Dragons are not real animals, but look like a combination (组合体) of many animals such as snakes, fish and deer. They have two horns (角) and a long moustache (胡子). With fantastic powers, they fly in the sky or swim in the sea. They can make rain, too. The Chinese dragon is a symbol of strength and good luck. The emperors of ancient China loved dragons. Their clothes were covered with pictures of dragons.

       We are proud to call ourselves the “descendants (传人) of the dragon”. In Chinese, “excellent” people are often called “dragon”. A number of Chinese sayings and idioms talk about dragons, for example, “Hoping one's child will become a dragon,” which means he or she will be successful.

        It is said that people born in the Year of the Dragon have certain characteristics. They are creative, confident, brave and quick-tempered. There are some famous “dragons” who have done excellent things, for example, Deng Xiaoping, the famous businessman Li Jiacheng and the movie star Zhao Wei. They are all successful. There are also some traditional festivals about dragons in China, such as Dragon Head-Raising Day and the Dragon Boat Festival. We have different kinds of activities to celebrate them. These two festivals come every year, but the Year of the Dragon comes every twelve years.

       The dragon is very important in Chinese culture. As the “descendants of the dragon”, it is necessary for us to know the views on dragons in our culture. It can help us understand why our parents always want us to be “dragons”.

       The year 2024 is the Year of the Dragon. Good luck to you!

    The history of Chinese cartoon making began in the 20th century. Below are some great cartoon works in Chinese history.

    Princess Iron Fan, is the first Chinese cartoon. It was directed in Shanghai by the Wan Brothers in 1942. It is the second longest cartoon film in the world following the cartoon the White Princess. The story was taken from a popular ancient Chinese story.

    Crow Black-Coated is the first Chinese cartoon in colour. Shanghai Film Studio made it in 1955. The story is about a very proud bird. He sang and danced in the forest，showing off his beautiful tail to everyone. Autumn came and the other animals were busy preparing food for the winter. The bird continued to enjoy life freely. The winter came with a heavy snow storm. The bird was homeless in the cold. To warm up，he found a wild fire in the forest. The bird burned his tail and lost his singing voice by accident. From then on，the bird becomes a black crow.

    Where's Mama is a short Chinese cartoon. Shanghai Film Studio made it in 1960. It tells about the adventures of a group of tadpoles in search of their mother. It is the first Chinese-style cartoon different from Western cartoons.

    What is a typical day like for a high school student in the United States? Well, everyone's is very different. I can describe my normal day in high school for you,

    Our school day usually went from 8:30 am to 5: 30 pm. However

some days I had cheerleading(啦啦队) practice or play practice at 6:30 am. If I had cheerleading practice, I got ready at school, and if I had time, I ate breakfast at the school dining hall.

    Then I would go towards my locker and get my books for the first period. Each class went for about 50 minutes and we had 4 minutes to get to the next class. We studied everything from science to maths and Spanish to PE.

    I played the flute(长笛) in band, so one of my class periods was used for that. Lunchtime would be at 12:30 pm and then we had some time to hang out outside or by our lockers. At the end of the day there was a seminar(研讨会) period. It could be used for studying or meetings.

    After school, I would cheer at a basketball game, be a lifeguard(救生员) at work or has speech practice. My family always tried to have dinner together at 7 pm, but there wasn't always time. I would finally start studying at 8 or 9 pm.

    So there you have it! That's my typical day in high school.

You're chatting with a friend and want to suggest a good book. All of a sudden, you can't remember the title! The harder you try to remember, . the more it eludes (使不记得) you. We've all been there, and everyone knows how hard it is to remember all the information in your head. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

● Repeat important information out loud. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} When you repeat something out loud, you aren't technically memorizing it. You're actually creating a pattern (方式) and sound that will make the information easier to remember in the future.

● {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Turn the TV off while you study and put down the phone while you're driving. When you do different activities at the same time, your attention is divided, which will make it hard to process (处理) the information necessary to remember what you're doing.

● Take notes and write things down. Taking notes will help you memorize the information, even if you never look at your notes again! {#blank#}4{#/blank#} So you'd better use pens and paper if you really want to remember your friend's birthday or an important meeting.

● Take a short walk. Studies show that taking a walk will increase your memory. If you're trying to remember something, spend a few minutes walking around your neighborhood to see if it helps. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} At best, you'll remember the name of that life-changing book from primary school!

A. Pay attention to one thing at a time.

B. Remember to find a good neighborhood.

C. Never watch TV or use mobile phone too much.

D. At worst, you'll get some exercise and relax a little.

E. Say that address, phone number, or date over and over again.

F. Luckily, there are some things you can do to improve your memory.

G. Research shows that it's hard to achieve the same result by writing on your phone.

On May 15，Zhang Rongqiao wiped tears from his eyes as China's Mars rover （巡视器） Zhurong landed safely on Mars. "I was so excited，" said Zhang.

As the chief designer （总设计师） of China's Tianwen Ⅰ Mars mission （任务），Zhang was chosen by the journal Nature on Dec 16 as one of the top 10 people "who helped shape science" in 2021.Under Zhang，China made a huge step in interplanetary （行星向的） exploration. "I got a taste of the old Chinese saying ﹣ it takes 10 years to sharpen a good sword，" Zhang told Nature.

In the Mars mission，Zhang led a team of thousands of researchers.The team was not only responsible for technical work like launches and flight control，but also for scientific research on Mars.

There were many difficulties.They knew little about the strange and complex environment of Mars. "We may not even know what we do not know about，" Zhang told Nature.

During the process，Zhang played a key part in the decision to send an orbiter （轨道飞行器），a lander （着陆器） and a rover to Mars together in one shipment （运输） ﹣ making China the first country to do so. "That's a big leap （飞跃） because China is doing in a single go （what NASA took decades （数十年） to do），" said Roberto Orosei from the Institute of Radioastronomy of Bologna in Italy.

Zhang also made the important decision to land the rover on Utopia Planitia，where there are special landforms （地形） for scientists to study.He hopes that the mission can do as much research as possible and bring back "rich" information.

"The buck stops with him （他敢作敢当），" said David Flannery，an astrobiologist （天体生物学家） at Queensland University of Technology in Australia.

 Between June 3 and 4, 2024, the Chang'e 6 lunar probe(月球探测器) showed our national flag on the moon. This is the first flag of any country to fly there!

 The flag uses very cool technology (技术). It is made of Xuanwu rock. You can often see this kind of rock on Earth. People often make the rock into floors and roads. The rock for making the flag comes from Hebei. Scientists first crushed (碾碎) the rock. Then, they made it into very thin threads (线), even thinner than your hair! Finally, they put these threads together to make a flag about the size of a piece of A4 paper.

Although the flag is made of rock, it is not heavy. It's just a little heavier than four ping- pong balls. The flag could stay there for over 10,000 years, said Zhou Changyi, one of the scientists who made the flag.