Tu Youyou, a c    1     and patient scientist, was born in Ningbo, China, on 30 December 1930, and graduated from Peking University Medical School in1955. After she graduated, she worked at the China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Beijing. In 1967, the Chinese government f    2     a team of scientists with the o    3     of discovering a new treatment for malaria, and Tu Youyou was among the first researchers c    4    . In the b    5    , Tu Youyou went to Hainan, where malaria was more c    6    , to study malaria patients. In 1969, she became the head of the p    7     in Beijing, and decided to review ancient Chinese medical texts to find traditional b    8     treatments for the disease. Her team examined over 2,000 old medical texts, and evaluated 280,000 plants for their medical properties. From their research, they discovered and tested 380 d    9     ancient Chinese medical treatments that showed p    10     in the fight against malaria.

Festivals are celebrated all around the world. They have a wide range of     1    , such as the seasons of the year,     2    , famous figures, and important events. Every festival has its different customs and     3     charms. However, no matter how different they may seem, all over the world, the spirit of sharing joy, gratitude, love, or peace is common in all festivals.

Imagine having the     1     to sing together with hundreds of other people while you are at home alone. You can do this in a virtual choir. Virtual choir members record themselves while they perform alone on video. These videos are     2     onto the Internet, and then they are put together into one video that you can see online—a virtual choir.

You do not even need a     3    . A virtual choir helps connect     4     people together. Many people do not have close friends or contacts who have the same interest in music.

It has proved to be a positive     5    on the lives of many people. As one virtual choir member said, “Music helps me to ... forget my problems. With music, I become someone else.”

By the Shang Dynasty (around L600-1046BCE), these s    1     had become a well-developed writing system. Over the years, the system developed into different f    2    , as it was a time when people were d    3     geographically, leading to many v    4     of dialects and characters. This, however, c    5     under Emperor Qinshihuang of the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BCE).

Emperor Qinshihuang united the seven m    6    states into one unified country where the Chinese writing system began to develop in one d    7    . That writing system was of great importance in uniting the Chinese people and c    8    . Even today, no matter where Chinese people live or what dialect they s    9    they can all still c    10     in writing.

Certainly, in many ways this seems to be true. Chinese c    1    is a case in point. P    2     to coming to China, my only experience with Chinese cooking was in America, with Chinese food that had been changed to suit American t    3    . For example, America’s most popular Chinese dish is General Tso’s chicken, which c    4     of fried chicken covered in a sweet sauce, f    5     with hot red peppers. This is probably not an authentic Chinese r    6    , however, so it cannot tell us much about the Chinese. On the other hand, it does tell us a lot about Americans. It tells us, for example, that Americans love bold, simple flavours.And since the dish was also invented recently, it tells us that American are not afraid to try new foods.

Before starting out, they spent a couple of days in Vancouver, seeing the s    7    . During their first day, as is t    8     of Vancouver, it rained. Despite the weather, they were able to take a boat ride out into the bay, and later visit an island that had wonderful shops selling crafts and a    9    . The next day was clear and mild, and they were pleased to see the beautful mountains looking out over the city. Later they took a p    10    hike in a forest just a short distance away.

As a player, Lang Ping brought honour and glory to her country. As a    1    , she led the China women’s volleyball team to medals at world championships and the Olympics. As a person, Lang Ping is loved by fans    2    . When the Chinese team was preparing for the 2015 World Cup, her determination was tested. The team that Lang Ping had built was     3    . One of the best players had been injured, and the team captain had to leave because of heart problems. Losing two important players was a big challenge, but Lang Ping did not     4    . She had faced difficulties before, and she knew that her young players could win if they worked together as a team. Two weeks later, they were world     5    ! Then in 2016, Lang Ping led her volleyball team to Olympic gold in Brazil.