【推荐1】After years of heated debate, gray wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. Fourteen wolves were caught in Canada and transported to the park. By last year, the Yellowstone wolf population had grown to more than 170 wolves.

Gray wolves once were seen here and there in the Yellowstone area and much of the continental United States, but they were gradually displaced by human development. By the 1920s, wolves had practically disappeared from the Yellowstone area. They went farther north into the deep forests of Canada, where there were fewer humans around.

The disappearance of the wolves had many unexpected results. Deer and elk populations — major food sources (来源) for the wolf – grew rapidly. These animals consumed large amounts of vegetation (植被), which reduced plant diversity in the park. In the absence of wolves, coyote populations also grew quickly. The coyotes killed a large percentage of the park’ s red foxes, and completely drove away the park’ s beavers.

As early as 1966,biologists asked the government to consider reintroducing wolves to Yellowstone Park. They hoped that wolves would be able to control the elk and coyote problems. Many farmers opposed the plan because they feared that wolves would kill their farm animals or pets.

The government spent nearly 30 years coming up with a plan to reintroduce the wolvers. The U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service carefully monitors and manages the wolf packs in Yellowstone. Today,the debate continues over how well the gray wolf is fitting in at Yellowstone.Elk,deer, and coyote populations are down, while beavers and red fores have made a comeback. The Yellowstone wolf project has been a valuable experiment to help biologists decide whether to reintroduce wolves to other parts of the country as well.

What is the author’s attitude towards the Yellowstone wolf project？

【推荐2】The California sea otter (海獭), once hunted to the edge of extinction, has staged a thrilling comeback in the last century. Now, scientists have discovered that the otters’ success story has led to something just as remarkable: the restoration of their declining coastal marsh (沼泽) habitat.

Elkhorn Slough, a coastal marsh within Monterey Bay, had been experiencing severe damage. The root cause was a growing population of shore crabs, which fed heavily on the marsh plants, weakening the structural integrity of the habitat. Coastal marshes like these are not only natural defenses against storm waves but also serve as important carbon storage areas and water-cleaning systems.

The conservation-driven comeback of the sea otter has been crucial. California’s coastlines were once alive with sea otters. Sadly, they were nearly wiped out at the hands of fur traders. In the 1980s, conservation efforts aided these otters in re-occupying large areas of their former range. Now, Elkhorn Slough has the highest concentration of sea otters in California, with a population of about 100. By naturally feasting on crabs, the otters have helped a significant regrowth of plant life. Brent Hughes, a scientist working alongside Angelini, led a three-year study. Their findings were clear: in areas with sea otters, crab numbers fell markedly. This led to a resurgence in plant growth, which in turn stabilized the soil and lowered the rate of soil washing away.

As the sea otter population continues to restore, their positive impact on coastal ecosystems is likely to increase. It not only showcases the sea otter as a central species—a species that has a significant effect on its natural environment—but also highlights the essential nature of top predators (捕食者) in preserving ecological harmony. “My honest reaction was—this could become a classic in the literature,” says scientist Lekelia Jenkins. She reveals marsh restoration also helps people by reducing flooding. “Suddenly, sea otters go from just cute things we like to something that can protect our livelihoods and our properties.”

【推荐1】The Intelligent Transport team at Newcastle University have turned an electric car into a mobile laboratory named “DriveLAB” in order to understand the challenges faced by older drivers and to discover where the key stress points are.

Research shows that giving up driving is one of the key reasons for a fall in health and well-being among older people, leading to them becoming more isolated (隔绝) and inactive.

Led by Professor Phil Blythe, the Newcastle team are developing in-vehicle technologies for older drivers which they hope could help them to continue driving into later life.

These include custom-made navigation (导航) tools, night vision systems and intelligent speed adaptations. Phil Blythe explains: “For many older people, particularly those living alone or in the country, driving is important for preserving their independence, giving them the freedom to get out and about without having to rely on others.”

“But we all have to accept that as we get older our reactions slow down and this often results in people avoiding any potentially challenging driving conditions and losing confidence in their driving skills. The result is that people stop driving before they really need to.”

