In the center of Reykjavik, Iceland, stands a museum     1     (create) by Lillian Hopps, which symbolizes the friendship between Icelandic and Chinese people. A passionate admirer of Chinese heritage, Lillian began her journey to learn about China in the 1990s, a time     2     she deeply engaged herself in exploring China’s rich culture. Her passion transformed her home into a place filled with Chinese artifacts, which     3     (eventual) led to the establishment of a museum in Reykjavik.

The museum     4     (house) an extensive collection of cultural relics, from ancient clothing     5     contemporary art, displaying thousands of years of Chinese civilization. Lillian’s work goes beyond just     6     (exhibit) these items; she brings the culture alive through highly     7     (interact) activities like tea performances, calligraphy classes, and traditional medicine talks, promoting the Icelandic understanding of China’s rich traditions.

Lilian’s museum, attracting thousands of visitors annually from around the world,     8     (recognize) by the Icelandic government in 2021 for its impact. As Marta Jonsdottir, a director at Iceland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, put it in an interview, “Lillian, with her enthusiasm and expertise, has developed diverse cultural     9     (link) between Iceland and China. Her museum has not just enabled both peoples to better understand each other     10     strengthened our relations.”

When we think of the Silk Road, the first thing that appears in people’s minds is trade. However, trade isn’t just limited to goods     1     includes culture.

Since ancient times, strong connections between the Chinese and the Turkish people     2     (build) by cultural exchange along the Silk Road. Some historians believe Karagoz, Turkish traditional shadow puppetry (皮影) , drew     3     (inspire) from Chinese shadow puppetry art. Karagoz originally     4     (find) its place in Bursa, a city in northwestern Turkey, and it first rose to popularity in the 16th century.

Karagoz is a dramatic form of storytelling     5     shadows are projected onto a white screen, with a multitasking performer     6     (sing) the tunes and words of the story and the lead puppeteer controlling the movement of the puppets. The performances     7     (main) center around social events and public criticism, whose primary objective is     8     (educate) people via entertainment.

The tradition’s popularity in Turkey is credited     9     people’s sense of nostalgia (怀旧) . Historically, Karagoz performances served as     10     educational tool for people of all classes. As society progresses, there is often a tendency to reconnect with the past.

Nausicaa Giavarra, a drama teacher from Italy, moved to Ningbo with her husband in 2009 and is teaching drama lessons at a local international school.     1    (live) in Ningbo for 14 years, she often takes her friends to Tianyige Museum, as it is a     2     (peace) place that is perfect for walking and chatting.

Tianyi Pavilion, the oldest existing private library,     3     (surround) with forests and delicate gardens in Ningbo, Zhejiang province. It was built between 1561 and 1566 by a politician called Fan Qin     4     (house) the books he had collected throughout his life.

Giavarra says she loves the classical architectural style of Tianyi Pavilion, adding that walking in the courtyard and the bamboo grove (竹林)     5     (relax) her mind. What makes her really proud is     6    , in addition to Tianyi Pavilion, the other two most ancient surviving private libraries in the world, namely the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana and the Biblioteca Malatestiana, are both located in Italy. So far, Tianyi Pavilion     7     (join) the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in     8     (prepare) for a dialogue on book restorers and is also connecting with the Biblioteca Malatestiana for     9     unique exchange on the “digital application of ancient books” later this year.

“I am very pleased that Ningbo has such a deep cultural connection with Italy. I hope and believe that China and Italy will have more     10     (opportunity) for communication and cultural exchanges in the future.” Giavarra says.

A freight train loaded with grain from Kazakhstan arrived in Zhangjiakou on Dec 13. It came after a journey     1     passed through the Horgos railway port in Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

It was the first freight train from overseas     2    (arrive) in Zhangjiakou since the launch of the China-Europe (Central Asia) route at the end of August, and took 10 days to travel more than 4,000 kilometers.

