People often wonder about some of the best places to see. A good point of reference is to first look at attractions labeled as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. These sites are culturally or physically significant places listed by the United Nations for their importance to humanity as a whole. Let's see some of them!
The Mogao Caves, China
Also known as the Mogao Grottoes, the caves are located along the cliffside above the Daquan River in Gansu province. First built in 366 and comprising 492 caves, the Mogao Caves are known as the biggest collection of Buddhist art in the world. As a landmark of the historic Silk Road, the Mogao Caves are a perfect display of Chinese art history over a period of a thousand years.
Redwood National Park, US
Lying in the mountainous region north of San Francisco in California, US, the Redwood National Park is significant for its collection of redwood trees—the tallest and oldest trees in the world—as well as its variety of sea and land wildlife. Once abundant throughout the temperate regions of the world, the Redwood trees of California are among the only living examples left of this old plant species, a biological group which has existed for 160 million years.
Machu Picchu, Peru
Situated in the Andes Mountains, this fascinating ancient city is remarkable both for its beautiful setting as well as its use of complex city planning. Standing at 2,430 meters above sea level, the city of Machu Picchu is shrouded in both mist and mystery. Researchers have yet to uncover the city's role in the Incan empire's use of astronomy and plant domestication.
"The first step in realizing your dream is to not be afraid of any challenge," Liu Wa from Bejing Chaoyang Kaiwen Academy said.
This July, when Liu was informed that the music festival her band was attending had some trouble and was about to be cancelled, she decided to take over the job of hosting it. "I thought to myself, how hard could hosting be?" What's more, she turned this festival into a charity event by raising money for a stray dog rescue station in Anhui province.
Liu became a volunteer for the station by coincidence two years ago. "I realized how much money it could take to save those dogs. This music festival is exactly the opportunity I need to raise people's awareness of protecting stray dogs and donate money for them," Liu said.
Liu and her two friends, who are also members of the band needed to find sponsorships, set up the venue and contact bands of high schools in Beijing to perform within two weeks. "Negotiating with sponsors was tricky sometimes as we needed to figure out what they wanted and trade with resources we had," Liu recalled. They managed to cooperate with companies such as a study abroad agency to cover the expense as much as possible. Many parents also "sponsored" them with their homemade food.
The weather forecast had said that the day of the music festival, Aug 6, was going to be rainy. "We were so worried at first. But then a miracle happened: It only rained a little toward the end, helping us to sell the umbrellas we had prepared," Liu said.
Audiences were mainly friends, parents and students. "Because of the pandemic, the audiences were limited to no more than 200 people, which also pushed us to come up with ways of earning money other than tickets," Liu explained. Eventually, they managed to raise 50,000 yuan from rain gear, food, and accessories they had designed.
Having been looked down upon many times by professional bands in Beijing, Liu also sees this festival as a way of telling the world that high school bands are just as good. "I want to run our own music channel on Bilibili. Our love for music will never stop," Liu said.
American Airlines announced an agreement in mid-August to buy 20 supersonic Overture planes from Boom Supersonic, a US-based start-up company focused on the production of supersonic commercial aircraft.
The Overture is planned to transport between 65 and 80 passengers at speeds of over 1.7 times that of the speed of sound (235 km/h) - twice that of the fastest traditional commercial airplane on the market today.
The idea of riding aboard a plane at supersonic speeds might seem like a scary one; but, in fact, it might even be smoother than flying on a traditional airplane.
Most commercial airliners fly between 11.5 and 12 kilometers high in the sky, but the Overture will fly at about 18.29 kilometers by comparison. The higher a plane flies, the thinner the air is, resulting in less turbulence (颠簸).
As Lourdes Maurice, a mechanical engineer and advisor to Boom Supersonic, remarked about her supersonic flight on the Concorde, the Overture's predecessor: "Climbing to 60,000 feet (about 18.29 km) was incredibly smooth. There was no turbulence. We knew we were flying supersonically, but our bodies didn't give us any signs."
Since the first supersonic flight by the US Air Force in October 1947 and the first commercial supersonic flight in 1976, the promise of supersonic flight has been an alluring goal; yet, the path forward has seen many obstacles. The biggest problem is that massive, powerful sound waves called "sonic booms" are created when an object breaks the sound barrier.
Similar to thunder, these sonic booms are difficult to ignore when flying over residential areas. Besides noise pollution, the use of supersonic aircraft has also been criticized for is huge fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, resulting in bans on supersonic commercial flights in many countries.
Since the last commercial supersonic flight of the Concorde in 2003, the dream of supersonic travel appeared dead. However, with improvements being made to supersonic plane designs and fuel efficiency, the dream could come back to life once more.
From Latin America to Sichuan province, chili peppers and their famous burning taste have become a worldwide sensation (热门) But how could something that burns so hot possibly be any good for people?
In a study by researchers at Marshall University in the Us, scientists made the first complete description of capsaicin (辣椒素)—a chemical found in spicy chilis—and its anti-cancer properties. Although capsaicin is not normally a good medicine due to some negative properties such as its spicy flavor, the study found that there are ways to bring out its anti-cancer benefits while overcoming these negatives.
In nature, capsaicin evolved as a defense mechanism in plants to drive away unwanted animals while attracting those that could spread the seeds, such as birds which cannot taste or feel the spice. From a scientific point of view, capsaicin works by triggering a pain receptor called TRPV1, causing the body to react as if it had actually touched something hot and dangerous. Yet, this natural repellent (驱虫剂) for most animals has instead become a favorite food for many people, often called "chiliheads".
So, what is it that attracts humans to capsaicin, chili peppers and spicy food in general? Besides its many health benefits — such as pain relief, weight loss, and body heat regulation—people love eating chili peppers precisely because it hits the pain receptors in just the right way.
