Happy 18th birthday! You’ve officially reach     1     (adult) in a lot of ways, even though I know you’re already mature beyond your years.

Many bittersweet events will happen in the next ten years. There will be highs. Stick to     2     (cherish) every single second. There will also be lows, and you may feel     3     (dishearten). But you’ll surely be committed to     4     (make) it through, and    5     (gradual) you’ll get stronger than before.

The world will always throw new challenges at you.     6     a consequence, your strength will be tested again and again. Looking back to what has happened over the last decade, I feel proud of how far you’ve come. Approve     7     everything that contributes to your     8     (become) fearless and independent.

As you become an adult, jump at every opportunity     9    comes your way. Celebrate every chance you get. No doubt you’ll always ponder     10    it and make the right decision.

Happy birthday, Kelsey! See you in ten years.

28-­year-­old Kelsey

    1     (construct) from the 5th century BC, the Grand Canal was a means of communication for the Empire for the first time in the Sui Dynasty.

Before foundation of Sui Dynasty, China had     2     (continuous) evacuated several canals,     3     had been suspended due to natural environment. Some needed to be repaired but were still navigable, but were too separated from each other to form large-scale water transport nationwide.

The establishment of Sui Dynasty     4     (declare) the end of long-lasting split situation. In 605 AD, Emperor Yang Guang, the     5     (two) emperor of Sui Dynasty, ordered excavation of the Grand Canal to meet the political,     6     (economy) and military needs of unified nation.

The Grand Canal reached a new peak in the Yuan Dynasty (13th century), providing a unified inland navigation network consisting     7     more than 2,000 km of artificial waterways, linking five of the most important river basins in China,     8     (include) the Yellow River and the Yangtze.

As     9     major means of internal communication today, it has played an important role in ensuring the prosperity and     10     (stable) of China over the ages.

Pandas     1     (live) in China for over three million years. A giant panda has a typical bear’s body but is a distinctive black and white color, with black fur around the eyes and on the cars, legs, chest and shoulders, while the rest of the body is white. Giant pandas are the     2     (nation) treasure of China. A panda’s daily diet consists almost     3     (entire) of bamboo. Sometimes, however, they do not just eat bamboo. Only about 1% of their diet consists of other plants and even meat such as small rodents (啮齿动物).

Ma Mian Qun, also     1     (know) as “Ma Mian Zhe Qun (horse face pleats (褶) skirt) ”, is a kind of traditional Chinese dress. The question of why the dress     2     (name) Ma Mian Qun has always been puzzling. What’s the relationship between the animal’s name and the skirt? In fact, “Ma Mian” is a kind of structure used for defense in the city wall system.

But     3     its name is really related to the city wall is still a question to be confirmed. All the books about Ma Mian Qun, whether they are related to costumes, operas     4     cultural relics, only show that the smooth surface without pleats in the middle is called “Ma Mian”, but there is no     5     (far) explanation for the source of “Ma Mian”.

The Chinese Horse Face Skirt shows     6     unique structural design that pairs practicality with elegance. Its form-fitting waistband transforms into an A-line shape, characterized by a series of pleats that expand outward,     7     (offer) a glimpse of the wearer’s grace with every step.

The Horse Face Skirt, with its deep historical roots, has successfully transitioned into modern fashion, where it serves     8     a bridge between the past and present. In today’s fashion landscape,     9     (design) frequently draw inspiration from the Horse Face Skirt,     10     (skillful) weaving its traditional elements with a modern twist, which thereby broadens its appeal to a contemporary audience.

Pu’er tea is a kind of dark tea only found in China’s Yunnan Province. It’s     1     (original) produced in the “Six Famous Mountains” in Xishuangbanna and gets its name from Pu’er, a town     2     most of the tea is processed and sold. Pu’er tea has a long history. Early in the Tang Dynasty, the tea trade between Pu’er and other areas already     3     (begin). Now a 2,700 year old wild tea tree still produces tea leaves. Every year, locals go to tea planting fields     4     (pick) tea leaves. Usually it starts at 9:00 am     5     finishes by 3:00 pm from February to December. Spring tea leaves are the best of the whole year.

