One day in 1819, 3,000 miles off the coast of Chile, in one of the most remote regions of the Pacific Ocean, 20 American sailors watched their ship flood with seawater.
They'd been struck by a sperm whale, which had ripped a catastrophic hole in the ship's hull. As their ship began to sink beneath the swells, the men huddled together in three small whaleboats.
These men were 10,000 miles from home, more than 1,000 miles from the nearest scrap of land. In their small boats, they carried only rudimentary navigational equipment and limited supplies of food and water.
These were the men of the whaleship Essex, whose story would later inspire parts of “Moby Dick.”
Even in today's world, their situation would be really dire, but think about how much worse it would have been then.
No one on land had any idea that anything had gone wrong. No search party was coming to look for these men. So most of us have never experienced a situation as frightening as the one in which these sailors found themselves, but we all know what it's like to be afraid.
We know how fear feels, but I'm not sure we spend enough time thinking about what our fears mean.
As we grow up, we're often encouraged to think of fear as a weakness, just another childish thing to discard like baby teeth or roller skates.
And I think it's no accident that we think this way. Neuroscientists have actually shown that human beings are hard'wired to be optimists.
So maybe that's why we think of fear, sometimes, as a danger in and of itself. “Don't worry,” we like to say to one another. “Don't panic.” In English, fear is something we conquer. It's something we fight.
It's something we overcome. But what if we looked at fear in a fresh way? What if we thought of fear as an amazing act of the imagination, something that can be as profound and insightful as storytelling itself?
It's easiest to see this link between fear and the imagination in young children, whose fears are often extraordinarily vivid.
When I was a child, I lived in California, which is, you know, mostly a very nice place to live, but for me as a child, California could also be a little scary.
I remember how frightening it was to see the chandelier that hung above our dining table swing back and forth during every minor earthquake, and I sometimes couldn't sleep at night, terrified that the Big One might strike while we were sleeping.
And what we say about kids who have fears like that is that they have a vivid imagination. But at a certain point, most of us learn to leave these kinds of visions behind and grow up.
We learn that there are no monsters hiding under the bed, and not every earthquake brings buildings down. But maybe it's no coincidence that some of our most creative minds fail to leave these kinds of fears behind as adults.
my definition of success
today i am very glad to be here to share with you my ideas of success. what is success? it is what everyone is longing for.sometimes success would be rather simple. winning a game is success; getting a high grade in the exam is success; making a new friend is success; even now i am
standing here giving my speech is somehow also success.
however, as a person’s whole life is concerned, success becomes very
complicated. is fortune success? is fame success? is high social status success? no, i don’t think so. i believe success is the realization of people’
s hopes and ideals.nowadays, in the modern society there are many people
who are regarded as the successful. and the most obvious characteristics of hem are money, high position and luxurious life. so most people believe that s success and all that they do is for this purpose. but the problem is wether it is real success. we all know there are always more money, higher position and better condition in front of us. if we keep chasing them, where is the end? what will satisfy us at last? therefore, we can see, to get the real success we must need something inside, which is the realization of
as people’s thoughts control their bodies, computer programs play a leading role in the modern times. both social progress and human evolution depend on the computer programs. in the practical application, a software consists of different programs and then combines with hardware to develop into a high-tech electronic product. there are many kinds of electronic products found everywhere in our daily life. nearly all the time do we make use of these products to conduct our passion.
yes, it is definitely right that programming is a hard work because of its special characteristics---complicated, time-wasted, logical. to make a program needs our continual patient and confidence, and we should accept failure again and again in most cases. but once you go into further understanding of computer programs, you will be surprised at the programs’ wander. in detail, through programming a heap of date or a computing model can be easily solved we expected, such as a number wanted, or the model’s parameters. the magical power of program appeals to all the programmers, certainly including me.
it is of great convenience for us to simplify or model our complex questions by programming. furthermore, studying and using programs can enforce us to form our ability of analyzing and logic. computer language has its regular grammar. how to organize the language into a reasonable calculating method in a high efficiency like speaking easy-understanding and breath-saving words, is an awful challenge for us, and it will be very funny.
now, software is more and more important in our life, therefore programmer becomes a popular profession, which is one urgent need in the society. for our country, it’s very important to ensure our national security from others, such as japan. enhancing military strength makes us pay more attention to the informationalized war that attached intensely to the fundamental function of program and software. it is truth that china has a huge population of 1.4 billion, which means messy things from all the people every day. also, to govern the society orderly all benefit from information composed by programs.
