【推荐2】Li Ziqi, a vlogger who enjoys a fan base of more than 21 million people on Sina Weibo and 7 million strong followers on YouTube, has made a name for herself in her videos that highlight a traditional Chinese way of life in the rural areas of Sichuan Province. Her videos cover a wide variety of crafts related to traditional Chinese culture. From making paper and ink to weaving cloth, from making a silk quilt comforter for her grandmother to building her own bread kiln with blocks, nothing seems impossible with Li’s crafty hands as they work their magic to bring these things into existence. But Li’s most eye-catching, and mouth-watering craft is cooking.

Li scarcely speaks in her videos. When she does open her mouth, the most common phrase that comes out is her calling her grandmother to come and eat. Instead of dialogue, Li focuses on how she works with her hands. Watching her videos, it is difficult not to appreciate their beauty and hold back that sense of nostalgia (怀旧) and longing for home. But it is even harder not to want to take a bite of her succulent dishes, which really remind viewers of taste of our childhood and home.

Glamorous as her present life may seem, life was difficult for her during her youth as she and her grandparents had little to live on. Li herself revealed that she was “economically supported” to continue schooling. She started to work in the city at 14 and would not have returned to her childhood home if not for her grandmother falling ill in 2012. After returning home, Li opened an online shop, Li Ziqi, to sell mostly edible products. To boost sales, she began making short films in 2016 about how these products were created, while covering her life in the rural area, all against the backdrop of traditional Chinese aesthetics (审美). “I started it because I wanted to create something for people to watch and relax. We are all under a lot of stress. I hoped that after a long and busy day, they could click on my videos and relieve some of their anxiety and pressure,” Li said.

However, Li is not without criticism, such as remarks about her “beautifying” life in the country and her use of a professional production crew to help her film. Others have expressed skepticism about how “real” her videos are, and how “amazing it is that she looks so picture perfect after a long day of work in the fields.”

【推荐3】Michael Jackson was on the road of performing when he was five years old. As is known to all, the road to fame and fortune is a long, hard one.

Michael remembers those early years when lie was young. “My father was a machine operator,” he explained, “and he worked at a steel plant. My mother worked at Sears, a big department store. But they were both musicians.”

Michael’s father Joe Jackson realized his sons had a lot of talent, and he knew he could train them to become fine musicians. In those days there were plenty of music groups and some of them were very good. He knew if his sons were to stand out, they would have to be the best.

Practice makes perfect. And the Jackson boys practiced! Gradually the group took shape. Then word of this group began to get around. Thus Michael got a chance to do some solo songs. In the following years, Michael was always on the top. One million records of his were sold in New Zealand, which had only a total population of three million!

When Michael was eighteen, he entered another field of his career—acting. “I plan to star in movies,” he told his friends, “but of course, my first love is music.”

Michael wrote a lot of his own songs. “Songs came about in the strangest ways,” he said “I’ll just wake up from sleeping and there is a whole song coming into my head. And then F put it down on the paper.”

Still, with all his success, Michael managed to keep his head calm. “I just do a different job from other people,” he said, “but it doesn’t make me think I’m better than other people.”

To be quite honest, his fans just love to hear and watch him!

【推荐1】I have been dancing since I was 14 years old, when my best friend dragged me to an after-school dance class. I enjoyed that dance class so much that I have been dancing ever since. After every dance class, however, I always have to stretch out my legs and back to make myself relaxed! It feels like as much exercise as going to the gym---but dancing is not widely considered to be a sport. Does that dancing is expressive and artistic mean that it is not a sport?

Some dancers would argue that dancing is a sport, as it requires great physical stamina, strong muscles and impressive flexibility. No matter what style of dance you are participating in, you will always be using all of your muscles while dancing and this can often be for several hours a day. Additionally, in the more traditional dance style (like ballet), men often lift their female dance partners high in the air. That means the dancers are often just as athletic as footballers, runners or swimmers.

On the other hand, many people argue that dance is an art form. Dance often exhibit emotion, represent characters and tell stories. Dancing to music is creative and visually appealing to the eyes and ears, just like watching a play or a professional show. The shiny costumes, the stage make-up and the big hairstyles are artistic and imaginative. It is easy to see why many people consider dance to be an art form.

I personally believe that dance is both a sport and an art. I believe that a great dancer will be a mixture of an athlete and an artist. You could have the strongest muscles in the world but not necessarily be a great dancer. Likewise, you could be a great actress who can express emotions easily but you still might not be able to dance. However, whether you consider dance to be an art or a sport, the important thing is to enjoy it! Dancing is a great way to make new friends and it’s a really fun way to exercise!

【推荐2】Games and Hobbies

There are websites for nearly every game and hobby out there.

Teen Reads

Young book lovers will enjoy TeenReads. The website features reviews of new and popular books for teenagers, along with surveys, contests and places to discuss favorite books. Teens can also work their way through the “ultimate(最终的)” reading list on the site.

TeenNick

Fans of entertainment channel TeenNick will find information on the latest shows, as well as games, videos and quizzes. While the site offers updates(新信息)on TeenNick shows, it also features stories just for teens, offering suggestions on how to survive high school or giving back to school ideas.

The InSite

The InSite is designed for teens who have an interest in improving the world. Teens can learn about social justice, how to build a positive self-image(积极的自我形象)and how to help the planet. They can also submit artwork and writing or discuss how to make the world a better place.

ChallengeYou

ChallengeYou is a computer game design website. Teens can design games on the site or play games designed by other kids and teens. They can share their games with friends or take part in weekly game-building contests. There is also a chat room and a forum(论坛)where site users can discuss game building or arrange to play together.

