Korean（韩国的）culture is really exciting right now. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}  Young people are going crazy about Korean TV plays ,Korean pop songs ,taekwondo and the Korean language .
   The Korean Wave started a few years ago with the TV series（连续剧）Winter Sonata.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}  People ,especially girls ,like the beautiful story and good-looking actors（演员）like Bae Young Jun .{#blank#}3{#/blank#} You can often find big Korean names like Baby Vox ,S.E.S. and Finkle at the top of the Chinese music charts( 排行榜).
   The Korean Wave has also made young people want to try the clothes and hairstyles of pop stars .Not only that ,some girls in China are having plastic surgery（整容）to change the way they look. People say some beautiful Korean stars have had plastic surgery.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} .
{#blank#}5{#/blank#}  Find out by yourself when you visit South Korea next time.

A. Practice makes perfect.
B. Every minute counts.
C. Failure is the mother of success.
D. A good beginning is half done.
E. It is never too old to learn.

    You know that eating a sensible diet and getting plenty of exercise help make your body healthy and strong.But do you know that there are ways to make your brain healthier and smarter? Here are some steps toward a smarter brain.

Limit your TV viewing

    ① Never spend too much time on TV viewing, for it needs very little brain activities.Your brain will become weak just as your muscles do.If you do watch TV, choose something educational and meaningful.

Travel

    Travelling to another country forces you to see and do things in a fresh way, bringing stimulation to the brain.

    Learn a new language

    Learning a new language involves different learning methods.Learning a language sharpens your brain and helps prevent memory problems that you may meet in later years.

Read often

    As you read, take the time to look up people or places that aren't familiar.Reading makes your vocabulary much larger if you always search for words and definitions that you don't know.Each week, choose an animal, a bird or fish, and read everything you can about it.Stretch your brain as you become an expert on the subject.

Calculate （计算）when you shop

    As you put things in your grocery cart, total everything in your head.See how close you get to the actual total.

    Use your non-dominant（不占优势的）hand

    If you are right-handed, use your left hand for everyday activities, or use your right hand if you are left-handed.Doing familiar things in a different way will make your brain create new neural （神经）networks.

Wechat（微信）

    ② Read messages from various people.They have different interests.And some say that learning to express yourself in just 100 words is a great brain challenge.

    Have a try and do these every day.Little by little you can get into the habit of challenging your brain, and make your brain smarter!

Last summer,Cathy's whole family went to New York City for their summer vacation. They stayed there for two weeks.

New York City has more than seven and a half million people.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} It is also the home of the United Nations.

First they visited the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Liberty is one of New York's most well-known places.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} On the second day they went to the Empire State Building. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}From the top of the building, they saw most parts of New York. On the third day they visited the Metropolitan Museum.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} During the rest time of the week, Cathy went to Bronx Zoo with her younger brother and sister. There they were glad to see a lot of their favourite animals-tigers, lions, monkeys, and elephants.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#} On the island, they spent most of their time swimming sunbathing and playing on the beach. They all had a good time.

Artist Jasmine Cho paints the picture of famous Asian Americans. But she does not use paper to create her art. She uses cookies. Cho said the sweet treats are meaningful because they can help people know more about Asian Americans. The 39-year-old artist believes her art comes from a feeling of not belonging when she was young.

Cho has got fans over the last several years as she always makes cookie faces in detail. Famous actors like Awkwafina and Daniel Dae have praised her cookie designs. The city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where Cho has lived since 2009,even honored (给……荣誉) her with a "Jasmine Cho Day" in 2020.

In 2016, Cho made a video in which she was making cookies for her online bakery (面包店). The cookies were exactly like her friends. So the cookies received attention on social media at once. Soon, others wanted her cookies, too.

A few months later, Cho held her first show. She made cookies of Asian American Pittsburgh natives, like Leah Lizarondo, the founder of 412 Food Rescue. Lizarondo remembers how surprised she was to find that Cho bad made her into a cookie face. "I shared it as widely as I could because I was so proud to be among the people she did cookie portraits (肖像) of," Lizarondo said by email.

In 2021, Cho wrote a children's book Role Models Who Look Lite Me. In the following years, she has given over 20 speeches in different countries. For her, the biggest exciting thing is when young Asian Americans, particularly females, feel encouraged. "They tell me things like, ‘I learned more in your 15-minute talk than I have in my whole class that's about Asian American history,' or something like that," Cho said.

John used to have difficulties in school. He didn't pay attention in class. Even worse, he was often 1 from class. As a result, he couldn't catch up with others and 2 passed the exam. This made his teachers disappointed(失望的) with his 3 and his classmates didn't want to be friends with him.

 One day, a famous mentor(导师), who used to be a difficult student himself at high school just like John, 4 John's story. He showed great interest and decided to have a heart-to-heart 5 with the young student. He believed that he could 6 John into a good student.

 The mentor met John and began the conversation by asking him about his hobbies and interests. Then He 7 his own story with John. He talked about the challenges he faced, the mistakes he made and the ways he used.

 The mentor's story touched John a lot and his words seemed to 8 John realized what he used to do was 9 . He made a decision to change himself. From then on, he listened to his teachers 10 and took notes actively in class. After class, he finished his homework on time. Several months later, John made great 11 .

 Now John keeps working hard. He has changed himself into a(n) 12 student from a difficult one. People who 13 him in the past can't believe he has changed that much John's story 14 as an inspiration(鼓舞人心的事) to many people. It shows that no matter who you are, you have the power(力量) to change yourself. 15 you keep working hard, you can achieve your dream and become the person you want to be.