3 . Engineers from China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp ( CASC ) are known for their achievements such as landing a robot to explore Mars. However, the latest display of their wisdom and knowledge took place on the ground at the Bird’s Nest during the opening ceremony for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. They were tasked with building 11 major components for the 140-minute ceremony.

The “ ice cube (立方) ” , a structure covered by LED screens, was an example of engineers using their knowledge to handle technical challenges. The main body weighed 180 tons and had to be raised gradually during the ceremony, which meant that engineers needed to design a reliable method to lift it. Designers and technicians developed a foldable frame capable of lifting the huge cube in just 43 seconds.

Another visual breakthrough is a ground-based display screen covering 10,100 square meters. They used industrial internet technologies to connect more than 40,000 screens and monitor their working conditions. It is essential that engineers should place four signal transmission lines for the screen to prepare sufficient backup capacity to ensure that it functions properly.

The torches (火把) carried by Chinese athletes during the final legs of the relay in the stadium were developed by researchers who used their knowledge and skills gained from developing rocket engines. The torches can burn among wind up to 28 meters per second. They will not go out during strong rain or in low temperatures. New flag poles in the stadium flying the Chinese national flag and the Olympic flag were also designed and made by space researchers.

There is no doubt that technology from space industry has had an unexpected effect on the performance stage during the opening ceremony. Famous filmmaker Zhang Yimou, director of the opening ceremony, said, “As a crucial technical company, it was responsible for the design and construction work for the performance stage. The designs and equipment provided by this company worked very well and far exceeded our expectations. ”

4 . There’s just a 1 in 3, 700, 000 chance that a person will be killed by a shark in their lifetime, but the fear is still enough to have swimmers worrying about being perceived as prey (猎物). Now, new research supports the long-standing theory that when great whites do go in for a bite, it’s a case of “mistaken identity”.

A team of biologists from the UK and Australia compared videos of seals swimming with videos of humans swimming. They then edited the videos to simulate (模拟) a great white’s vision — the sharks are likely colorblind, and they can’t make out fine detail-and found that from the point of view of the ocean creatures, humans do indeed bear a strong resemblance to seals.

“Great white sharks are often regarded as ‘mindless killers’ and ‘fond of human flesh’. However, that's not the case — we just look like their food,” Laura Ryan, lead author of the study, said.

Despite their dissatisfying vision and spatial perception, great white sharks are highly visual creatures, and rely on motion and shadows when on the lookout for prey. To really see through the species’s eyes, the research team had to get creative.

“We attached a camera to an underwater scooter (轻便小车), and set it to travel at a typical speed for predatory sharks,” Ryan said in a statement. The researchers then paired the recordings with computer models to simulate how similar people look from a shark's view below the surface.

“I knew there would be some similarities, but not to the extent we have found,” Ryan said. “Specifically, I thought swimmers might not be as similar as surfers to seals as they typically aren’t involved in as many shark bites. However, the swimmers are also difficult to tell apart from seals.”

Ryan put it in a statement, “Understanding why shark bites occur can help us find ways to prevent them, while keeping both humans and sharks safer.”

5 . A recent story on TikTok showed how two neighbors found companionship during the lockdown because of the pandemic (疫情), thanks to a shared love of the piano.

The story started when Giorgio Lo Porto heard his neighbor playing the piano through their dividing wall. Lo Porto, an Italian living in London, decided to reach out to his neighbor and left a note asking him or her to play My Heart Will Go On. The mystery neighbor agreed, leading Lo Porto to send another note suggesting they play a duet (二重奏) together from the comfort of their own homes. The mystery neighbor started playing the piano at 2:00 pm, and when he stopped after finishing a part of a song, Lo Porto continued. Over time the duets between the two complete strangers became a regular weekend appointment.

Weeks later, the pair finally met and it was better than expected. The mystery pianist happened to be a 78-year-old Polish man named Emil, who was living in temporary accommodation until his house was sold. He lost his wife in December due to COVID-19 and all he had left was the piano. And the reason why he played at 2: 00 pm every weekend was that he and his wife used to do that.

