Bill Gates 【小题1】 born on October 28th, 1955 in Washington. He was very smart when he was a boy. When he was 13 【小题2】 old, Bill started to play with computers. At that time, computers were very large machines. Once he was 【小题3】 in a very old computer. He and some of his friends 【小题4】 lots of time doing unusual things with it. In the end, they made 【小题5】 computer program, and Bill sold it for $4, 200 when he was only 17. In 1973, Bill went to Harvard University. In his third year, he left Harvard to start a company 【小题6】 Microsoft. Bill started this company in 1975 with 【小题7】 friend Paul Allan. They thought that the computer would be in every office and every 【小题8】 soon. They were right. Now we can see computers 【小题9】. And computers have 【小题10】 a very important part of our life.

Zhou Shen is a singer with a magical voice. He is good 【小题1】 singing different kinds of songs. However, he is best known for bringing 【小题2】 (tradition) Chinese ideas into pop music. In Silver Linings, Zhou sings in the Peking Opera style. In Painting Silk, people can hear sounds from the Chinese instrument xiao. He 【小题3】 (help) more people fall in love with guofeng music.

Some popular songs have buzzwords (流行语). But you can hear Chinese ancient poems (古诗) in Zhou’s songs. “When our lives are full of buzzwords, it is surprising for people 【小题4】 (hear) an ancient poem in the songs. I am 【小题5】 (real) amazed at the poems made by ancient people. Their 【小题6】 (work) were simple in words but rich in meaning.”

Zhou said music is a good way to share Chinese culture 【小题7】 tell China’s stories. “When I was studying in another country, my teachers listened to my songs for the first time. They 【小题8】 (like) the parts with Chinese opera style very much. The different language didn’t stop 【小题9】 (they) from enjoying the music,” Zhou said.

“I think guofeng music is 【小题10】 bridge between the modern and the classic. We always say art has no boundaries. It is the same with music,” Zhou said.

Li Bai was a great poet in the Tang. Dynasty. He wrote 【小题1】 (thousand) of popular poems.

When he was a small boy, he often skipped class (逃课). One day, Li Bai skipped school again. He sighed, “What a fine day! It is 【小题2】 (real) a waste of time staying indoors and reading books.” He then saw a lady 【小题3】 gray hair. She was sitting by the river and was grinding (磨) an iron bar on a big stone.

Driven by curiosity, Li Bai went over to her and asked, “Madam, what are you doing?” The old lady looked up and smiled at Li Bai, “I want 【小题4】 (make) a needle (针),” she said.

“Make a needle?” Li Bai asked. “Do you mean a needle to sew clothes?”

“Of course,” 【小题5】 old lady answered.

“【小题6】 the iron bar is so thick. How can you grind it into a thin needle?” Li Bai asked with a surprised look on his face.

“If dripping water wears through a stone, why can’t an iron bar be ground into a needle? As long as I keep 【小题7】 (work), I can make a needle in the end.” The old lady 【小题8】 (reply).

Li Bai was ashamed (羞愧) of 【小题9】 (he). From then on, he studied hard and became one of 【小题10】 (great) poets of China.