1 . Shortly after I graduated from junior high school, my mom frequently repeated, “Learn to _________ , and doors will open for you.” To her, it was a(n) _________ skill. So she bought me a typewriter. “Thanks, Mom,_________ I can’t type,” I said. “That’s going to change,” she answered. “Soon.”

“Soon” arrived just one week later, when we went to the Crown Business Institute which offered _________ in various office skills: My mom _________ me through the door. Inside, I saw some _________ typists showed amazing performances. I was as impressed as I was _________ that I would ever achieve such proficiency (熟练). Before my objection (反对), my mom had arranged me for six weeks of typing lessons.

As the lessons progressed, my mom made me _________ my typing skills over and over again. Meanwhile Mom also studied my typing practice book, memorized the keyboard and the _________ . She encouraged me when I __________ .

Mom was right. Many doors did open for me. I’ve become as __________ as those students I’d admired the first day I __________ arrived at Crown. My life would have been different if Mom had not __________ my learning to type. I mastered typing __________ , but the key to my success was my __________ who pushed me through one door, so future doors could open.

2 . Laughter is the best medicine. It helps solve problems, improve relationships, and support both physical and emotional health.     1     Read the following suggestions and learn to make laughter part of your life.

    2     Laughing at yourself is one of the biggest differences between happy people and unhappy people. It communicates to both you and the people around you that it’s no big deal. So be brave enough to share your embarrassing(尴尬) moments. Attempt to laugh at your awkward situations rather than regret them. When something negative happens, try to make it a humorous story that will make you and others laugh.

Surround yourself with amusing reminders to lighten up.     3     Put up a funny poster in your office. Choose a computer screensaver that makes you laugh. Frame photos of you and your family or friends having fun. All of these are good resources of laughter.

    4     Even if you don’t consider yourself a humorous person, you can still seek out new friends who are ready to laugh and who can make you laugh. These are people who find humor in everyday events. Their playful points of view and laughter are contagious(传染的). When you are around them, you’ll be more likely to laugh too.

Don’t go a day without laughing. Set aside 10 minutes each day to do something that amuses you. You can watch some humorous videos or look at some funny photos online.     5     Try thinking back to a joke you heard or read, or a comedy you watched.

As long as you have a joyful heart and purposely make time to laugh, you’ll be amazed at how differently you will begin to view your job, your family, your relationships and yourself.

A young man was on his way to the office when a nurse called him and told him that his father was injured and in hospital. So he hurried to go to the hospital by taxi. After he went into the hospital, he found that he left his cell phone in the taxi, but the taxi had left. The worse thing was that he had forgotten to ask the nurse which ward his father was in. He had to scurry around in the hospital, looking for his father. Seeing a nurse, he asked her anxiously, ”My father is in hospital. He..”

The nurse interrupted him, “Oh, my God. It’s you. Come with me!” She led the anxious young man to the bed side of an elderly man. “Your son is here,” she whispered to the elderly patient. The old patient’s eyes opened only after she repeated the words several times.The old man was too weak so it was really hard for him to stay awake and he could vaguely (模糊地) see the young man standing beside him.

The old man reached out his hand with all his strength and the young man realized it and immediately held it.

The nurse brought a chair for the young man to sit beside the bed. The young man sat holding the old man’s hand and offering him words of love and strength, all through the night. The dying old man said nothing. The nurse suggested that the young man move away and rest for a while but he refused. He stayed.

As dawn approached, the old man peacefully died.The young man placed the lifeless hand on the bed and informed the nurse. While the nurse did what was necessary, the young man waited. When she finished her task, the nurse began to say words of sympathy the young man needed.

But the young man shook his head.

He replied, “I knew right away he was not my father.”

Pottery (陶器) may be the oldest artwork of human beings. As far back as more than 8,000 years ago, people in China first made pottery by mixing clay (黏土) with water     1     baking it until it held     2     shape. Ancient people used pottery to create various vessels and tools     3     (improve) the quality of life.

As time passed, the technique became perfect. Different kinds of pottery appeared in different times and     4     (region). For example, during the Tang Dynasty people made pottery by adding various metallic oxide (金属氧化物) and baking it at a low temperature. The pottery would appear to be light yellow, reddish brown and light green.     5     (prefer) by many foreigners, the tricolored glazed pottery of the Tang Dynasty (唐三彩) had been transported all over     6     world.

Purple clay pottery won a great reputation for the next hundreds of years. As early as the Song Dynasty, people     7     (find) that purple clay teapots looked much     8     (grace) than those of other materials. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, people     9     liked drinking tea held firm to the     10     (believe) that tea in the purple clay pot smelled better and could retain (保留) the original quality.

8 . The drone (无人机) is flying above the Amazon River in Brazil, but its battery is running low. Andre Coelho, the chief pilot, guides it back to safety with skills perfected by playing video games. Long hours’ practicing has become a surprising benefit in an effort to conserve dolphins that live in the river. Marcelo Oliveira, a conservation specialist, stands on the bow of a boat. He pulls the white drone from the air, changes the battery, and quickly sends it back in the sky.

Later, scientists will examine the video which has recorded for signs of the two species of dolphins that inhabit the river: the pink and bulbous boto (亚马孙河豚), and the smaller, prettier tucuxi (白海豚). Exactly how many live in the basin is a mystery. Some studies have suggested a decline of the pink dolphins in specific areas of the Amazon River, but the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) says there isn’t enough data available for either species of dolphins.

“We need to base everything on hard data,” says Miriam Marmontel, a scientist. “We need to focus on what’s really critical to help us get to a real situation that can influence policy. We need numbers. We need information on death and reproduction.”

Marmontel’s biggest concern is that dolphins are being caught in the nets of local fishermen. Scientists have also given a warning against fishermen’s killing botos. Pollution from gold mining is also a concern.

The scientists want to use the information they collect to persuade the IUCN to list the boto and the tucuxi as endangered species. Funding agencies and governments want evidence. Without the IUCN’s categorization, it’s difficult to raise the money for protection measures.

They hope their drone monitoring will do the trick. During three trips to the Amazon last year, the team has recorded about 70 samples (样本) that will contribute to a more accurate estimate of dolphin populations in the Amazon basin.