Phrase bai lan gains popularity as severe competition and social expectations leave many young people depressed. On China’s Internet, some young people say their ambitions can’t be achieved and many of them have given up on trying.     1    (frustrate) by the mounting uncertainties and a lack     2     economic opportunities, they are resorting to a new buzzwor -- bai lan （let it rot (腐烂) in English -- to display their attitude     3     life.

The phrase bai lan,     4     has its origin in NBA games,     5     (mean) a voluntary retreat from pursuing certain goals because one realizes they are     6    (simple) too difficult to achieve. In American basketball, it often refers to a player’s deliberate loss of a game in order to get a better draft pick.

During the past few days, the bai lan -- related topics     7     (create) hundreds of millions of reads and discussions on Weibo. Netizens also created different variations of the bai lan attitude. State media have taken note of this trend. “Why do modern young Chinese like to ‘bai lan’?” one recent article in official media outlet asked. “In fact, this is as     8     result of negative auto suggestion, repeatedly     9     (tell) oneself I cannot make it. And this kind of mentality often leads people     10     (adopt) the ‘bai lan’ attitude.”

Media is known to be the most     1     (power) means of communication. Print media, electronic media and the Internet all belong to mass media. Newspapers, newsletters, magazines and brochures     2    (include) in print media, while the electronic media consists of the television, radio and other modes of communication. Internet is without doubt the fastest known way of communicating     3    millions of people across the globe. Effects of mass media can be positive as well as negative.

The best thing about the mass media is that it immediately provides us with the latest information about the things     4    (happen) around us. Because of the keen efforts and devotion of the people working in the media, our knowledge     5    (remain) fresh. With this knowledge, we become smarter and more outgoing. Media is     6     gift for youngsters in many ways. They get useful information related to their career and higher    7    (educate) mostly through the mass media.

Though mass media has many positive    8     (effect), there are some harms associated with it as well. The news     9    is published without checking whether it is a fact or not can create unnecessary confusion and extreme feelings among the common masses. It becomes the duty of media     10    (provide) only relevant and precise information to the masses.

Tens of millions of people carry their smartphones with them everywhere they go, the bathroom    1    (include). Our phones are always within our grasp,    2    means they are also constantly    3    (expose) to whatever bacteria we may have accumulated on our hands.    4    (fortunate), a new survey of 1,200 Americans and their cleaning habits    5    (find) that one in four have never cleaned their phones. To find out just    6    dirty most phones become, researchers estimate that a regularly    7    (use) smartphone that has never been cleaned may hold more bacteria     8    an entire household bathroom. According to the survey, conducted by the company Vital Vio, it's common for smartphones    9    (come) into contact with various forms of bacteria, including strep, staph, and E.coli. Suddenly,     10    (eat)a sandwich in your bathroom doesn't sound so bad.

If you live in the United States, the law says you can’t have a full-time job until you are 16 years old. At 14 or 15, you can work part-time after school or     1     weekends, and during summer you can work 40     2     (hour) each week. Does all that mean that if you are     3     (young) than14, you can’t earn your own money? Of course not! Kids     4     are between the ages of 10 and 13 can earn money by doing lots of things.

Valerie, 11, told us that she made money by     5     (clean) up other people’s yards. Lena, 13, makes money by knitting (织) dog sweaters and selling     6     (they) to her neighbors, and Reisa said she had started taking art classes and showing her work to people. People have asked her     7     (draw) pictures for them and they pay her for them.

Earning     8     (be) learning. By working to earn your own money, you are learning the skills you will need to succeed in life. Some people think that asking for money is a lot easier than earning it.     9    , the five dollars that you earn will     10     (probable) make you feel a lot better in your hand than the twenty dollars you ask for.

The World Expo 2020 will be held in Dubai,in the United Arab Emirates (UAE),between October next year and the following April,     1     the design of the China Pavilion （展馆） has been made public in the city.

The blueprint for the China Pavilion     2     (present) at a ceremony last Wednesday.With the design presented,the next step is to speed up construction.         3    (occupy) an area of more than 4,600 square meters,it will be one of the largest at the expo.Its     4    (inspire) was drawn from a Chinese lantern,    5    symbolizes hope and a bright future.It combines Chinese elements with modern technologies and shows China’s latest achievements    6    science and information communication.The China Pavilion will be built with the theme “Building a community with a    7     (share) future for mankind--Innovation and Opportunity.”

The Dubai World Expo is a platform to display the economic and social development of the participating     8    (country).It also showcases the bilateral     9    (friend) exchange between the UAE and other countries.

The UAE plays a big role in China’s Belt and Road Initiative and says it hopes the World Expo will help to improve ties with China . The World Expo has been     10    (irregular) held once every few years since 1851 and each Expo lasts for six months or so.

COVID-19 may not originate in China

Chinese top respiratory specialist Zhong Nanshan said although the COVID-19 first     1     (appear) in China, that does not necessarily mean it originated (起源) here, “but we can’t say that virus comes from abroad. The question could     2     (answer) by tracking down the source of the novel coronavirus and getting a result ”.

Analysts said Zhong’s words indicate the toughness of the battle against the coronavirus,     3     (especial) when the disease is spreading around the world but the source and transmission (传播) chain     4     (be) still not completely clear.

Yang Zhanqiu, a director of Wuhan University, said that the novel coronavirus might have multiple birthplaces co-existing around     5     globe. Due to the differences of climates, the virus in some places burst out     6     (early) than others. There are also possibilities that the novel coronavirus in Wuhan was from another source. The chains of transmission are     7    vital importance to contain the disease. Besides,     8     (know) the source of the virus will help with drug development.

Expert said that China’s moves of blocking cities     9     forbidding the trafficking (非法交易) of wildlife have helped narrow down the research into the transmission chain.

At a press conference on Thursday, Zhong praised the timely     10     (measure) taken by the Chinese government, which have successfully prevented a mass COVID-19’ outbreak in China.

Currently，both women and men     1    (surround) by magazines and websites full of tips about dieting，exercise and fashion. Gone are the days     2     all men had to think about wearing a nice suit to be smart and handsome. Things have changed.

Now，a survey has suggested that 80% of men admit     3     (be) unhappy about their body. The biggest body issues for     4     (they) were beer bellies and lack of muscles. Some think it is because     5     the pressure of influence of role models we see on TV and in magazines. People end up with a perception of     6     the perfect body should look like. But not everybody wants to put in the effort to have perfect muscles like Arnold Schwarzenegger. An opportunistic designer has even invented a muscle­enhancing shirt     7    (make) the buyer look more of a strong man．

But Joe Warner，the former editor of Men’s Fitness magazine，thinks the muscle­enhancing shirt is just     8     trick. He thinks many people in the country are overweight and should accept they need to do more exercise     9    (regular)．Exercise is always good. But we mustn’t forget beauty is only skin deep. Character is     10     (important) than appearance.

8 . According to a recent survey, violence did exist in schools. Students showed their fear and parents and teachers also expressed their great concern about it. Experts hope the whole    1    (social) pay more attention to the mental health of adolescents(青少年).

Nowadays, school violence is a hot issue. I think this is a phenomenon,    2     calls for our great concern. We should try every effort    3     (prevent) violence happening at school for more and more students would drop out of school    4    their personal safety could not     5     (guarantee). In fact, violence can be learned. Children learn violent behavior from adults or from    6     they see on television or on    7    Internet.

If I meet with school violence, I will not answer violence with violence, for it will result in    8     (much) fighting. I will tell my teachers or parents about it. I think they will help me deal with it well and they will protect me     9     the bad guys.

All in all, every student should behave    10    (he) and keep away from violence.