【推荐3】While I was jumping rope, my smartphone took a fall to the floor which created cracks (裂缝) on my screen. However, the music kept playing. 30 minutes later, I could see only one-tenth of my screen while the rest was black. The next morning, I decided not to use it for 24 hours. I felt a sense of calm that day, which led to my not using it for one week. One week ended up becoming 60 days in total without my smartphone.

Here are some advantages I noticed in this challenge.

Without my phone, I became bored, but my mind went through all kinds of topics, Boredom (无聊) is a perfect way to create new ideas on a business or project. When you are bored, you allow your mind to relax to reach all possibilities.

A survey found that adults checked their smartphones 85 times a day, or once every 10 minutes. As I learned in my challenge, by not having my smartphone, I fell into deep work more easily, so I completed my tasks in a shorter time.

Without my phone, I avoided reading negative news and comments. While that helped make a big improvement in my mental health, the biggest reason for it was truly communicating with people. It brought me more connections with humans in the real world. I went to more dinners with friends and asked more questions to strangers.

【推荐3】Less than a quarter of families in Britain sit down for a “screen-free” dinner together every day away from TVs, phones and devices(设备), according to a research. The research was carried out to mark the launch of Vodafone Pro Broadband with Alexa, featuring a unique “Dinnertime” function which allows families to have 30 minutes of digital downtime.

A study of 1,600 parents, with at least one child at home, found six in ten admit getting children to switch off their devices is the biggest cause of disagreements in their household, leading to an average of two quarrels a day. The research also found it takes almost ten minutes for a child to switch off their devices after being asked.

Almost all parents feel having a break from technology is important for family relationships. And 86 percent think dinner time is an important part of the day for spending quality time together. However, despite this, 93 percent of parents believe technology is important for a child’s development, with 98 percent using digital devices to aid their learning.

Dr. Anna Colton, clinical child psychologist, commented, “Technology plays a huge part in all of our lives, and improves our work, learning and leisure.” She added, “However, it is vital to take time away from our screen and connect with family and friends face to face, particularly at mealtimes—both for oursetves and for our relationships with loved ones, to develop relationships.”

Max Taylor, consumer director at Vodafone UK, said, “30 minutes is the proper amount of time for families to reconnect with one another away from screens, because it’s long enough to have meaningful conversations, a meal or play a game—but not so long that it feels worrying or stressful.”

【推荐2】Graham Barratt, 62, planted the seeds in his garden in January. He watched as one particular chilli excelled — but never expected it would break the UK record for the longest ever chilli pepper(辣椒) reaching a length of 45.7cm.

The grandfather-of-five beat the previous British record by a whole centimetre. But he didn’t eat it at once — instead he put it in a displaycase and gave it pride of place on the wall in his garden. Retired Graham from Abbeydale, Gloucester, said: “I was so excited when I learnt I had broken the record. I have won prizes for giant vegetables before, but it’s my first record.”

“Growing giant vegetables sounds so easy but there are so many factors — the right seeds and weather, but also the right care so they grow the best. It’s a lot of work, but it’s what I love to do, and it’s very rewarding when you achieve something like this.” He planted the winning seeds in January at his nearby garden after selecting them from a good crop three years ago. He took care of the chillies, along with his other giant vegetables, almost every day. He explained: “It’s a very careful process to successfully grow giant vegetables. You need to consider what to feed them, how to water them, how to prevent infestations, how to protect them from bad weather and so on.”

He measured the big chilli regularly and when it stopped growing he picked it and called a giant vegetable official judge who measured it on July 29. Ordinarily he would have entered it into a local show, but if he waited until mid-September, it would have dried up. After a few months on display, he’ll harvest the record-breaking chilli’s seeds to use them to try and break his own record next year. He added: “I already have a few ideas up my sleeve for how I can improve on my record next year!”

【推荐3】On Monday, American ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson and her partner Jim Morrison reached the summit of 26,781-foot Manaslu, the eighth-highest mountain in the world. Soon after the 49-year-old Nelson began her descent（下降）on skis，she triggered small avalanche（雪崩）and was swept away. On Wednesday, Morrison found her body.

“Often times in life, people want to play it safe, and we make everything around us to be comfortable and safe,” ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson once said. “Therefore, we can make choices where you can see where that road is going to take you, and I've always been tending to make a choice that I don't know where it's going to take me.”

Nelson, a National Geographic Explorer, had a distinctive sense of travel that led her through more than 40 expeditions to 16 countries. In 2012, six years later, Nelson returned to Lhotse to become the first to ski from its summit.

She was deeply respected for both her extensive big-mountain experience, and her mindful approach to life's challenges. In 2018, Nelson was named captain of the North Face Athlete Team, a title only one other athlete has held. A National Geographic Society grantee, she was also one of the winners of the 2018 National Geographic Adventurer of the Year award. Despite her many super-hero accomplishments, friends recall her as a thoughtful presence and quiet leader, someone who never sought the limelight.

Throughout her career, Nelson struggled at times with the expectations and limitations of being a woman, a mother, and a professional adventurer---and becoming a role model for younger generations of female athletes in the process. “Nelson paved the way for women in the adventure sports space with her refusal to choose between motherhood and her athletic career," says Emily Harrington, a climber who joined her on the Hkakabo Razi expedition. “ She followed her passion as well as raising her family with a mix of courage and grace in a way only a true leader could.”