1 . To the firefighters who deal with danger each day, every life is worthy to be saved.

Wildfires are just one of the many situations firefighters _________ toward when everyone else is going in the opposite direction. Every year, it seems wildfires _________ parts of California, Washington and Oregon. In September, 2023, Daniel Trevizo, a Los Angeles Fire Department head, and his team worked hard around-the-clock to _________ the fires in the south of California.

One day, they were watering down embers (余火) near Lake Oroville when he _________ a surprising thing. When the fires were put out, his team quickly did everything they could to _________ the fire scene. _________, Daniel heard an animal crying nearby. So he started looking around for the _________ of the sounds. Then they found a small cat under the burnt bushes. The frightened and lonely cat came right up to Daniel.

Daniel _________ the soot (煤烟)-covered cat, later named Ember, and kept it _________ in his jacket pocket until it got much-needed __________ in an animal hospital. The veterinarian (兽医) said Ember had only some minor __________. With medication and Daniel’s care, Ember __________ a few days later. Ultimately, Daniel managed to find Ember’s owners, who got __________ from it while they escaped from the fires.

There’s no doubt Ember’s life was saved by __________ Daniel and his team! They risked their lives to save those around them, and we couldn’t be more __________!

2 . Cannes, a coastal city in France, is famous for hosting the Cannes Film Festival every year. It’s also a beautiful place to visit any time of the year. Here are 4 things to do in Cannes.

Enjoy a stroll down La Croisette — a famous 2-mile waterfront road. It’s the place where the Cannes Film Festival takes place. Take a seat for people-watching or enjoy the beautiful scenery. Discover recreational (娱乐的) places for kids or go to summer music concerts at a low price.

Lose yourself in the attractive streets of Le Suquet, the historic old town of Cannes. An impressive 5th century theater will take your breath away. Visit the World Explorations Museum, and enjoy wonderful views from the tower. Walk through narrow streets and discover cafes and wine bars.

You can set foot on a small-group tour, led by a screenwriter and historical researcher. Get fully immersed (沉浸) in the city’s rich film history, and see how it transforms itself into an international film center. Remember to book your tour on the Internet in advance.

Take a ship to Sainte-Marguerite, the largest of the Lerins Islands just off the coast of Cannes. Enjoy walks on coastal paths, or relax on the beaches, which are perfect for swimming and picnics. Enjoy local seafood, or go deep into the island’s past with a visit to the 7th century Fort Royal.

3 . Human beings need interpersonal connection. But, in fact, learning how to let go of that pressure to be accompanied has unique upsides. Time alone allows you to reconnect with your own intentions.     1    

Start small. Figure out what you’d be most comfortable doing, whether it’s sitting at a local restaurant for dinner, or hitting up the bar, and do that.     2    

Bring a book or a journal.     3     When feeling you’re so alone and stressed in a cafe, you have an activity to engage in. Plus, the act of reading or journaling can direct your attention and help you tackle and calm such feelings.

Set your phone aside. Looking through social media or texting instantly takes your mind out of the present moment. Even if you’re not directly interacting with people while on your phone, you’re probably interacting with their thoughts or inputs.     4     This way you can let your body down-regulate and reset.

Do an activity you love. You can sign. up for an art class or workout program or volunteer group without anyone else you know.     5     And part of the full-circle joy of doing things completely for yourself is that it also brings you opportunities to meet new people, and form new, beautiful connections.

During the peak (高峰的) holiday travel period beginning in spring, tourists booked all 16 rooms of the village home run by Paden Chodron, a 39-year-old member of the Tibetan ethnic group.

“The tourists are mostly young people, many of     1     are part of tour groups. They want to know about our     2     (tradition) lifestyle, like planting highland barley (青稞) and harvesting mushrooms. We also learn about their homes and their life,” Paden says.

