【推荐3】Both lab-grown and plant-based alternatives are close to the taste and nutritional value of real meat without environmental damage.

The UN expects the world to have 9. 8 billion people by 2050. By that date, according to the predictions, humans will consume 70% more meat than they did in 2005. And it turns out that raising animals for human consumption is among the worst things we do to the environment. Depending on the animal, producing a pound of meat protein with Western industrialized methods needs 4 to 25 times more water, 6 to 17 times more land, and 6 to 20 times more fossil fuels than producing a pound of plant protein. The problem is that people aren’t likely to stop eating meat anytime soon. This means lab-grown and plant-based alternatives might be the best way to limit the damage.

Making lab-grown meat involves getting muscle tissue from animals and growing it in bioreactors. The end product looks much like what you’d get from an animal, although researchers are still working on the taste. Researchers at Maastricht University, who are working to produce lab-grown meat at scale, believe they’ll have a lab-grown burger available by next year. One shortcoming of lab-grown meat is that the environmental benefits are still small-a recent World Economic Forum report says the emissions from lab-grown meat would be only around 7％ less than emissions from beef production.

A better environmental case can be made for plant-based meats from companies like Beyond Meat Foods, which use pea proteins, wheat, potatoes, and plant oils to mimic the real taste of animal meat. According to an analysis by the Center for Sustainable Systems at the University of Michigan, a Beyond Meat pie would probably generate 90% less greenhouse-gas emissions than a traditional burger made from a cow.

【推荐2】A woman in Zhejiang Province has been told by the doctor that she might develop “dead butt syndrome” (死臀综合征) due to long periods of sitting, according to a report by Guangming Net on Wednesday. The 26-year-old woman, who prefers to be called Dai, had been experiencing discomfort in her lower back for the past two months. The discomfort later became unbearable pain during extended periods of sitting.

News of the incident quickly gained attention on Sina Weibo. Some users humorously commented that while some people may be alive, their butts have already “died”. Others expressed concern about their own inactive lifestyles and the possibility of developing the syndrome.

“Dead butt syndrome” mainly happens when the gluteus medius (臀中肌), one of the three main muscles in the buttocks, weakens due to long periods of sitting. This weakening can damage the muscles’ability to work properly, leading to poor shock absorption and reduced motion control of the hip and leg. The syndrome is becoming a more common disease without people’s noticing.

Medical professionals have offered precautionary (预防的) measures for the syndrome, stressing the importance of staying physically active. For individuals who sit for long periods, it is recommended to stand up and stretch the body periodically, walk around, and keep the gluteal muscles active throughout the day.

A simple rule to follow is to stand up and move for at least 10 minutes every hour of sitting to reactivate the gluteal muscles and prevent them from becoming “inactive”.

There are three simple self-diagnosis (自我诊断) steps for the syndrome: flat and floppy butts, discomfort in the waist, hips, and knees after long time of sitting, and an inability to keep the upper body upright while performing a deep squat (蹲) with both hands extended overhead. If someone shows all these symptoms, there is a possibility that they have developed the syndrome. Furthermore, if individuals experience worsening lower back pain after long periods of sitting, seeking professional medical help is advisable.

【推荐3】In a video posted Thursday addressing the future of her world tour, Céline Dion shared she’s been diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome (僵人综合征), or SPS, which has caused her to have severe muscle spasms (痉挛) in the past. And she will have to postpone much of her tour, as well as cancel some shows.

“The muscle spasms affect every aspect of my daily life, sometimes causing difficulties when I walk and not allowing me to use my vocal cords (声带) to sing the way I’m used to.” Dion said in the video posted on Instagram.

Stiff Person Syndrome is a rare neurological (神经系统的) disorder with features of an autoimmune (自体免疫的) disease. The disease notably causes progressive muscle stiffness and painful spasms that can be triggered by environmental factors such as sudden movement, cold temperature or unexpected loud noises and emotional stress.

“We all have muscle spasms, but these are muscle spasms that are beyond your control to the point that muscles lock and are so rigid.” Dr. Robert Wilson, a neurologist and the director of the Autonomic Center at the Cleveland Clinic, told USA TODAY.

