Humans share Earth with many different kinds of wildlife. However, many of our animal and plant friends may not be around for much longer. According to a recent report on biodiversity, 1 million of Earth's 8 million species (物种) are in danger of extinction(灭绝).

Humans are mainly responsible for the danger. According to the report, the world's population has doubled in the last 50 years. Humans have used over a third of the world's land and 75% of fresh water to grow crops and keep animals. As a result, there are fewer habitats and fewer natural resources available.

Because of human activities, the global rate of species extinction over the past 50 years has been higher than it has averaged over the past 10 million years. The species extinction could have serious effects on ecosystems. We fail to notice when losing one species, then another, then… These are the types of changes we're observing where entire ecosystems break down. These developments lead scientists to believe that there could be a sixth mass extinction, the first to be caused by humans. No one want to experience one mass extinction like the one where the dinosaurs that died out last time.

Aimed at solving the problem, many countries have taken action. For example, China has banned the use of rhino horn and tiger bones, and the ivory trade, reported China Daily. According to Huffpost, there are things that we can do personally to save species. For example, don't buy products made from illegal ( 非法的)wildlife parts and reduce water waste. “Each individual action has an effect and every person can make a difference - through a mass we can turn the tide,” said Claudia Sobrevila, from Global Wildlife Program, according to official website of the WorldBank.

【推荐2】Cats in ancient Egypt

Many of us love cats. They are beautiful, soft, clever and loving. The ancient Egyptians (埃及人) considered cats, also known as Mau, to be very important. They honored them with great respect.     1    

For one thing, cats helped people by keeping their homes free of mice, rats, and snakes. Without cats Egypt could not have been the important grain-growing (谷物种植) center that it was.     2     Though I don’t know what other pets the Egyptians had, cats were probably the most important. Cats were also trained to help hunters.     3    

The Egyptians loved cats so much that Bast, an Egyptian goddess, was pictured in the form of a cat. Bast appeared in artwork. She was the protector of the house. This idea made a special connection between cats and children.     4    

The safety of all cats was of great concern to ancient Egyptians.     5     Foreigners sometimes took cats out of Egypt secretly and took them to other lands. Egyptian soldiers were sent to pick up cats found in other countries and bring them back home to Egypt.

【推荐1】In a policy address to lawmakers, Japan’s Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, said the country’s population problem was a case of solving the issue “now or never”, and that it “simply cannot wait any longer because it can affect social functions”.

“In thinking of the sustainability and inclusiveness (包容) of our nation’s economy and society, we place child care support as our most important policy,” he said, adding that he wants the government to double its spending on child-related programs, and that a new government agency would be set up in April to focus on the issue.

Japan has one of the lowest birth rates in the world, and it recorded fewer than 800, 000 births in 2022 for the first time since records began in 1899. The country also has one of the highest aging of population in the world; in 2020, nearly one in 1, 500 people in Japan were age 100 or older, according to government data.

These trends have driven a growing population problem, with a rapidly aging society, a shrinking workforce and not enough young people to fill the gaps in the stagnating (停滞) economy. The country’s high cost of living, limited space and lack of child care support in cities make it difficult to raise children, meaning fewer couples are having kids. Experts point to the pessimism young people in Japan hold towards the future, many frustrated with work pressure and economic stagnation.

How about other parts of East Asia? South Korea recently broke its own record for the world’s lowest birth rate, with data from November 2023 showing a South Korean woman will have an average of 0.79 children in her lifetime-far below the 2.1 needed to maintain a stable population. Japan’s birth rate stands at 1.3, while the United States is at 1.6. Meanwhile, China’s population shrank in 2022 for the first time, adding pressure to its economic growth.

【推荐3】For those of us who have ever been to Ocean Park, the best part was probably seeing the beautiful and friendly dolphins. And the luckier people among us may have even had the chance to swim with these amazing creatures. At the same time, however, we can’t help but think that these animals would be happier in the wild, rather than be forced to perform for humans in captivity (圈养).

According to a recent study though, we needn’t think like that. The study, which was published in the journal Applied Animal Behaviour Science, was led by scientist.

As the first of its kind, the study’s aim was to look at captivity from the animals’ point of view, according to BBC News. Over the course of three years, Clegg and her team put together a series of experiments to figure out how captive dolphins felt about their lives. “We wanted to find out what activities in captivity they like most,” she told BBC News.