He and his wife Baima Quzhen made their dream of starting a family hotel a     3     (real) ten years ago.     4     (locate) in Zhaxigang village in Lunang town in Nyingchi, Southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, the couple’s hotel is now one of more than 50 households in the village getting good returns from improved highways and the nearby airport. The roads and communications have improved greatly,     5     (help) them open up to the outside world. More and more tourists are drawn to the beautiful environment and ethnic attractions of the area. Paden says his family enjoys     6     annual income (收入) of 100,000 yuan, tourism and farming included.

The Zhaxigang village successfully uses its ethnic heritage, natural attractions and connectivity     7     (develop) the important industries of tourism and animal feeding. Last year it     8     (give) several national-level honors.

As is reflected by residents like Paden, so far our Chinese government’s powerful and effective measures     9     (enable) local communities to be in line     10     the country’s increasing focus on shared and inclusive growth.

When Mark was five years old, his father died and his life fell apart. His mom Jane and he lived a hard life. They had to move from California to Arizona and live with Mark’s grandmother, Moria. That meant Mark lost all his friends and his carefree life.

It could have been the end of Mark’s childhood, but then he met 76-year-old Mr. Kelsey, Moira’s next-door neighbor. One day, he was kicking a soccer ball around the yard when one kick sent the ball over the fence into Kelsey’s yard. Mark came to Kelsey’s home, feeling a little nervous.

“Grandpa, can I get my ball back?” Mark said cautiously. “Of course,” Kelsey said gently with a smile. “Come over and have a talk with me, will you?” Then they had a pleasant chat.

Kelsey lived alone but had a loving and patient heart to children. Over time, the two of them gradually established a deep friendship, enjoying each other’s company.

Half a year later, something unexpected happened. Mark learned Kelsey had a serious eye disease but he couldn’t afford the $3,000 surgery (外科手术). Without timely treatment, he would go blind completely. However, Jane and Moria were also on a tight budget, unable to spare any money for Kelsey.

Mark made up his mind to wash cars at the parking lot of the shopping center on the weekends to raise money for poor Kelsey. He offered to wash each car for one dollar. Mark knew he had to wash a lot of cars to make up the money, but he was determined.

A few days later, one of his customers, named Jason, asked curiously, “What do you do this for, kid?” “My neighbor, Mr. Kelsey. He needs an eye surgery. I’m raising money for him. I badly need $3, 000,” Mark replied. “You’re a kind boy,” Jason said softly. “Where do you live?” Mark told Jason his address. Deeply moved by what Mark was doing, Jason decided to help him another way.

Jason shared Mark’s story online, appealing for donations.

7 . It’s often said that there’s a need for better work guidance for us teenagers. According to a recent survey, 40 percent of the teenagers end up working in an unsatisfactory job because they don’t know what else to do.     1     It will allow us teenagers to make our own decisions and take action on our goals.

Try arranging some statements about our values of life in order of how important they are to us. For example, I prefer to follow instructions from others or I value dealing with stress at work.     2     Try to bear these values in mind when carrying out our career researches as they can impact what type of career we might want to pursue (追求).

    3     The survey found that 40% of the teenagers end up leaving their jobs because they don’t want to regret spending their careers working in the wrong industry. If we’re able to find a career that we have a real passion for, we’ll get more job satisfaction and will probably stick to it.

Think about what skills we already have while planning our careers.     4     For example, if we’re good at talking people round, then perhaps a career in sales or public relations would be good for us. Or if we work well in numbers, then perhaps we should look at a career in finance (金融) or management.

Having taken these elements into consideration, we’re likely to get a general idea of our future career field.     5     This will prepare ourselves for our future work.

8 . Living near bars and fast-food restaurants could be harmful to heart health, according to a new research. These kinds of ready-to-eat food environments typically provide unhealthy foods and drinks, and have been related to cardiovascular diseases, such as heart failure, said Lu Qi, a head researcher at Tulane University in New Orleans.

Heart failure is a condition in which the heart can’t get enough blood to meet the body’s needs. This study is likely the first to evaluate (评估) the connection between food environment and heart failure with long-term observation. “Most previous researches on the relation between nutrition (营养) and human health have been focused on food quality, neglecting the impact of food environment,” Qi said. “Our present study highlights the importance of accounting for food environment in nutrition researches.”

