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What does the passage imply about a brown dwarf?A.It's bright.B.It's of medium size.C.It's
What does the passage imply about a brown dwarf?
A.It's bright.
B.It's of medium size.
C.It's not a planet.
D.It's big.
What does the passage imply about a brown dwarf?
A.It's bright.
B.It's of medium size.
C.It's not a planet.
D.It's big.
A、let the machine capture the features of the thing by touching it
B、let the machine make an exact model of something by taking a picture of it
C、let the machine figure out the texture of something by collecting relative information of it
D、let a machine perceive the world around by acquiring and processing images, sounds, speech, text and other data
I hear a lot of people talking about Ecstasy, calling it a fun, harmless drug. All I can think is, "if they only knew."
I grew up in a small, rural town in Pennsylvania. It's one of those places where everyone knows your name, what you did, what you ate and so on. I was a straight-A student and one of the popular kids, liked by all the different crowds. Drugs never played a part in my life. They were never a question -- I was too involved and focused on other things.
I always dreamed of moving to New York City to study acting and pursue a career in theater. My dream came true when my mom brought me to the city to attend acting school. As you can imagine, it was quite a change from home.
I was exposed to new people, new ideas and a completely new way of life -- a way of life that exposed me to drugs. Most of the people that I met in the acting school had already been doing drugs for years. I felt that by using drugs, I would become a part of their world and it would deepen my friendships with them to new levels. I tried pot, even a little cocaine, but it was Ecstasy that changed my life forever.
I remember the feeling I had the first time I did Ecstasy: complete and utter bliss. I could feel the pulse of the universe. It was as if I had unlocked some sort of secret world; it was as if I'd found heaven. And I wondered how anything that made you feel so good could possibly be bad.
As time went by, things changed. I graduated, and began to use drugs, especially Ecstasy, more frequently. As I did, I actually started to look down on those who did not. I surrounded myself only with those who did. I had gone from a girl who never used drugs to a woman who couldn't imagine life without them.
In five months, I went from a person living somewhat responsibly while pursuing my dream to a person who didn't care about a thing -- and the higher I got, the deeper I sank into a dark, lonely place. When I did sleep, I had nightmares and the shakes. I had pasty skin, a throbbing head and the beginnings of paranoia, but I ignored it all, thinking it was normal until the night I thought I was dying.
On this night, I was sitting on the couch with my friends, watching a movie and feeling normal when suddenly, I felt as if I needed to jump out of my skin. Racing thoughts, horrible images and illusions crept through my mind. I thought I was seeing the devil, and I repeatedly asked my friends if I was dead. On top of all this, I felt as if I was having a heart attack. Somehow, I managed to pick up the telephone and call my mom in the middle of the night, telling her to come get me. She did, pulling me out of my apartment the next morning.
I didn't know who I was or where I was as my mom drove me back to my family's hospital in Pennsylvania. I spent most of the drive curling up in the back seat while my younger sister tried to keep me calm.
I spent the next 14 days in the hospital in a state of extreme confusion. This is what Ecstasy gave me -- but it didn't stop there. My doctors performed a scan of my brain. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the results. The scan showed several dark marks on the image of my brain, and my doctors told me those were areas -- areas that carry out memory functions -- where the activity of my brain had been changed in some way.
Since I saw that scan, my life has been an uphill crawl.
I hear people say Ecstasy is a harmless, happy drug. There's nothing happy about the way that "harmless" drug chipped away at my life. Ecstasy took my strength, my motivation, my dreams, my friends, my apartment, my money and most of all, my sanity. I worry about my future and my health every day. I have many mountains ahead of me, but I plan to keep climbing because I'm one of the lucky ones.
I've been given a second chance, and that's not something that everyone gets.
It was almost midnight, yet the streets were bathed in a soft, shimmering light. The sun had just gone down and twilight would soon give way to night. We were strolling along the Nevsky Prospekt, a wide avenue stretching four kilometres and filled with people, music and street entertainers. This was St. Petersburg in August and it seemed the city was out to celebrate the long summer nights. We had just left the home of newly found Russian friends and after a wonderful traditional dinner decided to have some exercise before going to bed.
