【推荐1】When Wuilly Arteaga was younger, he often visited a local Internet café to learn how to play music. The café owner made a deal with him; he’d give Arteaga some cash if he helped around the business. Arteaga then used that money to buy a cheap violin. His parents, however, prevented him from playing the violin. At age 15, Arteaga decided to leave home and practice his music on the streets. “From then on, my music school has always been outside, ” he said.

In 2017, he moved to New York City. Arteaga was afraid of being unimportant in a city of so much talent (人才) and so many cultures when he first arrived, but later he became comfortable thanks to the subway, other musicians and with his violin by his side. One of his favorite places to perform in the city is Times Square. “There, it’s as if I’m playing at Madison Square Garden, where concerts are usually held. People scream and applaud (鼓掌) and dance like they’re at a concert. They make me feel like a star,” he explained.

The energy and joy from his performances were posted online in 2018 by a social media influencer who goes by the name Junebug. As Arteaga performed a hip-hop song in Times Square, Junebug and others partook in the fun with practically every dance possible to show their excitement at hearing Arteaga’s violin. The video was titled, “When New Yorkers hear a violin,” and it received over 320 thousand likes and was forwarded 120 thousand times.

Many people have recognised Arteaga’s gift for violin. “I don’t regard myself as a gifted player. I just keep my love for the violin and enjoy the pleasure it brings,” he said. “Here, day by day, I am learning its true meaning. ”

【推荐3】Rock and pop hitmaker Jim Steinman, who wrote and composed music for Meat Loaf, Bonnie Tyler, Celine Dion, and more, died Monday in Danbury, Connecticut. He was 73. Steinman's brother Bill confirmed that the cause of death was kidney (肾) failure.

A statement posted on Steinman's Facebook page read, “It's with a heavy heart that I can confirm Jim's passing. There will be much more to say in the coming hours and days as we prepare to honor this giant of a human being and his glorious legacy.”

Steinman's wholly unique career found him working as a composer, lyricist, and producer for many artists in a variety of styles. According to a biography on his website, the records he's worked on have sold more than 190 million copies worldwide. He was nominated (提名) for four Grammys, and won Album of the Year for his work on Dion's 1996 smash, Falling Into You.

Steinman began his career in a musical theater while in college, writing and starring in a rock musical called The Dream Engine, which gained the attention of New York theatrical producer Joe Papp. After graduating, Steinman worked at the Public Theater (which was established by Papp). In 1973, Yvonne Elliman recorded Steinman's song “Happy Ending”, which became Steinman's first commercially released tune. That same year, the Public Theater staged his musical More Than You Deserve.

One of the actors who auditioned for More Than You Deserve was Meat Loaf, and he and Steinman soon struck up a close personal and professional relationship. The two began working on Meat Loaf's solo album, Bat Out of Hell, in the early 70s, but it wouldn't be released until 1977. It wasn't until about one year later — after Meat Loaf performed on Saturday Night Live — that the album became a hit.

“There is no other songwriter ever like him,” Meat Loaf said. “I can never repay him. He has been such an influence, in fact, the biggest influence on my life, and I learned so much from him that there would be no way I could ever repay Mr. Jim Steinman.”

【推荐3】Is a moviegoer different than a movie-lover? I’d say so. You can love a movie by watching it at home.     1    . I’ve spent a lot of time talking to people about movies. By listening to what they say, I can report they only share one thing in common: they go out.

I’ve thought about two views of the moviegoer lately.

The first view comes from Roland Barthes. Most often, his moviegoers don’t go to the movies for a distinct purpose.     2    . They are bored. Once they get inside, they can’t help but sink into a relaxed state. When they leave the movie theater, these moviegoers don’t want to talk to anyone about the movie.     3    . Barthes sees them as a lonely being, one who is introspective (自省的). I think some of us use movie theaters to retreat inside ourselves.     

The second view comes from the Clark Theater manager, Bruce Trinz. When people go to the movies they go for a certain personal motive. They may want to forget something, or escape from the lives they are leading. Or they may want to see a film they liked years ago.     4    , they are the hopeless addicts who, quite simply, like movies. The only thing I would challenge in this definition is the word hopeless.     5    , but they come to the movies filled with hope. They may not be able to define what they hope to experience, but they will know it when they feel it.

