目前，地球上能供养人类的资源有限，一些资源甚至正在耗尽。例如，地球上的氧气越来越少了。因此，一些人认为人类应该花更多的时间和金钱来探索太空和宇宙的秘密。太空探索直接产生了许多卫星和其他高端产品。根据卫星返回地球的数据和天气模式，科学家可以通过分析做出准确的天气预报。探索太空是浪费时间和金钱的论点是很肤浅的。最后，应该继续进行太空探索。

Currently, there are     1     resources on the globe to     2     mankind, and some resources are even     3    . For example, there is less and less     4     on Earth.     5    , some people     6     that humans should spend more time and money exploring space and     7     of the universe. Space exploration has directly     8     many satellites and other     9     products. According to the data and weather     10     sent back to Earth by satellites, scientists can make an accurate weather forecast through     11    . The     12     that exploring space is a waste of time and money is very     13    .     14    , space exploration should be continued.

Clair mentioned that she     1     (缺乏自信).What’s worse, her husband who wanted to improve his social status thought their home wasn’t good enough. Tony comforted her and promised to help Clair     2     (让她更漂亮，让她的房子更高雅). He made it. A few days later, Clair invited her friends to her house. Tony     3     (面带微笑地迎接他们)，standing up straight     4     (双臂交叉). All of them     5     (喜欢) Clair’s house and envied her having Tony, who in fact was a robot     6     (是一家公司赞助的).

Bing Dwen Dwen, the mascot (吉祥物) of the Beijing Winter Olympics, is a cute panda whose     1     (外形) is full-body “shell” made out of ice. It has     2     (使留下深刻印象) people with its wonderfully     3     (生动的) appearance and become popular in China.

Have you ever wondered why it is called Bing Dwen Dwen? In Mandarin (普通话) bing has several meanings, though the most common is “ice”. The character also symbolizes purity (纯洁) and strength, while dwen dwen means “strong and lively”.

Do you know why the mascot wasn’t named Bing Dundun in English? To read Bing Dundun correctly, you would have to be familiar with the pinyin system, which is       4     (难懂的) for foreigners, or the resulting pronunciation would be       5     (与……大不相同) the Chinese pronunciation. Moreover, “dun” is a word in English meaning “to ask someone to pay what they owe you again and again”. It also means “a dull greyish-brown color”. Both meanings don’t show goodwill. So, the Chinese Olympic Committee decided to change the name in an entirely new way.

There are some immediate advantages. The biggest is that the tone has been mixed into the spelling of each syllable (音节). The transliteration (音译) of Bing Dwen Dwen this time does work and is     6     (值得做的). It     7     (确保) foreign athletes and fans call Dwen Dwen “d-when d-when”, which is as close to the original “doon-doon” as an average English speaker can get.

In January, eight gorillas (大猩猩) at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, in California, became the first great apes to test positive (阳性的) for COVID-19. “There was an immediate concern,” said Nadine Lamberski, the chief     1     (保护) and wildlife health officer at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “We want to     2     (尽我们的职责) and take all measures to make sure that won’t happen again.”

So Lamberski made a decision. In February, she gave nine other great apes an experimental COVID-19 vaccine. Those nine became the first zoo animals in the United States to get the vaccine. Since then, the vaccine has been shipped out to zoo animals in 27 states. Lamberski got the COVID-19 vaccine from Zoetis, a company that makes medications for animals. Now the company reports that its vaccine is safe for other animals, too. It’s     3     (incredible) wonderful news for animals and those who care about them.

So far, Zoetis has donated its vaccine to nearly 70 zoos in the U.S. According to Lamberski, zoos are requesting the vaccine because their animals     4     (受到……的威胁) getting the virus from visitors and caretakers. “Animals in zoos are exposed to hundreds, if not thousands, of people a day,” Lamberski said.

No matter how exciting space exploration sounds, there’s an important point that needs to be considered: food supplies. Right now, astronauts typically       1     (依赖) dry food in airtight bags and cans, since there are strict weight limits on items taken into space. Foods that we     2     (认为是理所当然的), such as fresh fruit and vegetables, are out of the question for space explorers.

For those who     3     (有强烈的愿望) to grow food during space flights, they’ve faced many difficulties, including the absence of gravity, and a lack of soil, air and humidity (湿度). However, growing food to add and minimize the food that must be carried to space will be increasingly important on long-duration flights into space. Recently, a leading team has worked out how plants can absorb nutrients from human urine (尿). Human urine is 95 percent water, with the other 5 percent    4     (构成；组成) nutrients which are harmful to the human body but not to plants, and it could supply three to four out of the six nutrients that plants need. By recycling liquid waste and producing food, an efficient cycle will be created.

And most importantly, the duration of space flights will be greatly extended to “20 years of flight”, meaning we may be soon sending astronauts on flights to Mars, or even beyond.

The Chinese Spring Festival is    1     (一个全家团聚的特殊时刻). But     2    (2020年的春节不一样, 在此期间, 全家人都要待在家里). We could not go out to pay a visit to our relatives or     3    (去人多的地方).     4     (我们这样做是因为中国发生了新冠肺炎). To fight against the virus,    5     (我们必须待在家里, 家里更安全).

With the quick spread of COVID-19, more and more people around us are tested p    1    and people grow more and more     2    (焦虑). Here are some effective measures to p    3    you from being infected(感染)with the virus.

First, wear masks wherever you go, though it is not c    4    for you to perform daily routine. Second, m     5    distance from others. It is of extreme importance to avoid direct c    6    with those who have fever, cough or other COVID-19 symptoms(症状). Third, eat properly to ensure you have enough     7    (营养). If you have to eat outside, bringing food from home is     8    (推荐). Last but not least, we should a    9    importance to rest and exercise, which can help you     10    (恢复)sooner if you should fall ill.