Size often matters in the world. Being big and strong has its advantages, but it may also be a good thing to be small and fast. Yao Ming, China's most famous basketball player, is a tall man. At 2.26 metres, he towers over most of the other players. But compared to the World's tallest person, Yao Ming isn't that tall. The world's tallest living man is almost a head taller than Yao Ming - he is an incredible 2.35 metres! The tallest living woman in the world is 2.31 metres. When most doors are only about 2 metres, being that tall isn't always easy! What about the world's Heavy-weight champion? No, we don't mean boxing, we mean how heavy is the world's heaviest living person? The answer is - Are you ready? 635 kilograms! That's about equal to the weight of 30 TVs and almost the same weight as a horse!

Who rules the planet when it comes to speed? Well, it's not always easy to decide. If we were to set up a race between a horse and a human being, the human being may win, at least at first. Animals with two legs tend to be faster in the start than four-legged animals. That's because it takes longer to get four legs going than two. Over a longer distance, however, the horse would beat the man. A horse can run at a speed up to 50 miles per hour, which is about twice as fast as a man. The fastest land animal is the cheetah, which can run as fast as 60 mph. And the speed king of the ocean is the sailfish, whose speed can reach 68 mph. But the fastest animal on the planet is actually a bird. The fastest bird can fly 100-200 mph. That's almost as fast as a high-speed train. The fastest man-made object is the space explorer Voyager 1. It was escaping in the solar system at a speed of 39,000 miles per hour. That's about 51 times the speed of sound and one-twenty thousandth of the speed of light!

THE GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS K * xM[vO  
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In 1951, the then director of the Guinness Brewery, Sir Hugh Beaver, wanted to settle an argument about the fastest bird in Europe. After talking to his friends, he concluded that a book which answered such questions might be popular. The Guinness Company hired two Englishmen to write what later became the Guinness Book of World Records. The first edition was published in 1955 and has been a bestseller ever since. mtiO7w"M\7  
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More than 60,000 new records are sent in to the book each year, but they cannot all be printed. Instead, the editors of the book set down the records and keep track of them in other ways. The records are put into different categories. The Guinness Book of World Records has chapters on the human body, amazing feats, the natural world, science and technology, arts and the media, modern society, travel and transport, and sports and games. You can learn that the oldest person is a woman who lived to be 122 years and 164 days, that the longest moustache reached a length of 1.6 metres and that the longest poisonous snake is 5.71 metres long. There are also strange records, like the Englishman who balanced a small car weighting 159.6 kilogram's on his head for thirty-three seconds! EhmUX@k],  
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There are many Chinese records. For example, Tian'anmen Squire is the largest squire in the world with an area of about 40 hectares. China has the greatest number of hospitals in the world and Urumqi is the most remote city from the sea - it is 2,500 kilometers from the nearest coast. A special and delicious record was set in 1997 to celebrate Hong Kong's return to China. The world's largest jiaozi was made, weighting an incredible 480 kilogrammes! +73=2.C0  
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Many of the records in the Guinness Book of World Records come from the world of sports. Among the brilliant athletic achievements, a few records stand out because of the moving life stories behind them. The Guinness world record for the fastest average speed at Tour de France was set in 1999 by the American cyclist Lance Armstrong. Impressive as the record is, it fades next to the story of Armstrong's struggle against disease. In 1996 Armstrong, the then NO.1 cyclist in the world was diagnosed with cancer and many thought that it meant the end of his career, maybe even his life. In 1998, however, Armstrong returned to the world of racing. He went on to set the speed record and achieve his goal of winning the Tour de France six years in a row from 1999 to 2004. [~Z'xY y  
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Why are people so interested in world records? Part of the reason for our interest is probably the same curiosity that Led Sir Hugh to write the Guinness Book of World Records in the first place. We want to know what is possible and find out just how far we can push ourselves. Clearly, we are also entertained by accounts of strange and unusual deeds and facts. Whether we are out to set a new record ourselves or simply enjoy reading about champions, the Guinness Book of World Records makes for interesting reading. D-2v>l_  
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Anybody can try to set a record. There are, however, some records that the book does not accept. No records that are dangerous to the person who is attempting it or to others are allowed. If you want to try to set a record, you should first contact the Guinness Book of World Records. The editors will decide if your idea is suitable and then send you rules and the form you need to apply for the record. Afterwards, if all goes well, a Guinness official will come to inspect your attempt. If you are successful, the official will confirm the record and you will get a certificate from the Guinness Book of Worlds record stating that you are a world record holder!

