Putian wood carving, one of the four well-known     1     (category) of the art of Chinese wood carving, originated in the Tang and Song Dynasties.     2     (serve) as a national intangible cultural heritage (非物质文化遗产) item in China, it is a traditional folk carving technique of southeast China’s Fujian Province.

Zheng Chunhui, Lin Jianjun and Chen Yushu are three     3     (exception) representatives of wood carving masters. Zheng is a provincial-level inheritor (继承人) of the wood carving art,     4     not only excels in traditional wood carving technique,     5     expresses his love for his family and nation through his works. To promote the art, Zheng opened a unique wood carving gallery, which is the     6     (one) in Putian run by an individual and free to the public. The delicately made wood carving works by Lin     7     (shine) at a BRICS summit (峰会) several years ago, and meanwhile, the Chinese-style antique furniture pieces that are made by Chen     8     (show) at many international exhibitions over the past few years.

Putian city is home     9     over 2,600 wood carving companies, and the wood carving works     10     (create) there were sold to more than 20 countries and regions around the world last year.

Have you ever wondered what life is like now     1     (compare) to, say, the 1980s or the 1990s? I went to ask some people I know who were adults in the ‘80s and 90s’, and the answer I got was that “Overall, life is a lot     2     (good) now!” This didn’t really surprise me. I mean, these days we’ve got mobile phones and the internet and so on — but     3    (actual) those weren’t the things they talked about.

So what did they talk about? For     4     start, we don’t have to work physically hard since now there are a lot of things like dishwashers for housework. Then there’s the matter of how, these days,     5     is possible to work at home — it’s mainly     6    (computer) that have made this possible. Not only that, there’s a lot more     7     (equal) now. It’s easier for all people, whatever their social background, gender (性别), colour and so on, to have equal access     8     a variety of career opportunities.

That said, it’s not all a matter of improvement. Quite a few people told me that they feel more stressed these days because they rely a lot on technology and they are always     9    (anxiety) about security on the internet. Plus, we spend a lot of our time     10     (use) smartphones. One person said, “Wouldn’t it be great to be off the grid (不上网) for a few days?”

The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) said a large atlas moth (皇蛾)     1    (find) on a garage (车库) was identified as the first atlas moth ever documented in the United States.

The department said     2     university teacher took place photos when he found the large moth resting on the wall of     3    (he) garage on July 7. State officials     4    (careful) examined the photos and     5    (confirm) the insect was an atlas moth, one of the world’s largest species of moth.

Atlas moths are native     6     the tropics (热带地区) and have never been documented in the United States.

“This is an     7    (attract) type of insect because it is so large,” said Sven-Erik Spichiger from the agriculture department. “Even if you don’t keep an eye out for insects, this is one that people will get their phones out and take a picture of — they are that striking.”

    8    (researcher) said they are now trying to find out if the moth is part of a population in Washington. They are asking anyone     9     discover s a similar insect     10    (report) it to pestprogram@agr.wa.gov .

“We hope residents will help us learn if this was a one-off escapee or whether there might be a population in the area,” the department said.

The silk industry in Sichuan is one of the original points of Chinese silk culture. Sichuan brocade (蜀锦) originated from the Spring and Autumn period, and fully developed in the Han and Tang     1     (dynasty). It has a history of more than 2, 000 years and had a far-reaching influence     2     traditional Chinese silk production. Sichuan brocade features light shades     3     (integrate) in an elegant and care free style, which shows Han Chinese characteristics and local traditions.

Sichuan brocade is one of China’s four most famous branches of brocade, the others     4     (be) Yun brocade in Nanjing, Song brocade in Suzhou and Zhuang brocade in Guangxi. With its     5     (attract) designs and bright, clear colors that follow the style of Chinese-ink paintings, Sichuan brocade was put on the national intangible cultural heritage list in 2006.

Silk     6     (produce) in Sichuan Province since ancient times and Chengdu was the starting point of the southern Silk Road. Sichuan brocade is made with local silk and colored silk threads,     7     are the raw materials. Special embroidery (刺绣) skills are used     8     (turn) brocade into quilt covers, pillowcases, clothes and shoes.

    9     subjects of the Sichuan brocade are rich and varied. Some come from legends, myths, historical stories, and others come from landscape, figures, flowers, birds and animals,     10     (especial) the beasts that symbolize fortune and long life.

Le Le arrived at Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport from Singapore     1     Tuesday evening, becoming the first overseas-born giant panda to come to China this year. According to an agreement     2    (reach) between China and Singapore, Le Le was required to be sent to China this month. Singapore Airlines stated that     3    (ensure) Le Le’s safe journey, a Boeing 747-400F plane was used for the flight, with experts from both countries     4    (accompany) the panda.

During the flight, the cabin temperature     5    (maintain) at 12 to 16 degrees Celsius, and efforts were made to avoid turbulence (气流), ensuring a slow takeoff and landing to prevent any     6    (comfort) for Le Le. In addition, the aircraft carried 50 kilograms of fresh bamboo, bamboo shoots, carrots, apples and other food to meet Le Le’s dietary needs during     7     four-and-a-half-hour trip.

Unlike other overseas-born giant pandas     8     have been sent to China, Le Le won’t undergo quarantine (检疫) at the bases in Ya’an or Wolong. The China Giant Panda Conservation and Research Center said that the center’s facilities are not sufficient for the recent     9    (arrive) of overseas-born giant pandas coming into the country, so Le Le will use the quarantine facilities at the Huaying Mountain base.     10    (current), Le Le is in good health.

