1 . The loss of housing due to floods is an undeniable issue. But now, Japanese housing developer Ichijo Komuten recently unveiled a “flood-resistant house” that can not only remain waterproof during floods, but also float off the ground.

Their new “flood-resistant house” was recently featured on a popular Japanese TV show and it has been getting a lot of attention online ever since. Japan’s TBS TV station recently visited one of Ichijo’s test sites where the company’s new flood-resistant house was being put through a simulated flood. Although it looked just like an ordinary house when the test began, by the time that water started rising around it, viewers could see the structure leave the ground and eventually float a few inches above it.

We’ve all seen floating houses being swept away in severe floods, but Ichijo’s newest invention features a system that prevents just that. The house is connected to a number of thick iron rod(杆)sticking out of the ground with thick cables(缆绳)that ensure it stays in place as the water floods past. When the water recedes, the floating house comes back down in its original position. The “flood-resistant house” also features special vents(通风口))hat close up in the event of flooding, and the plumbing also has special valves that prevent water from getting into the home. Electrical equipment like air conditioning is positioned on the upper half of the building to ensure that water doesn’t reach it.

According to engineers at Ichijo Komuten, most homes flood when water reaches the window level, but because their flood-resistant house can float up to five meters above ground, water is unlikely to reach the windows and everything else is sealed shut.

As an outstanding American gymnast (体操运动员), Simone Biles has won more medals     1     any other gymnast in American history. Although Biles has made great achievements in sports, she had never received     2     college education before. But it has changed. Biles is a college student now.

Biles had planned to go to the University of California Los Angeles,     3     she could go into a classroom and listen to lessons in a traditional way, but her busy life made it nearly impossible     4     (study) full-time at a university. So she     5     (decide) to take some classes at the University of the People, an online university, which     6     (set) up by Shai Reshef, an Israeli-born businessman. It offers degree programs of different levels. Now Biles is working hard to get her first degree, and she is     7     (satisfy) with the online education though she hasn't had a traditional school experience since she went to high school. She was home-schooled during her high school years to save time for her gymnastic     8     (train) .

The school's nontraditional methods are     9     (particular) fit for Biles, and her hard-working spirit     10     (shape) her gymnastic career will help her in her studies as well.

6 . The Nautilus expedition to the Cayman Islands

Hi! I’m Talita and this is my blog! Enjoy!

Day 1: August 15th

Wow! I can’t believe I’m actually here on Nautilus. I’m one of five very lucky students chosen to go on Nautilus’s four-day expedition (探险) to the Cayman Islands. We had a talk from the expedition leader Dr. Katy Croff Bell, about where we’re going and what we’ll be doing. Oh, and all the safety rules as well, of course!

Day 2: August 16th

What an amazing day! In the morning, we met Dr. Robert Ballard, who discovered the wreck (残骸) of the Titanic! After lunch, we had a tour around Nautilus. We looked at the labs, and we went up to the bridge — that’s where the captain of the ship works. I even got a chance to guide the ship! Later we learned about Hercules. This robot is sent deep into the sea to look for shipwrecks, to study the plants and animals, and to look at the rocks in an area.

Day 3: August 17th

This morning we appeared on the Nautilus Live website and talked to students around the world about our expedition. It was amazing — I feel like a real famous person now! The afternoon was NOT cool, however. There was a big storm, and we all felt very seasick!

Day 4: August 18th

This morning was beautiful, and the sea was peaceful. Perfect for a dive. Unfortunately, it was Hercules, not us, who got to go diving. In the afternoon, we arrived at Grand Cayman. Although I’m sad to leave the Nautilus team (especially Hercules), I’m excited to explore the islands and the waters!

7 . Like many young people, Jessica wants to travel the globe. Unlike most of them, this 25-year-old is doing it _______ . She and her husband have spent the last two years traveling the world, stopping everywhere from Paris to Singapore. It might sound like one long, expensive _______ , but the couple has an unusual way to make their travel _______ .

They’re part of a new form of the _______ economy: an online group of house sitters. Throughout their no-cost stays in _______ homes, they feed pets and water plants in the homeowner’s _______ .

It’s not all sightseeing. The two travelers carefully _______ their trips, scheduling their days around the pets that are sometimes difficult to _______ . But house sitting also offers a level of _______ they can’t find in a hotel. “It’s like ________ at a friend’s house,” Jessica says.

The couple has a high ________ rate in getting accepted as house sitters and they always go beyond the homeowner’s ________ . For Jessica, that means ________ plenty of pictures of happy pets, keeping the house ________ and leaving a nice small gift before heading to the next house. “You want to make the homeowner feel that they made the right ________ ,” she says.

8 . I went for a walk up to a local park and Chester was running about. Suddenly, two dogs appeared, attacking him. He got _________ and ran off in an unfamiliar direction. I can only _________ myself-it’s like losing a family member. My daughter didn’t sleep for three days. She just thought her pet was _________.

My family had almost lost _________ until Erica decided to offer her services. She uses a drone(无人机)to help find lost dogs. Equipped with a hi-tech thermal imaging(热成像)camera, the drone can detect heat _________ from 250 feet in the air. _________, when asked to help out in a search for a _________, Erica simply turns up to the dog’s last known _________ and sets up the drone. Having found more than 160 dogs, it’s proved pretty _________.

And it’s easy to see why. Can you __________ Chester running around these woods? To the naked eye(肉眼), it’s virtually impossible, but pop the thermal image up and he jumps out, __________ his owner to bring him safely back home.

Having saved hundreds of dogs, the method is clearly __________. Erica doesn’t __________ for her services and instead does it for the pleasure of seeing the owners __________.

Erica’s drone has helped create countless happy __________ and is sure to make many more in the future.

Rising sea levels are threatening coastlines in China, for example in     1     (city) such as Shanghai, Tianjin and Guangzhou. If sea levels rise by one meter, more than 92,000 square kilometers of China’s coast could be flooded. This could potentially force 67 million people     2     (move) away. Almost two-thirds of the ice in Asia’s glaciers (冰川) could disappear if average global temperature rises beyond 1.5℃ by the end of the century. If that happens, the impacts     3     China will be felt in multiple areas, from water availability, to agriculture, and to biodiversity.

The good news is     4     China is becoming a global leader on climate action. For example, over the last five years, China     5     (use) more solar and wind energy than any other country in the world. China is also the largest clean energy investor in the world —     6     (spend) some $130 billion in new energy in recent years.

The development of electric vehicles is particularly     7     (inspire) in China. More than 50 percent of electric vehicles in the world     8     (sell) in China every year. And China is now a world leader in the     9     (promote) of clean energy technologies.

Ecological civilization has become the cornerstone (基石) of China’s long-term development strategy, much like climate action is     10     important part of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.