1 . From civil rights to environmental protection, the following books of fiction and nonfiction cover a wide range of topics. And every young liberal（开明人士）should read them.

An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore

Al Gore caught the attention of the world with his 2006 book An Inconvenient Truth, which was later turned into a movie. Based on his lecture tour on global warming, the work explains climate change in a user-friendly way and opens the public’s eyes to the plight（困境）of our planet.

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

When John Steinbeck won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962, he was praised for his realistic and imaginative writings, including The Grapes of Wrath. This book centers on a family of Oklahoma farmers who are forced off their land during the Great Depression. While it touches on timely issues such as labor unions and agricultural industry changes, it also explores universal themes of power, family, self-interest and dignity.

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair

Focusing on the meat-packing industry in Chicago, Upton Sinclair’s 1906 novel The Jungle explores the life of immigrant workers in the early 20th century. The best-selling account actually made President Theodore Roosevelt pass the law about food safety that year.

The Conscience of a Liberal by Paul Krugman

Economist and Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman presents 80 years of US history in The Conscience of a Liberal, which examines the fall and rise of economic and political inequality. Many believe the 2007 book was a clear call for progressives（进步人士）to take control of the country’s economic future.

2 . Imagine sitting inside a windowless train that's shooting through a tube at twice the speed of an airplane. Your train has no wheels, produces no _________ , makes its own electricity, and isn't affected by bad weather. This is the hyperloop, a new vision for the world's _________ , safest, and greenest form of transportation. Many have _________ this new technology, but others say the hyperloop vision is just a bunch of hot air.

Hyperloop developers plan to use the properties of magnets to float, stabilize, and drive the capsules or pods for hundreds of miles through _________ tubes. Without air or ground to slow down the vehicles, what was once a five-hour journey would become a half-hour excursion, engineers promise.

Supporters of the technology promote additional _________ of transporting passengers and cargo by hyperloop. For example, they firmly state that unlike other city-to-city transport that's _________ , such as planes or trains, hyperloop vehicles would leave as needed, like Ubers and taxis. While the _________ would hold only 28 to 50 passengers each, developers plan for them to depart stations in groups every minute or so which they say could amount to shuttling 50,000 people an hour. That's more than twice the passenger _________ of the world's fastest trains.

Developers also say that hyperloop tubes would be _________ so they wouldn't interfere with other traffic or threaten wildlife. And tubes would be covered with solar panels to power the hyperloop's systems. ____________ , advocates regard the hyperloop as the transportation choice for the future.

But not everyone is on board. Engineers have calculated that the high-speed vehicles will need to make much wider turns than currently envisioned, and otherwise they won't be ____________ for passengers. This would add several miles to the proposed tube tracks, Engineers also say planners haven't included enough time for vehicles to safely brake and take off at stations. Some engineers believe it will take much longer than claimed to pump the ____________ out of the tubes before each vehicle's departure. Critics thus say hyperloops can't go as fast or serve as many passengers per hour as advertised, making them ____________ existing high-speed transportation options.

Hyperloop companies say they're ____________ these concerns. They claim that they can safely maintain high speeds by having the vehicles bank around the turns as a plane does. And their hyperloops will rely on the split-second reaction times of a computer to ____________ vehicles quickly, frequently, and safely.

Singapore Zoo allows animals to walk around in spacious environments that are similar to their natural habitats (栖息地). Kids can join in learning about the animals of Singapore Zoo in educational programs, guided tours and camps, including the Sleep with the Beasts Family Camp. wrs.com.sg

The most visited zoo in the United Kingdom, Chester Zoo asks a team of experts (专家) who do research on six key areas around the world to develop programs that hope to prevent animals from dying out. The zoo runs a number of activities, such as Sing for Songbirds, a partnership with singer/songwriter Ashley Fayth, which tries to make people notice the danger facing songbirds in Indonesia. chesterzoo.org

