1 . Peru demanded compensation (赔偿金) Wednesday from Spanish energy giant Repsol over an oil spill (石油泄漏). It might be caused by sudden and big _________ from a volcanic eruption near Tonga in the South Pacific because volcanic eruption can cause waves.

Authorities _________ three beaches on Monday _________ 6,000 barrels (桶) of oil were spilled during the _________ of an oil-transporting ship at the Pampilla oil-processing factory off the coast near Lima. The Repsol oil spill “is the worst _________ disaster in Lima in recent times, and has caused serious _________ to hundreds of _________ families. “Repsol must make an immediate _________ for their loss,” the authority said on Twitter. “This terrible situation has put plants and animals _________ in two protected areas,” it noted. Peruvian authorities found lots of dead sea animals __________ in oil. The spill happened on Saturday at the oil-processing factory in the Lima region, __________ a 3-kilometer stretch of beaches.

Officials of the factory __________ described the spill as “limited” and said it was working with authorities to __________ the beaches. “Controlling barriers that cover all of the affected __________ have been set up. And a team of __________ in sea and land have been sent,” said the factory, which __________ the spill on the waves caused by the volcanic eruption more than 10,000 kilometers away but not a bit on the mishandling of the workers who moved the oil barrels off the __________.

The oil-processing factory could face a __________ of up to $32.3 million, the __________ ministry of Peru said on Monday. And the prosecutors (公诉人) have opened an __________ into the company for environmental pollution.

2 . In this fast-paced society multitasking(多重任务处理) is often a way of life. However, I’ll be discussing all the times we multitask when it’s not necessary．

The problem with multitasking is that we’re dividing up our _________. We only have a certain amount of attention that we can _________ to a given task. If we’re doing four things at the same time, we can _________ devote 25% of our attention to each thing. It’s impossible to do a job as _________ with 25% of your attention as you can with 100% of your attention. You will simply perform better focusing on something 100%.

Divided attention leads to more _________ and a lower quality of performance. This isn’t difficult to understand, _________ society has masked this fact and _________ it with the facade(表象) that multitasking is good. But good is not our best, and doing less than your best is not contributing to a _________ or fulfilling(充实的) life.

There’s no place where this is more obvious than when _________ someone, especially friends and family. We’ve all been trying to have a conversation with someone when their attention is diverted (转移) by something else. Is it __________? Do you feel important? Loved? Heard? Of course not. Generally, children are exposed to this more than anyone. Adults are so __________ doing other things while they’re with their children that their attention is diverted again and again.

To be a good parent, friend, worker, boss, etc., we need to __________ to put our focus on what we’re doing and who we’re doing it with. Take a moment to __________ your attention from what you were doing __________ and focus on what you’re doing now. These five or ten seconds spent focusing your attention __________ on what you’re doing can make a difference!

As much as possible, give all your focus to whatever you’re doing and see how much better you work and how the interactions (交流) with the people in your life improve．

3 . The first daigou, meaning someone who makes purchases on another’s behalf, were Chinese students studying abroad, who carried ____ products home on behalf of family and friends. Adding a commission (佣金) helped them pay their tuition fees. The ____ of social-networking apps such as WeChat, China’s most popular, brought the business online. Daigou could then offer their services to friends of friends, and ____ items they thought might appeal to their network. But while daigou in America and Europe purchase mainly luxury goods for their customers, in Australia they buy mainly vitamins, food and beauty products. And while luxury brands see daigou as a threat, undercutting sale in China, Australian firms have come to ____ them.

There are perhaps 50,000 daigou, ____ the aisles (过道) of Australian shops and periodically stripping them bare. Ordinary daiguo can post 60,000 parcels to China every day. The biggest have grown into ____ export businesses which deliver goods through China’s free0trade zones. Express delivery services to China have ____ and some 1,500 stores in Australia mainly take are of the needs of daigou. One such chain, AuMake, recently listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. Its ____ sales staff can arrange for a purchase to be posted to China as soon as it has been rung up (收款记账).

The ____ for the customers is simple: the products daigou post are guaranteed to be genuine. Ever since Chinese firms were found to have been selling contaminated (污染过的) milk power in 2008, many anxious Chinese parents have turned to foreign brands. But websites selling foreign goods are riddled with ____, while Chinese shops charge a fortune for the real thing.