The government said the train’s arrival signified the     3    (office) opening of the Zhangjiakou section of the route in both directions, enabling two-way trade and establishing an important     4    (found) for the development of Zhangjiakou     5     a multimodal transportation. It also marked     6     significant step forward in constructing a comprehensive international trade corridor in Zhangjiakou, enhancing its level of openness     7     expanding the logistics network around Beijing.

The name of the trains, “Jingzhang”,     8    (combine) characters representing the cities of Beijing and Zhangjiakou. The train to depart from Zhangjiakou left the freight railway station in Xiahuayuan district on Aug 29, carrying 59 containers with 1,322 tons of goods.

As the train network continues to expand, more cities in Hebei, Shijiazhuang, Handan, Langfang and Zhangjiakou     9    (include), are joining the cross-border railway transportation system. Zhangjiakou is becoming part of a comprehensive international trade corridor     10    (follow) the opening of the railway route to Europe and Central Asia.

Wednesday marks “Chu Shu” or the “End of Heat”, the 14th of the 24 Solar Terms recorded by the ancient Chinese people in their lunar calendar. It is a busy harvest season for farmers and also a time to express thanks for blessings     1     (receive).

Most areas across the Chinese territory will cool down during the period of time started with “Chu Shu”, and even people living in southern part of the country, after    2    (grill) for months, could finally take a breath of relief. The weather during this period of time    3    (note) by the large temperature swings between days and nights, so carrying an additional coat is advisable. Signs of the autumn could also be seen everywhere, with leaves starting to fall, grass and trees    4    (begin) to wither.

Contrast to the bleak atmosphere    5    (be) the scenes of the field, where crops are starting to ripen. What is more meaningful to the farmers this solar term is    6    the raining season in most parts of China will soon end. Grand celebrations could be seen    7    (annual) in Xiangshan county of east China’s Zhejiang Province, the South China Sea as well as other coastal areas. Outing with friends and families and enjoying the clear weather are    8    must on the routine of “Chu Shu” weekend.

Taken    9    the fifth great invention of China, the solar terms show the    10    (wise) of Chinese people to live according to the rhythm of the seasons.

Deep in the jungle, the Maya built an empire (帝国). And now, scientists are unlocking more secrets about this ancient civilization with the     1     (discover) of 417 cities dating back to 2,000 years ago, said The Washington Post. The cities were found to be connected by 110 miles (177 kilometers) of “highways” in May. They     2     (consist) of the “world’s first-ever extensive system of highways”. The “highways”, as Reuters reported, were     3     (space) stone roadways. Plus, scientists also found pyramids, ball game courts and water     4     (engineer).

The Maya civilization was “far more advanced than we thought”, noted The Washington Post. The new findings showed that they were already busy     5     (create) cities in world history at the time, CNN reported. They did all this in a jungle environment,     6     is rare and impressive. They had to clear rainforest areas     7     (farm) and built large underground reservoirs to store rainwater.

    8    , by 900 BC, many Maya cities were abandoned, calling an end     9     the empire. Scientists still don’t know why. With new forms of technology, maybe this mystery and others could     10     (uncover), telling us even more about this fascinating civilization.

The road to a Nobel prize is growing ever longer, with almost half of winners now     1     (wait) more than 20 years from making a Nobel-worthy discovery to receiving the prize.

One analysis shows that the average time between publishing the work and receiving one of the science     2     (prize) has nearly doubled in the past 60 years. “In the early 20th century, Nobel winners were often in     3     (they) 30s, but now it is unheard of,” says Santo Fortunato,     4     published a 2014 analysis of Nobel prizewinners since the award’s conception in 1901. His results showed that the time between winners’ prizewinning research and their Nobel had     5     (slow) increased over the years.

There are a number of possible reasons for this trend. It could be that the overall number of breakthroughs     6     (increase) each year, so awards cannot keep up     7     the number of people who deserve to be recognized. It is also the case that the importance of some works     8     (realize) only years or decades later.

On the other hand, the lengthening gap could be     9     sign that there has been a decrease in ‘disruptive’ science—    10     (importance) studies or discoveries that change the paradigm (范式) of their field. This could be causing the Nobel committees to focus more on the past.