1 . Yosemite National Park has long been a place of inspiration for artists, climbers, and nature lovers.

Yosemite Falls

Repeatedly popping into view over treetops and around comers as you drive through the valley, the falls look different from every angle, and it’s impossible to take your eyes off. You don’t have to hike or even get out of your car to appreciate this waterfall, but the most complete view of the falls is from the start of the Yosemite Falls hike, along the route on the left side of the river. You can walk right to the base of the falls with minimal effort and feel the mist sweeping over you.

Half Dome

Half Dome is one of Yosemite’s most famous sites and particularly well-known in the climbing world for being one of the first “big climbs”. This granite icon looks much different depending on the angle you arc viewing it from. Looking up at the sheer rock face from the valley, the enormity of the wall is obvious, and you can appreciate why climbers have been drawn here. The best place to view it is from the lookout at Glacier Point. From here, you get a true picture of the rock and how much higher it stands than the surrounding mountains.

El Capitan

Popular among climbers, El Capitan is a 3,000-foot sheer rock face on the north side of Yosemite Valley. Although it may not seem like it, El Capitan is actually 1,000 feet higher than the face of Half Dome. El Capitan gained interest with the free solo climb of Alex Honnold in June of 2017, and the Academy Award winning documentary film, Free Solo. He became the first person to climb El Capitan without ropes, and completely unaided.

Tunnel View

The most classic view of Yosemite Valley is from Tunnel View. This vista, which will feel very familiar to most visitors, stretches out to El Capitan on the left, Bridalveil Fall on the right, Half Dome in the distance, and also takes in the lush valley at the base of the huge granite walls. The best time to appreciate this scene is in the afternoon, when the walls are bathed in sunlight.

2 . Occasionally, misfortune will happen in our life and no one can avoid it. If you choose only to complain and escape from the misfortune, it will constantly follow you no matter where you go.     1    

A girl, called Selina, lost her arms in a traffic accident that caused her father’s death — who was the main source of support for the whole family.     2     For the sake of caring for her, her elder brother became her shadow , never leaving her alone for years. Except for writing with her toes, she was totally unable to do anything in her life. Then one day, her elder brother wanted to live his own normal life, and they had no choice but to separate. So she was almost desperate and didn’t know what to do next.

    3     When he tried to prepare dinner for his parents, he overturned the kerosene light on the stove, resulting in a fire that took his hands away. Though his younger brother that was studying in another city, showed his willingness to take care of him, he was determined to be totally independent. At school, he always studied hard. Most of what he learned was to be independent. Once he wrote the following in his composition: “I am lucky. Though I lost my arms, I still have legs; I am lucky. Though my wings are broken, my heart can still fly. ”

One day, the girl and the boy were both interviewed on a television program. The girl complained to the TV host about her uncertain future at being left on her own, but the boy was full of enthusiasm for his life.     4     The girl wrote: My elder brother’s arms are my arms. However, the boy wrote: Broken wings, flying heart.

    5     It is true that life is unpredictable. Disasters can strike at any time. How you deal with misfortune when faced with it is the true test of your character. If you choose only to complain and escape from the ordeal, it will always follow you wherever you go. But if you decide to face it bravely, the hardship will turn out to be a fortune on which new hopes will arise.

4 . I developed my fascination for China as a child and when the opportunity arose for me to learn in China, I did not ________. My China journey is one in the wonderland.

Already stressful and challenging, my experience of struggling for my Master’s Program in Xi’an Jiaotong University ________ into a greater storm as COVID-19 rocked our boats. My life ended up in chaos. Our ________ was in the Chinese government. We believed they would soon take us out of this ________—leaving or staying. And they did.

My time in China has given me many moments of self-reflection, and opportunities for ________ who I am. Finding new styles to express my inner self is truly an ________ activity within China!

I now travel to and from on the busy roads, tunnels and sidewalks of the city in all kinds of weather to meet deadlines on a daily basis. It is my total ________ that the traffic system of this country ________ what China is—the best of both worlds—Western and Asian.

Food! Being invited to a home cooked dinner really helps to ________ nostalgia (乡愁). Cooking together has been an unforgettable way of ________ with friends, and without doubt, friends are ________ for living a meaningful life.

