【推荐1】Bird flu has reached new areas of the world and has become a year-round problem, animal and disease experts warn.

More than 20 experts and farmers on four continents spoke to a news agency about the problem. They suggested that record outbreaks will not stop soon on poultry (家禽) farms. They also warned that farmers must view the disease as a serious risk all year, instead of doing prevention efforts during spring movement seasons for wild birds. The outbreaks of the virus (病毒) have continued through the summer heat and winter cold in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

Egg prices set records after the disease killed tens of millions of chickens last year. These record prices, at a time of worldwide economic problems, are especially damaging to people who use eggs as a main source of protein.

Wild birds are mainly responsible for spreading the virus, experts say. Waterfowl like ducks can carry the disease without dying and pass it to poultry through waste, saliva (唾液) and other ways. Farmers’ best efforts to protect their birds are not enough.

“In the US, Rose Acre Farms, the country’s second-largest egg producer, lost about 1. 5 million chickens at a Guthrie County, Iowa, production farm last year. These losses occurred even though anyone who entered barns was required to shower first to remove any sign of the virus,” Chief Executive Marcus Rust said.

The US, Britain, France and Japan are among the countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless.

“Avian flu is occurring even in a new poultry farm with modern equipment and no windows, so we don’t know what to do to avoid an outbreak,” said Shigeo Inaba, who raises chickens for meat in Ibaraki, near Tokyo.

【推荐1】In order to get rid of goldenrod from the city, the government of Wuhan is encouraging residents to report any findings of the plant, which is classified as a harmful alien species.

Goldenrod is one of the most successful and widespread alien plant species. It is often referred to as “the flower of the devil”, as it spreads extremely fast and causes other plants to die.

Besides Hubei province, the plant has also been found expanding in other provinces such as Jiangxi and Zhejiang. Although local authorities have tried to get rid of the plant, it is proving to be a difficult task. Goldenrod represents just one of the alien species that are aggressive towards the country’s native species. Statistics show that by 2020, nearly 800 kinds of alien species had invaded the country, among which 638 species have invaded the country’s agricultural and forestry ecosystems, causing direct economic losses of about 200 billion yuan ($31.36 billion).

At the United Nations Biodiversity Conference held in Kunming, Yunnan province, the invasion of alien species was the subject of discussions, as it was regarded as one of the two most important factors leading to the loss of biodiversity, the other being human-caused ecological damage.

China passed its Biosecurity Law on April 15, 2021, which provides the legal basis for preventing the invasion of alien species and protecting biodiversity in the country. The relevant departments also strictly carry out port inspections and quarantines so as to keep harmful organisms out of the country, and they strengthen early warning and monitoring systems so as to address the invasion as early as possible.

However, while government departments are making every effort to prevent and control the situation, the participation of the people should not be ignored. It is also necessary, as Wuhan is doing, to encourage people to pay attention to invasive species and actively play a role in keeping them at bay. Preventing any invasion by an alien species and protecting biodiversity should not just be the government departments fighting alone, but also a people’s war.

【推荐2】This year, why not think of Earth Day as being like New Year’s Day?     1     Make a plan to do things differently and do something for our mother Earth. Keep on doing one of these for a year and see how it affects your health and the world.

Send your kids out to play. Sign up for the 1,000 hours challenge, where families accumulate (积累) 1,000 hours of outdoor play in a year.     2    Your children will be happier, healthier, and more connected to nature.

Learn how to cook five easy main dishes well. By promoting your kitchen skills and developing some of your own recipes, you won’t be so much interested in take outs and all the related packaging waste.    3    

    4     Download the Poshmark app onto your phone or visit the ThredUp website before ordering new clothing or shoes online. There are so many companies that there’s a good chance that you’ll find exactly what you need. Visit Facebook Marketplace, local exchanging sites, and more to find what you need in your daily life.

Walk or bike, don’t drive.    5     It will require making time adjustments, but if you view that time as an investment in mental and physical health, it’s not so hard to schedule. If you can sell a car, you might be able to justify purchasing an e-bike, which makes low-carbon travel even more accessible and fun.

【推荐3】To solve a big environmental problem, chemists in the Czech Republic have been thinking small. Really small. Their new minirobot has one purpose: to help clean up tiny bits of plastic polluting waterways across the globe.

Each new robot is no bigger than the tip of a sharpened pencil. They are magnetic (有磁性的) and shaped like stars. When sunlight hits them, they produce chemical reactions that push them through water in a specific direction. When they find a piece of plastic, they stick to it and start to break it down. When the light goes out, they let go and are free to be used again.

