This year marks the 700th anniversary of the    1     (dead) of Marco Polo(1254——1324),the great Venetian traveler    2     introduced Asia to the West.

Yet despite the fact that Marco Polo was     3    (high) recognized in China, there exists only one Chinese translation of The Travels of Marco Polo. Completed by Feng Chengjun and     4     (publish) by the Shanghai Commercial Press in 1936, this translation falls short of meeting modern standards of accuracy(准确), fluency and elegance. Feng summarized each chapter using classical Chinese,     5     (stick) to the literary style of that age. Furthermore, he depended on a modern French copy annotated(注解) by A. J. H. Charignon that was not always accurate.

In 2011, Rong Xinjiang, a history professor at Peking University and a leading scholar of Sino-foreign relations during the medieval(中世纪的) period,     6       (bring) together a study group to annotate The Travels of Marco Polo. There were many great scholars in the group, including     7       (expert) on Mongol history, Iranian studies,     8     Chinese relations with the Silk Road kingdoms. While their translation——based on a 1938 text annotated by A. C. Moule and Paul Pelliot——remains unfinished, their work has already resulted    9     many books on Marco Polo, the Silk Road, and medieval trading centers like the     10       (east) city of Yangzhou.

Over the past month, Jiang Kedong has amassed (积累) over 2.7 million followers on Douyin, China's version of TikTok. The 38-year- old is better known as "Bingcheng Zuoyouge" or "Brother Left and Right in Ice City", and has transitioned from being a local entertainer to a widely recognized Internet celebrity, whose fame has coincided (相符) with the tourism boom this winter in Harbin, Heilongjiang province.

2012 was the year     1     Jiang became host of the Dream Stage at Harbin Ice and Snow World, which is celebrating its 25th year of operation this year. His famous "Rabbit Danc"; marked by its playful left and right foot movements, has captured his followers' hearts with its catchy simplicity. "In the winter, temperatures can get to as low as -30℃ in Harbin," he said. "My original     2     (intend) was to help tourists feel warmer in a world of ice and snow by following our instructions and pace to join the game in an     3     (order) manner."

In 2017, Jiang began posting some short dance videos on the Internet and livestreaming (网络直播) his performances at the park. His humorous style made the videos popular, and by the beginning of 2019, he had amassed 600,000 followers on Douyin.

"The popularity of Harbin is no accident. Since the beginning of 2023, we     4    (promote) Heilon giang in a multidimensional way on new media platforms, establishing numerous     5     (destination) considered by netizens     6     (be) must-visit attractions," He Jing, director of Heilongjiang's culture and tourism department, told China Central Television. "Moreover, we are also paying more attention to comments     7     (make) on online videos. "We will do our best to meet tourists' needs." she said." Some visitors said it would be better if the moon was shining when they took photos at Saint Sophia Cathedral.    8     (subsequent), we sent a drone to lift an artificial moon over the landmark. Others said it was too cold in Harbin, so we immediately built a number of small prefabricated (预制构件的) houses to warm them up. "All these details can make tourists feel comfortable and respected, and they post news of them on the Internet, receiving     9     warm response," she said. The local tourism department is also focusing on new media platforms, which play an important role     10     the development of the tourist industry.

Xu Xiake was a(n)     1     (influence) travel writer and geographer of the Ming Dynasty. For more than three decades, Xu traveled the     2     (long) and breadth of China. The records of his journeys were compiled(汇编) in Xu Xiake’s Travels, providing us     3     a comprehensive guide to 17th-century China.

    4     (bear) in 1587 in Jiangsu Province, Xu Xiake, both of     5     parents were keen readers and book collectors, took a completely different path. He never studied for examinations,     6     (choose) instead to depart and visit the many place she had read about.

Xu’s journeys were noteworthy. He wrote     7     (extensive) during his travels, capturing (捕捉) the reality of travel more than other writers had.

His longest journey was one of his last: four years traveling in the southwest of China. In spite of the fact     8     he had always included observations on the natural scenery, during the four-year journey, he     9     (focus) especially on geology, flora and fauna (动植物群). Besides a travel guide, Xu’s writings became a valuable source for scientific observation and surveying.

Xu fell ill during his last journey. He never fully recovered and died in 1641. His journals were then sorted out and published unedited, offering     10     rare informal record of the Ming Dynasty.

Tu You you,     1     84 year-old scientist, became the first female Chinese     2     (win) a Nobel Prize in science on Oct, 5. She was born     3     30 December, 1930 in Zhejiang Province. In 1969, she     4     (choose) to establish a team to find a cure for malaria, but the lab     5     they worked in had poor air quality.

She first tried the medicine on herself, because she     6     (want) to make sure that it was safe. “As the head of the group, I had the responsibility.” The scientist spoke to CCTV about her work. Artemisinin is a gift for the world people. It has saved many people’s     7     (life). It comes from Chinese traditional medicine and now is a good way to treat malaria. Tu Youyou     8     (expect) Chinese medicine to help more people all over the world.

