People love the view of old buildings in Paris, especially the Notre-Dame Cathedral (巴黎母院).     1    (fortunate), on April 15, a fire destroyed the spire (尖顶) of the cathedral, and two-thirds of the roof. Flames could be seen     2    (rise) through the top of the monument. The citizens in Paris gathered around the cathedral, praying for the hundreds of     3    (firefighter) who fought the flames.     4     was no wonder that people felt sad. The church itself after all, is a historical and artistic treasure.     5    (build) in 1163, it is one of the world’s most famous tourist sites, attracting about 12 million     6    (visit) every year.

Notre-Dame Cathedral is home to many     7    (religion) artworks, paintings and sculptures. Despite its long history and many treasures, the cathedral     8    (need) the help of a writer to become truly famous. Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, presented the building to     9     wide range of readers. He wrote the book to remind people of it, with the hope     10     they would protect the beautiful old buildings of Paris.

Nowadays, it is common     1     more and more high school students open their own MicroBlogs on the Internet. For one thing, it can provide a colorful platform to show their talent. For another, it is a useful way     2    (release) their pressure. And all these make it more and more popular with high school students. But many parents and teachers hold a different view. They think that managing one’s MicroBlog will take a lot of time andenergy, which should     3    (use) to study.

In my view, I am greatly in favor     4     this activity. Today the Internet is playing     5     important role in our life. Therefore, as high school students of the information age, we need to learn to make use of this     6    (value) tool to communicate and display ourselves. What’s more, opening and organizing MicroBlogs need various abilities such as writing, designing, being skillful at computers and so on. Only if we master those abilities can we make a successful MicroBlog. As a result, we improve ourselves while     7    (organize) our MicroBlogs.

In fact, the MicroBlog     8    (oneself) is of little harm. It is your attitude towards it that     9    (matter). We should take the     10    (advantage) and avoid some bad effects.

When teenagers go through a period of rapid physical and mental development, every aspect of life     1    (affect) greatly, especially the relationships with their parents. It seems that they can’t see eye     2     eye with their parents, so     3    (heat) arguments or cold silences are not uncommon between the both sides. Physical changes in     4    (teenager), including sudden changes in their voices, shooting up in height, or weight problems, can cause family tensions. They enter a strange middle ground,     5     they are no longer a child but not quite an adult. As a result, they desire both independence and parental care. However, balancing their different mental needs can be     6     headache. For parents, they both want to treat them as children and expect them     7    (behave) like adults.

Although it is impossible to solve the problem thoroughly, communicating frequently and honestly can ease the tension in the relationship. For children, learning to     8    (calm) understand the situation from parents’ point of view is also a good solution. Besides, they should learn to back down and ask properly their parents to relax their controls over them. With this stormy period not     9    (last), the changes and challenges during this period     10    (turn) out all right in the end.

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     6    (magazine). People end up with a perception of what 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 muscle-enhancing shirt     7     (make) the buyer look more of a strong man.

But Joe Warner, the former editor of Men’s Fitness magazine, thinks the muscle-enhancing 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.

Most of us are aware that we must take care of the environment, and the majority of us     1     (take) steps to save energy and reduce waste and pollution. But recently, some “green truths” have been shown to be only half true, or even     2     (complete) false.

Making a paper bag uses four times as much energy     3     making a plastic bag and up to three times the amount of water. The process also produces more greenhouse gases.

In fact, paper bags and plastic ones are bad     4     the environment. So, take a reusable bag with you when you go shopping.

When we turn off a device, such as television, it goes into stand-by mode. Devices in this mode still use power, and older devices in stand-by mode can use even     5     (much). To make sure your appliance is in fact off, remove the plug from     6     (it) power supply.

It seems like common sense: eating local food should be better for the environment, because it does not need to be transported long distances and kept cold during transport.     7     (fortunately), it is not that simple. It is the production of food, not its transport,     8    uses most of the energy and produces most of the greenhouse gases.

If you spend more than eight     9     (minute) in a shower, you’ll use as much water as in a bath — about 50 litres of water. Therefore, the key is to keep your shower time as short as possible.

Environmental awareness is now part of daily life. But it’s worth     10     (check) common ideas and opinions to see what’s really green.

    1     (excite) News for Animal Lovers! 

Two people were arrested yesterday at a Paris airport for     2     (bring) animals into Europe from South America illegally. One customs officer saw a woman     3     (walk) in front of a group. Then he saw feathers     4     (fall) from under her coat.     5     (see) this, the customs officer asked the woman to come over to his desk. He was surprised to find ten birds inside her coat. There was a short, fat gentleman     6     (follow) her. Another customs officer called him over when it seemed that he had a     7     (move) stomach. On taking off his jacket, they found a tortoise. He had travelled on the plane like this,     8     (keep) the tortoise hidden in a blanket.

The Longji Rice Terraces     1    (build) by the local Zhuang and Yao people, to whom Guangxi is home. Starting in the Yuan Dynasty, work on the terraces took hundreds of years, until its     2    (complete) in the early Qing Dynasty.

There are few large, flat areas of land in the region. Building these terraces can increase the areas in     3     people grow rice. Besides, the flat terraces can catch the rainwater and prevent the soil from     4    (wash) away. But perhaps what is most significant is the way in which people    5    (work) in harmony with nature to make these terraces and grow rice. These terraces also provide a perfect environment     6     birds and fish.

    7     modern technology could help produce more crops, new generations continue to use ancient    8    (method) of agriculture to maintain the terraces. Today, the Longji Rice Terraces attract thousands of visitors who come     9    (admire) this great wonder     10    (create) by people and nature working together.