Over the past few days, a number of forest fires     1    (break) out in Chongqing and its surrounding areas due to the extremely dry and hot weather. Many rescue personnel and volunteers participated in the rescue overnight,    2    moved a lot of people across the country. The mountain fires in several regions in Chongqing have been     3    (eventual) put out on Friday morning. No casualties have been reported.

Chongqing motorcyclists are being praised     4    heroes for volunteering to transport much-needed supplies to the fire and rescue workers     5    (fight) the wildfires caused by prolonged heat and drought across multiple districts in the municipality(自治市).

Facing the tough situation, the city government called for volunteers with related skills and experience     6    (join) the firefighting,     7    a large number of motorcyclists have played an important role and won widespread praise. The team members, with     8    average age of 29, took turns to use five dirt bikes and four scooters to carry materials and equipment to firefighters and to transport people and     9    (necessary).

The example of a foreign teacher who volunteered to help fight the raging wildfires in Chongqing’s Beibei district with other local residents has touched many.

When all the people     10    (unite), peace will reign across the country.

The English word “garden” gives an entirely wrong idea of the Chinese yuan, for “garden” suggests a lawn and an infinite       1       (vary) of flowers, altogether too prim (呆板的) and tidy to suit Chinese taste. The Chinese yuan suggests first of all a wild landscape, perhaps better arranged and more artistically       2     (plan) than nature, but still a bit of nature itself, with trees, creeks, and flowers. Dotted in this natural landscape are the human structures like pavilions and long winding corridors, so       3       (perfect) belonging to the scenery as to become a whole with it. The Chinese garden       4       (characterize) by studied disorderliness. There are no even-cut bushes or symmetric (对称的) rows lining avenues as if in battle formation.

No Chinese mansion allows an outsider       5       (look) through theiron gates at along drive, for that would be against the principle of concealment.       6       (face) the   gate, we see a small courtyard giving no idea of the expansiveness of space inside, and leading one step by step into newer views, in       7       continual series of surprises and astonishments. With wooden framework       8       (bear) most of the weight of the house, windows, doors and walls are not restricted to certain locations. The essential idea of interior (室内的) decoration is the beauty of simplicity. Home designs are not something fancy we buy from a first-class firm. What distinguishes a home       9       a public building is the personal touch that we give it. It is only when the spirit of leisure and loving care exists       10       living at home can become an art and a pleasure.

Adaptation from My Country and My People by LinYutang

The once-futuristic idea of sequencing every newborn child’s DNA to screen for genes that could shape their future health is being put to two major tests. The United Kingdom this week announced plans to sequence the genomes(基因组)of 100, 000 newborns for about 200 rare genetic diseases starting next year. In New York City, a similar project     1    (screen)100, 000 babies.

The goal is to catch treatable diseases that standard newborn screening cannot detect.     2     sequencing delivers an early warning of a problem, the baby could receive care that prevents permanent disability or even death.

But sequencing the full genomes of new-borns raises a host of ethical questions, including     3     will get access to the data, and whether     4     will needlessly worry parents by revealing genes that may never cause serious illness. “We’re really aware of the     5    (complex) of the questions, ” says Richard Scott, chief medical officer for Genomics England, the government-funded company     6    (run) the U. K. project. At the same time, he says, “There is a really pressing need“ to detect more childhood diseases.

In many countries,     7     drop of blood from every newborn’s heel is screened, using mostly biochemical     8    (test), for up to several dozen genetic diseases. They range from metabolic disorders     9     can be treated with a special diet to muscle diseases that have drug treatments. Whole-genome sequencing, which is much     10    (costly)-up to $1000, could detect many more disorders, such as thyroid conditions that can cause brain damage.

This year, August 15th marked China’s first National Ecology Day,    1    aims to raise awareness of environmental protection and address unlawful activities and safeguard the development of forestry and grassland resource    2    law.

The establishment of National Ecology Day will enhance ecological understanding among the public and help the nation    3    (well) participate in global environment and climate governance.

