The Giant Panda National Park,     1     officially came into being in 2021, is a hugely ambitious project.     2     (cover) an area of 27, 000 square kilometers of countryside in Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces, the park is a massive drive     3     (protect) China’s pandas.

In Wannian Village, however, the news     4     (greet) with some anxiety. Thousands of people were already living in the area when the park was announced. And many of them were making a living through     5     (activity) that were illegal under the new policy.

For decades, mining and hydropower (水电) were the main industries in Wannian. The projects were     6     (profit) and created a lot of jobs. But the mines were ruinous to the local environment.

There only appeared to be one way out: turning the village     7     a tourist hotspot. Wannian has several natural advantages: it’s only 200 kilometers from Chengdu. The village also sits right on the southern tip of the park, making it     8     great jumping-off point for visitors. Plus, the nearby panda training center is famous all over China.

Local officials     9     (immediate) set about rebranding (重塑形象) Wannian as a “panda village”. The place was given a complete makeover. Cute panda sculptures were placed along the winding path leading from the highway. The newly     10     (build) hotels have attracted visitors nationwide.

3 . Time was introduced to us when we were just kids and only knew the playing hours, but when we grew up, we got our own senses about how important “The Time” is. There is a story on time management which can give you some guidance.

A philosophy professor, once, decided to teach the students a valuable lesson about Time Management, so he stood before his class with some items on the table. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a big and empty jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, about 2 inches in size. He then looked towards the class and asked the students if the jar was full. They all agreed that it was full. Therefore, the professor then moved to pick up a box of pebbles (鹅卵石) and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar gently. The pebbles, of course, rolled through the gaps between the rocks.

He then again looked up to the students and asked if the jar was full. They all again nodded their heads. For the last time, he turned towards the jar, this time, picked up a box of sand, poured it into the jar and shook it lightly. Of course, the sand moved into the gaps and filled up everything else. He then asked students for the last time if the jar was full or not. The students were surprised but responded with a unanimous “Yes.”

“Now,” said the professor, “I want you to realize that this jar actually is your life. The rocks are the important things — like your family, your children, your health, your partner. If nothing remained but only these, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter — like your job, your career, your house. The sand is everything else, the unimportant stuff.” “If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued “there is no space for the pebbles or the rocks.”

“The same goes for your life. If you keep on filling the jar with the sand, it means that you keep on spending all your time and energy on the pity things and you will never have room for the things that are important for you. First and foremost, focus on the rocks — the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

5 . It all began on a cold, rainy day．

Sarah, a poor single mother, was ________ to make ends meet. While waiting for the bus with her two children, Sarah ________ an old man sitting on a nearby bench. He was shivering (颤抖), his ________ jacket providing little protection against the freezing weather.

Sarah ________ the man and offered him her coat. She knew it would make her cold, but the thought of this stranger ________ while she had something to give was too much to bear. ________ by her selflessness, the man thankfully accepted the coat and gave back a smile. Little did Sarah know that her simple act of ________ would make a huge difference.

A man, who saw the heartwarming ________, took a photo and shared it on social media. The post quickly became a ________, with thousands of people sharing and commenting on Sarah’s ________. Encouraged by her, people began organizing events to ________ those less lucky. Schools added lessons on the ________ of helping others, and businesses started a “pay it forward” project, where people could buy more and leave the ________ meal for those in need.

Reflecting on this unbelievable journey, we can ________ our individual power, which may create an effect that would ________ reach every corner of the globe.

6 . Major Sports Leagues in the US

NFL

Formed in 1920, the National Football League has a religious following in the US and around the world. It’s one of the most profitable leagues in the whole world. The NFL consists of 32 teams, which are sub-divided into NFC and AFC, which compete against each other every year to win the Super Bowl, the halftime show of which features major hit musicians.

NBA

Initially formed in 1946 as the BAA (Basketball Association of America), it merged (合并) with National Basketball League in 1949 and changed its name to NBA. The National Basketball Association might not be the biggest sports league financially, but it has a larger international following than other leagues. The keyword “NBA” was among the most googled keywords in 2021, which indicates how popular it is in the world.

MLB

Baseball is considered to be the national pastime activity of the US and the Major League Baseball is its highest level in the country. The MLB might not be popular as NFL in other parts of the world, but international supporters still make a large portion of the total fanbase. Formed in 1903, the MLB is the oldest US sports league and now has 30 teams, which was a merger between the National League and the American League.

NHL

Founded in 1917, the National Hockey League is the second-oldest sports league in the US and Canada and consists of a total of 32 teams. Three of the best performing teams from each division make it to the playoffs plus two wild card teams. All teams compete to win the prestigious Stanley Cup. Most of NHL’s revenue comes from TV and gate receipts with hockey-crazed Canadians being the primary market.

10 . Self-driving cars are hitting city streets like never before. In August the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) granted (授予) two companies, Cruise and Waymo, permits to run driverless robo-taxis 24/7 in San Francisco and to charge passengers for those rides. This was just the latest in a series of green lights that have allowed progressively more freedom for autonomous vehicles (AVs) in the city in recent years.

Almost immediately, Cruise was criticized for its vehicles behaving unpredictably. One blocked the road outside a large music festival, and another got stuck in wet concrete. The incidents have brought renewed attention to the potential difficulties of integrating self-driving cars into the urban environment.

Yet despite some ongoing opposition, self-driving car companies have continued to expand testing and operations to more US cities. Many supporters say these vehicles could offer a safer alternative to human drivers, make transportation accessible to more people, improve traffic flows around cities and decrease the environmental impact of cars. So far, though, most of those promised benefits remain squarely in a possible future. Meanwhile, here in the present, complications have become plainly apparent.

AVs, such as those operated by Cruise and Waymo, shouldn’t be confused with commercially available cars, such as electric cars, which come with some driver-assistance features. Unlike those vehicles, which require a human driver to oversee control at all times, robo-taxis run on the road without a person monitoring and managing each movement from behind a steering wheel (方向盘). This is made possible by a very detailed internal map.

Waymo and Cruise maintain that their AVs are safer than human drivers. Both companies have released data that they claim support this, yet some researchers have their doubts. “I actually think there is not yet enough data available to the public, including researchers like me, to be able to judge relative safety,” says Steven Shladover, an engineer at the University of California.