I'd like to talk about the school system in Australia today. The school system in Australia does depend on {#blank#}1{#/blank#} you go to a private school or a public school. In the state I'm from, there are a lot of private schools, and generally they are single-sex high schools. The public high schools are generally {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (mix). All of the private high schools insist that you should wear their school uniforms, {#blank#}3{#/blank#} that might mean{#blank#}4{#/blank#} (wear) a school tie and a school jacket. However, the public high schools often give you a {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (choose) of whether you want to wear a uniform or not. The school classes generally start anywhere{#blank#}6{#/blank#} 8:30 and 9 o'clock in the morning and run {#blank#}7{#/blank#} 3:30 in the afternoon, and they're followed by after-school {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (active) like sports and music theater. The school year generally starts in the{#blank#}9{#/blank#} (begin) on February, after our summer vacation, which lasts about six weeks around the Christmas period.

    The only thing I don't like about our school system is the idea of the difference in quality of education between the private and the public schools. It remains{#blank#}10{#/blank#} (see) whether you can get a better education, even if you are in a private high school. Most of our public high schools are quite good.

    Long ago there was a poor farmer called Fred. Fred and his wife Doris lived {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(happy) together in their small old house. One winter night, the Luck Fairy visited {#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

    “Fred, you're a good farmer. I'd like to give you a wish,” said the Luck Fairy.

    “A wish?” said Fred.

    Fred and Doris smiled {#blank#}3{#/blank#}each other. Then Fred said, “Thank you, Luck Fairy. We're very healthy and happy.”

    “You work very hard {#blank#}4{#/blank#}you make very little money. Would you like some gold coins?” asked the Luck Fairy.

    “We're poor, but we have enough food {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(eat).” replied Fred.

    “You can use the gold coin to buy {#blank#}6{#/blank#}clothes. The winter here is very cold,” said Luck Fairy.

    “{#blank#}7{#/blank#} we haven't got many clothes, we've got enough.” said Doris.

    “Well, what about {#blank#}8{#/blank#}nice new house?” asked Luck Fairy.

    “Thank you, but I love my small old house very much. I {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(live) here since I was born. We don't need a new house,” said Fred.

    “You're quite different {#blank#}10{#/blank#}others. I like you very much,” said the Luck Fairy. “I wish you happy forever.” Then the Luck Fairy disappeared and never came back.

在空白处填入适当内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。

Is Hothouse Earth Avoidable?

    Nearly 50 years ago, the Club of Rome's report "Limits to Growth" warned that if economic growth continued fast without regard for the environment, the world could face ecological and economic collapse in the twenty-first century. Yet that is essentially {#blank#}1{#/blank#} has happened. As new research for the Club of Rome shows — and the latest report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states — the world {#blank#}2{#/blank#} well be headed towards disaster.

    Many wrongly {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(interpret) the "Limits to Growth" as an attack on uncontrolled economic expansion. In fact, the report argued that {#blank#}4{#/blank#} the unlimited-growth pathway was chosen, it would require complementary policies (including funding) {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (preserve) the planet's limited life-support systems.

    This argument {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (ignore). Instead, the world has continued to pursue fast growth, without regard for the environmental consequences. This has enabled us to make enormous progress in reducing poverty, increasing longevity, and increasing wealth. {#blank#}7{#/blank#} it has come at a high cost to the formation of the society and the restoration of the planet.

    As scientists have conclusively shown, in the last decade, we have entered a new geological era, the Anthropocene, in which human activity — in particular, economic activity — has been the dominant factor {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(influence) Earth's climate and environment. In the Anthropocene, our planet's life-support system is changing faster than ever.

Climate change now represents a clear and present danger. If our planet becomes just 2℃ warmer than pre-industrial temperatures, we may be placed irreversibly on the path toward "Hothouse Earth" — a situation {#blank#}9{#/blank#} temperatures are many degrees warmer than today, sea levels are considerably higher, and extreme weather events are {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(common) — and more destructive — than ever.