The odd sales channel works for companies, too. Daigou allow young Australian firms to build their brands in China much more cheaply and easily than if they tried to ____ their products directly, argues Keong Chan, the chairman of AuMake. A firm called the a2 Milk Company doubled its profit in the year to June thanks to soaring Chinese ____. Daigou ____ more of those sales than Chinese retailers or e-commerce sites, according to Peter Nathan, who heads its Asia-Pacific unit. ____, many business fall over themselves to win the favour of the most influential daigou. “It’s like having 50,000 ____,” says Andrew Cohen, chief executive of Bellamy’s, a listed manufacturer of infant formula.

4 . Recently, some readers are invited to join the experts in a live webchat to discuss the future of cars in cities. They hold a heated discussion on whether we ban cars from city centres? Opinions are ________.

Some people are ________ the idea. Clearly, cars have come to control our ________： It is hard to find anywhere away from background traffic noise. Pollution isn't the only problem from traffic. High­speed cars makes public space ________ to the pedestrian (行人). In some places, streets are fenced off to ________ pedestrians taking up car space. As city centres are ________ populated, not everyone is young or fit enough to walk distances especially ________ their way through crowds.

However, some people hold the ________ view. They wonder whether it is ________ to carry the kids around on public transport. Walking or ________ in the city centers are easy ways. But walking and biking doesn't work if you've got three kids under 5. What's the ________？ Besides, driving takes ten minutes to the city center ________ taking buses has to travel 10 miles to get to the shopping centre 5 miles away. Does it make sense？

Still, some speak out their mind. They say, “I ________ the idea of ‘making the car redundant (多余的)’—but the reality is that lots of us ________ some form of powered transport—because of heavy bags, kids, disability issues etc. I wish people who make these lovely statements would ________ those of us for whom walking/cycling is actually pretty ________.”

As far as I'm concerned, we need to find transport solutions so inviting, enjoyable, affordable and well­planned that people will not ________ to use cars. The best way to do that will vary, but I suspect that mostly it is a matter of ________ public transport from the elderly, and the poor, making it the most ________ choice for those who can choose. But getting the pricing right will ________.

5 . We are instructed not to use any bad words or polluting language. But at one time, I didn't realize that these ________ complaining, but I later have ________ that complaining pollutes our lives.

Plain and simple complaining is an ________ that people strongly disapprove (不认可) of! It causes many people a great number of ________ in their lives and destroys the joy of anyone ________.

We need to ________ ourselves, how quick are we to become ________ and begin to complain when stuck in traffic or while ________ at the checkout in grocery stores or department stores? How quick are we to spot and point out all the ________ of our friends or family members? Do we ________ about our job when we should be thankful that we have one?

The best antidote (矫正方法) for complaining is ________. People with gratitude do not complain. They are so ________ being grateful for all the good things they have that they have no time to ________ the things they could complain about.

In fact, everyone needs to make it a daily ________ to live a life of thanksgiving. Let's be ________ and grateful. Before going to bed at night, try to ________ everything we have to be thankful for. Let it be the ________ thing you do in the morning. Be grateful for “little” things or things you might ________ take for granted. Don't get ________ when you fail, and don't throw in the towel and quit either. Keep at it until you have ________ new habits and you are living with an attitude of gratitude.

6 . Many people seem to think cycling is a fun activity that only children do. You may be ____ to know that, years ago, people used to cycle everywhere. Only the ____ could afford to buy cars. As for the rest of the population, they either cycled or rode the bus. It was ____ to see several bicycles parked outside a house — one for each member of the family. People ____ to the office, shops or school. Sometimes a neighbor would ____ your bicycle. And you’d like to lend a hand ____ it was usually for a short time only. In any case, if your bicycle had been borrowed by a neighbor, you could ____ borrow another neighbor’s bicycle!

When people got ____ jobs and higher pay, they began to replace their bicycles with cars. Car companies often attracted customers with stylish advertisements and ____ drivers with the speed and comfort provided by their cars. Also, as towns expanded into cities, it became ____ to cycle to work anymore. Housing estates (住宅区) were usually located far away from the city. And so, bicycles became out of ____. They became toys for children to play on in the afternoons.