ARE YOU EXPERIENCED? +~i+k~{`H  
"Hey man, try that 360 again!" nTlv'_Y(  
It is Saturday afternoon and a group of teenagers are trying new tricks on the park's skating ramp. #@\NdW\  
Every weekend, after finishing their homework, Lin Yong and about a dozen of his friends grab their wheels and head down to the park to hang ten. (Q+:N;  
Lin Yong is seventeen and a skilful skateboarder. He and his friends decided to build the ramp three years ago after watching a skateboarding competition on TV. Together with two of his classmates, Lin Yong went to the local park and told the park administration about their plans. Two weeks after the manager had given them his permission, the ramp was ready and the friends held a grand opening. :?:j$ =nWN  
"All of our schoolmates were here, as well as many of our parents and other kids from the neighborhood. There were even some grandparents who came to see what it was all about." eEriv@v  
The ramp soon became popular and the teenagers have started a skateboarding club called Fun On Wheels. :!iPn%  
Skateboards have been around since the 1970s, but they have recently become popular again. Many teenagers have discovered the skateboard as a result of TV shows, films and competitions such as the X Games. The X Games are like the Olympic Games for sports that are less familiar to us than sports like football and basketball. FskJyB [  
A new generation of sports is capturing the hearts and minds of people who are willing to try something new. These new sports are called "extreme sports" and all centre on the "X-factor" - the pure joy of doing something that you did not think you could do and overcoming your fears. 1={Tcq\]  
Extreme sports are different from regular sports. Instead of simply trying to defeat the other team or set a new record, many extreme sports are about beauty, harmony and thrills. In fact, some extreme sports are not really "sports" at all, because they do not have clear rules about winning or losing. The goal of a "competition" many simply be to have fun and enjoy the excitement of trying something new. + S5_J&~  
Lin Yong loves the feeling he gets when he is getting ready for a ride. "It's hard to describe the feeling. I get excited and my heart beats faster. Then my mind becomes clear and I concentrate on the way my body moves in the air." k@";i4}A  
Watching Lin Yong and his friends fly through the air makes you wonder whether the sport is too dangerous. , w'$T)  
"No", Wang Wei, a sixteen-year-old skater says. "All the riders wear helmets and other equipment to protect themselves. We don't let anyone try a dangerous trick unless we know that they are skilled enough to perform it safely." n\"LN3  
One thing is clear: these enthusiastic teenage skateboarders are enjoying every minute. Everyone smiles after a good ride and there is a strong feeling of friendship among the riders. As Lin Yong says, "Once you are Xperienced, your life will truly change!"

Before a record is accepted by the Guinness Book of World Records, it must pass the following tests. First of all, there must be at least two witnesses. The witnesses must be known to the public, so they can't be simply friends or members of your family. In fact, relatives are not allowed to act as witnesses to a Guinness world record. The best witnesses are usually people who work for the city or government, such as policemen, judges, or leaders. The witnesses must read the Guinness rules before the attempt is made, and then write and sign their statements. Second, you must be able to prove that you broke the record in some other way, usually by sending in an article about the attempt from the local newspaper. It's also important to take pictures of the record attempt and film it if possible. If you want to break a record, the most important thing to remember is to ask for the rules before you do anything. .n F  
The Guinness Book of World Records has rules for all sorts of attempts, and you will need to know exactly what you should and shouldn't do. The editors at Guinness can also help you by giving you the latest information about a certain record. If you are trying to break an existing record, you need to know if the record has already been broken. If you are trying to set a new type of record, you need to find out if the editors will accept it. If the record is dangerous, you must know about strict safety rules and follow them. There are many strange records in the Guinness Book of World Records, but the editors will not allow any records that are very dangerous.

