1 . In 2014, a second year student at the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts went to Beijing Zoo with friends. Little did he know that an encounter at the aquarium there would ________ a lifelong passion. As Xu Yitang ________ corals of complex shapes in the glow of the tank’s light, a sense of wonder washed over him. Lost in the beauty and ________ of the creatures, he spent the entire afternoon in front of the tank.

Today, Xu, a Beijing native, has ________ Hainan Province, where he serves as a coral ________ for a Sanya-based tropical biological laboratory.

Each day, he spends several hours diving deep under the waves to observe and ________ the growth of the creatures that ________ him all those years ago. In the laboratory, he would film ________ videos of the artificial coral breeding system to explain the relationship between corals and reefs. His goal was to raise ________ and knowledge about corals, so that people can learn how to protect them ________.

Xu is actively engaged on social media platforms like Sina Weibo, where he regularly shares ________ amazing photos and entertaining videos of corals. He aims to encourage individuals to ________ to protecting coral: reefs and the oceans as a whole from the ________ impact of climate change and human activities.

While pursuing his passion to protect corals, he met his life partner, Liu Xiwen, through their ________ hobby of diving in Hainan. The couple have been invited to share their stories in the recently released online program Burning Youth that aims to use documentary shorts and ________ studio interviews to present the inspiring stories of young Chinese people from various walks of life.

2 . Flooding was fairly usual for a Queensland summer. This time, however, there had been a lot of rain and flash flooding further north which _________ ran down to the river.

My younger brother was getting _________ and thought we should evacuate. We spent hours trying to _________ him down. The water had never gotten to less than 1 to 2 meters away from our street level. After a few more _________, the water levels were getting much higher than we’d seen before and we thought it best if we moved our cars to the higher _________ just in case it got to the street level. Later, we _________ a lot of furniture and electronics upstairs.

Finally, we decided to _________. The water was getting close to the street level, which only meant another foot from _________ our bottom floor. We left to spend the _________ with my cousin who lived in a neighborhood close by. We heard that the water had __________ further, but had no idea how far as it was dark and we couldn’t see anything from our cousin’s house.

The __________ moment was when we finally got to see our house. There is a high school behind our house, which __________ at the base of this large hill, with an elevated sports oval (高架椭圆形体育场) right behind our house. The water at its __________ was about 2 inches from being level with the oval. We __________ it to survey our house. Seeing water lapping (轻拍) at the windows of our bedroom on the second floor of our house was the most unbelievable __________ I had ever seen.

3 . My photographs are the items I would definitely take or guard in case of an emergency. But what else? This was the question I asked myself as a ________ came toward us.

Unlike some friends and________, we decided to stay in our home. We didn’t have to choose what we would save by ________ it into the car, but we still had to decide what required protection by storing it in our walk-in closet. Surprisingly, few items made the cut - an obvious ________ that we had surrounded ourselves with beautiful yet unessential items. We needed ________ for the truly important things: ourselves.

Because when you hear the roar of the winds, or when something ________ hard against your windows, you don’t think of photos.You don’t worry about your big screen TV, or those paintings you’ve covered with towels to protect them, or that ________ car that you still haven’t finished paying for.

As ________ goes on outside, this is what you think: My children, are they OK? Are their impact-resistant(耐冲击的) windows working ________? Are their roofs keeping out the damage? My grandchildren, are they crying out in fear? Are they ________ as their own grandparents are? My relatives — yes, even those I try to avoid — have they ________ the worst of it? My friends, will they be forced to move somewhere else permanently? You don’t think about what you own but about what you love; what money can’t buy back.

Months and years after the hurricane, I often told people that there are two parts to ________ this kind of catastrophe: the horror of the hurricane itself and then the rebuilding that follows. The ________ together of a life, however, will take months, perhaps years.

But we will do it, ________ and as a community. Of that I have no doubt. In fact, I’ll make one more prediction. Piece by piece, item by item, we will once again collect the material possessions that decorate a home. I hate to admit this, but lessons learned ________ fear aren’t always long-lasting.

4 . Disney announced Tuesday that it has partnered with Impossible Foods to serve plant-based hamburgers at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. Impossible Foods makes hamburgers that taste like meat but are made from plants instead of ______ . They’re popular with customers who are ______ meat to protect animals and the environment. This agreement with Disney is a big step toward that ______ .

