In America,     1     (help) students develop social skills, school offers a large number of after-school activities. When deciding which student to accept, employers and colleges look for students     2     have skills in several areas. Exam grades are very important, but so are the after-school activities. By taking part in these activities, students show their special talents and their     3     (able) to get on with others.

BYD (比亚迪) claimed the title of World’s Best-Selling EV maker in    1     hard-fought battle with Tesla.

Both companies    2     (beat) analysts’ estimates for the numbers of EVs that they sold in the final three months of last year, and both benefited from cutting prices on their vehicles    3     a bid to grab market share. BYD sold a little over 3 million vehicles last year—     4     (most) in China. Tesla sold 1.8 million vehicles,    5     (fall) just short of CEO Elon Musk’s target of 2 million, but still beating analysts’ estimates. Tesla delivered 484,507 pure EVs between October and December,     6     BYD sold 526,409.

How did BYD overtake Tesla before the year-end finish line? Partly it is the price war which     7     (go) on in the EV sector—particularly here in China—for the last 12 months. Tesla started it last January by slashing prices on several     8     (model) and every other automaker followed suit. But it quickly became obvious that Tesla wasn’t going to win that price war.

While BYD has high-end types of its own, it also has cheaper ones. A cheaper car, which requires a smaller loan from the bank, can look a lot     9     (attract). And some analysts have said that tax credits in the US may have pushed some Tesla-buyers     10     (get) their cars in 2023 instead of 2024.

AI is like a magic force in our world today. It promises big changes in many fields, like making things better and     1     (easy) for people. Nevertheless, this rapid progress also brings about     2     series of challenges and concerns.

In terms of technological advancements, remarkable breakthroughs     3     (make) by AI development recently. It can process tons of data, learn from patterns, and make smart decisions. This has opened up new doors in places like healthcare, finance, and     4     (get) around. AI-powered robots can do complex surgeries with     5     (accurate), while clever algorithms (算法) can predict what’s going to happen in the market and manage money well. Plus, self-driving cars are going to change     6     we get around, reducing accidents and traffic jams.

    7     these advancements, the development of AI has also presented several drawbacks. One significant concern is the potential displacement of human jobs. As AI gets more powerful, it might replace workers in lots of different jobs, leading to people being out of work and messing up     8     global economy. Plus, there exist ethical problems about Al, like privacy issues and the risk of people using AI for harmful purposes. Then     9     (come) the risk of data being stolen with AI.

In conclusion, while AI brings loads of benefits, it also has its challenges and concerns. We need to think     10     (cautious) about the advantages and disadvantages of AI, and make sure it’s used in a way that’s best for everyone.

Tianshui,     1     ancient Silk Road city in Gansu Province, became the latest place with a nationwide craze thanks to its iconic dish malatang, a local street dish     2    (feature)a mix of fresh vegetables and meat boiled in a hot, spicy soup. One restaurant owner in Tianshui noted that he has been serving at least 400 customers a day, some of     3     drive here from other provinces to experience this inviting dish firsthand. Based on data from Ctrip, a major Chinese online travel service platform, in the past month, there     4    (be)a significant increase in tourism in Tianshui. The overall number of travel orders has increased by over 20% compared to the same period last year,     5     hotel orders increasing by over 40%.

Local-produced ingredients such as Gangu chili, Qin’an peppercorns, and Dingxi potatoes are the secrets to the unique flavor and attractive appearance of Tianshui malatang. Gangu chili has a bright red color and a spicy fragrance with lingering sweetness. Potatoes     6    (grow)in Dingxi have a high starch content(淀粉含量), making hand-pulled noodles have a chewy texture. It is these authentic ingredients     7     lay the foundation for Tianshui malatang to stand out.

With the drive of the “malatang economy”, the export orders of Gansu local agriculture     8    (product)are also increasing. It seems that food has     9     (apparent)become a new hot spot for small Chinese cities to catch the spotlight on social media platforms. The Tianshui government is also seizing every opportunity     10    (promote)Tianshui development with a small bowl of malatang.

China is now pursuing high-quality development, which has been boosted by “new quality productive forces” and new innovations. This is not a bolt from the blue; instead, it has been conditioned by internal and external     1     (factor).

Internally, China is pursuing high-quality, innovation-driven development. From the 1980s to the 2010s, China’s GDP grew at     2     average rate of more than 9 percent per year. While the development of China’s agricultural and industrial sectors has reached     3     (high) levels, the development of the service sector has opened the door to grander achievements.

Externally, global tensions have motivated China     4     (focus) on high-quality development, particularly to become self-reliant in key sectors and attain strategic sovereignty.

From 2021 onwards, China     5     (conduct) the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) for Economic and Social Development and Long-Range Objectives through the Year 2035,     6     focuses on innovation-driven development.

The previous five-year plans     7     (build) the base, the 14th Five-Year Plan has set eyes     8     new horizons because it is the first five-year plan after China achieved the goal of building a     9     (moderate) prosperous society in all respects.

China is aware of the importance of boosting domestic     10     (consume), and has taken measures to that end in order to balance the domestic and foreign aspects of development.

Short-form videos, which gained popularity on the Chinese platform Douyin, have given rise to a new trend in entertainment: ultra-short (超短) dramas.     1     (tailor) to our fast-paced lifestyles, ultra-short dramas are far more likely to attract people to try them out than traditional television series. In the past, committing     2     a show meant investing upwards of 40 minutes, but with ultra-short dramas, only a few minutes is enough for     3     taste.

Despite the initial success of ultra-short dramas, Chinese authorities     4     (tighten) regulations and intensifying monitoring on them. Currently, most of these ultra-short dramas revolve around clichéd (陈词滥调的) romantic plots, often     5     (feature) a wealthy individual getting together with a poor person. This narrative trend bears the potential     6     (shape) young minds’ perceptions of reality and their approaches to real-life challenges.

What’s equally concerning is     7     ultra-short dramas are designed to catch the viewers’ attention with bite-sized runtimes. In a world dominated by smartphones,     8     attention spans are already declining, frequent     9     (expose) to ultra-short videos can only worsen the issue.

It’s natural for us to seek entertainment. But it’s also worth pausing to consider the consequences     10     diving into ultra-short dramas.