【推荐1】Traditionally, robots have been hard, made of metal and other rigid material .But a team of scientists at Harvard University in the US has managed to build an entirely soft robot—one that draws inspiration from an octopus (章鱼).

Described in science journal Nature, the “Octobot” could pave the way for more effective autonomous robots that could be used in search, rescue and exploration. “The Octobot is minimal system which may serve as a foundation for a new generation of completely soft, autonomous robots”, the study’s authors wrote.

Robots built for precise, repetitive movements in a controlled environment don’t do so well on rough terrains (地形) or in unpredictable conditions. And they aren’t especially safe around humans, because they’re made out of hard and heavy parts that could be potentially dangerous to their users.

So researchers have been working on building soft robots for decades. They’ve taken inspiration from nature, looking to animals from jellyfish to cockroaches, which are often made up of more flexible matter.

But creating a completely soft robot remains a challenge. Even if engineers build a silicone (硅酮) body, it’s still a grand challenge to construct flexible versions of essential parts, such as a source of power.

“Although soft robotics is still in its early stage, it holds great promise for several applications, such as search-rescue operations and exploration,” Barbara Mazzolai and Virgilio Mattoli of the Italian Institute of Technology Center for Micro-BioRobotics, wrote in a comment. “Soft robots might also open up new approaches to improving wellness and quality of life.”

【推荐2】A table-waiting robot cat built by a Chinese technology firm can carry plates of food, navigate a restaurant, miaow（喵喵叫）at diners—and even react to having its ears stroked.

Making its debut at the 2020 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the so-called BellaBot was built for Chinese restaurants lacking enough waiters. It is the brainchild （智慧结晶）of the Chinese robotics and artificial intelligence firm PuduTech.

It features four shelves in the center of its tower-like body to carry plates. Having been loaded up with meals by its human colleagues, the cat-themed robotic waiter miaows when it delivers food to diners to encourage them to take their plates. If customers thank BellaBot by stroking its ears, it will initially respond with a look of pleasure on its on-board screen, which displays animations of a cat's face. “The owner's hand is so warm,” BellaBot has been programmed to respond.

However—much like a real cat—the robot’s reaction soon changes if it is petted for too long. “It gets mad to remind you not to interrupt its job,” the designers introduced.

The BellaBot waiter robot is a more personality-rich update to PuduTech's previous model, which featured a more utilitarian （实用主义的）design and user interface. Both BellaBot and its predecessor were designed with a particular mind to Chinese restaurateurs which are often short of waiting staff.

In a real-world food-service setting, however, BellaBot may find it difficult to operate at peak times. Nevertheless, restaurants are expected to increase their trust on automation—whether in the form of robotic waiting staff or otherwise.

Furthermore, the technology improvements of robotic waiters designs will be grown steadily, especially better at communicating with humans and tackling new activities.

【推荐3】Wind power is a powerful tool for reducing carbon emissions that cause climate change. The turbines (涡轮机), however, can be a threat to birds, which is why experts are looking for ways to prevent the danger.

A company in Boulder, Colorado has produced a camera-and-AI-based technology that can recognize eagles and other birds as they approach in enough time to shut off turbines in their flight paths. Their tool, called IdentiFlight, can detect 5.62 times more bird flights than human observers alone, with an accuracy rate of 94 percent. Using high-precision (高精确度的) visual sensors, the system calculates a bird’s speed and flight path, and if it is on a crash path with a turbine, a signal is sent to shut that turbine down.

Winning an award for its performance in Australia, the tracking system was set up in 2018 and was found to cut eagle deaths at the Cattle Hill Wind Farm by more than four-fifths. Each day signals have shut down their movements an average of 400 times—across the field of 48 turbines— for 2 to 3 minutes each time.

Across the globe, Duke Energy in Wyoming is employing the same technology with impressive results at its Top of the World Wind power Project, which was the first wind site to use the technology. In 2014, IdentiFlight’s maker, Boulder Imaging, used Top of the World for testing after eagles were killed by the turbines, which left Duke Energy in violation (违反) of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. 47 units made of eight wide-angle cameras now constantly pass cross the sky to monitor all 110 turbines.

Bird lover Garry George admits, “Our own science shows that climate change is by far the biggest threat to birds and the places wildlife need to survive. IdentiFlight will make it possible to fight the worst effects of climate change and protect the birds we love in the process.”