We can learn a lot from Tu Youyou. We should do something useful for people. If we want to be     9     (success), we should keep on     10     (work) hard with our group and never give up.

A 17 year old inventor from the US, Robert Sansone, could be     1     pioneer of a new way to power electric vehicles (EVs). He recently won an innovator award at a big science fair for his design of a synchronous reluctance motor (同步磁阻电动机).

Sansone has always been in love with inventing. Despite the fact that he is still a high school student, he     2     (make) various inventions including electronic hands and high speed running shoes in recent years. When Sansone saw a video illustrating the rare metals     3     (require) produce EV motors, he set out to find a more environmental and economical approach.

At present, most of the motors used in EVs need rare metals,     4     are not only expensive in price, but also cause great damage     5     the environment during the mining (开采) process Sansone turned to a synchronous reluctance motor design that doesn’t use rare-earth materials. This kind of motor is currently used for pumps and fans,     6     it isn’t powerful enough by itself to be used in an EV. So, Sansone started brainstorming ways he could to improve its       7     (perform)

    8     (win) the prize doesn’t mean that his exploration has come to an end. Sansone is now testing the 16th generation of the motor. This time, he plans to use     9     (strong) materials to support higher rotational speed.

If the test is successful this time, he intends to apply for a patent (专利) and seek cooperation with companies.   He hopes that one day his engine can become the     10     (choose) of EVs

Cholera used to be one of the most     1     (fear) diseases in the world, until a British doctor, John Snow, showed     2     it could be overcome. This illness causes severe diarrhoea, dehydration, and even death. In     3     early 19th century, when an outbreak of cholera hit Europe, millions of people died from the disease.

Tuyouyou was chosen as a researcher of a team of scientists     4     the purpose of discovering a new treatment for malaria.

Yuan Longping, was one of China’s most famous scientists.      1     concerned him most was the farmers who had poor harvests and sometimes had a serious      2    (short) of food to eat. Yuan was convinced that the creation of hybrid rice would solve the issue. A hybrid is a cross between two or more     3     (variety) of a species. Thanks to him, the hybrid enables farmers to expand farmer’s output      4    (great).

Regarded     1     “the goddess scientists”, Yan Ning is an admirable biology researcher at Princeton University. She is a rising star in the science world and her resume is     2     (impress). After graduating from Tsinghua University and Princeton, she     3     (invite) to set up her own laboratory at Tsinghua in 2007. At age 30, she became one of China’s     4     (young) female professors.

It was a long road to get     5     she is now. Yan works at least 14 hours a day, but she’s energetic, because research is the most “comfortable” job for her. This     6     (devote) to her work probably helped Yan in her research to identify the structures of proteins in cells’ plasma membranes, which puzzled scientists for half a century.

Apart from     7     (perform) scientific research, Yan enjoys TV dramas and classic novels.     8     (surprise), the novel Journey to the West inspired her to become a structural biologist. As she realizes her own dreams, Yan tries to encourage more women     9     (join) in science. In her eyes, there is no difference between men     10     women in the scientific fields. “Women can work as excellently as men and live the way they choose to,” she said in a public interview.

Qian Xuesen is a great scientist, a man of distinction. He     1     (bear) in Hangzhou, was admitted to the aeronautics department of the MIT in 1934. After graduating with his PhD, he was employed as     2     assistant researcher at Caltech. Qian’s missile designs laid the foundation for the successful building of missiles in the US in the 1940s and 1950s,     3     (make) him a world-renowned rocketeer.

When he learnt of the     4     (thrill) news of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Qian resolutely gave up his privileged conditions in the US and decided to return to his longed-for homeland to contribute as much as he could     5     his own nation.

Upon returning to China, Qian Xuesen was actively involved in research work. Under his     6     (participate) and guidance, China successfully launched its first rocket in 1960,     7     in 1964, it was a great success to run the flight test of China’s first self-designed medium-range rocket. In 1965, Qian’s proposal     8     (develop) an artificial satellite was included in the country’s key projects, after     9     the first artificial satellite was finally launched into space in 1970.

In 1999, Qian Xuesen     10     (award) the “Two Bombs and One Satellite” Meritorious Medal by the government of PRC, and was hailed as the “Father of China’s Missiles” for his significant contributions to China’s space industry.

On the west bank of the Mississippi, there is an unusual house with a white fence, preserved (保存)     1    a museum in memory of its former owner — Mark Twain. It is said that many of the     2     (character) and stories from his novels     3     (base) on real-life experiences that he had there as a boy. Mark Twain’s family moved to this house in Hannibal, Missouri when he was 8 years old. However, the family was so poor that they had to move out of the house for a while,    4     (live) above a local drug-store in exchange for his mother’s     5     (serve) as a cook. They managed     6     (move) back long after his father’s death, in 1847. Ten years     7     (late) at the age of 22, Mark Twain started to work as a journalist on a riverboat,    8    he wrote many famous books. These books include The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,    9    anti-racist story that wins its readers’ heart but is     10     (fierce) criticized for using racial terms.