3 . In Favour of Simple Writing

Do you edit text messages carefully before sending them? If so, you may be the kind of person who takes pride in _______ even the simplest message. If you do not, you may see yourself as a go-getter, one who values excitement and speed over _______: get it done decently now rather than perfectly later.

People are constantly receiving messages, from the mailbox to the inbox to the text-message alert. What to read, what to skim (略读) and what to ignore are decisions that nearly everyone has to make dozens of times a day. A new book titled All Readers are Busy Nowadays makes the argument for being the careful kind of _______, even in informal lines. The authors also present well-established _______ that have long been prized in guides to writing.

Take “less is more”. Most books on writing well advocate the advice to _______ needless words. The authors, however, have _______ the idea. In an email to thousands of school-board members asking them to take a survey, cutting the count from127 to 49 words almost _______ the response rate.

Keeping messages to a _______ idea—or as few as absolutely needed—helps ensure that they will be read, remembered and acted on. _______ the number of the available options has the same effect, too. A link in an email, ________, attracted 50% more clicks when presented alone than when it was sent alongside a second additional link.

Syntax (句法) and ________ matter, too. It is more ________ to adopt short and active sentences, with common words familiar to everyone. From Facebook posts to online-travel reviews, even brief, informal pieces of writing that follow these rules get more likes and shares.

If everyone is a busy reader, everyone is a busy writer, too. That may make it tempting to sent as many messages as ________ as possible and hope for the best. But from essays to text messages organizing dinner plans, devoting time to the needs of readers has provable ________. If you are so busy that you write an undisciplined message which readers scan, ignore and delete, then you might as well have not ________ it at all.

4 . Apartment owners cash in on upcoming holiday trips

The National Day holiday is around the corner, and those making last-minute plans to travel at that time are busy booking _______ hotel rooms in popular tourist destinations.

In a bid to cash in on this rush for rooms, social media users are _______ platforms with offers of apartments for _______ just for the holiday week, at prices that are a part of what is being _______ by hotels, many of which are sold out.

Unlike hotels, those renting out their homes are not charging anything _______ for cleaning the apartment while it is _______, no contract or deal needs to be signed and the ID information of the renters is not _______ required.

Meanwhile, some netizens have expressed _______ over this trend of renting out personal apartments.

“It is so unsafe. What if the people install a camera in your home or make it a complete mess,” one asked while _______ on a post seeking tenants(房客). Another said, “Won’t you be afraid of people opening your computer and checking what’s inside?”

Experts said this novel way of sharing one’s home not only means extra earnings for the homeowners, but also improves the ________ of the cities. However, they also warned that there are risks involved.

Fu Jian, a lawyer at Henan Zejin Law Firm, said that as there is no written ________ being signed between homeowners and renters, and the ID information is not ________, it would be very difficult for the owner to safeguard his or her rights should an argument ________.

Moreover, if there is a theft or an accident involving the guests during their stay in the apartment, the owner will more or less be held ________, he said.

He advised owners to be aware of the rules and regulations before renting out their apartments, and added that renters should also choose ________ to avoid unnecessary risks.

5 . Social media has made it very easy to change your appearance using filters (滤镜). They may come in _______ when you desperately need to record a video but not in a good state. But there has been a lot of talk around the _______ of filters and unrealistic expectations _______ on women.

One woman has taken the responsibility to _______ the filters to prove that, while she is beautiful, her face doesn’t _______ look the way it does with the filter on. Katia starts off the 20-second video clip using the infamous Bold Glamour filter. It’s the filter that has people questioning their _______ of their own faces because the contrast is so _______. But Katia doesn’t _______ with one filter. She puts on another and makes sure she emphasizes the use of a ring light. After turning the ring light and the filters off, the woman _______ her makeup, revealing an inflamed and imperfect face.

People flocked to the ________ to thank her for exposing the truth behind filters. “You’re beautiful and this message is so important. Thanks for the ________,” one person wrote. “In real life, we all have ________. As a mature woman, I appreciate your ________.” another said.

Social media can really do harm to people’s self esteem, especially when they’re ________ themselves to something that’s not real. Messages like the one Katia shared can help pull back the ________ on the reality of social media.

7 . My phone was an extension of myself. I couldn’t go anywhere _________ it. I scrolled through my friends’ _________ into late night and turned my phone on before my eyes were fully open. I enjoyed having it until that day when I realized that what had started as a useful tool had turned into a(n) _________. So, I made a _________ decision to turn off that smartphone and _________ my old dumb phone out of hiding.

