【推荐1】Zhu Dejun’s first job after graduating from college was as a road design engineer in his hometown, Alshaa League, North Chin’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region(内蒙古自治区). In 2011, when Zhu was conducting a road survey along with his colleagues, he saw a plant that he didn’t recognize. Later, Zhu learned that the plant was a saxaul (灌木梭梭) tree which is an excellent tree species for sand fixation and afforestation (造林) in desert areas. Known as a desert guardian, a fully grown saxaul tree can hold together a 10-square-meter patch of desert land, according to Zhu.

Zhu quit (辞去) his job at the design institute in 2014 and joined a nonprofit organization, the Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology Conservation, or SEE, in the same year, concentrating on dealing with desertification (沙漠化) .During the past eight years, Zhu has been leading a team from SEE to plant saxaul trees in sandy areas in Alshaa League and other places of Inner Mongolia.

In 2014, the SEE launched a project titled “one million saxaul trees”, aiming to reach that number from 2014 to 2023, turning the desert of more than 133, 330 hectares (公顷) back into a satisfying ecosystem. By the end of 2018, half of the organization’s goal had been achieved. In 2016, Ant Finance cooperated with SEE to introduce the Ant Forest platform, not only encouraging people to choose “a low-carbon way” of shopping, traveling and living, but also to help control desertification.

Through the participation of a greater number of online users, who grow virtual trees, the SEE Foundation, set up in 2008, has been providing subsidies (补助金) for local herdsmen and farmers while also offering technological support to plant saxaul trees in desert areas. Now, Zhu is the head of the foundation’s project to fight desertification. He also gives lectures about saxaul trees and the fight against desertification at schools, hoping to raise awareness among young people.

【推荐1】Nothing says love like a dozen long – stemmed roses on Valentine’s Day. More than a million roses will be sold during this festival for lovers, the biggest day of the year for the nation’s rose industry. It’s going to remain the most popular flower because love never goes out of style.

Yes, a rose is a rose is a rose. But selling them is no longer a beautiful experience for traditional flower shops. Supermarkets now offer convenience to the busy and discount rose shops help those hopelessly in love save money. Roses only is a good example of a discount rose retailer that was transformed from a traditional shop to answer the challenge in the 90s.

Inside this store on Sixth Avenue near 40 th Street, contemporary white furniture and wall – to – wall mirrors give it an expensive look. Customers move about freely among the counters, looking eagerly at the roses in more than 50 colors from shelf to shelf. Some customers say it’s the high quality of the roses that attracts them there. “I spent $ 20 but the flowers looked like I paid 60 or 70 dollars,” says one customer.

Studies show more people are buying roses in ones, two and threes these days. In fact, more than half of all roses are sold in bunches of fewer than a dozen. But Roses Only’s low prices encourage people to spend. Even on Valentine’s Day, when the price of a dozen roses and delivery can soar as high as $150, 12 of Roses Only's most expensive flowers sell for just $35. The company's key to success is to hold prices down by controlling every link in the rose chain. It grows its own roses in the sunshine of the Andes Mountains. In addition, the company also sells other items such as ballons and stuffed animals.

While discount rose retailers are witnessing their business bloom, U.S. rose growers aren’t able to compete with the fierce foreign competition. More than 57% of roses sold in the USA are grown in other countries. The biggest foreign producers are Colombia and Ecuador, which accounted for almost 90% of the total imported last year. The trend has hurt domestic rose growers such as Johnson Flowers of California, considered to be this country's leading producer.

Now, instead of fighting overseas rivals, the Johnsons are trying to work with them. "We have a few big fighting overseas rivals, the Johnsons are trying to work with them. “We may also widen our business to include the service area and be a representative for overseas flower producers.”

As a result of severe competition, those in the rose business long for the good old days, whereas ordinary people benefit from the low price.

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【推荐3】Nowadays women appear to have a positive image of themselves as safer drivers than men. In a survey done for insurer MetLife, 51% of women said they drive more safely.

