1 . Tobias, a 35-year-old Belgian musician, has become popular on social media for his excellent grasp of the Shanghai dialect. He has been sharing his everyday experiences, which he _______ in Shanghai dialect, on video-sharing and lifestyle _______ Douyin and Xiaohongshu, winning thousands of followers and millions of _______

In the videos, he speaks_______ Shanghai dialect, which many non-locals believe is as difficult to learn and _______ as a foreign language. He talks about walking on the city’s streets, enjoying the food and music, and _______ his daily life in the city. Tobias started shooting and _______ these short videos for his own practice purposes. He didn’t expect so many people would be watching them, following him and sending him _______ and encouragement.

Tobias did not bury his nose in textbooks or _______ intensive study to learn Shanghainese. He said his learning __________ involved getting immersed (沉浸) in a language environment, having a positive attitude, and speaking __________ “without being afraid to make mistakes” . He was not thinking too much when he started learning the Shanghai dialect — it was just for __________.

Tobias said he did not expect he would __________ the promotion of the Shanghai dialect, but it would be an __________ and pleasure if his posts encouraged his followers to learn and pass on the dialect. “I believe a dialect is the heart of a local __________” said the musician.

2 . 23-year-old Ganesh Baraiya is living proof that nothing is impossible. Despite facing _________ because of his short stature, he managed to become the world’s shortest doctor.

Ganesh Baraiya was born in the Talaia Thaluka area of Gujarat, India, and faced adversity (逆境) from a very young age. He was born normal. _________, at the age of four, his parents noticed that his head was _________ his body, so they took him to a doctor. They learned that the boy suffered from an _________ condition and there was nothing anyone could do. Wanting to help her son, Ganesh’s mother put a tub-like helmet on his head to prevent it from growing and give his body a chance to _________. In school, he was often _________ because of his large head and short stature, but he also had friends who _________ him and he was able to focus on his studies.

Despite his physical limitations, Ganesh Baraya was always very _________. He knew he wanted to be a doctor from a very young age, and put all his energy into his studies, working hard to get high grades. When the time came, he applied for a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree (MBBS), only to be _________ because of his dwarfism (侏儒症). Despite his good test results, the Medical Council of India rejected his application because of his height (only three feet), __________ that he wouldn’t be able to perform his duties in emergency cases.

Ganesh was shocked by the rejection, but he wasn’t about to give up on his dream. With the help of his school principal, he __________ the District Collector, then the state Education Minister, and __________ knocked on the doors of the Gujarat High Court. __________ of his efforts were successful, but he refused to give up. His case reached India’s Supreme Court, and justice was __________ done. In 2018, India’s top court of law awarded Ganesh the right to enroll in an MBBS, and he did just that the following year.

“I was very disappointed three years ago, but I refused to accept their refusal. Now I am very happy that I got justice from the Supreme Court,” Ganesh said. “Now I am on the way to fulfill the dream I’ve __________ since childhood. I know I’m different, but I want to live a good life like other people and make my parents proud.”

3 . A pencil drawing of a broken old man, head in hands, looking extremely exhausted, has been identified as a newly-discovered work by Vincent Van Gogh.

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam said yesterday that it had _______ the authenticity (真实性) of the drawing. Senior researcher Teio Meedendorp described it as a(an) “_______” discovery, shining light on van Gogh’s early career as an artist in the Hague, a time less well-known than his years in Paris or the south of France.

The drawing has been titled Study for _______. It was drawn in late 1882s when the 29-year-old van Gogh was two years into his career as an artist. He was drawing as many studies of _______ as he could. He often recruited models from an almshouse for the elderly run by the Dutch Reformed church, _______ them a modest fee and gave them coffee.

He called these models his “orphan men” and “orphan women”. A favourite was the man in the newly discovered drawing, Adrianus Jacobus Zuyderland, the only one of these models whose name is known.

Van Gogh used a thick carpenter’s pencil on rough watercolour paper. The sheet _______ 48.8 cm by 30 cm.

Experts have _______ the drawing back to the end of November 1882, linking it to several other works made at the time.

Van Gogh talked about the two drawings in a letter to his brother, Theo. “Today and yesterday I drew two _______ of an old man with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands.... Perhaps I’ll do a lithograph (平版印刷画) of it. What a fine _______ an old working man makes, in his patched bombazine (斜纹布) suit with his bald head.”

At the time Van Gogh was ________ to work as a magazine illustrator, so he could earn money in his own right and be less dependent on his brother.

The drawing, which has been in a ________ collection in the Netherlands since about 1910, goes on display at the Amsterdam museum from 17 September, 2021, until 2 January, 2022, after which it will be returned to the owner.

