Emperor Qinshihuang united the seven major states into one     1     country where the Chinese writing system began to develop     2     one direction. That writing system was of great     3     in uniting the Chinese people and culture. Even today, no matter where Chinese people live or     4     dialect they speak, they can all still communicate in writing.

Written Chinese has also become an important     5     by which China’s present is connected with its past. People in modern times can read the     6     works which were written by Chinese in ancient times. The high regard for the Chinese writing system can be     7     in the development of Chinese characters as an art form, known as Chinese     8     . which has become an important part of Chinese culture.

    9     China plays a greater role in global affairs, an increasing number of international students are beginning to     10     China’s culture and history through this amazing language.

Imagine mountains wrapped in silver water, shining in the spring sun. Summer s    1     the mountains turn bright green with growing rice. During autumn, these same mountains are gold, and in winter they are covered in s    2     of white frost. These are the colours of the Longji Rice Terraces.

These terraces were built by the local Zhuang and Yao people. R    3     as far as the eye can see, these terraces cover tall mountains, often from the bottom to the very top.

So why did these people go     4     so much trouble to turn the entire mountains into terraces? Firstly, building the terraces meant that they could increase the areas in which they could grow rice. Secondly, the     5     terraces catch the rainwater and prevent the soil from being washed away.

But perhaps what is most significant is the way in which people have worked in     6     with nature to make these terraces and grow rice. The terraces are cleverly designed, with hundreds of waterways that     7     with each other. During the rainy season, it is along these waterways that rainwater moves down the mountains and into the terraces. The sun heats the water     8     turns it into vapour. This forms clouds from which rain falls down onto the mountain terraces once again.

Although modern technology could help produce more crops, these terraces still mean a lot to the local people for     9     traditions hold much value. Today, the Longji Rice Terraces attract thousands of visitors who come to admire this great wonder c    10     by people and nature working together.

When Michael Jordan’s feet left the ground, time seemed to stand still. The player who became     1         2     “Air Jordan” changed basketball with his graceful moves and jumps. Jordan’s skills were i    3    , but the mental s    4     that he showed made him unique. In the final seconds of a game, Jordan always seemed to find a way to win. Jordan says that the secret to his success is learning from his failures. “I can accept failure; everyone     5     at something. But I can’t accept not trying.” Losing games taught him to practice harder and never g    6         7    .

A committee     1     to limit damage to the Egyptian buildings and prevent the loss of     2     relics. The group asked for     3     from different departments and raised funds     4     the international community. Experts     5     the issue, conducted several tests, and then made a     6     for how the buildings could be saved. Finally, a    7     was signed, and the work began in 1960.

The project     8     together governments and environmentalists from around     9     world. Temples and other cultural sites were taken     10     piece by piece,    11     then moved and put back together again in a place     12     they were safe from the water. In 1961, German engineers moved the     13     temple. Over the next 20 years, thousands of engineers and workers     14     22 temples and countless relics. Fifty countries donated nearly $80 million to the project. When the project ended in 1980, it was considered a great     15    .

Put simply,     1     is your natural ability that can be developed when you try hard enough. Who knows what beautiful works of art you will create, what medical     2     you will make or what     3     technologies you will develop! The possibilities are endless, and I have confidence     4     your ability to make a     5     to your family, to your community and to your country. Over the next three years, you will discover your potential while you develop as a student and as a person.

One medical text from the fourth century suggested using the e    1     from sweet wormwood to treat a fever. Tu’s team t    2     a collection of dried wormwood leaves but found no e    3    .They then tried boiling fresh wormwood, and using the l    4     obtained from this to treat malaria, but this did not work either. Their project got s     5    .However, Tu Youyou would not a    6    defeat. She analysed the medical texts a    7    , and by c    8    , she found one sentence suggesting a d    9    way to treat the wormwood. She concluded that boiling the sweet wormwood apparently destroyed its medial p    10    .

I thought I knew a lot about Hamlet. As     1     high school student with English literature as one of my main subjects, I have to! Shakespeare’s Hamlet is probably the most important play by the     2     important writer in English. Almost everybody knows “To be, or not to be”, right? Having s    3     quite a few productions of Hamlet and read the play many times, I was full of c    4     until the Peking Opera came to town!

D    5     back to the 18th century, Peking Opera has over two hundred years of history. Does this mean it’s easier than a Shakespeare play to understand? To find out the answer, I just had to go and see The Revenge of Prince Zidan — the Peking Opera v    6       of Hamlet.

Easily my favourite part of the show was how the characters moved on stage. I had never seen Prince Hamlet do a backflip before! That was simply i    7     . It was so dazzling and energetic that I wasn’t sure if the characters were performers     8     athletes! Everyone was clapping.

Before experiencing The Revenge of Prince Zidan, I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy it. But, in fact, I was on the     9     of my seat! Feeling the strong emotions of love, anger, fear and grief in the performance, I could easily recognise the theme of Hamlet. So, if you want to see a show that combines music, singing, drama, poetry and costume design with explosive effect, The Revenge of Prince Zidan     10     all the right boxes!