The Terracotta Warriors, one of the eight wonders of the world, have enjoyed international fame. Located in Xi'an in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, they are warriors of the first-ever emperor in1China or Qin Shi Huang in Chinese, Ying Zheng.

Even though I knew they are life-sized sculptures (雕塑), I was still2 when I saw them. I was lucky enough to3 the pit (深坑) and take a close look at them for the first time.

They were made around 2, 200 years ago. When I first got down into the pit, the sculptures scared me4some of them lacked body parts.

I was told that the Terracotta Warriors are not easy to preserve (保存;保护) for over thousands of years. But to my surprise, they were actually5 in color when they were first discovered. However, the color fell off6after being exposed in the air.

The difficulty of preservation is one of the reasons why they have stopped7out other pits. Although the Terracotta Warriors are breathtaking, they are only part of the Mausoleum (陵墓) of the First Qin Emperor.

Shen Wenxi, an expert and museum librarian of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told me there's an even grander area8 man-made mountains, rivers and seas inside the emperor' s underground palace.

However, there is no plan to dig them until there are perfect9of protecting and preserving them. Experts are still busy restoring the relics (修复文物) that were10in the 1970s.

Why Live Near the River?

Imagine pioneers traveling west in the 1800s. In those days, it was hard to find running water and shops where to buy things. As time went by, most pioneers had to make their homes near a river so that they could get water easily.

How did rivers help people live in the past?

Back in the pioneer days, people grew their own food, caught their own fish, and collected their own water.People also used rivers as roads, traveling on boats. Traders shipped goods (货物) to people from other areas.

When building many factories right next to rivers for the water's power to make machines work, some people choose to live near a river for working. They use the river to ship large goods, and some of them work at these factories where power factories provide electricity for homes and businesses.

Who wouldn't want to live near a river?

Some people are nervous about living near rivers because rivers can cause floods (洪水). Every once in a while, floodwaters rise higher than a house, ruining (毁坏) many things in the house. Such waste causes water to smell bad and pollutes the crops (作物) we eat. Water and crops in polluted areas can make people very sick.

How do people decide where to live?

 Rivers can provide jobs and fun activities in a beautiful place. However, those living by rivers should be willing to accept possible problems as well.

A tornado (龙卷风) is a kind of strong storm with air which moves in a circle quickly. They can move over 200 miles per hour and cause a lot of damage (损坏). As they move across the land, they can easily pick up cars, trucks, and even houses, and then throw them very far. It is important to find a safe place if a tornado gets close.

A safe place could be a basement ( 地下室) or the lowest floor. If you are in a home without a basement, try to find a first-floor bathroom or a small room without windows in the middle of your house. You should curl up (蜷缩) into a ball and cover your head and neck with your hands.

But there are some people who actually want to get close to tornadoes. They are scientists who want to learn more about tornadoes. One of the best ways to do this is to get as close as possible to the tornado. They use special tools to measure (测量) what is happening in and around a tornado.

One special tool is called a tornado probe ( 探测仪). Inside the tornado probe, there are sensors (传感器) to measure wind speed, temperature, pressure, and direction.

Some probes even have cameras, so the scientists can see and understand what it's like to be in a tornado.

To be able to get these measurements, the scientists have to get a tornado probe near or into a tornado. Scientists will try to guess where a tornado will go next. Then they drive to that location and put down the probe. If they do not guess correctly, they pick up their probe and try another place. If they are right, the tornado will go near or even right over the probe. Then they take all of the measurements

from the probe and use them to predict where future tornadoes may form (形成) and travel. And they can give people some warning to keep away from a dangerous tornado.

Ray was thought to be a strange boy. One day when he was flying his kite, he said to himself," Did anybody ever try to fly a kite at night? I think it must be very fun. But the kite can't be seen in the dark. What if I tie a light to it? That would be really good. I (try) it tonight."

As soon as it was dark, he (take) his kite and lantern, and went to a large field about a mile from his home. He tied the lantern to the tail of his kite. The lantern (make) of paper. The kite flew higher and higher. He tied the string (线)to a tree, and then he stood there, staring at his kite. It floated (飘) high up into the air. How wonderful! While Ray (enjoy) his special kite, some people in the village also saw it.

"Look! A light (fly) in the sky," one person said. "It can't be a light," said a man.

"Perhaps it's a big firefly (萤火虫) ,"said another,

"Maybe it's a comet (彗星),"said another man.

"How strange!" said a boy.

"Let's find out what this strange light (be)," the last one said. Then they went to the field.

Ray, who had gotten tired of standing, was sitting behind a tree. He (see) the men as they came, but they didn't see him. When they reached under the light, and saw what it was, they looked at each other and said, "There is nothing unusual (happen)! This is just a trick of some naughty boys, but it  (fool) us all.

Let's keep the secret. "Then they laughed and went back to the village. When the men had gone, Ray thought it was time for him (go), so he went home, too. When his mother heard what he had done, she hardly knew whether to laugh or scold (责备), but just told him to go to bed.

要求:1）按提示进行写作，可适当发挥;

2）恰当运用本单元所学语法，情态动词表示推测;

3）词数80左右，开头已给出，不计人总词数。

I found a red jacket in the school playground.