Think of culture, not only as the way of life that     1     to a particular group of people but your identity as a person — the things that have found their way into your very     2    : the meaning of family, the ties of friendship with those around you, the special festivals and the many     3     and beliefs that have found their way into everyday life. These things have helped to     4     us into the people we are. They have, little by little, found their way, and sometimes     5     their way, into our personalities. These are the things that we will see change when we move to another country with a different culture.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, or RBG as she’s often affectionately called, passed away at the age of 87. Her passing was a great loss to the world because, in her lifetime, Ruth was arguably the single most effective advocate for gender equality the world has ever seen.

Ruth was extremely     1    (坚定的) to prove that the differing treatment of persons, on the basis of sex, had no place in the United States.     2    (除……之外) being personally responsible for overturning many laws that discriminated (歧视) against women, first as an ACLU lawyer and later as a Supreme Court Justice, Ruth had long inspired us with her bravery and strength in the face of extreme personal discrimination and hardship. As a(n)     3    (influence) figure, she was well known for the battles in which she pushed forward gender equality. Besides those battles, she fought for the good of all and here are two personal things you may not know about her:

•She used     4    (时尚) to make a statement by wearing a special collar (领子) with her justice robes (袍服) each time she disagreed with an opinion that the majority of the court had agreed upon.

•She only ever slept 5 — 6 hours per night, preferring to spend the majority of her time studying and researching.

We often overlook the     5    (巨大的) struggles people have gone through once they’ve achieved great things. To try and understand the full picture of everything Ruth accomplished, we have to know what she had experienced:

•When she graduated at the top of her class from law school, she received no job offers from New York law firms.

•She was the first woman to receive tenure (终身职位) as a(n)     6    (教授) at Columbia University — but when she got her offer, she was told she would not receive as much pay as a man because her husband was the “primary breadwinner”. She then sued Columbia University and won.

Chinese paintings feature some of the world’s longest-held     1     (art) traditions. These paintings with a range of special oriental (东方的) styles record China’s long history and     2     (反映) its beautiful landscapes. The following are two of China’s most famous paintings.

One Hundred Horses was drawn by Lang Shining, a     3     (talent) painter of the Qing Dynasty. Lang was from Italy with a birth name of Giuseppe Castiglione. Working as a court painter in China for over 50 years, he was regarded highly by Chinese emperors Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong.

Lang was skilled at painting horses, and One Hundred Horses is one of his representative     4     (杰作). This paper painting shows 100 horses in various postures. (姿态)

Spring Morning in the Han Palace was drawn by Qiu Ying, who specialised in the gongbi brush     5     (技巧). Qiu’s use of the brush was extremely skilful, and his drawings of landscapes and     6     (人像) were vivid and well-organised. He was regarded as one of the four great     7     (大师) of the Ming Dynasty. His paintings are not only beautiful and refined, they are also quite decorative.

It’s my great honor to have the opportunity to call on all of you to take part in volunteer activities     1    .

In my view, firstly, volunteering can     2     both mental and physical health for a volunteer. An individual who volunteers may see a rise in their     3     because helping others can provide a sense of achievement.     4    , no one can deny the fact the volunteering enables us to build     5     skills.

Volunteering can not only make us feel good but also makes our world more     6    . So, join us!

Thank you!

The greatest     1     began the night before Spring Festival. Fireworks were being let off across the city, suddenly lighting up the night sky. Children were covering their ears but with an expectant look on their faces. Mrs Chen said that it was to     2     the monster Nian. The fireworks were a lot of fun! We then sat together to enjoy a big dinner,     3     everyone a happy new year.

When people started creating their own avatars, they discovered that they were going to have the power to create new identities that did not look or act like their real selves at all. They could dress their avatars infancy clothes, or they could try being someone of the opposite sex, and call themselves “Andy” instead of “Anna”! When Internet users realised that their avatars would     4     by many people, not just their friends, they started having more than on avatar: a sensible one for work; a friendly, good-looking one for meeting people; and a silly one for having fun. Avatars let you express yourself and give you lots of room for     5    .

Firstly,     6     online is no replacement for face-to-face contact — images really cannot replace a real-life smile or hug. According to a parenting expert, Denise Daniels, communicating through a screen makes     7     more difficult for children to concentrate or show kindness to others. As we know, important social skills are developed through direct contact with other people. It is these skills that enable us     8     lifelong friendships.

Thirdly, online relationships may not be what they appear to be. Friendships are built on the basis of trust, and with online communication you can never be 100 percent sure that the people you are chatting to are being honest about     9     they are. Because of this, going online can be particularly     10     for people who are easily influenced or too trusting.

Besides such ethical concerns, the legal situations the autonomous vehicle industry is likely to be confronted with have     1     heated debates. In this emerging industry, manufacturing and programming standards are not yet     2    . Moreover, the quality and safety of the technology used in self-driving cars is still being challenged. This could lead to extraordinary cases like who should be held     3     when self-driving cars are involved in accidents — should it be the driver, the software programmer or the manufacturer? Manufacturing and programming standards first have to be agreed upon to make it possible for law courts to decide who is at fault when things go wrong. As     4     in autonomous vehicle design and technology are in progress, the final agreement on laws and regulations     5     this industry remains to be seen.

We often hear of people talking about Karaoke. But what on earth it is about, it r    1    a question for many people. Karaoke is a sort of acoustic (音响的) equipment     2    was invented in Japan around the middle of the 1970’s. It means “a band without people”    3    Japanese. In     4    , it is just a music tape without words. This equipment first appeared in some     5    (公共的) houses and snack bars, and mainly for the     6    (顾客) to enjoy themselves. Most of the music in Karaoke was popular music.

Shortly after its invention, Karaoke was s    7     to the whole world. It was     8    (引进) to China and was welcomed by many people. A    9     you are not a good singer, or even sometimes you may sing out of tune, you can always enjoy     10    by singing Karaoke.