【推荐1】Today with the urge for gender and racial equality, people are constantly debating on most subjects when it comes to either of these topics. One of the most debated topics is “Should sports teams be coed (男女都参加的)?”     1    

First of all, the athletic differences between men and women would aid the teams.    2     But according to the researchers at the University of British Columbia women have higher endurance and stamina (毅力) than men of similar age and athletic ability. The mixture of extra stamina from women and the natural strength from men makes a good mixture making the team stronger.

    3    With sports being co-ed, kids would learn to get along with each other. The reason kids of opposite genders don’t really play with each other is that “Because you’re a girl” or “Because you’re a boy”.    4    For example, that would be unprofessional if your boss was of the opposite gender and your reason for not listening or for not cooperating was “Because you’re a girl or boy”.

Finally, being co-ed in sports teams increases the chances of women getting into college with a sports scholarship. The reasoning behind this is that the male part of sports has more attention on it, so men are more noticed.     5    This means more scholarship opportunities has come for women.

【推荐3】Two world championships were decided this weekend on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean. In England, the Rugby World Cup was decided. In New York, the baseball season saw its final match. More than 80,000 audiences watched New Zealand win the Rugby championship 34-17 over Australia. The match was held on Saturday at the famous Twickenham Stadium near London.

It was the second world title for New Zealand. Fans call the team “All Blacks” because of their black uniforms. A day later, the baseball World Series came to a close with a win by the Kansas City Royals over the New York Mets.

In the World Series, the first team to win four games claims victory. The Royals won four of the first five games played with the Mets. Kansas City last won in 1985.

The Rugby World Cup opened on September 18, when England defeated Fiji. Forty-eight matches and six weeks later, New Zealand won the title. Going into the tournament, the All Blacks were ranked No.1 in the world.

Every tournament like this has a “favorite”, or the team expected to win. The tournament also has an “underdog” , or the team less likely to win. But the underdog often becomes a favorite. This year in the Rugby World Cup, the “underdog” team was Japan.

Coming into the tournament, Japan was ranked 13th in the world. But after an inspiring showing in the group stage of the tournament, Japan moved up three places to 10th. Aside from the championship game itself, the match that created the biggest surprise came when Japan defeated world No.3 South Africa 34-32.The Associated Press called it “the biggest shock in Rugby World Cup history”.

South Africa was a two-time World Cup champion. Japan had only ever won one match in the World Cup before that game.

【推荐2】We live in an age when all scientific knowledge — from the safety of vaccines (疫苗) to the reality of climate change — faces organized and often angry opposition. Doubters have declared war on the consensus (共识) of experts. It seems that people have turned argumentative overnight.

In a sense, all this is not surprising. Our lives are affected by science and technology as never before. The world seems full of real and imaginary dangers. Though scientists agree that the Ebola virus is spread only by direct contact with blood or body fluids (液体), if you type “airborne Ebola” into an Internet search engine, you’ll find that some people believe that this virus has almost supernatural powers.

In this often confusing world, we need to rely on science to decide whether what we choose to believe has a basis in the laws of nature or not. But science doesn’t come naturally to most of us. Science has often led us to truths that are really mind-blowing. For example, although the roundness of the Earth has been known for thousands of years, some still feel it hard to accept.

Even when people become scientifically educated, most of them still try to make sense of the world by relying on personal experience, stories or emotions rather than statistics. When they hear a number of cancer cases in a town with a dangerous waste dump (垃圾场), they believe pollution caused the cancers. Yet two things happening together doesn’t mean one caused the other. Even when they turn to the Internet, they let in only the information they agree with to strengthen beliefs that have already been shaped by their worldview.

How can scientists convince doubters? Throwing more facts at people may not be enough. More efforts are supposed to be made.

【推荐3】According to a new study from Oxford Economics, a rise in artificial intelligence will result in an increase in “income inequality” as they estimate that 20 million manufacturing jobs will be lost in the next 11 years. In China alone, there could be 14 million robots taking work currently done by humans by 2030. While in the United States, more than 1.5 million workers would have lost their employment to technology by 2030.

The report predicts the use of robots worldwide has increased to 2.25 million over the past two decades. The researchers said, “As a result of robotisation, tens of millions of jobs will be lost, especially in poorer economies that rely on lower-skilled workers, which will therefore translate into an increase in income inequality.”

However, the researchers noted how “robotisation” has the potential to boost productivity and economic growth. They predicted a 5.3 percent rise in global gross domestic product (GDP) in 2030.The report said, “This means adding an extra $4.9 trillion per year to the global economy by 2030(in today’s prices).”

The report remained positive about the use of automation and urged lawmakers not to sand in the way of robots in the workplace, despite the threat of job losses.

The researchers said, “These findings should not lead policy-makers to seek to prevent the adoption of robot technology. Instead, the challenge should be to distribute the robot profits more evenly by helping workers prepare for and adapt to the big changes it will bring about. Explore all policy options from training, initiatives (新方案) and new welfare programs such as universal basic income.”

【推荐3】Thirty female contestants, all older than 30, took part in a reality show this summer, competing for five places in a performance group.

The program immediately became a hot topic nationwide, as the entertainment industry in China traditionally favors women in their early 20s or even younger.

Named Sisters Riding the Winds and Breaking the Waves, the show premiered (首映) on June 12 on Hunan Television and Mango TV, a livestreaming platform.

Actresses Ning Jing, 48, and Christy Chung, 50, along with singers Zhang Hanyun, 31, and Yu Kewei, 37, were among the contestants. A panel (专门小组) of coaches joined the show, including a well-known actor, the head of a music company, a celebrity manager, a music director and a stage director.

The first episode attracted more than 15 million viewers and sparked heated debate online. The contestants showed their dancing and singing abilities with solo and group performances.

Yang Chang, who works for a media company in Beijing, said: "Bringing these women together arguably contributed to making the most interesting reality show of the year. It sends a message that although we live in a youth-obsessed (着迷的) culture, there's still something to be said for the enduring appeal of women who are established and experienced."

Molly Tang, another fan of the show, who is approaching 30, said: "The women are very cool, fashionable and attractive. They have their own styles, rather than following a trend. I really admire their courage in breaking conventional stage or screen stereotypes (刻板印象)." She added that after watching the show, she is no longer afraid of becoming older.