The Beijing National Stadium –the Bird’s Nest was the main stadium for the 2008 Summer Olympics. The stadium had 100, 000 seats for people during the Olympics. It is 330 meters long by 220 meters wide, and is 69.2 meters tall. It covers an area of 250,000 square meters. The stadium cost up to 3.5 billion yuan. All 110,000 tons of steel were made in China, making the stadium the largest steel structure (结构) in the world. The construction stared in March 2004. Beijing National Stadium officially opened at a ceremony on June 28, 2008.

The eastern and western stands of Beijing National Stadium are higher than northern and southern stands, in order to make people watch matches more clearly. It hosted the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, athletic events, and football final of the 2008 Summer Olympic, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. The stadium also hosted the Opening and Closing ceremonies and athletic events of the 2008 Summer Paralympics (残奥会) from September 6 to September 17, 2008. The stadium’s appearance is wonderful. It looks almost like a bird’s nest. It became a great landmark for the Olympics of 2008. This has been the most important public space in Beijing.

Why do people love pandas so much? Perhaps it is because they look very cute, or perhaps it is because there are _______ left. Pandas are actually called giant pandas. Many people also call them panda bears because they are mammals(哺乳类) classified from the bear family. Giant pandas originate(起源) in China. Pictures of both the dragon and the giant panda are often regarded as the symbols(代号) of ________.

Giant pandas look different from other bears because they are white with black patches around their eyes, over their ears, and across their bodies. Although they look adorable and move slowly, they can be as fierce(凶猛的) as any other bear when they are _______. Pandas mostly eat bamboo, but they may also eat other food like eggs, fish, oranges and bananas.

Many people think that giant pandas have few ________, and that is one of the reasons that there are not many of them left. But scientists say that a female panda may have about five or six cubs during her life. The female panda gives birth to one or two panda cubs, but she is only able to take care of only one of her cubs. _______, one of her cubs dies soon after birth because of a lack(缺少) of intense care.

The giant panda is an endangered species, and there are only about 2,000 giant pandas left in the world. People have been trying hard to protect giant pandas. It looks like their work is ________ because the number of giant pandas is increasing.

Christopher and Jeff had known each other since childhood. One day, Jeff told his friend that he’d fallen in love and planned to get married the n    34     month. He asked Christopher to lend him $1,000 for the wedding party, and promised to pay him back a month later when he started his new job. Christopher knew that Jeff was not very good with money, but he s    35     agreed. As they were old friends, they didn’t put anything in writing.

A month later, Christopher hadn’t heard from Jeff or received any money, s    36     he phoned him. Jeff was very apologetic and said he would surely pay him back within a month. Six weeks later, Christopher tried to phone Jeff and f    37     he had moved and left no link address. B    38     this time, he was angry.

Then one month later, to his surprise, Christopher received a cheque for $100 from Jeff and a letter giving his new address. He explained that he’d been having money p    39    , and wouldn’t be able to pay back the remaining $900 for some time. Christopher wrote back telling Jeff forget the r    40     of the money and never to reach him again by message or telephone.

As one of Hollywood’s all-time greatest actress, Audrey Hepburn is famous all over the world. When Hepburn died in 1993, the world mourned(哀悼) the loss of a great beauty, a great actress and a great humanitarian(人道主义).

Born in Belgium(比利时) on 4th May 1929, Hepburn dreamed of becoming a successful ballet dancer. She had also been a model before she entered the film industry. In 1951, while acting in Monte Carlo Baby（《蒙科卡罗宝贝》）, Hepburn met the famous French writer Colette, who was attracted by Hepburn’s beauty and charm. She insisted that Hepburn was the perfect girl to play the lead role in Gigi, a play based on her novel. That event marked the beginning of Hepburn’s successful career. Shortly after, Hepburn was chosen to play the lead role of a young princess in the Hollywood film Roman Holiday. It was a big success and earned her an Oscar for Best Actress.

During her lifetime, Hepburn earned four more Oscar nominations(提名). In 1989, she made her final appearance in her last film Always and played the role of an angel. During her acting years, she acted in only one TV series, Gardens of the world with Audrey Hepburn. By showing us the beauty of nature, Hepburn wanted to remind us that we should protect the environment.

Hepburn is remembered not just as a great actress, but also as a great humanitarian. She was honoured with a number of awards because of her efforts(努力) in her charity work. In 1992, the President of the United States presented(授予) her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.