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　　I have been a student at Bentley College in Waltham for some time now, so I have a lot of experience and know how things work at Bentley．As a freshman(新生)at Bentley College you will be living in the Tree Dorms, Slade Hall or Miller Hall．I would highly suggest that you choose to live in the Tree Dorms because this is where most fresh-men are going to be living．There will be a lot of activities going on in the building and you will meet lots of people．Slade Hall is next to the parking lot and not far from the Tree Dorms, so that would be your second choice．As Miller Hall is small and far away, it would be my last choice for freshmen housing．If Bentley offers you the chance to live with second or third year students you'd better refuse their offer and live with freshmen．Living with your classmates will make the transition(过渡)into college life a lot easier．

　　As a freshman your classes should be easy．After freshman year your classes will become a lot more difficult, so I advise that you get down to business early in the first year．There are two very easy things you can do to increase your knowledge as a freshman．The first is to just go to class and the second is to always do your homework．I also highly advise that you do it on your own and try to stay disciplined．It is too easy to put your homework away and then get really behind and not be able to learn everything before a mid-term or final exam．

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　　A newly-published study has shown that loneliness can spread from one person to another, like a disease．Researchers used information from the Framingham Study, which began in 1948．The Framingham Study gathers information about physical and mental health, personal behavior and diet．At first, the study involved about 5,000 people in the American state of Massachusetts．Now, more than 12,000 individuals are taking part．

　　Information from the Framingham Study showed earlier that happiness can spread from person to person．So can behaviors like littering and the ability to stop smoking．

　　University of Chicago psychologist John Cacioppo led the recent study．He and other researchers attempted to show how often people felt lonely．They found that the feeling of loneliness spread through social groups．

　　Having a social connection with a lonely person increased the chances that another individual would feel lonely．In fact, a friend of a lonely person was 52％ more likely to develop feelings of loneliness．A friend of that person was 25％ more likely．The researchers say this shows that a person could indirectly be affected by someone’s loneliness．

　　The effect was strongest among friends．Neighbors were the second most affected group．The effect was weaker on husbands and wives, and brothers and sisters．The researchers also found that loneliness spread more easily among women than men．

　　The New York Times newspaper reports that, on average, people experience feelings of loneliness about 48 days a year．It also found that every additional friend can decrease loneliness by about five percent, or two and a half fewer lonely days．

　　Loneliness has been linked to health problems like depression and sleeping difficulties．The researchers believe that knowing the causes of loneliness could help in reducing it．

　　The study suggests that people can take steps to stop the spread of loneliness．They can do this by helping individuals they know who may be experiencing loneliness．The result can be helpful to the whole social group．

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　　Coming from the Bronx, Jennifer Lopez knew from an early age it would be tough to achieve her dream．In an interview in 2002 she remembered, “I had such a will in me．I had such a passion in me．I could overcome my situation．But a lot of people will get beaten down and be held back by that．” Lopez was not beaten by her situation．She worked hard dancing, singing, and acting in theaters and her hard work paid off with small roles in television and films．

　　Lopez’s big breakthrough came in 1996 when she played the main role in the movie Selena．For this movie, Lopez got paid ＄1 million and became the highest paid Latin actress of all time．Since then, she has had starring roles in several successful movies, including Out of Slight(1998)with George Clooney．

　　Then, Lopez turned her attention toward music．In 1999, she released first album, On the 6．Two songs from the album, “If You Had My Love” and “Waiting for Tonight,” both reached number one on the Billboard music charts．The album sold more than three million copies around the world．

　　After starring in The Cell(2000), Lopez released her second album, J．Lo, in 2001．The album went straight to the top of the Billboard chart．At the same time that her album came out, Lopez’s new movie, The Wedding Planner, opened in theaters．It became the number one movie at the box office．This meant that Lopez was the first entertainer to ever have a number one album and a number one movie at the same time! Like her first album, J．Lo went tripe-platinum．

