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It's business as (1) __________, as it has been for more than 60 years. Every day, Hu Shiu-ying carefully examines each specimen placed underneath the fragile glass slide of her microscope. Her strong enthusiasm for unlocking the mysteries of nature has never (2) __________.
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Incredibly, the 98-year-old botanist and Chinese medicine professors continues to (3) __________ seven days a week in her laboratory at the Chinese University of Hong Kong studying and analyzing different species of plants.
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She arrives at her laboratory at 7:30a.m. each morning to begin her research. She takes a short coffee (4) __________ at 10a.m. Due to her age, it is now also a (5) __________ for the elderly professor to take a nap after lunch, before she continues her afternoon session in the lab. The schedule varies slightly on Sunday, when she (6) __________ a church service, before returning to work.
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The moment I step into her office, Professor Hu takes me to her laboratory to proudly show
(7) __________ collection of plant specimens. Speaking loud and clear, she selects some of her
(8) __________ to show me.
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Professor Hu is the (9) __________ Chinese women to have studied for a doctorate at Harvard University, which she obtained in 1949. She is an authority in taxonomy - a subdiscipline of identifying, naming, and classifying (10) __________ - and is (11) __________ by her colleagues as a "walking (12) __________ " of botany.
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(13) __________ with her enthusiasm for scientific research, Professor Hu's sharp
(14) __________ and meticulous approach also impress.
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Next to her (15) __________ is her office. Inside there are dozens of metal cabinets which contain piles of neat, systematically organized paper folders together with dozens of strategically positioned (16) __________ to repel insects. Each folder carries a small piece of plant (17) __________ now dark and dried out - along with a label to record its botanical name, place of origin and description.
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"I have kept (18) __________ sets for each specimen, one for the Chinese University, one for Harvard University and one for (19) __________, because the year I came here, Hong Kong belonged to England, and one for Washington because I am an (20) __________ citizen." |