When I was watching TV shows or movies and there was a boring part, I _________ picking up the phone and checking out “what everyone else was doing.” Now I had to pay attention or find a way to _________ myself with my thoughts instead. When I visited New York City, I had to write out _________ and ask people where an intersection (十字路口) was _________ pulling out my phone.

I have welcomed silence into my life with open arms and am enjoying the increased __________ from not constantly having to fight with the __________ to check my phone while I’m trying to get something done. I am allowing my thoughts to speak to me instead of my phone. I am connecting with others in a __________ way that isn’t all about me. Instead of always posting about what’s going on in my __________ perfect life, I am connecting with my friends one-on-one, talking about the reality of our lives and being there for them from a place of __________.

As much as having a smartphone was __________, not having one is freeing on a much bigger level.

8 . Today’s youth will drive tomorrow’s growth. Young people have always confused their elders. Today’s youngsters are no different. They have thin wallets but ________ tastes. They long for authenticity while being constantly immersed in an artificial digital world. They ________ convenience and abundance. As they start spending in earnest, brands are trying to understand what these walking paradoxes (悖论) ________ and how they shop. The answers will define the next era of consumerism.

A good place to start analyzing the psyche of young consumer is to consider the ________ that has shaped them. At one end of the scale, today’s 30-somethings came of age in the midst of the global financial crisis of 2007-2009. Their younger peers were slightly ________, beginning their careers in years when tightening labour markets had pushed up wages until the covid-19 pandemic turned many of their lives upside down.

These two big ________ have contributed to pessimism among the young people who experienced them. A study found a widespread ________ among Gen Zs that they would be able to afford to retire. Less than half believed they would ever own a home.

In many ways youngsters’ shopping habits, like their lives, are defined by the “________ economy”. The popularity of social media means there are many new ways of attracting consumers’ eyeballs. Most young shoppers never knew a world without smartphones. More than two-thirds of 18- to 34-year-old Americans spend four hours or more on their devices each day.

These “always-on purchasers” often avoid a weekly shop so that they can have quicker ________ of everything from fashion to furniture. They like subscriptions, often favoring shared access to products over outright ownership, which has ________ online-rental sites and streaming services.

The internet has also changed how the young discover brands. Print, billboard or TV advertising has ________ social media. Instagram and TikTok are where the young look for inspiration, particularly for goods where ________ matter, such as beauty, fashion, and sportswear. ________ physical shops are not entirely out of favor. They can be successful as long as the experience feels personal and, ideally, integrates virtual and physical worlds.

How the young shop is clearly shifting. What they buy, too, is changing. What older generations consider optional, such as wellness and luxury, has become ________ for the young.

More broadly, young consumers claim to be more ________ than previous generations. Some of these values are centered around identity (race, gender and so on). Others stem from things the young care about, such as climate change.

10 . In 1919, in the aftermath of war, the International Labour Organization used its first convention to limit working hours to eight a day and 48 a week. The Depression later prompted employers to __________ a five-day week.

The latest crisis is dealing a __________ shock to how jobs are designed. The pandemic (疫情) forced many employers to implement remote working. It accelerated the use of technology to help them stay productive. As well as struggling with the challenges of hybrid work, some businesses are now __________ paying staff the same salary for a four-day working week, once as weird a concept as an eight-hour day.

Promised __________ include improved wellbeing, better focus, fairer sharing of childcare between men and women, and even a lighter carbon footprint. Fear of missing out on the latest trend must not, __________, blind companies to important obstacles and drawbacks.

Offsetting the cost of a four-day week at a national level looks ___________to achieve. As economic historian Robert Skidelsky pointed out in 2019, in a report for the UK Labour party, “__________ working hours nationwide, like France’s 35-hour working week, is not realistic or even desirable, because any cap needs to be adapted to the needs of different sectors (行业)”.

The Wellcome Trust, the science research foundation, decided in 2019 that even a trial would be __________, partly because its staff performed a mix of roles. Some jobs were hard to confine to four days. Other employees preferred to spread their work over five days. __________ already on a four-day week feared they might lose out.

Lockdowns exposed the gap between flexible homeworking professionals and front-line “__________” staff. A four-day week might __________ it.

Some staff want or need to work extra hours. To the risks of a two-tier workforce and reduced freedom of choice add the danger of __________. The approach fails if improved productivity does not cover the potential increased cost. If leaders’ determination to hit the same targets forces staff to work four 10-hour days, to shift their workload back into their __________ weekends, to rush jobs that require more time, or to hire additional hands to plug gaps, some of the benefits of offering workers more free time will quickly disappear.

For each of these __________, advocates have an answer. One is that companies just need to organise staff more efficiently. In itself, better __________ would improve productivity. Another is to cut working hours, rather than days, allowing greater flexibility.