　　But her entertainment career was not the only thing Lopez focused on that year．2001 was also the year Lopez started her own line of clothing, called J．Lo, and she married Cris Judd, a dancer who performed in her videos．The marriage did not last long, and Lopez and Judd divorced nine months later．

　　In 2002, Lopez starred in the films Enough and Maid in Manhattan．Maid in Manhattan became Lopez’s biggest movie yet, earning ＄19 million during its first weekend in theaters．Lopez also put her third album, This Is Me… Then, and the single “Jenny from the Block” hit number one for a week．To go with her line of clothing, Lopez introduced her own perfume．

　　In an interview, Lopez was asked if she planned to do more acting, singing, designing, or something new．She answered, “Yes, yes, yes, and yes! All of those things．I love making music, I love doing movies and all the other things．I think that everyone should do everything that they have a passion for．”

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　　Malaria, the world’s most widespread parasitic(寄生虫引起的)disease, kills as many as three million people every year－almost all of whom are under five, very poor, and African．In most years, more than five hundred million cases of illness result from the disease, although exact numbers are difficult to assess because many people don't(or can’t)seek care．It is not unusual for a family earning less than two hundred dollars a year to spend a quarter of its income on malaria treatment, and what they often get no longer works．In countries like Tanzania, Mozambique, and the Gambia, no family, village, hospital, or workplace can remain unaffected for long．

　　Malaria starts suddenly, with violent chills, which are soon followed by an intense fever and, often, headaches．As the parasites multiply, they take over the entire body．Malaria parasites live by eating the red blood cells they infect．They can also attach themselves to blood vessels in the brain．If it doesn’t kill you, malaria can happen again and again for years．The disease is passed on to humans by female mosquitoes infected with one of four species of a parasite．Together, the mosquito and the parasite are the most deadly couple in the history of the earth and one of the most successful．Malaria has five thousand genes, and its ability to change rapidly to defend itself and resist new drugs has made it nearly impossible to control．Studies show that mosquitoes are passing on the virus more frequently, and there are more outbreaks in cities with large populations．Some of the disease's spread is due to global warming．

　　For decades, the first-choice treatment for malaria parasites in Africa has been chloroquine, a chemical which is very cheap and easy to make．Unfortunately, in most parts of the world, malaria parasites have become resistant to it．Successful alternatives that help prevent resistance are already available, but they have been in short supply and are very expensive．If these drugs should fail, nobody knows what would come next．

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　　Not all memories are sweet．Some people spend all their lives trying to forget bad experiences．Violence and traffic accidents can leave people with terrible physical and emotional scars．Often they relive these experiences in nightmares(噩梦)．

　　Now American researchers think they are close to developing a pill, which will help people forget bad memories．The pill is designed to be taken immediately after a frightening experience．They hope it might reduce, or possibly wipe out, the effect of painful memories．

　　In November, experts tested a drug on people in the US and France．The drug stops the body releasing(释放)chemicals that fix memories in the brain．So far the research has suggested that only the emotional effects of memories may be reduced, not that the memories are wiped out．They are not sure to what degree people’s memories are affected．

　　The research has caused a great deal of argument(争议)．Some think it is a bad idea, while others support it．Supporters say it could lead to pills that prevent or treat soldiers' troubling memories after war．They say that there are many people who suffer from terrible memories．

　　"Some memories can ruin people's lives．They come back to you when you don't want to have them in a daydream or nightmare．They usually come with very painful emotions," said Roger Pitman, a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School．"This could relieve a lot of that suffering．"

　　But those who are against the research say that maybe the pills can change people’s memories and changing memories is very dangerous because memories give us our identity(特质)．They also help us all avoid the mistakes of the past．

　　"All of us can think of bad events in our lives that were terrible at the time but make us who we are．I'm not sure we want to wipe those memories out, "said Rebecca Dresser, a medical ethicist．