ladies and gentlemen, this is joe biden, i'm filling in for president obama, while he addresses the nato summit in wales.
when the president and i took office in january of , this nation was in the midst of the greatest economic crisis since the great depression. our economy had plummeted1 at a rate of 8% in a single quarter-part of the fastest economic decline any time in the last half century. millions of families were falling underwater on their homes and threatened with foreclosure. the iconic american automobile2 industry was under siege.
but yesterday's jobs report was another reminder3 of how far we've come. we've had 54 straight months of job creation. and that's the longest streak4 of uninterrupted job growth in the united states' history.
we've gone from losing 9 million jobs during the financial crisis to creating 10 million jobs. we've reduced the unemployment rate from 10% in october of to 6.1% today. and for the first time since the 1990s, american manufacturing is steadily5 adding jobs-over 700,000 since . and surveys of both american and foreign business leaders confirm that america once again is viewed as the best place in the world to build and invest.
that's all good news.
but an awful lot of middle class americans are still not feeling the effects of this recovery. since the year , gross domestic product-our gdp - has risen by 25%. and productivity in america is up by 30%. but middle class wages during that same time period have gone up by only fourteen cents.
folks, it's long past time to cut the middle class back into the deal, so they can benefit from the economic growth they helped create. folks, there used to be a bargain in this country supported by democrats6 and republicans, business and labor7. the bargain was simple. if an employee contributed to the growth and profitability of the company, they got to share in the profits and the benefits as well. that's what built the middle class. it's time to restore the bargain, to deal the middle class back in. because, folks, when the middle class does well, everybody does well-the wealthy get wealthier and the poor have a way up.
you know, the middle class is not a number. it's a value set. it means being able to own your home; raise your children in a safe neighborhood; send them to a good school where if they do well they can qualify to go to college and if they get accepted you'd be able to find a way to be able to send them to college. and in the meantime, if your parents need help, being able to take care of them, and hope to put aside enough money so that your children will not have to take care of you.
feeling of youth
no young man believes he shall ever die. it was a saying of my brother's, and a fine one. there is a feeling of eternity in youth, which makes us amend for everything. to be young is to be as one of the immortal gods. one half of time indeed is flown-the other half remains in store for us with all its countletreasures; for there is no line drawn, and we see no limit to our hopes and wishes. we make the coming age our own-
the vast, the unbounded prospect lies before us.
death. old age. are words without a meaning. that paby us like the idea air which we regard not. others may have undergone, or may still be liable to them-we "bear a charmed life“, which laughs to scorn all such sickly fancies. as in setting out on delightful journey, we strain our eager gaze forward-
bidding the lovely scenes at distance hail!
and see no end to the landscape, new objects presenting themselves as we advance; so, in the commencement of life, we set no bounds to our inclinations. nor to the unrestricted opportunities of gratifying them. we have as yet found no obstacle, no disposition to flag; and it seems that we can go on so forever. we look round in a new world, full of life, and motion, and ceaseleprogress; and feel in ourselves all the vigor and spirit to keep pace with it, and do not foresee from any present symptoms how we shall be left behind in the natural course of things, decline into old age, and drop into the grave. it is the simplicity, and as it were abstractedneof our feelings in youth, that (so to speak) identifies us with nature, and (our experience being slight and our passions strong) deludes us into a belief of being immortal like it. our short-lives connection with existence we fondly flatter ourselves, is an indissoluble and lasting union-a honeymoon that knows neither coldness, jar, nor separation. as infants smile and sleep, we are rocked in the cradle of our wayward fancies, and lulled into security by the roar of the universe around us0we quaff the cup of life with eager haste without draining it, instead of which it only overflows the more-objects prearound us, filling the mind with their magnitude and with the strong of desires that wait upon them, so that we have no room for the thoughts of death.
Good afternoon, everyone!
The topic of my speech today is “Being a Good Listener”.
Good listening can always show respect, promote understanding, and improve interpersonal relationship.
Many people suggest that parents should listen more to their children, so they will understand them better, and find it easy to narrow the generation gap; teachers should listen more to their students, then they can meet their needs better, and place themselves in a good relationship with their students; students should listen more to their classmates, thus they will help and learn from each other, and a friendship is likely to be formed.
