With everything that happened in 2020, many of us are now looking forward to any good news that 2021 has in store for us. Recently, the website Eonline listed the top 21 pop culture events to look forward to in 2021. Let's take a look at two of them.
Marvel Studios
MCU madness
Get ready for a year full of new releases in the Marvel Cinematic Universe! The action already began on Jan 15 with the release of Wanda Vision on Disney+. Also, after a year of patiently waiting, fans will finally get to see Black Widow in theaters on May 7. Then, on July 9, the action-packed kung fu film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will be shown. Last but not least, the Spider-Man: Far From Home sequel starring Tom Holland will finish off the year of MCU madness with its release on Dec 17.
The Tokyo Organising Committee
2020 Summer Olympics
This year, we can finally celebrate the 2020 Summer Olympics, which was put off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The event will be held in Tokyo and is now scheduled from July 23 to Aug 8.
There are a lot of high-energy sports to look out for that will make their first appearance in this Olympic Games. These new sports include skateboarding, surling, sports climbing and karate. Viewers will also see the return of baseball and softball, which were last seen in the 2008 Games.
With about 11,000 athletes from more than 200 countries, the long-awaited Tokyo Summer Olympics is sure to impress and keep you at the edge of your seat with excitement.
I recently gave my adult class homework. The assignment was to "go to someone you love and tell them you love them. It has to be someone you have never said those words to before or haven't shared those words with for a longtime".
That doesn't sound like a tough assignment, but most of the men in that group were over 35 and were taught that expressing emotions is not "manly".
At the beginning of our next class, I asked if someone wanted to share what happened when they told someone they loved them. One of the men raised his hand. He appeared quite moved and a bit shaken.
He began by saying, "I didn't feel that I had anyone to say those words to. But as I began driving home, I knew exactly who I needed to say 'I love you' to. Five years ago, my father and I had a disagreement and never resolved it. We hardly spoke to each other."
"The next morning, I called my dad. When he answered the phone, I said, 'Dad, can I come over tonight? I have something to tell you.' I ensured him it wouldn't take long, so he finally agreed."
"At 5:30, I was at my parents' house ringing the doorbell. As luck would have it, Dad answered the door."
"I took one step in the door and said, 'Dad, I just came over to tell you that I love you.'"
"His face softened, his wrinkles (皱纹) disappeared and he began to cry. He reached out and hugged me and said, 'I love you too, son, but I've never been able to say it."
"Dad and I hugged for a moment longer. I hadn't felt that great in a long time."
"Two days after that visit, my dad had a heart attack and ended up unconscious in the hospital. I don't know if he'll make it."
"My message to all of you is this: Don't wait to do the things that need to be done. Take the time to do what you need to do and do it now!"
We are often attracted by fancy gadgets or interesting new hobbies, and quickly become addicted to them. But how long can that passion continue?
Yu Shibo became interested in aerial filming when he first saw how a drone (无人机) was operated during a school event in 2016. Although learning aerial filming was harder than he thought, he never gave up.
This year, the 17-year-old, from Qingdao Menaul School, Shandong, posted a video on his WeChat Channel, which received a few hundred likes. The four-minute video shows the boy's hometown-Qingdao with a drone: snowy mountain tops, skyscrapers in the clouds and the sunset over the ocean. Yu tried to show the beauty and romance of his hometown.
The final video took him more than two years until he felt satisfied with it. "Many places in the video were shot many times because an unforgettable scene needs timing and enough luck," Yu said. Most of the time, the weather didn't contribute to getting a perfect view. Aerial filming looks better with fog, sunrises and sunsets.
To catch the perfect time, Yu got used to getting up very early or staying up late. Yu recalled the days he climbed the mountain in snow and fell several times. When he filmed during winter, he didn't wear gloves-which nearly froze his fingers-in order to precisely control the drone. "But all the hardships are paid back when I get astonishing pictures. No pain, no gain."
Some viewers commented that his shooting is professional and skillful. But in fact, Yu learned how to operate the drone and shoot all by himself. "There are a lot of materials accessible for a beginner, but the key point is to act and keep practicing, then you will have more sense about the shooting," said Yu.
When scientists go to a forest to study monkeys and their habits and behaviors, how do they know who's who?
In the past, scientists had to make marks on each of the animals to tell them apart. But in the future, they may have a much easier way to tell them apart thanks to facial recognition technology.
