Human memory is notoriously (众所周知地) unreliable. Even people with the sharpest facial recognition skills can only remember so much.

It’s tough to quantify how good a person is     1     remembering. No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall, for example, but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands – based on the number of acquaintances a person     2     have.

Machines aren’t limited this way. Give the right computer a massive database of faces, and it can process what it sees – then recognize a face it     3     (tell) to find – with remarkable speed and precision. This skill is     4     supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the 21^st century. It is also what makes contemporary surveillance (监控) systems so scary.

The thing is, machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition. And scientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are.     5     (figure) out how computers are struggling, researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces – they call it MegaFace – and     6     (test) a variety of facial-recognition algorithms(算法) as they scales up in complexity. The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to 1 million different images of nearly 7,000 different people – and not just a large database     7     (feature) a relatively small number of different faces, more consistent with what’s been used in other research.

As the databases grew, machine accuracy dipped across the board. Algorithms     8     were right 95% of the time when they were dealing with a 13,000-image database, for example, were accurate about 70% of the time when     9     (face) with 1 million images. That’s still pretty good, says one of the researchers, Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman. “Much better than we expected,” she said,

Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike –either doppelgangers (长相极相似的人), whom the machine would have trouble       10     (identify) as two separate people, or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting, whom the machine would incorrectly view as separate people.

French disaster epic Notre-Dame on Fire hits Chinese big screen

This April marks the     1     (four) anniversary of Notre-Dame in Paris being engulfed by the biggest blaze in its history.

NotreDame on Fire, now in Chinese cinemas, is a disaster epic     2     veteran French filmmaker Jean-Jacques Annaud, who also helmed Wolf Totem(2015), a drama film     3     (adapt) from Chinese writer Jiang Rong’s eponymous novel. The film made its China premiere on April 6 in Beijing in the presence of France’s Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malak and the director.

Presenting a blow-by-blow recreation of the gripping events that     4     (happen) on April 15, 2019 when the fire at the French medieval catholic cathedral rocked France and shocked the whole world, Annaud’s new film hails the heroic people who put their lives on     5     line to accomplish the awe-inspiring rescue. Annaud unveiled the filming details of the film to the audience     6     (attend) the China premiere.

“It was a     7     (danger) movie. The actors were actually very close to the extremely violent fire, 1,200-degree Fahrenheit fire. There are very few digital special effects. Almost all of what you have seen are     8     (identical) reconstructed sets that I set on fire,” he said.

“When I saw this movie in Paris last year, it took me a few hours     9     I could breathe and walk normally on the street,” said Malak at the film’s China premiere.

The French minister announced that 2024 will be the France-China Year of Culture and Tourism and she invited Chinese tourists to travel to France for the occasion, especially to see the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris,     10     , after almost six years of extensive renovations, is scheduled to reopen to the public in December of the same year.

In recent years, China has been working hard to improve living conditions in rural areas through a program called the New Rural Development Initiative.    1     goal of this initiative is to improve infrastructure (基础设施), modernize farming practices, and enhance the overall quality of life for those     2     (live) in the countryside.

One important aspect of the initiative is the improvement of rural infrastructure    3       includes the construction of better roads, bridges, and watering systems     4     (improve) the efficiency of transportation and agricultural activities.

Another key focus is the promotion of modern agricultural    5     (technique). By introducing advanced farming methods and technologies, such as organic farming and the use of

machinery, farmers are able to increase their productivity and income     6       damaging the environment.

Furthermore, the initiative emphasizes the importance of preserving traditional culture and heritage in rural communities. Efforts    7     (make) to regenerate local traditions, which not only enriches the cultural     8     (diverse) of the countryside but also creates new opportunities for cultural tourism and sustainable development. The initiative also aims to enhance the living environment in rural areas through the restoration of traditional houses     9     the construction of public facilities.

Through the initiative, China is working hard to create a more prosperous (繁荣的) and     10     (harmony) countryside, providing its rural residents with better opportunities and an improved quality of life.

Technology has started to take over the world. It may seem like a huge advancement to society, but large setbacks come equally.

We now live in an age of social media. We have never been as     1     (connect)as we are now. Everyone around us can be reached instantly. Besides, the use of technology has made all of our lives     2     (incredible)efficient. Furthermore, a majority of people have access to technology,     3     helps them express themselves on many different platforms. Lastly, technology has given people many ways     4     (entertain)themselves. Various websites offer hours upon hours entertainment for those     5     (bore)nights.

While some may see social media’s positive effects     6     relationships, others can see it as the exact opposite. It keeps people from seeing each other face to face. Meanwhile, there is nothing more frustrating than having technology not work right when it     7     (need)to. Moreover, so dependent on technology, people don’t try to explore life outside of a smart device. Also, with more and more people posting information on     8     internet, it can be very difficult to determine whether the information is credible or not. This can lead to false information being taken seriously, and     9     (change)perspectives of those who believe it.

