Liang Xianghua, a 22-year-old girl from Guangxi University, has been well-known in China for her sand painting since her first work was used by CCTV.

"Sand paintings really attracted me while I was watching a video performance, I was surprised by how this artwork melted people's heart in minutes, "said Liang. "I fell in love with the way the sand pictures, music and the light combined (融合) with each other to make a flow of emotion(情感). You can express things freely.”

In order to master the skills, Liang practised for several hours every day. She said that she couldn't even do the first step well of throwing sand onto the glass. But she didn't give up.

After finding success with her first show, she was invited to do many performances. This made her quite tired. She decided to give a stop and focus on her study. But an invitation from Malaysia changed her mind just as she was about to wash the sand from her hands. This spring, she was invited by a Malaysia middle school to give a performance. Liang didn' t want to do a live show, but agreed to do a video for the school showing its development over the years.

She received praise for her work and the performance was described as an eye-opener for the students. This made her wonder if her art would be more meaningful if she made it for the poor students.

As a volunteer this time, she plans to take part in a summer programme offering help to pupils in a mountain area, and give the most wonderful show in her life.

Most parents tell their children, “You can be anything you want when you grow up.” I feel the same and I say this often. But I also want you to understand that the dream itself comes from hard work, some good luck and good timing.

Girls, here are some words of wisdom (智慧) as you make your way in the world, from your mom.

Be open-minded to changing your path (even several times) along the way.

In high school, I wanted to be an official. I left my hometown and entered a college in Washington D.C. There, I discovered that I’m creative, a strong leader and great at marketing. As a result, I moved on to the head of a national organization. Becoming a mother while in that job opened my mind to starting a business. Now I run a successful company I started up all by myself.

Work out what you are good at and what you are interested in. Keep an open mind and change what you are doing based on what you are learning about yourself.

Failure is very important to your success. I won’t tell you to feel good about failure. Failure can be heartbreaking. But I will tell you that every failure I’ve had along the way has certainly made me better. Failing the big math exam in high school and going to summer school were embarrassing. I finally passed, and I’ve never failed an exam again. I learned from that experience to ask for help. Now, I ask for help in business all the time.

I’m proud to be a role model to you as a mom and a company owner. I hope I can help you believe that you can be anything you want and you can have everything on your list. I will be very glad to watch your lives unfold before my eyes.

Love,

Your mom

Recently, China announced it had achieved success in drilling fire ice or methane hydrate(天然气水合物,即可燃冰), from the seabed in the Shenhu area of the South China Sea. It produces high amount of energy when it is burned, leaving nothing but dioxide and water.

Many countries, including the United States and Japan, have long been doing research on methane hydrate, but taking it from bottom of the sea has been a common problem they are facing. According to reports, China succeeded in drilling methane hydrate for a number of days continuously and got an average of over 16,000 m³ daily. It is believed to be a big breakthrough.

Scientists say there is about 21,000 trillion (万亿 ) m³ of methane hydrate in the world. If we can use it, it can meet the world's energy need for 1,000 years. However, it is too early to say a new energy source   (来源 ) has been found because we are still facing two main challenges ——environmental risk and economic (经济的) cost. When methane hydrate is taken from the seabed, it may go into the air easily. That's very bad for the environment because methane is one of the worst greenhouse gases. Besides, drilling methane hydrate is very expensive as well.

However, China's technology breakthrough is very important because it shows the way researchers across the world should take. It also raises hopes that one day we can drill methane hydrate as a source of energy.

In a small house outside London lives an old man. People often see him look     46     his flowers in his garden all the time.   

One day, a young painter     47     （go）by the old man’s house. He looked at the nice garden and the special room, picturing how happy he would be if he lived in such a     48     （beauty） place. Suddenly he found the old gardener     49    （terrible）blind. Shocked, he walked to the old man and asked, “Why are you taking care of the flowers every day which you can’t see in fact?” The old man smiled, “I can tell you four reasons. First, I was     50     gardener when I was young and I really love this job. Second, although I can’t see these flowers, I can touch them. Third, I can smell the sweetness of them. As to the last, it’s you.”

“Me? But you don’t know me.” answered the painter, still puzzled.

“Yeah, it’s true that I don’t know you.     51     I know flowers are gifts which everyone loves. And the beauty of my garden will get many people into a good mood.” answered the old man.

The words of the gardener warm me with     52     （please）. He looked after the flowers     53     （make） others enjoy the warm sunshine in spring. He can’t see the beautiful flowers he planted, just like Beethoven, who can’t hear his wonderful music     54    .

The old man is alone but not lonely. All of his flowers are his friends and neighbors. They     55     （grow） in his heart. I believe that he can hear the voice of them.