The evidence is on their side: Men are 3.4 times more likely than women to get a ticket for careless driving and 3.1 times as likely to be punished for drunk driving. “Women are on average less aggressive and more law abiding drivers, which leads to fewer accidents,” the report says. However, not all male driver share the same opinion. Of the men surveyed by MetLife, 39% claimed male drivers were safer. The findings did back them up on one point: automotive knowledge. The report showed that more men are familiar with current safety equipment such as electronic stability control, which helps prevent rollover accidents.

Auto safety unavoidably matters to money. Insurance companies focus on what classes of drivers have the lowest dollar amounts of claims,and for now, that mainly includes women. In general, women pay about 9% less for auto insurance than men. A study by the website Insweb also showed that auto insurance rates are lower for women in most states. Among individual states, women get the greatest advantage in Wyoming (where they pay 20% less), South Dakota and Washington D.C, where their insurance costs are 16% lower.

“More than 11,900 male drivers died in US traffic accidents in 2009, compared with just under 4,900 women drivers” according to the study. “Based on miles traveled, men died at a rate of 2.5 deaths per 100 million miles traveled, VS 1.7 deaths for women.”

【推荐1】A man in Germany may not have been in danger when he called the police on a baby squirrel chasing him, but it all worked out for the best for the furry suspect.

Emergency services in the city of Karistruhe got a call on Thursday from a man afraid that the tiny animal wouldn't stop following him around, The Guardian reported. Police arrived at the scene, where the squirrel finally stopped running after him by lying down and going to sleep.

It turned out that the squirrel actually needed help, the police said, “It often happens that squirrels which have lost their mothers look for a replacement and then focus their efforts on one person,” the police spokesman Christian Krenz told The Guardian.

The squirrel, now named Karl-Friedrich, is in the care of an animal rescue center. Karlstruhe police posted a statement on Facebook about the animal, including several lovely photos. The department wished Karl-Friedrich the best.

The baby squirrel chase is the second police-involved squirrel incident to make international headlines this summer. Last month, a London woman called the police after she heard loud noises in her home and suspected a thief. The unwanted visitor turned out to be a “rogue squirrel”, according to the police who came for help.

Although authorities in the German case said the squirrel did need assistance, wildlife experts generally warn that before dealing with the case where you suspect a squirrel is orphaned, you should do your best to make sure the creature truly requires help. The Wildlife Center of Virginia, which gets hundreds of calls annually about supposedly orphaned squirrels, published this handy guide to help determine whether such an animal really needs help and what to do if so. When in doubt, contact a local wildlife rescuer, a rehab center on animal control.

【推荐2】Dolphin （海豚） or not a dolphin? That is the question! You see, there are several types of dolphins. Some are saltwater dolphins while others are river dolphins.

"What are the 32 types of dolphins?" When people are asking the question, they are actually referring to the saltwater dolphins in oceans and seas. The river dolphins living in fresh water, are not   included   in   these   species   （ 物种）.   But what would   be   the   answer   in this   case   if   we   ask,

"Dolphin or not a dolphin?" The answer would obviously be yes. River dolphins still belong to the dolphin family.

Among the 32 types of dolphins, some do not actually wear the word "dolphin" in their names, such as the tucuxi, while others actually have the word "whale" as part of their names even if they are not whales but in fact, belong to the dolphin family, for example, the melon-headed whale and the killer whale. So what would be the answer to the question "dolphin or not a dolphin?" in these cases? It would be yes. All these species do belong to the dolphin family.

Another question that people ask is, "Are the sea animals that perform at aquariums （水族馆） all dolphins?" So, it always seems to come back to the question, "Dolphin or not a dolphin?" Well the answer is no in this case. The sea animals that perform there are not all dolphins. The beluga which people tend to think belong to the dolphin family because they show what seems like a smile, like most dolphins, are in fact a species of the whale family.

Now that you read these facts about dolphins, you probably realize that certain sea animals may appear to be part of the dolphin species and that others seem to be part of the whale family, but in either case, it is not obvious and can be surprising when you identify a sea animal as being a dolphin or not a dolphin. That is the question!

