【推荐1】Five times stronger than steel, spider silk’s unique qualities were recognised by the Ancient Greeks-and more recently, scientists have looked at applications from medicine to engineering.

Now, one Japanese startup, Spiber, is exploring how spider web s could transform the clothing industry. The biotech company started by making a spider-silk-like material in the lab and has since expanded its fabric range to include more sustainable alternatives to wool and cashmere, says Kenji Higashi, head of business development at Spiber.

Spiders create web s by giving out liquid protein that will later change into silk. Kazuhide Sekiyama and Junichi Sugahara, Spiber’s founders, decided to create a material that is identical to spider silk. They studied “thousands of different spider species,” as well as other silk-producing species, and collected a database of silk varieties.

Having successfully produced the spider silk alternative, the team went on to develop a range of fabrics by changing the protein order. Spiber’s fibers are made by fermenting(发酵) water, sugar and nutrients with specially modified microbes (改良微生物) in steel tanks to produce protein polymers to be made into a fiber. Later, the team discovered that the spider silk alternative shrinks(收缩) when wet, so they modified the protein to get a fiber with desirable properties, such as water proof and increased strength, which is suitable for an outdoor jacket.

Fashion is one of the most polluting industries in the world. It produces around 2.1 billion metric tons of CO₂ every year. Higashi says Spiber’s biodegradable products are predicted to generate just one-fifth of the carbon emissions of animal-based fibers once they are in mass production. And it is now developing a process that will transform abandoned clothes made from natural materials like cotton into the sugars needed for fermentation.

Currently trying to expand its production and getting ready for a full commercial launch of its products, Spiber hopes its technology will help to “solve some of the big global challenges that we’re facing,” says Higashi.

【推荐2】Scientists based in Japan’s Osaka University have found a way to 3D print wagyu beef in a lab — a step they believe will one day help make widely available and sustainably-produced cuts of cultured meat that closely resemble original products.

Using stem cells that they took from wagyu cows, the scientists set out to create a structure with the characteristic marbling (or sashi) seen in wagyu beef that sets it apart from other cuts of beef.

By isolating beef cells, the scientists organized how the muscles, blood vessels and fat should be arranged. The researchers then shaped these tissues into the form of a steak using a technique called 3D bio-printing, where cell structures can be layered to resemble real tissues in living things.

The researchers believe that proving that a wagyu steak can be accurately 3D-printed could be a big step toward a sustainable future where cultured meat can be created that closely resembles existing products. Its origins from real meat also differentiate it from plant-based options, like those created by Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods.

“By improving this technology, it will be possible to not only reproduce complex meat structures, such as the beautiful marbling (sashi) of Wagyu beef but to also make delicate adjustments to the fat and muscle components.” Michiya Matsusaki, one of the project's researchers, said in a statement. Michiya Matsusaki said that with these adjustments, customers might one day be able to order a cultured cut of meat with the amount of fat they desire, tailor-made to their tastes and health concerns.

While this might be the first cut of wagyu beef ever to be 3D-printed, other attempts have been made to bio-print steaks. In February this year, Aleph Farms and the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology-jointly bio-printed and cultivated a steak using real cow cells.

【推荐1】The first U. S. cookbook was published in 1796, and since then, they have provided insight into different times in American history.

Cookbooks tell us what foods were available during the period the books were written. If you see a lot of recipes for things that are preserved for pickles (腌菜), you know that you’re looking at a time without refrigeration. In the late 1860s, many recipes started paying more attention to food bacteria concerns and healthy-seeming foods, reflecting society’s growing knowledge of both subjects. Cookbooks show that meal planning changed in the 1930s, when refrigerators became more common in American homes.

Early cookbooks were also lifestyle guides. So, there were not only some recipes for food, but recipes for a cleaning solvent (溶剂) or what to do when your child were poisoned, how to clean, and how to get spots out.

