1 . Shaine is not your average 16-year-old. In fact, she has turned her love of animals into a _______ to make a big difference in the lives of _______ pets. In her spare time, Shaine makes wheelchairs for dogs and cats.

For many pet owners, the cost of buying mobility (移动) equipment is not _______, so many dogs get _______ because they’re disabled. Wheelchairs usually go for more than $1, 000. But Shaine only _______ for the parts. She does this through the nonprofit that she _______ in 2020.

“I really had to _______ that she took the money at least for the _______,” Jennifer said. Jennifer’s dog was born with front legs shorter than her back legs and needed a way to be mobile before and after _______ surgery. Latham said, “If she isn’t mobile, we’ll kill her, and that shouldn’t be a(n) __________.”

Shaine was taking a(n) __________ science class in her high school. When a class discussion __________ exploring careers, she was __________ unsure what direction she wanted to go in. She thought about starting her own animal __________ after discovering animal wheelchairs, and the idea __________.

Shaine is __________ building a wheelchair for a dog named Scooter from Saudi Arabia. Scooter was at risk for __________ sores (疮) on his back legs that could have led to __________. Now, he is getting a new __________ in life. She has already made 10 devices that have given the gift of mobility to disabled pets. Her goal is to make some __________ of wheelchairs to animal shelters.

I’m not Chinese, but I love Chinese New Year. There are many fun New Year     1     (celebrate), but nothing quite matches the excitement of the lion dance which can wake up the spirit     2     (complete).

The sound of the drums,       3     you can feel throughout your entire body, is quite inspiring. The two performers are very flexible. But it is actually very difficult as the lion head is very heavy and being the     4     (low)part of the lion is tiring as he has to bend his back and also carry     5     person in front sometimes. The lion head is made with paper over a bamboo frame,       6     (cover)in gauze (纱布), and decorated with beautifully-colored materials.

The lion dance     7     (believe)to have first appeared in the Qianlong Emperor's dream during his Southern tour, and he ordered an animal     8     (make)in the likeness of his description and used in festivals from then on.

I love all about the lion dance. The other day, I saw a film about a left-behind teenager who insisted on pursuing his dreams despite difficulties and     9     (succeed)in lion dance. As Master Xu translates: “Heaven has made us talents; we’re not made     10     vain.”

4 . Skeleton is one of the three sliding sports at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, alongside the luge(单雪橇)and bobsleigh(大雪橇). With only six medals up for grabs, skeleton has the fewest events at the Winter Games—which means competition will be fierce.

The sport of skeleton has its roots in the most popular winter pastime: sleighing. In the mid-19^th century, British and American holidaymakers built the first toboggan(平底雪橇)run in Davos in 1882, and thus the sport of sleighing began.

Two years later, in 1884, the famed Cresta Run—a natural ice skeleton racing toboggan track—was built in St. Moritz, Switzerland(the course has hosted the annual Grand National championships since 1885).

In 1892, a new sledge made entirely of steel was introduced, and some claim that its bony appearance gave the sledge and the sport the name ‘skeleton’.

Men’s skeleton was first introduced on the Olympic program in the 1928 Games in St. Moritz. But due to the sport only being available at the Cresta Run at the time, it fell into obscurity(默默无闻)while the luge and bobsleigh grew in popularity. However, in 2002, the skeleton was reintroduced as a men’s and women’s event at the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, and has remained a part of the Olympic program ever since.

While Great Britain has the most medals(nine)in skeleton competition at the Olympics, the top spot belongs to the United States(eight medals)by virtue of having four silvers to Great Britain’s one(both nations have three golds, while Britain has five bronze medals, and the United States one).

Great Britain is the only nation to have won a medal every time skeleton has featured at the Olympic Games, and has won at least one medal in each of the five contests of women’s skeleton since its introduction.

6 . 24 Solar Terms: 5 things about Major Snow

Major Snow, the 21st solar term of the year, which falls on Dec 7 this year. During Major Snow, the snow becomes heavy and begins to accumulate on the ground. The temperature drops significantly. Here are 5 things you should know about Major Snow.