【推荐1】There it was. A test of will power. I’m on a special diet with foods carefully selected for balanced nutrition and caloric value. A piece of cheese cake is not an option. So here was my dilemma: Should I not eat the cheese cake, feel dissatisfied and take out my frustration on the annoyingly skinny physical instructor at the gym? Or should I eat the cheese cake and work off the calories?

The latter seemed like a win-win solution. Not only would I get to enjoy the cheese cake, but I’d get an exercise session. And then it hit me: a delicate plan to use my cheese cake as an exercise incentive. I plated a thin slice of cheese cake and carefully walked it up the stairs and set it on my bedside table with a small fork. I put on my exercise outfit and went downstairs.

The appeal of the cheese cake got stronger so I launched my plan: I would run up and down the stairs and then back up again. My reward: one small bite of cheese cake. If I wanted another, I’d have to run down and up and down and up again. Off I went. Ah, creamy vanilla goodness without guilt. I wanted another bite so I quickly sprinted through another stair climbing run.

Admittedly, it is harder to enjoy the creaminess of the cheese cake when my tongue was dry from over-breathing. I placed a bottle of water next to the cake.

Down and up and down and up again. When I struggled over to the cheese cake, my hand bypassed the plate and went for the water instead. I didn’t want the cake any more. I wanted all this sweat and effort to do more than cancel the calories from cheese cake. I was exhausted and sure the cheese cake tasted fine but just not good enough to make me run up and down the stairs one more time.

My plan worked. Now, any time I felt tempted to indulge in a former favorite, I remembered my stairs trick.

【推荐2】It's not possible to stay together with loved ones all the time. Sometimes family members have to be far away from each other. During that time, they might face something terrible. Although we know what they are suffering, being far away makes it harder to help and comfort (安慰)loved ones. There is no use worrying a lot about them. Instead, keeping a positive attitude of support is more helpful than getting into worrying about the person. I think it is what I can do to help my loved ones.

My daughter has been working full-time during summer about 10 hours a day. She has to study hard for a big entrance exam. At first, like most people, I wanted to try to solve the problems and analyse (分析)the situation. Was there a better way of time management? Was there a better way of studying for this test? However, that was not always helpful. Sometimes, it even gave more pressure to her. Sometimes it might sound like there was something wrong to improve. However, it was just tiring at the end of the day. What would be the kind thing to do in this situation? It was hard to read someone's mind. I decided to just chat with her online and to send a hug emoji (表情符号)this time. It seemed more suitable than talking about solutions. Giving space can also be an act of help, comfort and kindness.

It is a fun and meaningful experiment to actively think about kind things to do rather than let it happen naturally. I've realized it and I'm grateful for this chance to share online. Give it a try too and you'll enjoy sweetness.

【推荐3】The rapid growth in skyscrapers worldwide, most of which have large windows, has led to a high demand for window washers. Though the job is well-paid, it is dangerous and accidents are not uncommon. However, if Israel-based start-up Skyline Technologies has its way, the dangerous job may soon be done by Ozmo, an intelligent window cleaning robot, with humans supervising (监督) from the safety of the ground.

Much like humans, Ozmo, sitting on platforms hanging from the buildings, uses its arms and brushes to clean the dirt on the glass. A 3D map of the building’s surface programmed into its system allows the robot to skillfully deal with any obstacle it is likely to meet, as it moves up and down the buildings. The robot will self-correct and move around every obstacle that it might have met so as not to break a window.

Unlike present window washers, the robot cleaner does not require soap to clean the glass. Instead, it uses distilled (蒸馏的) water to do the job. Yaron Schwarcz, CEO of Skyline Robotics explains, “We are environmentally friendly.”

Ozmo is also expected to be much more efficient than its human counterparts. While it presently takes three cleaners 480 hours each to clean windows of a 40-storey glass building, the robot will be able to do it in 80 hours. However, unlike other robots, Ozmo will not replace human workers, and only make their jobs safer by making them supervisors, who will be controlling the operation from the safety of the ground.

Whether Ozmo, which is still being tested, does as good a job as humans remains to be seen. If things go well, its creators have much bigger ambitions for Ozmo. Schwarcz told Forbes Magazine, “Window cleaning is just the tip of the iceberg. We plan to replace all tasks that are dangerous and dirty.”