Pu’er tea is big and rough in shape, black or brown red in color and the soup tastes mellow (醇厚),     6     (leave) a sweet aftertaste. The tea is mild in nature and does no harm to the stomach. At the same time, it has medicinal effects of “fat removing, body slimming and digestion promoting” and     7     (call) “slimming tea”.

The taste     8     the tea varies the taste changes with the     9     (long) of time it’s stored; the longer it’s stored, the     10     (good) it tastes. Thus, Pu’er tea not only makes a good drink, but also a valuable collector’s item. Pu’er tea has always enjoyed the good reputation of weight-loss tea, beauty tea, slimming tea and health tea.

7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

It took 25 long years, but 52-year-old Xie Kefeng was finally reunited with his son, who had been snatched as a baby. The power of technology,     1    (specific)a facial comparison algorithm played a major role in bringing about the happy outcome.

In 1998, Xie’s wife stepped out of home to buy groceries, leaving their three-month-old second son, Xie Qingshuai, on the bed     2     the door unlocked. When she returned 10 minutes later, the child     3    (disappear). The couple reported the incident to the police, but the child could not be found.

In late November this year, Xie Kefeng received a call from the police informing him that a facial comparison had led to Xie Qingshuai     4    (find). A DNA comparison confirmed that it was indeed his long-lost son.

Xie Qingshuai, who now     5    (prove)outgoing, positive and diligent, was reunited with his family for the first time. Unknown to his family, he had been sold to a couple     6     lived in Xingtai as well. After the man he knew as his father died, his wife remarried and moved away, leaving Xie Qingshuai to be brought up by his adoptive grandparents.

On Sunday, Beijing DeepGlint Technology Co,     7     artificial intelligence technology company, announced that a facial comparison algorithm developed by it had played a vital role in the reunion.

    8    (base)on the principle that facial features among relatives tend to be similar, the company’s algorithm can identify highly relevant potential     9    (match), significantly improving the     10    (efficient)of the search process.

Many quick service restaurant owners are looking ahead to a future where automation will play an important role. They believe it will be the key to greatly     1    (increase) their thin profits and allow their workers to shine in the tasks no machine can do.

Many people are afraid of being replaced by a robot. But the    2    (smart) and most creative robotic companies are creating intelligent machines that work alongside workers to make efficiency and profits increase     3    (dramatic). Take Flippy, the arm-like robotic kitchen assistant    4     an example. It turns burgers over, cooking them to     5    (perfect), and lets its co-workers know the orders are ready. Not competing for people’s jobs, such robots    6    (design) to be cooperative ones, the cost-effective machines created to work with humans, not against them.

Quick service restaurants with tools like Flippy are the kind of places     7     you keep coming back--you know the staff will always have time to give you    8     answer to your detailed question and you will have your order on time, perfectly cooked.

Automation in restaurants will become even more crucial in the future. Owners then     9    (need) workers to enforce updated safety regulations and interact with dissatisfied guests. With Flippy having their back in the kitchen, they won’t have to worry about     10    (burn) burgers.

China drives world renewables capacity addition in 2023

China was the major driving force behind the world’s rapid     1     (expand) of renewable power generation capacity last year, which grew by 50 percent to 510 gigawatts, the International Energy Agency said.

    2     (drive) by rapid growth in China, renewable energy capacity surged globally last year, generating green power faster than at any time during the last few decades. China, which has become     3     dominant force in the field of renewable energy,     4     (see) its position further consolidate in the next five years, as lower costs make utility-scale solar power generation more attractive compared to coal and gas power generation.     5     (additional), China has outlined and clarified regulations for green power certificates,     6     will bring additional income for solar and wind energy developers, and further accelerate its renewable energy development.

China’s installed capacity of renewable energy exceeded 1.45 billion kilowatts in 2023,     7     (account) for more than 50 percent of the country’s total installed power generation capacity. Power generated from renewable energy sources such as wind and solar now accounts for more than 15 percent of China's total electricity consumption.

China has several advantages that others do not possess, including the ability     8     (approve) and build transmission grids and renewable energy projects     9     (efficient) and finance projects more easily thanks    10     policy priorities.