【推荐2】If you had asked me then if I would accept a job as a restaurant critic for The New York Times or others, I would have replied, “Definitely not! ” This was partly because I did not want to think of myself as an ambitious sort. Working in restaurants was honest labor, and anyone could see that. Writing about them for the mainstream press was not.

However, the renewing was fun, so much fun that when mainstream publishers started paying me for my opinions, I didn’t do the decent (体面的) thing, and before I knew it, I had stopped cooking professionally. Then I stopped cooking altogether. “She’s joined the leisure class.” my friend said.

I disarmed my critics by inviting them along; nobody I knew could afford to eat out and nobody refused. We went with equal amounts of guilt and pleasure, with a feeling that we were stepping onto the playgrounds of the rich.

We knew we didn’t belong to these grand restaurants. We always got the worst table, and since I didn’t own a credit card, I had to pay in cash. The year turned into two and three, and more. Then, I got a credit card as well as good clothes. I was writing for increasingly prestigious (声誉高的) publications. Meanwhile, a voice inside me kept whispering, “How could you?”

The voice is still there, never coming to a stop. When I receive weekly letters from people who think it is unacceptable to write about $100 meals while half the world is hungry, the voice rings right along, “They’re absolutely right, you elitist (精英) pig is not”. When it asks, “When are you going to grow up and get a real job?”, it sounds a lot like my mother.

It is just at that moment that I tell the voice to shut up because I realize all I’m doing with my life is telling rich people where to eat and how much the world has changed.

Yes, there are still restaurants where rich people go to remind themselves that they are different from you and me, but there are fewer and fewer of them. Going out to eat used to be like going to the opera; today, it is more like going to the movies.

Therefore, everyone has become a critic and I couldn’t be happier with this. The more people pay attention to what and how they eat, the more accustomed they become to their own senses and the world around them. As A. J. Liebling once said, all it really takes to be a restaurant critic is a good appetite.

【推荐3】About 10 years ago,I sat in my office,struggling to write an annual progress report for my leader. I enjoy writing scientific papers that engage my creativity and further my research. But report writing doesn’t come with any reward apart from the momentary satisfaction of finishing something. Like other routine paperwork,I find it hard to get through. So that day,I offered myself a reward : When I finished the report,I'd give myself 2 hours to examine slides (载玻片)under the microscope — a task I've always loved but never had much time for as a staff member. It ’ s a strategy I call " just for fun"，.

The strategy was born out of challenges I experienced in graduate school. I usually delayed putting together reports for university administrators until threatening letters arrived. I never felt that paperwork was advancing my science, but rather sapping my energy and time for research. One of my committee members recognized and understood my difficulties. Then he told me about his strategy of rewarding himself with a fun project when he completed a task that he didn’t particularly enjoy. He advised me to think about doing something similar. I immediately liked the idea.

Over the course of my career，this strategy helped me complete and move past the parts of my job that I didn’t particularly enjoy. The rewards I gave myself provided a way to relax and reminded me why I love being a scientist.

As for that annual report,I spent an ordinary morning on it but got it done. Then I hurried over to the microscope ， eager to inspect a series of slides that my collaborators (合作者) had sent a couple of weeks earlier. To others， it may   have looked like work. But to me,it was just for fun.

【推荐1】The way you learn most effectively will impact many different aspects of your life. Visual (视觉的) learners process information best when it’s presented with images drawn on a whiteboard, charts or graphs. Visual learners usually process pictures before they read printed text and are also able to visualize concepts quickly. People who are visual learners would prefer it if instruction is printed rather than given verbally (口头地), and may often write or draw when attempting to make sense of a new topic. Many visual learners remember something better once they’ve written it down or drawn it out.

Auditory (听觉的) learners process information best when it’s said out loud, such as in a lecture setting or spoken presentation. This type of learners can easily recall what others say and prefer to talk through topics they find complex or difficult to understand. People who are auditory learners prefer verbal directions and may use repetition or repeat things aloud to memorize things. They may ask questions to understand the subject matter better and may need to hear something repeated more than once before they fully comprehend. Auditory learners also often benefit from listening to recordings as a method of absorbing new concepts.

Kinesthetic (动觉的) learners process information through experience rather than by being shown or told. This type of learners prefer to do things that are more “hands­on”. They prefer to touch and feel items and can easily recall things they’ve done. People who are kinesthetic learners like to make and create things using their hands, and remember information best when they are physically involved. Kinesthetic learners like to participate in the process by shadowing or assisting others, and prefer to practice or rehearse concepts as a way to absorb new information.

Take time to consider how you prefer to take in new information. Think about the last time how you worked to ensure you retained the information. The answers to these questions will help you discover which learning style works best for you.

【推荐2】The warm coast of California is a place where many western monarch butterflies(帝王蝶) stay during the cold winter months in the United States. Researchers fear the record low number of monarchs this year could mean the insects are in danger of disappearing in the near future.

Researchers from the Xerces Society said they found fewer than 2,000 orange-and-black butterflies in the yearly count this January. That number showed a big drop from the tens of thousands in recent years. In the 1980s, there were millions of them in trees from Northern California's Marin County to San Diego County near the Mexico border. Last winter, it recorded around 29,000 butterflies in its yearly survey. That was similar to the winter before,when an all-time low of 27,000 monarchs was counted.

Every winter, western monarch butterflies fly south from the northwestern U. S. to California. At the start of November, they arrive in California, often going to the same places and even the same trees. Once warmer weather arrives in March, the monarchs begin their journey back north, stopping somewhere along the route to lay eggs. After egg-laying, the adult butterflies die and the northward migration(迁徙)is continued by their new generations. Thus the monarch butterflies disperse across the country.

Scientists say there are several causes for the extremely low numbers of butterflies in the western states. Homebuilding and chemical use have destroyed milkweed (马利筋) plants along their migratory path. The plants are needed for monarch butterflies to grow and develop, which is the only food monarchs will eat and the only place they will lay their eggs on. Climate change influences the growth of                    wild plants. And huge wildfires in the west may also have influenced their migration.

Luckily, some public campaigns have encouraged people to plant milkweed in their yards and cities. People can also help scientists collect data, which is critical for developing conservation policies to protect monarchs. Then there are many larger—scale efforts to protect habitats and better manage land for reproduction.

【推荐3】You’ve probably heard that brick-and-mortar retail(实体零售) is in trouble. Even industry giants are closing hundreds of stores. Given retail’s gradual change from physical stores to mobile and e-commerce(电子商务), you may be wondering, “What will retail look like in the future?” Nobody knows. But here are a few things you can expect to see based on current technology.

Super-fast delivery is coming. Today, the normal practice is two-day delivery. But if you’ve been paying attention, you know that’s changing. In fact, up to 25% of consumers said that they would abandon their orders if one-day delivery wasn’t available. Of course, that’s just the beginning. Two-hour delivery is coming in the foreseeable future, and Amazon has already been trying 30-minute delivery.

Your kitchen will resupply itself. You won’t have to worry about running out of essentials like coffee, pet food or snacks because your containers will sense stocks(库存) and replace those items without you having to lift a finger. No more waking up to find your coffee store is empty or last-minute rush to the grocery store because you forget to buy pet food.

Know exactly what’s in stock and where to get it. Have you ever gone to a store hoping to buy something, only to learn that it was out of stock? A new feature from Google Home allows people to ask the Google Assistant to find in-stock products at the closest store. For example: “Google, where can I find the Nintendo Switch console?” The assistant will tell you how many stores have it right away and how close they are. Of course, it isn’t currently available for all stores in all locations, but you can already see the future when it has become standard.

Convenience, experience, and options-retail will take on a new look.