To understand technology, one must know     10     it provides in terms of advantages and disadvantages.

The Chinese zodiac, also known as Sheng Xiao or Shu Xiang, is a     1     (repeat) circle of 12 years. Each year     2     (represent) by an animal. Chinese New Year 2024 is a year of the Loong.

Chinese Zodiac Loong is the     3     (five) of the 12 zodiac animals, following the Rot, Ox, Tiger and Rabbit. People born in the year of the Loong — an animal no one knows if it existed in real world—are enveloped in mystery, and very charming.

Back in the pre-Qin period over 2,200 years ago, there was already the Chinese zodiac signs theory. So it is     4     (reason) that Chinese Zodiac years are in agreement with the beginning of Chinese Lunar New Year. If you have an idea of Lunar Calendar, you will know     5     Chinese zodiac year often starts from late January and ends in middle February of the next year.

Therefore, to see what your Chinese zodiac animal is,     6     to confirm whether you are a Loong, you need to change your Gregorian calendar birthday to Lunar Calendar of the year you were born. For example, if you were born     7     February 16, 1988 (a year of the Loong), the Lunar New Year’s Eve, which was very close to Loong year, but you are a Rabbit.

    8     is also worth mentioning is that if two people were born in the different Loong years, they may have very different     9     (personality), and horoscope, due to the Five Elements, which are Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. Each element     10     (come) in a 60-year cycle.

The world’s biggest kite, shaped like a dragon and    1     (stretch) over 280meters, flew high on Sunday in the skies over the Chinese city of Weifang. The city in the eastern province of Shandong is     2     birthplace of kites and home to the Weifang International Kite Festival since 1984.

The highlight of this year’s edition was the “Chinese Giant Dragon”, four meters in    3     (high) and 3.6 meters in width. The kite has the head of a dragon and the body of a centipede(蜈蚣) and is the    4    (wide) of its kind in the world. “It took 28 experienced workers 48 days to design and complete the kite.55 people     5     (require) to fly it,” said Zhang Huagang, general manager of Weifang Tianshun Kite Productions and one of the kite makers.

According to Zhang, the giant dragon kite, using traditional Chinese techniques, “    6     (refer) to our nation’s wishes for prosperity and fortune”. The kite festival, now in its 38th edition, opened on Friday    7     the presence of hundreds of amateurs and professionals,    8     flooded to the city from near and far to display their creations at the event.

This year’s festival features a record 1,628 kites in     9    (vary) forms by 500 participants     10     (divide) into 188 teams from over 31 provinces and regions from across the country.

World Olive (橄榄) Tree Day takes place     1     26th November every year. It was established     2     (official) at the 40th session of the UNESCO General Conference in 2019.The olive tree, especially the olive branch, holds an important place in people’s mind. Since ancient times, it     3     (symbolize) peace, harmony and     4     (wise) .It is important not just to the countries     5     these noble trees grow but also to people and communities worldwide.

Protecting and growing the olive tree is     6     increasingly urgent thing as the world fights against climate change. The conservation of cultural and natural heritage is one of UNESco’s     7     (center) goals, and marking World Olive Tree Day strengthens the efforts to achieve it.

World Olive Tree Day is set up     8     (encourage) the protection of the olive tree and stress the values it symbolizes,     9     (inspire) people to appreciate its important social, cultural, economic and environmental significance to humans.

There is much to learn, share and celebrate on World Olive Tree Day, and UNESCO encourages everyone to participate in     10     (activity) such as debates, conferences, cultural events and exhibitions organized worldwide.

During the summer holiday I had the chance to visit Pingtang County, Guizhou Province in southwest China. It’s     1     experience I will never forget.

Traveling to Guizhou by high-speed rail from Beijing, I     2    (astonish) at the rapid change in scenery from skyscrapers to beautiful tree-filled mountains     3     (rest) under a clear blue sky.

Upon arrival, I visited the Pingtang International Experience Planetarium, which displays China’s     4     (remark) achievements in science and space technology. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) there is the largest one of its kind in the world. To visit FAST, visitors are not permitted     5     (bring) any electronic devices due to security measures. So they must record this once-in-a-lifetime moment with their hearts and minds.

    6    (truthful), my favorite part of the trip was my personal interaction with the local community. Following the instructions, I worked on two community farms, went hiking and swam     7     a fresh community river alongside fish. I was educated on the regional history of the Miao people     8     culture is rich in fashion, food, pottery and music.

After this adventure, my     9     (appreciate) for Chinese culture has snowballed. While I am content living and working in Beijing, Pingtang County in Guizhou has opened my eyes to the endless positive     10     (possibility) China has to offer.