2 . Every year about 40,000 people attempt to climb Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. They ______ with them lots of waste. The ______ might damage the beauty of the place. The glaciers (冰川) are disappearing, changing the face of Kilimanjaro.

Hearing these stories, I’m ______ about the place — other destinations are described as “purer” natural experiences.

However, I soon ______ that much has changed since the days of disturbing reports of ______ among tons of rubbish. I find a ______ mountain, with toilets at camps and along the paths. The environmental challenges are ______ but the efforts made by the Tanzania National Park Authority seem to be ______.

The best of a Kilimanjaro ______, in my opinion, isn’t reaching the top. Mountains are ______ as spiritual places by many cultures. This view is especially evident on Kilimanjaro as ______ go through five ecosystems within a few kilometers. At the base is a rainforest. It ends suddenly at 3, 000 meters, ______ lands of low growing plants. Further up, the weather ______ — low clouds envelop the mountainsides, which are covered with thick grass. I counted twelve shades of green from where I stand. Above 4, 000 meters is the highland desert: gravel (砾石), stones and rocks. ______ you climb into an arctic-like zone with permanent (永久的) snow and the glaciers that may soon disappear.

Does Kilimanjaro deserve its reputation as a crowded mountain with lines of tourists ______ the atmosphere of peace? I found the opposite to be true.

3 . How I Failed My Oxford Interview

As soon as the words left my mouth I knew I’d ________ “You think Jane Austen is soft?” The man opposite me asked in disbelief. Then, he and his colleague took turns to ________ my claim, finishing each other’s sentences as they stressed Austen’s novels were, in fact, fierce.

“I just mean…” I said in a(n) ________ voice, trying to keep the tone light, “that she’s not as fierce as Virginia Woolf.”

The two professors patted this idea around, too, like a couple of cats toying with a frightened bird—giving_______ examples of how Austen’s work was, on the contrary, more fierce than Woolf’s. With no more defensive action to take, I ________ smiled and said, “Let’s just agree to disagree, shall we?” And all that moment, my dreams of going to Oxford university ________ in a puff of smoke.

Part of my problem, in hindsight was a lack of confidence. ________ I was a straight A student and had prepared for the interview to the best of my ability, I wasn’t a skilled debater. When faced with two experts who told me that I was wrong, instead of defending myself, I rolled over and accepted ________.

To pass the interview, you need confidence, of course. You also need a ________ passion for your subject, not just a keen interest. In other words, don’t put comments on your personal statement that you don’t have ________ for your in-person backup.

So, months later, I already knew the contents of my thin envelope when it appeared on my doormat. ________, I felt a pan g of disappointment. I had wanted to go to Oxford since I was 13. I used to look up images of my favorite college with the same ________ of a bride-to-be browsing wedding dresses.

Ultimately, I didn’t have what it took—but, looking back, that was ________ a bad thing. Instead of going to Oxford, I found a university that was a better fit for my interests. I loved my eclectic course, where I could write an essay comparing Jane Eyre to 50 Shades of Grey.

Failing my Oxford interview also provided a valuable life lesson. I’m now more confident in my opinions, more passionate when it comes to debate, and I try to back up my points with ________ evidence. What’s more, I had never since ended a discussion by giving a ________ laugh and saying, “let’s just agree to disagree, shall we?”

4 . Listening, speaking, reading and writing are necessary to everyday life, where language is the primary ________for expression and communication. Studying how people use language—what words and phrases we unknowingly ________—can help us better understand ourselves and why we ________ the way we do.

Stanford linguists attempt to ________ what is individual and general about the language we use. They also try to find how it came into use and the ways it ________ over time. After researches, they have found that even the smallest differences in language use are ________ the speakers’ belief, according to research. One study finds that a (n) ________ harmless sentence, such as “girls are as good as boys at math,” can in some way ________ sexist stereotypes (性别刻板印象). The statement’s grammatical form suggests that being good at math is more ________ for boys than girls, the researchers said. Language can play a (n) ________ role in showing how we and others understand the world.

Studying other languages helps us have a better understanding of ________ around the world. People speak about 7,000 languages worldwide. Although there are a lot of similar things among languages, each one is ________, both in its structure and in the way it reflects the culture of the people who speak it. Dan Jurafsky, the Professor in Humanities and chair of the Department of Linguistics at Stanford, advised that we shouldn’t only ________ on our own language. Studying other languages and how they develop can help us understand what is ________ in humans’ different ways of communicating with one another.

“Understanding what different groups of people say and why is the first step in deciding how we can ________ people together,” Jurafsky said.

6 . Hannah, an adventurous girl, lived in a small village on a land far away. All of the villagers were used to their ________ tasks and very few had the will to try something new. Unlike them, Hannah loved to ________ and would spend hours in the woods looking for new things.

One afternoon, she ________ an abandoned cottage. With curiosity she slowly opened the door and was left ________. In front of her was a room full of books glittering in the dust! She gasped as she ________ that she had found a hidden treasure. Before leaving, she ________ two books and decided to read them at her home.

From that day on, Hannah ________ read the books, which took her to a world of talking animals, mystical creatures, and daring knights. She read about characters who faced ________ with their determination and characters who ________ for good. She learned the power of love and friendship, and that the true strength lies within one’s own ________!

With the good in heart, Hannah started to ________ the gold from the tales with the people of her village. Soon, the ________ of Hannah’s storytelling spread. People traveled from different places to listen to her stories. ________, Hannah started writing stories of her own too!

Hannah’s passion and ________ blew life into the tales and her words breathed new life into countless souls. She became a beacon (灯塔) of ________, a reminder for everyone that even in the dustiest corners, there can be a hidden treasure.

9 . Our church has a way of assisting those who have financial difficulties without making the receiver feel shame or guilt by dropping money into an offering box with only the name of the receiver on the envelope. The envelopes are then distributed to those members without them knowing the ________ of the giver.

There came a time when my husband and I were among those ________. We did not talk about our financial difficulty with anyone. The only reason our ________ knew was because we had to cut back on many things. ________, we hoped they were not aware of the extent of our need. We did not want to ________ them with a problem they were too young to do anything to solve.

Our situation wasn’t improving, and just as we reached the point of ________, our church gave us a gift envelope left in the offering box. We were ________ to receive a big sum of money, enough to help us ________ that desperate time. We couldn’t help but wonder who had given such a generous gift.

A year later, our seventeen-year-old son was applying for a student loan (贷款)so he could ________ university. It was then that we discovered that his savings account was almost ________.

His father and I were very confused by this. From the time he was nine years old, he had worked very hard for his small ________. I asked him repeatedly to tell me where the money had gone. At first, he would not tell me, but I would not let the matter ________.

Finally, in tears, and with much ________, my son admitted that the year before he had put his savings in the offering box for his father and me. I stood there ________, tears filling my eyes. It had taken my son years to save that money. He had given it to us ________—without telling us what he had done.