【推荐1】She’s one of the most popular children’s book authors. There are very few other writers who can create such magic with their stories. One other such author is J. K. Rowling. But it all started with Enid Blyton, the English writer.

This woman was really a genius (天才), and knew the way to a child’s heart. Many children’s love for reading began with her. She wrote mysteries about boarding school adventures, and there was always something to learn at the end of the story. “Don’t be greedy (贪婪的)” or “It’s good to be kind” or “Be kind to animals” or “Being too naughty will only land you in trouble”. There was always something that kids need to apprehend at a young age.

And she showed all these in the sweetest, most kindly way possible. Everything turned out to be okay in the end and the bad guys got what they deserved (应得的), but nothing too hard. And they became good people in the end. If only the real world was this simple. She’s written books about kids solving problems in the world filled with gods and fairies (仙女) where everyone was good and kind, and lived with enough chocolates and other delicious foods. This world is just what people want.

Do you know the kids’ show that is popular on Pogo? Yeah, Enid Blyton created these characters. The series is based on her books. These are just a few. She’s created hundreds and hundreds of characters and more than 400 million copies of her children’s books have been sold worldwide.

Children are crazy about her books and parents and schools are certainly going to make them read her books. They’re perfect for kids. Enid Blyton is the reason why I developed such a love for writing stories! She had such a wonderful imagination and knew exactly how to steal a child’s heart. She stole mine.

【推荐2】Travel enthusiasts fifty years ago talked about travelling to fascinating places around the world. Today the talk is about going beyond the world and the Earth. The thirst is creating a demand for space travel, giving rise to space tourism.

The space fights are not cheap - each flight into outer space costs about U.S. $20 million. Up till now, it has solely been enjoyed by a few adventurous super-ich men. To reduce the high cost of space travel for the mass market, space travel agencies now have a creative plan to offer suborbital flights, which cost much less. These joyrides will enable the tourists to reach the edge of space, which is more than 62 miles above the Earth, and allow them the experience of a few minutes of weighlessness as they gaze at the Earth below, before they return down to Earth again.

Space tourism is, however, not an environmentally friendly adventure. The black carbon emitted by the spacecraft could either raise temperatures at the poles, causing a melting of the ice or lead to rising temperatures, contributing to global warming. The emission of black carbon also causes the ozone molecules to break apart, contributing to several kilotons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

Looking beyond Earth, an increase in space travel would mean that Man would not only leave his footprint in space but also his waste—space tourism can contribute to pollution of the environment of the outer space. With no current plans for waste disposal, one can only imagine clumps of litter floating around the planets.

Without doubt, space tourism opens up new exciting possibilities. With time, the price of the flights to space would become more reasonable. Increasing commercialization of space travel would also mean that a structure would be put in place for the disposal of space waste. However, with no immediate solution to counter the possible impact on climate changes and the thinning of the ozone layer, space tourism would probably prove to be yet another controversial (有争议的) venture of mankind.

【推荐3】A growing number of Chinese online users are willing to idle their time away (消磨时间), watching live 24-hour internet broadcasts. These vary in content from how iconic pandas live in their natural habitats to how a hospital is constructed.

More than 90 percent of Chinese netizens said they had aimlessly viewed such livestreaming(直播) videos and 87.8 percent of them said they like the slower-paced broadcasts as it gives them a psychological break from their stressful and busy routines, according to a survey released by China Youth Daily.

Among the 2,005 interviewees, the post-1980’s generation accounted for 43.9 percent, followed by the post-1990’s generation (38.6 percent) and the post-1970’s generation at 9.1 percent.

“It is a source of pleasure and comfort to aimlessly watch slow, relaxing content on livestream,” Fang Lu, a college student from Shanghai, was quoted as saying, recollecting her experience of watching a vlogger practice Chinese calligraphy with soothing background music.

Liu Chen, an employee from Beijing, is another livestream watcher. She recently viewed live online broadcasts showing a Chinese survey team reach the summit of Mount Qomolangma on a mission to remeasure the height of the world’s highest peak.

“Reaching the summit of Mount Qomolangma is a dream that many people have aspired to for a long time but have had no opportunity to realize,” said Liu. “Without post-editing, the original live broadcast, which truly represents the scene, has the audience fully absorbed in its reality.”