I remember that every year in lunar December in my hometown, Xinyang, each family begins to prepare bunches of bacon and sausage hanging from yard to yard     1     (embrace) the upcoming New Year. Walking in such a street view and sniffing the smell of pickled bacon(腊肉), I always have a sense of    2     (happy).

Xinyang, located on the boundary between the north and the south, is rich in rice, wheat and fertile land due to its unique     3     (geography) position and climate. Therefore, it cultivates the characteristics of Xinyang people who have a good appetite     4     delicacies. According to relevant records, the history of Xinyang’s pickled bacon dates back to the Ming Dynasty,     5     the locals learned to keep its special taste by preserving it in a special bean. People in Xinyang love their life so much that even during     6     (tough) times, they still inherited the soul of taste and made delicious pickled bacon. Actually, Xinyang’s pickled bacon is made in     7     seemingly simple way by drying the meat in the shade but it brings out the flavor of the food     8     (it) and stays with our memory for long.

You’ll never become fully conscious of how much you value it until you     9     (tear) apart from it. Such is Xinyang’s pickled bacon, one of my unforgettable memories of my hometown despite time     10    (tick) by.

Xi’an, capital city of Shaanxi, served as the capital of 13 dynasties in Chinese history, which in total     1    (last) about 1,100 years. Consequently, the ancient history of Shaanxi is to some degree the ancient history of China. Shaanxi History Museum considers     2     a duty to be a showcase of Chinese ancient civilization.

People call Shaanxi History Museum “Bright Pearl in Ancient Capital and Precious Treasure of China”, for it is an art palace     3    (full) showing Shaanxi history and culture as well as Chinese ancient civilization. Its architectural buildings and exhibits have made it famous as a first-class museum in China     4     it was opened to the public in 1991. It covers     5     total area of 65, 000 square meters.

The basic halls in the museum are divided into three exhibition halls     6     2,000 cultural remains to display the history of ancient times in chronological (编年的) order. The first exhibition hall     7    (locate) on the ground floor while the other two are on the second floor.

While     8    (design) the buildings in Shaanxi History Museum, the great designer used     9    (tradition) palace construction of Tang Dynasty for reference. Adopting symmetry axis (轴对称) layout with main and supporting buildings in order, the complex     10    (architecture) show the unique presence of Tang Dynasty.

On October 18, world leaders came together in Beijing for an eye-catching forum (论坛) to celebrate     1     tenth anniversary (周年) of the Belt and Road Initiative (“一带一路”倡议). The forum was considered     2     (extreme) important in building the Belt and Road.

Chinese President Xi Jinping     3     (give) a speech at the opening. He said that over the past 10 years, plans of Belt and Road cooperation had been turned into real projects. He also said that China would take eight major steps     4     (support) high-quality Belt and Road cooperation,     5     (include) green development and the advance of science and technology.

So far, the Belt and Road Initiative has become the world’s     6     (large) platform (平台) for international cooperation. By June 2023, China had worked together with 152 countries and 32 international     7     (organisation) to build the Belt and Road. Over 3,000 cooperation projects have been started in the past 10 years, one of which is the China-Laos Railway.     8     was put into use in December 2021, helping Laos become a country with easy transport in Southeast Asia.

“Belt and Road cooperation was suggested by China,     9     its fruits are for the world to share,” President Xi Jinping said. There is no doubt     10     the Belt and Road Initiative will continue to make a great difference to the world in the future.

Migrant worker Zhu Yanjun left a good impression on audiences when he won the silver medal on Chinese Poetry Conference,     1     show launched in 2016 to rekindle (使复苏) people’s appreciation for Chinese poetry.

The 50-year-old developed an interest     2     poetry when young. The first poem he came across is Li Shen’s Sympathy for the Peasants.     3     (read) the poem, he thought of his father     4     grandfather plowing (犁) the field in the hot sun and instantly grasped its meaning. Throughout his childhood, he enjoyed reading poetry while herding (牧放) the family’s sheep.

After completing junior high school, Zhu left his hometown, like many of his peers,     5     (seek) better opportunities in the cities. Every time he travels to a new city, he will look for a bookstore or a library close to the construction site     6     he’s working. He works during the day and goes to the bookstore or the library at night to transcribe (抄录) and recite poems. Rainy days are the     7     (good) for him, because there will be no work and he can spend the entire day surrounded by books.

Up to now, he     8     (memorize) about 1,000 poems. No matter how     9     (physical) tiring the day may have been, he feels a sense of     10     (relieve) when he can escape from this world into that of Chinese poetry.

World Population Day was founded by the United Nations, and this holiday is    1    (annual) observed on July 11th.

The idea of World Population Day started in the late 1960s,    2    world leaders openly declared that adults have the right    3    (choose) whether they wanted children or not. This idea was also viewed as a human right. During this era, leaders were more open about    4    (discuss)child-bearing and the right women had to time their children    5    they wished. While this was just one of the    6    (sign) to the feminist movement in the US, this idea was new to many developing nations at the time.

In 1989, the world population quickly increased to five billion. During this same year, the United Nations founded World Population Day. Both events    7    (occur) on July 11th of that year.

World Population Day is celebrated in many ways‒‒much of this depends on the region. For participants who live in countries where gender    8    (equal) is a law, the holiday is meant to be     9    reflection and celebration of significant moments in history that helped society achieve this basic human right.

Every July 11th, the United Nations also has central celebrations in which all nations    10    (permit) to participate. In addition, the UN holds an annual theme.