1 . My PhD project is to protect a tiny species of fish, whose color is greenish. To ______eggs, Clanwilliam sandfish (沙鱼) swim to ______tributaries (支流) of the Doring river system in South Africa. Local people say it was once a ______event: The water seemed to change ______ as thousands of sandfish migrated to the shallower tributaries. Now, ______those numbers have reduced to dangerous levels.

My PhD project at South Africa’s University of Cape Town is in ______with a nongovernmental organization in saving sandfish. Human activity, climate change, etc, are drying up the rivers. As newly young sandfish try to ______to the upstream (上游), they now get ______in shallow tributaries. The sandfish population has decreased by more than 90% since we began keeping count. They’re now regarded as ______species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.When the river starts to dry up, we ______young sandfish and put them into buckets of water, then move them by truck to prepared fish nurseries (鱼种场) ______ by local people. The support from local people is amazing. Once the sandfish are large enough to be less threatened, we will ______them to the natural ecosystem.

The data so far show the project has been ______. We’ve ______ about 36,000 young sandfish over the past three years. I’m looking forward to ______those numbers next year.

2 . As an immigrant from China, my mother loves Chinese culture deeply. She _________ Chinese food every night. She prefers to do it herself at home because she thinks the local restaurants aren’t authentic. _________, strangely enough, she likes to take my son to Panda Express to have _________ with her friends who are also from China. She is even _________ to point it out whenever they are at a food court.

Why is American Chinese food not _________ among some Chinese Americans? How is American Chinese food not better than _________ Chinese food? I can’t _________ that it’s not as good as authentic Chinese food. In fact, authentic Chinese food really tastes better while American Chinese food _________ to have food with its own taste — they are right for different persons. It’s important to _________ American Chinese food from authentic Chinese food. They are not the same __________ and have their own characteristics. So they should be treated __________. That’s why my mother thinks that Panda Express is not very authentic, but can still __________ it. Actually, American Chinese food is often created by Chinese immigrants according to their own preferences. As people from various countries have differences in their __________, it is changing.

My mother has a deep feeling for authentic Chinese food and restaurants, so I decide to open a restaurant where she and other immigrants can feel the __________ of Chinese family dinner. My son says he’ll learn Chinese cooking skills from me, which, I think, should be __________ from age to age. Likewise, I’ll also pass on the Chinese food culture to the world.

4 . Even when you have confidence in yourself, your goals will sometimes seem out of reach. When that happens, get hold of the people who _________ you and your goals and don’t let go!

When I was younger, I _________ because life felt so hard. I had _________to become a teacher or a business administrator. I knew I needed a college degree, but I had _________ believing in myself. Then a teacher in my high school _________ me. He told me three things: First, if you don’t believe in yourself, it will be _________ to get anyone else to believe in you. Second, never let other people’s _________ to see your brilliance prevent you from being brilliant. And third, despite life’s _________, stick to creating the future you want.

Early in my _________, I was teaching a workshop when a person in the audience yelled out to me. He told me I had __________ made a job choice and had a bright future. This __________ feedback (反馈)came at just the right time, because while the audience didn’t know it, I was __________ self-doubt.

Even now, I __________ myself that I have a bright future. That’s what I tell myself when I __________ success and failure. You have a bright future ahead. Think about this every single day. Remember your talents, skills, and interests. Explore the jobs that interest you, and have courage—and most __________, believe in yourself.

5 . I was halfway across Indiana headed home to Kentucky when my car broke down. My phone was ______, too. I managed to get to a gas station, but it was Sunday in the early fall, and there was no ______ on duty. I was working my way through university then and had little money for ______ the car.

I sat alongside my car for several hours trying to ______ the heat when an older gentleman ______ to fuel his car.   He asked about my car, and I ______ my predicament (困境). To my ______, the gentleman told me that he had a daughter my age, and then he opened his trunk and ______ a tool set.

Right then and there, this total ______ examined my engine, explaining as he worked that my spark plugs (火花塞) hadn’t been charged for so long that they were ______ to function.   After about an hour, he ______ that my car was safe to finish the trip.

______ came at the hands of a stranger. ______ his clothes, working on a hot September afternoon, this man ______ a college student from disaster, just because she could have been his ______ .

7 . There are always some people teaching you important lessons about life. They come into your life suddenly when you have no ________ of their arrival.

Several years ago I was diagnosed (诊断) with a disease that was ________. Due to vision problems caused by it, I could no longer ________ and would have to deal with other medical related ________. In light of this, some people ________ and their doings have enriched my life and ________ it forever.

First of all, my son, Eric, who ________ in the hospital throughout my surgery and recovery. He would whisper ________ words in my ear every night, “Don’t give up... Keep on ________ …Hang in there...” For three years since my return home, he has made the daily two-hour ________ from his home to my home to help me handle various things. Secondly, when my neighbors learned at first that I was unable to drive, they formed a group of ________ -women who drive me each week wherever I need to go. For three years I have ________ missed an appointment.

Dozens of lovely people ________ week after week, month after month. There are so many such people in my life-too many to ________-and I am grateful for their gesture. ________ you aren’t one yet, you can try to become one!

9 . Set Aside Time Each Day

Most of us can find 15 minutes or half an hour each day for some _________ regular activity. For example, one famous surgeon always _________ it a rule to spend at least 15 minutes on general reading before sleeping each day. _________ he went to bed at 10 p.m. or 2:30 a.m. _________ no difference.

Check Your Progress Through Pacing

Nearly all “speedy reading” courses have a “pacing” element — some timing _________ which lets you know how many words a minute you are reading. You can do this _________ by looking at your watch every 5 or 10 minutes and noting down the page number you have _________.

Check Your Understanding

Obviously there is little _________ in increasing your reading speed if you do not understand what you are reading. If you find you have lost the _________ of the story, reread the section.

Lightning Speed Exercise

Take four or five pages of an interesting book and read them as fast as you __________ can. Do not __________ about whether you understand or not. After a “lightning speed” of reading, you’ll find your “normal” speed has __________ .

Pay Attention to the Organization of an Article

Most paragraphs in an article have a(n) “__________ sentence” which expresses the central ideas. The opening paragraph often suggests the general direction and content of the piece, while paragraphs that follow __________ or support the first. The ________ paragraph often summarizes the very essence of what has been said.

10 . In some ways, the kitchen is the heart of the home. It is where we ______ our day with a cup of coffee or tea. The kitchen is where we ______ ourselves, body and soul.

Sometimes you need order in the kitchen for things to run ______. Sometimes you need one person to be ______ charge. Imagine you are cooking dinner for your friends. As you are making the soup, your friend Sara ______ it and says, “This needs more salt.” So, she adds more salt.

Then Harlan comes in. He tastes your ______ and says, “You didn’t put enough pepper.” So he grinds (磨碎) some fresh black pepper into the pot.

Cecilia sees him. She tastes the soup and says, “You forgot vinegar. It’s my ______ ingredient.” Then she ______ in some vinegar.

You are happy to spend time with your friends. But, quite ______, all their opinions about your soup are becoming ______. Worst of all, you taste the soup and it’s ______!

And that is where we get the expression “too many cooks ______ the soup.”

This expression describes an age-old ______: If too many people help to complete a task, it may not go very well.

So there should be a cook in the kitchen. He is the ______. Other people can be assistants helping him. And the cook has the final ______.