【推荐1】Apple’s well publicized iPhone X finally went on sale in pre-orders last week. With a starting price of $ 999, the iPhone X has the highest price of any iPhone ever offered. Yet Apple says its latest smartphone has so far been “off the charts.”

One of the most-talked about features of the iPhone X is the new Face ID recognition system, which replaces the Touch ID on other Apple devices that used a fingerprint to unlock the phone. It works by projecting more than 30, 000 dots on the face of users to create a kind of map- An infrared (红外线的) camera then reads these marks to create an image that can be confirmed as having the same appearance. Apple says the system is also designed to continually learn. Each time the face is used to unlock the phone, it is supposed to note any changes, such as facial hair or the person getting older. The system can then remember the changes to keep recognizing the person over time.

A face can unlock iPhone X, but can it be fooled?

One fairly common failure was that the Face ID sometimes did not unlock the iPhone X if the user wore a pair of sunglasses. Not surprisingly, wearing any kind of disguise (化妆) ---even one covering just part of the face—caused Face ID to fail. It was found to work correctly when the user was wearing headphones or a hat.

Several attempts were made to trick Face ID into unlocking the phone with a photo of a person instead of a real face. The iPhone X was able to pass these tests by knowing the difference between a photo and a face. Wall Street Journal reporter Joanna Stern tried something a little different. She went to a mask maker and asked for a recreation of her face to see if the iPhone X would be fooled. It was not.

Apple says its research shows there is only a one in a million chance of another person being able to unlock someone else’s iPhone X with Face ID. The company has promised the system will become “the new gold standard” for all facial recognition.

【推荐2】As a senior school graduate, with COVID-19 cases rising and lockdown hitting, I’ve had plenty of concerns. Losing my graduation ceremony was one of them. But being unable to lend a hand to my community at such a terrible time was the greatest concern. Except for wearing my mask, following the health officials’ guidelines, and assisting seniors to get their groceries, there wasn’t anything more I could do.

Then it struck me. Solving COVID-19 relied only on individual steps and the goodwill of human awareness. But the next challenge we have to deal with ahead is climate change known as the silent pandemic without a vaccine. So all I could think of was: Why don’t we do the same for it, and try to deal with global warming through our everyday activities?

I have decided to take a gap year and created an app to help people reduce carbon emissions from their shopping and transport activities. Even though I’d never written any program before, my will was greater than any excuse I could think of. The first version was just a one-screen app. Through the lockdown, I’ve had only 70 people to test the concept with and barely created any impact. Plus, the process of leading a social organization seemed like a small boat in a rough sea to me. But instead of giving up, I chose to fill the gap. And the coolest thing was that the more I was learning, the more people got interested in the idea. Through every leadership program, I built a stronger user community where each person was equally passionate and brave to make a change. Their enthusiasm was my greatest fuel for innovation.

Today, through the app, over 4,000 people reduced more than 150,000 kg carbon emissions. The app turned into an international movement. I proved to myself that miracles really happen when you dare to make a change.

【推荐3】Google’s AlphaGo defeated the South Korean Go grandmaster Lee Sedol four games to one Artificial intelligence had suddenly reached a new and unexpected height.

But AlphaGo is no longer the best Go “player” in the world Google’s artificial intelligence group, DeepMind. has created the next generation of its Go-playing program, called AlphaGo Zero The new A1 program is unique in the way it learned to play Go Instead of learning from human matches, as its predecessor (前任) did, AlphaGo Zero mastered Go in just two days without any human knowledge of the game and defeated AlphaGo by day three, reported The Guardian It then went on to defeat AlphaGo 100 games to zero.

To learn how to play Go, AlphaGo Zero played millions of matches against itself using only the basic rules of the game to rapidly create its own knowledge of it tike the previous version, it used “reinforcement (增强) learning to become its own teacher, ”ccording to DeepMind’s website.

“It’s more powerful than previous approaches. ’’ David Silver,   AlphaGo’s lead researcher, told The Guardian, “because by not using human data, or human expertise in any fashion, we’ve removed the constraints (约束) of human knowledge and it is able to create knowledge itself . ”

AlphaGo Zero’s approach to selt-learning is a significant advancement in AI could be applied to help solve some of the world s biggest problems, according a recent research report published in the journal Nature. For example, DeepMind co-founder DemisHassabis argues that AlphaGo Zero could probably find cures for a number of serious diseases within weeks, according to The Telegraph Indeed, the AI is now being used to study protein folding, which is connected to diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

So now that AI has surpassed human beings in some ways, perhaps the question is not about what AI can learn from humans, but what humans can learn from AI We can only wait and see.