Wellington Zoo is green in more ways than one. The zoo works very hard to reduce (减少) waste and reuse rain water. The zoo supports conservation (保护) programs, and its animal hospital, The Nest TeKōhanga, has treated over 3,400 wildlife patients since its opening in2009. wellingtonzoo.com

Over 3,500 endangered animals call San Diego Zoo home, but the biggest achievement of this zoo is the number of endangered animals that are sent back into the wild. The zoo's breeding (饲养) programs provide valuable information on the behavior and health of endangered species in over 45 countries. San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research also asks over 200 conservation scientists to protect some animals from dying out. zoo.sandiegozoo.org

4 . In his 1975 novel Changing Places, British novelist David Lodge described the lifestyle of two literature professors who cross the planet repeatedly, trading a rainy English campus for a sunny California university, and vice versa. Along the way, many other things are exchanged as well, including affairs of the heart.

While scholars working today don't enjoy the same benefits—luxury hotels and business-class flights in particular—they might recognize that they still live in Lodge's small world. Since the mid-l970s, transportation and communication advances have made the planet steadily smaller and the number of international students has risen sharply in turn. In Lodge's novels, universities seemed changeless, white four decades later they are fully engaged in internationalization.

In the post Cold War era, academic relationships are becoming richer and more complex. Students in the Global South, eager to participate in the knowledge economy and receive some of its benefits, are driving much of the increased demand for education at all levels.That future profits and solutions to pressing global problems are to be found in advanced research makes international cooperation essential.

As a recent report shows, internationalization is a strategic priority for many universities and they're working to put themselves on the world map.When competing for new lands, however, familiar rules no longer apply and new guidelines must be established to increase the chance of profits, or at least minimize potential losses.

The internationalization of universities raises an old problem: the ability to connect to global development without losing diversity. Some aspects of global science, such as Nobel prizes, tend to promote a “winner-takes-all' system. Higher education institutions should take a critical distance from this tendency and embrace their diversity— there is more than one Treasure Island for science. Internationalization is not about going to places similar to our own country or institution. Instead, students and scholars can find stimulating environments and academic conditions that can challenge what they take for granted.

We generally assume that higher education and innovation go hand in hand, but we do not know how innovation comes about. The only reasonable assumption is that it happens in difficult conditions, when we have to overcome a problem. That's why it's important to put students and scholars in challenging diverse situations and help them learn different ways of thinking. From my point of view, enhancing access and promoting diversity should be the compass of all internationalization strategies. So, the ship has started, and let's sail.

5 . Considered a symbol( 象征) of ancient Chinese_________, the Great Wall of China was enlisted in the World Heritage by the UNESCO in 1987 as one of the _________of the world. Just like a huge_________, the Great Wall winds( 蜿蜒) its way up and down from east to west, across deserts, over mountains, _________ valleys till at last it reaches the sea, with a _________of more than 6000 kilometers.

No one can tell for sure when the building of the Great Wall was _________, but it is popularly believed that the Great Wall was first built over 2500 years   ago during   the West   Zhou Dynasty to _________ the nation against the northern tribes( 部落). Emperor Qin Shihuang united the different small countries into one _________. To keep the enemies out, he had all the walls _________ up; thus, the great wall came into being. It had been playing an important _________ in wars in ancient Chinese history. It was very _________ work to build such a wall in the ancient days without any modern machines, as all the work was done by _________. Thousands of men died and were _________under the wall they built. Some parts of the Great Wall are now in _________ or even entirely disappeared.

Today the Great Wall has become a _________ for every visitor to China. Many of them have come to know the famous Chinese saying:“He who does not reach the Great Wall is not a true man.”

8 . Madison stared through the window and watched a puffy white cloud pass over the woods across from the school. It must be wonderful to be a bird, she thought. Total freedom. No math class to sit in, and her days would be spent on horseback. She thought of her horse, Star.

