【推荐1】Amid weak job and housing markets, consumers are saving more and spending less than they have in decades and industry professionals expect that trend to continue. Consumers saved 6.4 percent of their after-tax income in June. Before the recession, the rate was 1 to 2 percent for many years. In June, consumer spending and personal incomes were essentially flat compared with May, suggesting that the American economy, as dependent as it is on shoppers opening their wallets and purses, isn’t likely to rebound anytime soon.

On the bright side, the practices that consumers have adopted in response to the economic crisis ultimately could make them happier. New studies of consumption and happiness show, for instance, that people are happier when they spend money on experiences instead of material objects, when they relish what they plan to buy long before they buy it, and when they stop trying to outdo the Joneses.

If consumers end up sticking with their newfound spending habits, some tactics (策略) that retailers and marketers began using during the recession could become lasting business strategies. Among those strategies are offering goods that makes being at home more entertaining and trying to make consumers feel special by giving them access to exclusive events and more personal customer service.

While the current round of stinginess may simply be a response to the economic downturn, some analysts say consumers may also be permanently adjusting their spending based on what they’ve discovered about what truly makes them happy or fulfilled.

“This actually is a topic that hasn’t been researched very much until recently,” says Elizabeth W. Dunn, an associate professor in the psychology department at the University of British Columbia, who is at the forefront of research on consumption and happiness. There’s massive literature on income and happiness. It’s amazing how little there is on how to spend your money.

Studies over the last few decades have shown that money, up to a certain point, makes people happier because it lets them meet basic needs. The latest round of research is, for lack of a better term, all about emotional efficiency: how to reap the most happiness for your dollar.

So just where does happiness reside for consumers? Scholars and researchers haven’t determined whether Armani will put a bigger smile on your face than Dolce & Gabbana. But they have found that our types of purchases, their size and frequency, and even the timing of the spending all affect long-term happiness.

One major finding is that spending money for an experience — concert tickets, French lessons, sushi-rolling classes, a hotel room in Monaco — produces longer-lasting satisfaction than spending money on plain old stuff.

“‘It’s better to go on a vacation than buy a new couch’ is basically the idea,” says Professor Dunn.

Thomas DeLeire, an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin discovered that the only category to be positively related to happiness was leisure: vacations, entertainment, sports and equipment like golf clubs and fishing poles.

【推荐2】China has long been tipped to be the next Silicon Valley, but now the   finances   and support are in place to make it happen.

There   is a growing consensus   ( 共 识 ) that while Silicon Valley   is not   about   to   disappear anytime soon, its next biggest rival is already on the verge of bursting onto the international   scene — not in the US, nor in the EU, but in Asia. More specifically, China.

This is not just an observation based on the rise of companies like Alibaba, Baidu   and Tencent. It is grounded in a more widespread move to fund start-ups in Asia to the point where more money is being invested there than in Europe. Just five years ago, Europe and Asia are neck and neck in terms of investment.

In 2013, Europe made slightly more deals, 1550 compared to Asia’s 1071, but the total value   of investment was $7bn. Just five years later, Asia is now four times the size of Europe with twice as many deals carried out.

Between 2013 to 2018, the number of deals in Asia increased nearly fivefold, and their value leapt to $81bn, compared to the $21bn raised in Europe. The Asian figure also shows that the continent is closing the gap on the US which saw $105bn worth of deals.

One of the main reasons that makes the country so attractive is not just the huge growth in investment and high education standards, but also local and national governmental support benefiting tech companies.

In fact, one of the conclusions of a recent Fortune tech conference was that China’s tech companies will soon be beating American companies on their home turf. One of the reasons is that investors believe US immigration policy is making it more difficult for the best talent around the world to find work there. Plus, Chinese companies are now able to start paying salaries that can keep pace with those on offer in Silicon Valley.

Hence, when Ian Roger, Chief Digital Official at luxury group LVMH was asked where he thought the next Facebook or Google would come from, he suggested it would be a close call between Silicon Valley and China. The latter had the investment that is needed as well as a hard work culture of a six-day week. It also has a superb education system and a huge population.

As Silicon Valley appears to be heating up a little too hard for some people, China would appear to be warming up at just the right pace.

【推荐3】For centuries, people have kept large amounts of cash at home during difficult times. But during the coronavirus（冠状病毒）crisis, things are different. Metal coins and paper bills can be a source of worry rather than hope.

The fear is that these objects, possibly touched by thousands of people, could provide a way for the coronavirus to spread. Public officials and health experts have said that the risk is small. Still, some businesses refuse to accept cash and some countries have suggested that their citizens should stop using it altogether.

