【推荐1】With the cost of living in the United States soaring, more and more people are setting their sights on an international destination.

Ecuador

For real bargain hunters, Ecuador is cheap and safe with a very comfortable year-round climate. The cost of living for one person in the country is $750. Ecuador is geographically diverse with miles of endless beaches, hills and rainforests. Housing is economical with the average rent for one person costing around $307 per month.

Costa Rica

Costa Rica is the perfect place to live abroad without depleting(耗尽)your savings. The cost of living is around $893 and rent for one person runs approximately $406 per month. The tropical destination has cost-effective healthcare. The weather is gorgeous, the water is warm and the housing is highly affordable.

Uruguay

The country is exquisite(精美的), offering nearly 400 miles of coast, rolling mountains and four distinct seasons. The cost of living is nearly half of what it is in the states at $1,090 and you can find a nice apartment at the reasonable price of $500 per month.

Panama

Panama could be a good option for anyone to live cheaply. The cost of living is under half of what it would cost in the U.S. at $1,040 for one person. Rent runs approximately $530 per month and food takes up another $353, but outside of that costs are minimal. The country has a mild climate and offers world-class beaches.

【推荐3】Anyone who has seen a waterfall up close will agree that their majesty(壮观)is almost indescribable. These are the four falls on the planet, each of which is wonderful in its own way.

Niagara Falls

At 3,950 feet wide, Niagara Falls is far from the largest waterfall around, but it is the falls with the largest volume of water traveling through it and is undoubtedly the best known waterfall on the planet. It receives somewhere between 14 and 20 million visitors annually. It has three separate parts: American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls and Horseshoe, or Canadian Falls.

Chutes Kongou

Also known as Kongou Falls, Chutes Kongou measures 10,500 feet wide, making it the world’s third largest existing waterfall. It’s part of the Ivindo River in Gabon, and is roughly 185 feet tall. Among the most powerful waterfalls in the world, roughly 31,800 cubic feet of water f low down it each second. It is located within the Ivindo National Park, which was set up to protect the biodiversity of the Ivindo River.

Salto Para

Salto Para, or Para Falls, is an 18,400-foot wide waterfall on the Rio Caura in the Bolivar region of Venezuela. These half-moon-shaped falls are formed where two parts of the river come together and drop down almost 200 feet, each side of which is a green jungle island.

Chutes de Khone

Chutes de Khone—also known as Khone Falls—is the largest waterfall in the world. At 35,376 feet wide, it’s almost twice the width of its next largest competitor. The falls are part of the Mekong River in Laos, and occur where the river divides into seven large channels and many more smaller ones. It’s made up of several different rapids and falls, pouring down from a height of 69 feet.

【推荐1】Young male African elephants show calmer behavior when older, more experienced male elephants are around, according to a new study. Experts say the discovery could help to protect both elephants and humans.

Researchers from the University of Exeter, in south-west England and the charity Elephants for Africa studied the behavior of 281 male elephants (known as bulls) in Botswana’s Makgadikgadi Pans National Park over three years. At between 12 and 15 years old, bull elephants leave the herd where they grow up and then spend much of their time either alone or with other males. Females, in contrast, stay with the herd they were born into.

To see if there were patterns in the way males behaved after leaving their herd, the researchers divided them into four groups: two groups of adolescents (aged 10-15 or 16-20 years old), and two groups of adults (aged 21-25 or over 26 years old). They found that the younger males were more likely to be aggressive towards non-elephant targets, such as other animals and vehicles when there were fewer older adult bulls to mix with. Connie Allen from the University of Exeter, who led the study, suggests this may be because the young bulls on their own are less experienced at identifying threats to their safety. That means they are more likely to become fearful, which makes them attack.

Allen said the research revealed an important role for older male elephants who have often been thought of as not very useful in elephant society. This mistaken belief has led wildlife authorities to allow some hunting of older males, reducing their numbers and their possible calming influence on younger bulls. In the area where the elephants live, 71% of people said they felt that elephants threaten their safety. The research suggests that having more older males could help with the problem.

【推荐2】In ancient Greece, purslane herb (马齿苋) was regarded as an important medicinal herb for treatment of fever, female disorders, stomachaches, and headaches, and Hippoctrates, the famous father of medicine, practically tried it for the healing of wounds. Purslane herb was later considered as a cold herb around the 17th. Century.

Purslane is today known as a beneficial juicy herb found as a weed throughout the world. Purslane is commonly used as an ingredient for salads. Purslane has been recently identified as an excellent source of alpha-linolenic acid (亚麻酸). Alpha-linolenic is a kind of an omega-3 fatty acid, also known as fish oil. This important content in purslane herb plays an important role in human growth, development and preventing disease. Modern medical research claims that purslane herb is five times richer in omega-3 fatty acids than another vegetable, and also is high in vitamin C.

Purslane has small, green leaves, which are usually delicate and juicy. The stem is round and smooth. Young plants have a green stem but as the plant matures the stems take on reddish colors. Flowers are 1/4 inch long and a brilliant yellow in color with 5 petals (花瓣), which contain round black seeds. Purslane herb presents a wide variety of medical uses and each part of the herb is beneficial. Purslane herb is widely used all over the world and here is its known benefit: Purslane is known as an excellent source of vitamins C and E and the essential alpha-linolenic acids.

Reports describe purslane as power food of the future because of its high value of nutrition and medicine. Purslane leaves contain Omega-3 fatty acids which regulate the metabolic (新陈代谢) activities of bodies. The stems of purslane herb are known to be high in vitamin C. Purslane-herb is known to have one of the best known concentrations of Omega-3 fatty acid.

【推荐3】“I don’t feel like I’m very good at drawing real people in the real world,” says Axel Scheffler. The illustrator (插图画家) is famous for his unusual and wonderful pictures of animals, but now the COVID-19 pandemic has brought him back into the real world.

The elder illustrator has just helped to produce what must have been one of the fastest books in history. Coronavirus: A Book for Children was written, illustrated and then published for free online in the space of a week!

Facts are important but the book is also frank about the uncertainty the world faces. There’s a chapter on vaccines (疫苗) which explains that the disease is new and currently has no cure. “Honesty is crucial for children of any age, you have to have their trust,” said Scheffler. The book deals with issues such as not seeing grandparents and coping with annoyed parents who might be trying to work from home themselves at a stressful time. The reaction to the book has been overwhelming.

“I’m not a doctor or a nurse but as an illustrator this was something I could do to help and I feel proud that it has had this amazing response,” said Scheffler.

Like all good children’s stories, the book ends on a positive note. There’s a picture of families, doctors and nurses celebrating together and the caption (说明文字) reads “One day this strange time will be over.” Scheffler said, “Right now, hope is very important for children, because one day this pandemic will indeed be over and then perhaps we can stand close together again as the characters do on the last page of this book.”