Clowns (小丑) are almost everywhere in popular culture. But what they represent     1     (change) a lot over the past 400 years.

Clowns began appearing in the form we recognize today in European theaters in     2     17th century. With brightly colored clothes, big red noses and colorful faces, clowns tried every means to act foolish or play tricks     3     (make) the audience laugh.

Clowns became popular in the US in the 1960s. A happy clown     4     (choose) by McDonald’s to appear in its advertisements. Today, as we know, that company mascot (吉祥物) Ronald McDonald, is world famous.

However, the image of a happy clown is largely an American creation. In other cultures, the clown character is not     5     (necessary) good. One example is “Mr. Punch”, who was popular in British and French theaters curing the 1700s. While Mr. Punch was funny, he was also violent, often     6     (hit) his wife during the show,     7     gave rise to the name of “bad clowns”. Even today, in the eyes of some people, clowns are evil (邪恶的) and     8     (frighten).

Of course, there are different voices. Some people think clowns are positive, creative and imaginative. They bring people     9     (please) and laughter. That’s     10     attracts people, especially children, to clowns. They believe that as long as there are children in the world, there will be a future for clowns.

Young people spending hours     1     (stare) at screens means half the world may need glasses within 30 years. Phone devices and computer screens are to blame     2     the rising risk of short-sightedness among children and young adults, say scientists. Researchers have found high levels of looking at a phone or tablet is linked with around 30 percent     3     (high) risk of short-sightedness, also known as myopia. But when it     4     (combine) with excessive computer use, that risk rises to around 80 percent. Researchers fear that this could mean that by 2050, half the world or five billion people could be short-sighted.

The authors examined more than 3, 000     5     (study) investigating smart device exposure and myopia in children and young adults aged between three months old and33 years old. In 2019, the World Health Organization     6     (recommend) children under two should not have any screen time     7     children aged two to five should have no more than one hour a day of sitting in front of screen. But in the same year, a CensusWide survey of 2, 000 British families found children were spending     8     average of 23 hours a week staring at screens.

Numerous studies have also suggested that number has     9     (vast)increased during the Covid-19 pandemic. Professor Bourne of Ophthalmology in the Vision and Eye Research Institute said: “Around half the global population is expected to have myopia by 2050, so it is a health concern     10     is escalating quickly.”

A new way of eating: online food delivery services

Few people knew about online food delivery apps ten years ago. But today, many would find it hard to live     1    them. In China alone, over 400 million people use such apps. Over the ten years, online food delivery services    2    (change) the way we eat, and they are also affecting our society.

These services have no doubt brought us many     3    (benefit). They provide jobs for millions of people and help restaurants find more customers. Since the apps are very convenient, they also benefit consumers: we can now have meals delivered at any time of day, despite bad weather or busy schedules. This is especially important for people     4    work long hours, since they might not have time to cook.

    5    , we must not forget the drawbacks of online food delivery services. For one thing, they make it even     6    (easy) to order unhealthy food, high in sugar, fat and salt. Food safety is another problem: it can be hard to know where the food     7    (actual) comes from, and whether the owner is legally permitted to run a restaurant.

There are many advantages of these services, but we need to make sure that we make the right choices in the long run. We should do our best to limit waste, especially when it comes to    8    (package). We also need to think about what we eat and the effects on our health. Next time you are thinking about ordering in, you should ask     9    (you) whether you really need to. In most cases, it’s better to walk over to the supermarket, buy the things you need, and then have    10    try to cook them on your own.

The Year in a Word or Two

Can anybody describe a year with only one word?

Each December, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) nominates (提名) a word to describe the very year     1     has just passed.

2020 was a very unusual year that was really worthy     2     (describe) with two words. Two of the obvious words the OED suggested were “pandemic (疫情)” and “lockdown,” due to most of human activities across the globe     3     (bring) to a stop by the life-threatening disease. Businesses have been closed and people have had to stay in their homes for weeks or even months on end.

    4     I would like to nominate “cooperation” and “hope” as my words of the year because it is supposed to be described in a more positive and     5     (helpless) way, because there was a great deal of cooperation between countries and international health organizations. China took a leading role in this effort by sending masks and protective clothing to Canada, the United States and Europe,     6     to countries in the Middle East and Africa. Without this cooperation, the pandemic, bad     7     it has been, could have been much worse.

And that brings me to my second word: hope. We are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and, with a little “hope,” we will get to see the world begin to return to normal.

For young people, it was the first time that they     8     (experience) something big, a worry that they shared with their families, friends and neighbors, and a suffering     9     (endure) at this moment and to be endured next few weeks. And they also learned that “hope” — the belief that     10     you will see tomorrow will be better than today — is at the heart of every human being.

With “cooperation” and “hope,” 2021 should make for a wonderful year.

Time-honored brands (品牌) have been through a decades — long or even a centuries — long journey. They either serve as a    1    (remind) of people’s old childhood flavors or relate to festival traditions and nostalgic (怀旧的) memories. Data from the Ministry of Commerce show that China has 701 century-old brands. The    2    (old) one — Beijing Bianyifang famed for its specialty roast duck    3    (survive) for 607 years.

The total number of    4    (exist) time-honored brands, which are well-known throughout the country and recognized by the Ministry of Commerce,     5    (be) 1,1128 according to Sheng Qiuping, China’s vice commerce minister. They stand for China’s traditional culture and the majority of them own at least one intangible cultural heritage. It is the traditional skills and craftsmanship    6     (pass) from generation to generation    7    make time-honored brands endure the changes of the time.

While some brands have sustained their classic style and ancient beauty, others have innovated their products and tapped into digital platforms    8    (win) the hearts of younger consumers. Data show that nearly 350 time-honored brands participated    9    live-streaming platforms. Live-streaming events of time-honored brands in 2022 topped 50,000 with    10     combined business volume of 3,5 billion yuan. The figure increased over five times compared with that of 2019.