A
If you decide to see the northern lights, consider heading to Canada, where they fill the sky 300 days a year in certain regions.
Yukon
With its sweeping landscapes and dramatic mountain views, Yukon is an outdoor lover's dreamland. Take advantage of the brief window between the end of summer and first snowfall in autumn to combine outdoor activities like boating along the storied Yukon River with northern light watching.
Churchill
Home to wolves, foxes, whales, moose and snowy owls, Churchill is well known for its arctic wildlife. It also sees an average of 300 nights of northern light activity every year. With over a week in the wild, there's a good chance you'll spot the lights.
Nunavik
Nunavik is Quebec's northernmost region and one of four areas in Canada. It is home to the country's Inuit people. By day, travelers canoe or snowmobile to Vieux Fort-Chimo, a 19th-century fur trading post; hear elders tell stories of a nomadic (游牧的) way of life; and listen to traditional throat singing, or katadjak — all led by an Inuit guide. Under inky skies, the guide offers Inuit insights into the meaning of the light.
Jasper
Located in the Rocky Mountains, Jasper is home to the world's second-largest dark sky preserve, making it one of the best — and most convenient — places to catch northern lights throughout the year.
An especially great time to visit is during the annual Jasper Dark Sky Festival in October when experienced photographers from around the world host workshops to share their best tips and astronomers explain how to interpret space weather data to determine optimal viewing time.
B
My first job at KCRW was Ruth Seymour's assistant. Soon after, I became Assistant General Manager and worked closely with her for 16 years. Therefore, I have had the opportunity to observe her and the enormous impact she had on KCRW and the other radio stations.
Ruth did nothing conventionally and nothing she created was a reaction to anything. She created KCRW not to gain the most listeners or to win any awards but to be an intellectual force for arts, culture and smart ideas. She wanted to start the conversation, not just contribute to it.
Ruth had the highest artistic standards, which is why KCRW aired radio dramas like the 10-hour Babbitt and 30-hour Ulysses. She created Jewish Short Stories From Eastern Europe and Beyond in two audio collections that featured famous actors reading the work of Jewish authors like Sholem Aleichem, Philip Roth and Isaac Bashevis Singer. KCRW sold more of those collections than anything else in our history.
Ruth went to a newsstand every day and read articles from New York Times word for word, on the air at noon because ordinary people couldn't easily get that paper then. She discovered people who matched her intellect at dinners or parties and gave them on-air shows on journalism, literature, film, art, theater, travel, dance or music.
She said it best, "I wanted to do the program as an act of love and respect."
When she came to KCRW in 1977, she found herself building the station in a junior high classroom right off the playground. Now KCRW could be heard across Los Angeles. Most powerfully, the radio format(总体安排) she created continues to be used by radio stations—news of the day, debates of ideas, art, artists, food, literature and film.
Outspoken and fearless women leaders were rare in the 1960s and 1970s—in fact, women couldn't get credit cards apart from their husbands until 1974—which is why her achievements are so singular.
C
Imagine a school where students are taught by the best teachers in every subject, regardless of locations. Imagine a school where children can go on safe field trips to the Amazon rainforest or Everest base camp. Well, such schools are already being built: in virtual reality(VR).
Last month, Optima Academy Online (OAO) was launched in Florida and started to deliver courses for elementary, middle and high schools and 170 full-time students from all over the state signed up. They used VR headsets for about three hours a day for formal lessons and then do course work independently with digital check-ins.
It is worth watching how such educational experiments develop. Used properly, the VR technology can help students to access learning resources and be connected with fellow students and teachers all over the world. But if employed poorly, it will have the opposite effect and turn a digital inequality into an educational one.
There is growing evidence to suggest that it is happening. In Mexico, according to a survey, only 24% of 15-year-old students in poor schools have access to home computers for schoolwork compared with 87% in rich ones. As reported in another study, some students in northern England have been forced to travel around on the Greater Manchester train network or camp out around McDonald's to access free WiFi because they cannot do their schoolwork at home.
"VR technologies will be widely used in education. The only questions are: for what purpose and at what speed?" says Beeban Kidron, a member of the UK's Digital Futures Commission. "The trouble is that they are too often seen as a shiny new toy that will solve all problems and save money rather than being viewed as a means to enrich learning."
The inescapable truth is that there is nothing that can replace teachers educating students in safe schools—ideally, with access to well-designed technological platforms. Leaving children in their bedrooms with just VR headsets and no physical social interaction with other kids will fill-many of them—and their parents—with horror.
D
If you spend more than a couple of days in the country of Georgia, you are very likely to be invited to a Georgian feast even by complete strangers. The multi-hour, multi-course feast is one of the most important events in Georgian culture.
A popular Georgian story shows the importance of the feast in Georgian culture. When God created the world, He held a meeting to give the different regions of the world to different cultures. But the Georgians arrived late at the meeting. After they apologized and explained that they'd been holding a feast with a stranger the night before and slept later than they'd meant to, God was so touched and impressed by their honesty that He gave the Georgians the best land of all: the part of earth He was saving for himself.
In order to survive the feasts without offending (冒犯) the hosts, it's important for you to know a few things about it in advance.
A Georgian feast will likely have a seemingly unlimited number of dishes. So avoid fully cleaning your plate unless you want more servings. Don't fill up on khachapuri-Georgian cheese bread. There are numerous regional varieties of cheese bread, but khachapuri is the most delicious of all. The cheese bread is usually a heavy lunch on its own, but at feasts it's often considered a side dish or an appetent. Don't make the mistake of having more than a few bites—only to discover that the main meal is still coming.