These symptoms can lead to difficulty walking, among other disabilities. People with SPS are also more likely to experience anxiety and depression, Yale Medicine notes.

Of course, SPS symptoms can range significantly and every patient’s experience is unique. “It’s a range of severity.” Desai says.

“Some people have mild spasms. Some people can have the full dystonia where a part of the body becomes almost like rigid to a board or like a statue.…And some people can be constant while some people could just have episodes,” Wilson said. “There’s a variability within each patient.”

The exact cause remains unknown. However, researchers suspect it may be caused by an autoimmune reaction. Until now, there is no cure for it. But there are treatments to help relieve symptoms. SPS can be terminal in rare cases. “It’s a rare disease to begin with. And there are cases of death being reported, but it’s rare for a rare disease,” Desai said.

【推荐1】With the coming of online book buying, many have predicted that the book-stores will disappear eventually. To the book lovers, nothing beats walking through a bookshop, looking at all the covers, picking up large heavy books and turning them over. The smell of ink on paper, and conversations with strangers about authors are amazing for them. And we’re grateful that there’re beautiful bookstores still out there.

El Ateneo Grand Splendid

Designed for the music director Max Glucksmann, this building was opened as a show-stopping theater called Teatro Gran Splendid in Buenos Aires in 1919. After nearly a century of hosting tango (探戈舞) masters, the great space was rented by a firm, Grupo Ilhsa, in 2000. The former theater now serves as the group’s flagship bookstore; more than 1 million people visit it annually.

The Book Barge

The Book Barge is a 60-foot canal boat bookshop. Inspired by the Slow Food movement, Henshaw says, “We hope to promote a less hurried and busy lifestyle filled with leisure and pleasure here, through cups of tea, conversations, culture and of course, an extremely good Book Barge purchase.”

La Caverne aux Livres

At La Caverne aux Livres in north of Paris, an old postal train station and several mail-sorting train cars have become home to a ranging collection of used books for sale. Visitors often spend hours looking through the broad selection there, surrounded by an atmosphere of old letters and dreams of faraway places.

Selexyz Dominicanen

For those who regard bookstores with great respect, welcome to Swlexyz Dominicanen: a 13^th-century Dominican church in Maastricht, Holland. Later, the big space of the church was used to store bicycles. Several years ago, the church was changed to a bookstore. This glorious (哥特式的) building was redecorated by a design firm; the result is nothing short of a miracle.

【推荐3】On September 26, 2022, NASA successfully completed its Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission by intentionally crashing an unmanned spacecraft into the asteroid(小行星) Dimorphos. The goal was not to destroy the asteroid but to change its orbit. With the successful mission, NASA proved the concept that this technique could keep a potentially dangerous asteroid from crashing into Earth in the future.

Dimorphos is a small asteroid orbiting the larger asteroid Didymos. NASA noted that Dimorphos is not a threat to Earth, but because it passes relatively close to Earth, it was chosen as the target for the test mission.   

Although the intended crash should change the asteroid’s position slightly, it will add to a major shift over time. “If you were going to do this for planetary defense, you would do it 5, 10, 15, or 20 years in advance for this technique to work,” said NASA program executive Andrea Riley. “This is why we test. We want to do it now rather than when there’s an actual need.”

Asteroids can pose a significant threat to planet Earth. For example, around 66 million years ago, an asteroid around 6 to 9 miles across struck the Earth in what is now the Yucatan Peninsula. The resulting impact was so catastrophic(灾难性的) that it caused one of the largest extinction events in Earth’s history. Therefore, DART’s success is an important step forward in protecting the planet from potential damage from an asteroid. This shows humans are no longer powerless to prevent this type of natural disaster.

The DART spacecraft was launched by NASA on November 24, 2021. It was accompanied by another craft called LICIACube, supplied by the Italian Space Agency, and separated from DART just 15 days before the crash. LICIACube remained in orbit around the asteroid and took photographs of the crash and material ejected(弹出) from the asteroid’s surface.