It has always been my dream to visit St. Petersburg. Absorbed by Russian history since childhood, I wanted to see it all for myself. Now, thanks to Perestroika, tourists are welcomed into Russia and St. Petersburg with its rich, cultural history is a popular choice.
We flew in from Stockholm and from the air immediately noticed a well-planned city with apartment blocks built in semi-circles with central courtyards and gardens. Not only did this seem practical, but the idea behind the design was to shelter residents from the fierce winter winds. The city was built by European architects in the 18th and 19th centuries and remains one of Europe's most beautiful cities. Straddling the wide River Neva, the city is made up of almost 5o islands connected by some 31o bridges. No wonder the sight of elegant buildings along the canals reminded me of Paris, Amsterdam and Venice.
I hadn't met many Russian people but I had an intense love for their country and traditions and was passionate about art and literature. Russian writers such as Pushkin, Tolstoy and Dostoevsky reach the very soul of ordinary Russians, and this I find intriguing. It was no different when I finally found myself in Russia. People were openly friendly and eager to discuss any aspect of their lives in their beloved Motherland. No matter how bad the economy, somehow these people have the ability to see the positive aspects of their lives, whatever their circumstances. We met an attractive woman from Moscow, and we fast became friends and it was she who invited us into the home of some dear friends of hers.
The apartment block was in an elegant area of St. Petersburg and was probably a palace in the past but now converted into apartments of four floors. The entrance through a narrow hallway was dark and dull and there was an old fashioned lift on the ground floor with steel folding gates that clanged shut, after which the lift moved very slowly upwards. It was quicker to walk up the staircase.
Our host, Yuri Petrochenkov, himself an artist, warmly greeted us at the door. He was tall with gray hair pulled into a tail. His open, friendly manner and twinkling eyes showed a sense of humor and his English with a thick accent made him an entertaining host. Nelly, his wife, spoke little English but understood a great deal more.
We were ushered into their main room, which served as a living-room, dining room and TV area. There was an air of intimacy in the room, as though it was the core part of this family. Many parties, social and political discussions and family gatherings take place here. We were honored to be there and I felt ashamed that I had absolutely no Russian language to attempt to communicate in. Why is it that people of the English-speaking world take for granted that the rest of the world should speak English? I had always meant to learn Russian and had enrolled for courses in the past but they never started because of lack of numbers.
Our meal was a feast in itself. We weren't offered wine, just vodka in little shot glasses and before drinking there is always a toast. Some nine vodkas later, Yuri was in fine form and had found a drinking partner in my husband!
Wandering along the river, we agreed that not only had we found new friends, but we had just spent probably the most enjoyable experience of our trip to Russia. This is what travel is all about to get to the heart and soul of the people and to try to understand and experience a little of what makes others tick.
When an American president takes a vacation, hisassistantsusually emphasize tonews reportersthe work that he does during his vacation. In contrast, whenthe prime ministerof Japan recently took a vacation, hisaidesemphasized to the press that his purpose was relaxation — no work at all.
NEW YORK, Aug 2 (Reuters) -- For most American shoppers, "Made in China" may still suggest cheap toys, but China's largest household appliance maker has ambitious plans to change that with its sales of a growing range of sleek minibars.
Haler Group Co., which according to some industry estimates is the world's second- biggest maker of refrigerators, is seeking to outflank America's three major appliance makers by competing on image rather than price, and by targeting students in the hope that they will remain loyal as they get older.
And so far the strategy, which may signal the way for future campaign in the U.S. market by other Chinese consumer products companies, may be working -- at least according to two arms of the world's largest retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
"It's not about whether they're made in China," said Melissa Berryhill, a spokeswoman for Wal-Mart's Sam's Club, whose last holiday season catalog featured a black Haier cooler with smoked glass doors that is big enough to chill 3o bottles of wine.
"They're an exceptional value," she said of the $300 luxury machine, sold along with the more ordinary Haier chest freezer that costs about $16o.
Wal-Mart's main discount operation in April began selling the chest freezers in half of its 2 6oo stores, while most of its stores sell at least one of two versions of compact refrigerators made by Haier.