Snowy winter

The snow in North China may last a whole day, breaking tree branches and blocking the road. In the south, snowflakes fall and the world turns white. A proverb about the snow says, "A timely snow promises a good harvest".     1    

    2    

The red plum blossoms (梅花) in contrast with the white snowy world is a feast for the eyes and have inspired many great poems. The plum blossom, which originated in China, is respected in Chinese culture for its bravery against severe winters.

Eating lamb

Lamb is a favorite food for Chinese people during Major Snow.     3     People in Chongqing like to have potted lamb soup with their families and friends. Nanjing residents like to stew lamb with some plants to make it more nutritious.

Making sausages

During Major Snow, people in southern China make sausages, an important part of preparation for the Spring Festival.    4    . The sausage should be dried in the shade, and is edible after a week.

Preventing respiratory (呼吸道的) illness

During this period, Chinese people watch for outbreaks of respiratory illness, which can be prevented by wearing a warm scarf to protect the neck and properly drinking water.    5    . At the same time, don't drink cold water after exercise.

8 . Lost &Found

Recently, CTtransit changed the Lost &. Found policy and procedures. If you have lost an item on a CTtransit bus, you must first call Lost & Found and speak with a Customer Service Representative for your area. If CTtransit is in possession of your lost item, and you can confirm ownership, then you may schedule a time to get your item back.

If you have scheduled a time with Customer Service to get back your lost item, when you arrive at the facility gate, give your name to the security guard. You must have a photo ID available to show CTtransit Security or another form of valid ID to confirm your date of birth and address. The security guard will direct you to the pick-up location.

If you misplace something on the bus, there is a good chance that we will find it. Each day, operators pick up articles left on their buses and turn them in to the office. Lost items that are recovered are kept for 30 days. CTtransit is not responsible for items left on the buses.

CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER FOR LOST & FOUND

New Haven Area

2061State Street

Hamden, CT 06517-3834

203-624-0151

Phone number for the Hearing-Impaired (听障人士): 203-785-8960

Phone Center Hours: Monday to Saturday 6: 30 am to 6: 30 pm；Sunday/Holidays 7: 00 am to 6: 00 pm

Lost &Found: Monday to Friday 8: 30 am to 4: 30pm.

Hartford Area

100Leibert Road

Hartford, Connecticut CT 06120

860-525-9181

Phone number for the Hearing-Impaired：203-785-8960

Phone Center Hours: Monday to Saturday 6: 30 am to 9: 30 pm；Sunday/Holidays 7: 00 am to 7: 00 pm

Lost & Found: Monday to Friday 8: 30 am to 4: 30 pm.

Stamford Area

21 Elm Court

Stamford, CT06902

203-327-7433

Phone number for the Hearing-Impaired：203-327-2404

Phone Center Hours: Monday to Saturday 6: 30 am to 6: 30 pm

Lost &Found: Monday to Saturday 6: 30 am to 6: 30 pm.

9 . If you’re putting together a team for a project, you might tend to pick people with cheerful, optimistic characters and flexible thinking. But a new management study indicates your team might also benefit from people who have the opposite emotions (情感), according to experts from some universities.

The study, co-authored by Jing Zhou, investigates (研究) the effects of "team affective (情感的) diversity" on team creativity. The paper is among the first research to show how, why and under what condition teams "affective diversity" promotes team creativity

Team members with what researchers call "negative affect" exhibit critical and continuous thinking that allows them to find problems needing solutions, as well as to search out and critically evaluate relevant information. On the other hand, team members with "positive affect" engage in broad and flexible thinking that expands their range of information and helps them see unusual and creative connections, the researchers say.

"At any given point of time, some team members may experience positive affect such as joy and inspiration, while others may experience negative affect such as frustration and worry," Zhou said. "Instead of trying to homogenize (使类同) team members' affect, teams should enthusiastically accept affective diversity.”

When a team experiences a high level of this "affective diversity", what Zhou describes as "dual-tuning (双调谐)" leads to greater creativity.

"Our study suggests that teams may be aided in using their affective diversity via involvements that focus on building the team's memory system, which can be accelerated when team members spend time together, share goals, receive information about member specializations and train on the task together," Zhou said.