Meedendorp recalled his ________ on making the discovery: “I’ve worked with Van Gogh for a substantial part of my life, especially the drawings, and it is always a delight to have them in your hand and looking at them up close. These drawings from the Hague are ________ delightful to look at — you can follow the working process of Vincent so well... the way he ________ the pencil.”

“Whenever you have a ________ at drawings like this, you want to pick up a pencil yourself and start drawing.”

4 . Gary Vaynerchuk is a larger-than-life character who has established a series of successful businesses. He was born in 1975 in the town of Babruysk and then left for the USA with his ________ in 1978, where his father ________ a wine store in Springfield, New Jersey. Gary showed himself to be a ________ businessman as a youngster, running a lemonade ________.

When Gary grew up, his approach to the wine business soon brought ________ results. He created a strong online presence, ________ several media companies. Through this online ________, he promotes his ________ for business success.

Gary’s opinions are aimed at the business community, but there is much in what he says that can be applied just as effectively to your ________. One of the views is that social media can be used to make connections with those who can help you ________.

Wasting time is something Gary hates. He often emphasizes the fact that ________ is a limited resource. You should ________ the one life you have been given. To get the sense of well-being and ________, concentrate on the talents you have, and ________ about those you are bad at. By being yourself, you will ________ much more than if you try to be something you are not.

5 . Who says only adults can influence the world? Teenagers can too. A good _________ is Canadian singer and songwriter Shawn Mendes.

Medes was once on Time magazine’s list of the most influential teens of the year. He is _________ as a role model who always shares _________ ideas on social media.

Indeed, unlike others, Mendes _________ social media in a good way. In 2012, he was still a high school student. One day, he put a clip (片段) of _________ singing Justin Bieber’s song As Long As You Love Me on Vine, a video-sharing app. In only six seconds, he _________ to show his sweet voice and cute smile. By the next morning, he had 10,000 likes.

From there, he became a _________. His first album (唱片集) Handwritten topped the Billboard 200 chart in 2015. He’s been the youngest artist to do so _________ Bieber who topped the chart in 2010.

Mendes _________ tries to be himself. “There are lots of people __________ say ‘act this way’ and ‘talk this way’ on social media (媒体), but what __________ for me was just being myself,” he told Seventeen, a US magazine for teens.

He does so in life as well. During his first __________ in Toronto, he asked for the house lights to be __________ and he sang without a microphone. “So I can see their faces, and see there are real people, that it’s not just a __________, ” he told The Telegraph.

“I’m not the __________ singer in the world. I’m just good at picking up what I want to sound like,” he added.

6 . Adriaan Wildschutt is a South African middle-distance runner. Recently he _______ to break two previous records in a row in just three months, which were set in 1999 and 2016. While qualifying (取得资格) for the Olympic Games in Paris 2024 was his main _______, breaking two records was a(n) _______ but great achievement.

With such a performance, Wildschutt has put himself in a strong _______ for future competitions during the World Athletics Continental Tour Challenger in Belgium. And he looks forward to _______ his country on a global stage.

“Well, it is _______ to know that I have written myself into the history books of South African athletics. It has always been a _______, and knowing that my hard work paid off in such a surprising way is joyful,” said Adriaan Wildschutt. “I guess I _______ from the elevation training over there a lot. It’s just having a great coach and a great team and having all the things that I need to _______ well and stay healthy and consistent,” Wildschutt said.

“The 3,000 m for me is really the most ________ — It’s short and fast and very exciting. It’s probably not the event I’m best at, but I ________ enjoy running in it. I would probably say my best events are 5,000 m-10,000 m,” said Wildschutt with ________.

The United States-based athlete said one should work hard to achieve the goals. “Work hard in all ________ of your life, whether that is personally, academically (学业地) or athletically. It’s important that you keep them ________. Discipline (自律) is also ________, which helps you manage yourself well. It is what made me who I am today.”

7 . Most artists have to wait decades for their talents to be recognized. Some, like Dutch painter Van Gogh, only achieve _______ after they die. But this is not the _______ for Andres Valencia. The 11-year-old boy has already _______ millions selling his contemporary paintings to art collectors.

Andres’ parents are art lovers and collectors. They began _______ Andres to modern paintings when he was just a kid. The young boy soon began _______ famous artworks with great accuracy. His father, Lupe, says, “When he was 4 or 5, my wife and I would _______ him paint and do sketches(素描), and we were really surprised at what he would do.”

By age six, the _______ artist was selling his watercolor paintings to family and friends for $20 a piece. Over time. Andres began creating large-scale paintings with a _______ of oil stick and oil and acrylic paints. His masterpieces were all _______ contemporary artists like Picasso.