What I want to stress is that each of us should listen more to others. Show your respect and never stop others till they finish their talk; show you are interested by a supportive silence or a knowing smile; be open-minded to different opinions even though you don’t like them. In a word, good listening can really enable us to get closer to each other.
Thank you for your listening!
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, I’m very glad to make a speech here. Today my topic is “I love you, China.”
Since the day I was born, I began to have a proud name—Chinese. Since the day I began to talk, the most beautiful sentence I’ve ever learnt has been “I love you, China!”
I love you, China, and I’m so proud of being a Chinese. I’m proud that I’ve got the beautiful yellow skin, black eyes and black hair. I’m also proud that I speak the most beautiful language in the world—Chinese.
I love you, China, for I can feel the deep love you give me every day, every minute. Last year, I got an opportunity to visit the United States of America. During my staying there, my father’s boss once invited my family to dinner. While at table, he looked at me and asked: “Little boy, how long have you been in America?” “About a month,” I answered, “How lucky you are!” he said, “If you were living in China, how could you learn such perfect English?” I smiled and told him proudly that all the students in China are able to learn English at school. I saw his surprised eyes and said to myself, “I’m proud of you, China. For you are offering us the best education.”
When I came back from the USA, my friends asked me: “How do you feel about your staying there?” “Wonderful” I said. “Then why do you come back?” Hearing this, I told them there were lots of beautiful countries in the world, but none of them can compare with our own country—China. How true the saying is: “There’s no place like home!”
I love you, China. As a young student, all we should do is to study hard and devote ourselves whole-heartedly in the future, to the great cause of building you into an even stronger and greater country in the world. I love you, my dear motherland! I love you, China!
Thank you for your listening !
you know, the middle class is not a number. it's a value set. it means being able to own your home; raise your children in a safe neighborhood; send them to a good school where if they do well they can qualify to go to college and if they get accepted you'd be able to find a way to be able to send them to college. and in the meantime, if your parents need help, being able to take care of them, and hope to put aside enough money so that your children will not have to take care of you.
that's the american dream. that's what this country was built on. and that's what we'redetermined8 to restore.
in order to do that, it's time to have a fair tax structure, one that values paychecks as much as unearned income and inherited wealth, to take some of the burden off of the middle class. it's time to close tax loopholes so we can reduce the deficit9, and invest in rebuilding america - our bridges, our ports, our highways, rails, providing good jobs.
with corporate10 profits at near record highs, we should encourage corporations to invest more in research and development and the salaries of their employees. it's time for us to invest in educational opportunity to guarantee that we have the most highly skilledworkforce11 in the world, for 6 out of every 10 jobs in the near term is going to require some education beyond high school. folks, it's long past due to increase the minimum wage that will lift millions of hardworking families out of poverty target poverty and in the process produce a ripple12 effect that boosts wages for the middle class and spurs economic growth for the united states of america. economists13 acknowledge that if we do these and other things, wages will go up and we'll increase the gross domestic product of the united states.
my fellow americans, we know how to do this. we've done it before. it's the way we used to do business and we can do it that way again. all the middle class in this country want is a chance. no guarantee, just a chance.
americans want to work. and when given a fair shot, the american worker has never, ever, ever, let his country down. folks, it's never a good bet to bet against the american people.
thanks for listening.
Most people would like to be popular with others, but not everyone can achieve this goal. What is the secret to popularity? In fact, it is very simple. The first step is to improve our appearance. We should always make sure that we stay in good shape and dress well.
When we are healthy and well'groomed, we will not only look better but also feel better. In addition, we should smile and appear friendly. After all, our facial expression is an important part of our appearance. If we can do this, people will be attracted to our good looks and impressed by our confidence.
Another important step is developing more consideration for others. We should always put others first and place their interests before our own. It's also important to be good listeners; in this way people will feel comfortable enough to confide in us. However, no matter what we do, we must not gossip.
Above all, we must remember to be ourselves, not phonies. Only by being sincere and respectful of others can we earn their respect. If we can do all of the above, I am sure popularity will come our way.
In June, the flowers in full bloom season; In June, and the wind blowing the Buddha, the sun is shining; In June, is also our festival; On this day, our school held a large festival performances.
