2 . People often say that “failure is the mother of success.” This cliché (陈词滥调) might have some truth to it, but it __________ tells us how to actually turn a loss into a win, says Emmanuel Manalo, a professor of educational psychology at Kyoto University in Japan. As a result, he says, “we know we shouldn’t give up when we fail—but __________, we do.”

Manalo and Manu Kapur, a professor of learning sciences at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, put together a special issue of the journal Thinking Skills and Creativity last December on __________ failure. The issue’s 15 studies provide teachers and educational researchers with a guide for __________ success. One study reported, for example, that the sooner and more often students fail at a task, such as building a robot, the sooner they can __________ and improve. Another confirmed that feedback on failures is most __________ when the giver comes across as caring, and the receiver is prepared to weather negative emotions.

Manalo and his co-authors also contributed their own study focused on overcoming one fundamental, everyday form of failure: not __________ a task. They asked 131 undergraduates to write an essay about their school experiences. Half of the students received __________ for structuring their writing, and half were left to their own devices. All, however, were __________ prior to finishing. Afterward the researchers found that those in the structured group were more motivated to complete their essays, compared with those who lacked guidance—even if the latter were __________ to being done. Knowing how to finish, __________, was more important than being close to finishing.

The researchers dubbed this finding “the Hemingway effect,” for the author’s self-reported __________ to stop writing only when he knew what would happen next in the story—so as to avoid writer’s block when he returned to the page. Manalo believes that learning how to fail temporarily can help people avoid becoming __________ failures at many tasks, such as completing an essay, learning a language or inventing a new technology.

Demystifying failure and teaching students not to __________ it make goals more attainable, says Stephanie Couch, executive director of the Lemelson-MIT Program, a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing and supporting inventors. Couch, whose work was also featured in the special issue, __________ that we “should really be thinking of failure as part of a process of going forward toward success.”

3 . In 1968 a grave dating from about 1100 was uncovered near Hattula, in Finland, Little remained of the occupant’s skeleton, but the inhumation included two swords and a knife. Such grave goods would normally suggest said occupant was a man. The skeleton was, _______ also decorated with brooches (胸针) and woollen clothing of types more usually worn at the time by women. This _______ guess that the burial was actually of a powerful woman, possibly a local ruler in her own right rather than just the wife of a male king.

This would be noteworthy enough. But a re-examination of the remains, just published in the European Journal of Archaeology by Ulla Moilanen of the University of Turku and Elina Salmela of the University of Helsinki, suggests the truth may be yet more _______. Ms. Moilanen and Dr Salmela suspect that the individual _______ may have had outward characteristics of both a man and a woman.

In 1968 working out the _______ of a skeleton in an ancient grave was tricky. After years of deterioration, the bones of men and women look pretty much _______. But that was before the use of DNA became possible. So Ms. Moilanen and Dr Salmela thought it worth trying again.

Most people have two sex chromosomes (染色体): XX in women and XY in men. Find DNA from a Y-chromosome in a skeleton and the chances are the body was _______. And, looking at a fragment of femur brought to her by Ms. Moilanen, who is the archaeologist in the _______, Dr. Salmela, who is the geneticist, did indeed find such DNA. But not much of it. That led her to wonder about contamination (污染), but also to consider whether the individual in the grave had had a(n) _______ X-chromosome that was swamping the signal from the Y.

Having an abnormal number of sex chromosomes is rare, but not vanishingly so. The particular ________ XXY leads to what is known as Klinefelter’s syndrome. To determine the occupant’s karyotype (染色体组型) from the tiny amount of DNA available, Dr. Salmela drew ________ with living people. The grave delivered 8,329 pieces, so she used a computer to draw samples of similar size from the genomes of living people with various karyotypes, including XXY, and also from mixtures of both sexes, to ________ contamination. She then compared these with the DNA from the grave and ________ it was 99.75% probable the individual concerned bad indeed had Klinefelter’s syndrome.

While Dr Salmela was working all this out, Ms. Moilanen and her team had another look at the grave. They confirmed that it was a ________ burial. For instance, they found evidence of fine furs, probably from foxes. Clearly, this was a well-respected human being, but what led to that ________ in a world then dominated by male values is a matter of puzzle. Perhaps the person came from a family powerful enough for such things not to matter.

4 . After my mother suffered from Alzheimer’s disease, the plants in our house began to die. In years past, I remember the deep, earthy smell that would _________ in our house after my mother had made her weekly watering rounds. Back then, I never _________ it with the care that was at the foundation of everything she did.

But now, leaves were _________, some dry and edged with brown, and many of the stems bare. It was a mark of how my mother can no longer attend to all the things that she lovingly cared for. I was so focused on the increasing _________ of her own care that her beloved plants had escaped my _________.

I began her old rounds, pouring water into the thirsty soil, and soon the plants _________. That’s the thing about houseplants: They demand nothing. They wait quietly, no matter how _________ they are. But even after my best _________, some of the plants couldn’t survive. My mother’s kind caregivers have since brought new ones to add to her _________, and my father buys fresh flowers every week.

Though Alzheimer’s disease __________ so much of her memory, her desire to care is still there. I would guide her down the steps to water the plants herself. I watched as her shaking hands picked the brown leaves. Each time, she smiled up at me with __________ satisfaction because being able to __________ something is still what brings her the greatest joy.

I look at plants __________ these days. I see them as my mother does: __________ reminders of the need for kindness toward all living things. It is clear to me that the things we spend a lifetime __________ are never truly lost and the love she has planted in me still blooms.

