Charles Darwin, a young man just out of university in 1831,    1    (offer) a job on a ship on a voyage of discovery around the world. Life on board was tough. Darwin was    2    (terrible) seasick and was only happy when he was ashore collecting plant samples and observing animals. It was to be the most important journey in his life. It    3    (last) for five years. 

Darwin studied nature in South America and in a group of small islands in the South Pacific. On each island there were birds. They were very similar,    4     the shape of their beaks, and even their eating habits varied. Darwin wondered why they were different. Then he realized that over millions of years, all plants and animals have gradually changed into the forms we see today.    5     we call “the survival of the fittest” he named “natural selection”. He also called this slow process of change “evolution”. 

By 1846,he had published an article describing his voyage. Darwin spent the years    6     followed developing his theories and making them perfect. In 1859, he published them in The Origin of Species. It caused a huge    7    (argue). His The Descent of Man, 1871, pointed out that mankind    8    (come) from the same ancestor. Other scientists agreed with his ideas and took up    9    (he) cause. The church prohibited the    10    (teach) of The Theory of Evolution in some countries. However, today most people believe that Darwin is right.

When she was just three years old, Alyssa Carson from the USA took an interest     1     the planet Mars. From that time on, her lifelong passion for and     2     (curious) about space began! Then, Alyssa     3     (start) to do all the things related to space!

Alyssa’s goal is to help others understand the potential for human life in outer space. She also wants to be one of the first humans     4     (walk) on the planet Mars. She even imagines     5     (live) on Mars! And while doing so, Alyssa wants to inspire lots of other kids to learn more about space and science.

She is studying astrobiology (天体生物学) at the Florida Institute of Technology. It is the only program in the USA     6     (focus) on the potential for life on other planets. Whether you want to study the effects of space travel on humans, discover past or present life on Mars,    7     help develop     8     (way) to sustain (维持) life on the moon, you will be prepared at the Florida Institute of Technology.

Alyssa is a(n)    9     (impress) example of a young person     10     focuses on her passion and becomes the best version of herself. Her example also inspires other kids to do the same.

Unlike most of her fellow postgraduates, who found jobs in big cities, Zhang Xiaoyang, after graduation from Zhejiang University three years ago, chose to go to DunHuang Academy,     1     (land) a job as an archaeologist.

Despite being the world’s largest treasure of Buddhist art, living conditions in Dunhuang, which sits in the Gobi Desert in Northwest China’s Gansu province,     2     (be) tougher than in China’s big cities. People working here have to battle with sand and wind and suffer from     3     (lonely).

Zhang,     4     her late 20s, has an intense routine. Assigned two stressful tasks, she spends most of the day       5     (work) with the excavation team in Tianwangtang. At night. she writes academic reports on the discoveries in Cave 254, which     6     (create) during the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534).

“Dunhuang is a place of magic. For those who once planned to work here     7     (temporary), maybe it will be a few years     8     they move to bigger cities. But I’m totally fascinated by the site and amazed at     9     the ancient people lived in the desert around then. So I have decided to stay for decades,” said Zhang Xiaoyang.

Her story is featured in The Master of Dunhuang,     10     three—episode documentary, currently available on the streaming site Tencent Video, which has gained a lot of attention online.

Shi Jing, also called the Book of Songs, is the oldest existing     1     (collect) of Chinese poetry. When Chinese musician Fang Jinlong read Shi Jing, he was interested in the stories in the poems. Because he couldn't     2     (full) understand the ancient Chinese language     3     (use) in the poems, he turned to experts to explore the poems.

Then he decided to portray the poems with musical language by inviting composer Ma Jiuyue     4     (create) an album. Titled Music and the Book of Songs, the album was released on Jan. 18, 2021,     5     (feature) 10 original songs composed by Ma. They     6     (perform) by Fang and won great popularity.

The 10 songs are based     7     10 poems from Shi Jing, including Qiong Yao, which conveys gratitude to people who are eager to help others, and Swallows, which sends farewell messages to friends.

“Young people gave warm feedback about traditional Chinese music     8     they had watched my performance. It has inspired me to create more works for them, which helps popularize traditional Chinese music,” says Fang.

“The 10 pieces sound     9     (enjoy) and easy. For the listeners, it's a fresh way to comprehend poems from Shi Jing,” says Ma. “We spent three years working on     10     project. There are so many meanings in the poems and we want to display them as deep as possible with music," Ma says. "It's our mutual goal to have traditional Chinese music reach a wider audience.”