This Is Life, a documentary film, is set to grace the nation’s big screens on Jan. 13. The film features more than 800 short videos     1     (shoot) by 509 ordinary people from all     2     (walk) of life, especially manual laborers and farmers. The videos     3     (select) by the production crew over the course of a year from     4     total of more than 50,000 video clips (片段).

By gathering the short video footage, the film engages ordinary people in its creation and presents their authentic life experience,     5     (allow) those who are often inadequately represented in mainstream cinemas to take center stage.

According to the film’s director Sun Hong, by gathering, selecting     6     compiling (编辑) video clips from a vast database, the film presents how people record their own lives, which possesses a power of authenticity even     7     (great) than traditional documentaries.

In the film, the audience will see construction workers working out on the construction site during their spare time, fishermen talking to their cormorants and teasing their greediness for fish, or boatmen celebrating a rare day     8     they could use tap water.

“It is our creative effort, as documentary filmmakers,     9     (present) an authentic facet of China, highlighting how each individual establishes themselves in a     10     (rapid) developing society,” says Sun.

4 . Take A Scenic Ride On The World’s Steepest Railway For Passengers—If You Dare!

Originally built for mining in 1878, the Scenic Railway is now a tourist ride that can take your breath away! In the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, the former mining railway became a tourist attraction in 1945. It currently holds the Guinness World Records as the steepest passenger train with the steepest railway gradient (坡度).

The gradient of 52 degrees is comfortably viewed from inside an 84-seat, glass-enclosed carriage car. The passenger car travels along on a cable-driven system of rails as it navigates the steep terrain. During the tour, passengers will see the train travel through sandstone cliffs and a rock tunnel next to Orphan Rock.

Orphan Rock was once available for trail climbing. Following rock slides in the 1950s, the trail was partially closed. The trail access was completely closed in 1974 and never reopened due to potential risks.

On the Scenic Railway, you will see stunning views from a slightly different angle than Orphan Rock. The railway is open every day of the year, making the trip along the rails every ten minutes.

Sight-seeing passengers can ride the steepest railway up from the Jamison Valley or travel on the cable car. Either option affords incredible scenic views of the Blue Mountains. The glass roof in the passenger cars allows for a fantastic view from every seat on the train.

Just take a look for yourself!

5 . A sheep in Scotland, known as the “loneliest sheep”, was stuck at the bottom of a cliff for over two years. A group of farmers made it their _________ to rescue the sheep. The sheep was first _________ in 2021 by a kayaker (皮划艇运动员) and had been unable to move from that _________ since then. Local agencies were _________ but said the sheep was not in danger and could not be rescued. One of the farmers, Wilson, named the sheep Fiona and provided _________ about her on his social media account.

Wilson explained that it was too _________ to attempt a rescue earlier due to the dangerous location of the sheep. He expressed concerns about the safety of the rescuers and the difficulty of _________ the sheep by boat or with a dog. However, after careful _________, Wilson and four other men successfully rescued Fiona using heavy _________ and a winch (绞车). They __________ brought her to the slope of the cliff.

The Scottish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was present to __________ the welfare of the sheep. They confirmed that Fiona was in good __________ but needed her wool to be sheared (剪).The ownership of the sheep was transferred to the __________ group of farmers.

Wilson __________ the risks involved in the rescue and expressed gratitude for the successful __________.

Recently, The Paris Review’s “Interview” section has unveiled an exclusive dialogue featuring the exceptional writer Yu Hua, the first Chinese writer in this distinguished segment of the publication.

Yu Hua’s interview was featured in the 261st issue     1     (title) The Art of Fiction. It was conducted and written by the well-known translator Michael Berry, covering aspects of Yu’s early writing experiences, literary inheritance, artistic perspectives,     2     exploring some specific works.

Michael’s     3     (associate) with Yu lasts two decades. Around 25 years ago, Michael,       4     enthusiastic senior college student, contacted Yu, seeking permission       5     (translate) To Live, into English and received approval. Michael said, “Our first face-to-face meeting was in New York, around 1998. It was the first time that Yu Hua     6     (travel) to the city, and     7     was with almost childlike excitement that he reacted to the neon lights in Times Square and attending his first Broadway Show. He displayed a playfulness, a sharp wit, and an irreverent (不恭的) attitude that I found     8     (surprise). Could this exuberant (兴高采烈的) tourist really be the same person who     9     (write) the harrowing (令人痛心的) To Live? Apparently so.”

Michael revealed this interview took place earlier this year via Zoom, stating, “I saw glimpses of the same quick humor, biting sarcasm (讽刺), and honesty as before.”

At the end of the interview, Yu responded he often travelled abroad,     10     many friends advising him to concentrate only on writing while energetic. He mentioned, “Literature is not the only thing in my life.”

10 . Think of a city you know, and try to picture it five years from now. Will its streets be full of electric cars. some of them self-driving? If so, then the current problem facing electric vehicles (EVs) will be a minor problem. However, US sales have slowed well below the government’s target, EVs’ share of the British market has stopped growing and only 1. 2 percent of European passenger cars in 2022 were battery-powered. My bet is that, in cities at least, the c-car won’t gain the upper hand in the years to come.

EVs emit more carbon over their life cycle than any form of urban transport except petrol cars. They are still worthwhile for people in suburbs, who drive long distances every day and who will earn back the emissions and the financial expenses by never buying gas again.

EVs face many other obstacles. Cities are claiming back space from cars. Paris, where I live, is having a vote on February 4 on a special parking tax for heavier SUVs. In a few years, mayors might start handling self-driving cars. These are so convenient that if they ever became affordable for the mass market. almost everyone would buy one, and they would clog up (阻塞) cities.

Then there’s the problem of charging EVs. Suburbanites with home garages can install chargers, but the lack of public chargers on city streets hasn’t become a major issue yet only because so few people own EVs. Even if you find an urban charger that works, charging can take hours.

Crucially, most of the world’s EVs with high quality are made in China, so there won’t be an aggressive western lobby (游说团) casing their way. On the contrary, governments may well raise taxes to block them rather than let China outperform yet another western industry.

For a city-resident getting rid of a petrol car, the calculation then becomes: instead of an EV, can I buy a much cheaper, health-giving e-bike that I can charge in my flat, and supplement that with the odd taxi ride? That is the trend. Looking back in five years, we may conclude that electric cars were made for American suburbia and for almost nowhere else.