7 . The Justice of the Court

The purpose of the American court system is to protect the rights of the people. According to American law, if someone _________ a crime, he or she is considered _________ until the court proves that the person is guilty. _________, it is the responsibility of the court to prove that a person is guilty. It is not the _________ of the person to prove that he or she is innocent.

In order to arrest a person, the police _________ be reasonably sure that a crime has been committed. The police must give the suspect the reasons why they are arresting him and tell him his rights under the law. Then the police take the suspect to the police station to “book” him. “Booking” means that the name of the person and the charges against him are _________ listed at the police station.

The next step is for the suspect to go before a judge. The judge decides whether the suspect should be kept in jail or _________. If the suspect has no previous criminal record and the judge feels that he will return to court rather than run away — for example, because he owns a house and has a family — he can go free. Otherwise, the suspect must _________ bail (保释金). At this time, too, the judge will appoint a court lawyer to defend the suspect if he can’t afford one.

The suspect returns to court a week or two later. A lawyer from the district lawyer’s office presents a case against the suspect. This is called a(n) _________. The attorney (律师) may present __________ as well as witnesses. The judge at the hearing then decides whether there is enough reason to hold a trial. If the judge decides that there is __________ evidence to __________ a trial, he or she sets a date for the suspect to appear in court to formally admit guilty or not guilty.

At the trial, a jury of 12 people listens to the evidence from both lawyers and hears the testimony of the witnesses. Then the jury goes into a private room to consider the evidence and decide whether the defendant is guilty of the crime. If the jury decides that the defendant is innocent, he goes free. __________, if he is guilty, the judge sets a date for the defendant to appear in court again for __________. At this time, the judge tells the convicted person what his punishment will be. The judge may send him to prison, order him to pay a fine, or place him on probation (缓刑).

The American justice system is very complex and sometimes operates slowly. However, every step is designed to protect the rights of the people. These __________ rights are the basis, or foundation, of the American government.

8 . It was the most destructive wildfire in California history. It started in Paradise (天堂镇) and caused $16.5 billion in _______, destroying nearly 19,000 buildings and killing 85 in all. The beauty of this _______ named place was gone.

Grammer, working in Los Angeles, grew up there. When his friend Edwards posted pictures of his white chimney — the only part of his house to survive — he felt _______. And then he had an idea.

“I’ve got to _______ that chimney,” he says, “I’m not trying to say anything. I’m an artist. It was an opportunity for me to _______.”

Grammer spent three hours painting an image of a woman on the _______ — a reminder of the chimney, of the beauty of life, or even just of _______ itself.

Grammer posted the image on Instagram. Those who were affected by the fire, _______, could not calm down. Someone _______, “You bring beauty and hope.”

Greatly inspired, Grammer returned eight times. Outside one house, he found a photo of a girl, Eleanor. He painted a picture of her on the wall of her home left __________. It was a stamp that life was here and that life can __________ to be here. The painting has __________ meaning for the homeowner. Eleanor’s father, recalls how she used to play just feet away. Eleanor herself returned once to __________ the painting.

Ironically (讽刺的是) that first painting, on the chimney in Paradise, __________ only a few months — the bulldozer (推土机) is a cruel art critic. However, Grammer couldn’t be more delighted. It means that the __________ of Paradise is rising again.

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

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

However, I soon discovered that much has changed since the days of disturbing reports of_________ among tons of rubbish. I find a clean 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 regarded as spiritual places by many cultures. This_________ is especially evident on Kilimanjaro as climbers go through five ecosystems (生态系统) in the space of a few kilometers. At the base is a rainforest. It ends abruptly at 3, 000 meters,_________ lands of low growing plants. Further up, the weather__________ — low clouds envelope the mountainsides, which are covered with thick grass. I __________ twelve shades of green from where I stand. Above 4, 000 meters is the highland __________ : gravel (砾石), stones and rocks. __________ you climb into an arctic-like zone with__________ snow and the glaciers that may soon disappear.

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

10 . People believe that having pets is overall a good thing for children. But does this belief hold up to _______? The new field of human-animal interaction aims to find out.

Ten years ago, when psychologist Joan Smith reviewed the literature on child-animal relationships, she reported that interacting with animals led young children to better understand biology than pet-less children. Kindergartners who had cared for goldfish were more _______ when responding to questions like “Does a goldfish have a heart?” They also more easily _______ biological information from one species to another, inferring that baby frogs get bigger just like goldfish do. She also reports that those kids who turned to their pets for emotional support were less _______ than these who didn’t.

The past ten years have seen some advances, but literature on the topic is still rather _______. A recent paper by researcher Meg Brown at Lakeside University _______ some important information to the discussion.

She turned to a data-set that includes information from 7, 000 kids, ranging in _______ from thirteen to nineteen years. For the study, both pet owning and other types of _______ activities, like horseback riding, were considered as human-animal interaction experience.

She found that adolescents with animal experience were more likely to see themselves as important _______ to their communities, such as doing community service. She also found that the higher the level of ________ between a teenager and animals, the higher they scored on measurements of emotional connectedness in general. While causality(因果关系) cannot be determined, Brown says that it is at least ________ that children and adolescents can learn about healthy social relationships from their experiences of interacting with animals. “If a connection exists between the skills required for these relationships, then it might be useful to make use of animal relationships as a way to ________ the development of social skills,” she says.

Brown is aware of the limitations of her study. It can’t reach any conclusions about the causal role of animals in kids’ lives, and it’s limited to ________ nationwide. Besides, the study was not designed to ________ any potential negative effects of human-animal interaction experiences. Some other studies, for example, have shown that pet owners have higher levels of ________, like depression, than non-pet owners.