【推荐1】Jose Alberto Gutierrez’s life changed 20 years ago when he found a copy of “Anna Karenina” in the garbage. It happened while he was driving his garbage truck through wealthier neighborhoods at night and seeing deserted books. This sparked his mission to rescue books, leading him to collect thousands and establish a community library called “The Strength of Words” at home, which benefits both children and adults in his community.

Colombia’s capital city has 13 million residents and 19-public libraries. However, these libraries tend to be far away from where rural and poorer communities live. The option of buying new books is non-existent for families struggling to make ends meet. Having access to a library of books and being taken away to another world while immersed in a book is a luxury for the kids who visit Gutierrez’s library.

Gutierrez grew up poor, and his family couldn’t afford to educate him beyond primary school. However, his mother was a keen reader and read stories to him every night. Her love for books left a deep impression on Gutierrez, who never let a lack of formal education stop him from reading classics by the likes of Victor Hugo, Mario Vargas Llosa and so on.

Today, his community library, “The Strength of Words”, occupies most of his home and is piled from floor to ceiling with fiction and non-fiction titles. Everything from school textbooks to story books can be found in his collection of more than 20,000 books! The library opens every weekend. It is not just school-going children who are enjoying the benefits of The Strength of Words library. Adults are also welcome to expand their horizons and develop new skills to build a better life for themselves.

Despite having done so much for his community, Gutierrez is not yet content to call it a day. He continues to search for reading materials and shares his concept internationally.

【推荐3】This is a talk by a London taxi driver.

“I’ve been a taxi driver for nearly ten years. Most London taxi drivers have their own taxis.” “It’s a nice job most of time. you meet a lot of people. I always work at night, because there is too much traffic during the day. I live twenty miles outside London and I go to work at 5:30 in the afternoon.”

“I usually go home between 2 and 3 in the morning.”

“Some very strange things happened late at night. The other day I was taking a woman home from a party. She had her little dog with her. When we got to her house, she found that she had lost her key. So I waited in the car with the dog while she climbed in through the windows.” “I waited and waited. After half an hour of ringing the bell I decided to find out what was going on. I tied the dog to a tree and started to climb in through the window. The next thing I knew was that the police came.” They thought I was a thief.

“Luckily, the woman came downstairs. She must have gone to sleep and forgotten about me and the dog!”

【推荐2】“They tell me that you’d like to make a statue of me. Is that correct, Miss Vinnie Ream?” “Yes, sir,” she replied.“I plan to make it in an admirable manner.”

President Lincoln smiled “Painters and sculptors have all tried to make the best of this ordinary face, but I’m afraid there’s not much hope.What did you have in mind? A bust (半身像)?”

Before Vinnie could say yes, the President hurried on, a shade of apology in his voice. “Of course, I shouldn’t have asked. A full-length pose would be much too big a project for a young woman your size.”

Vinnie’s face turned red. She realized she looked like a child, with her tiny figure. “Small does not mean weak, sir,” she defended herself. “I was born in the country of Wisconsin I’ve driven teams of horses and carried water. Making a full-length clay (粘土) figure would not exhaust my strength, and that is what l intend to do!”

The President’s eyes brightened at her show of spirit. “Sorry, madam. I have underestimated (低估) you as I didn’t know your background. But how could I possibly take the time to pose for a sculpture now? I hardly have a minute to myself.

Vinnie glanced around and noted the size of his office.“I work quickly.” Her voice was soft but confident as she pointed to the corner near the windows. “If I were to bring my clay here and work for three hours every afternoon, I could complete most of the project while you are at your desk.”

The President seemed to consider her idea seriously. He got up and shook Vinnie’s hand warmly, “I’ve heard that you are a talented young woman, and I have found you charming and intelligent as well. You will hear from me soon.”

The very next day, Vinnie received an invitation from the President.

【推荐3】When I was nine years old, I loved to go fishing with my dad. But the only thing that wasn’t very fun about it was that he could catch many fish while I couldn’t catch anything. I usually got pretty upset and kept asking him why. He always answered, ”Son, if you want to catch a fish, you have to think like a fish.” I remember being even more upset then because, “I’m not a fish!” I didn’t know how to think like a fish. Besides, I reasoned, how could what I think influence what a fish does?

