In a house far from the city lived John and his mother. John’s only hobby was wandering in the nearby picturesque forest. In its center was a shiny clear lake with schools of fish dancing in it. Lovely animals such as deer or rabbits were playing around and cute birds were singing in trees. Fascinated by the beauty and liveliness of nature, he desired to become a great artist and present all the breath-taking scenes to the world.

John studied in the local primary school. Life was not easy for John and his mom after his father died. Knowing what hard work his mother did to make ends meet, John really didn’t want his mother to worry. His mother knew the significance of education in life but she was against his dream of becoming an artist. “The profession of artist can’t aid a person in meeting his daily expenses,” she would say. But as each day passed, John’s dream became more passionate.

Due to the living circumstances, even buying some new colors would be a luxury. John only used the worn drawing file and limited colors for his daily practice. Though lacking fine painting materials, he never gave up drawing. He spent a significant amount of time staying in the forest, secretly perfecting his craft. With continuous hard work and a distinct gift for art, he drew beautifully.

One day John read about a competition being held in the town, whose deadline was only two days away. He got the perfect opportunity to fulfill his desire but he was in a dilemma (两难境地) as for the competition he needed special paints and some brushes. He didn’t have the courage to ask his mother for money as he knew her prejudice against art.

That evening his mom returned from work and handed him a few paper notes, saying, “This is for your lunch at school next month.” The money was enough for his desired materials! John’s face lit up.

Early the next morning, John secretly left home with the money.

A week later, a phone call came to John’s home.

The silver jewelry produced by the Miao ethnic group has been the key to driving rural development in Taijiang County,    1    area located in the Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture(自治州)of Guizhou Province.

The jewelry is a magnificent treasure of Miao culture,    2    (present) delicate silver jewels and traditional craftsmanship.The Miao ethnic group    3    (keep)the tradition of decorating themselves with handmade silver ornaments for over 400 years.In May 2011, the silver forging skill of the Miao ethnic group was recognized and included in the third group of    4    (nation)intangible cultural heritage list.

    5    (drive)by the popularity of ethnic festivals and people’s growing interest in silver jewelry,the local tourism industry has enjoyed a boost in recent years.To    6     (far) encourage development,Taijiang County has focused    7    developing the ethnic folk handicraft industry,aiming to enhance the promotion of traditional Miao silver jewelry,create more job     8    (opportunity)and boost regional tourism.By the end of 2021,there were 102 local enterprises devoted to making silver jewelry,    9    total output value reached more than100 million yuan($13.68 million).This significant growth in the silver jewelry industry has laid a strong foundation for the county     10     (promote)rural revitalization.

4 . Handing your baby a phone or a tablet to play with may seem like a harmless solution when you’re busy, but it could actually affect their development, a new study has found.

Having anywhere from one to four hours of screen time per day at age l is linked with higher risks of developmental delays in communication skills, fine motor skills, personal and social skills,and problem-solving skills by age 2, according to a study of 7,097 children published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics. The study measured how many hours children used screens per day at age 1 and how they performed in these developmental domains (领域) at ages 2 and 4. Both measures were according to the mothers’ self-reports.

By age 2, those who had had up to four hours of screen time per day were up to 3 times more likely to experience developmental delays in communication and problem-solving skills. Those who had spent four or more hours with screens were 4.78 times more likely to have underdeveloped communication skills,1.74 times more likely to have poor performances in fine motor skills and two times more likely to have underdeveloped personal and social skills by age2. By age 4, risk remained only in the communication and problem-solving categories.

“One of the areas that is relatively understudied in the whole screen time literature is looking at the impacts of screen exposure on very young kids, especially when screens are introduced to babies,” said Dr. John Hutton, an associate professor of general and community pediatrics (儿科) at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. “It’s definitely a global concern, and I think the findings should really be applied to other countries as well.”

“Technology use can take time away from interpersonal relationships that develop social skills since real people are more multidimensional than characters on a screen.” Hutton added. Looking at people’s faces is when our brains turn on to figure out how to interact with them.

5 . The input Dad has on my career is incomparable. My earliest memories are of Dad sitting in the kitchen playing the guitar, listening to his favourite song by his favourite singer, and encouraging his little girl to poke (戳) keys randomly on the piano. Even watching Top of the Pops, he would get so passionate about music in it. We weren’t a religious family, but there was something spiritual about Dad’s connection with music.

Music also became a source of comfort for me. I failed to do well academically at school and had no friends. Being at school consumed so much of my emotional energy. Instead of going to school to learn stuff, I felt as though I was simply trying to get people to like me. Things were better, but the only time I truly felt happy was when I was at home listening to music with Mum and Dad or writing songs on the piano —and the older I got, the more powerful music felt.

Dad was always my biggest supporter. When I started giving live performances at the local bar, he was the one who drove me there and back. Freeing up that time wasn’t easy for an actor. His job might mean three weeks in the Czech Republic or working with George Lucas on The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones in Hollywood.

Dad has been involved with some amazing stuff, but Daddy Pig is the one that’s had the biggest impact all over the world. When I was flying to Australia for my first tour, I was trying to find something to watch on the little screen and I noticed they had Peppa Pig. If I’m missing home and family, I always put it on. Daddy Pig is a fairly real version of my dad —he loves chocolate cake, he’s funny and usually breaks things when he’s trying to mend them. Mum and Dad were friends with one of the producers of the show and I often wonder if he looked at my dad and thought, “That’s him …that’s Daddy Pig.”

Cycling is kind to the environment so it is an excellent way to take in the city. Here are 4bike-friendly cities having adopted this green mode of transport to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Montréal has already established protected bike paths since the 1980s. BIXI is the city’s bike-sharing system with 9, 600 bikes and almost 800 stations. Cyclists can make their visit to the Tour de L’lle Montreal, a yearly bike ride where cyclists take to the streets for a day without any other vehicles being allowed on the roads.

Cycling in Malmö is enjoyable due to the relaxed and easy-going manner of most cyclists. The calming atmosphere makes it a great experience, even for nervous riders. A highly recommended bike route is from Ribersborg park to Limhamn Harbour, where riders can take a few good photos of the famous Oresund Bridge.

In the 1970s, bicycles were the main mode of transportation for people in Beijing. However, dedicated (专用的) cycle paths for cyclists were limited. Only in May 2019, did the city launch its first specific cycle path. This achievement in cycling facility is worth a shout-out for a city with over 21 million people.

Bogota first introduced the concept of cycle path in 1974. The idea sees cars being banned from city roads every Sunday from 7 a.m.to 2 p.m., helping cyclists, runners and walkers exercise safely. Since then, the city has slowly but steadily expanded the program, including setting up dedicated cycle paths. As a result, Bogota now has 550km of bike paths and is the most bike-friendly city in Latin America.