【推荐1】With fifteen years Britain and other nations should be well on with the building of huge industrial complexes（建筑群） for the recycling of waste. The word “rubbish” could lose its meaning because everything which goes into the dumps would be made into something useful. Even the most dangerous and unpleasant wastes would provide energy if nothing else.

The latest project is to take a city of around half a million inhabitants and discover exactly what raw materials go into it and what go out. The aim is to find out how much of these raw materials could be provided if a plant（工厂） for recycling waste were built just outside the city. This plant would recycle not only metal such as steel, lead and copper, but also paper and rubber as well.

Another new project is being set up to discover the best ways of sorting（分类整理） and separating the rubbish. When this project is complete, the rubbish will be processed like this: First, it will pass through sharp metal bars (金属条) which will tear open the plastic bags in which rubbish is usually packed; then it will pass through a powerful fan（风扇） to separate the lightest elements from the heavy solids; after that founders and rollers will break up everything that can be broken. Finally, the rubbish will pass under magnets (磁铁), which will remove the bits of iron and steel; the rubber and plastic will then be sorted out in the final stage.

The first full-scale giant recycling plants are perhaps fifteen years away. Indeed, with the growing cost of transporting rubbish to more distant dumps (垃圾场), some big cities will be forced to build their own recycling plants before long.

【推荐2】Precision (精确) agriculture is a method of growing crops. Farmers use technology to collect very precise or exact measurements about their land. It tells farmers how they planted seeds, used fertilizers and chemical pesticides, and so on. Farm equipment can plant different amounts of seeds and leave different amounts of fertilizer in different parts of a field. Water measuring equipment can tell farmers how much water their plants are getting.

But some of this technology is too costly for small farmers, especially in developing countries. Ranveer Chandra, the Microsoft researcher from India, is working to develop low-cost, high-tech tools for farmers. He developed a system that connects soil sensors to other sensing equipment through unused television (TV) channels. These unused TV signals, known as “white space” frequencies (频率), can provide Internet connection over long distances. Some hospitals and schools in rural areas are already online with white-space connections, Chandra noted.

Each soil sensor provides information about conditions on the farm. To connect all the areas into a big picture, a drone aircraft takes photographs from high in the air. Artificial intelligence (AI) compares these photos to the sensor data. AI then can create maps of where the soil is too acidic or needs more water. Similar technology can also help farmers watch their animals. Video cameras connected to computers and linked to the Internet can help farmers recognize sick cattle, for example.

However, the level and speed at which new farming skills and technologies will spread remains unclear. Bruce Erickson is a precision farming expert at Purdue University in Indiana. He told the CSA the one problem faced by any new farming technology is getting people to use it with their existing methods. Different countries have different farming methods and different ways of doing business. “It takes people to carry out new farming practices,” Erickson said.

【推荐1】The hottest product at this year’s CES（国际消费电子展）technology conference may just be privacy. Several of the biggest tech companies are putting a special attention to user privacy, following years of mounting scrutiny（监察）from regulators and consumers over the industry’s handling of personal data.

Google announced that it has added two new voice commands for people to better control their privacy when using its voice assistant. For example, users can tell Google Assistant to forget what it just heard if it was activated accidentally by using the new command: “Hey Google, that wasn’t for you. ” Users can also ask “Hey Google, are you saving my audio data?” to learn more about their privacy options and change their settings. The company also gives users the option to delete data using their voice by saying: “Hey Google, delete everything I said to you this week.”

Facebook announced a new version of its “Privacy Checkup” tool with the goal of walking users through their key privacy settings. Facebook says the updated tool will help users control who can see what they share, how their information is used and how they can boost their account security. Previously, the tool was focused on showing users who could see their posts, their profile information and connected apps.

Ring, the home security and video doorbell company owned by Amazon, announced an update to its app that allows users to choose out of requests from local police for video. It comes in the wake of criticism of its partnerships with law enforcement.

Victoria Petrock, principal analyst at research firm eMarketer,said that privacy would likely be a“hot topic”at this year’s CES as consumers only become“more aware and concerned”about the problem.“Tech companies are trying to‘prove they are taking privacy seriously’,” Petrock said. Call it a defensive move. “If they don’t, they risk more heavy-handed regulation at some point, so they would rather be part of the way than part of the problem,” she said.

【推荐2】The personal computer has overtaken (赶上)the family dog as man's best friend, according to a study.

Researchers found that just 6 per cent of us believe that" most people rely more on their dog than they do on their PC", while 67 percent think the opposite to be true.