With the wonderful music, the curtain slowly rising, festival show began. You see! On both sides of the stage, slowly out of the pairs of girl wear kimonos, all is their dance, like a little flower in the wind, graceful; When the music becomes the high intense, they swing the waist, opened the ideologues floret umbrella, like a little mushroom in the rain, the dizzying. Oh! They are a little (a) class of performance. Is really wonderful! When the lights suddenly became dark, speed up the pace of music, a beam of red light in the middle of the table, a the grass skirt, with countless tails girl, with music and dancing. Oh! She in African dance!
The festival performances, from grade school, every class of performance are selected, many class can only choose a, and our class is very lucky, selected the two programs. "Saxophone ensemble" and the "Latin". My favorite is my piano recital, selected by the school but did not, though in the best, only got a silver medal. Since the two selected, the teacher every day with our rehearsals, one of the most hard is jump Latin dance, before we haven't learned a few people, is only temporary, please classmates to tutoring. Although in practice some classmates repeatedly, and made great changes, through the joint efforts of everyone, insisted on down.
The next program to play in our class, I saw countless flashing light from the flash, like with a rabbit in my heart, "beat" straight jump, however, still keep a smile on his face, I said to myself: there are many teachers and parents looking at me, I can't make a fool of yourself! Hence, music sounded, I try to set up her skirt, try to do the best gestures, leave the most beautiful dance to the audience the audience. A round of applause ended our performance, we are easy to step down after the audience with a bow, suddenly found that my mouth smile went numb...
I like the festival very much, because she can give each of us the opportunity to show their most beautiful style and individual talent, at the same time, can also learn about to so many classmates, have their skills, perhaps, this is what people often say: we are the future of our motherland...
Tell everyone a good news, our school will be held in the cover letter middle school art festival!
20 year January 12 (Thursday), my left hand holding a pink festival invitation, right hand holding to show our classmates come on drum strength son, set foot in the cover letter with aflame mood high school gate.
When I walked into the cover letter middle school auditorium along with the crowd, I saw the familiar faces -- my classmates. They each person's face is permeated with the sense of excitement, may be because the long-expected festival had finally arrived!
After long prologue in school, we began our festival finally!
First is in grade one students into the ceremony of the young pioneers. Such as the three senior classmates after the red flag up, began to swear. In the oath, the classmates all looked attentive, very serious. And then, under the leadership of the brigade of counselors, we sang young pioneers team song.
The festival programmes have varied, with singing, dancing, recitation, singing, wind... We have too many things to see. Show a than a fascinating, the audience's applause and cheering. Among them, my favorite, is the wind.
Band's classmates play is jay Chou's "chrysanthemum Chinese Taiwan" and "cowboy busy". The classmates in focus at the play, blow the two songs very good to listen. Their usual practice ability show incisively and vividly.
You missed such a wonderful festival, have you?
during his presidency, bill clinton seized important opportunities on issues from welfare to free trade. he was a tireless champion of peace in the middle east. he used american power in the balkans to confront aggression and halt ethnic cleansing. and in all his actions and decisions, the american people sensed a deep empathy for the poor and the powerless. shortly before leaving office, president clinton said, "christ admonished us that our lives will be judged by how we do unto the least of our neighbors." throughout his career, bill clinton has done his best to live up to that standard. and americans respect him for it. at every stage of his remarkable life, president clinton has made and kept countless friends, who share in the joy of this day. and three people in particular have the largest part in this remarkable story. one day more than 30 years ago, inside the yale law library, a fellow student walked over to bill clinton and said, "if you're going to keep staring at me, and i'm going to keep staring back, we ought to at least know each other's name. mine's hillary rodham. what is yours?"that was a good day for both of them, and the beginning of a partnership unique in american history. so today, we honor the former first lady of arkansas, the former first lady of america, the united states senator from new york, senator hillary rodham clinton.
perhaps the clintons' greatest achievement is their daughter, who moved into the white house as a young girl, and left as an accomplished young lady. it's not easy to be a teenager in the white house, but it's a lot easier when you have a loving mother and a loving father that chelsea clinton had.
this magnificent presidential library, and the american life it celebrates, would not have been possible without the love and sacrifice of a special lady. among his heroes, president clinton always includes his mother, virginia kelley, "a working woman and a widow." virginia was there when her son took the oath of office, and we know that she would be incredibly proud of this day.