As I got a little older I began to understand what my dad really meant. So, I read some books on fish. And I even joined the local fishing club and started attending the monthly meetings. I learned that a fish is a cold-blooded animal and therefore is very sensitive to water temperature. That is why fish prefer shallow water to deep water because the former is warmer. Besides, water is usually warmer in direct sunlight than in the shade. Yet, fish don’t have any eyelids(眼皮) and the sun hurts their eyes…The more I understood fish, the more I became effective at finding and catching them.

When I grew up and entered the business world, I remember hearing my first boss say, “We all need to think like salespeople.” But it didn’t completely make sense. My dad never once said, “If you want to catch a fish you need to think like a fisherman.” What he said was, “You need to think like a fish.” Years later, with great efforts to promote long-term services to people much older and richer than me, I gradually learned what we all need is to think more like customers. It is not an easy job. I will show you how in the following chapters.

【推荐2】On the first day of my new high school, I almost had a nervous breakdown.Everything about the school seemed so difficult. When I got home, my parents said, “You’re nervous and that’s okay. Everyone is afraid of high school.” I denied (否认) it. I wanted to be strong, so I refused to let anyone know about my fear, even my closest friends.

On the first day I was late for every class and was constantly lost. The school seemed like a puzzle that I couldn’t figure out. Was this how the whole year was going to be? I didn’t think I could rise to this challenge, especially carrying a huge backpack that I could hardly lift. It was so big that I could knock someone out with it! The schoolmates seemed to regard me as a fool, and they were probably right.

Despite my fears, after the first week I finally had my schedule figured out. With the exception of falling up and down the stairs a couple of times and getting laughed at, high school was turning out to be not so bad. It was actually much better than middle school and much more challenging.

Since then, I’ve been elected vice monitor of my class, which wasn’t much of a victory since only three people ran for the four positions.

It is normal to be scared about a new school. Take a deep breath and relax. High school is something that any student can overcome. Make sure you participate in some out-of-class activities because you’ll find it easier to make friends. Try to do your best,even if it isn’t straight A’s.

Most important of all, be who you are, whether you’re a “fool”, an athlete, or a lower grader. Don’t try to pretend to be someone you’re not. Now you know the true secrets of high school.

【推荐3】North Americans value independence, and Europeans value togetherness. I never fully understood that stereotype until two months ago, when I left Canada for a 4-month period in a lab in France. On my first day, Pierre, a Ph. D. student, tapped me on my shoulder and asked: “Coffee?” I nodded and followed him to the common room, where other grad students were filling in. I sat there, cautiously sipping the bitter liquid and trying hard not to reveal my uncultured tastes, while lab chatter filled the air.

Coffee breaks are a ceremonial part of lab culture here. The chatter sometimes turns to serious scientific topics. But mostly, the meet-ups offer a chance to wind down, to share stories about life inside and outside the lab and to sympathize with people who understand what you’re going through.

The lighthearted atmosphere and sense of community is a welcome contrast to my life in Canada, where I spent most of my workdays in isolation. I went into the lab each morning with set goals for my day. At lunch, I’d keep my eyes glued to my computer while I fed forkfuls of salad into my mouth, trying to power through my to-do list. For 9 months, I struggled to figure out why I couldn’t exactly copy the results of another study. I didn’t want to trouble my advisor too much. I was also hesitant to ask my labmates for help.

How much we were missing! Researchers need community because good ideas don’t just come from reading literature and thinking deep thoughts. It’s helpful to bounce ideas off others, and, to have a venue to share the day-to-day ups and downs of life.

Would coffee breaks have solved all my problems? Probably not. But I think sharing ideas with my peers would have helped solve my research dilemma. My time in France has taught me that it’s important to create space for organic conversations about lab life. A scientist’s life can feel isolating, but it’s not necessarily so when you’re connected to a supportive community.

【推荐1】National Geographic Exhibit "Titanic: The Untold Story"

The National Geographic Museum is always an interesting and educational place to visit. The admission isn't free but is definitely worthwhile for unique exhibits like this. We'll be taking a self-guided tour hut there may also he museum staff on hand.

About the exhibition

On this exhibition, you will be surprised to find that the sunken Titanic was discovered by Robert Ballard, who was then carrying out a top secret Cold War mission(任务). In 1985,Ballard’s mission was to dive to depths of 9,800 feet using a camera system called Argo to find and document the exploded remains of the submarine (潜艇) Scorpion. The objective of the mission was to gain evidence to determine what led to her loss. After concluding his successful investigations,Ballard used the final 12 days of his expedition to discover the remains of Titanic.

