With smiling eyes, a quick wit and a good sense of humor, Jia Ling has long been a well-known female comedian for her     1     (extreme) funny performances. But recently, she has gained another title.

Jia starred in and directed the film Hi, Mom,     2     a time-travel story is told. The film     3     (consider) as the leading dark horse among the movies released (上映) during the seven-day Spring Festival holiday is in memory     4     her mother Li Huanying,     5     encouraged Jia to pursue her artistic dreams. By Feb 23, 2021, it     6     (earn) more than 4 billion yuan, enabling Jia to become the top box office grossing female film director in China. Now she is on the path to becoming     7     international name in the filmmaking industry.

So what is the secret behind Jia’s success? One factor may be her passion for comedy. Jia     8     (admit) to Beijing’s Central Academy of Drama in 2001. In the last 20 years, she has performed crosstalk (相声) in     9     (vary) competitions and shows. She has also played comedic roles in many comedies on the big screen. Besides, the approach to     10     (make) the film also makes Jia Ling’s work stand out. We’ll wait and see whether Jia will become one of China’s most popular directors.

One morning, I was waiting at the bus stop, worried about being late for school. There were many people     1     (wait) at the bus stop, and some of them looked very anxious and     2     (disappoint).When the bus finally came, we all hurried on board. I got a place next to the window,     3     I had a good view of the sidewalk. A boy on a bike     4     (catch) my attention. He was riding beside the bus and waving his arms. I heard a passenger behind me shouting to the driver, but he refused     5     (stop) until we reached the next stop. Still, the boy kept     6     (ride). He was carrying something over his shoulder and shouting. Finally, when we came to the next stop, the boy came up to the door of the bus, and I heard     7     exciting conversation. Then the driver stood up and asked, “Did anyone lose a suitcase at the last stop?” A woman on the bus shouted, “Oh dear! It’s     8    .”   She pushed her way to the driver and took the suitcase     9     (thankful). Everyone on the bus began talking about what the boy     10     (do), and the crowd of strangers suddenly became friendly to one another.

China is a     1    (develop) country, but it has a long history. There are many beautiful stories about friendship, the     2     (good) of which to be described in Chinese literature is probably the friendship     3    Yu Boya and Zhong Ziqi. Yu was a famous master of music     4    played the qin well.

Once, he took a boat trip to the state of Chu.     5    (inspire) by the beautiful view along the way, Yu took out his qin and began to play. After a while, he noticed a woodsman enjoying his music     6    (quiet). The man was Zhong Ziqi. When Yu played music that described high mountains, Zhong said: “How     7    (wonder) it is! I seem to see Mount Tai.” And when he played music that described flowing water, Zhong said: “How nice it is! I seem to see the rushing river.” Yu was surprised by the woodsman’s words because the man could really understand his music. When Zhong died the following year, Yu was     8    upset that he took out his qin to play the music of the “high mountains and flowing water” one last time for Zhong. When he was done, he     9     (break) his qin on purpose so he could never play it again.

Now, the phrase “high mountains and flowing water”    10     (use) to stand for very good music or “zhi yin”—a bosom friend who treasures and knows you quite well.

Have you imagined     1     (sing) together with hundreds of other people while you are at home alone? In fact, you can do this in a virtual choir. Anyone can take part in a virtual choir from anywhere and all you need is     2     video camera and an Internet connection. A virtual choir helps connect ordinary people together and     3     (enable) them to add their voices to those of other individuals     4     become part of the global community. Eric Whitacre,     5     (bear) in the USA on 2 January 1970, came up with the idea of the virtual choir. He graduated     6     university in 1995, and then received a     7     (master) degree in musical composition from the Juilliard School in New York in 1997. Over the next 10 years, Whitacre’s     8     (origin) compositions began to become quite popular among choirs and singers. This led to the     9     (create) of the virtual choir. The virtual choir is a wonderful way for people around the world     10     (sing) with one voice and thus make the world a better place.

The New York Times published an article recently that shows great regret for the "death of conversation". It suggests that     1     technology such as cell phones, e-mails, and Internet posting makes us feel more     2     (connect) than ever, they’re also driving us away from people around us.

Users get final connectivity     3     price of face-to-face conversation. Lan Guo, 19, a freshman English major from Changsha University, said that she would like to hear people’s tone of voice and see their faces in a conversation. She mentions that     4    (lose) ourselves in mobile technology reduces our chance of starting conversations with strangers and     5     (meet) people．

The concept of “I share, therefore I am” among this generation. Young people are so busy creating or polishing their online persona (网络人格) that they forget     6     to live a real life. For example, they may care more about blogging about attending a party rather than enjoying being there.

However, experts remind us that it’s     7    (fair) to blame mobile technology. Chen Chen, a sociology expert at China Youth and Children Research Center,     8     (point) out that it is still owners of mobile technology that are avoiding personal contact. We take advantage of these devices     9    (hide) ourselves from others. Texting messages or calling may be an excuse to avoid contact with others, such as having eye contact. “When     10     (strengthen) conversation, we can understand each other. Simply throwing away the mobile phones is not a solution.”she said.

Life Doesn’t Just Happen to Us

When twelve-year-old John Wilson walked into his chemistry class on a rainy day in 1931, he had no way of knowing that his life was to change     1     (complete). While Wilson was doing an experiment, the container exploded,     2     (leave) Wilson blinded in both eyes. His parents attempted     3     (find) a way to deal with the disaster that     4     (happen) to their lives. But Wilson did not regard the accident     5     disaster. He learned braille (盲文) quickly and continued his education at Worcester College for the Blind. There, he not only did well as a student but also became a     6     (success) public speaker. Later, he worked in Africa,     7     many people suffered from blindness for lack of proper     8     (treat).

Wilson received several international award for his great contributions. He     9     (lose) his sight but found a vision. He proved that it’s not what happens to us     10     determines our lives — it’s what we make of what happens.