【推荐1】Somewhere between 40,000 and 110,000 tons of plastic waste produced by Americans ends up in the ocean, according to a study published in the journal Science.

It's difficult to point out where all that waste comes from, and researchers think that much or most of it probably comes from the nation's seriously-populated coasts. But there's also evidence that the nation's inland waterways serve as a passage for plastic to travel thousands of miles into the oceans.

While researchers have documented plastic and human trash floating in the world's oceans, there has been relatively little attention paid to plastics in rivers, streams and lakes. "To my knowledge, no one has studied particular routes, with the exception of places like L.A, and Baltimore Harbor where there are measures in place to prevent trash in rivers from entering the ocean." said Kara Lavender Law, an oceanographer.

The few studies that exist, however, suggest that it may be a huge problem. A 2011 study of two southern California urban rivers---including Santa Ana River---found that every square meter of water contained from 125 to 819 pieces larger than 4.75 millimeters. Another survey of the Meuse River, which flows 575 miles through France, Belgium and the Netherlands to the North Sea, found that it contained 70,000 pieces of plastics per square meter of water, about 500 of which were roughly an inch or bigger in size.

If there's anything positive in this, it's you that can do something, at least on a personal level, to reduce the amount of plastic that goes into the oceans. "Put trash where it goes." said Jenna Jambeck, an associate professor of environmental engineering at the University of Georgia. "Use reusable items---bags, cups and bottles---to reduce waste."

Finally, Jambeck urges people to pick up litter along waterways, and record it with a phone app called the Marine Debris Tracker. The data you provide can help scientists to get a better handle on the trash problem.

【推荐3】One million species face extinction, more than ever before in human history, according to a UN report released in May. And humans should be responsible.

The researchers based the assessment (评估) on some 15,000 sources considering the causes and results of environmental changes over the past 50 years.

The findings are clear and alarming. The researchers have found that about 25 percent of the world’s plants and animals are at risk of extinction. These include sea and land animals. Even the domesticated (驯养的) animals are at risk: Over 9 percent of the domesticated animal species used for food and agriculture might have been lost.

There are some big problems. This rapid decrease of the natural world endangers global food safety and quality of life. For example, about 4 billion people rely on natural medicines, produced by the disappearing species, for their health care.

The researchers identified five drivers responsible for the bad news. They think at the top of the list is the change of land and sea use. The change in ecosystems towards agriculture, aquaculture and other human developments has led to changes in the natural living space of species. It is followed by the direct overuse of creatures (harvesting crops, cutting down the trees, hunting and fishing) and climate change, including rising sea levels and increasing extreme-weather events, wildfires, floods and droughts. The final causes of species extinction are pollution, especially plastics, and the spread of non-native species that can kill native plants and animals. In fact, good ecosystems can promote the growth of species.

The researchers say it is time for humans to act. They think maybe a new global way to save food and refuse waste in our life can turn the tables. Whether that is possible is an open question.

【推荐3】Suppose that we lined up our roughly 14 million United States businesses in order of size, starting with the smallest, along an imaginary road from San Francisco to New York. There will be 4,500 businesses to the mile, or a little less than one per foot. Suppose further that we planted a flag for each business. The height of the flag pole represents the yearly volume of sales, each $ 10, 000 in sales is shown by one foot of pole.

The line of flagpoles is a very interesting sight. From San Francisco to about Reno, it is almost unnoticeable, a row of poles about a foot high. From Reno eastward the poles increase in height until, near Columbus, Ohio -- about four-fifths of the way across the nation -- flags fly about 10 feet in the air.

But as we approach the eastern terminus (终点) , the poles suddenly begin to rise. There are about 300, 000 firms in the country with sales over $ 500, 000. These firms take up the last 75 miles of the 3,000-mile road. There are 200, 000 firms with sales over $ 1 million. They take up the last 50 miles. Then there are 1, 000 firms with sales of $ 50, 000, 000 or more. They take up the last quarter of a mile before the city limits, flags flying at cloud height, 5,000 feet up.

At the very gate of New York, on the last 100 feet of the last mile, we find the 100 largest industrial firms. They have sales of at least $ 1.5 billion, so that their flags are already miles high. Along the last 10 feet of road, there are 10 largest companies. Their sales are roughly $ 10 billion and up: their flags fly 190 miles in the air , almost in the stratosphere (平流层) .

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【推荐1】For some in China, the aim of travel is to create 15-second videos on a social-media app, dou yin. As a matter of fact, tourism is for recreation and leisure. The world Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who travel to and stay in places outside their usual environment for more than twenty-four hours.Nowadays, apart from the traditional forms , a variety of new types of traveling are emerging.

Experiential travel

Last year's travel trend was "experiential travel". This is where tourists look for ways to get to know local culture and interact with local people so they feel less like an outsider but more like a resident.

Transformative travel

It usually goes through three stages – you go to a place that has a very different background than where you come from, you learn wisdom from the new culture and the people you meet, and finally you return home and apply the knowledge to your own life and the lives of those around you.

This last stage is how the “transformation” is completed and what separates transformative travel from experiential travel.

Eco-friendly travel

One way to plan a low-impact trip is to travel a shorter distance, which can reduce your carbon footprint. "One trans-Atlantic flight equals a year's worth of driving, so consider planning an adventure closer to home," according to US News.

Dark travel

Chernobyl is one of the most popular examples of the phenomenon known as dark tourism — a term for visiting sites associated with death and suffering, such as Nazi concentration camps in Europe or the 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York.

【推荐2】When author Nicholas Carr began researching his book on whether the Internet is ruining our minds, he restricted his online access and e-mail. His new book argues the latest technology renders us less capable of deep thinking. Carr found himself so distracted (分心的) that he couldn’t work on the book while staying as connected. After first feeling confused by his sudden lack of online connection, he was able to stay focused on one task for a long period within several weeks.

