【推荐1】If you look Chinese and speak Mandarin, you can call for a ride in Vancouver via WeChat, a Chinese app. The drivers normally call back to________the order, says Daniel Merkin, who lives in the Canadian city. “Sometimes they’ll ________ on me when they realize I don’t speak Mandarin,” he says. But he keeps ________, because popular ride-hailing (网约车) services, like Uber(优步) , are not available. The Chinese service is not legal, but it is ________. Mr. Merkin hopes that his ________ will soon expand.

In July the province of British Columbia, which licenses drivers, said it would allow the big ride-hailing services ________. But British Columbia has made their entry ________ by requiring drivers to hold commercial licenses. The government has reason to be ________. In many cities where ride-hailing has __________, traffic jam has worsened and use of public transport has ________.

However, Andrew Curran, head of policy at TransLink, the city’s public-transport system, believes ride-hailing could ________ use of public transport by ferrying people from their houses to a bus or train stop. It could also improve transport for people with ________. Currently, Trans-Link hires taxis to give door-to-door rides to some disabled people. He says the commercial-license rule will   slow down the services’ growth and ________ taxi-drivers, ride-hailing’s fiercest ________.

But the commercial-license requirement could have the ________ effect. Analysts think it will ________ most drivers and reduce the number of drivers ________ to pick up passengers in distant suburbs. ________, they will gather in the center. Some of Uber’s future competitors say they are not ________. A driver, who offers rides in his Mercedes SUV to people who hire him via Wechat, thinks his customers will stay ________. He predicts ride-hailing will just slow their journeys down.

【推荐2】One of the first things 1 did when I moved to a new city was hire a bike._________? Seeing a city by bike_________to better settling in the new place and learning your ways around. You travel much_________than on foot and you notice so much more of your_________than when in a bus or a car. It's more_________to wander down small streets if they seem interesting, as you can quickly get back to the_________road.

However, I soon discovered plenty more_________of cycling.

A bike means that fewer_________, especially in a small city, make you feel far away._________, cycling to work takes me half the time that it would take to walk. Riding a bike also means you're not__________by bus timetables.

Of course, there are obvious health benefits of__________—a bit of extra movement as part of your daily routine（惯例）can help you__________. Cycling on my way to work also makes me more__________in the mornings.

Importantly, cycling also helps to__________your carbon footprint（碳足迹）. While cars pollute the environment, bikes are carbon-neutral.__________, thanks to being petrol-free, bikes are cheaper to run, buy and__________than cars. And a bike can pay for itself__________the price of bus tickets.

However, be__________when cycling. Always wear a helmet, pay attention to other__________and don't forget your lights at night. Make sure you know the road rules,__________in a new place.

【推荐3】A lot of travelers who are going to new cities are often told to begin their trips by a bus tour. This thinking is that they can then go to the places that_______them. But that is wrong. What you see from the inside of a moving bus is_______and removed from the real sights, sounds, and smell outside. So the best way to experience any place is on foot and with absolutely no travel plan._______go wherever your feet and your interests_______you.

You will not only get to the_______sites that are on the bus tour—the museums, the monuments, city hall—but you will have seen much more. You will have_______the present life of the city.

But there is a problem: What if I got lost? No one ever gets_______lost in a major city. At first you can find your way back to a well-known place. If it frightens you to be “lost” , just find a taxi and go back to where you started ; however, the_______things can happen if you get lost. You can_______at a sidewalk cafe to sit and have a rest. You can ask the local people near you. And__________they don’t speak your language, your trip becomes more memorable because of the__________. Here are a few more ways to get the most out of your travel.

First, know before you go.__________a few hours before your trip learning about the history and culture of your destination.

Second, move around like a local. Use the subways and buses of the city you are__________. You will not only save money, but also learn how people really live.

Third, check the bulletin boards. Sometimes you can find advertisements for free concert, and__________fun activities on bulletin boards around universities.

So the next time you see a travel poster wishing you to have a bus tour, just save your money. Instead, wander__________I promise you a time you will remember with great pleasure.

【推荐1】Nowadays computers have become an important part in our daily life. We _____ in touch with our friends through QQ, we write many short pieces about the wonderful things we are ______ by clicking the keyboard, and sometimes we also _____ computers to do business.

Computers have changed our _____ in many aspects. However, here comes the problem: we are too ____   on computers.

It is _____ to find that lots of people always make many mistakes in writing with a pen, and some of them even have _____ their inspiration (灵感) because they have got used to _____ articles from computers. There is no _____ that computers have made a great contribution to improving our ______ of life, making it easier and more convenient, but we shouldn’t ignore the ______ of keeping our ability to do things with our own head.

One day, ______ would seem to be everywhere, but we would suffer (遭受) a lot if we become too dependent on them. Imagine that in a (n) ______ where you are required to write a paper with your pen. ______ , you find yourself unable to remember the ______ spellings of several words, or that you cannot get your own ideas without ______ for information from a computer, and that would put you into ______.

In short, we are all too dependent on computers nowadays, and ______ this is not a good thing. It may add to our laziness. Now that we have already ______ that, it is time for us to do something to ______ it.

【推荐1】The human nose is an underestimated tool. Humans are often thought to be_______smellers compared with animals, but this is largely because, unlike animals, we stand upright. This means that our noses are_______to detecting those smells which float through the air,_______the majority of smells which stick to surfaces. In fact though, we are extremely sensitive to smells, even if we do not generally realize it. Our noses are capable of_______human smells even when these are_______to far below one part in one million.

_______, some people find that they can smell one type of flower but not another, while others are sensitive to the smells of both flowers. This may be because some people do not have the genes necessary to generate_______smell receptors in the nose. These receptors are the cells which sense smells and send_______to the brain. However, it has been found that even people insensitive to a certain smell at first can suddenly become sensitive to it when_______to it often enough.

The________for insensitivity to smell seems to be that brain finds it________to keep all smell receptors working all the time but can________new receptors if necessary. This may also explain why we are not usually sensitive to our own smells we simply do not need to be. We are not________of the usual smell of our own house but we________new smells when we visit someone else's. The brain finds it best to keep smell receptors ________for unfamiliar and emergency signals such as the smell of smoke, which might indicate the danger of fire.

【推荐2】Long after its introduction into the New World, American English was still considered non-standard English. Mr Kahane _____ that according to some people of the 1780s American English was a peasant's _____ that a "gentleman" would not speak. Considered from a bilingual point of view . British English was the _____ language linked to reputation and linguistic purism（纯粹主义）. The belief in the superior of British English, had been _____ to the twentieth century, _____ in the former British Empire or in the fields of British influence. Thus, it is _____ that in China, teachers and school textbooks _____ to Received Pronunciation as the _____, as well as standard British syntax（句法）, spelling and vocabulary. British English is also encouraged and regarded as the _____ of some major official examinations, for example, College English Test and Test for English Majors which are ______ by the government. ______ situations can be found in other countries; for example, in Africa, the West African Examinations Council and Matriculations Board ______ British English as the Standard English. Reports can also be found that in Cairo, some university students will receive lower grades if they use American spellings ______ British. Modiano wrote that in Europe, "We find teachers, British people as well as ______ of the country in which they work, who ______ the British English standard, and refuse American English".

______, the above attitudes are nothing but the last ______ of a long-gone period of British supremacy（霸权）. According to Campbell and others, the beginning of a distinct lead of American English dates back to the decades after World War Ⅱ. This agrees with the ______ of the US as a military and technological power and the decline of the British Empire, which ______ many to use American English.

And from then on, American English has ______ sent its influence to every comer of the planet.