The exhibition — originally exhibited at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum — shows the history of the discovery from an entirely new angle. Not only are visitors exposed to the historical events that led to the ship’s finding, but they can hear the fascinating stories of some of the passengers on board the ship. In addition to items borrowed from families of the survivors that have not been reunited since the night the ship sank in 1912, the exhibition contains those from the rich collections of the National Archives and the 20th Century Fox Archives. There are also movie sets and clothes worn by actors from the 1997 movie Titanic.

Price

Regular:$15

Seniors/Students/Military : $ 12

Children 5—12 ( free under 5 ) : $ 10

【推荐2】One of China's biggest smartphone makers has never sold a phone in the country. Yet thousands of miles away, it dominates markets across Africa. Unknown in the West, Transsion has left global players like Samsung and Apple trailing in its wake in a continent that's home to more than a billion people.

In cities like Lagos, Nairobi and Addis Ababa, busy streets are filled with the bright blue shops of Transsion's brand. In China, the company doesn't have a single store, and its headquarter in the southern city of Shenzhen goes largely unnoticed among the names of more famous Chinese tech firms.

The company took a different path to success from other top Chinese smartphone makers such as Huawei and Xiaomi, which started out in China before eventually expanding overseas. Transsion built its business in Africa. And it has no plans to come home.

In Edna Mall in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Mesert Baru poses for her Tecno Camon i. "This phone is seriously nice for selfies," says the 35-year-old shop assistant, admiring the picture she just took.

Mesert's satisfaction is no accident. The vice president of Transsion explained, "Our cameras adjust more light for darker skin, so the photograph is more beautiful, he says. "That's one of the reasons why we've become successful."

Transsion's founder George Zhu had spent nearly a decade traveling to Africa as a head of sales for another mobile phone company when he realized that selling Africans handsets, which were made for developed countries, was the wrong approach.

In 2006, Zhu launched Tecno in Nigeria, which has the most population in Africa . From the start, the company's motto was “think global, act local”, which meant making phones that met Africans, special needs.

Transsion opened research and development centers in China, Nigeria and Kenya to work out how to better appeal to African users. Local languages such as Amharic, Hausa and Swahili were added to keyboards and phones were given a longer battery life.

In Nigeria, South Africa and Ethiopia, for example, the government frequently shuts off electricity to conserve power, leaving people unable to charge their phones for hours. In less developed markets, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chowdhury says, consumers might have to walk 30 kilometers to charge their phones at the local market and have to pay to do so. "For those consumers, longer battery life is a blessing," he adds.

【推荐3】A research paper recently reported that the Chinese paddlefish (中华鲟) — one of the world’s largest freshwater fish — has been declared extinct.

Scientists say the Chinese paddlefish and its close relatives have been around for at least 200 million years. The species, reaching up to seven meters in length, survived unimaginable changes, such as the mass extinction that killed the dinosaurs. But there’s one phenomenon this ancient species, sometimes called the “panda of the Yangtze”, could not survive humans.

Their huge size and plentiful flesh made them a popular target for fishermen and a welcome addition to inner tables in China. In the 1970s, 25 tons of paddlefish were harvested per year on average.

But the construction of the Gezhouba Dam on the Yangtze forever changed the Yangtze River habitat of paddlefish, because it was constructed without a fish ladder or sideway and cut off the paddlefish from their only breeding (繁殖) grounds upstream. Populations of the fish continued to decrease after the completion of the dam in 1981, but nobody had yet figured out how terrible the situation was. As is often the case, there can be a significant delay between major disturbances and their consequence. The researchers say the fish had become functionally extinct by 1993, meaning there were not enough fish to meaningfully reproduce.

Pan Wenjing is an ocean expert with Greenpeace East Asia. She told The Associated Press the extinction of the Chinese paddlefish was “a huge loss” for nature. She said the development confirms that the Yangtze River is experiencing major environmental damage.

“The ecosystem of the Yangtze River is close to its breaking point due to human activity in past decades.” Pan said. “The paddlefish’s extinction should serve as a wake-up call to protect other freshwater species. Moving forward, we need to balance the needs of humans with the needs of life in rivers and seas. Humans should not live alone on this planet.”