The plant-based product isn’t just another kind of ______ hamburgers on the menu. Supporters argue that they could ______ most of the problems related to animal meat. All around the world, many people like the taste of meat and demand for meat products keeps ______ . But traditional hamburgers involve (涉及) animal cruelty and public health problems, and ______ a lot of greenhouse gases.

Now plant-based hamburgers run to the ______ ! They don’t involve raising animals on factory farms. And a(n) ______ of the plant-based hamburger shows that it has a smaller carbon footprint. It also uses 87% less water and 96% less land. That’s a huge ______ .

That’s why Americans have been increasingly interested in meat replacements that don’t require them to ______ what they love about meat: the flavor and taste. The teams behind the plant-based meat products work to ______ their products have the flavor and cooking experience of meat.

“Our ______ have warmly welcomed our plant-based products at Disneyland. We are ______ to expand our menu,” Disney wrote in the announcement. “With the Impossible partnership, we are expanding our menu further to give even more visitors the ______ to get a taste of plant-based foods.”

5 . Joseph Dituri hasn’t seen the sun for days. The biomedical engineer has been underwater, with the goal of spending 100 days there in the name of ________. Dituri is living in Jules’ Undersea Lodge in Florida. The100-square-foot hotel is his intended home until the mission finishes, where he’ll ________ his research.

The submerged stay, if ________, will also break the previous record of 73 days set by two Tennessee educators in 2014.

During the project, Dituri is attempting to ________ the effects of living in a high-pressure environment for a(n)________ period. The human body has-never been underwater that long, so he will be ________ closely. For example, he’ll be ________ to electrocardiograms, which measure the heart’s function. “I ________ there will be improvements to my health,” Dituri said. His assumption is not made ________—a previous study indicated potential ________ of pressure exposure to cell growth. Dituri hopes this journey could ________ the treatment for age-related diseases.

Beyond research, the project is also a chance to promote ocean ________ “The ocean is in a bit of trouble,” Dituri said in a video. “We also want to use the attention that the 100-day mission would draw to________ young people’s curiosity and passion.” Dituri will invite about 40 children to stay with him for 24 hours at a time.

“________ I only stayed 60 days, I eventually would turn a whole bunch of kids on to the exploration of the sea. That would be a ________,” he said in an interview.

6 . I was leaving the dog park when I found a baby goat over the fence. As the park owner is an animal rescuer, I figured someone _________ the kid there. With fear in his eyes, he was visibly _________ but stood perfectly still as I approached. The tiny kid was too adorable to _________. I named him Quincy and took him home.

I love to _________ animals. Quincy turned out to be quite _________. When he was about a week old, I playfully tapped my fingers on the floor and said “_________.” I was _________ when he really dropped on the ground. I was even more amazed when he did it smoothly several times. Being a _________, Quincy was able to jump, bow, and turn in a circle in no time. He soon _________ my dogs, whom he considers his family.

Now Quincy and my dogs perform regularly at nursing homes. Quincy did his first show when he was __________ six weeks old He knew only a few __________ then, but he did them perfectly and never __________ or got nervous. __________, Quincy can even “read” his tricks on flash cards, which always earns the most __________.

It’s hard to believe that the goat kid nobody wanted __________ to be by far the sharpest of my bunch — just don’t tell the dogs!

7 . Ben raced out of school. He jumped over piles of snow on the road and ________ down a toboggan (雪橇) run in the park. Looking ________ the mountain he saw something moving. Could it be a horse?

At dinner Ben said firmly, “I saw horses on the mountain today.” “Then they must be ________ by all this snow,” his father said. “We have to do something.” Ben said ________. But how could they get horses down through the deep snow? The family had a ________ meeting. Someone suggested using a helicopter to lift horses out. But they’d probably break their legs when ________. Finally Ben said “We’ll just have to dig a tunnel.” “Then we need a lot of people shoveling (用铁锹铲).” Dad said. Ben could ________ he was warming to the idea.

“We’ll find some!” said Ben. He ________ his coat and boots.