"They're popular and beating our expectations on sales," said Wal-Mart spokesman Rob Phillips, who added that the Haier 4.6 cubic feet and 5 cubic feet freezers cost about the same as General Electric Co.'s comparable products, selling for around $169.
COLLEGE TOEHOLD
GE, Whirlpool Corp. and Maytag Corp. currently dominate the U.S. marketplace for household appliances but they tend to focus most of their attention on mainstream areas such as large refrigerators and freezers.
Haier, which says it currently sells $200 million worth of appliances in the U.S. annually, now claims more than a 35 percent share of the U.S. market for refrigerators 4 cubic feet and smaller -- the minibars found in hotels and college dormitories.
"When those college kids using our little refrigerators grow up and marry, we want them to be thinking of us for their first fridge," said Michael Jemal, Haier America's president, who was Haier's first U.S. distributor before setting up the unit in 1999.
Haier may need to depend less on the Chinese market because it is likely to face an increasing challenge on its own turf. China's entry into the World Trade Organization will open up Chinese manufacturers to greater foreign competition at home.
Haler, which had global revenues of $5 billion last year, spent $30 million setting up a plant late last year in Camden, South Carolina that will make large Haier brand refrigerators. Company officials say they hope initiatives like that will grow U.S. sales to $1 billion by 2004.
"They're building up their learning curve in the U.S., and then picking up niche markets," said Ming-Jer Chen, a professor at the Darden School of Business Administration at the University of Virginia and the author of a new book, Inside Chinese Business.
BROADWAY HEADQUARTERS
The company, whose Chief Executive Zhang Ruimin is famous in China for being filmed smashing sub- standard products with a hammer, last week bought a historical bank building on Broadway in Manhattan for $14 million.
"Buying a New York building for $14 million is not what's going to make us," said Jemal. "It's about offering the customers the products the competition doesn't have."
In the third quarter of 2002, for example, the company plans to launch stainless steel Internet-linked appliances with Flash Gordon stylings, such as a home clothes washing machine that can be started via the Internet, he said.
To grow its brand in the U.S., the company has taken out ad space on a ease-by-ease basis on trolley cars at JFK International Airport in New York and on billboards in Miami and Chicago, but has not yet contracted with any of the big advertising firms. And Haler America is not only battling rival appliance makers in the U.S. -- it is also manufacturing for some of them. As OEM , Haler America does about 20 to 25 percent of its manufacturing on a contract basis for other companies, including big U.S. competitors, who sell its products under their own brand names.
"These are the last 2o minutes of peace in your life," the Swedish caller told Caltech professor Ahmed Zewail at 5:4o a.m. on October 12.
Soon the world would hear of Zewail's award — the 1999 Nobel Prize in chemistry — and Zewail would hear from the world. Two thousand e-mails would zoom his way within a few days and three phone lines would start ringing with eager requests for interviews from the national and Egyptian press and with congratulations from friends and colleagues. But first, the 53-year-old man would share the news with his family.
He kissed his wife, Dema, and young sons, Nabeel and Hani. His mother, whom Zewail reached in his native Egypt, cried and cried. His daughters, Maha and Amani, "were going crazy on the phone. I couldn't even speak," said Zewail.
"I was disappointed in Nabeel's reaction," he added. "I told him I had won the prize. He said, 'Good.'" But when Zewail asked if he'd tell the kids at school, the six-year-old said, "No. These guys will say 'So what?'" But Nabeel did ask, "Are we going to see the king?"
The Royal Swedish Academy honored Zewail for his groundbreaking work in viewing and studying chemical reactions at the atomic level as they occur. He has shown "that it is possible with rapid laser technique to see how atoms in a molecule move during a chemical reaction."
Zewail had brought the most powerful tools from the field of physics into the chemistry lab to create a revolution, and the field of femto-chemistry was born. It was "a revolution in chemistry and related sciences," the Swedes announced, "since this type of investigation allows us to understand and predict important reactions," to probe nature at its most fundamental level.
