We think that life in Chinese high school is a hard experience in which we have to survive mountains of homework and all kinds of exams. Yet would it be{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(surprise) if I tell you that high school life in the US is almost as hard {#blank#}2{#/blank#} it is in China?

    In US high school, everything must {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(record) into your studying document(文件), including your grades, tests and final examinations. Failing {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(turn) in your homework on time will directly affect your grade for a certain course. Perhaps completely different from {#blank#}5{#/blank#}we used to think of the US high school students, they pay great attention to {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(they) study in order that they can get into a good university.

    Like university students, US high school students can choose the {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(course) that most interest them freely. Even a ninth-grader can sit {#blank#}8{#/blank#} the same classroom as 12th-graders. But this also {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(mean) he or she has to work very hard, because the teacher will not treat him or her {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(different).

    Martin Strel swims with a knife {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (fasten) to his right leg—in case he meets sharks and other {#blank#}2{#/blank#}  (dead) sea life in the world's wildest waters. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} 61-year-old marathon swimmer has announced the {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (tough) challenge of his life: a 10,000-mile-around-the-world journey on water {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (draw) public attention to the increasing water {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (pollute). He aims to circle the globe in about 450 days, passing through oceans, rivers,{#blank#}7{#/blank#} (canal) and other bodies of water in more than 100 countries. He will swim about 5 to 12 hours each day, depending on the weather. A boat will go {#blank#}8{#/blank#} him and offer emergency support and space for small breaks.

    Since 2000, Strel {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (swim) the entire length of five rivers in China, America, etc. Strel will not be alone in the water. He says he welcomes {#blank#}10{#/blank#} is interested in joining him for parts of the route.

    You may not know the name John Smith Pemberton, but you must know the name of his{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(invent):Coca-Cola.

    Pemberton was a US chemist. When he was wounded in the Civil War, lie used medicine to ease the pain and gradually got{#blank#}2{#/blank#} (addict) to it. To light the addiction, he created his own drink by{#blank#}3{#/blank#} (use) leaves of coca and nuts of kola. He named{#blank#}4{#/blank#}," Pemberton's French Wine Coca". In the same year, the local government passed a ban on alcohol. Pemberton had to change the recipe to remove the alcohol.

    In 1886, Pemberton invited Willis Venable to help him perfect his new recipe. They used carbonated water and finally invented a new drink. It had no alcohol{#blank#}5{#/blank#}could still ease pain and clear the mind. Pemberton decided to sell it{#blank#}6{#/blank#}a drink rather than a medicine. In 1887, Pemberton sold part of the stock of his company to As a Candler,{#blank#}7{#/blank#}later created the Coca-Cola Company.

    Nowadays. Coca-Cola has become one of the most popular{#blank#}8{#/blank#}(drink) in the world. The company only offers semi-finished products to partners and won't sell the{#blank#}9{#/blank#}(origin) ingredients (成分).Its secret recipe was kept in the Sun Trust Bank in Atlanta for 86 years until the end of 2011. Since then, it{#blank#}10{#/blank#}(keep) in the World of Coca-Cola center in Atlanta.

    Tracy Wong is a well-known Chinese-American writer. But her writing skill was something she picked {#blank#}1{#/blank#} by herself. She became a part-time writer for IBM after {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(graduate) from college. Then, writing stories was {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(simple)a personal interest. Tracy sent three of her stories to a publisher. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(interest), they immediately suggested that she put them together {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(make)a single one long story and paid Tracy $ 50, 000 in advance, which was a pretty money for an unknown writer.

    Even though Tracy's {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(character) are interesting, her stories sometimes leave readers uneasy: those about the supernatural. “My mother believed I could connect with the afterlife world,” she told a close friend. “She used to have me speak with my grandmother, {#blank#}7{#/blank#} died many years ago.”

    "Can I? I don't think I can," Tracy said with a laugh. "But I do have moments when things come to me for no reason." Once, she {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(wonder) how to complete a scene set in ancient China when the doorbell suddenly rang. It was a FedEx delivery man, with a copy of a book on Chinese history. {#blank#}9{#/blank#} came without her having ordered it!

    Though she has published 10 books, Tracy has remained unchanged by her fame. She lives in the same way she lived 27 years ago — although in a {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(big) house. There's more room for joy in her life — and it wasn't just writing.