【推荐2】As the world sees more and more extreme weather patterns, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the effects of climate change. It is now a common topic of discussion and it has even found its way into the books we read. Because of this, a genre (类型) called climate fiction, or cli-fi, has found new life.

The term “cli-fi” was first used in 2007 by US climate activist and writer Dan Bloom. He wanted to make “climate fiction” more appealing. According to Bloom, the term really gained popularity when Canadian writer Margaret Atwood used it in Twitter, introducing it to her half-a-million followers.

As the name suggests, climate fiction refers to stories with a central theme of climate change or global warming. These kinds of books can help us imagine what the world might be like in the future because of major climate change events.

Adeline Johns-Putra is a professor of literature at Xi’ an Jiaotong-Liverpool University in Suzhou and has edited many books on climate fiction. “It’s part of a pattern,” Johns-Putra told Smithsonian Magazine. “It’s a feedback loop (环), as these books feed into our awareness and that feeds into our demand to read these books.”

The genre is also gaining popularity with high school and college students because it looks at topics that are relevant to what’s really happening today. Also, many cli-fi novels tend to have dystopian (反乌托邦的) themes, which are very popular in young adult novels.

In 2015, cli-fi author Sarah Holding wrote for The Guardian that cli-fi “reconnects young readers with their environment”, which helps them appreciate it more, “especially when today, a large amount of their time is spent in the virtual world”.

Cli-fi has also helped to inspire students to pursue science majors, with some universities even offering courses specifically focusing on climate fiction.

“These books aren’t going to save the world in any straight form or way,” Johns-Putra commented. “But they’re certainly going to help us think about how the world gets saved.”

As Atwood wrote in her dystopian cli-fi novel MaddAddam, “People need such stories, because however dark, a darkness with voices in it is better than silent space.

【推荐1】When was the last time you listened to someone? And when was the last time someone really listened to you? I asked people what it meant to be a good listener. The typical response was a blank stare. People had no trouble, however, telling me what it meant to be a bad listener.

Of course, technology plays a role. Social media helps filter out opposing views. People find phone calls disturbing and ignore voice mail, preferring text or wordless emoji. But tech is not the only blame. High schools and colleges rarely, if ever, offer classes or activities that teach careful listening. Traffic noise on city streets and music playing in shops exceed the volume of normal conversation by as much as 30 decibels, and can even cause hearing loss.

So how can we reclaim the lost art of listening? After years of studying and consulting, I discovered that listening goes beyond simply hearing what people say. It also involves paying attention to how they say it and what they do while they are saying it, in what context, and how what they say resonates within you. It’s not about merely holding your peace while someone holds forth. Quite the opposite. A lot of listening has to do with how you respond — the degree to which you assist in the clear expression of the other person’s thoughts and in the process, express your own.

Good listeners ask good questions. Good questions don’t begin with “Wouldn’t you agree. or “Don’t you think. . . ?” and they definitely don’t end with “right?” The idea is to explore the other person’s point of view, not sway it. You also want to avoid asking people personal and evaluating questions. Instead, ask about people’s interests so that they feel more connected than if they spend time together accomplishing a task.

The reward of good listening will almost certainly be more interesting conversations. Attentive listeners receive more information, related details from the speakers, even when the listeners didn’t ask any questions. We are, each of us, the sum of what we attend to in life. And to listen poorly, selectively or not at all limits your understanding of the world and prevents you from becoming the best you can be.

【推荐3】On some Swedish trains, passengers carry their e-tickets in their hands. About 3,000 Swedes have chosen to put microchips (微芯片) beneath the skin between fingers. The chips, which cost around $150, can hold personal facts, credit-card numbers and medical records. They depend on Radio Frequency ID (RFID), a technology already used in payment cards, tickets and passports.

There are 10,000 people with chip implants (植入) around the world. Sweden, home to several microchip companies, has the largest share. People can order do-it-yourself kits. And sometimes they get T-shirts that say “I got chipped”.

Jowan Österlund, the founder of BioHax, a Swedish firm, argues that chips are safer than mobile phones because it is harder to steal information from them. But some people still have worries. RFID chips do not have GPS, but they leave a trail when they are used to open doors, operate printers, etc. In 2004 a Mexican government official and his workmates had chips placed in their arms that tracked who had accessed important information.

So why take the risk? Less trouble is one reason. The equipment for microchip implants exists wherever new payments are accepted. Sweden is well suited, as the world’s second most cash-less country (after Canada).

But the chips have little use unless all companies agree to work together. Few shops recognize this chip implants yet, even those organizations that do have had some troubles in the beginning. When Swedish rail officials began scanning passengers’ microchips, they saw private information rather than evidence of ticket buying. For now the chips are used largely as business cards, keys or to store important information.

So the desire to win notice or admiration is another explanation. Chip enthusiasts want to equip human bodies with technology. Elon Musk, an American businessman has spent money on this technology that connects machines with human brains, which caused fears from some Christians.