Researchers evaluated the connection using data from more than 500,000 adults in the United Kingdom. They measured participants’ exposure (接触 ) to three types of food environments — bars, restaurants and fast-food restaurants. Exposure was determined ‘ by proximity (living within 1 kilometer) and density (the number of ready-to-eat food stores within 1 kilometer).

The study documented nearly 13,000 heart failure cases during a 12-year follow-up period and the results showed that participants with 10 or more ready-to-eat stores near their homes had a 16% greater risk of heart failure than those with no ready-to-eat food environments. Those closest to the bars(less than 500 meters) had a 14% higher risk than those who lived the farthest away (more than 3,000 meters).

The researchers noted the findings suggested that creating healthier food environments and improving physical fitness facilities, along with helping more people receive higher levels of education, could reduce the increased risk of heart failure linked to quick-meal options.

Overall, the study stresses the importance of improving food environments to prevent heart failure, and the researchers note that more studies are needed, particularly evaluating nutrition unsafety, to make sure of the applicability of this study’s results.

9 . Originally from the southeastern U. S., the red swamp crayfish have become an unwelcomed world traveler. They have dried wetlands in Europe and destroyed rice crops in Asia. These invasive (入侵的) crayfish are mobile and end anger native species. In the U. S., they are spread by private owners or lab researchers releasing unwanted ones into ponds and rivers. For their damaging nature, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) will by no means give up fighting against them.

In 2017, the red swamp crayfish found its first Michigan home in a hotel pond. Over the years, researchers and workers have caught and removed more than 150,000 crayfish from the ponds but still see no end to completely removing them. They lay so many eggs, dig holes and can live anywhere. They outcompete native species for food and space. They have even spread across the city areas to the countryside waters. Their natural behavior and habits of digging holes make them a danger to native species and construction structures along the waterways. If left uncontrolled, they could damage water quality, wetlands, riverbanks and wild rice beds completely.

Present methods of controlling the population include daily catching, hole filling and others. All of these approaches take a significant amount of time, money and scientific expert knowledge and skills. With the species continuing to enter waterways, the need to control its populations and protect native species is pressing for protecting the environment and the ecosystem. The team of researchers badly needs to develop new techniques. “We hope to find effective methods of management. The important thing is that we need a rapid combination of lab findings with field application,” said Kathleen, a crayfish biologist.

“People are paying attention because the problems caused by the crayfish exist (存在) not just in Michigan, but in the entire Great Lakes basin,” said Kathleen. “This species can be really harmful to our natural resources in Michigan. If you like to get outdoors and see clean water, then you should care about this. We need further and continuous efforts to prevent similar situations from happening.”

10 . Many of us have memories of spending weeks at camps learning new things, making new friends and exploring new possibilities. Camp No Limits (CNL), a non-profit (非营利的) organization in America, provides the camp experience for the kids whose differences can feel like a barrier in average camp settings. CNL proves that there is no reason that limb (肢) differences should take away the fun!

Built in 2004, CNL provides sleep-away camps for children with limb differences at 11 locations in America. “When I was in school, we really had very limited time that was spent discussing individuals with limb differences,” said the founder Mary.

CNL has now reached over 1,400 children in 1,200 families. The families are an important part of the camp. Kids are often accompanied (陪伴) by family members who stay at the camp. These members of support systems are able to form relationships with other families. One of the greatest impacts of the camp is that the families are closely connected and can depend on one another.

“There are other kids out there, you just can’t see them that often,” says Rosanne, who accompanied her 12-year-old daughter to camp. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for her to meet some kids, and talk about what they’re going through. It’s good for her mental health.” With the assistance of passionate instructors, campers often leave CNL, with new skills. 8-year-old Anya, for example, left the camp being able to ride a bike again, which she hadn’t done since losing her left leg because of cancer.

CNL is making a great impact on every individual that it hosts. From the instructors who are developing skills to the campers who are feeling inspiration, the camp achieves its mission to connect individuals affected by limb differences.