Like other big cities, Paris has also a traffic problem: lots of cars, traffic jams and traffic pollution. So since 2007, the city     1    (start) a plan to improve the situation.

Under a project, people can take a bicycle, use it as long as they want, and then leave it at the same or another bicycle station. The first half-hour is free,     2     if you don’t return it after 30 minutes, you have to pay. It’s only $1 or $29 a year. The bicycles are as heavy as 25 kilograms, and they’re all grey and have baskets. There’re a large number of     3    (they) in the city, and the bicycle stations are more than the subway stations!

Paris isn’t the first city to operate a project like this. One Parisian said, “These bicycles are only suitable for short     4    (journey). If people want to travel across the city, they won’t use a bicycle — they’ll still use their cars.”

A city spokesman said, “The bicycle project won’t solve all our traffic problems, but it might work in     5    (reduce) air pollution. Traffic, together with factory fumes,     6    (be) a big problem. Everyone knows about global warming and dramatic climate changes — we know this is partly because rainforests are     7    (gradual) disappearing. And it’s also because there’s so much pollution. There aren’t any simple answers     8     traffic problems and pollution in cities, but the bicycles might help people lead     9     healthier life. Unless we do something now, there’ll be more traffic jams and temperatures will continue to rise, so the problems in our environment will get even     10    (bad).”

A terrible fire began to burn at France’s world-famous Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral (巴黎圣母院)    1    the evening of April 15. Flames could be seen rising through the top of the monument.     2    (it) tall, narrow top later fell down. It took 15 hours for 400 French firefighters     3    (put) out the fire.     4    (fortunate), the main stone structure, including the two bell towers, has been saved, but there is little information on the condition of the cathedral’s glass windows and paintings.

Notre-Dame     5    (date) back to the 12th century. French writer Victor Hugo used it as the setting of his famous story, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame,    6    was first published in 1831. Sitting in the center of Paris, along the Seine River, Notre-Dame is one of the world’s most famous tourist     7    (site). About 12 million people visit it each year.

One man said, “Notre-Dame     8    (destroy) but the soul of France was not.” French President Emmanuel Macron promised that Notre-Dame would be rebuilt and asked for worldwide help repairing it. Many countries offered assistance, because Notre-Dame is part of the     9     (culture) heritage of mankind and     10    symbol for Europe.