“Madison. Could you please join us again?” Mrs. Smith said. “I was just asking the class if anyone had any problems with the homework assignment.”

“Well, I didn’t have any problems doing it, but I had problems remembering to put it in my school bag after I did it.” Some giggling spread through the room.

“Madison. I don’t know what I am going to do with you. You’re such a smart girl but you just don’t apply yourself. Class, clear your desks. Our guest is here and welcome Doctor Landon. He is a veterinarian (兽医). He came here today as part of our continued Career Explorations Program.”

Madison tried to focus as Doctor Landon talked about how important grades were and how he struggled with math when he was a kid. Doctor Landon was still talking but she lost track of what he was saying. Then a word caught her attention. Horse. Was he talking about horses?

Gradually, Madison knew Doctor Landon had come to her town and house when her horse, Star, needed care. She liked it that he even knew her horse’s name. “So, you just travel around and take care of horses all day long?”

Doctor Landon nodded. “I travel with my truck to take care of horses and ponies across the county. It is a lot of work, but I love it.”

Madison’s mouth fell open. What a life that must be, she thought. At that moment, sitting in class, Madison could see her future and her life suddenly seemed bigger. By the time she got off the bus that afternoon, her plans for the afternoon had changed. She was still going to ride Star, but first she was going to spend an hour studying math. Then tomorrow she’d spend an hour studying science.

9 . If you struggle to fall asleep quickly, you’re not alone! Fortunately, there are plenty of solutions you can try. With a few changes, you can fall asleep fast every night!

Keep your room dark. Turn off all the lights above your head when you go to bed. Any bright light can make you believe it is too early in the day for sleep. If you want to read or write before bed, try using a small book light. Now that blue lights can keep you awake, red ones are a great choice.

If you can, keep noise in and around your room the lowest at night. If you have an old clock that ticks loudly and keeps you awake, replace it with a silent one. If you share your home with anyone else, request that they keep noises like talking, music, or TV shows at the lowest while you are trying to sleep. It is difficult to fall asleep if you live near a busy road or hear other boring sounds after bedtime. You could get a white noise machine or play recordings of nature sounds, like waves or whales’ singing. You could also listen to soft, relaxing music.

Read a book in bed if you have difficulty in falling asleep. Staying in bed doing nothing when you’re having trouble falling asleep may keep you wide awake. While reading in bed may be slightly harmful to your eyes, it can distract (分散) you from your thoughts and help you feel sleepy. But remember to read from a print book rather than something with a screen. The light from electronic screens can keep you awake.

Lowering your body temperature helps you sleep, so set the room temperature between 15.5℃-21℃ could do the trick.

10 . I have worked as a keeper at the National Zoo, Paris for 11 years. Spot and Stripe are the first tiger cubs that have ever been born here. Globally, a third of Sumatran cubs in zoos don't make it to adulthood, so I decided to give them round-the-clock care at home.

I've got two children—the younger one, Kynan, was extremely happy about the tigers arriving - but all of us really looked forward to being part of their lives and watching them grow. I wasn't worried about bringing them into my home with my wife and kids. These were cubs. They weighed about 2.5 kg and were so small that there was absolutely no risk.

As they grew more mobile, we let them move freely around the house during the day, but when we were asleep we had to contain them in a large room, otherwise they'd get up to mischief. We'd come down in the morning to find they'd turned the room upside down, and left it looking like a zoo.

Things quickly got very intense due to the huge amount of energy required to look after them. There were some tough times and I just felt extremely tired. I was grateful that my family was there to help. We had to have a bit of a production line going, making up “tiger milk”, washing baby bottles, and cleaning the floors.

When Spot and Stripe were four months old, they were learning how to open doors and jump fences, and we knew it really was time for them to go. It was hard for us to finally part with them. For the first few days, Kynan was always a bit disappointed that the cubs weren't there.

I'm not sad about it. I'm hands-on with them every day at the zoo, and I do look back very fondly on the time that we had them.