3 . A young man woke up one morning under a bridge. _________, he had nothing but a few dollars. He was _________ as he never found a job. He bought food with his last _________and as he sat down, an old man and two thin and weak children came along. The old man asked him to help them with food _________they had not eaten since a week ago.

With the last bit of _________he had, he gave them all the food he bought. The old man and children thanked the young man and gave him a dirty old coin. The young man said. “You need this coin more than I do—just keep it.” The old man _________ that the young man put it in his pocket— and _________ he did.

Going back under the bridge, the young man suddenly saw an advertisement on an old newspaper_________ people with old coins to come to a particular store. He decided to go there with the coin. As he showed the dirty old coin, the owner screamed loudly, _________ a book and told the young man this old __________was worth $67,000 dollars. The young man was __________ as the owner gave him a check for the full amount. He immediately __________ it at the bank and went ________ the old man and children to thank them and share the money.

However, no one showed up except a lady who came over and handed him a note __________ “You gave us all you had and we have __________ you with the coin.”

4 . Vegan Agriculture

Vegan farming (全素农业) has become more and more popular. It is one of the most environmentally-friendly forms of agriculture. Vegan farming is a good way to grow plants such as vegetables without using animal-derived materials such as their waste.     1     Such an approach to farming also helps preserve the environment and regain soil richness and improve its biodiversity.

    2    Organic farming uses natural products to grow plants — that can include even animal waste as fertilizers. On the other hand, vegan agriculture rejects animal-derived products and usually sticks with plant-based organic compounds, which means that, in general, vegan agriculture has stricter rules than organic farming.

Additionally, vegan farming usually chooses more natural ways to protect the plants, like breaking cycles of plants’ diseases with mixed cropping (混作), using mechanical barriers such as nets, or even attracting opposing organisms to fight the harmful ones.     3     However, they might be less effective against certain plant diseases or pests.

One of the reasons to invest in vegan agriculture is that the vegan way of farming replaces synthetic (合成的) pesticides and uses organic pesticides or other non-chemical methods to protect the crops. By contrast, in conventional agriculture, synthetic pesticides are on a very high level.     4    

In the future, it is of great significance not to rely on animals’ waste for feeding plants. Doing so is not only beneficial to vegans.     5     Even if today’s methods of vegan agriculture might not be perfect, scientists worldwide, together with vegan farmers, are working towards developing plant-based solutions as alternatives to animal-derived fertilizers.

5 . You drink diet soda enjoying the sweet taste without the guilt of calories. But scientists have long suspected a link between artificial sweeteners(甜味剂)and obesity in humans. A new study suggests that artificial sweeteners may not be as harmless as once thought. They may not only disturb the microbes(微生物)living in the bodies of humans, but some may even increase the risk of weight gain.

Every human hosts a unique group of microbes. The number of cells that make up this vast community, called microbiome(微生物群), is extremely large in the human body. It not only helps digestion but also protects against diseases. The disturbance to the microbiome occurs because artificial sweeteners, although zero calories for humans, serve as nutrients for some microbes, which then increase rapidly. This causes an imbalance in microbial populations that can lead to diseases.

In the study, scientists first chose 1,375 volunteers to see if they consumed artificial sweeteners in their daily lives. Then, they identified 120 volunteers who were not previously exposed to artificial sweeteners and gave them one of the four commonly used sweeteners—saccharin, sucralose, aspartame, and stevia for two weeks. After that, to test how artificial sweeteners affect the body’s ability to control the sudden increase of blood sugar after consuming sugar as part of meals, volunteers were monitored for blood glucose(血糖)levels after a test glucose drink.

The study showed that sucralose and saccharin pushed the body towards glucose intolerance, which, if sustained, can cause weight gain. However, aspartame and stevia did not affect glucose tolerance at the tested levels. “The study is the first to show that the human microbiome responds to artificial sweeteners. It’s also a convincing study to show how these sweeteners really are affecting the human body,” says Michael Goran, a professor at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

“This study provides evidence of both short-term harmful effects and long-term negative effects caused by artificial sweeteners,” David Katz, a nutrition specialist, says. “That does not mean artificial sweeteners should be replaced with sugar. Rather, alternative approaches to reducing sugar intake should be considered.”

6 . I’ve always described myself as a perfectionist. I wore it like a badge(徽章) of honor. I credited my perfectionism with good grades at school, turning in essays that were rewritten until they felt perfect. I’d always thought of myself as someone who tried his best, but the truth is that I was a quitter, not a trier. I gave up anything that I wasn’t immediately good at. I was so afraid of failing and I wasn’t even trying anymore. It tuned out that perfectionism actually means the fear of failure. And there was so much I wanted to try. There were so many things I felt sure I’d enjoy but never had a go at. What if I failed? What if I was rubbish? The idea was so unbearable that it was easier to leave it as the unknown. If I didn’t try, I couldn’t fail.

And then one day I accidentally stepped into an art supply store. Before I could stop myself, I bought a tiny set of paints, some paper, and brushes. I headed home full of anticipation, opened them up, and started painting. And the results were…really bad. Frustrated, I pushed everything into a drawer and decided to forget the idea. But then a weird thing happened—I kept thinking about being a quitter, so I got the paints back out and started again. I was still terrible at painting, but my motivation this time never lessened. I decided to share my paintings on social media, showing my progress and the efforts behind the scenes instead of the so-called perfection.

Now, three years later, I paint almost every day and have set up my own art business. I regularly fail and make a mess, but I never quit. And even better, I’m constantly trying new things that just a few years ago I couldn’t even have imagined. I enjoyed the moments in the painting workshops and attended drawing classes. I’ve made friends with fellow creatives from around the world. Most importantly, I’ve failed a bunch of times and just kept going. Because I’m no longer aiming for perfection or even excellence, I’m simply enjoying the process. And I’m so much happier. So pick something you’ve always wanted to try and get stuck in. You won’t regret it.