When you drink, follow the lead of the toastmaster, who presents a scries of toasts throughout the evening. Traditionally, drinkers would dry their glass (or, if keeping with tradition, drain their deer's horn) with every toast. This isn't always done now. Just remember the important rule: say "cheers" after every toast.
Consider bringing a small gift, such as sweets or flowers, as a gesture of thanks. Avoid bringing more fond, however, which might imply that you don't think there will be enough on offer.
For many of us, it is not easy to feel inspired by the artworks that we see at museums. Here are some tips on how to create that meaningful connection.
Keep an open mind
Once you are in an art museum, try not to have any ideas about what you're about to see. . You can love it. You can hate it. Just tell yourself that it's OK.
Draw personal connections to the art
When you see an artwork, just let your mind wander and follow your thought wherever it leads you. . As a result, a deep connection will happen.
You can increase the chances of finding an art piece you connect with by going to a museum that interests you. If you're interested in climate change, for example, you may pick a museum that's showing artworks inspired by Earth conservation.
Really "look at" the art
After you have found an artwork you like, take time to observe it closely. You can take a finger to the air and follow the outline of the figure or the movement of the brushstrokes. .
Keep your museum visit short and focused
Art museums can be huge. So be realistic about how long you can spend at the museum. . After that, it's hard to stay focused and understand what you've seen.
A. Reflect and appreciate
B. You don't need more than an hour or two
C. Pick a museum that is related to your interests
D. Instead, allow yourself to feel how the art makes you feel
E. The free associations will help create emotional reactions in you
F. Such accompanying activities can help you more deeply appreciate the art
G. Study the subject of the art, which can affect on how you feel about the work
Forest & Bird, a conservation organization in New Zealand, held a contest for Bird of the Century and invited people in the country and abroad to 1 their favorite threatened species, Comedian and talk show host John Oliver 2 Forest & Bird if he could campaign for the püteketeke, a native water bird with eye-catching black-brown 3 around its neck. The organization 4 .
To get 5 for the species, Oliver started a worldwide campaign, which focused on its 6 feather surrounding its neck, romantic mating ceremony and heart-warming parenting style.
"The püteketeke are fantastic couples and 7 parents who always carry their babies on their backs!" read one of the ads.
His effort 8 The püteketeke began at the bottom of the 9 . But it 10 the contest with 290,374 votes after Oliver started the campaign on its behalf. By comparison, the much more 11 bird kiwi just got 12,904 votes.
According to Forest & Bird, there are fewer than 3,000 of the bird across New Zealand a few decades ago. But the 12 has been increasing thanks in part to conservation efforts.
Usually called Bird of the Year, the annual 13 is held to raise awareness about the plight (困境) of the nation's native 14 , 80% of which are on the threatened species list. This year, the contest was named Bird of the Century to celebrate the group's 15 birthday.
Xu Xiake was born in 1587. （he）parents were rich landowners. Yet he gave up a （comfort）life, and decided to explore the mountains and rivers on foot.
China has more famous explorers. There was: Zhang Qian, who traveled into Central Asia during the second century BC, opening a trade road that became is known as the Silk Road. Or Zheng He, the sailor who in the 15th century sailed as far away as Africa. Yet these explorations （support）by governments. Xu was totally different.
"On the surface, Xu's travels can neither be classified as great affairs of state great adventures that changed the course of history, " writes cultural historian Cheng Pei-kai. "Xu travelled to satisfy his own （curious）. "
Scholar Julian Ward agrees, describing the lonely Chinese wanderer like the Middle Kingdom's version of John Muir: "Deep in love with nature and eager to find freedom worldly concerns, Xu was a man addicted to （see）and describing the landscape. "
"The few coins （slip）from a hole in my pocket while I was climbing a mountain in Yunnan. When I finally managed to the town, I sold all my clothes, bought myself a bottle of wine and a good dinner （celebrate）my survival, " the dreamy explorer wrote in his diaries, which mix details of geology, geography and botany with such personal travel experiences.
注意： 1. 写作词数应为80个左右; 2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Dear Mike,
Best wishes!
Yours,
Li Hua
One morning, I saw a particularly good deal in a supermarket's advertisement: $5 for ten pounds of frozen chicken. If I drove over to the store for just one item, the gas cost would cut into the saving. So I carried an old black bag on my back and went to the store by bike. As I rode the two miles to the store, the temperature seemed to be going up rapidly.
When I entered the store, I headed straight to the chicken counter. I picked a package weighing slightly over ten pounds, and then checked out. After getting outside, I put it into my backpack and thought to myself, "It's only two miles. If I ride fast enough, I will be home in no time. "
I got on my bike and rode as fast as I could. I felt the hot air hit my face and it was really hot. A few minutes later, except for my back which was close to the cold chicken, the rest of me was beginning to sweat. As I approached a crossroad, the traffic light turned yellow. So I stopped. Suddenly, I heard a woman screaming.
"Maybe there is an accident, " I thought and looked around me.
After the light turned green, the crowds around me still didn't move. And what I saw was a small crowd of people coming towards me! I heard someone yelling, "I'm a nurse. How can I help you?"
I looked around again and saw no accident. Moving faster, this crowd of folks started talking loudly in my direction.
"Are you all right?" said the nurse. "I am here to help!"
"Who are you talking to?" I asked, feeling completely confused.
"Can I help you?" the nurse insisted.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw traffic piling up around me and I was really annoyed!
"No!" I told the nurse. "I'm fine!"
"But you are bleeding all over! Why don't you get off your bike and let me check?" said the nurse.
注意： 1. 续写词数应为150个左右; 2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I got off my bike, unwillingly.
I realized my back and my legs might also have "blood" all over them.
