You are twenty-one years old and live a happy and peaceful life. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} one day, your doctor tells you that you have a serious disease and will die soon. What would you do?{#blank#}2{#/blank#} (probable) most of us might feel very sad and give up our dreams and hopes for the future. Here is {#blank#}3{#/blank#} the great scientist, Stephen Hawking, did.

    Hawking wasn't {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (discourage) because of his physical condition.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}, he went on with his study of the universe. In 2002, Hawking was invited to China. He told Chinese students about his theories and thoughts {#blank#}6{#/blank#} some of the greatest questions: what is time, how the universe began, and what are black holes. He impressed the audience with his humor, confidence and of course his {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (wise).

    Hawking became famous in the early 1970s. In 1988, he wrote A Brief History of Time, in {#blank#}8{#/blank#} he explained difficult theories in a simple way. The book {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (sell) well since it came out.

    Stephen Hawking is a man with a strong will and he is regarded as the {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (great) mind in physics since Albert Einstein.

    For many young people, {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (go) to university is one of the most important {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(stage) of their lives. It is the time when young people will move out of {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (they) home to live with other people, often strangers. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(especial) in the US, people often travel very far from home to study. It is a time to be {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (dependence).

    At university, you {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (teach) by lectures and professors who are leading figures in their study. The opportunity to learn from and to discuss with them is {#blank#}7{#/blank#} drives some people to apply to university. Students are required to choose a major that they wish to study. Apart {#blank#}8{#/blank#}the academic benefit, life at university can also allow students {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (develop) their interests in many fields.

    Therefore, university is a place {#blank#}10{#/blank#}you attain knowledge, to develop your values and accept those who may be different.

    Learning English used to be about developing four skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking. After all, that's {#blank#}1{#/blank#} the exams are designed—with four skills tested separately.

    But over the years, educators have come {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (realize) that these four skills should never have been separated, but practiced all at once. And the best way to do that is, perhaps, through public speaking.

    According to Mei Deming, a professor of English at Shanghai International Studies University, giving a speech in an international language {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (require)a speaker to integrate (使成为一体) knowledge and content {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (mental)and express the result systematically. Speakers must draw on the beauty of the language as a whole in order to communicate with an audience.

    This is why the annual China Daily "21st Century Cup" National English Speaking Competition has been gaining in popularity since it began in 1996. "This competition has worked {#blank#}5{#/blank#} a model for developing students' public-speaking skills in English and provided ideas for English teaching in schools and in learning in a broader sense," said Mei.

    Shi Guohua, {#blank#}6{#/blank#} English teacher at Shanghai Qibao High School, held a similar view. He said that key competence in acquiring English today comes from the ability to express oneself rather than in simply passing exams.

    He also {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (stress) that communication should go both ways since traditional English speaking education has focused too much on getting messages out while {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (ignore)the receiver of these messages—the audience. "It's important to understand the audience and build the link between the content being delivered and the interests of the audience," he said. "It's also important to create an impressive opening to a speech."

    As China continues to play an important role in global conversations, there will be more {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (chance) for young Chinese people to present China and tell attracting stories. And in order to tell Chinese stories {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (well), we first need to develop a more overall English skill. Working on public speaking is, perhaps, the place to start.

    Your class starts in 10 minutes, but you find yourself {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (stick) in traffic. Don't panic. With just a press of a button, your car will lift off the ground and fly to school. What's your {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(impress)? It seems like science fiction, but it isn't. Engineers have taken {#blank#}3{#/blank#} the research of flying cars, and they have already found {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (solve) to many of the big challenges. They predict that we'll all be using these amazing vehicles one day. According to Car Trends Magazine, one model, {#blank#}5{#/blank#} is part car and part plane, is going to be on the market in {#blank#}6{#/blank#} not-so-distant future. It will look like a regular car when it's on the road, but its wings will unfold when the driver {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (decide) to take to the sky. And {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (operate) by a computer, all controls will be automatic. Imagine this: You'll be doing your homework while your car is getting you to school {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (safe). And what does this future dream car cost? Well, at first it will be about a million dollars, but after a few years, you'll be able to buy {#blank#}10{#/blank#} for "only" $60,000. Don't throw away your old driver's license just yet!

    A cheerful panda {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (call) Bing Dwen Dwen has been chosen as the Olympic mascot for Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. The new Olympic mascot will serve as an ambassador (大使) for winter sports, {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (bring) joy to those who participate in and watch the Olympic Winter Games. "Bing" means ice and symbolizes purity and strength. "Dwen Dwen" relates to children and means {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (honest), health, liveliness and loveliness. The mascot represents the strength and willpower of athletes and will help to promote the Olympic spirit.

Landslide Injures at least 10 in Norwegian Town of Ask

A landslide (山体滑坡)has smashed into a residential area near the Norwegian capital at midnight on Dec. 30. injuring at least 10 people, leaving 21 unaccounted for and {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(destroy) several homes, authorities said.

About 700 people have been brought to safety for fear of further landslides.

The landslide cut across a road, leaving a deep gap that cars {#blank#}2{#/blank#}not pass. Video footage showed dramatic scenes including one house falling into the gap. Photographs showed at least eight destroyed homes.

Rescue workers continued to search the area for children and adults {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(believe) to have been caught in mud and debris (废墟), police said. "We're still looking for survivors? police spokesman Roger Pettersen told a news conference.

Pettersen said there were no reports of missing people, but officials could not rule out the possibility {#blank#}4{#/blank#} there might be survivors in collapsed buildings. He said 21 people registered as living in the area arc unaccounted for.

One of the injured was seriously hurt, while nine had {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(light) injuries. Weather at the time was reported to be challenging, with snowstorm sweeping the village of Ask, {#blank#}6{#/blank#}about 5,000 people inhabited.

Norway's King Harald said the landslide had made a deep impression on him. "My thoughts are with all those who are affected, injured or have lost their homes and chose who now live in fear and uncertainty of {#blank#}7{#/blank#}damage the disaster has caused," he said in a statement released by the royal palace.

The area in which Ask {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(locate) is known to have a lot of quick clay, which can change from solid to liquid from. Previous landslides have been reported in the region.

Helicopters continued to circle over the area as night fell {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (lower) rescuers towards the debris of collapsed houses.

"There could be people trapped ... but at the same time we can't be sure{#blank#}10{#/blank#}it is the new year's holiday, which means people could be elsewhere," Ema Solberg, the Norwegian Prime Minister, told reporters after visiting the site.