Dr Amy Guo, the leading researcher on the older driver study, explains, “The DriveLAB is helping us to understand what the key points and difficulties are for older drivers and how we might use technology to address these problems.

“For example, most of us would expect older drivers always go slower than everyone else but surprisingly, we found that in 30mph zones they struggled to keep at a constant speed and so were more likely to break the speed limit and be at risk of getting fined. We’re looking at the benefits of systems which control their speed as a way of preventing that.

“We hope that our work will help with technological solutions (解决方案) to ensure that older drivers stay safer behind the wheel.”

What is the best title for the text?

【推荐3】For people, many other animals, family matters. Consider how many jobs go to relatives. Or how an ant will cruelly attack intruder (入侵的) ants but rescue injured, closely related nest-mates. There are good evolutionary reasons to aid relatives, after all. Now, it seems, family feelings may stir in plants as well.

A Canadian biologist planted the seed of the idea more than a decade ago, but many plant biologists regarded it as heretical-plants lack the nervous systems that enable animals to recognize kin (家族), so how can they know their relatives? But with a series of recent findings, the belief that plants really do care for their most genetically close peers-in a quiet, planty way-is taking root. Some species control how far their roots spread, others change how many flowers they produce, and a few tilt (倾斜) or shift their leaves to minimize shading of neighboring plants, favoring related individuals.

“We need to recognize that plants not only sense whether it’s light or dark or if they’ve been touched, but also whom they are interacting with,” says Susan Dudley, a plant evolutionary ecologist, whose early plant kin recognition studies sparked the interest of many scientists.

Beyond broadening views of plant behavior, the new work may have a practical side. In September 2018, a team in China reported that rice planted with kin grows better, a finding that suggested family ties can be used to improve crop yields. “It seems anytime anyone looks for it, they find a kin effect,” says Andre Kessler, a chemical ecologist at Cornell University.

【推荐1】Love is one of life’s greatest motivators. That is exactly what inspired Zack to design a fully electric off-road wheelchair for his girlfriend suffering from paralysis (瘫痪).

Like most wheelchair-users, Cambry has always been restricted to the pavement for most of her adult life. Aside from that, using a wheelchair across long distances makes her shoulders ache. Zack Nelson, her boyfriend, wanted to give her the ability to explore more places conveniently, so he made a special wheelchair for her, which would make it possible.

Zack began by combining two electric bikes and installing a seat in the centre. It worked! Cambry experienced a whole new level of freedom using her new “ride”, and she couldn’t be more grateful to Zack for coming up with it. Fast forward to a year later, Cambry and Zack tied the knot. They also began mass-production of the special wheelchair. Throughout that time, they improved the original design to make it a more reliable off-roader.

While similar vehicles already exist in the market, they said they’re either slow or cost as much as a car. Cambry and Zack wanted to build something quick, light, super long-range, and affordable at the same time. However, coming up with that kind of electric off-roader wasn’t easy.

The toughest challenge when developing the special wheelchair is the price. “We wanted to create something that is affordable for everyone. Finding quality components, and a simple enough design at the cheapest price possibly took quite a bit of time,” said Zack. “But I think we have something now that everyone will be able to enjoy, at a fraction (少量) of the cost of other ‘off-road wheelchairs’ currently on the market.” Another great thing about the vehicle is that it’s silent. Its rider will have no difficulty chatting with their companion while using it. Cambry and Zack are very happy with the fully-electric machine, and they hope that other wheelchair-users will also benefit from it.

【推荐3】The traffic signals along Factoria Boulevard in Bellevue, Washington, generally don't flash the same length of green twice in a row, especially at rush hour. At 9：30 am, the full red/yellow/green signal cycle might be 140 seconds. By 9:33 am, a burst of additional traffic might push it to 145 seconds. Less traffic at 9:37 am could push it down to 135. Just like the traffic itself, the timing of the signals changes.

That is by design. Bellevue, a fast­growing city just east of Seattle, uses a system that is gaining popularity around the US: intersection (十字路口) signals that can adjust in real time to traffic conditions. These lights, known as adaptive signals, have led to significant declines in both the trouble and cost of travels between work and home.

What does the underlined word “that” in Paragraph 2 refer to?