In recent years, China has been working hard to improve living conditions in rural areas through a program called the New Rural Development Initiative.    1     goal of this initiative is to improve infrastructure (基础设施), modernize farming practices, and enhance the overall quality of life for those     2     (live) in the countryside.

One important aspect of the initiative is the improvement of rural infrastructure    3       includes the construction of better roads, bridges, and watering systems     4     (improve) the efficiency of transportation and agricultural activities.

Another key focus is the promotion of modern agricultural    5     (technique). By introducing advanced farming methods and technologies, such as organic farming and the use of

machinery, farmers are able to increase their productivity and income     6       damaging the environment.

Furthermore, the initiative emphasizes the importance of preserving traditional culture and heritage in rural communities. Efforts    7     (make) to regenerate local traditions, which not only enriches the cultural     8     (diverse) of the countryside but also creates new opportunities for cultural tourism and sustainable development. The initiative also aims to enhance the living environment in rural areas through the restoration of traditional houses     9     the construction of public facilities.

Through the initiative, China is working hard to create a more prosperous (繁荣的) and     10     (harmony) countryside, providing its rural residents with better opportunities and an improved quality of life.

To ease social distancing and reduce health risks     1     ( link) to in-person learning, school administrators in many places are getting     2     (create) about finding more spaces.

In the United States,     3     number of schools are establishing outdoor classrooms and making use of other empty spaces, like museums. In normal times,     4     (marry) take place at a large convention center in Hesston, Kansas. Businesses hold training programs for workers at the convention center. But the building     5     (use) as a schoolhouse for middle school students during the last months.

Megan Kohlman teaches literature and writing inside one of the rooms, with only a thin piece of plastic     6     (separate) her class from a math teacher’s space. For Kohlman, this class is an improvement from distance learning last spring. “Everyone just     7     ( honest) believes in the power of having kids with us as much as we can, ” Kohlman said.

Some education leaders say they wish more schools would consider different solutions     8     learning. Joseph Allen is an associate professor at the Harvard T.H.Chan School of Public Health in Massachusetts,     9     believes that more innovation is needed in how schools work.

“As for schooling, we seem to be stuck in this closed mindset where it is either in schools     10     it is not going to happen, ” Allen said.

The terrifying flooding of Venice could and should have been avoided. It hasn’t been this bad since 1966, when the water reached 6 feet, 4 inches. Back then,     1     (frighten) Italians called for immediate action.     2    , once the water moved away, they didn’t take it as seriously as before and thought over the issue for almost 40 years. The massive MOSE flood     3     (protect) system that was finally approved in 2003 still hasn’t been completed.

“Meanwhile, Venice is disappearing beneath the water,” said Jacopo Giliberto. “Climate change and rising sea levels are     4     (blame). But so is the fact that we pumped water from an underground aquifer (蓄水层)     5     the 1930s to the 1980s,     6     (cause) the ground beneath us to fall with impressive speed. Proud Venice is     7     world treasure, an open-air art museum, so officials instead chose more expensive invisible dams that won’t disturb the view. So far, we     8     (spend) more than $ 6 billion on MOSE, which won’t be put into use until next year at the earliest.”

“The project is a disaster, and Italians just aren’t good at long-term planning,” said Maurizio Ferrera. “Look at our booming national debt,     9     now sits at $2.7 trillion, 138 percent of our GDP. If we are to save Venice, we’ll have to change our political culture.     10     is unclear whether we have the will.”

Lots of foreigners don’t understand why so many Chinese people are sorrowful about Yuan Longping’s passing away.

This reminds me     1     an issue more than 20 years ago,     2     I was a Chinese journalist in the US. Some American scholars     3     (think) China could hardly realize food-sufficiency because of the     4     (limit) water resources, decrease of agricultural land due to industrial     5     (expand) and the fast population growth. Just at that time, Yuan Longping announced breakthroughs in planting the new rice.     6     (bring) to large area application, this technique improved the annual growth of rice greatly, which fed     7     population of 60 million--equal to the whole of the UK.

Western scholars’ prediction of China back then was indeed analyzing China’s problems, but they failed     8     (realize) that the Chinese people have the capability to deal with these challenges.

If they had had any knowledge of Yuan who worked devotedly for our country, they wouldn’t have made such pessimistic evaluations. Why did the Chinese people make     9    ? Why are so many predictions about China in the West     10    (accurate)? It’s time to change minds to better understand China.

Sun Ruifeng, a mother in Beijing, changed some of her plans for her 8-year-old son’s summer vacation,     1     an English tutoring course to a swimming training class. On July 24, Chinese authorities introduced a guideline to ease the burden of too much homework and off-campus tutoring for primary and junior high school students. It lists requirements in areas such as     2     (reduce) the amount and the difficulty of homework and improving the quality of education and after-class services     3     (provide) by schools. According to the guideline, tutoring institutions cannot teach students content     4     is too advanced for the school curriculum. No tutoring courses can be taught on weekends,     5     (nation) holidays or during winter and summer vacations. The moves aim to bring education back as public welfare and guide the educational training industry     6     (focus) on improving students’ all-round quality. Many parents     7     (firm) stood for the new moves. “Subject learning is enough at school and we hope to improve the children’s overall quality of life during holidays,” a parent surnamed Zhou in Guangzhou told Xinhua. However, there are also some concerns. Another parent in Shanxi said that although she agreed with the new moves, she worried about     8     her son would do after school if both parents have no time to be with him. According to the guideline, primary and middle schools are asked to offer after-school services,     9     (include) homework tutoring, sports, arts, reading and interest groups. At present, nine cities     10     (select) to implement the guideline. It will later be carried out nationwide.

Students should take     1     (responsible) for their future. However,     2     (choose) what to study in college is often very difficult. Sometimes the students who haven't made a right decision even don't know who is     3     (blame).     4     (fortunate), the National Ranking of Academic Subjects     5    (offer) some help in the past few years.

    6     ranking covering 50 subjects is based on the performance of universities in relevant subjects, top academic achievements     7     (include). Compared     8     2020, 13 subjects have been added to the ranking. Moreover, we can find more universities     9     are renowned on the ranking. And among all the universities, Tsinghua University ranks the first, with 30 subjects     10     (hold) the top positions.