However, lately, there has been a revival (再度流行) of bicycles. The rising ____ of running a car is turning people to cycling. In some countries like Japan, parking a car is very ____. An hour’s parking can cost as much as $7.00! People also find that pollution is a big ____ worldwide. The greenhouse effect is causing many natural disasters that have affected the weather. Thus, many people ____ to cycle to help the environment.

Due to the increased interest, many cities around the world are ____ bike lanes (车道). Many cyclists have been knocked down by cars and their ____ drivers. These lanes make it ____ for cyclists to move about.

Modern bicycles are very ____. They are made from alloy (合金), making them lighter and easier to cycle. For city cycling, the bicycle of choice is a foldable bike.

If you live in a city, you should ____ cycling. It will help lower pollution and give you much needed exercise too.

7 . Most of us have no difficulty recognizing luck when it’s on apparent display, as when someone wins the lottery. But _________ often plays out in delicate ways and it’s easy to construct narratives that portray success as out of everything but luck. These misleading stories have surprising implications for human mindset, downplaying the power of chances.

Consider the history of the Mona Lisa. After having staved in the _________ for most of its early existence, the painting was pushed into the spotlight in 1911 when it was stolen from Louvre. The famous theft remained _________ for two years until a maintenance worker was arrested after trying to sell the painting. His arrest caused a second wave of _________, with the painting on everyone’s lips. As in the art world, it is so too in the world of work. Almost every career path consists of a sequence of steps, each of which depends on former ones. Inevitably, some of those _________ steps can be influenced by chance factors, which, as a result, are sure to affect the following process. So it is reasonable to conclude that _________ all successful careers involve at least a certain degree of luck.

One’s date of birth _________, for example. According to a study, most children born in the summer tend to be among the youngest members of their class, which explains why they are less likely to hold _________ positions during high school and thus, less likely to land good jobs later in life.

To acknowledge the power of chance events is not to suggest that success is independent of _________. Charlie Munger has said. “The safest way to get what you want is to __________ what you want.”

Of course, luck counts too. Being born in a good education system is a kind of luck we can control— that is, at least we can decide how lucky our children will be. But in America, we’ve been doing a bad job as the budget for education has __________. The human tendency to __________ luck’s role has caused this troubling state by unwillingness to invest in education, the strong system of which can produce __________ for the next generation.

Luckily, there is a solution. Guiding people to __________ their good fortune tends to make them more willing to contribute to the __________, according to a study. So try to engage your successful friends in reviews about their experiences with luck. In the process, the next generation’s odds of success may well increase and meanwhile, all the social members are more likely to enjoy the improved public service.

8 . 75-year-old Linda from Iowa has been providing food, clothing, and medical care for hundreds of foster（代养的）children since the 1970s, When she first began ________ kids in difficult situations, she was working in a local high school. Linda has taken hundreds of foster kids under her ________, and many of them have serious health problems, but that never ________ Linda.

"Linda mostly fostered young children and children with ________ needs. She kept clothes in her garage（车库）________ by size," one teacher from her school said. "No one bad to ________ a child going without clothes at Linda's because she saved enough clothes, ________ they arrived with nothing but what they were wearing."

Anthony was just 3 years old when he was ________ by the Iowa family. He described Linda to others ________, "It's hard to put her influence into words. She was always ready for a child in ________." These kids were usually taken from a ________ situation and she'd take them in, ________ a cozy（舒适的）bed, warm meals, and love. She also worked hard to make her family ________, and helped kids having health problems to find all possible ________.

"She always takes a picture of a ________ child in her home, and places the ________ on the wall in the living room," Anthony added. "That seems like a ________ thing, but it helps us feel like we're at home."

When Linda announced her ________ from fostering new children due to health concerns, she was ________ with a special ceremony of appreciation; but she said she would ________ to give help to the children who need it.