Cookbooks became more diversified and regional after the Civil War. Southern writers, and some Northern writers, began publishing cookbooks in an attempt to memorialize, and beautify, the American South. They became very successful and they really helped to develop a sense of what southern hospitality was. Community cookbooks, edited by more than one person, often as a fundraiser or for charity, ultimately provide insight into what middle-class Americans were eating at a given time, as well as a statement about neighborhoods and groups.

Cookbooks, however, sort of stop being a comprehensive reflection of society now. You really have to think about the publishing world and who it is, where it is, and what it wants. The publishing world doesn’t necessarily have the goal of representing the truth of Americans because it wants to make money. But publishing’s control of the storytelling has loosened. Social media and food blogs have led to the freedom of conversations around food, recipes and cooking, giving consumers more power.

But that doesn’t mean that the golden age of cookbooks is over. Cookbooks are still one of the most popular books out there and are purchased regularly. They’re very good to give as gifts. They’re very, very popular because they’re sort of neutral (中立的). And everyone loves a cookbook, especially with beautiful pages.

【推荐2】And you’re smiling, because you feel totally at peace with the world. This is the runner’s high — the strange excitement that sets in after a long bout of aerobic (有氧的) exercise.

The most obvious way to get a runner’s high is to start running, particularly long-distance running. It may take several miles for the effects to kick in, though it’s difficult to quantify(量化)exactly when, where and for how long a runner’s high will occur. And not every runner — or every run — will be able to produce a runner’s high. This variability has led some snarky Twitter users to conclude that the runner’s high is, in fact, a myth, despite the physiological changes associated with it.

Other aerobic activities, including biking, swimming and strenuous hiking, can trigger the same response without necessarily forcing you to pound the pavement.

Interestingly, humans aren’t the only animals that have exhibited signs of runner’s high. Several experiments have observed a similar phenomenon in mice. Raichlen’s lab has also tested dogs and ferrets (雪貂) by sticking them on a treadmill (跑步机) and looking for exercise-induced excitement, according to research published in the Journal of Experimental Biology. After 30 minutes of running, the dogs appeared at-ease; blood tests revealed elevated levels of endocannabinoids in their systems. “We didn’t see that in the ferrets,” Raichlen said.

One major benefit to achieving a runner’s high is that it makes exercise more enjoyable. By extension, this makes people more likely to stick to an exercise routine, which is a key component of long-term heart health, according to the American Heart Association. There is also good evidence that, over the long term, exercise can help reduce anxiety and stress. So go ahead and lace up your shoes. You’re free to chase that runner’s high as far as it takes you.

【推荐3】Starship Technologies was founded in Estonia but is now based in San Francisco. The company employs dozens of six-wheeled delivery robots on college campuses. Now, Starship is adding four new schools to its operational field: University of Illinois Chicago, University of Kentucky, University of Nevada, Reno and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

At present, the company operates on 20 college campuses in 15 states with a global fleet that totals 1,000 robots. This expansion will add 85 more robots to that fleet. Starship states that it has done over 5 million deliveries worldwide since its founding in 2014. The company has raised $ 102 million so far, including $ 17 million in fresh funding announced earlier this year.

Each robot in Starship is electric, has a box that can fit about 20 pounds of goods, and has a number of cameras to recognize obstacles and help guide it to its destination. The robots have a delivery range of three to four miles and can travel at a maximum speed of 4mph; which is obviously slower than a delivery by a human on a bike or in a car. And they can climb the edge of the road but not stairs, which may limit their appeal to customers who live in high-rise buildings.

Delivery via robots is still relatively neoteric in the US. There are a handful of start-ups operating delivery robots of varying sizes — everything from fully-sized minivans like Udelv to robots that are almost similar to Starship’s like Amazon and Yandex. Recently, Postmates has also invented a delivery robot called Serve that can carry 50 pounds of goods. There are even some newly-produced robots like Nuro, which can be described as a mini-robotic car. All claim to be automated, but some still require humans to follow their movements.

Demand for delivery robots has risen since the pandemic, though it remains to be seen whether that will hold up as the economy reopens and fewer people rely on takeout food from restaurants.