【推荐3】Hoping to live on the moon one day? Your chances just got a tiny bit better. Researchers found that lunar pits and caves reach stable temperatures, making them potentially suitable for human life.

Planetary scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles have been doing the research. Although much of the moon’s surface temperatures ranges from as high as 260 degrees during the day to as low as 280 degrees below zero at night, the moon has pits and caves where temperatures stay at roughly 63 degrees Fahrenheit, making human habitation a possibility, according to their new research.

For perspective, a day or night on the moon equals a little over two weeks on the earth—making long-term research and habitation difficult with such extremely hot and cold temperatures. Researchers say these stable spots could transform the future of lunar exploration and long-term habitation. The shadowed areas of these pits could also offer protection from harmful elements, such as solar radiation, universal rays and micrometeorites (微小陨石).

About 16 of the over 200 discovered pits most likely come from collapsed lava tubes—tunnels that form from cooled lava or crust, according to Tyler Horvath, a UCLA doctoral student and head of the research. The researchers think overhangs inside of these lunar pits, which were initially discovered in 2009, could be the reason for the stable temperature.

The research team also includes UCLA professor of planetary science David Paige and Paul Hayne at the University of Colorado Boulder. “Humans evolved living in caves, and to caves we might return when we live on the moon,” said Paige in a UCLA press release.

There are still plenty of other challenges to establishing any sort of long-term human residence on the moon—including growing food and providing enough oxygen. The researchers made clear that NASA has no immediate plans to establish a base camp or habitations there.

【推荐1】Over the past few decades, children have been taking part less in free play and more in organized sports. While participation in organized sports has both social and physical benefits for young children, concerns about safety and benefits increase as participants get younger.

Though most children are naturally likely to be physically active, not all kids are willing to get up and move. Soccer coach Joseph Luxbacher says, “Every kid has the potential to be a good sportsman in different kinds of sports. Participating in organized sports such as the school soccer team introduces direction to children’s physical activities. Following a team schedule gives kids a set time and place to exercise. As a result, kids can be safe from accidents and be protected against hurt.”

What’s more, participating in organized sports gives children time to communicate with others and showing good sportsmanship. For young children who may still be very self-centered, participating in team sports teaches them to think about the group and encourages them to be happy about the success of their teammates. Kids can also benefit from spending time with their coach and having a chance to develop a positive relationship with an adult other than their parents, especially if the coach is both skilled and devoted to being a positive mentor.

Playing organized sports requires a lot of time for practice and games, so it would seem that this could influence students’ study. Actually it can ameliorate students’ test performance. That’s because to play organized sports well, players have to memorize information, do repetitive actions, and learn from teammates. All these types of learning skills can make students score higher.

Though it can come from many different sources——parents, coaches, teammates or themselves——many children who participate in organized sports feel pressured to succeed. While a little stress can be helpful in leading children to perform with increased focus and strength, too much stress will leave young kids feeling very tired. Organized sports are more likely to put the right amount of pressure on them.

【推荐3】This spring, Facebook revealed that it’s developing a version of Instagram for children under 13 years old that gives kids the chance to connect with friends and family without seeing ads or being targeted by child predators(奴役儿童者).

But as any caregiver or parent knows,  screens are addictive. Many adults can’t tear themselves away from their smartphones, computers, and televisions. And children are even less prepared to resist the lure. As is reported, kids between the ages of 8 and 12 already spend 1,200 hours a year in front of screens. What’s more, child-protection advocates also worry that Facebook, which owns Instagram, won’t be able to adequately protect young users’ privacy or stop them from cyberbullying.

Erin Wilkey Oh, content director at the nonprofit Common Sense Media, says, “Social media could benefit younger kids if it’s done thoughtfully. But Facebook’s track record shows the company may not really do what it promises. Plus, there are already ways for children to connect with family and friends online. Do they really need another app to make them spend more time on their devices?”

The relationship between kids and social media is more complicated than it seems. A 2020 survey conducted by Common Sense Media found that even though social media use was linked to depression and anxiety, many teens also saw social media as a way to access critical information about their mental and physical health and connect with their peers.

Despite the outcry(强烈抗议), Facebook doesn’t seem to slow its plans to roll out the app. So parents can minimize the potentially negative impacts. Parents can create a set of rules that details how much screen time kids are allowed each week and what they can watch. It’s not perfect, but it can help families balance screen time with exercise, and real-life social interactions that are vital to children’s well-being.

【推荐3】Imagine a plate holding two strawberries, similar in appearance. One came out of a supermarket box, meaning it was probably harvested before it is fully grown, immediately placed in a forced-air cooling unit, loaded onto a refrigerated truck and driven hundreds of miles. By the time it reached the plate two weeks may have passed. The other strawberry was picked from a garden minutes before being eaten.

The first one will probably not taste good as expected. The second is likely to be sweet; the flavor will remain in the mouth. Supermarket strawberries are not entirely without advantages: they are convenient and available even in winter. But the two berries differ from each other in the same way that hearing music in a concert hall differs from listening to an MP3. The home-grown fruit is an eatable case for planting a home garden.

Planting cool-weather greens can seem meaningless as well-stocked supermarket shelves are available all week. But the same could be said of cooking: cheap and good restaurants everywhere, so why bother to make your own meals?

That attitude fails to understand the basic appeal of gardening: it mistakes the product for the purpose. It is true that a garden can produce tomatoes and carrots that taste like themselves rather than the plastic they are usually packaged in. Finding some favorite vegetables in the shops can take some time, effort and expense; growing your own vegetables, rare or routine, ensures a reliable supply.

On the other hand, a garden, especially in the early years, can also produce frustration. Creative gardeners may plant the wrong crops for their soil. Little animals may have the habit of taking single bites of cucumbers, beans and tomatoes. And even expert gardeners can lose a season’s harvest to uncooperative weather.

No matter. The real joy of gardening is the time spent doing it. The deepest pleasure- -as with cooking, writing, bringing up children or almost anything worthwhile- -is in the work itself. A gardener’s memories center not around the food produced, but around long summer afternoons with hands in the dirt of a home garden, surrounded by family. To garden is to patiently and lovingly help life grow, in the ground and above it.