There were three kinds of experiment : one in which the dolphins were let alone, one in which toys were added to their pool, and one in which a human played with the dolphins.

It was found that of the three types of experiment, the dolphins seemed to enjoy playing with humans the most. “Their leaping from the water during training and their curious approaches to the edge of the pool appeared to be enthusiastic,” wrote BBC News science correspondent Victoria Gill. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean dolphins are happier in captivity than they are in the wild.

According to wildlife and nature platform One Green Planet, being raised in captivity could actually be harmful to dolphins. “By being born into captivity, they will never learn the skills necessary to survive in the wild. This means that any animal that is born in captivity can never be sent back into the wild,” it wrote on its website.

But while this may be true, at least it seems that captive dolphins still enjoy happy moments with humans.

【推荐1】Ice volcanoes erupted on the shores of Lake Michigan last weekend, and an employee from National Weather Service ( NWS) caught sight of an astonishing scene on the spot. “You never know what you'll find at the lake until you go out there," the employee said, "Today it were volcanoes. ”

Despite their nickname, ice volcanoes aren't really volcanoes at all. They form at the edges of lakes, where thin sheets of ice form, and water shoots through holes in the ice, Water flows beneath the ice sheet and builds up enough pressure to push water to the surface. If the air above is cold enough, the released water freezes over the surrounding ground, forming a mini volcano of sorts.

Ice volcanoes can be very dangerous to climb on because they are empty inside and built over that hole in the ice. Although some frozen volcanoes were discovered a few years ago, it is still rare to witness one.

Ice volcanoes typically form near large bodies of water where freezing temperatures below allow an ice shelf to form over the water’s surface along the coastline. Meanwhile, waves beneath the shelf must be strong enough to crack the ice and push water out. For this reason, ice volcanoes tend to form along shorelines where winds blow up waves constantly.

For example, when the Oval Beach volcanoes were spotted, the wind was almost due west, which was perfect for pushing waves right into the shoreline at this location. Due to their superior size, the Great Lakes may be more likely to form ice volcanoes along their shores than smaller lakes.

So if you want to see an ice volcano in person, the Great Lakes may be your best choice—but be cautious where you step!

【推荐2】Do you need a human to create a beautiful scent (气味)? That’s the question being asked as artificial intelligence (AI) starts to enter the perfume(香水) industry.

Companies are increasingly turning to technology in order to create more bestselling, unique fragrances that can be produced in just minutes. Last year, Swiss-based fragrance developer Givaudan Fragrances launched Carto, an artificial intelligence-powered tool to help perfumers(调香师). Through machine learning (a way computers improve outcomes automatically by learning from past results) Carto can suggest combinations of ingredients.

Using a touch screen, the perfumer can pull together different scents using data from the brand’s vast library of fragrance formulas (配方) — a much more efficient process than using traditional forms. A small robot immediately processes the fragrances into perfumes, making it easier for perfumers to test their new scents.

German fragrance house Symrise has gone one step further and teamed up with IBM Research to create an AI called Philyra. Like Carto, Philyra can’t actually sniff anything. But it is not designed to replace perfumers.

“It’s machine-learning and sometimes the results have been wrong,” says Claire Viola, vice president of digital strategy fragrance at Symrise. “It’s still a project, the more we test, the more it continues to improve. It constantly needs training.”

【推荐3】People do better when more is expected of them. In education circles, this is called the Pygmalion Effect.

The Pygmalion effect got its name from the story of Pygmalion, a mythica（虚构的）Greek sculptor. Pygmalion carved a statue of a woman and then fell in love with it. He appealed to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, who brought the statue to life and helped the couple get married. Just as Pygmalion’s fixation on the statue brought it to life, our focus on a student can do the same in schools. Research by Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson examined the influence of teachers’ expectations on students’ performance. They began by testing the IQ of elementary school students. Teachers were told that the IQ test showed around one-fifth of their students to be unusually intelligent. But unknown to the teachers, the “gifted” students were chosen at random. Actually they had no big statistical advantage over the other kids. As the study period ended, all students had their IQs retested. Both groups showed an improvement. Yet those who were described as intelligent experienced much greater gains in their IQ points. Rosenthal and Jacobson owed this result to the Pygmalion effect. Teachers paid more attention to “gifted” students, offering more support and encouragement than they would otherwise.