Zewail is the 27th Calteeh faculty member or alumnus to receive the Nobel Prize, and the third faculty member to be so honored in this decade.
"In my experience," said Zewail after a tumultuous week, "whenever you cross fields or bring in new ideas and tools, you find what you don't expect. You open new windows."
Zewail's path to the forefront of the international science arena has been elegant and swift, like the atoms he observes performing molecular dances. With a wealth of experience in home chemistry projects as a boy in Egypt, he sailed to the top of his class at Alexandria University. The classical science education he received there prepared him for a promised tenure-track position in the field of his choice: math, physics, chemistry, or geology, but he decided to get his PhD at the University of Pennsylvania — to "see the molecular world of chemistry." He had heard of Caltech, but to this young Egyptian, "institute" sounded less prestigious than "university." As it turned out, Penn provided the "ideal" transition from classical science studies to the postdoctoral work he did at UC Berkeley.
He stayed at Berkeley for postdoctoral work for two reasons: to think more about research rather than about getting a PhD and "the secret reason — I wanted to buy a big American car to take back to Egypt with me." At Berkeley, he published three papers "immediately" and was advised to apply to the top handful of American universities.
"The most important reason why I decided on Caltech was, once the offer was made, I was well received by the staff, administration, and faculty." He also felt he could make his own way specializing in dynamics in a department strong on structure. And the Mediterranean climate didn't hurt. That was 1976.
Zewail was off and running, earning tenure in a year and a half, making full professorship by 1982, seated in the Pauling Chair by 199o. Now with a Nobel Prize under his belt, what's next? "First of all, I'm not retiring," he said. "And I'm not going to Hollywood."
In the coming years, Zewail looks forward to more breakthroughs. He will remain active in research and in publishing papers, which he considers to be his babies (363 to date). Tracking the progress of two papers within a week of receiving the prize, he reached a surprised editor who said, "You on the phone? Impossible! I thought you'd be out wining and dining." He will continue to push the envelope of what is possible.
Young Albert was a quiet boy. "Perhaps too quiet", thought Hermann and Pauline Einstein. He spoke hardly at all until age 3- They might have thought him slow, but there was something else evident. When he did speak, he'd say the most unusual things. At age 2, Pauline promised him a surprise. Albert was excited, thinking she was bringing him some new fascinating toy. But when his mother presented him with his new baby sister Maja, all Albert could do was stare with questioning eyes. Finally he responded, "where are the wheels?"
When Albert was 5 years old and sick in bed, Hermann Einstein brought him a device that did stir his intellect. It was the first time he had seen a compass. He lay there shaking and twisting the odd thing, certain he could fool it into pointing off in a new direction. But try as he might, the compass needle would always find its way back to pointing in the direction of north. "A wonder," he thought. The invisible force that guided the compass needle was evidence to Albert that there was more to our world that meets the eye. There was "something behind things, something deeply hidden."
So began Albert Einstein's journey down a road of exploration that he would follow the rest of his life. "I have no special gift," he would say, "I am only passionately curious."
Albert Einstein was more than just curious though. He had the patience and determination that kept him at things longer than most others. Other children would build houses of card up to 4 stories tall before the cards would lose balance and the whole structure would come falling down. Maja watched in wonder as her brother Albert methodically built his card buildings to 14 stories. Later he would say, "It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer."
One advantage Albert Einstein's developing mind enjoyed was the opportunity to communicate with adults in an intellectual way. His uncle, an engineer, would come to the house, and Albert would join in the discussions. His thinking was also stimulated by a medical student who came over once a week for dinner and lively chats.
At age 12, Albert Einstein came upon a set of ideas that impressed him as "holy." It was a little book on Euclidean plane geometry . The concept that one could prove theorems of angles and lines that were in no way obvious made an "indescribable impression" on the young student. He adopted mathematics as the tool he would use to pursue his curiosity and prove what he would discover about the behavior of the universe.
He was convinced that beauty lies in the simplistic. Perhaps this insight was the real power of his genius. Albert Einstein looked for the beauty of simplicity in the apparently complex nature and saw truths that escaped others. While the expression of his mathematics might be accessible to only a few sharp minds in the science, Albert could condense the essence of his thoughts so anyone could understand.
