Our sports craziness is especially evident in the prestige (声望) given to athletes in the United States. For one thing, we reward them with enormous salaries. In 1990, for example, baseball players averaged 350,000 a year; the average annual salary in the United States is 18,000. Besides their huge salaries, athletes receive the admiration, and sometimes the votes of the public.
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We probably know that smoking is bad for our health. But what about e-cigarettes? Introduced as a "less-harmful or safer" alternative to smoking, e-cigarettes or "vaping" has gained increasing popularity. However, the Chinese government released a notice to ban the online sales of e-cigarettes from Nov. 1st and further reduce the young's access to the products.
This means that e-cigarette makers have to close their online stores and take down online advertisements for e-cigarettes. So far, some e-cigarette firms have closed sales links on their websites, and more than a dozen online stores have removed related products, Xinhua reported. This is not the first government measure to limit the use of e-cigarettes. In August 2018, e-cigarettes were banned from sale to people under the age of 18.
Research has shown that e-cigarette companies tend to target young people with their advertising campaigns, according to the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration. It's found that many firms have been misleading young buyers with messages like, "E-cigarettes could help you quit smoking," and, "E-cigarettes are healthy and harmless." Some even claim that vaping symbolizes "young," "fashionable" and "trendy" to attract the young. Michael Blaha, a researcher at the Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease, also mentioned that a lower per-use cost than traditional cigarettes and a wide range of sweet flavors, like apple pie and watermelon, contribute to vaping's popularity among young people.
However, e-cigarettes contain nicotine(though not always), flavorings, and other chemicals, they are harmful to health. Taking in nicotine during youth can lead to addiction and cause long-term harm to brain development. Flavorings added to e-cigarettes can produce more harmful toxins after heating. Thus, it is advisable that the young should limit the exposure to e-cigarettes.
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Online schools are becoming very popular today. Whether it is working professionals who cannot afford the time to go to a full-time college because of their huge workload or stay-at-home mums who have many duties and cannot join in a college, online schools are much enjoyed at all. And now, even regular students, who have the time to go to college, are going in for online education, as it leaves them with enough time to pursue other things, such as a part-time job or a hobby, along with studying. However, as with everything, there are both advantages and disadvantages of online schooling.
Let’s start with the positives. These schools cost much less. You don’t have to spend money on buying books or bus fees. Another advantage is the flexibility it provides. You can study at any time during the day. You can study wherever you want---in your house, at a cafe or even in a park.
Move on to the disadvantages of online schooling. Those students who always need a push from their teachers to do well, are very likely not to do well in online schools. And the greatest disadvantage going to school online is that there are many employers who prefer students with a traditional degree to those who have an online degree. The employers feel that students who go to full-time colleges are more knowledgeable compared to those who have online degrees. Since the very purpose of education is to land a person a good job, online degrees, many a time, do not serve this purpose.
No doubt that online schools offer the freedom which no regular college can provide. However how much the employers will value the degrees and whether a student can actually make his own study schedule and most importantly, stick to it, depend upon individuals( AA). So in the end, it can be rightly said, online schools are good for some, while others should give them a skip.
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A new study warns that about thirty percent of the world’s people may not have enough water by the year 2025.
A private American organization called Population Action International (PAI) did the new study. It says more than 335 million people lack enough water now. The people live in 28 countries. Most of the countries are in Africa or the Middle East.
PAI researcher Robert Engelman says by the year 2025, about 3,000 million people may lack water. At least 18 more countries are expected to have severe water problems. The demand for water keeps increasing. Yet the amount of water on the Earth stays the same.
Mr Engelman says the population in countries that lack water is growing faster than in other parts of the world. He says population growth in these countries will continue to increase.
The report says lack of water in the future may result in several problems. It may increase health problems. Lack of water often means drinking water is not safe. Mr Engelman says there are problems all over the world because of diseases, such as cholera which are carried in water.
Lack of water may also result in more international conflict. Countries may have to compete for water in the future. Some countries now get sixty percent of their fresh water from other countries. And the report says lack of water would affect the ability to improve their economies. This is because new industries often need large amounts of water when they are beginning.
The Population Action International study gives several solutions to the water problem. One way, it says, is to find ways to use water for more than one purpose. Another way is to teach people to be careful not to waste water. A third way is to use less water for agriculture. The report also says long-term solutions to the water problem must include controls on population growth.