In general, teachers have the power to influence how the students behave by holding high expectations. If a teacher thinks a student is brilliant, they will treat them as such. The student then gets more opportunities to develop their ability, and their performance improves. This works both ways. When a student expects a teacher to be excellent or successful, they tend to be attentive and supportive. In the process, they improve their performance, too. Students who act interested in lectures create interesting lecturers.

【推荐1】There are many good places for a family to have fun together. Here are some of them.

Phone: (904)209-0385

With 28.000 square feet of ground, the Robert Skatepark has plenty of room for skateboarders of all ages and abilities. We have pipes, rails, ledges, banks and a 9-and-half-foot pool to challenge even the most experienced skaters. Rules are posted. There are also picnic tables and benches.

Phone:(904)630-4100

Located in Jacksonville's Westside, it offers after-school and summer camp activities for youths aged 6 through 12. The facility (设施) also has a computer lab and community space. The park also offers basketball courts, playground, picnic areas, trails, three youth baseball fields and two soccer fields. A highlight of the park is the "Field of Dreams"-Miracle League field, where children with special needs are able to experience playing in their own baseball league.

Phone: (904)247-6236

This is a really fun park with lots of playground equipment for children of all ages. The park has gone through a recent renovation(修复) and now has bathrooms, jogging trails, basketball courts, tennis courts and picnic shelters. Try our Automatic Player Matching Service. At $ 6. 99 per month, and we will match you with other tennis partners automatically.

Phone:(904)630-0837

It is located along the beautiful St. Johns River in Downtown Jacksonville. Since its opening in 1984, this once empty 27-acre facility offers something for everyone. Whether you prefer relaxing in the cool river breezes or listening to big-name entertainment at one of the many outdoor concerts, you'll have fun here. Metropolitan Park is also a perfect place for corporate events and family picnics.

【推荐2】For the last eight years, Jo Meade rode her bike each Sunday on a 16-mile round trip to her job washing dishes. It took more than an hour each way. Other days of the week she would spend two   hours on three buses from her apartment to get to the other work, for a four-hour round trip.

That was the “before” part of her life. The “after” part of her life was started by the community Police Officer Trevor Arnold, who delivered a used car to her with the help of a car dealer and other donors.

Arnold, who spotted Meade, red and sweaty, riding her bike in the worst heat this summer, decided he would get her a car. He intended to quietly buy her a used car out of his own pocket so he turned to his friend Kody Slaght, a car salesman, to ask about a car priced $ 1,000. That wasn’t enough for a reliable ride, Slaght said, but the dealership said they would find a good car for her at a good price. Soon others were donating. Slaght and Arnold wouldn’t say how much the car cost, but the value is about $ 4,000.

Arnold said he was motivated by Meade’s work ethic (职业道德) to help. “I see a lot of hardworking people but that’s when they are at work. Can you imagine spending four hours of your day getting to and from work?” he said.

Meade’s boss said she was awesome and really reliable when she worked and she got along with others. “She’s willing to ride the three buses to get in here on her day off if we need her to.”

Meade said she was planning to buy a car, “but I haven’t been able to afford it,” she said. “Trevor, he is a very good guy. I did not expect this.”

【推荐3】It doesn’t matter if books are delivered in print or by smart phone; the main thing is to get lost in reading them. Reading books is vital for human development.

Why should we bother reading a book? All children say this occasionally. Many of the 12 million adults in Britain with reading difficulties repeat it to themselves daily. In a world of advanced technology, increasing time poverty and decreasing attention should they invest precious time sinking into a good book?

The discovery that our brains are physically changed by the experience of reading is something many of us will understand instinctively, as we think back to the way an extraordinary book had a transformative effect on the way we viewed the world. This transformation only takes place when we lose ourselves in a book, abandoning the emotional and mental chatter of the real world. That’s why studies have found this kind of deep reading makes us more sensitive to the inner lives of others.

Reasoningly, we know that reading is the foundation stone of all education, and therefore an essential basis of the knowledge economy. So reading is - or should be - an aspect of public policy. But perhaps even more significant is its emotional role as the starting point for individual voyages of personal development and pleasure. Books can open up emotional, imaginative and historical landscapes that equal and extend the corridors of the web. They can help create and strengthen our sense of self. If reading were to decline significantly, it would change the very nature of our species. However, technology throws up as many solutions as it does challenges: for every door it closes, another opens. So the ability, offered by devices like e-readers, smart phones and tables, to carry an entire library in your hand is an amazing opportunity. Publishers need to use every new piece of technology to embed (嵌入) long-form reading within our culture