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　　On Halloween Night, children go trick-treating in their neighborhoods．Dressed up as ghosts, skeleton devils, and various other characters, children knock on doors to collect their treats．Seldom do they actually perform a “trick”．

　　It is thought that trick-or-treating comes from an old English custom．On All Souls Day, poor people went begging and promised to say prayers in exchange for food．Apple bobbing, still a favorite Halloween game, was originally an ancient ceremony honoring the harvest time．

　　A jack-o’-lantern is placed on porches and windows to tell children that treats are available．The legend was that a man named Jack could enter heaven because he played tricks on the devil．As punishment, he had to wander the earth carrying a lantern waiting to be judged fit to get into heaven．

　　People believed that Halloween marked the connection between the world of the living and the world of the dead．This meant that ghosts would roam the earth on this night．Some believed that these ghosts would go back to the homes they lived in before they died．

　　Thankfully, Halloween is an amusing night when children can dress up and get a bag full of candy．We don’t have to worry about ghosts．Or do we?

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　　Some places in the world have strange laws．It’s important for you to know about them before going there．

　　People who like to chew gum(口香糖)may have to leave Singapore．The government really wants to keep the city clean and will fine you for chewing gum．

　　Before you leave for the United Arab Emirates you’d better make sure you aren’t visiting during Ramadan(斋月)．During that time you aren’t allowed to eat or drink in public．Tourists have been fined up to ＄275 for drinking in public．

　　Lovers spend so much time kissing each other goodbye at train stations that trains often start late．This law－no kissing your lover goodbye at train stations – is rather old, and isn’t in use today in France．

　　In Thailand it’s against the law to drive a car or motorcycle without a shirt on, no matter how hot it is．Punishments are different in different areas and can include warnings and tickets costing about ＄10．No joke－the local police will stop you．

　　Studies in Denmark have shown that cars with their headlights on are more noticeable by other drivers than those with their headlights off．Drivers there are required to leave their headlights on even during the day, or they may face a fine up to ＄100．

　　Do you often buy things using coins? Don’t do it in Canada．The Currency Law of 1985 doesn’t allow using only coins to buy things．Even the use of the dollar-coin is limited(受限制的)．The shop owner has the right to choose whether to take your coins or not．

　　Make sure you know about these laws before your next trip．Better safe than sorry．

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　　Chaplin, one of the greatest and funniest actors, was born in London in 1889．When a poor boy, he was often seen waiting outside the London theatres, hoping to get work in show business．He could sing and dance, and above all, he knew how to make people laugh．But he couldn’t get work and therefore wandered about the city streets．

　　Charlie Chaplin first acted when he was five．He broke into show business because his mother, a music-hall performer, lost her voice during the performance and had to leave the stage, and Charlie went on and sang a well-known song．Halfway through the song, a shower of money poured onto the stage．Charlie stopped singing and told audiences he would pick the money first and then finish the song．The audiences laughed．This was the first of millions of laughs in Charlie Chaplin’s fabulous(神话)career．

　　Twenty years later the same Chaplin became the greatest and best loved comedian in the world．His dream came true in the world．His dream came true in the end．Chaplin became world-famous and almost a king in the world of the film．

　　Even people who don’t understand English can enjoy Chaplin’s films because they are mostly silent．The equipment for adding sound to films had not yet been developed．The development of films with sound became a problem for Chaplin, as he was uncertain about making films with dialogues．Instead, he coninued to make films without dialogue, but he added music, which he wrote himself．It isn’t what he says that makes us laugh．His comedy doesn’t depend on words．It depends on little actions which mean the same thing to people the world over．

　　Chaplin lived most of his life in America and the last years in Switzerland, where he was buried at Christmas 1977, at the age of eighty-eight．There was sadness all over the world at the news of his death．

　　In his book, Chaplin tells us how to succeed in life．He says, “You have to believe in yourself．That’s the secret．”