The move     4    (see) as part of China’s efforts to build an ecological civilization, a concept that glorifies balanced and sustainable development and harmonious coexistence between    5    (human) and nature    6    promotes the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

China’s laws and administrative regulations    7    (involve) the environment and ecology,    8    (base) on what environmental difficulties villagers are eager to solve and what ecological measures should be taken urgently from their opinions, have laid a solid legislative (立法的) foundation for the ecological civilization.

    9    makes Aug. 15 special is that on that day in 2005, the concept of “lucid waters and lush mountains” was first put forward, being    10    (value) assets.

Shennongjia is a household name in China because it’s the home of the legendary “wild man”. Its folk tale spans the generations.

Between 1976 and 1981, the Chinese Academy of Sciences organized three large scale     1       (science) investigations. They have collected hair, footprints and waste suspected of belonging     2     a “wild man”, but some experts argue that most were the result of bears, monkeys or even human beings. They failed     3     (uncover) the myth of “wild man”, but discovered the area’s rich biodiversity. Although several hundred people have claimed     4     (they) as eyewitnesses of some giant apelike creatures in Shennongjia, there is no tangible evidence to confirm the     5     (exist) of a “wild man”.

Nowadays, Shennongjia’s attraction is not merely about “wild man”. Its appeal     6     (be) more about its lively ecology, rich biodiversity and karst landforms. Shennongjia’s beauty varies over the year as nature     7     (take) its course. Tourists can enjoy flower blossoms in spring, be shaded from the summer heat, appreciate red leaves in autumn     8     go skiing in winter.

The “wild man” legend has been passed on for generations by word-of- mouth. In 2016, the legend of "wild man" in Shennongjia     9     (add) to Hubei province’s intangible cultural heritage list. Today, tourists can visit Wild Man Cave,     10     eyewitnesses claimed that they spotted the creatures, and see “wild man” sculptures.

Loulan,    1    ancient city on the Silk Road, brings back    2    (image) of mystery and romanticism even as it disappears into the mists of history.

Shiji,or Records of the Grand Historian, the foundational text of Chinese history    3    (date) back to the first century BC, records that before the 2nd century BC,Loulan was already famous in Xiyu.    4    , it collapsed in about the 5th century. In 1900,Swedish explorer Sven Hedin discovered the site of ancient Loulan.

    5    (locate) in Lop Nur, a former salt lake which    6    (dry) up to a large extent now, in Ruoqiang county, Bayingolin Mongol autonomous prefecture,Xinjiang, the Loulan site covers an area of about 120,000 square meters,    7    extremely harsh environment ensured that few people set foot on this area. In the 1990s, when mummies were discovered in this area, grave robbers noticed the wealth of cultural relics.    8    (tackle)the situation, a Loulan cultural relics protection station was built in 1998. At first it was    9    (season), and later became permanent in 2003.

Over the years, five stations have been built in Lop Nur, and altogether 20 people    10    (work) at them safeguarding heritage, according to Feng Jing, director of Loulan Museum in Ruoqiang.

Quyi is a general term for all kinds of talking and singing arts in China. It originated from oral literature, the talking and singing performances of ancient people. It refers     1     (primary) to storytelling, accompanied by body movements. There are many different types of quyi-performance in China, such as comic dialogues, degu, pingshu and shuanghuang, among    2    the crosstalk is most popular,

The crosstalk, also     3     (know) as xiangsheng in Chinese, a kind of folk art with “comic” dialogues began as     4     form of Street performance and is generally thought to have taken form in the late Qing Dynasty, particularly during the rule of the Xianfeng Emperor and the Tongzhi Emperor in the mid-1800s.

The crosstalk realizes     5     (it) artistic presentation by means of imitation, talking, teasing, and singing. The jokes     6     (hide) in the baofu, or “package”. When the right time comes, they are suddenly spilled out, just like the funny stuff being thrown out of a carefully, wrapped package, thus unexpectedly but logically with a second thought,    7     (cause) the audience to laugh. Most of the crosstalk     8     (story) come from daily life. Others are based on folk jokes, historic legends, events and word games. The stage props (道具) are quite simple: a fan, a handkerchief     9     a table will be adequate. Normally, a crosstalk performance is done by two people. Up to now, the crosstalk has become a nationwide    10     (entertain) loved by different walks of people.