Not smart enough to get in

Jack Hawkins was the football ________ at a US university. He often tried to find new players, but they weren’t always smart enough to be ________ by the university.

One day, the coach brought an ________ young player to the president（校长）of the university. He asked that the student should be allowed to enter（入学） ________ an examination.

“Well,” the president said, “I’d better ask him ________ questions first.”

Then he turned to the student and asked him some very easy questions, but the student didn’t know________ of the answers.

At last the president said, “Well, what’s five ________ by seven? ”

The student ________ for a long time and then answered, “Thirty-six. ”

The president threw up his ________ and looked at the coach in despair（绝望地）,________ the coach said earnestly（认真地）, “Oh, please let him in, sir! He was only off by two. ”

Huang Dabao lives in the mountains of Guizhou. He made a drone(无人机). He wanted to use it to send goods to a nearby village. But the villagers thought the drone was a UFO! The news quickly spread(传播) and brought tourists to the village.

Sound funny? This is one of five stories that are to the movie My People, My Homeland. The movie brought in box office earnings(票房收入) of over 2 billion yuan during the National Day holiday.

Besides Dabao, the movie also tells the stories of a taxi driver, a teacher, a painter and two business people. Each story shows how people in China have fought poverty(贫困) and found greater success in recent years, especially in rural areas(农村地区).

Although its theme(主题) is serious, the movie itself is funny. Ning Hao, one of the movie’s seven directors, said the film is like “a love letter... to Chinese people’s hometowns.” He hopes the movie can make people feel relaxed, happy and full of hope.

What are the cultural differences between China and the West? You might be able to find the answer in Cao Siyu’s comics（漫画）.

Cao, 32, was born in Beijing, but left home at 20 and has studied and lived in the US, the UK, and France over the last 12 years. Having seen so many cultures, Cao wanted to use her visual design（视觉设计）skills to present the differences she has experienced. So she created the cartoon series Tiny Eyes Comics.

“My experience shows that although travel is much easier and faster today, the distance between cultures hasn’t shortened,” Cao said. She hopes to build bridges and break down misunderstandings between different cultures. For example, one of her cartoons shows water preferences in different countries. Three glasses of water are shown. The glass of water from the US has ice; the one from France is full of sparkling water（气泡水）; the one from China is steaming（冒热气的）.

Cao also uses her cartoons to show different ways of thinking and social customs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, she used her comics to explain why Chinese people prefer to wear masks, while Western people don’t.

Many foreign readers say that Cao’s comics help them understand China, while Chinese immigrants（移民）have felt that they are seen and understood.

On Sept 3, the United Nations Children’s Fund did a survey on children’s well-being (幸福). They surveyed children in 38 countries and regions around the world. Good mental well-being, good physical health, and having life skills are the three main factors that affect the quality of one’s childhood.

How do teenagers define (定义) happiness? Three students share their stories.

Which do you prefer to use when you are studying, iPads or books? Here is     46     survey about it.

Some students think that iPads are     47     (good), because iPads can give them more choices. They can search for information on an iPad easily instead of     48     (look) everything up in different books. At the same time, students can send pictures     49     (direct) to a printer to photocopy them. With an iPad, they can save all     50     (they) homework on it. And homework will not be forgotten easily     51     teachers can send all the homework to their iPads.

But     52     (other) think that books are more helpful for learning. First, reading books won’t hurt their     53     (eye).     54    , what they read in books can leave a deeper impression on them. Third, some students usually use iPads to play games at school, which is bad     55     their study. So they prefer to use books.