2 . The misery of my bike commute in Calgary, Alberta, is the river valley hill. It’s not particularly steep, but at about a mile long, I rarely climbed up without arriving with sweat. Studies have shown the prospect of arriving at work sweaty is one of the biggest _________ to getting would-be bike commuters out of their cars. That’s especially true in a city like Los Angeles, where _________ may face long routes , hills or hot streets with a lack of shade.

“Pedelec”, or pedal electric-assisted bikes like the one I rode, can end that worry. They look and act like traditional bicycles, but their motors make pedaling much easier when required. Sometimes called the most energy-efficient motorized mode of transportation ever built, they’re also incredibly green. The biggest barrier may be the outdated attitude that sees bikes only as a recreational athletic opportunity rather than a practical _________ option.

At a time when cities across North America are struggling to combat crippling traffic and reduce climate emissions, e-bikes have the _________ to ease the both problems. And yet ridership has yet to truly _______.About 152,000 e-bikes were sold last year in the U.S., a figure that would be more than 5 million if Americans used them at the same rate as western Europeans.   

Many of the barriers to e-bike _________in North America are legislative. Patchwork rules treat e-bikes more like mopeds than traditional pedal bikes in some jurisdictions,meaning they are _______from bike lanes and from boarding public transportation.

Few places on the continent, _________, are better poised to break through barriers than California. Legislation was approved last year to encourage e-bike use, by legally differentiating the cycles from mopeds. In an attempt to head off worries about turbocharged machines flying down sidewalks and bike lanes at unsafe speeds, the law classifies bikes into different tiers to _______ lower-speed e-bikes, which top out at 20 mph, from faster-moving “speed pedelecs”, which are restricted from protected bike paths.

Amid these legislative ________, e-bikes have become more accessible to consumer. Finding them in bike shops isn’t as __________ as it once was, and their cost has fallen as the price of lithium-ion batteries has dropped. Today, a decent e-bike, while still __________, is comparable in price to a high-end mountain bike. After years of ____________over mixing pedal and motor power, cycling advocacy organizations also are finally throwing their support behind e-bikes. Dave Snyder, the executive director of the California Bicycle Coalition, __________ the state’s new legislation based partly on the __________that e-bikes help out those who“just can’t ride as far or as fast as they need to”.

3 . “What’s your name? ” My fifteen-ear-old daughter, Jessica, asked a stranger on the street. Her eyes sparkled with ________ and her face wore a broad smile. I wish she could make it because she has a disability with autistic (自闭症的). I stood nearby, waiting ________ for any potential result.

To be honest, the ________ nature of hers is a result of her disability. Ever since Jessica was real young, she had ________ right up to strangers on the street and ________ a conversation, never expecting to be refused. Children with autism don’t relate well to others. As her mum, my thoughts are ________. On one hand, I tried my best to prevent her from ________ others. On the other hand, I don’t want her to be discouraged. Happily, when Jessica talks with someone, it always ________ me that people patiently answer her, although they must sense she’s a bit different.

What about this time? Would this man respond kindly or just ________ her and walk away? A few minutes later, Jessica skipped to me. Obviously, it was a successful ________. Jessica shared with me the ________ they had talked about, which would certainly ________ my daughter’s day. The man just treated her like an ordinary girl, nothing special from others.

As we continued on our way, I felt a renewed sense full of ________ for the future. Despite my daughter’s problem, an equal ________ the kind people gave her created a moment of ________ interaction.

5 . Adrienne Tully, an amateur photographer, went to the coast of a beach in Belmar, New Jersey. She planned to take photos of the ______ against the sea. Instead, she was able to ______ a frightening but happy journey. It all started last Sunday morning when she noticed a crowd ______ on the beach. Naturally, she joined them in the ______ of learning what was going on.

For a minute, Adrienne was ______ about what everyone was looking at. From how far away they were, it almost seemed like a bird. Looking closer, ______ , it was clearly a deer who was ______ on a raised rock in the middle of the ocean. The deer made a couple of ______ to swim back to the shore but the turbulent (汹涌的) water ______ all its efforts. Then someone who came out of nowhere ______ rode his surfboard to the deer. After a short magic while, the ______ managed to guide the deer out. Upon ______ ashore, the deer just ran north on the beach. Those watching nearby were no doubt ______ at the way this nameless young man ______ to help. But he somehow disappeared too, leaving people to hope he knows that he is greatly ______ for what he did.

