1 . Over the years, I never thought of my father as being very emotional. He never was, ________ not in front of me. My father never told me he loved me when I was a child, and never held it against him. I thought that all I really wanted was for my dad to take________in me.

On November 9^th, 1990, I received________that my National Guard unit would be sent to the front. I went on to my father and gave him the news. I could feel he was ________about my going. We never________it much more, and eight days later I was gone.

A few days after Thanksgiving I was able to call my wife. She told me that my father said his usual Thanksgiving prayer (祷告). But this time he________ one last sentence. As he lowered his voice and a tear ran ________his cheek, he said, “ Dear Lord, please________over and guide my son, Rick, with your hand in his time of need as he ________ his country, and bring him to home________.” At that point he burst into tears. I had never seen my father cry, and when I heard this, I couldn’t help but cry myself.

Eight months later, when I returned home from________, I hugged my wife and children in tears. When I came to my father, I gave him a huge hug. He whispered in my ear, “ I’m very proud of you, Son, and I love you.” I looked at that man, my dad,________ in the eyes as I held his head between my hands and I said, “I love you too, Dad,” and we hugged again. And then together, both of us cried.

Ever since that day, my ________ with my father has never been the same. We have had many ________ conversations. I have learned that he’s always being proud of me, and he’s not afraid to say “I love you” any more.________ am I. I’m just sorry it has taken more than 30 years and a war to find it out.

2 . From self-driving cars to carebots (care+robots) for elderly people, rapid development in technology has long represented a potential threat to many jobs normally performed by people. But experts now believe that almost 50 percent of occupations existing today will be completely unnecessary by 2025 as artificial intelligence continues to change businesses.

“The next fifteen years will see a revolution in how we work, and a revolution will necessarily take place in how we plan and think about workplaces,” said Peter Andrew, Director of Workplace Strategy for CBRE Asia Pacific.

A growing number of jobs in the future will require creative intelligence, social skills and the ability to use artificial intelligence.

The report is based on interviews with 200 experts, business leaders and young people from Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. It shows that in the US technology already destroys more jobs than it creates.

But the report states: “Losing occupations does not necessarily mean losing jobs — just changing what people do.” Growth in new jobs could occur as much, according to the research.

“The growth of 20 to 40 person companies that have the speed and technological know-how will directly challenge big companies,” it states.

A report by Pew Research found 52 percent of experts in artificial intelligence and robotics were optimistic about the future and believed there would still be enough jobs in the next few years. The optimists pictured “a future in which robots do not take the place of more jobs than they create,” according to Aaron Smith, the report's co-author.

“Technology will continue to affect jobs, but more jobs seem likely to be created. Although there have always been unemployed people, when we reached a few billion people there were billions of jobs. There is no shortage of things that need to be done and that will not change,” Microsoft's Jonathan Grudin told researchers.

3 . Taking a trip to a bank's ATM machine is usually a common affair. But for Jose Nunez Romaniz, his _______ on Sunday is one that he won't _______ for the rest of his life.

The 19-year-old college student was making a _______ for his grandfather online when he noticed his account balance(账户余额)was _______ So he drove to the nearest bank to deposit money. Little did he know that he was about to make an incredible _______.

When he arrived, Jose noticed a plastic bag on the ground filled with cash, which turned out to be $ 135,000. “When I first saw it, I was very _______, not knowing what to do,” Jose told The New York Times. After taking a moment to _______ himself, Jose called the police. And the police soon discovered that the money had _______ been left behind by a worker _______ with refilling the ATM.

Thinking that it was the biggest amount of money ever found and __________ in Albuquerque's history, the mayor and the police chief held a ceremony to honor Jose for his __________ And, perhaps best of all, the police chief invited Jose to __________ a job as a public service aide for the department after his graduation. For Jose, it was the best __________ for his grandfather. “My mother called me and she almost started crying __________. . . She told me I did the right thing and that she was __________ of what I did,” said Jose.

4 . 4 Popular Places to Go This Winter

Harbin, China

China Harbin’s winter is for the brave ones—the average temperature is 1.8°F- but those who brave the cold will be rewarded with experiencing one of the world’s largest winter festivals. 2021 marks the 37th Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival (January-March), when massive frozen structures rise and are lit up, transforming the city into a winter wonderland.

Lyon, France

Paris may be called The City of Light,but every December, light takes center stage in Lyon, France’s third-largest city. That’s when the annual Festival of Lights (around December 8) takes over, with light installations (装置)that transform the city’s streetscapes into modern works of art. The city is also home to two Christmas markets (one in La Croix-Rousse; the other at the Place Carnot; through December 25).

Lima, Peru

Peru’s capital Lima is home to the world’s highest number of cooking schools per person. Aside from its delicate dining, the city also has great cocktail bars where you can taste classic or contemporary takes on the Pisco Sour.Combine that with the oceanfront setting and temperatures in the 80s, and you’ll understand why Lima should no longer be ignored this winter.

Vermont, US

Winter in Vermont means skiing and snowboarding, Many resorts (度假胜地)have greatly upgraded their snowmaking abilities as part of a $15 million statewide program that replaced many outdated snow guns with new, low-energy models.These new machines will also improve the quality of snow surfaces and lengthen the season, meaning this will be one of the best winters for skiing and riding in Vermont in recent memory.