Reading on the Internet has changed how we use our brains. Facing much text, video, music, links to other web pages and blogs, our minds have become used to skimming and scanning information. As a result, we have developed sharper skills at making fast decision, particularly visual ones, Carr wrote.

But now most of us seldom read books, long articles that would help us focus. We are becoming more like librarians than scholars who digest and interpret information. That lack of focus hinders (妨碍)our long-term memory, leading many of us to feel distracted, he wrote.

“What we are losing is a whole other set of mental skills, the ones that require not the shifting of our focus but the maintaining of our focus,” Carr said, adding that for centuries books shielded (保护)our brains from distraction, focusing our minds on one topic at a time.

But with devices such as Apple’s iPad becoming common, Carr predicts books too will change. “New forms of reading always require new forms of writing,” he wrote. Carr has a suggestion for those who feel web surfing has left them incapable of concentration — slow down, turn off the Internet and practice the skills of contemplation (思考)and reflection. “It is pretty clear from the brain science that if you are constantly distracted, you are not going to think in the same way that you would think if you paid attention.”

【推荐3】Their wealth, fame and power put their heads and shoulders above us ordinary. But according to these celebrities, true happiness lies in some of life's simpler pleasures.

David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nigel Farage all claim that their families are the key to their well-being. But others gave unexpected brief ideas about their celebrity lives. The Dutchess of York Sarah Fertguson, 55, revealed that what most keeps her spirits high was a belief in magic and fairies. She said, ''I do believe in fairies. I do believe magic and when you blow a dandelion (蒲公英) , you will see the light of the enchanted (施过魔法的) spreading their wings and disappearing on their own journeys, just like you have today when you opened your eyes. Don't let the day go by without looking for fairies and magic. That makes me happy, as every day is. ''

Meanwhile, former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney revealed that he got his pleasure through his stomach as well as his family. He said, ''I love to hear the noises in the kitchen as the meal is prepared and then my little grandson climbs on my knee and requests a bite for every bite I take. ''

Food was also key to Strictly Come Dancing《舞动奇迹》judge Len Goodman, who said eating a bacon sandwich was enough to put a smile on his face, while rocker Rod Stewart, claimed that a simple cup of tea made him uncontrollably happy.

For our most gifted sports stars, however, it seems that the key to the good life is a faithful dog. Tennis champion Andy Murray said he badly missed Rusty and Maggie May when he was playing in tournaments around the world. Former England striker Gary Lineker agreed, saying, ''Walking my dog makes me happy. '' The joy at the word ''walkies'' never decreases. Such enthusiasm for something so simple is satisfying.

【推荐1】The world’s oceans are some of the most interesting and breathtaking places on the entire planet. A lot of these oceans have witnessed a variety of disappearances and other mysteries, most of which cannot and have not been explained by modern science. Here are some interesting unsolved sea mysteries of the world.

In February 1969, the USS Scorpion, an American submarine, departed from Norfolk, Virginia, on its way towards the Mediterranean. The crew had almost a decade of experience, and yet the sub disappeared and broke into pieces on the sea floor. There were 99 men aboard the sub, all of whom lost their lives.

In the later half of 2014, a mysterious vessel( 大 船 ) was spotted by Swedish citizens, many of whom described it as a Russian submarine, in the Baltic Sea. The military spent much time in investigating, but found no sign of the mysterious sub. The search was named “the hunt for Reds in October.”

During the 1970s, Bermeja Island served as a bit of a marker for Mexico and their economic zone. Around 20 years later, the island disappeared without any sign. Along with the island, numerous important documents about major oil reserves also went missing.

In 2001, ExxonMobil was laying pipeline in the Gulf of Mexico when they ran into a shipwreck around 2,600 feet under the surface. Upon exploring the shipwreck, archaeologists believed it to be a terrible spell, as something would constantly go wrong when they went down to explore.

Lake Superior is so large that it behaves like an inland ocean, including terrific storms. In November 1975, one such storm struck the vessel SS Edmund Fitzgerald, which was headed to Detroit. The Fitzgerald disappeared after communications were lost. A week later, a sonar( 声呐) ship found the vessel 500 feet under the water. Not one body was found, though.

【推荐3】Children of all ages gathered it New York City recently for the International Toy Fair Hidden among already Popular toys were new, high-tech educational products. Toymakers are working to create products for improving a child's emotional intelligence These toys reportedly not only hep rise intelligence in children, but also their emotional quotient, or EQ.

At the toy fair, companies showed of their products.

PleIQ is a set of plastic toy blocks. It uses augmented (增强的) reality technology to each words, numbers and other things. Edison Duran, the company director, showed people at the toy fair how virtual images appear on the bocks when they are held in front of a tablet camera. Intelligence includes intrapersonal skills (processes information within one's mind) and interpersonal skills (dealing with other people). Duran said PleIQ builds on both by having children act as teacher or guide to a companion character.

Karen Hu demonstrated an educational robot called Woobo. The robot comes programmed with educational games and activities. Children use its touch screen face to get them started. Toys that work as companions also aid in social development. Hu described how the robot can help a child who suffers from autism (自闭症). “The child can communicate with Woobo and follow some of the instructions Woobo is giving because he thinks of this as a companion instead of a parent or someone else telling him to do certain things.”

Jonathan Erickson, the sales director, showed off a board game called "Q"s Race to the Top. "Kevin Chaja said the game got his 4-year-old daughter to open up. "The biggest thing is her talking. And that's the key of all this-getting her feelings expressed out. Like, 'Hey, what does it feel like to be sad?'"

It remains to be seen whether a game or toy can improve emotional intelligence. But toymakers are doing what they can to help parents in their efforts to raise well-rounded children.