For instance, his theories of relativity revolutionized science and unseated the laws of Newton that were believed to be a complete description of nature for hundreds of years. Yet when pressed for an example that people could relate to, he came up with this: "Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. THAT's relativity."
Albert Einstein's wealth of new ideas peaked while he was still a young man of 26. In 1905 he wrote 3 fundamental papers on the nature of light, a proof of atoms, the special theory of relativity and the famous equation of atomic power: E=mc2. For the next 20 years, the curiosity that was sparked by wanting to know what controlled the compass needle and his persistence to keep pushing for the simple answers led him to connect space and time and find a new state of matter.
What was his ultimate quest?
"I want to know how God created this world...I want to know His thoughts; the rest are details."
(Dr. McKinley1ofAwarenessMagazine2interviews a group of experts on environmental issues.)
Dr. McKinley: What do you think is the biggest threat to the environment today? Aman Motwane3: The biggest threat to our environment today is the way we, as human beings, see our environment. How we see our environment shapes our whole world. Most of us see everything as independent from one another. But the reality is that everything is part of one interconnected, interrelated whole. For example, a tree may appear isolated, but in fact it affects and is affected by everything in its environment-sunshine, rain, wind, birds, minerals, other plants and trees, you, me. The tree shapes the wind that blows around it; it is also shaped by that wind. Look at the relationship between the tree and its environment and you will see the future of the tree. Most of us are blind to this interconnectedness of everything. This is why we don't see the consequences of our actions. It is time for each of us to open our eyes and see the world as it really is — one complete whole where every cause has an effect.
Dr. McKinley: Hello Dr. Semkiw. In your research, what environmental issues do you find most pressing? Walter Semkiw: Two environmental issues that we find most pressing are deforesting and global warming. Mankind has now cut down half of the trees that existed 10 000 years ago. The loss of trees upsets the ecosystem as trees are necessary to build topsoil, maintain rainfall in dry climates, purify underground water and to convert carbon dioxide to oxygen. Trees bring water up from the ground, allowing water to evaporate into the atmosphere. The evaporated water then returns as rain, which is vital to areas that are naturally dry. Areas downwind of deforested lands lose this source of rainfall and are transformed into deserts. Global warming results from the burning of fossil fuels, such as petroleum products, resulting in the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases then trap heat, resulting in warming of our atmosphere.
Dr. McKinley: Mr. Nacson, thanks for participating all the way from Australia! What do you suggest the readers of Awareness Magazine can do to help the environmental problem?
Leon Nacson5: The simplest way to help the environment is not
to impact on it. Tread as lightly as you can, take as little as possible, and put back as much as you can.
Dr. McKinley: What is your specific area of concern regarding the current and future state of the environment?
Leon Nacson: Air and water pollution are our Number One priorities. It is hard to understand that we are polluting the air we breathe and the water we drink. These are two elements that are not inexhaustible, and we must realize that once we reach the point of no return, there will be nothing left for future generations.
Dr. McKinley: Mr. Desai, what an honor it is to have this opportunity to interview you. Can you please share your wisdom with our readers and tell us where you see the environmental crisis heading?
Amrit Desai6: We are not separate from the problem. We are the problem. We live divided lives. On one hand, we ask industries to support our greed for more and more conveniences, comfort
and possessions. We have become addicted consumers, which causes industrial waste. At the same time, we ignore the connection between our demands and the exploitation of Mother Earth. When we are greedy for more than what we need for our well-being, we always abuse the resources of our body and the earth. We are nurtured by the healthy condition of Mother Earth. In humans, if the mother is ailing, the child suffers. We are the cause of the ailing planet and we are the victims.
Dr. McKinley: In closing, I thank all of the participants. I have learned a great deal about what I can do as an individual to help the environment. I hope these interviews encourage the readers of Awareness Magazine to take action and develop your own strategy. Too many of us just sit back and say "I'll let the experts deal with it." Meanwhile, we are killing the planet. My aim of this interview is to show how one person can make a difference' Thanks to all for offering your wisdom.
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