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Even if you do set a new record, you can't be sure that your record will be included in the book. There are a few basic rules for Guinness records. First, officials must be able to measure the record. Second, as mentioned before, independent witnesses must observe the record and send in a statement. Third, a record must be objective. That means that a record such as most beautiful girl or best friend won't be accepted. A record should also be interesting to as many people as possible. Records that have to do with things that happen only once, such as "the first" won't end up in the book. It is also important that the editors can make rules so that anyone who wants to try to break the record will have a fair chance. If these basic rules are met, the record will be accepted as a Guinness world record. However, a record won't appear in the book unless it is chosen by the editors. The editors of the Guinness Book of World Records have to make many difficult decisions. People are very creative and send in all kinds of exciting records. It isn't always easy to choose the right ones for the book. The book is read by people all over the world, and the editors must select records that represent the spirit of the Guinness Book of World Records - that is, amazing feats and achievements that show just how wonderful the world of world records is!

COLLECTING STAMPS AND COINS R./6Q1  
Staring a stamp collection is easy and not very expensive. Before you start, you need to decide what kind of stamps you want to collect. Most people collect stamps that have something to do with what they are interested in: a certain country, a type of animal, a famous person or even a sport. -fg
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Whatever you choose, you will find that there is a world of knowledge in stamps: you will learn about people, geography, architecture, history and culture. *Y0,d`  
Once you know what you want to collect, there are a few things you need. First of all, you need stamps, of course. Luckily, it is easy to get hold of them. You can collect stamps that come to your in the mail, ask your friends to let you have their old stamps, or you can buy used stamps. %<|KJb4?  
When you get a letter with a stamp on it, carefully cut out the stamp. Leave lots of room around the stamp so that you will not damage it. Put the stamp in water and wait until the water has dissolved the glue so that you can safely remove the stamp. Carefully lift the stamp off the paper and place it on a clean sheet of paper to dry. A stamp can get wrinkled and ugly when it dries, so place the wet stamp between two clean sheets of paper and put some books on top. ymX,k|lh  
You do not need much equipment to collect stamps, but it is necessary to have a pair of tweezers and a magnifying glass. The tweezers will help you to handle stamps and the magnifying glass help you see details and discover tiny faults. It is also important to have a good album to put the stamps in. AK?j1Pk  
For most collectors, the joy of collecting and learning about the items is the most important, but collections can become worth a lot of money. A collection becomes valuable if it is complete, that is, if it includes all the items in a series, or if it contains rare items. Stamps can also become valuable if there is something wrong with them. A Swedish stamp, issued in 1855, was printed on yellow paper instead of the green paper that should have been used. As a result, a stamp that had only cost a few pennies became worth millions of dollars. The only existing copy of the stamp was found by a young boy looking through his grandfather's collection. The stamp was sold to a collector in 1996 for $2.3 million! JW'acD  
Collecting coins is not quite as easy as collecting stamps, but beginners can start by going through the change in their pockets, that is, collect coins which are in circulation. Someone who wants to start a collection can also contact a club for coin collectors or ask a relative or friend who collect coins. Experienced collectors usually have more than one coin of a certain kind and will not mind sharing the extra ones. They can also provide helpful advice about where to buy old or rare coins. Most collectors begin by collecting coins from their own country. A collection can be built around any theme, but coin collectors often arrange their collections based on where and when the coin was made. T=dvc}  
As with stamps, you do not need a lot of special tools or equipment. You do need a safe place to store the coins. There are inexpensive albums that will protect your coins while still allowing you and your friends to enjoy them. You can hold the coins with you bare hands, but you should wear gloves if it is a valuable coin. Never touch the face or back of a coin. The dirt on your fingers will destroy the surface of the coin. Nor should you ever clean an old coin - if you do, the coin will lose its value. gjLgeyyWC  
You can clean ordinary coins if you wish: copper coins can be cleaned with vegetable oil and silver coins with common soap. After cleaning the coins, wipe them with a clean cloth. Never use any strong or dangerous chemicals. JhIK$Ti  
Perhaps the most valuable coin in the world is the 1933 "Double Eagle". The coin was first issued in 1850 and was made of gold from California. The coin was changed in 1907 and was used until 1933, when the American government decided to take the country off the gold standard. People were no longer allowed to own the coin, and all the coins were brought back to the bank, where all but two were destroyed. The two coins that were left were kept in a museum. [`\Qte%UH  
Some coins stolen, but all of them were found by the police - except for one! The last "Double Eagle" remained missing until 1996, when police officers managed to get the coin back in secret operation. The government allowed the coin to be privately owned and it was sold to a collector for 7.5 million dollars.