the story that began in a little house on hervey street in hope, arkansas is the kind of story that inspires people from every background, all over america. in this great nation, it is always possible for a child to go as far as their talent and vision can take them. visitors to this place will be reminded of the great promise of our country, and the dreams that came true in the life of our 42nd president. the william j. clinton presidential library is a gift to the future by a man who always believed in the future. and today, we thank him for loving and serving america.
hello,everyone. good afternoon. thank you for giving me this opportunity to talk about my top concern. i'm no.26, i'll talk about friend.
everyone of us,rich or poor,should at least have one or two good friends. my friend will listen to me when i want to speak, will help me when i need,will take care of me when i am sick,and my friends will go together with me side by side through this journey of life.
when i was ten, i was suddenly confronted with the anguish of transferring to other school. i had to left my friends i had ever known. as a kid,i feel lonely when i study in a new environment without a person i had known. nobody i could talk,nobody could know when i feel lonely. the time when i couldn't sleep, i'll always miss them, then the tears filled my eyes.
later, i became familar with the environment ,and made some friends ,which became my best friends then. they talked with me when i felt lonely, they helped me when i needed, they took care of me when i was sick. even through we were part, we still keep in touch with each other.
in our whole lives,we'll meet too much people but only a few can be our best friends. when staying with them,we can release ourself completely. we can do whatever we want, we can laugh together, talk together, and even cry together. i should say that being together with our best friends is the most wonderful moment of our lives.
good morning, ladies and gentlemen. i’d like to share my teaching dream with you. but before that, i want to say something about the beginning of this dream. in march this year, three teachers from australia came to our school. during the meeting, we exchanged a lot about education. i found that though we have almost the same teaching philosophy, we have different routines. what impressed me most was that their schools end at 3:00 in the afternoon and have no night classes. i can’t tell which kind of routine is better, but the sharp contrast made me think about a better education. the following is a dreamy school in my mind, in which there is no pressure but pleasure.
in this school, the buildings are well designed, close to nature. in the morning, children can read while enjoying the beautiful sunrise. in the evening, they can exercise by the lake reflecting the amazing sunset. in the spring, they can go to the wild, lie on the lawn, and watch the kite flying in the blue sky. in the summer, they can go to the forest, live in a cabin, and listen to the rhythm of the rain. …
students are free but polite and they respect each other. they can leave at 4:00 every afternoon, or perhaps earlier. they have the freedom to organize time. they can go to the library, go to the lab, the computer rooms or the playground. they’re self-motivated and have a strong thirst for knowledge. and there are no frequent exams and rankings. students won’t be forced to wear uniforms everyday, and there is no required hair style. everyday is so colorful that they are looking forward to the next day when going to bed at night,
ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls,
i am chinese. i am proud of being a chinese with five thousand years of civilization behind. i've learned about the four great inventions made by our forefathers. i've learned about the great wall and the yangtze river. i've learned about zhang heng(张衡)and i've learned about zheng he(郑和).who says the yellow river civilization has vanished(消失)?i know that my ancestors have made miracles(奇迹)on this fertile land and we're still ma-ki-ng miracles. who can ignore the fact that we have established ourselves as a great state in the world, that we have devised our own nuclear weapons, that we have successfully sent our satellites into space, and that our gnp ranks no. 7 in the world? we have experienced the plunders (掠夺) by other nations, and we have experienced the war. yet, based on such ruins, there still stands our nation----china, unyielding and unconquerable!
i once came acroan american tourist. she said, “china has a history of five thousand years, but the us only has a history of 200 years. five thousand years ago, china took the lead in the world, and now it is the us that is leading.”my heart was deeply touched by these words. it is true that we're still a developing nation, but it doesn't mean that we can despise (鄙视) ourselves. we have such a long-standing history, we have such abundant resources, we have such intelligent and diligent people, and we have enough to be proud of. we have reasons to say proudly： we are sure to take the lead in the world in the future again, for our problems are big, but our ambition (雄心) is even bigger, our challenges (挑战) are great, but our will is evengreater.
i am chinese. i have inherited (继承) black hair and blackeyes. i have inherited the virtues of my ancestors. i have also taken over responsibility. i am sure, that wherever i go, whatever i do, i shall never forget that i am chinese!
thank you.