I remember the occasion when mother sent me to the main road, about twenty yards away from our house, to invite a passing group of seasonal work－seekers for a meal. She{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(instruct) me to take a basket along and collect dry cow dung(牛粪) for making a fire. I was then to prepare the meal for the group of work－seekers.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} thought of making an open fire outside at midday,and{#blank#}3{#/blank#}(cook)in a large three－legged pot in that intense heat, was sufficient to upset even an angel. I did not manage to hide my feelings from my mother and, after serving the group, she called me to the veranda(走廊){#blank#}4{#/blank#} she usually sat to attend to her sewing and knitting.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} straight into my eyes, she asked “Why did you get angry{#blank#}6{#/blank#} I requested you to prepare a meal for those poor people?”{#blank#}7{#/blank#} my attempt to deny her blame，using the heat of the fire and the sun as an excuse for my rude behavior, mother, she gave me a firm look，{#blank#}8{#/blank#}(say), “You cannot detect what trouble may lie ahead of you.”

    I{#blank#}9{#/blank#} (sudden) realized that if I had refused to offer this group of people a meal,{#blank#}10{#/blank#}would be impossible that in my travels some time in the future,I would get these individuals' help.

Using Garbage as a Fuel

    Garbage can be a good fuel to use. The things in garbage do not look {#blank#}1{#/blank#}coal, petroleum, or natural gas, but they are chemically similar to these fossil fuels. As we use up our fossil fuel supplies, we might be able to use garbage as {#blank#}2{#/blank#}energy source. Burning garbage {#blank#}3{#/blank#}( be) not a new idea. Some cities in Europe and the United States {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(burn) garbage for years. The heat that is produced by burning garbage is used to boil water. The steam that is produced is used to make electricity or to heat nearby {#blank#}5{#/blank#}( build). In Paris, France, some power plants burn almost 2 million metric tons of the city's garbage each year. The amount of energy {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(produce) is about the same as would be produced by burning almost a half million barrels of oil!

    But there are problems in using garbage as a fuel. Garbage that burns {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(easy) , such as food and paper, must be separated from metals, glass, and other materials {#blank#}8{#/blank#}do not. Another problem is that burning garbage can pollute the air. Our fossil fuel supplies are {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(limit) . Burning garbage might be one kind of energy source that we can use to help meet our energy needs. This method could also reduce the amount of garbage {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(pile) up on the earth.

    A recent study suggested that taking a bottle of water into the exam hall could help students improve their grades.

    According to the study those who brought drinks,{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(especial) water, with them when sitting their exams performed up to 10 percent better than those who did not.

    Comparing their exam results with their normal schoolwork grades, scientists then found that all those who {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(bring) drinks with them got better grades {#blank#}3{#/blank#} between 2 and 10 percent.

    It is unclear {#blank#}4{#/blank#} drinking water improves exam results. But scientists say having enough water in our bodies and not feeling thirsty could have a {#blank#}5{#/blank#}（help）effect on our brains. Drinking water may also cut {#blank#}6{#/blank#}on anxiety,{#blank#}7{#/blank#} has a bad effect on exam performances.

    Whatever the explanation, it is obvious that students should try hard to keep enough water in their bodies during exams. So next time,{#blank#}8{#/blank#} you are going to have a big exam, try {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (bring) a bottle of water with you. Who knows — it {#blank#}10{#/blank#} help you pass the exam!

    Stephen Hawking, who is the most famous physicist, was born in Britain on January 8^th, 1942. As a child, he was enthusiastic about {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (design) complicated toys but {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (fortune), in his twenties, he suffered {#blank#}3{#/blank#} a disease that was impossible to be cured，{#blank#}4{#/blank#} was a great challenge for him. However, not only was he positive about the misfortunes, and eventually he {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (defeat) all the obstacles but also he was {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (absorb) in his research in the universe. In 1988, his best-seller A Brief History of Time {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (publish), in which he put forward the idea {#blank#}8{#/blank#} time itself has a beginning, and that it will have {#blank#}9{#/blank#} end. In{#blank#}10{#/blank#} (conclude), he has made outstanding contributions to the fields of cosmology and quantum gravity.

    A material can be really special when it was named after the place where it {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (create) originally. That certainly the case {#blank#}2{#/blank#} “china”. And of all types of china, white porcelain(瓷)is among the most famous.

    Nowadays, the {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (tradition)material has taken on a modern look in the  {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(hand)of four Chinese artists in the Modern White Porcelain Exhibition. And the key word here is “modern”. One of the works {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (be) a porcelain boat. But look {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (attentive) and you'll see that the boat {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (build) with porcelain looks like a takeout box. Inside the boat is a statue of a baby. The baby stands for humans and the boat is {#blank#}8{#/blank#} supports life. It suggests we may have done some damage to {#blank#}9{#/blank#} environment and that we're treating life like fast food.

    All the four artists gave white porcelain a modem style, each in {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (they)own way. And this is what the exhibition's theme comes from. It's a dialogue between the past and the present.