1 . Josefa Marin went to New York from Mexico in 1987, supporting her daughter back home with the $140 a week she earned at a sweater factory. With that small income, she had to collect recyclables, trading in cans for five cents each.

When the clothing factory closed down in the late 2000s, she became a full-time recycler, picking up cans and bottles to make ends meet.

Marin’s story is not unique. Millions around the world make a living from picking through waste and reselling it — a vital role that keeps waste manageable. In New York City, the administrative department collects only about 28 percent of the cans that could be recycled. Rubbish collectors, however, keep millions of additional recyclables out of landfills every year.

Yet collectors are ruled out by government policies. The United States Supreme Court in 1988 stated that household garbage is public property once it’s on the street. That enables police to search rubbish for evidence, but that protection hasn’t always been extended to recyclers. And in places like New York City, which is testing city-owned locked containers to hide garbage from rats, containers are made clearly inaccessible for collectors.

“There’s value in the waste, and we feel that value should belong to the people, not the city or the corporations”, says Ryan Castalia, director of a nonprofit recycling and community center in Brooklyn.

Recognized or not, waste pickers have long been treated with disrespect. Marin recalls an occasion when someone living next to a building where she was collecting cans threw water at her. “Because I recycle doesn’t mean I am less of a person than anyone else,” she says. It’s a pity to see that the government doesn’t stand by the garbage collector’s side, either.

Fortunately, some governments are starting to realize that protecting the environment and humanity go hand in hand. Brazil classified waste picking as an official occupation in 2001. In 2009, Colombia’s government granted the right to collect valuable garbage. The U.S. is slowly catching on too. After all, to the government, the garbage is garbage, but to the collectors, it’s something they make a living on.

A man looking at his smart phone while walking across a railway crossing in Nanjing     1     (have) a close knock on Oct. 22. He was so absorbed in his smart phone that he didn’t see a train approaching until it brushed past him,     2     (throw) him to the ground. This should serve     3     a warning that people should be aware of their surroundings, especially     4     crossing a road.

    5     (lucky), the man survived a brush with death, but the incident forced the driver to stop the train.     6     18-minute delay followed the incident,     7     led to a break in the running of other trains on the route.

The smart phone     8     (addict) has spread like an infectious disease. It's evident that it will do great harm to society. What’s even     9     (bad), some addicts become impatient with relatives and friends.

Some people blame the smart phone for the tragedy, yet in fact people’s weakening self-control and self-discipline are     10     (blame).

Revival of Ancient Arts: Craft Blossoms in Modern Age

As a country with splendid civilization, China has witnessed the passing down of numerous forms of intangible cultural heritage,     1     continue to flourish today. China Daily recently launched the documentary series Revival of Ancient Arts, filming     2    (craftsman) and artists who are committed to preserving and reviving ancient arts.

Ronghua, or velvet flowers that are made of silk and copper wire, hold its unique historical     3     (significant) in Chinese culture. The tradition of wearing velvet flowers is believed     4     (date) back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and the artistic flowers were once offered to the imperial court     5     a tribute (贡品). The intangible cultural heritage of velvet flower making has been passed down through the generations,     6     (preserve) its timeless artistry.

The second episode of the documentary series     7     (focus) on the efforts of a velvet flower master and a young artisan who are     8     (enthusiastic) integrating the craftsmanship into modern life. In this episode, inheritors from Nanjing of East China’s Jiangsu province, one of the birthplaces of velvet flower production, perform     9     process of crafting velvet flowers, and share their endeavors in advancing this     10     (tradition) handicraft and their dedication to preserving and reviving the ancient technique.