R: Discovering new places and going where no one has gone before has always been the greatest adventure in human history. Professor Jiang, what made exploring so exciting in the past? &_j4q  
P: Classical examples of exploring the world are the great discoveries made by explorers. They were brave men such as Christopher Columbus, who discoveried America, or James Cook, who sailed around the world in tiny ships crossing oceans and seas for thousands of miles in search of land. And in the nineteenth century there were famous explorers who mapped the rivers, lakes, jungles and mountains that make up the continents. lej{VcG  
R: What different did they run into? 54w-yY  
P: Well, just imagine how difficult it must have been to explore the jungle without the benefit of modern communications technology and transport! It was not unusual that journeys took two or three years. Transport consisted of horses or camels and several hundred or even a thousand people to carry all the equipment, food and medicine for such a long trip. There were no roads and no maps. Discoveries weren't published until at least a year later. Explorers found mountains, poisonous snakes, dangerous animals and terrible diseases on their way. And there were frightening stories and rumours about people who ate people, mysterious cities and hidden treasures. Compare that with modern science where we can use telescopes and satellites to see where we are going, use cars, trucks, aeroplanes or helicopters to travel fast and mobile phones, computers and the Internet to inform each other quickly about new discoveries or call for help. )zo ;r!eP  
R: Then where's the challenge in modern science? Is science still an adventure? .SN
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P: It sure is. Exploring the moon, other planets, such as Mars and the rest of the universe is still a challenge. Modern techniques help us and they reduce the risks to the explorers, but the experience of discovery, of being the first to see something or visiting a place, even though we're only looking at it through telescopes or sending out a robot, is as exciting as the experience of the great explorers of the past.

Trade and curiosity have often formed the foundation for mankind's greatest endeavor. To people of early civilizations, the world map was a great puzzle. Marco Polo's stories inspired Christopher Columbus and other European explorers to search for sea routes to the distant, wealth Asian Lands. However, long before that brave merchants were the real explorers of the Western Ocean. &&O=v]6,V  
It is well known that Africa had contacts with India and the Red Sea civilizations from the earliest times. Silk from China found its way over land along the Silk Road to India, the Middle East and Rome, in exchange for spices and glass. Silk was also traded along the coasts of the India Ocean. Ceylon, with its central position, was the place where Chinese merchants met with Arab merchants and heard about the westernmost lands. Thus, people of the Han Dynasty knew about Africa and had books with description of the kingdoms on the African coast and the Red Sea. In 97 AD, Gan Ying, a Chinese ambassador went to the East Roman Empire over land and returned to Luoyang with a present from an African king - rhinoceros horns. 2+PIZ6=hN  
Over the next few hundred years, the Swahili kingdoms and the islands of the African coast developed into the world's trading centre for ivory, spices, rhinoceros horns, shells, animal skins and sugar. They were traded to merchants from the Arabic countries, Egypt, Greece, Rome, India, Ceylon and China. iQF93:#  
The Arabic contacts to the American coast led to the next meeting between black people and Chinese. In the year 751, the Chinese traveler, Du Huan, was taken prisoner by the Arabic army. He escaped, and after a long journey wandering through Arabic countries he returned to the motherland by boat in 762. There he wrote his Record of My Travels, which gives information on Central Asian, Arabic and African countries. h%%'{^>~  
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In the eleventh century, the Africans made several voyages to the court of the Song Dynasty. It was a major development that the Americans were reaching out to China. The earliest Asian cultural relic found in Africa also dates from this period. A small bronze statue of a lion has been found in the Swahili town of Shanga. Nothing similar has ever been found in East Africa. t&_lpffv  
The contacts between China and Africa over the centuries led to the awareness of each other's existence, but still no accurate maps of the countries around the Indian Ocean existed. By the beginning of the fifteenth century the time was ripe for a grand meeting. In East Africa the coastal towns were reaching the height of their power. In the east, China prospered under a new dynasty. The Ming government had a large navy and the will to use it. &3<]F K  
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In the years between 1405 and 1433, seven large treasure fleets sailed westwards on voyages of trade and exploration. Under the command of Zheng He, the fleets set sail from the South China Sea across the Indian Ocean to the mouth of the Read Sea, and then traveled further south, discovering the eastern coast of Africa. K\G|q}E/1  
Zheng He renewed relations with the kingdoms of the East African coast. One African king sent the Ming emperor a royal present: two giraffes. The wonderful gift and the contact with the black court so excited China's curiosity about Africa that Zhang He sent a message to the king and to other African states, inviting them to send ambassadors, and open embassies in the new Ming capital, Beijing. The response of the African rulers was very generous; They sent the emperor zebras, giraffes, shells, elephant ivory and rhinoceros-horn medicine. In return, the Ming court sent gold, spices, silk, and various other presents. The exchange of goods had a symbolic meaning far more important than the value of the goods themselves. By trading with the fleet the African kings were showing their friendship to the emperor of China. v!2`hqO  
The fleet made several expeditions before the exploration was stopped, probably for economic reasons. For a short time, China had ruled the seas. After 1433, the Ming court believed that its greatest challenges and opportunities were at home.