Same as ________ ! Have you seen how the elders of the nation play Ping Pong? It is played so ________ and skillfully as to be named the official sport. My university, Xian Jiaotong University gave me a wonderful opportunity to ________ this sport and many more.

Having ________ in kindergarten for five years in America, I’ve understood that good parenting and education are the ________ of a child’s discipline and personality. I’ve been blessed to observe that the Chinese ________ and parenting methods have ________ Chinese teachers and children in a special way. I would love to ________ their unique schooling techniques into my educating practice.

My two years in China have been just as unbelievable yet beautiful. Such a ________ of the body, heart and mind can surely carve memories on stone forever.

5 . Maria and her parents moved to the US from Brazil one year before the pandemic (流行病). Better education opportunities lay ahead, and they were excited to get Maria into an American high school to prepare for college.

Each parent got a job, and Maria started studying. She also signed up for a service club because she wanted to meet people, practice her English and be a part of the community. “I love to serve,” Maria says. “I think it is my thank-you for the opportunities I have.”

She worked at the local food bank with other kids of her age, organizing bags for families who were having a hard time making ends meet. But when the pandemic hit, she found herself at the food bank for another reason: to bring home groceries to her parents. “We were all shocked when my mother lost her job. My friends at the food bank got me through it,” Maria said.

Luckily, her father kept his job. And with classes moving online, Maria was able to secure a full-time job and do her class work at night. Three of her courses were college prep classes that demanded a lot of work. During her senior year, Maria worked 40-hour weeks and studied even more. Yet, in her spare time, she packed food bags for others before taking hers home.

Just before graduation, Maria came into the food bank. One of the volunteers started getting a bag ready for her. “I don’t need one today,” Maria said. “My mother got a job. I’m here to help.”

Maria supported her family for eight months. She graduated on time and got scholarship offers from three different colleges. She moved to part-time work and has completed her first semester of college.

7 . In a remote corner of Brazil's Amazon tropical（热带的）rainforest, researchers have spent decades catching and measuring birds. Over 40 years, dozens of Amazonian bird species have declined in mass（质量）. Many species have lost nearly 2% of their average body weight each decade, researchers report November 12 in Science Advances. Some species have grown longer wings. The changes could help birds stay cool in a hotter, more changeable climate, the researchers say.

"Climate change isn't something of the future. It has been happening and has effects we haven't thought of," says Ben Winger, an ornithologist（鸟类专家）at the University of Michigan, who wasn't involved in the research but has documented similar shrinkage（缩水）in migratory birds.

To see if non-migratory birds have also been shrinking, Jirinec and colleagues analyzed data collected from 1979 to 2019 in a remote region in the Amazon that spans 43km. The data include over 11,000 individual birds of 77 species as well as climate for the region.

All species declined in mass over this period, the researchers found. Species lost from about 0.1% to nearly 2% of their average body weight each decade. The motmot, for example, shrunk from 133g to about 127g over the study period.

These changes coincided with an overall increase in the average temperature of 1℃ in the wet season and 1.65%℃ in the dry season. Birds' mass decreased the most in a year or two after especially hot and dry seasons, which tracks with the idea that birds are getting smaller to deal with heat stress.

Wing length also grew for 61 species, with a maximum increase of 1% per decade. Jirinec thinks longer wings make for more efficient, and thus cooler, fliers.

"The Amazon rainforest is mysterious, remote and full of biodiversity," Jirined says. "This study suggests that even in places like this, far removed from civilization, you can see signatures of climate change."

The home of the future won't be     1    (complete) different and we will be living in houses and flats just as we do today.     2    (build) in different shapes, no two homes will look the same. People will be able to buy “house kits” containing a basic house structure, with adjustable walls, doors and windows. They will put together the different parts     3     (create) the home they want.

Space holidays will develop in the future, but these holidays won't be for everyone because they are     4     (expensive) than holidays on the earth. Short space trips will develop first, then the space hotels will go around the earth     5    it will be possible to have a longer vacation. By     6    end of the next century, there will be holiday centres on the moon with leisure facilities for families.

According to the laws of physics, the earth is going to    7    ( appear) some time in the future. This isn't going to happen tomorrow but scientists predict that it will happen in five billion years when our sun    8    (explode).     9     a result,we will have to explore the universe and find another home. At some point in the distant future, either we stay on the earth and die with it,or we leave and move to another planet. There won't be any other    10    (choose).