【推荐2】If someone created a flying machine capable of tracking you down by listening for your voice, you might be terrified. But what if you were trapped in ruins after a natural disaster and first responders couldn’t locate you? Maybe then a human-seeking drone(无人机) wouldn’t be such a terrible idea. That concept is the focus for engineers at Germany’s Fraunhofer FKIE Institute, who’ve built a drone to find people by detecting(探测) human screams.

“The human-seeking drone would be ideal for post-disaster situations, such as earthquakes, hurricanes and wildfires,” said Macarena Varela, one of the lead engineers. “They could hover over an area that rescue crews have difficulty getting to and locate exactly where people may be trapped.”

Locating people by sound presents its share of challenges. An auditory(听觉的) system would need to distinguish human cries from sounds that often happen in nature, such as animal calls and wind. It might also need to recognize patterns associated with kicking, clapping or other ways people try to get the attention of rescue teams.

Engineers took those situations into account when building out their concept drone. They recorded themselves screaming, tapping and creating other noises that might be a sign of people in trouble. Then, they analyzed each sound frequency to find common signatures and used those to train artificial intelligence software. They also worked to remove the noise created by the drone and other environmental sounds.

Once the software part was complete, the team placed tiny digital microphones under the drone and used signal processing techniques that enabled them to track where human noises are coming from. The microphones also enhanced the volume and clarity of the speech. So far, they have conducted successful open field experiments, finding that the drone can estimate a victim’s location within a few seconds of picking up sound.

Next, they would like to add a higher frequency microphone to a drone to acquire more audio sound signals. The idea is to pick up noises from hundreds of meters away, Varela said. In the real world, victim’s location data might one day be sent wirelessly to emergency crews carrying a tablet.

【推荐1】The Nutrition Company on a Special Mission

Pūratae is a socially responsible health and wellness company that was founded on the principles of helping others live a more pure, balanced life—while Pūratae is also doing something that distinguishes itself from other nutrition companies—feeding children in need around the world.

Their Pure Superblend is a supplement powder designed to be taken in the morning. Designed to help balance the body in every area, it provides:

—14 supplements that not only provide your essential vitamins and minerals, but also support a healthy gut (肠道) and increase and stabilize the natural energy of the body.

—10 grams of plant and vegetable based protein to stabilize the blood sugar and maintain lean mass.

—And, it's natural, allergen-free, and PURE—free of artificial colors, flavors, preservatives and sweeteners.

At $ 3.00 per day, retail, they are also committed to making it affordable. When using the discount code for 15% off, it drops to $ 2.50 per day when you buy your monthly supply.

With every Pure Superblend purchased, the company provides 10 meals to children in need. Pūratae currently has a giving outreach in 20 countries (including the US and Canada) and provides over 1,000 meals a day to children in need.

【推荐2】PENRICE

COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Cornwall County Counicl

We Need Two

ASSISANT HEADTEACHERS

From January 2006

L13—17(£44,703—£49,314)

Penrice Community College is a highly regarded and successful 11-16 specialist languages college. Following the recent appointment of a new headteacher we’re restructuring the leadership team to create two new roles.

One post will involve leading teaching teams with responsibility for developing curricula(课程) and time-tabling.

The other post will be leading student based teams and responsibility for student learing outcomes and the removal of barriers to student success such as poor attendance or disaffection.

Penrice Community College is:

A school with 1,350 wonderful students

High achieving with results well above average

Mentioned twice in HMCl’s outstanding schools list

A British Council International School

Situated in a beautiful part of mid-Cornwall

All enquires for information and application packs should be made to Danielle Eyres on 01726—72613 or at secretary@penricornmvall .sch.uk

Closing date for applications is Tuesday October 4^th at noon. Interviews will be held on Monday 17^th and Tuesday 18^th October 2015.

【推荐3】Ever since the beginning of human civilization, we are trying to reduce manual efforts by making simple to extremely complex machines. The next step in the same process is robotics and automation. Robotics and automation is a field with abundant potential. It expands its scope from household applications to solving mysteries of the Universe to curing untreatable medical conditions.

Up until the beginning of 2020, robots of any kind are made up of nor-living materials. Recently scientists from the University of Vermont & Tufts University introduced Xenobots, which have opened a whole new Universe for this field. Xenobots are the world’s first living and self-healing microbots. These robots are designed with the help of computer-generated- evolutionary algorithm(算法). The living cells used for its creation are skin, heart and stem cell from the African frog embryos(胚胎).

These microbots are very basic in nature, made up entirely from the organic substance. They can move forward, turn around, spin in circles and flip over. They are smaller than a millimetre and can travel inside the human body. Just imagine the possibilities we will have, once scientist is able to teach Xenobots to do the desired task. One day they even might be able to fight cancer cells. They will be able to clear microplastics in the oceans and lots more.