【推荐3】There has been a debate for some time that food can be addictive (上瘾的). Most   researchers may not agree with it. But this spring, experts on health discovered that for some, obesity (肥胖症) is “an addiction like smoking.” One month earlier, a lecture showed that food and drug addictions have much in common, especially in the way that both damage the parts of the brain involved in pleasure and self-control.

Earlier this year, some scientists carried out brain-scan studies on children who looked at pictures of chocolate milkshakes (奶昔) and later ate the milkshakes. Children who are regular ice-cream eaters may require more and more ice cream for the reward centers (奖励中枢) of their brains to tell that they are satisfied.

However, meditation and exercise can help the brain to overcome food addiction. Food addicts (嗜食者) should look for alternatives that still give pleasure — a fruit smoothie, for example, instead of ice cream.

Food addiction seems to be linked to the types of foods we’re eating. It’s easier for human body to deal with foods found in nature, not processed (加工的) foods. When a highly processed food is eaten, the body may go uncontrollable. Potatoes are not addictive, but when they are processed into chips, what happens? Products like chips are described as super-delicious foods. They were the right combination of something salty, sweet and fatty along with “mouth-feel.”

【推荐1】Que Liu and his wife Si En spend their mornings picking Pu’er leaves in a forest not far from their village in the highlands of southwest China.

Pu’er is a kind of tea that is famous for its complex taste. Tea lovers say its taste changes with each following steeping (续泡). But the crop this year has been small at Nannuoshan, one of the six major Pu’er mountains in Yunnan Province. The hottest weather and lowest rainfall totals in years have reduced production. “Drought has cut production by about half this spring,” said Zi Sai, the son of Que Liu and Si En.

Local officials blame climate change for an increase in drought-like conditions in recent years. The dry weather has worsened over the past 20 years, with this year’s drought breaking some records. “The entire rainfall pattern has changed due to global warming,” said Xiao Chan, head of weather services at China’s National Climate Center in Beijing.

Pu’er trees grow in the cloud-covered forests of Yunnan. The trees require no fertilizers or pesticides (农药), unlike the tea trees grown on large farms elsewhere. The adult plant normally reaches a height of four meters. Spring produces the highest-quality leaves from the trees. The summer harvest, with a higher percentage of water, is considered to be lower in quality. Summer leaves are sold for mass consumption.

The drought conditions hurt the economy of the 32 villages of Nannuoshan. “My family depends wholly on Pu’er tea for survival, earning about 200,000 yuan a year,” said Zi Sai’s uncle, Si Da, who is 44. “That represents just over $28,000. This year, our income has been cut by tens of thousands of yuan.”

While one ancient tree, said to date from 800 years ago, survived the drought, other younger trees did not. “If these kinds of trees survive, they may need three to five years for a full recovery.” Si Da added. “These trees are quite pitiful. They should have been protected like children.”

【推荐2】Buying green is now popular with many consumers. We choose environmentally friendly products, and we try to be conscious consumers. However, new research by the University of Arizona has found that it has no positive effect on psychological well-being (幸福感). It also has a more limited environmental benefit than the other option simply buying less.

The study followed 968 young adults over a number of years. Throughout the study, participants responded to online survey questions about their subjunctive well-being, their life satisfaction and their psychological distress (悲伤), as well as giving information about their levels of materialism and pro-environmental behaviors.

The study found that reduced consumption buying less, repairing items instead of replacing them, avoiding impulse purchases and so on was linked to a higher level of personal well-being and a lower level of psychological distress, but green buying did not show such links.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the study also found that young people with more materialistic values were less likely to engage in reduced consumption. This group did, however, engage with buying green activities. Researcher Sabrina Helm suggests that this may be because buying green is still buying so it still satisfies the materialists urge to accumulate new items. These people are called ‘green materialists’.

However, green materialists must still deal with the same consumption-related stresses as average materialists. If you buy and own a lot of stuff, it takes up a lot of head space. You have to worry about how to pay for it, and you have to manage all the stuff, worrying about how to keep it safe and how to keep it organized. As Helm notes, “The key is to reduce consumption and not just buy green stuff. Having less and buying less can actually make us more satisfied and happier.”

Understanding how materialistic values affect consumer behaviors, and how those behaviors in turn affect personal well-being, is important. However, Helm acknowledges that for many consumers, changing behaviors to consume less will be challenging. “We’ve been told since childhood that there’s a product for everything and it’s OK to buy, and it’s a good thing because that’s how the economy works,” She Said.

【推荐3】Shyness is the cause of much unhappiness for a great many people. Shy people are anxious and self-conscious; that is, they are concerned about their own appearance and actions too much. Negative thoughts are constantly occurring in their minds: What kind of impression am I making? Do they like me? Do I sound stupid? Am I wearing unattractive clothes?

It is obvious that such uncomfortable feelings must affect people unfavorably. A person’s self-concept is reflected in the way he or she behaves and the way a person behaves affects other people’s reactions. In general, the way people think about themselves has a deep effect on all areas of their lives.

Shy people, who have low respect, are likely to be passive and easily influenced by others. They need faith that they are doing ＂the right thing＂. Shy people are very sensitive to criticism. It makes them feel inferior(自卑). They also find it difficult to be pleased by praises because they believe they are unworthy of praise. A shy person may respond to a praise with a statement like this one: ＂You’re just saying that to make me feel good. I know it’s not true.＂ It is clear that, while self-awareness is a healthy quality, overdoing it is harmful.

Can shyness be completely got rid of, or at least reduced? Fortunately, people can overcome shyness with determination since shyness goes hand in hand with lack of self-respect. It is important for people to accept their weaknesses as well as their strengths. Each one of us has his or her own characteristics. We are interested in our own personal ways. The better we understand ourselves, the easier it becomes to live up to our chances for a rich and successful life.