7 . Barbara McClintock was one of the most important scientists of the 20th century. She made important discoveries about genes and chromosomes(染色体).

Barbara McClintock was born in 1902 in Hartford, Connecticut. Her family moved to the Brooklyn area of New York City in 1908. Barbara was an active child with interests in sports and music. She also developed an interest in science.

She studied science at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Barbara was among a small number of undergraduate students to receive training in genetics in 1921. Years later, she noted that few college students wanted to study genetics.

Barbara McClintock decided to study botany, the scientific study of plants, at Cornell University. She completed her undergraduate studies in 1923. McClintock decided to continue her education at Cornell. She completed the master’s degree in 1925. Two years later, she finished all her requirements for the doctorate degree.

McClintock stayed at Cornell after she completed her education. She taught students botany. The 1930s was not a good time to be a young scientist in the United States. The country was in the middle of the great economic depression. Millions of Americans were unemployed. Male scientists were offered jobs. But female geneticists were not much in demand.

An old friend from Cornell, Marcus Rhoades, invited McClintock to spend the summer of 1941 working at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. It is a research center on Long Island, near New York City. McClintock started a temporary job with the genetics department. A short time later, she accepted a perpetual position in the laboratory and got continual incomes. This gave her the freedom to continue her research without repeatedly asking for financial aid.

By the 1970s, her discoveries had had an effect on everything from genetic engineering to cancer research. McClintock won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1983 for her discovery of the ability of genes to change positions on chromosomes. She was the first American woman to win an unshared Nobel Prize.

8 . Scientists in England are using two self­directed water vehicles to explore the animal and plant life of the Celtic Sea.

The Celtic Sea is a body of water off the southern coast of Ireland. The area is known for its unusual sea life. Scientists want to know why sea creatures are so attracted to this part of the Atlantic Ocean.

One of the research vehicles is powered by batteries (电池). It collects information for the National Oceanography Center in Southampton, England, and the World Wildlife Fund. The vehicle’s low energy requirements permit it to stay floating on water for up to 30 days. Reports of what it finds in the Celtic Sea are sent by satellite.

Stephen Woodward is an engineer who helped design the vehicle. He says the vehicle has equipment that can discover small organisms called zooplankton (浮游动物) and fish. He adds that other sensing equipment measures water currents and other features of sea life. The vehicle also creates a map of the sea.

Another vehicle is powered by the sun and the wind.It can stay floating on water for months. The robotic vehicle sends information about the so­called biodiversity hotspots. A biodiversity hotspot is an area of an ocean that has a lot of plant and animal life activity.

Lavinia Suberg is one of the scientists studying the Celtic Sea. She says productive ocean areas, like the Celtic Sea, attract zooplankton. The zooplankton then attracts fish. She adds that areas with a large increase of fish often attract sea mammals and birds.

Using these robotic ocean vehicles greatly reduces the cost of exploring the sea with manned laboratories. Scientists can spend more time analyzing the collected information. They say the research will give them a better understanding of the needs of the Celtic Sea for future management and protection.

Six months ago, Xie Lei boarded a plane for London. It was the first time that she    1    （leave）home. She went to a university to study for a business qualification and chose the exchange programme because she wanted to learn about    2    （globe）business. She was    3    （ambition）to set up a business after graduation.

At first, Xie Lei had to adapt to in different country. She chose to live with a host family, who can help with her    4    （adapt）to the new culture. When she missed home, she felt    5    （comfort） to have a second family. Also Xie Lei had to satisfy academic requirements. Her tutor told her to acknowledge    6    other people had said if she cited their ideas, and advised her to read lots of information in order to form    7    wise opinion of her own.

Now halfway through her exchange year, Xie Lei felt much more at home in the UK. She said    8    （engage）in British culture had helped and that she had    9    （involve） in social activities. She also said while learning about business, she was acting as a cultural messenger building a bridge    10    the two countries.

Walter John was a 20-year-old college student from Homewood, Alabama. As a young man in college far away from home, he didn’t have much money. He had to work part-time to cover his living costs.

Recently he gave up his part-time job in the fast-food business and found a new one at a home-moving company called Bellhops. The pay for his new job was higher, and John gained more flexibility with his hours, which allowed him to focus on his studies a bit more. He wanted to do everything he could to secure this new employment opportunity, so he thought he had to try his best to make sure that everything would go well on his first day!

But sometimes, life hits you unexpectedly. A day before John began his new job, his car broke down! With little money to his name, he couldn’t have his car repaired at the garage. None of his friends were able to take him to work. What was worse, the public transportation was not running at his working time. If he took a taxi, it would cost him half his salary.

Therefore, he decided to walk to the company.

In order to get there by six in the morning, he thought that the safest way would be to leave at midnight. John even challenged himself to arrive there one hour earlier. Even though it seemed like such a far walk, John knew he was fit enough to do it. This was challenging, but John knew it was possible.

He grabbed his wallet and his phone and left his apartment. As soon as he stepped out of the door, he realized that walking alone in the dark at midnight can be dangerous. Moreover, he had to walk through a large wood as well as many blocks of the city. Therefore, he went back to take a bat (球棒) and a kitchen knife for safety purposes. In case a wild animal or some bad person attacked him, at least he would have something for protection.