But if these bots are a life form, why are we calling them robots? This is because scientists are designing them to move or work according to their wills. A certain arrangement for skin and heart cells in an Xenobot will make it move in a straight line, while a different arrangement of the same cells will be required to move them in circular motions.

Xenobots are positively a great step. Scientists are also calling them a brand new life form on the planet. The future is unseen but is undoubtedly full of countless possibilities.

【推荐1】On November 27, 2020, two giant pandas, “Da Mao” and “Er Shun,” arrived in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, after finishing their stay at a Canadian zoo ahead of schedule, as the COVID-19 pandemic made their bamboo supply difficult to continue.

The two pandas were shipped from China to Canada on March 25, 2013. The original plan was that the two, Da Mao, a 4-year-old male from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Sichuan, and Er Shun, a 5-year-old female from Chongqing Zoo, would stay in Canada for 10 years under a conservation agreement between the two countries, the first five years at Toronto Zoo followed immediately by another five years at Calgary Zoo.

At present, “Da Mao” and “Er Shun” have been sent to Chongqing Municipality for quarantine, according to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.

As we know, on average, each giant panda consumes about 40 kilograms of bamboo daily. The Calgary Zoo had been importing fresh bamboo from China because of the climate in Canada, but struggled to meet the pandas needs when the coronavirus grounded most flights in March.

The zoo said staff worked with the San Diego Zoo and Suncoast Nursery to arrange weekly shipments of fresh bamboo, but the process of finding the right bamboo has been expensive and time-consuming.

In May, the zoo announced it would have to return the two animals earlier than planned so that they could enjoy China’s abundant supply of fresh bamboo instead.

The zoo said on Friday that after months and months of hard work it had secured international permits to get their beloved pandas home to China.

Throughout their trip home, each panda has about 100 kilograms of bamboo to consume along with pears, apples and biscuits.

After spending five years at the Toronto Zoo, the two moved to the Calgary Zoo in March 2018 with twin babies, “Jia Panpan” and “Jia Yueyue,” which had traveled home to China in January.

        Times Nov.30, 2020

【推荐2】The UK has a well­respected higher education system and some of the top universities and research instructions in the world.But to those who are new to it all，sometimes it can be confusing.

October is usually the busiest month in the college calendar.Universities have something called Freshers’ Week for their newcomers.It’s a great opportunity to make new friends，join lots of clubs and settle into university life.

However，having just left the comfort of home and all your friends behind，the prospect(前景) of meeting lots of strangers in big halls can be nerve­wracking(令人焦虑不安的)．Where do you start？Who should you make friends with？Which clubs should you join?

Luckily，there will be thousands of others in the same boat as you worrying about starting their university social life on the right foot.So just take it all in slowly.Don’t rush into anything that you’ll regret for the next three years.

Here is some top advice from past students on how to survive Freshers’ Week：

•Learn rules.Make sure you know British social etiquette(礼节)．Have a few wine glasses and snacks handy for your housemates and friends.

•Be kind.Sometimes cups of tea or even slices of toast can give you a head start in making friends.

•Be sociable.The more active you are，the more likely you’ll be to meet new people than if you’re someone who never leaves his room.

•Bring a doorstop.Keep your door open when you’re in and that sends positive messages to your neighbors that you’re friendly.

So with a bit of clever planning and effort，Freshers’ Week can give you a great start to your university life and soon yon’ll be passing on your experience to next year’s new recruits.

【推荐3】The victims were carried in one by one, their paws and fur burned, suffering from dehydration(脱水) and fear. Their caretakers bandaged their wounds, wrapped them and laid them in baskets with the only thing that was familiar -- the leaves of a eucalyptus (桉树) tree.

As catastrophic fires have burned more than two million acres in Australia, dozens of koalas have been rescued from burning trees and ashen ground. The animals, already threatened as a species before these latest fires destroyed an essential habitat, are being treated in rescue centers, and at least one private home, along the country’ s east coast.

The difficult situation of the koala—a national symbol of Australia—has raised questions among conservationists and scientists about what it will take to preserve biodiversity in a country increasingly exposed to intense fire, extreme heat and water scarcity, and which already has among the highest rates of species extinction in the world.

While koalas have evolved to exist alongside wildfires, the animals are facing new threats not just from climate change but also from human development, which has dislocated local populations, damaging their ability to survive fires. In some regions, scientists say, koalas’ numbers have declined by up to 80 percent, though it is difficult to know how many remain across Australia.

“We have these unique animals not found anywhere else on this planet, and we’re killing them,” said Cheyne Flanagan, the clinical director of the Koala Hospital, the only facility of its kind in the world. “This is a big wake-up call.”