Nowadays, lots of foreigners are learning Chinese. Like many of them, I 1 knew two words of Chinese ("Ni Hao" and "Xie Xie") when I first came to Beijing, China in 2009. As you can guess, my life was 2 for a while after I arrived. Simple tasks like ordering food or taking a taxi were quite stressful.

    I knew I had to learn more Chinese, so I 3 a Chinese class. My teacher was 4, although I didn't learn enough to have a real conversation. Later I studied on my own as well, but my progress was still slow. And I decided to 5.

    Around this time, I started playing in a band with a Chinese man who became one of my best friends in Beijing. He taught me a lot of 6 about music, such as "melody". He learned a lot of English from me in return, so it was a good way to 7 language and culture.

    I have learned enough Chinese to 8 many problems like booking train tickets. These days, there are more foreigners who are studying Chinese. I can 9 why it's an amazing language. Finally, I found that the best way to learn a 10 is to make friends with native speakers and spend time with them.

    Many people drive their cars to school or work now. So there are lots of cars on the streets. Sometimes, it's not easy for you to get to school or work on time(准时). Then you want to take a plane to school or work. Can your dream come true? Yes!

Four people in Germany(德国) make a new plane—Lilium Jet. It doesn't look like a plane but an egg. Many people think it looks funny. The nice "egg" can take two people and "run" about three hundred kilometers an hour.

    The Lilium Jet is not very big. So it doesn't need an airport(机场). A small place is OK.

    Some people also call the Lilium Jet "a flying car". It's not difficult for you to learn to drive it. You can drive it like driving a car.

    Maybe you can buy one in 2018 if you like it. I'm sure your trip to school or work will be great.

    When people are driving, they like listening to music on the radio in the car. Music makes the ride interesting. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    There is a kind of wonderful road in Japan- melody road. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} When you drive on it, you can hear nice songs. There are three melody roads in Japan. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} When you drive on it, you can hear the song Memories of Summer. Lots of drivers like this road very much. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Many people drive their cars to the road only because they want to listen to the nice song.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} The designer (设计者) of this road says, "You can hear the beautiful song best when your speed (速度) is 50 kilometers an hour".

    Red, green, blue, black and white are basic(基本的) colours.

    The world is colourful(多彩的). The sea is blue. The grass is green. Most countries in the world like green because it's a symbol(象征) of life(生命)，but people from England and Japan don't like it. Red is a popular(流行的) colour in China, but in Thailand(泰国)，it is bad to write names in red ink(墨水). It means someone is dead(死亡的). In Australia, people think the black cat can bring them good luck, but in America, people think the white cat is a lucky cat.

    This was a very interesting story. I 1 thousands of classes since I started school nine years ago. But one class was 2 of all.

    It happened last term just after I had got a bad result in 3 exam. I was sad and had lost my confidence. I decided 4 to a class 5 can tell me how to be successful. The speaker walked into the room. 6 he did not start talking like a teacher. Instead, he held up a twenty yuan note!

    "Who wants this?" he asked. Unsurprisingly, 7 of us in the class held up our hands. The speaker smiled. Then he put up the note on the blackboard and asked the same question. Again, we put up our hands. The speaker kept 8, but said 9 . Suddenly, he threw the note onto the floor! Then he asked the same question for  10time.

    I didn't understand the speaker. Why was he asking the same question again and again? I didn't know 11 to do. I wanted the note, so I put my hand up again. "You have all just told me how to become successful." He said to us 12 the note in his hand. "The note is worth twenty yuan. It is always worth twenty yuan, even though I throw it on the floor. You are like the note. No matter what happens to you, you still have your worth."

    Hearing those words, I 13 deeply. Suddenly, I realized I was worth a lot. I may have failed, but it doesn't mean I 14 do well in the future. If I believe in15I will be successful!

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Future astronauts could travel with emotional support robots

    To help astronauts of the future survive (幸免于) the mental (精神的) challenges that come with staying in space for quite a long time, space travelers‟ tasks could soon be accompanied(陪伴) by AI-powered, empathetic (有同理心的, 同感的) robotic helpers.

    Not only does space travel present astronauts with lots of physical stresses, spending months or years in such a physically demanding (要求高的) place with limited space and the same people can also raise many mental tests as well. According to MIT Technology Review, scientists are working to alleviate astronauts from some of the latter challenges by creating "an AI assistant that's able to feel human emotion and respond (做出反应) with empathy."

    While such a technology would prove itself useful by being able to predict the needs of the

crew members in space and "intervene (干预) if their mental health is in danger," it has the potential to be life-saving when humans choose to explore beyond Earth's gravitational field (引力场) and towards deep space.

    Though astronauts currently on the International Space Station have an intelligent robot to interact with called CIMON, it is short of proper emotional intelligence according to NASA CTO Tom Soderstrom. As a result, a team at the organization's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is working on a more complex (复杂的) emotional support companion that can control a spacecraft's functioning in addition to tracking the crew members‟ behaviours.

    Right now in the lab, an AI-equipped robot called Henry the Helper can be found walking around the grounds assisting visitors who appear confused or lost based on their facial expression. Two more emotionally intelligent robots are expected to be introduced later this year, one of which is said to be able to take part in conversations more complex than giving navigation(导航) assistance.

    The team's final goal is to make a companion named Fiona the Future a reality, an emotionally intelligent cross-platform system. Fiona, if all goes according to the JPL's plans, will help keep astronauts of the future stay mentally fit as they start their journeys to deep space.