March 22, 2011---Most restaurants in the United States offer their customers a glass of tap water at no charge with their meal, but this week many restaurants are asking dinners to pay a dollar, or more, for a glass of water. Cards on their tables explain that this small amount helps bring clean water to children around the world. It's called the UNICEF Tap Project. "UNICEF's Tap Project is really all about bringing attention to the fact that over 900 million people around the globe do not have access to good, clean, healthy drinking water," says Cary Stem, who heads the US Fund for UNICEF. She adds that water-borne illness is the second-highest cause of preventable childhood death in the world. "Each and every day approximately 4,100 children die just because they don't have that access - 4,100 every single day." The public service campaign encourages people to help change that statistic with a simple, affordable action: paying a dollar to get a glass of tap water at a restaurant. "One dollar buys enough good, clean water for a child for 40 days," Stem says. "The tap project has expanded since it began five years ago with 300 restaurants in New York City. This year, Stem says, about 3,000 restaurants across the country are participating in the campaign. We raised about $2.5 million over the last five years of this campaign," says Stem. "Last year, we raised over $1 million for the first time. This year we're hoping to top that." Stem credits the continued success of the campaign to an army of volunteers who support the tap project and raise money in their communities. The UNICEF Tap Project is promoting its efforts with a simple motto: when you take water, give water. Currently, UNICEF works in more than 100 countries around the world to improve access to safe water and sanitation facilities in schools and communities. Stem hopes that, by participating in the project, more Americans will realize that what they often take for granted is a precious and scarce resource in many other parts of the world. How does Cary Stem feel about the work of the Tap Project? A) Concerned B) Hopeful C) Disappointed D) Angry
B

Dear Michelle, Why can't my daughter manage her life better? She is 17 and an honor student, but she seems to be wasting her life away with a boyfriend who is holding her back. He consumes every waking minute of her precious time and smooth-talks her as well. His goal is to get her to agree to go to the college of his choice, not her choice, and because his grades are lower, his choice will be limited. I feel like I want to rescue her, but she pushes me away and shuts me out. She has only brought us pride and joy; and now this! Help! A worried mother Dear Mother of a 17-year-old Girl, Hmmmmm. What's the matter with kids today? Remember that song from "Bye Bye Birdie"? Well if you do not, let me fill you in about teenagers and their life-management skills. Do not expect too much too soon because at the ripe age of 17, life-management is not within their reach, nor should it be. Life experience creates both the conditions and the skills for management, and if management went before experience, there would be little of it. Your daughter is an honor student for good reasons. She is smart, studies with intelligence and you have given her good values. When the time comes for her to apply for college, and she visits the ones that are specifically designed for students at the top of their grade, she will most likely break away from her boyfriend's influence. It is rare for an honor student to change the path of their academic career for _ . That being said, there might be some adolescent wisdom in her behavior after all. Perhaps she is choosing to worry you, her parents, for unconscious reasons. Being such a good girl and being a steady source of joy might have become a bit too much for her. Let your daughter have her own private moment of 11th grade rebellion. She deserves a break from perfection. Michelle According to Michelle, 17-year-old teenagers  _  . A) are too young to manage their life B) are old enough to live their own life C) should have management before experience D) have reached the age of an adult
A

There can be no doubt about the positive changes that have taken place in the last hundred yeas. In Western countries we eat more nutritiously, we are wealthier, we are healthier and there are more opportunities. But then, why, in the midst of so much excitement and opportunity, has life satisfaction declined so much? Why is depression the most common illness in the Western world? And why, when most infectious diseases have been conquered and rates of heart attacks and stokes have been reduced, do so many people report that they are feeling ill? It is argued that "functional illnesses" such as constant tiredness, the inability to sleep and anxiety that makes you ill, are caused by the body's failure to adapt to social change. Modern life is exhausting because we are often compelled to live by its standards, even though technically we have a choice to live otherwise. Everybody thought we would benefit from the invention of machines to carry out the more dull tasks in our life, leaving us many more opportunities for leisure and relaxation. And yet the opposite has happened. Only recently a lifestyle survey found that for 42% of its 5,000 interviewees, lack of sleep was their principal health concern, followed by 34% worrying about general exhaustion. A quarter acknowledged experiencing stress and depression. Working long hours in companies with a restricted social life is threatening our health and people feel unable to cope. The new technological age that claims freedom by allowing us greater flexibility is, in fact, slowly working to destroy us. Jobs for the whole life are an old story. If people take time out to recover, somebody else will come along to fill their position. Who, in this current every-man-for-himself climate, wants their employer to think they cannot cope, especially when there are mortgages  and families at stake? According to the recent lifestyle survey, which of the following was true? A) The greatest problem was anxiety over health issues. B) Roughly a third of interviewees were concerned about overall tiredness. C) Feeling unhappy was the second most mentioned concern D) More than half of the interviewees mentioned oversleeping.
B

Trip 1 Black Bear Count There have been fires in this area in the last few years and the Office of the National Park is not sure how many black bears are still living. Some bears have been seen since the fires, and the Office has asked for young people to help count them. The entire trip will last three hours. Bookings necessary. Cost: Free       When: May 8 Trip 2 Garland Valley Bring your drink and lunch for this walk in a beautiful area of the Blue Mountains. Garland Valley is close to the town of Garland hut is part of the National Park. Many wild animals live in this area, including many rare birds. This is a great walk for bird-lovers. The trip lasts four hours. Bookings necessary. Cost: $ 15       When: May 8, May 15 Trip 3 Flashlight Adventure Put on your warm clothes, bring a flashlight and a pair of glasses, and come for a night walk along the Dungog Valley. A guide will lead the tour. Many of the animals you will see on this trip . The guide will tell you about the lives of the animals you see. Numbers are strictly limited on night trips, so be sure to book early. This walk lasts two and a half hours. Cost: $ 12       When: May 8, May 15, May22 Equipment to be needed: *      Please bring enough water and food for all walks. *      Wear good walking shoes--no high heels. *      Wear a hat for day walks. *      Dress warmly for night walks. *      Children must be with an adult. *      Make sure your flashlight works well and bring extra batteries for night walks. *      Follow all instructions from guides during the walks. The mountains are a dangerous place. Bookings: *      Bookings for the above trips can be trade by telephone(893 -- 4847)or on the Internet at What is the best title for the passage? A) Adventure Travel in America B) Hunting around the Great Mountains C) Interesting Trips in the East of the USA D) Discovery Trips in the Blue Mountains

D