【推荐1】Can you survive an unannounced storm? Although there is expert broadcasting and we have cell phones, there are still some instances (情况) when the violent weather takes us by surprise.

While most Atlantic hurricanes form off the roust of Africa giving plenty of early warning, sudden Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico hurricanes form and move rapidly in less than a day’s time, endangering everyone and everything in their path.

Oil workers were trapped off the shore (海岸) when sudden storms appeared. Natural scientists have been stuck in coastal areas without storm warning. Ten years ago a Texas National Guard group was trapped on the beach by rain-forced flooding and bad to ride out (经受得住) a major hurricane during a training exercise. There’ve been a few instances when travelers were trapped on an island or in a coastal area and unable to escape in time.

Escaping from the storm-threatens areas is generally a choice for most of us — but not for all. Each year thousands of islanders across the Caribbean face the danger of hurricanes without so much as a public shelter to hide in. Most ride out the storm in their homes.

But there’re a few things yon ran do to prepare yourself for some unexpected emergencies. Being prepared for the unexpected may be your best and only defense. If you’re headed outdoors for a few days or weeks, you should always carry a flashlight with extra batteries, a Beidou device, and a basic medical box. If you’re traveling in your ear, remember you may suffer high winds. You’d better not stay inside to avoid being blown away along with your car. Keeping your head and your courage up is essential (必要的) to survival in any type of danger. Let common sense guide you and always be prepared for the worst.

【推荐2】As wildfires continued to sweep across Australia, the loss of life in the area was reaching astonishing numbers. Ecologists (生态学家) at the University of Sydney said that nearly half a billion animals and plants had been wiped out since the fires began several months before. Images and videos from the area showed kangaroos trying to escape from burning forests and charred (烧焦的) bodies of koalas lying on the ground.

Koalas had been already under threat because of significant habitat loss, and they were hit particularly hard compared with other animals. Ecologists said nearly 8,000 koalas—about one-third of the population in their primary habitat—were believed to have died from the big fires. Professor Dieter Hochuli from the University of Sydney said it wasn’t just the well-known species, such as kangaroos, koalas and emus (鸸鹋), that were in danger. Insects also suffered losses. Additionally, many rare plant species might have disappeared completely.

While animal hospitals were taking in as many animals as possible to treat burns and nursed them back to health, services had overall struggled to keep up with the amount of care needed. And the animals that had survived would have trouble finding food and shelters in the ongoing fire, so they were still in a dangerous situation.

“We’re getting a lot of lessons out of this and it’s just showing how unprepared we are,” Dr. Sussan Ley said. “Now Australia is burning and national parks and our native animals are being destroyed. People have lost homes. People have died. Firefighters have been killed defending communities, most recently last night. There’s no plan in place even wildlife carers don’t have plan for when they can go in after fire.

【推荐1】“When your mother scolds you, you can look elsewhere and think about other things. Just ignore her words. But remember: such a tough attitude cannot be used often.” These words are from a series of cartoons which outline skills for children to fight against their mothers. The images have created heated debate among Chinese netizens（网民）.

Regarded as “a book for children aged 6 to 12 who are always scolded by their parents”， the cartoons, drawn by two 10-year-old Beijing girls, list over 20 skills which children can use to deal with their mothers’ anger such as crying, pretending to be ashamed, fleeing into the toilet and pleasing her afterwards. Each skill is described with vivid pictures and humorous notes. The creativity of the young girls has amazed netizens, the Yangtse Evening Post reported on Thursday.

According to one of the girls’ mothers, her daughter once received a poor mark in an exam, and the mother blamed her and compared her performance with another classmate. The daughter’s feelings led to her creating the cartoons. The girl’s father, who first posted the pictures on his Sohu Microblog on Monday, said he hopes parents pay close attention to the pictures, allow children to feel free to develop their own characteristics and try not to criticize them so often.

“The cartoons, although an individual case, reflect a modern phenomenon and some of the problems within Chinese family education,” said Yu Qinfang, an expert on family education. According to a survey of 104 children and their parents, Yu discovered that as many as 51.9 percent of primary school students hate being urged to do things by their mothers. “Not giving children enough time and hurrying them to do things seems to be a very tiny detail within family life, but it is potentially a huge problem which can easily be ignored by parents. A mother’s blame may lead to negative feelings within her child’s heart,” Yu said. “Parents should learn to blame less and be more patient.”

【推荐2】ROME— four people, including the wife of the factory's owner, died on Wednesday after explosions （爆炸）at the Barcelona Pozzo di Gotto fireworks company, Italian media reported.

According to online reports by La Republic and TGCOM24, at least one other person is missing and three others are seriously injured, with two of them in dangerous condition. Among the dead was 71-year-old Venera Mazzeo, the wife of the factory owner Vito Costa. Mazzeo reportedly died on the scene. Antonio Costa, the owner's son, was seriously injured and was transported to a hospital in the regional capital of Palermo for treatment. Less seriously injured persons were moved to the nearby Milazzo Hospital to be treated for burns and other injuries. Many were transported by local people who reached the scene before ambulances could arrive, reports said.

The factory, located near the northeast of the southern Italian island of Sicily, near the city of Messina, has been in operation for more than ten years without any accident. Police reports showed that two separate explosions took place, with the first explosion likely causing the second one. Media reports said that police have guessed that sparks （火花）from a repairing project reached some of the explosive material stored in the factory and was likely the cause of the first explosion.

Reports also showed that firefighters were able to control the flame, which burnt buildings on the factory and threatened nearby structures.

【推荐3】All eyes were on Jack Ma(马云). The chairman of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd stepped down on Teachers’ Day from leading the e-commerce giant he founded 20 years ago.

“I still have lots of dreams to go after,” Ma wrote in an open letter last year to announce his parting. “The world is big, and I am still young, so I want to try new things.”

The 55-year-old businessman showed that he was ready for new things by arriving at his farewell party (欢送会) dressed up like a rock star.

In fact, his rags-to-riches (白手起家的) story is a good example of doing something different. Visiting the United States in 1995, Ma saw the internet and had the idea of setting up his own trading website. In 1999, he founded Alibaba with a group of friends in a shared apartment, struggling for years to get it off the ground. With all the challenges, the company slowly brought e-commerce to China.

Although his success has inspired (激励) a number of Chinese tech businessmen, Ma pointed out that the key is having a dream. “It’s the dreams that keep us never afraid of setbacks (挫折),” Ma said in a video posted on Sept 9.

Now the experienced businessman is looking to focus on education. What can he offer?

“I’m not going to teach English; I’m not going to teach business. But I’m going to teach young people how to face challenges,” he told Bloomberg News.

Skilled sailors were never made on calm waters. As Ma said, “Today is cruel. Tomorrow is crueler. But the day after tomorrow is beautiful.”