8 . Artificially sweetened diet drinks make no difference to weight gain and should not be seen as healthier than their sugar-laden counterparts, according to a team of experts. A review of research evidence concludes there is nothing to support claims that sugar free versions of popular soft drinks can help _________obesity and related diseases such as Type 2 diabetes. Industry sponsored studies reporting “favourable” associations between diet drinks and weight loss may be biased, it claims.

There have been concerns that diet drinks, known as artificially sweetened beverages (ASBs), might lead people to consume more calories by ___________sweet flavour taste buds. The new study found that evidence ___________the healthiness of ASBs was inconclusive with randomized controlled trials (RCTs) producing mixed results. Senor investigator Professor Christopher Millett said: “A common perception, which may be influenced by industry marketing, is that because ‘diet’ drinks have no sugar, they must be healthier and aid weight loss when used as a(n) _________ for full sugar versions.” However, we found no solid evidence to support this.

The researchers pointed out that research supported by food or beverage companies was more likely to find no evidence of links between sugary drink ___________ and obesity than non-industry sponsored research. Similarly, ASB industry-sponsored research was “more likely to report favourable results and _________ regarding ASB effects on weight control”.

In many cases, researchers had failed to disclose ___________of interest relating to links with the food industry, it was claimed. Coauthor Dr Marin Carolina Borges said: “The lack of solid evidence on the health effects of ASBs and the potential influence of bias from industry funded studies should be taken seriously when discussing whether ASBs are ___________ alternatives to SSBs (sugar-sweetened beverages).”

Leading British nutritionist Professor Susan Jebb said despite the mixed evidence, there was no reason to believe that replacing sugary drinks with artificially sweetened ___________ did any harm. She said, “For people seeking to manage their weight, tap water is ______________the best drink to choose, for health and the environment, but for many people who are used to drinking sugary drinks, this will be loo hard a change to ____________. Artificially sweetened drinks are a step in the __________ direction to cut calories.” Dietitian Professor Tom Sanders, was also critical of the research, calling it “an opinion piece rather than a(n) ____________review of the evidence”. He ____________: “The conclusion that reduced sugar or sugar-free drinks should not be promoted or seen as part of a healthy diet seems unwarranted and likely to add to public ____________.”

9 . Ryan’s class at Tully Elementary Sohool was planning a hike at Falls of the Ohio State Park. But since the site isn’t wheelchair ________, her mother, Shelly, tried to find a way to make sure she could ________.

Ryan had missed out on a similar class trip last year as a third grader. When Shelly ________ the upcoming class field trip, she ________ began to think about making a plan B. “I was preparing for an ‘alternate field trip day’,” she ________ on the “Team Ryan” online page, ________ for her10-year-old daughter, diagnosed with spina bifida (脊柱裂)as a baby.

That is, until Jim, a teacher at the school, ________ to carry Ryan around on his back all day. This way she could ________ explore the fossil (化石) beds with the rest of her ________. He used a special backpack to carry the 55-pound girl on his back across the park-and the previously ________ Ryan became extremely excited.

The ________ meant so much to Ryan and her family that Shelly wanted to get the ________ out. Since she posted on the web photos of Jim and Ryan on the field trip, they have been ________ thousands of times.

“We are so ________ to have a whole school that never makes her feel left out,” said Shelly. “These beautiful people should be known to the world, to educate and ________ others.”

10 . Smith brought his three-month-old son out for breakfast one day. He was playing with his son and tending to him while eating, and just doing his _________ thing.

But then he noticed a _________ staring at him. He was _________. “What is going on?” “They kept _________ at me,” he wrote in a post.

As it _________, the strangers were just happy to see a dad spending time with his son, and they felt inspired while watching the _________. Smith had no way of knowing that until he paid for his meal. He was given by the waiter a _________ from the couple, saying what a great father he was and that they would like to leave some _________ for his meal.

“Today your meal is on my wife and me,” it read. “_________ that baby as long as possible. The Masons.”

For Smith, it was a happy moment of reassurance (认可) and feeling __________. He was touched by the generosity and noted that he didn’t have a father figure growing up, so spending this time with his son is super __________ to him.

He wrote that he’ll share this __________ with his son when he’s older and that he wants to teach him kindness and about the __________ of giving back.

“I make sure I’m __________,” Smith wrapped. “I get blessed — I want to __________ someone else.”