“This work is great,” says Douglas Blackiston at Tufts University in Medford, Mass. He’s a biologist who did not work on the project but knows about such devices. He’s been designing robots out of living cells, including some that might help with pollution cleanup. Speaking of the new one, he mentions that, “These robots can eat plastic. They chew it up. Or they can recover it and be collected with a magnet. Scientists love robots with all these capabilities. ”

Chemist Martin Pumera at the Czech University of Chemistry and Technology in Prague led the project. He studies ways to build microrobots. About a decade ago, he says, scientists began developing tiny bots that could move themselves in water. Then, they had to find them a mission and thought “Let’s make them do something useful.” Since then, Pumera has focused on the problem posed by microplastics, which are everywhere—from the bottom of the ocean to air blowing onto ice atop mountains. They’ve turned up in drinking water, both bottled and tap water, and some studies estimate that trillions of pieces of plastic end up in the world’s waters. The plastic has many sources, from drinking straws and shopping bags to laundry and cleaning wipes. Plastic doesn’t easily degrade or fall apart, and that’s always been one of its appeals.

Pumera says his final goal is to make cheap and environmentally friendly robots that can be used anywhere in the world.

【推荐1】Two “stolen” notebooks written by Charles Darwin were returned to Cambridge University, nearly 22 years after they went missing. The notebooks included the scientist’s famous Tree of Life sketch(草图) and were believed to have been taken in November 2000. Both notebooks were returned to the library in their original file boxes, and included a printed message which read, “Librarian — Happy Easter... X”.

Speaking to the BBC, Cambridge University’s librarian Dr Jessica Gardner said she felt “joyous” at their return. Initially, librarians had thought the notebooks had been misplaced by staff. After various checks through the years, head librarian Dr Gardner eventually reported the notebooks as stolen to the police in 2020.

Dr Gardner was also worried that the notebooks might have taken a lifetime or longer to come back. “I thought it might take years. My sense of relief at the notebooks’ safe return is profound and almost impossible to adequately express. I was heartbroken to learn of their loss and my joy at their return is immense.”

“There have been tears,” she added. “And I think there still will be, because we are not over the emotional roller coaster. It means so much to us to have these home.”

According to Dr Gardner, Cambridge University Libraries will be pulling the notebooks on display this summer, as part of the upcoming exhibition Darwin In Conversation, which opens oil July 9.

【推荐2】A donation letter is what you write to a person you expect, who will give away some of his money to support your good cause. Good as the cause may be, it is hard to make a person part with his hard-earned money. It takes some really great writing skills to write such a letter.

The donation letter for charity isn’t exactly a formal letter for business communication. You need to take a casual tone. Make sure that you know the name of the recipient (收信人) to sound more like a friendly gesture. The language too should not be extremely serious and should be slightly informal, which can make your recipient willing to believe you.

Make sure that you include all the details regarding your program, your funds required, and your plan in the letter. The most important thing is to mention how someone stands to benefit because of the recipient’s contribution. Talk about how many lives your charity fund has been able to change and how many more you wish to change further. This may touch the reader and talk him into making a donation towards your cause. Include the amount which you expect the recipient to donate, within your letter.

A typical donation letter is often divided into four paragraphs. The first paragraph will be an introduction to your organization, like what you do, how long you have been running, and your achievements. The second paragraph will give more details regarding your current goals that you’re trying to reach. In the third paragraph you use a more direct method here, asking politely for any help. Keep it short and clear. The final paragraph is your conclusion, where you tell exactly how the help received would be put into good use. Add a “thank you” for any and all help received.

【推荐3】In the vast Atlantic Ocean, the hogfish is showing a talent that seems straight out of a science fiction novel. This species has the extraordinary ability to observe its surroundings through its skin, without the use of its eyes. The process behind this phenomenon is the subject of in-depth study, with researchers seeking to unlock the potential technologies this vision mode might inspire.

At the heart of the hogfish’s skin vision are special cells’named chromatophores, which are cells capable of changing color. However, the standout role is played by another set of cells, their iridophores. These cells are sensitive to light and send the signals to chromatophores, managing a complex interaction that enhances a visual understanding of their environment.

Exploring the complexities of this vision mode is not without challenges. Scientists are on the verge of fully understanding the complex relationship of these cells. The complicated manner in which these cells communicate and cooperate to create a unique vision system presents a fascinating yet difficult field of study. As Justine Allen, a researcher deeply involved in this study, admits, “We are far from truly understanding it.”

Despite the challenges, the scientific community is buoyant about the potential breakthroughs that might occur from this line of research. Revealing the secrets of hogfish’s skin vision can potentially lead to revolutionary developments in various fields. The horizon seems to be broad with possibilities like the creation of smart clothes that adapt to changing light conditions, or highly advanced cameras that copy the hogfish’s unique visual capabilities. Furthermore, the applications could extend to the car industry with smart cars adapting to changing environmental conditions, or even in the medical field with devices capable of non-invasive (非侵入的) sensing techniques.

As researchers explore deeper into this mystery, the potential seem limitless. Understanding the hogfish’s unique vision can open doors to technologies that are yet to be realized, presenting a future where science fiction might just integrate with reality.