Ben went from door to door asking everyone to come and help. Then the family took the snowmobile up the mountain. On the remote mountain path was ________ and deep snow. At last they reached the ________ where the horses stood. The two horses looked pretty bad. Ben ________ them a sugar cube from his pocket. They started shoveling, ________ temperatures reaching -40°F. Ben’s fingers were frozen, and his nose felt numb. Suddenly, a group of snowmobilers with shovels and hot chocolate followed Ben and his father’s ________ up the mountain. For the next week, people came and shoveled every day, and a deep, narrow path very slowly ________ down the mountain. The abandoned horses were ________.

8 . I once rescued a distrustful horse and now he lives peacefully on my farm. But the________to Bob’s recovery was nothing I did. It was my grandson, Paul.

Paul came with his parents for a vacation. Bob kept his distance from the________, but he seemed________by this little visitor. So we decided to________them. “Move slowly, be quiet and bend down sometimes,” I told my grandson. Paul________approached Bob, step by step, holding a soft comb. He________Bob’s shoulders and neck softly with the comb, removing the remains of Bob’s thick winter coat. It’s hard for a four-year-old to stay________for long, but he did it. Paul made one quick move, and Bob shyly________. But they were not ready to give up. Paul approached again.

To________a preschooler’s learning to control himself in such a short time was________. As we watched, true love ________. Over the next few days, Bob let Paul throw his arms around his________, and pat his legs. And Paul felt________to sit at Bob’s feet while Bob carefully nibbled (咬) his shirt collar and hair. Bob even hugged Paul — yes, a horse can hug — without knocking him off________. Bob is now a(n)________and trusting horse and Paul a miracle worker.

9 . Old Joe and his son Tony were on their way to catch fish. Old Joe drove the car and Tony _________ in the back seat. As he drove slowly along the empty road in the early _________, he looked down at his hands. Not long ago he had worked hard with those hands, but now, they did not do much. Suddenly, he _________ something in the middle of the road. He stopped the car _________.

“What’s wrong?” Tony shot up in the back seat and asked in a sleepy voice.

Old Joe turned on the high beams (远光灯) and said, “It’s one of those _________ fish-killing turtles.”

Tony opened his eyes wide and saw a strange thing. Suddenly it moved a little and left sharp marks in the dirt. Then it _________.

“These turtles kill fish. Let me _________ him,” Tony said.

“You are not going to kill it,” Joe said.

“Why not?” Tony asked. “Turtles kill our fish! The _________ fish they eat, the less we can catch.”

“Poor old thing,” old Joe said. “In the water you could cut down your enemies with those sharp claws (爪子). But here you are as _________ as a baby.”

“Dad, you talk like a tired old woman!” Tony said impatiently. “All right! You __________.”

“It would be different in the water, wouldn’t it, turtle?” old joe __________ his son and continued. “Only I can understand how you feel. It must be __________ to have no hope.”

Old Joe walked behind the turtle and __________ pushed the turtle to the side of the road. As old Joe waited until it __________ into the tall grass, Tony __________ the car and stood beside his father. The two men looked at each other in the bright morning sun.

10 . Sadness hit me when I realized that 4 p. m. had gone unnoticed. Every day, a few minutes before the________, my cute dog, Jake, used to stare at me, pushing me to get his dinner. Now Jake is gone, and the disappearance of the comforting pace he brought to my days is like a minute-by-minute________of my loss. Friends comfort me by telling me I________ him. But a rescue organization did that. By the time I met him at an________ event, he had already been saved, just not settled.

The real story is that Jake saved me. Before Jake, I was________ from the world by a sheet of dirty glass. Me on one side, everything and everyone else on the other. I avoided socializing. I________reached out I assumed the worst in people and figured they saw the________ in me.

Then I started________this little creature around my neighborhood. Jake never rushed. He ________everything. So I started to notice the rhythm of the neighborhood. I’d________hellos with those in my block and start making small talk with my________. who I’d lived across the hall from for seven years without a word.________ , we developed a real friendship.

Jake was 2 when I adopted him, I was told. In ________ he was between 4 and 6. Whatever had happened in his________ life left him anxious and little trust in humans. But he came to trust me and his trust developed into something else — that this________ little dog learned to be loved, same as me.