A research team from China's Northwest University is using facial recognition technology to identify thousands of snub-nosed monkeys that live on Qinling Mountain in Shanxi province.
Similar to human facial recognition, the technology that is used to identify monkeys uses their facial features to create a database that includes every monkey, Xinhua reported.
"When the system is fully developed, we can connect it with cameras set up in the mountains. The system will automatically recognize the monkeys, name them and analyze their behavior," said Zhang He, a member of the research team.
"For each snub-nosed monkey, we have 700 to 800 image samples, and the recognition success rate is 94 percent, Zhang added.
"We used mobile phones and portable cameras with the monkeys in tests at distances ranging from about 3 to 10 meters," said He Gang, also a member of the research team. "With its help, we don't need to disturb the monkeys while studying them."
Compared to humans, facial recognition technology for monkeys is more difficult because of their hairier faces. The color of their hair causes them to blend (融入) into their environment. These factors make it harder for computers to identify them.
Currently, there are about 4,000 snub-nosed monkeys living on Qinling Mountain. The team's goal is to successfully identify every monkey that lives there.
a. Image samples.
b. Hairy faces.
c. Hair color.
d. The environment.
You may have heard of Niagara Falls, one of the biggest waterfalls in the world. But do you know about the Niagara Escarpment (断崖)? .
Earlier this month, our school went on a hiking trip to this beautiful place. The weather was cold, cloudy and windy, so we wore many layers to stay warm. We were separated into two groups and went on different routes (路线). The whole escarpment is 725 kilometers long. .
My favorite part of the routes was the cave. The cave was formed from many different shaped rocks. We climbed down into the rocks with the help of our teachers. The rocks were steep and slippery because they were covered with wet leaves. It was fun and exciting experience for all of us.
. After walking 5 km without any rest, we were hungry and tired. When our teacher finally said we could stop to have lunch, we were thrilled. After all, this route was a little different from the ones we were used to. It was more rugged, with lots of rocks on the path, which made it harder to walk. But it was great exercise.
, but remember to stay warm, stay hydrated (保持体内水分) and have fun along the way!
A. Hiking is very interesting
B. We chose the easier route to climb
C. We covered 8 km in our four-hour journey
D. Another exciting moment was lunch
E. Some were huge while some were small
F. It was a challenging task indeed
G. It's a long, steep slope that runs through the US and Canada
I was in fifth grade and about to take a science test. Since first grade I had always been 1 at school. I always did well on tests. When it came to fifth grade science, however, I was struggling. I couldn't' seem to 2 it no matter how hard I tried. I was 3.
My mom and dad had always been so 4 of my grades, and I didn't want to let them down. So just before the test I had written several 5 from the textbook on my desk in pencil. I sat 6 as the teacher started to hand out the test. As the teacher was starting down my row, 7 the fire alarm went off. We all 8 the door and stood together, waiting to be allowed back into the building.
As I stood outside in the warm sunshine, I 9 what fool had been. I knew my mom and dad would still love me no matter what my 10 were. As soon as we came into the classroom, I walked to my desk and 11 the notes away. I had been given a second 12 and I wasn't going to waste it. I took the test, did my best and felt 13. I don't remember what my grade was, but what 14 that day has stayed in my heart and mind ever since.
Life is full of second chances, but you have to be willing to take them. Every day when you wake up you are given a second chance at life. Cherish it! And use it 15!
A one-legged Chinese woman at the World Professional Beauty Contest caught people's attention as she turned up (graceful). Gui Yuna, the 36-year-old Chinese woman from Nanning, showed her best form and won the (title) of Miss Qipao and Miss Bikini in Group B.
Gui lost her right leg at age of seven in car accident. At 17, she started training in high jump, long jump and other games.
One of the highlights of her professional career as an athlete was in the 2004 Summer Paralympic Games in Greece, she won the seventh place in women's long jump. She also broke the world record of women's high jump for amputees in 2007 National Games for Dis abled Persons. Before the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games, Gui served a torch bearer (火炬手). She (win) the National Model Worker award in 2015 as well.
Gui retired from professional sports in 2017. (invite) by the World Professional Beauty organizers, Gui attended the beauty contest in a hurry and without much training. But her habit of (keep) a healthy lifestyle and exercising helped her have a good physical shape and shine or stage.
"Sport gives me optimism and makes me look (young) than my peers. I hope more and more people can gain (confident) from my action and join the fitness career," Gui said.
