Life on Mars

Some people believe humans could live on the planet Mars by the year 2100. Our own planet, the Earth, is becoming more and more crowded and polluted because of the rapid increase in population.     1    (hopeful), people could start all over again and build     2     better world on Mars. Here is what life there could be like. At present, our spacecraft are very slow—it would take     3    (month). With the development of technology, the journey might only take about 20 minutes by 2100 in spacecraft     4     travel at the speed of light!     5    , the spacecraft would travel so fast that the journey might be quite     6     (comfort). Many people would feel ill. Humans cannot survive     7     water, oxygen or food. Nobody knows     8     there would be enough water or oxygen on Mars for people there. Gravity could be another problem. The gravity on Mars     9    (be) only about three-eighths of that on the Earth. People would have to wear boots that are specially designed to prevent     10     from floating off into space. Life on Mars would be interesting as well as challenging.

Cards and digital(数字的) technologies     1    (kill) off cash slowly, but is it a cause for concern? Not     2    (necessary). Here are some ways of making the most of digital finance.

Cash is no longer king. Over recent years fewer and fewer transactions have been made with cash. The most recent figures show coins and notes are used just 34% of     3     time, down from 63% a decade ago. And usage     4    (predict) to fall to just 10% in 15 years.

Instead we’re paying with cards and digital technologies. Some of this is down to user choice, with contactless cards and smartphones making spending     5    (fast) and more convenient.

But it’s also being forced upon us. Some retailers are refusing physical money as they can avoid the high bank charges levied(征收) at them for     6    (handle) cash. Meanwhile it’s harder to get your hands on notes as cash machines and     7    (bank) disappear from the high street. And these are trends which are likely     8    (increase) in the coming years.

This could be bad news if you still primarily use cash,     9     that’s how you pay your bills or how you budget. For some, cash is just what you know. For     10    , cash is a necessity—especially when going digital is the alternative.

As a result this move towards cashless society makes many uneasy.