Zachary Cohle is an economics professor at Quinnipiac University in Connecticut. “In many areas, cash was already beginning to disappear due to the increased risk of robbery, the ease of Internet ordering, and the ubiquity（无处不在）of cell phones,” he said. “Sweden, Finland, Norway, Canada and others have slowly reduced cash use to the point where using it in large amounts seems unusual. Britain and Australia are expected to become cashless countries. And in China, cash use has dropped as electronic payment services have increased in popularity over the past ten years.”

“Cash ist Fesch” is a common saying in Austria and southern Germany. The words mean cash is beautiful. But since the virus outbreak, shops that have remained open there, like grocery stores, have encouraged people to pay with cards. And Germany’s central bank said 43 percent of Germans recently paid for goods and services with a card. The Bank of Japan estimates that cash makes up for 53 percent of household assets (财产). But the threat of the coronavirus could move the country toward going cashless, said Hiroki Maruyama, head of the nonprofit Fintech Association of Japan. He added, “The culture is slowly changing.”

However, cash use is still common in places like West and Central Africa, where many are too poor to pay for the cost of banking services. Dorothy Harpool teaches at Wichita State University’s W. Frank Barton School of Business. Harpool thought some people would rethink their use of cash during the crisis, but she said the world would not be cashless until everyone and every country has reliable access to the Internet.

【推荐1】National Zoo in Australia

OPEN TIME

9: 30 am-5: 00 pm every day of the year, except Christmas Day.

TICKET PRICES

Children: 3-15 years $26

Students: 16 years or above with student card $40

Seniors Card/ Aged Pension(退休金) Card Holders:$40

Adults: $47

Family: 2 adults and up to 3 children: $130

CARERS FOR SPECIAL VISITORS

Carers for visitors with disabilities are admitted free of charge. Carers ID is required upon entry.

COMPANION CARD holders receive free entry, as well as their carers.

Please note, we aren’t a government funded zoo and don’t receive a subsidy (补贴) to accept many of the government concession (减价票).

GROUP RATES

If you are visiting the zoo in a group of 10 or more, you may qualify for our Special Group rates on General Entry prices.

DAILY ACTIVITIES & KEEPER TALKS

Make the most of your zoo visit and check out our daily keeper activities. There are great opportunities to see animals in action. Watch them enjoy a treat and interact with their keepers as they receive a feed.

On weekends and during school holidays, additional Keeper Talks are added to the schedule and visitors have the chance to meet or even feed some of our wonderful animals!

WALK ON THE WILDSIDE

Become a zoo keeper for a day with the ultimate all day wildlife experience.

ZOOVENTURE TOUR

Hand feed a tiger, and pat a rhino, which may be your most unforgettable experience.

GETTING HERE

BY CAR

We are located on Lady Denman Drive, next to Scrivener Dam. Find us on Google Maps.

BY PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Unfortunately, there are no bus services running to the zoo at present.

【推荐3】Technology is changing every aspect of our life and tooth brushing is no exception. The Amabrush, the world’s first automatic toothbrush, promises to clean your pearly white teeth in just 10 seconds and no effort is required on your part.

You may have never thought about it before, but you lose tens of hours a year just in brushing you teeth. A team of biotech engineers want to change that with the help of technology. Their seemingly revolutionary invention, called Amabrush, looks more like a mouth guard than a toothbrush. but promises to clean all your teeth completely in only 10 seconds, using the vibration （振动） created by a small motor （马达）,rather than repeated hand movements.

The Amabrush consists of two major parts: a soft mouthpiece that goes into your mouth, and a hand Piece that contains the motor and a micro pump （微量泵）。The automatic toothbrush uses special toothpaste capsules（牙膏胶囊） that are connected to the hand piece. They cost $3. 40 and are supposed to last about a month, if you use the Amabrush twice a day. Like normal toothbrushes, the silicone mouthpiece should be changed every 3-6 months. The price for a replacement is $7.

To create the silicone mouthpiece. the makers of the Amabrush analyzed 2, 000 jaws of both men and women, to come up with a one-size-fits-all product. They say that any small differences in jaw size are removed by the soft material. so the Amabrush fits any jaw with no abnormal teeth displacements.

The device requires charging, but the good news is that the single charge is supposed to last for 28 brushing sessions, which are equal to about two weeks of two daily uses. "The Amabrush can brush your teeth in just 10 seconds, because all your teeth are cleaned at the same time, "the creators of the Amabrush say.

It seems that people have been waiting for something like this, because the Amabrush reached its crowd funding goal in just one hour. It’s amazing to see a product that has remained unchanged for hundreds of years get a major technological improvement.