How Many Books Does It Take to Make a Place Feel Like Home?

At the turn of the millennium, Reid Byers set out to build a private library at his home in Princeton, N.J. The project stretched over a    1    (generate) and ended with a book this year.

In The Privae Library, Mr. Byers goes to the heart of why physical books continue to attract us.    2    (individual), they are frequently useful or    3    (delight) but it is when books are displayed altogether    4    they really work wonders.    5    (cover) the walls of a room, piled up to the ceiling, they nourish the senses, slay (消磨) boredom and relieve distress.

“Entering our library should feel like easing    6    a hot tub, entering a chamber of curiosities, or the house of     7    old friend,” he writes. “It is a setting forth, and it is a coming back to center.”

Mr. Byers coined a term — “book-wrapt” —    8    (describe) the exciting comfort of a well-stocked library. To be surrounded by books    9    (be) to be fascinated in a circle and to experience the extreme pleasure of being transported to other worlds.

And     10    (mass) of books, he said, represent “delights that we hold in possibility” — the joy of being able to lift a hand and tap unexplored worlds.

Demand for Chinese stories turns a page at Italian book fair

A picture book series titled Palace Cats,    1    (picture) a few of the furry occupants of the Palace Museum, the huge national museum complex housed in the Forbidden City in the heart of Beijing, caught the eyes of nearly all visitors    2    the exhibition area of a Chinese publishing house at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair,    3    ran from March 6- 9 in the central Italian city.

In its 60th edition, the annual book fair is    4    major international forum for publishers, authors    5    illustrators of children’s literature to exchange ideas, forge bonds and select partners.

At the 32-square-meter stand of China Science and Technology Press, hundreds of Chinese story books and science books for children were on n display. Audrey Lorenzini, an    6    (independence) publisher from Padova, Italy,    7    (discuss) copyright issues with the Chinese exhibitors.

“It’s very difficult for children in Italy    8    (access) books about Chinese culture,”she said while looking for books for Italians who want to learn about China.

    9    (profession) and publishers, including Beijing-based UTOP publishing house and China Children’s Press and Publication Group,    10    (draw) to the exhibition booths of other Chinese publishers to seek deals for cooperation.

The “sour and spicy shredded (细丝) potato” is a typical home cooking dish in China which    1    (see) frequently at home and in restaurants because of the simple cooking method. Although it belongs to Sichuan cuisine, the dish now is    2    choice many diners can’t resist all over China. Its flavor can be flexibly adjusted by adding different    3    (amount) of peppers and vinegar. The only main ingredient (原料), potato, is    4    (reasonable) priced in all seasons. When cooked well, it    5    (look) bright and the potato shreds are clear and crisp with sour and spicy taste. It has won the love of the majority of people in China and been regarded    6    one of the best matches for rice. Here is the way of its cooking.

Wash the potatoes and remove the skin. Cut them into thin and similar shreds. Put in salt water for a few minutes    7    (remove) the starch (淀粉) and clean them well. Heat the oil in the pan. Add and fry green onion and dried peppers before adding the potato. Then add all the other ingredients    8    (include) white vinegar, peppers and salt. Fry the potato    9    it is well cooked. You should be    10    (care) that you do not overcook the potato.

Three Chinese astronauts of the Shenzhou-13 manned spaceship have completed their six-month space station mission and returned to Earth     1     (safe) on Saturday. The mission marks that China has completed the verification of key technologies of     2     (it) space station, and also     3     (set) a record for Chinese astronauts’ duration in orbit.

From separating     4     the space station core module to return to Earth, the journey took only over nine hours, the first time for a Chinese manned spacecraft to use the “rapid return mode”. It shortened the flight mainly by reducing traveling    5     (circle) around the orbit. Shenzhou-13’s return capsule,    6     (carry) astronauts Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu, touched down at the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region,     7     people cheered for the trio (三人组) and raised their cameras     8     (capture) the historic moment.

“It is the power and strength of our country     9     built the high-flying space station. I am     10     (pride) of my great motherland,” Zhai, said. China will further advance its pursuit of space dreams.

Six weeks before his 97^th birthday, Giuseppe Paternò fulfilled the dream of a lifetime: He     1     (get) a university degree.

Mr. Paternò’s     2     (graduate) has inspired news reports around the world, partly because     3     his age. But he has also drawn attention because his life story speaks of commitment, a theme that has resonated (产生共鸣) as millions of schoolchildren in Italy and elsewhere face extraordinary uncertainty during the coronavirus pandemic.

Born in Palermo in 1923, the first of seven children in a “ very poor family ” , Mr. Paternò began working soon after     4     (finish) elementary school. It was only after he retired, in the mid-1980s, that he returned to his books.

“ His story proves that dreams can come true and that you can remain young — if not in age at least in spirit — if you develop interests. ” said Rosella Cancila, his essay adviser and     5     professor of history at the University of Palermo.

Italy’s university system is based on a three-year degree,     6     (follow) by a two-year master’s course. University officials are hoping that Mr. Paternò     7     (continue) his studies.

He isn’t so sure. “ I have to admit that in this moment, I don’t know     8     I would handle it with the same spirit. ” he said, noting that all the attention had been a bit tiring. Still, Mr. Paternò said, he would     9     (probable) register anyway. “ I want to keep my     10     (choice) open. ”

Alpine skiing is a snow sport that perfectly combines speed and skills. As one of the most     1    (complicate) winter sports in the world, which     2     (require) great organizing efforts, it is known as “the pearl on the crown of the Winter Olympics Games.” In order to adapt to steeper slopes (更陡的坡) and varied grounds, alpine skiers use modern alpine skis and improved turning     3    (technique).

In competitions, skiers are required to ski downhill along a set route, pass through gates and make turns along the way.     4     finishes within the shortest time wins. In alpine skiing, there are speed events and technical events. Downhill and super-G are speed events. For downhill, skiers go     5     very high speeds, and the course is the     6     (long) and has the largest vertical (垂直的) drop. Super-G courses have more gates and     7     smaller vertical drop.

As the competitions take place in cold high mountains, alpine skiing is a sport which is likely    8     (affect) by weather conditions. When       9     (encounter) extreme weather conditions such as heavy snow, fog, strong wind, or sudden warming, the competition may be     10    (temporary) suspended (中止), rescheduled, or even canceled altogether.

China has ever announced that all member states of the United Nations are welcome to cooperate with China to jointly utilize(利用)     1     (it) future China Space Station(CSS).

“CSS belongs not only to China, but also to the world,” said Shi Zhong-jun, China's ambassador to the UN and other intonational     2     (organization) in Vienna." All countries, regardless     3     their size and level of    4     (develop), can participate in the cooperation on an equal footing," he added.

CSS was launched in 2019, which is expected     5     (complete) and brought into operation by 2023. It will be the world's first space station     6     is developed by a developing country and open for cooperation with all UN member states.

    7     (consist ) of one core module and two experiment modules, each of which     8     (weigh) about 20 tons, CSS will have the capacity to accommodate up to three astronauts at the same time and maximum six during rotation.

Operating in    9     low-Earth orbit about 400 kilometers above the Earth's surface, CSS will be    10     (wide) used in research fields, including space medicine, life science biotechnology, microgravity science, Earth science and space technology.