New Year was just around the corner. I was second grade then, 7 years old. One day, on my way home from school, a lady gave me a piece of paper     1     (say) that the neighborhood was asking people to give New Year presents to those     2     needed them. When I showed my mom this paper, she encouraged me to take part in it and spread     3     (kind) to others less fortunate than us. She said we would become “Neighborhood Angels”.

Several days later, my mother     4     (drive) me to the store and gave me $20 to pay for neighborhood present. Then she said, “I’ll see you outside in the car.” She left me alone to do the shopping. I was not used to buying things on my own, as I had always been with one of my     5     (parent) before. Everything seemed very strange and confusing to me,     6     I carried on. Suddenly, I remembered the poor boy     7     (call) Jack who lived in our neighborhood. I used to see him     8     a jacket during the freezing winter months, so I decided, then and there, to buy him a warm jacket.

I looked at many jackets and     9     (final) chose a heavy blue one. That evening, I sent the present to him with my mom.    10     (see) the tears in his eyes, I felt as if I were a real “Neighborhood Angel”.

Paper-cutting artist Rich McCor creates small silhouetted (显出轮廓的)     1     (shape) and brings them to life by holding them against European monuments. He positions simply cut-outs at the perfect angle,     2     (make) it appear as though buildings, statues, and fountains are     3     (direct) interacting with his work. McCor then takes a photo     4     (document) the unusual scene.

The playful project started when McCor decided to be     5     tourist in his own city — London. He wanted to explore the landmarks and history he had previously ignored, so he began researching for interesting facts and brainstorming     6     to photograph the place in an     7     (origin) way. McCor’s first photo transformed the Big Ben Tower into a wrist watch. While he was there, his work was appreciated by others nearby,     8     encouraged him to build on the idea.

Since he took his first photograph, McCor     9     (apply) the same playful treatment to many sites in London. And thanks     10     a commission (委托) from Lonely Planet, he’s created similar cut-outs for monuments in Stockholm. Amsterdam, Copenhagen, and Paris, introducing each image with random facts about the respective landmark.

The Spring Equinox (春分)     1     (signal) the equal length of the day and night time.     2     the day of the Spring Equinox, the sun is     3     (direct) above the equator. After the equinox, the sun moves northwards,     4     (result) in gradually longer day time in the Northern Hemisphere and longer night in the Southern Hemisphere.

Standing     5     egg upright is a popular game across the country during the Spring Equinox. It is an old custom     6     dates back to 4,000 years ago. People practice this tradition     7     (celebrate) the coming of spring. It is believed that     8     some one can make it stand, he will have good luck in the future.

As the Spring Equinox comes, farm work starts and both the farmers and the cattle start to become busy. Farmers will reward cattle with sticky rice balls to express their     9     (grateful).     10    , people will also make sacrifice to birds, to thank them for bringing signals for farm work and to ask them not to eat grains later in the year.

In recent years, climate change has had a great impact     1    animals. In 2013, the whole world     2    (shock) by a news photo of a dead polar bear on Norway’s Arctic island of Svalbard. Due to the rise in temperature, the polar bear seemed     3    (die) from lack of food.

According to climate scientists, a key climate process,     4    is called the “greenhouse effect”, includes the “natural” greenhouse effect and the “man-made” green-house effect. The former refers to the fact that heat from the sun     5    (enter) the atmosphere and warms Earth’s surface.

Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trap some of the heat,     6    (keep) Earth’s climate warm and habitable. However, the latter has become    7    big problem. When people burn fossil fuels, more heat energy is trapped in the atmosphere and causes Earth’s surface temperature to rise    8    (quick).

The evidence shows that the rise in temperature has led to an increase in extreme weather and natural     9    (disaster) worldwide. Climate scientists have warned that this warming trend will become     10    (bad) if we do not take appropriate measures. The severe situation requires people allover the world to pay more attention to it.

Chinese screen, also known as pingfeng, is     1     unique and elegant piece of traditional furniture in Chinese decoration.     2     (typical), it is made of wood and features a delicate appearance. Famous for its carvings and paintings, the Chinese screen can block wind and noise from the outside, cover a door and make the room private. When     3     (decorate) a house, Chinese people attach great importance     4     the harmony of their living space with the surrounding environment. Architects believe a screen can help to control how the energy flow in a room and promote     5     (peace) environment.

With its roots in Chinese culture and ancient history, the screen is more than just a physical barrier or decoration. In addition to its decorative and practical     6     (function), the Chinese screen     7     (consider) a symbol of honor and respect as well. When important guests visit, the host often greets them behind the screen as a sign of respect and privacy.

Today, Chinese screens are still treasured and employed for their multiple roles. Whether     8     (use) to divide a room, create privacy,     9     add a touch of traditional elegance to a space, the Chinese screen     10     (remain) a beloved and valuable piece of design.

Tang suits(Tangzhuang) refer to a type of Chinese jackets. The word of Tang suit     1     (create) by the overseas Chinese people decades ago.

    2     the most prosperous(繁荣的) and powerful dynasty in the history of China, the Tang Empire (618-907)was so famous in the world that foreigners call the overseas Chinese people ”the Tang people”, the places     3     they live “Chinatowns (literally meaning Tang People Streets)”and the clothes they wear “Tang suits”.

A Tang suit has two varieties in Chinese culture, which are strikingly different from each other in style. The one that is familiar to us refers to the authentic(真正的) Tang-era clothes     4     (originate)from Hanfu, which leaves an impression of comfort and     5     (elegant). A typical design of a Tang suit employs the Chinese     6     (character), such as fu (happiness) and shou ( longevity) to express good fortune and best wishes, which is     7     (extreme)popular among the Chinese people owing to its cultural significance.

As     8     unique part of traditional Chinese culture, Tang suits are worn by overseas Chinese people during the Spring Festival each year, attracting many foreigners to try     9     (they)out of curiosity. More and more young Chinese people are willing to wear Tang suits instead of Western-style ones on their     10     (memory)occasions. The Chinese TV presenters also prefer wearing Tang suits during TV shows, especially at Spring Festival Galas.