1. The DIY Astronaut
If you haven’t been able to achieve your goal for a long time, it is not the reason to give 1. ________ . An archeology professor Cameron Smith is a good example for all of us. Mr. Smith fell in love 2. ________ space when he was only 10 years old after visiting Houston Space Center. His dream was to go to space, so he started writing letters to NASA cosmonauts asking for advice. After several unsatisfying answers he took 3. ________ into his own hands. What he needed first was a spacesuit which he managed to build having spent almost eight years. There were two key factors – simplicity and reliability. In September 2018 when the suit was finally ready, he wanted to test it at a height of 63.000 feet, where no one can 4. ________ without special equipment. 5. ________ numerous failures, he finally managed to create a suit which passed all the necessary tests. One of them was reaching 63.000 feet in a hot air balloon. 6. ________ he only reached the height of 5.000 feet, it was a big success. Coming back home safe and 7. ________ was even a bigger success.
2. Twitter Logo
Twitter is used every day by millions of people all 1. ________ the world. It is one of the most famous and long-running social media platforms on the Internet. Twitter's logo, a blue bird, is 2. ________ to anyone who has ever seen a Tweet. 3. ________, majority of people are not 4. ________ of fact that the little blue bird has a name – Larry. It was named 5. ________ the basketball player whose 6. ________ was Larry Bird. Twitter’s history has always been connected 7. ________ sport. For instance, working with the international Olympic committee, Twitter offered live updates to all competitions 8. ________ the Olympic Games.
3. Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace was bought in 1761 by King George III who turned it 1. ________ a residence of the British royalty. The Palace 2. ________ many secrets, and there is still no 3. ________ that these secrets really exist. Buckingham Palace is said to have a secret underground tunnel which 4. ________ to the rumors leads directly to a cocktail bar. 5. ________ rumor says there is also an indoor pool, a post office and a private ATM in the basement. The Palace is also shrouded in legends and numerous stories. One of them is about Edward Jones who managed to break 6. ________ the royal residence four times, steal Queen’s underwear and sit on the throne. Of course, he was caught by the guards but only three times 7. ________ four.
4. From Alaska to Russia
The USA and Russia are 1. ________ by the Bering Strait. The narrowest distance 2. ________ the countries is approximately 90 kilometers. In the middle of the Bering Strait there are two small islands: one of them 3. ________ to Russia, while 4. ________ is a part of the United States. 5. ________ the fact that walking 6. ________ this body of water on ice 7. ________ a winter season is possible, it is illegal. In 2006 two adventurers from the USA 8. ________ up their minds to cross the Bering Strait. They set 9. ________ on April 6 and reached Russia in 15 days. Unfortunately, they we detained and deported for violating the immigration laws.
5. Sleeping Bus Tours
Exhausted and sleep-deprived citizens of Hong Kong can now get a 5-hour sleeping bus tour. The first tour was sold 1. ________ within a few hours. Many passengers arrived prepared with their own blankets and travel pillows. The researchers from the University of Hong Kong say that people in Hong Kong don’t have enough time to sleep or they just can’t 2. ________ asleep at night. Many people are easily lulled to sleep when commuting on 3. ________ transport. So, the development manager of the Hong Kong transportation company came 4. ________ the idea of sleeping tours. Normally, tickets cost 5. ________ on whether a person chooses seats on the upper or lower deck. A goodie bag with an eye-mask and ear plugs is 6. ________ in the price.
6. Meghan Markle and the Royal family
After American actress Meghan Markle had become the Duchess of Sussex, it was really hard for her to get 1. ________ well with the British royal family. 2. ________, the Queen had always been really kind to her. Meghan said that the Queen reminded her 3. ________ her own grandmother. At one of the first meetings Elisabeth II asked Megan to join 4. ________ her for breakfast on the train and their chatting was easy. Unfortunately, not everyone in the royal family was 5. ________ friendly as the Queen. Prince Harry's wife was repeatedly 6. ________ of bullying staff in the royal palace. As a result, Harry and Meghan 7. ________ decision to leave England. They settled 8. ________ in California with their son a few month ago but they still 9. ________ relations with the Queen.
7. Minnie and Mickey’s love story
The actors who gave the beloved Disney 1. ________, Minnie Mouse and Mickey Mouse, their voices were married in real life. They first met at work in a recording studio in 1988, later fell in love with each other and started going 2. ________ secretly. They both were in bad marriages at that time, so it’s not surprising they 3. ________ up with their spouses to be together. Their marriage took 4. ________ in 1991 in Hawaii. They didn't want to 5. ________ anyone about it, as the newly-married couple was reluctant to 6. ________ public attention. They kept it all secret until Wayne Allwine, voice of Mickey Mouse, passed 7. ________ at the age of 62.
8. An unlucky hacker
There is always a risk for hackers to be caught and arrested for 1. ________ a crime, but many people still want to try their fate. Kevin Poulsen was 2. ________ of hacking into phone lines to win a car. After a disc jockey on the radio had announced that caller number 102 would win a 3. ________ new Porsche, Kevin took control of the phone network and blocked incoming calls. 4. ________ Kevin technically won the car, the police were suspicious and found him. Long story short, the young man served about 5 years in prison and after his 5. ________ became a journalist. After a 6. ________ Kevin 7. ________ a contract with security services, and currently he works as a top consultant on cyber-crime.
9. The mystery of Steve Jobs' Mercedes Benz
According 1. ________ various stories Steve Jobs wasn’t very careful about his money. He was a person who was prepared to 2. ________ a lot for his favorite brands. For example, he was 3. ________ of expensive cars and was always driving a silver Mercedes-Benz. What was the most interesting thing about this car was the fact that it never had a license plate. It is a violation of the law that requires automobiles to have front and rear license plates. Many people were 4. ________ in how he managed to avoid 5. ________ punished for this. The truth is he found 6. ________ a loophole in the California law which allows people to drive a 7. ________ new car for six months without plates. Jobs made an arrangement with the company and exchanged one silver Mercedes for 8. ________ identical one every six months.