9 . A Mountain But not a Volcano

On September 20th the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), the central banks' central bank, released data showing that corporate borrowing around the world remains at an all time high. A notable ______ is in China, where there is even more business borrowing as a share of GDP than in Japan at the peak of its bubble-related borrowing fever in the 1990s. But it is high everywhere. Corporate ______ in the rich world stood at 102% of GDP at the end of March, compared with 92% before the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic. Could high levels of debt ______ the recovery in advanced economies?

Many regulators were sounding the ______ about elevated company debt even before the covid19 pandemic. Since then, the hit to firm's incomes has led to a wave of rating downgrades: between March 2020 and March 2021, Fitch, a ratings agency, ______ 460 firms, or almost 20% of its corporate portfolio. While defanlts (违约) have eased this year as economies have recovered, many firms will be ______ by higher levels of debt for years to come. Even if interest rates remain ______, this "debt overhand" could affect their willingness to invest or to hire new staff.

Intriguingly, however, aftereffects from corporate debt booms rarely cause significant economic damage, even if ______ themselves suffer when firms default. A recent paper by Moritz Schularick, of the University of Bonn, and several co-authors, examines data on business cycles for 17 advanced countries over more than a century, and compares corporate debt bursts with those associated with ______ borrowing (like the 200809 financial crisis).

The authors argue that lenders often have a/an ______ to restructure old corporate loans, reducing the risk of "zombie" companies persisting, and freeing up finance to support the next recovery. For household debt, however, restructuring thousands of ______ loans is often impossible, and lenders may be more inclined to keep the loans on their books in the hope that house prices eventually ______. The risks to the economy are higher after commercial property bursts than for corporate debt where lenders mainly have their eyes on firm's cash flows. This is one reason why the property-related debt depression in China are potentially disturbing.

In much of the rich world, there are reasons to be ______ optimistic. The largest lenders are in much better health than in 2008. All of the major ______ authorities, carried out stress tests during 2020, using macroeconomic scenarios much more severe than have actually came out, but their banking systems were able to absorb large corporate losses and carry on lending. And the parts of the economy that have had the toughest time during the pandemic only account for a relatively small share of corporate debt. For example, the BIS projects that ______ will increase in the hospitality industry (酒店餐饮业) over the coming years, but they note that the sector only accounts for between 1.5% and 8% of corporate credit in the nine major economies they model.

There will be a mountain of corporate debt in many countries for some time. But that dos not mean the recovery will necessarily falter (衰退).

10 . When it comes to nutrition, people in the United States often make poor choices. Sometimes bad eating habits are not the consequence of a lack of nutritional information or the unavailability of nutritious foods; some people simply choose to eat _______. They prefer to eat only the foods that taste delicious to them. Unfortunately, the decision to eat poorly has lasting _______. As many as half of all Americans are overweight. _______, many Americans suffer from conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and adult-onset diabetes(糖尿病) that can also result from these poor lifestyle choices. If we want to live long, healthy lives, we must make better nutritional decisions. Otherwise, we could be _______ our health and our futures.

Proper nutrition begins with _______. The United States Department of Agriculture(USDA) issues food guidelines to help people to make appropriate nutritional choices. These guidelines are _______ in a USDA chart called the Food Guide Pyramid. The Pyramid is based on research into the specific types of nutrients needed for disease resistance and proper body weight.

According to the Pyramid, Americans should get most of their daily calories intake from bread, cereal, rice, and pasta, eating 6 to 11 servings of these foods per day. Whole-grain products are the best. The larger numbers of servings are only _______ people such as athletes, whose work includes a great deal of physical activity. Following this category are the fruit and vegetable categories, with a total suggested _______ of from 5 to 9 servings per day. This _______ the importance of fiber, vitamins, and minerals in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The Pyramid’s other ________ include 2 to 3 servings of dairy products and 2 to 3 servings from a group that includes meat, fish, beans, and nuts. The USDA recommends that fats and sweets be eaten sparingly(一点点地).

There are many risk factors that ________ poor health. Among these are such lifestyle choices as improper nutrition and ________ exercise. Current research by the American Heart Association shows that heart disease very often begins when a person is a child. ________ this, many Americans think they can postpone healthy eating and proper exercise until they have health problems. Unfortunately, diseases are not generally ________ until symptoms begin, and by then it may be too late. To live long and productive lives, we must make proper choices now, including healthy ________ choices.