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Annie's best friend

Do you want a friend who can talk about everything? Or are you worried that your friends will laugh at you and don't understand your current predicament? Anne Frank wants the first kind of friends, so she regards her diary as her best friend.

During World War II, Anne lived in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Her family are all Jews, so they have to hide, or they will be captured by the German Nazis. She hid with her family for two years before she was discovered. During this time, her only loyal friend was her diary. She said, "I don't want to keep a diary like most people." I want to regard this diary as my friend, and I want to call my friend Katie. Annie has been hiding there since July 1942. Now, let's see her mood.

Dear Katie:

I don't know if this is because I can't go out for a long time and I have become extremely enthusiastic about everything related to nature. I remember clearly that the blue sky, the singing of birds, moonlight and flowers never fascinated me. Everything has changed since I came here.

..... For example, one night, it was warm, and I stayed up until 1 1: 30 to have a good look at the moon alone. But I dare not open the window because the moonlight is too bright. Another time, just one night five months ago, I happened to be upstairs with the window open. I waited until I had to close the window before I went downstairs. In the dark, it was stormy and thunderous, and I was completely overwhelmed by this power. This is the first time I have witnessed this night in a year and a half. ...

Sadly, I can only watch nature through the dirty curtains hanging in front of dusty windows, but it is no longer interesting to watch these, because nature is something you must experience for yourself.

Unit 2 World English

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The Road to Modern English

/kloc-At the end of the 6th century, there were about 5 million to 7 million English speakers, almost all of whom lived in Britain. Later, in the17th century, the British began to sail and conquered other parts of the world. So many other countries began to speak English. Nowadays, more people speak English than ever before. Some of them speak English as their first language, while others speak English as their second or foreign language.

People whose mother tongue is English can communicate with each other even if they speak different languages. Look at the following example:

Betty, an Englishman: "Can you come to my apartment and have a look?"

Amy from America: "OK. I'd be happy to go to your apartment. "

So, why does English change in a period of time? In fact, all languages will develop and change when different cultures communicate with each other. First of all, from 450 to 1 150, the English spoken by people was very different from the English spoken today. At that time, English was more based on German, but modern English was not. Then gradually, from 800 to 1 150, English became less like German. Because at that time, the British rulers spoke Danish first and then French. These new immigrants have greatly enriched English, especially in vocabulary. So in the 7th century, Shakespeare used more words than ever before. 1620, some British people moved to the United States to settle down. Later, in the19th century, some British people were also sent to Australia, and people from both countries began to speak English.

Finally, it was not until the 20th century that English really took shape. At that time, there were two major changes in English spelling: first, Samuel Johnson compiled a dictionary, and later, noah webster compiled the American English Dictionary, which reflected the different characteristics of American English spelling.

Now, English is also used as a foreign language or a second language in South Asia. For example, there are many people who speak English fluently in India, because Britain ruled India from 1765 to 1947. During this period, English became the official language and educational language. English is also spoken in Singapore, Malaysia and other African countries, such as South Africa. At present, the number of English learners in China is increasing rapidly. In fact, China is probably the country with the largest number of English learners in the world. Will China English develop its own characteristics? This can only be answered in time.

Unit 3 Travel Notes

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A trip to the lower Mekong River

The first part dreams and plans

My name is Kun Wang. My sister Wang Wei and I have been dreaming of a great bike trip since high school. Two years ago, she bought an expensive mountain bike and persuaded me to buy one. Last year, she visited our cousins Dao Wei and Yuhang who were studying in Kunming. They are Dai people and grew up near the Lancang River in western Yunnan Province. This section of the Mekong River is called Lancang River in China and Mekong River in other countries (territories). Soon, Wang Wei made her cousins interested in cycling. After graduating from college, we finally had the opportunity to travel by bike. I asked my sister, "Where are we going?" It was my sister who first thought of riding along the Mekong River from the source to the end. Now she is making plans for our trip.

I like my sister very much, but she has a serious shortcoming. She can be really stubborn sometimes. Although she doesn't know the best route to some places, she insists on making her trip perfect. Then, I know that this perfect way will always be her way. I kept asking her, "When shall we start? When will you come back? " I also asked her if she had seen the map. Of course she hasn't seen it-my sister doesn't think about details. So, I told her that the source of Mekong River is in Qinghai Province. She gave me a firm look-it showed that she wouldn't change her mind. She seemed very excited when I said that our trip would start from a plateau of more than 5000 meters. When I told her that the air was thin, it was difficult to breathe and the weather was cold, she said it would be an interesting experience. I know my sister very well. Once she has made up her mind, nothing can change her. Finally, I had to give in.