The pair finished a final duet together — Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata — before Emil moved out at the end of February.

While this is heartwarming in itself, the story has a heartbreaking ending: On March 14, Lo Porto shared that his old neighbor had passed away in his sleep. He said, “Now he is reunited with his wife.”

While saying goodbye to Emil, Lo Porto wrote, “Dear Emil, I knew very little about you, but you changed my life. You gave me back my passion, and we shared that with the world. You’ll be in my heart. I’ll keep playing, thinking of how powerful music can be. You said I was your light, but you’ve been mine, too. Bye, Emil.”

In China, Tree Planting Day falls on March 12, but more often people plant trees during Qing Ming Festival in early April. Newly-planted trees can survive more easily with a     1     (warm) climate and frequent spring rainfall at that time.

China set March 12     2     the National Tree-Planting Day in 1979 to memorize Sun Yat-sen (孙中山),     3     died on March 12, 1925. Sun had called for planting trees.

Since 2013, President Xi Jinping has joined Beijing citizens in tree planting activities for nine years in a row. President Xi called on the public     4     (stick) to the tradition of planting trees in spring. “Students should establish an awareness of protecting     5     environment and cherish the green plants,” Xi said in 2017 when     6     (attend) a tree planting activity in Chaoyang district of Beijing.

China has seen a remarkable     7     (grow) in forest resources and afforestation(造林) projects. Nationwide voluntary tree planting campaigns in China over the past four decades     8     (see) increased participation by members of the public and nearly 79 billion trees have been planted. The campaign has made China the country with the largest increase in forest resources and the largest area of     9     (plant) forests.

In the future, China will launch more effective     10     (measure) to fulfill the country’s climate commitment to peak (达到峰值) carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality (碳中和) before 2060.

7 . Shaine is not your average 16-year-old. In fact, she has turned her love of animals into a _______ to make a big difference in the lives of _______ pets. In her spare time, Shaine makes wheelchairs for dogs and cats.

For many pet owners, the cost of buying mobility (移动) equipment is not _______, so many dogs get _______ because they’re disabled. Wheelchairs usually go for more than $1, 000. But Shaine only _______ for the parts. She does this through the nonprofit that she _______ in 2020.

“I really had to _______ that she took the money at least for the _______,” Jennifer said. Jennifer’s dog was born with front legs shorter than her back legs and needed a way to be mobile before and after _______ surgery. Latham said, “If she isn’t mobile, we’ll kill her, and that shouldn’t be a(n) __________.”

Shaine was taking a(n) __________ science class in her high school. When a class discussion __________ exploring careers, she was __________ unsure what direction she wanted to go in. She thought about starting her own animal __________ after discovering animal wheelchairs, and the idea __________.

Shaine is __________ building a wheelchair for a dog named Scooter from Saudi Arabia. Scooter was at risk for __________ sores (疮) on his back legs that could have led to __________. Now, he is getting a new __________ in life. She has already made 10 devices that have given the gift of mobility to disabled pets. Her goal is to make some __________ of wheelchairs to animal shelters.

8 . The boy’s name is Aaron Moreno, and he’s 8 years old. He started his own business selling_________ in Los Angeles.

The story began earlier this year, when his mother _________ her job because of the pandemic. They were already in a financially _________ situation: Aaron’s older sister had been sent back to Mexico to _________ with her grandparents. They even ended up homeless, living in shelters.

In June this year, the situation got so bad that Aaron _________ to start a business selling plants to help his mom support the family. He hoped to make it_________ to bring his older sister back home from Mexico.

At first, he bought plants in the downtown Los Angeles and took them with his mother to resell at various places in the city. He called the_________ “Aaron’s Garden”.

It was hard work, as they had no tools of their own. They had to carry the plants by their_________ on public transportation. By June 24, he had a social software account that he used to start _________ what plants he was selling. Providers started bringing him plants to__________.

On July 13, __________ by Aaron’s initiative （倡议）and hard work, a friend of the family started a GoFundMe __________, and Aaron’s Garden started to get media__________ as well. “People support us by buying plants, following us, leaving us__________comments, and they tell us nice things to keep us moving forward. It’s what we__________, ”Aaron told local TV station.