As Scientific American noted: "People seem to enjoy — and actively seek out—many other sensations ... the sensation of falling provided by roller coasters or skydiving, the feelings of fear and anxiety while watching horror movies, the physical pain experienced upon jumping into icy water, or even the feelings of sadness that come while watching a tearjerker."
So, the next time you bite into a hot chili pepper, remember: its not just healthy, but fun too!
I came to Russia to study in the winter of 2021. My university is located in Moscow, the capital of Russia, which is a city with a long history.
The second I stepped out of the airport, I immediately felt how cold it was outside. When I saw the main building of Moscow State University, I was deeply shocked by its beautiful architecture with its 270-year-long history. Sensing how utterly small I was in front of this majestic building, I felt the crystallization (结晶) of human wisdom resonate within me.
The snow and ice won't melt until April of the following year. Just like the melting snow, I gradually overcame the difficulties of studying abroad and came to adjust to my new environment.
The first challenge was the language barrier After leaning Russian in China, I realized that my skills were nowhere near enough. I was not fluent in Russian, sometimes causing misunderstandings. In Russia, everyone intentionally stands on the right side when taking the escalator, which takes time to get used to.
The artistic atmosphere in Russia is very strong, however. Tickets for concerts and cultural events here are relatively cheap, making it easy to enrich my life on weekends.
In a nutshell, living abroad means overcoming all kinds of difficulties. The experience will always leave a colorful shade in our lives. Just as the old saying in Chinese goes, "it is better to travel ten thousand miles than to read ten thousand books."
A. Take a look at the outside world while you are young!
B. Obviously, the freezing climate does not agree with me.
C. The cultural differences were also hard to deal with at first.
D. I can visit many of the attractions that I used to see in my textbooks.
E. And the buildings surrounding me looked so different from the ones in China.
F. Staring from early November each year, the snow season in Moscow is very long.
G. Thanks to the abundant activities I get to explore what I've learned in practical contexts.
Typhoons and hurricanes are the same weather phenomenon: tropical cyclones (热带气旋). However, they go by different names 1 where they occur.
Typhoons develop in the northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean. They most 2 occur from late June to December. When winds blow into warm seawater, a lot of warm, moist air evaporates and 3 rapidly, while colder air moves in below. This creates.4 causing the winds to move very quickly. The more warm air and moisture there is, the more5 the winds. When the winds move faster than 119 kilometers per hour, a typhoon is formed. If a typhoon 6 241 kilometers per hour, then it becomes a super typhoon.
The 7of a typhoon is called the "eye". This is right in the middle of a typhoon and is 8 . In the "eye", the wind does not move so fast. Around the "eye" is the 9 of clouds. This is where the strongest winds and hardest rains are found. The rain bands are the outer part of a typhoon that 10 with it.
Typhoons do bring water to people, but they also can be very 11 . They 12 houses and cars, and even kill people. For example, tropical storm Megi hit the Philippines in April. More than 220 people died from. 13 and flooding caused by the typhoon.
China is also one of the countries most affected by typhoons. The 14 time for typhoons landing is from July to September.15 , China's coastal residents face 10 typhoon landings each year.
The Wang Family Compound is a rare example of Chinese civilization (hand) down through the ages. Like many of the Shanxi Grand Compounds, it (locate) in Lingshi County, 35 kilometers from the Pingyao Ancient City.
The Wang Family Compound is in fact a collection of compounds were all constructed within the limits of a tall outer wall. During the Ming and Qing (dynasty), it was built on a truly magnificent scale on a series of hills, I (stretch) out over an area of 250,000 square meters. The whole residence (consist) of five castles, five lanes, and five ancestral temples now.
In keeping with the residence's legendary size, the five castles were designed to(symbolic) represent the five lucky animals according to traditional Chinese culture: the Dragon, the Phoenix, the Tortoise, the Qilin, and the Tiger. short, you could say the Wang family were living in the belly of the beast!
The Wang Family Compound is not only incredible. example of residential architecture, but it is also home to a museum of architectural art. (amaze) sculptures of stone, wood and brick can be found throughout the inside of its many courtyards.
I sit on the edge of my bed, faint smiles sliding across my face, as I sort through old photographs. I hold each memory briefly in my hands before dropping them onto the pile in my lap and searching for the next happy moment to remember. Each picture brings up feelings deep within me.
As I relive the memories, I can't help but notice one photo in particular buried deep in the box. The picture at first glance is lovely. The sun was shining with not a cloud to be seen. I was sting with my arm around a happy-looking girl, her arm rested casually on my shoulders. As I focus on the happy girl, the smile that covers my face becomes a frown. It is Amy Soule, my now ex-best friend. A terrible pang (一阵剧痛) of regret flashes through me, and I feel tightness in my throat.
Our decline in friendship began with different interests. She wanted to go to the mall and shop, while I preferred to watch old movies in my spare time. Soon the only time I saw her was when we exchanged a hurried hello in the busy school halls between classes. No more notes were passed behind the teacher's back, and my parent's phone bill became much cheaper. She found a new group of friends, and so did I. Before I had a chance to repair the friendship, she moved away, causing the crack to become an uncrossable rift.
I made excuses for not keeping in touch. It was too far to visit, too long of a drive. I knew that was not the truth, but I was too nervous to pick up the phone and call. Eventually, the rift grew too large to bridge. Amy had left and she had taken a huge chunk of my heart with her.
I stand up and pull myself back into the now. Glancing up at my calendar, I remember that Amy's birthday is around the corner. In fact, we were born in the same room, two days apart. We started so close and ended up so far. This bittersweet memory causes me to smile despite my feelings of regret.
要求:
1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右;
2）请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
Suddenly I have an idea.
Paragraph 2:
I stick the note under the edge of the photo frame and search for Amy's address.