Bernie Chase, a family friend and owner of an art gallery, recognized Andres’ __________ from the start. He bought the young boy’s artwork every time he __________ and even paid $5,000 for one. In 2022, the young boy held his first __________ at Chase’s gallery. The 35 paintings __________ were sold for between $50,000 and $125,000 each.

When not painting, Andres is a __________ fifth-grader with math homework. “My son is an artist, but he is a __________ first.” His mother said. “He is a child, not a celebrity.”

8 . Wang Pufang is an inheritor of the technique for making handmade colorful lanterns. She has devoted her whole life to _________ the traditional craft. “I have made lanterns for the past 70 years to carry forward the _________ and relive my childhood memories,” Wang said. She explained that when she was a(n)_________, the older generations in her family _________ lanterns during the Spring Festival for children to play with. On the 15th day of the first month of the Chinese lunar calendar, which _________ the end of the Spring Festival, the children’s lanterns were eventually _________ symbolizing prosperity for the year ahead.

Wang also makes lanterns for new_________ in her village. She says that it is a best _________ that they will soon have a baby and live happily. The big smiles on their faces make Wang believe her devotion is _________.

Wang explained that lanterns represent her __________memories. “When many __________ people came to buy lanterns, they recall their childhood memories and share __________ stories with me about their childhood,” she added. For Wang, lanterns are like a pen that __________the customs and what life was like during her childhood.

In order to make more people __________ the craft, Wang continues to sell traditional handmade lanterns and teaches students in schools how to make them, allowing them to feel the unique __________ of the traditional craft.

9 . Recently, an article written by China’s first ______ , Yang Liwei, describing his one day in space, aroused numerous discussions on social media platforms, with many marveling at the country’s ______ advancement in space technology.

Entitled “One Day in Space”, Yang’s article was recently included in the seventh-grade textbook in Chinese middle schools, and it was ______ on Sina Weibo on Saturday, drawing tens of thousands of views within the first few hours. Many Weibo users were astonished at Yang’s ______ . “As the first person to go into space and live through so many unknowns, he must have a great will,” said one netizen.

Yang was 38 when he became the first Chinese person to go into space on the Shenzhou V, on October 15, 2003, making China the third country—after the US and Russia—to ______ manned space capabilities.

In his article, Yang ______ several breathtaking moments when he thought he would not make it back alive. “ ______ the rocket lifted to a height about 30-40 kilometers above the ground, I felt it begin to vibrate violently, and it was extremely ______ ,” he said. Vibrations in the spacecraft below 10 Hz can damage the internal organs, and even threaten a person’s life, Yang explained.

The near-deadly moment lasted for 26 seconds. When it was finally over, Yang felt like he had been reborn. When ground control finally saw Yang blink his eyes through the surveillance camera, his colleagues ______ crying, “He’s blinking! Yang is alive!”

In the article, Yang also described “ ______ knocking sounds” from outside the craft. He still does not know where they came from. He also described what the Earth, his country, and his city looked like ______ space.” I flew over Beijing and saw the mountains in daytime and sparkling lights at night. And there live my comrades and my loved ones.”

Yang shared another interesting experience in the ______ . After several ______ from his cabin, he could not see the Great Wall, which many believed was the only man-made structure on the Earth that could be seen from space. “The Shenzhou VI and VII astronauts couldn’t see it either,” Yang wrote.

Eighteen years after his ______ trip to space, Yang said with a smile that he “envied” a lot that his fellow spacemen who now have such ______ space accommodations, which shows how China’s space programme has grown.

10 . Short stories deserve popularity again. In recent years, there have been critically excellent collections of American writers such as Lydia Davis and Junot Diaz. But few other manage to _________ the bestseller lists, and they are too often _________ by novels. _________ their golden days in the early 20t century, short stories are mostly viewed as trials or experiments before an author works hard with the real thing.

John Burnside, a Scottish poet and novelists, _________, this fixed idea in his latest collection, Something Like Happy. Over 13 stories, Mr. Burnside shows the greatness of the concise _________. His stories take place mostly in Scotland, in flats “high up on the third floor of an apartment block in the middle of Dundee” or in the back room of a hardware shop, where men drink “sweet, milky coffee” _________ waiting for the results of races. His men carry knives; his women are often _________ housewives who drink, take up bell-ringing in their local church _________ a way of filling in time.

Happiness is the subject that _________ the collection together. In other hands, this could become emotional. __________ Mr. Burnside, with only a few __________, never allows that to happen. Instead, happiness __________ stays from these figures; so much so that they have almost stopped to __________ it. Rooted in the bleaker aspects of Scotland’s sceneries, it is something that his __________ constantly search for, in these concise and poetic tales—but __________ to find.