All the hard work__________. The GoFundMe campaign had an initial__________of $1, 000, but it’s raised nearly $70, 000. Thanks to both the business and the__________ of donors, the family has__________ behind the shelters where they were living. The family has now moved into their own home and Aaron’s __________ has come back from Mexico!

9 . Golden Generation

A national team, mostly consisting of teenagers, pushed China to its biggest-ever medal achievement at the Winter Olympics. At the same time, a series of breakthroughs at the Games _________ the country’s emergence as a much more well-rounded force on the ice and snow.

_________ the heroics of teenage sensation Gu Ailing and seasoned aerials(空中技巧滑雪)masters Xu Mengtao and Qi Guangpu, China _________ four gold to top the freestyle skiing medal standings for the first time after its Winter Olympic debut in 1980.

Gu Ailing also became the first athlete _________, and the youngest _________, to win three medals(golds in Big Air, halfpipe and silver in slopestyle)in three different freeski _________ at the Olympics, throwing her to international super-star reputation as the _________ of Beijing 2022.

Needless to say, another teenager star, Su Yiming, also became a _________   name by winning China’s first snowboarding gold medal in Big Air after claiming a silver in slopestyle. Su’s _________ helped the host finish a highest-ever third on the Games’ overall medal standings, ____________ nine gold, four silver and two bronze-its biggest-ever medal achievement at the Winter Games. China’s ____________ best was a tally of 11, including five gold, at the 2010 Games in Vancouver.

“The ____________ of the new generation on the Olympic stage, even seeing the emergence of teenagers, ____________ a great future for winter sports in our country,” said Li Yang, manager of China’s Big Air, slopestyle and halfpipe national programs.

“With winter sports becoming popular in our country amid the fast social and ____________ development, I believe more and more young people will ____________ skis and snowboards to enjoy the sport, just as young as Su and Gu did when they were little, which will ____________ expand the talent pool for our future national programs,”Li said.

The Beijing Winter Games also ____________ the first time that China’s snow sports teams outperformed the country’s traditionally strong ice sports squads in the medal numbers, securing investment in high-performance training programs and ____________ the foundation for even better results at the next Winter Games in Italy.

“____________ we keep the tendency going, I believe we will ____________ a stronger performance in four years' time at the next Olympics in 2026,” said Yang Yang, China’s first Winter Olympic gold medalist, in women’s short-track speed skating at the 2002 Games.

10 . Different countries celebrate Christmas in different ways. We asked some of our friends to explain what happens in their countries. This is what they told us:

France

In France, Christmas is always called Noël. Everyone has a Christmas tree, sometimes decorated in the old way with red ribbons and real white wax candles. Fir trees in the garden are often decorated too with lights on all night.

Father Christmas is called Père Noël. The Christmas meal is an important family gathering with good meat and the best wine. Few people send Christmas cards. More people send New Year cards to wish everyone good luck and joy for the New Year. These days Christmas lunch is a starter of foie gras (a strong tasting pate made from goose liver) followed by lunch of seafood — usually including lobsters and oysters.

New Zealand

Christmas starts for us with gifts under the tree, to be opened on Christmas morning. Then it’s onto a Christmas lunch either at home or at one’s parents place. Turkey or chicken with all the trimmings (佐料) is eaten. Then comes tea time. It is a BBQ for friends and family to get together, and have a few beers or wines with the meal!

Russia

In the days of the Soviet Union, Christmas was not celebrated very much. New Year was the important time — when “Father Frost” brought presents to children. With the fall of Communism, Christmas can be openly celebrated either on December 25th; or more often on January 7th. This unusual date is because the Russian Orthodox church uses the old “Julian” calendar for religious celebration days. Special Christmas food includes cakes, pies and “meat dumplings”.

Sweden

The most important day is Christmas Eve. A special Christmas meal is eaten on Christmas Eve — ham (pork), herring fish, and brown beans — and this is the time when families give presents to each other. Many people attend a church meeting early on Christmas Day.