Insect numbers have decreased by half in some parts of the world due     1     climate change and intensive agriculture (集约型农业), a study has found.

Lead researcher, Dr. Charlie Outhwaite of University College London, said     2     (lose) insect populations could be harmful not only to the natural environment, but also to human health and food security,     3     (particular) with losses of pollinators (传粉昆虫).

However, scientific data gives     4     mixed picture, with some types of insects showing sharp declines, while others are staying steady. In the latest study, the researchers pulled together data on the range and number of nearly, 20, 000 insect species, including bees, ants, etc, at 6,000 different     5     (place).

In areas with intensive agriculture and severe warming, insect numbers     6     (reduce) by 49% so far and the number of different species by 27%, compared with untouched areas       7     have avoided the most severe effects of climate change, according to the research     8     (publish) in Nature. But the researchers said there was some cause for hope in that setting aside areas of land for nature created a shelter for insects, which need shade     9     (survive) in hot weather.

“Some     10     (care) management of agricultural areas such as preserving natural habitats near farmland, may help ensure vital insects can still grow well,” said Dr. Charlie Outhwaite.

Representing wisdom, power, and wealth, dragons are respected and honored in Chinese culture, which are said     1     (scare) away evil spirits and bad luck. In ancient times, when there was no rain for a long time, people not only prayed     2     rain with a dragon dance,     3     prayed against insect attacks after planting.

If you’ve seen a Chinese New Year parade (庆祝游行), you’ve probably seen a colorful dragon     4     (wind) its way down the street. The dragon dance,     5     time-honored traditional folk activity in Chinese culture dating back to the Han Dynasty 2,000 years ago,     6     (observe) during festive celebrations much like the lion dance. Dragon dances can be performed in different ways with dragon costumes of different colors.     7     (specific), as many as 9 to 15 dancers use long poles to guide the dragon’s head and snakelike body, the tricks of     8     are often jumps or moves that make the dragon turn in     9     (variety) of ways.

The culture of dragon and lion dances has spread beyond China to southeast Asia, and even to some regions with significant Chinese communities in Europe, America, Australia, and New Zealand. It has become a     10     (substance) symbol of Chinese culture.

After several decades of development, Chinese cultural industries, such as online literature and video games, have created products     1     enrich global culture with creativity, imagination and local elements, appealing to both domestic consumers and those from overseas.

China’s video game industry, after three decades of development,     2     (evolve) into a competitive player in the international market, especially in the section of mobile games, driven by the Internet and     3     (technology) advancements.

According to CNG, overseas revenue from games independently developed in China had risen from $11.6 billion in 2019     4     $16.4 billion in 2023, achieving a four-year CAGR of 9.04percent. This growth is primarily attributed to the advantages of Chinese companies in mobile game development and operations.

With the widespread adoption of smartphones     5     the development of mobile Internet technologies, mobile games have become a major part of the global gaming market.     6     (depend) on the leading technology and extensive     7     (experienced) in this area, Chinese gaming companies have     8     (successful) launched a series of popular game products in both domestic and overseas markets.

In 2023, Genshin Impact became the     9     (popular) Chinese game in overseas markets. By the end of last year, it had garnered about $5 billion, and players from overseas contributed more than 60 percent of the total, according to data from analytics company Sensor Tower and App Magic.

Since     10     (it) launch in 2020, Genshin Impact has won the best mobile game award in 2021and the player’s voice award in 2022 at the annual The Game Awards — often dubbed as the “Oscars” of the global gaming industry, while being nominated for the best ongoing award four times.

In the 1950s, a plastic surgeon(整形外科医生)by the name of Maxwell Maltz began to notice that many of his patients took about 21 days    1    they got used to seeing their new face after an    2    (operate)—like a nose of job, for example.

    3     (promote) by the observation of this unusual pattern, Maltz looked inward, into his own life, and noticed that it also took about 21 days    4    (adjust) to a new house someone just moved into. These experiences    5    (eventual) led Maltz to publish his famous 1960s book Psycho-cybernetics, in    6    he states that “it requires a minimum of about 21 days for an old mental image to disappear and a new one to form.” The book sold more than 30 million copies and is still    7    print today. This “21 days” figure    8    (repeat) countless times ever since. It has been republished and adapted in thousands of self-help books and TV shows. There’s a problem though. The “21 days” time window for cementing(巩固) changes in habit is    9    (little) a statistical fact and more like a myth. Maltz never performed a careful and thorough study using the    10    (science) method. His statistics are not accurate. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t scientists who have made a genuine inquiry.

Deep work: concentration is an increasingly valuable skill

The secret to success is the opposite of multitasking. However, many tend to think that     1    (productive) involves doing several things at once. We clarify deep work as the ability to focus on a mentally demanding task. It’s    2     opposite of shallow work, which is made up of simple tasks usually performed while distracted (分心).

Deep work is a valuables kill. Many are distracted when they work. Thus    3    you learn to work without distraction, that will give you an advantage. Deep work enables you to acquire skills quickly and develop excellence in your field,    4    (reward) you with a sense of achievement.

But deep work itself is a skill, which means the more time you spend, the easier it will get. Schedule deep work into your day     5    it will be easy to fill your time with shallow work. Doing deep work as your first task of the day will get your major work     6    (do) before distractions build up. Scheduling deep work sessions for the same time everyday can turn them     7     a habit.

Beginners can only focus on deep work for     8    (approximate) an hour, and even experts have trouble going more than four hours. So sat    9    (reason) goals. By focusing on planned sessions of deep work, you     10    (surprise) at how much you can achieve in the near future.