World in Pictures
Photo source: ImagineChina

	Bulgarian Graffiti Fest 保加利亚国家涂鸦日 艺术家尽情发挥 A young Bulgarian artist sprays graffiti in central Sofia, July 17 during the annual National Graffiti Fest.
	Robot fighting competition 韩日举行机器人格斗比赛 South Korea's Cycloid 2 (L) fights with Japan's Hajime Robot (R) during the South Korea and Japan Humanoid Robot Fight Competition Friendly Match in Seoul, July 16. Japan and Korea are having four robots to compete in friendly fights.
	World Grand Prix volleyball 世界女排大奖赛 中国连克美意两强队 China's Wang Lina (15) right, spikes the ball as Italy's Darina Mifkova (11), Simona Gioli (1), and Elisa Togut (3) try to block during their match at the World Grand Prix volleyball women's championship in Hong Kong, Sunday, July 18. China beat Italy 3-1 and America 3-2.
	Snow falls in summer 德国巴伐利亚"七月飞雪" A young tourist from Kuwait accumulates snow for a snowball fight at the Zugspitze in southern Bavaria near the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, July 13. Unseasonal summer cold brought 10 centimeters (four inches) of snow to Germany's highest mountain. The mercury dipped to minus six degrees Celsius (21 Fahrenheit) on 12 July 2004, the lowest July temperature recorded in the region in the past decade.
	Water fight 马德里年度"水战"狂欢 Revelers throw water over each other during the traditional annual water fight in the streets of Vallecas, Madrid, Sunday, July 18.
	Mayor disguised as a polar bear 日本秋田市长扮北极熊亲迎客人 A polar bear greeted visitors at the July 13 opening of Oga Aquarium GAO in Akita Prefecture - not the real one that should have arrived from Canada, but Oga Mayor Issei Sato clad in a polar bear outfit as a "temporary stand-in". Sato had promised that if the polar bear, a main attraction of the new prefectural aquarium, failed to arrive in time for the opening, he would put on the outfit as a performance. "It's hot," Sato said when asked by reporters how it felt. "I hope a real bear gets here as soon as possible."
	France's National Day celebration 埃菲尔铁塔焰火通明迎国庆 Fireworks illuminate the sky at the Eiffel Tower in Paris during the Bastille Day celebration late Wednesday, July 14.

World in Words
Collected and translated by Beverly

"It is an epidemic that has gone wild, no person is immune. It comes from the fact that the Lebanese are very image conscious, and that it is a consumer society."
Cell phones have become a way of life for the affluent in Lebanon. About 24 percent of Lebanese own a cell phone.
"这就像一种时疫,蔓延开来,无人幸免.究其原因,就是黎巴嫩人太爱面子了,而黎巴嫩又是一个消费社会."
- 手机已经成为黎巴嫩富人的一种生活方式.大约有24%的黎巴嫩人拥有手机.

"I understand that they say it would be too disruptive to the great American education system. Once upon a time, they said that unionizing would be too disruptive for American manufacturing. They were wrong then, and they are wrong now."
The U.S. National Labor Relations Board said graduate students at private universities have no right to unionize. And Philip Wheeler, the U.A.W.'s (United Automobile Workers) director, derided the labor board's logic.
"我知道他们会说这将对美国的教育体系产生破坏性影响.以前,他们也说成立工会将会破坏美国的制造业.过去他们这话说错了,而现在他们又错了."
- 美国国家劳工关系委员会认为公立大学的研究生无权成立工会,对此美国汽车工人联合工会主席菲利普·惠勒提出了反对意见.

"Remember, if you're comfortable, you're not going fast enough."
Rotax RM1, a new super go-kart that can go 80 m.p.h. in an unmodified version, and well over 100 after a little tinkering with the gears.
"记住,如果你感觉舒适,那就证明速度还不够快."
- Rotax RM1是一款新型的超级小赛车,改装之前的时速可达80迈(英里),而只要在传动装置上稍加熔补,时速更可远远超过100迈.

"We are confident about our prospects going forward."
Samuel J. Palmisano, I.B.M.'s chief executive, was confident of a recovery in technology spending. The company reported quarterly profit of nearly $1.99 billion, up 17 percent from $1.71 billion in the previous year's quarter.
"我们对公司前景充满了信心."
- I.B.M.总裁塞缪尔·帕米沙诺对IT业的复苏充满了信心.I.B.M.于近日公布了其季度利润,高达19.9亿美元,同比增长17%.

"I want to get out. I want my children to live in a peaceful place."
The newly reopened passport office in Baghdad is always crowded with people who are waiting for a chance to move out of Iraq. In Iraq, the most coveted item now is a passport.
"我想离开这里.我希望我的孩子有一个和平的生活环境."
- 近日重新对外开放的巴格达护照处每天都要接待许多前来办理出国护照的人.目前在伊拉克最抢手的就是出国护照了.