A few months before our trip, Wang Wei and I went to the library. We found a large atlas with some detailed geographical maps of the world. As we can see from the picture, the Mekong River originated from a glacier on a mountain in Tibet. At first, the river was small, clear and cold, and then it began to flow rapidly. When it passes through a deep valley, it becomes a torrent, flowing through western Yunnan. Sometimes, rivers form waterfalls and enter wide canyons. We are all surprised to find that half of the river is in China. When it flows out of China and the highlands, the Mekong River becomes wider and warmer, and the river turns yellow-brown. When it entered Southeast Asia, the flow rate slowed down, and the river meandered slowly through the valley to the plain where rice was planted. Finally, a tributary of the Mekong Delta flows into the South China Sea of China.

Unit 4 Earthquake

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A sleepless night on earth

Some strange things are happening in the countryside in the northeast of Hebei province: in the past three days, the well water in the village has risen and fallen, rising and falling. The farmer noticed a deep crack in the shaft wall, and there was an unpleasant smell in the crack. Chickens and even pigs in the farmyard are too nervous to eat. The mouse ran out of the field and wanted to find a place to hide. Fish in fish tanks and ponds will jump out. 1976 at about 3 am on July 28, someone saw a light in the sky. Even if there is no plane in the sky, you can hear it outside Tangshan. In the city, the water pipes of some buildings burst. However, almost none of Tangshan's/kloc-0.0 million residents took these situations seriously and fell asleep as usual that night.

At 3: 42 in the morning, everything began to shake. The world seems to be coming to an end! The biggest earthquake in the 20th century occurred directly below Tangshan 1 1 km. 100 kilometers away, the earthquake was felt in Beijing, and in the whole country13. A huge crack 8 kilometers long and 30 meters wide spans houses, roads and channels. Steam comes out of some caves on the ground. The Stone Mountain turned into a muddy river, and in a terrible 15 second, a big city sank into ruins. The disasters suffered by people are extremely deep. Two thirds of people were killed or injured in the earthquake. Thousands of families have been killed and many children have become orphans. The number of injured reached more than 400,000.

How can the survivors believe that this is a natural phenomenon? Everywhere people went, almost everything was destroyed. All hospitals, 75% factories and buildings, and 90% houses in the city have disappeared. Residual bricks cover the earth like red leaves in autumn, but they can't be blown away. Two dams collapsed, and most of the bridges either collapsed or could not pass safely. The rails are now strips of scrap steel. Thousands of cows can no longer produce milk. Half a million pigs and millions of chickens were killed. This well is full of sand, not water. People were stunned. Then, in the late afternoon, another earthquake as strong as the first one hit Tangshan. Some doctors and rescuers were trapped under the rubble. More houses collapsed. Water, electricity and food are hard to get. People began to wonder how long the disaster would last.

Not all hopes have been dashed. Shortly after the earthquake, the army sent 1.5 thousand soldiers to Tangshan to assist rescuers, and hundreds of thousands of people were rescued. The troops formed teams to dig out the trapped people and bury them. In the north of Tangshan, there is a coal mine with 10,000 miners, most of whom were rescued. Rescuers built shelters for survivors whose homes were destroyed and transported water to the city by train, truck and plane. Slowly, slowly, the city began to show vitality again.

Unit 5 nelson mandela

heroes of the day

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The story of Elias.

My name is elias. I am a poor black worker in South Africa. When I first met nelson mandela, it was a very difficult period in my life. I was only 12 years old, and that was in 1952. Mandela is a black lawyer I asked for help. He provides legal guidance to those poor blacks. He was very generous in giving me time, and I am very grateful for it.

I need his help because I have little education. I started school at the age of six. The school where I have only studied for two years is three kilometers away. I had to drop out of school because my family couldn't continue to pay for tuition and transportation. I am not very good at reading and writing. After many twists and turns, I found a job in a gold mine. At that time, however, if you wanted to live in Johannesburg, you had to have an ID card. Unfortunately, I don't have this certificate, because I wasn't born there, and I'm worried about whether I will lose my job.

The day when nelson mandela helped me was the happiest day of my life. He told me how to get the necessary documents if I want to gain a foothold in Johannesburg. I am full of hope for my future again. I will never forget his kindness to me. When he organized the ANC Youth League, I joined it immediately. He said: "A large number of laws in the past 30 years have deprived us of our rights and hindered our progress. Until today, we are still at a stage where we have almost no rights. "

He is telling the truth. At that time, blacks had no right to vote. They have no right to choose their * * *. They can't do what they want. The urban areas where they can live are all decided by white people. The area outside the city where they live is the poorest area in South Africa. No one can grow crops there. In fact, as Larsen Mandela said:

"... we are put in such a situation that we are either forced to accept the reality of inferiority or fight against the government. We choose to attack the law. First of all, we break the law by peaceful means. When this way is not allowed, ... Only in this way can we decide to fight violence with violence. "

Actually, I don't like violence ... but at 1963, I helped him blow up some government buildings. That's a very dangerous thing, because if I get caught, I may be put in prison. However, I am willing to help, because I know that this is to realize our dream of equality between blacks and whites.