By the middle of the 1920s the farthest corners of the earth already been explored; the continents and the oceans had been mapped, the north and South Poles had been reached, and the origins of the world's major rivers had been discovered. All that was left to be conquered was the "third pole", the highest mountain on earth, Mount Qomolangma. Some suggested it could not be accomplished. At that time going to Qomolangma was like going to moon. `|gCbs95  
Climbing at such high altitudes requires great skill and is not without risk. Apart from the cold, thin air and low oxygen levels can cause mountain sickness, which can kill. Some people can never go above 4,000 metres because their body is unable to adjust to these extreme conditions. Above about 5,200 metres, in the "death zone", humans can only survive for a couple of days, even with extra oxygen. bcQ$S;U)  
  The Tibetans have lived in the Himalayas for centuries and have adjusted to the conditions at such a great height. To them, the mountain were sacred, and they would not climb them for that reason. When Westerners came to climb Mount Qomolangma, the Sherpas, who live in Tibet, northern India and Nepal, acted as guides. From the first British Qomolangma expedition in 1921, Sherpa strength, skill, honesty and dedication have made them ideal companions on the mountain. Every Qomolangma expedition since then has relied on Sherpa support. cB|](gWS~  
One of the first foreign expeditions to climb Mount Qomolangrna arrived in Tibet in 1921. They had no idea what they were up against. Two British expeditions made the attempt in 1922 and 1924, but failed to reach the top. The local Tibetans and Sherpas laughed at the strange bottles containing what they referred to as "English air". In 1924 two British men were lost. When their oxygen ran out, they had no chance of surviving. lm$T`:c  
After World War II, technological advances in clothing and equipment had been made, and more was known about the mountain itself, which by now had been flown over several times by aircraft. The New Zealander Edmund Hillary and the Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, as members of a British team, were the first to make it to the summit of Mount Qomolangma. They reached the top on May 29, 1953. \hg12],#:@  
In later years the question arose who was the first to reach the top. Whenever he was asked, Sherpa Tenzing Norgay's answer was, "We climbed as a team, period." Like winning in the Olympic Games, climbing a mountain such as Mount Qomolangma is a great personal achievement. Climbing the mountain is still one of man's greatest challenges. After 1953 several hundred people have succeeded in climbing the mountain, some to be the first of their nation and many in attempts to climb the mountain over different slopes. VQ+Xh  
The Chinese made their first successful attempt in 1960. On May 25 of that year, Gongbu, Wang Fuzhou and Qu Yinhua reached the summit of Mount Qomolangma. As it was dark and they were unable to take photos to prove that they had reached the top, they left an iron container with the national flag and a portrait of Chairman Mao Zedong. At the age of 25 Qu Yinhua was the youngest ever to have reached the summit. On their return, they were praised as national heroes. On May 27, 1975, another Chinese team climbed Mount Qomolangma from its northern side. Over the past 40 years, 29 other Chinese people have climbed Mount Qomolangma successfully.