Even 38 percent of dog owners admitted to relying more on their PC than on their dog, although 36 percent disagreed. And 71 percent of 18 to 24-year-old dog owners said they relied more on their computer.

Paul Allen, editor of Computer-active magazine said, "These days you can even take your PC lor a walk, if you have a laptop or tablet." "It's only a matter of time until the first PC that fetches your slippers."

Researchers questioned 2,000 British adults to find out the change modern technology has brought to their home life. They found that male dog owners are almost twice as likely as female owners to rely on their computer than acaninecompanion.

Mr Allen said, "With broadband bringing them global news and newspaper sales falling, the family dog even misses out on the pleasure of taking the paper to his owner. " But it's not all had news for obedient（顺从的）dogs. "The family PC has given dog owners access to a wealth of resources and information that can help with the long-term care that a dog needs, " Mr Allen said.

【推荐3】Harsukh Bhai Dobariya, of Gujarat, India, is very popular with birds. Every day, about 3,000 birds visit his 4-acre farm to eat tasty grains and build their nests away from natural enemies. Nicknamed “The Birdman”, Harsukh has spent the last 17 years of his life looking after the birds and transforming his land into a safe place for them.

Many people would consider such a large number of birds making a mess outside their windows, but Harsukh couldn’t be happier about it. As more birds started visiting him and the limited space on his balcony became a problem, he built a stand（台）out of old pipes and put grains on them, so the birds could eat in comfort.

Harsukh and his family used to live in the middle of the city, but as the number of birds visiting them increased, they became a conundrum for the neighbors. In 2012, Harsukh moved to a 4-acre piece of land on the suburbs（郊区）, where the birds didn’t bother anyone.

“In my old house, neighbors would get disturbed by the constant chirping（鸣叫声）of birds,” Harsukh said. “Though they would never complain, I still thought that these birds need a space of their own.”

Today, about 3,000 birds visit Harsukh’s farm several times a day. He and his family have built several stands for them, and make sure to add grains twice a day.

Over 1,000 birds build their nests on the farm, and have their babies here. Harsukh and his family protect them from enemies until they are ready to fly. During the rainy season, the doors of the Harsukh’s house are always open to birds that are seeking shelter from the rain.

【推荐1】While many young people were enjoying the summer vacation, Zach Bonner was working his hardest. Zach started walking from Valrico, Florida, his hometown, on Christmas, 2009. He reached Los Angeles nine months later in September, 2010. He covered a total of 2,478 miles and raised $120,000 for kids in need. Along the way, Zach attended school online. His mother brother and sister took turns to walk or drive together with him.

Although he is very young, Zach has a long history of helping others. When a terrible storm hit town in 2004, Zach, when six, pulled a wagon (小推车) through his community and collected food for people in need.

He has raised $400,000 for his Little Red Wagon Foundation since then. It gives money to projects which help homeless children. In 2007, Zach began walking to support children’s charity (慈善组织) in Tampa, Florida. He finished his journey 23 days later, 280 miles away in Tallahassee. Then in the summer of 2009, he trekked about 670 miles from Atlanta to Washington D. C., in just two months.

“As long as there are homeless kids, I will never stop walking for them.” Zach says.

【推荐2】The city of Angkor was the capital of the Khmer Empire from the 9th to the 15th centuries. It was founded on political and religious ideas adapted from India, and the temples of Angkor were intended as a place of worship (敬拜) for the king.

Angkor Wat was built by King Suryavarman II in the 12th century as a vast funerary (丧葬的) temple that would hold his remains, suggesting his permanent identity with Vishnu.

During its six centuries as capital, Angkor went through many changes in architectural styles and in religion. The city of Angkor changed its god from the Hindu god Shiva to the Hindu god Vishnu, and finally to the Mahayana Buddhist goddess Avalokitesvara.

By the late 13th century, the once uncontrolled pace of Angkor's architectural pursuits (追求) had begun to die down, and a more limited type of religion was on the rise under the growing influence of Theravada Buddhism

At the same time, Angkor and the Khmer Empire were increasingly threatened and attacked by invading armies. By the 16th century, the golden age of Angkor was over and many of the great temples began to gradually disappear into the jungle.

From the 15th to 19th centuries,Theravada Buddhist monks cared for Angkor Wat, and it is thanks to them that the temple remains mostly safe and sound. Angkor Wat is one of the most important pilgrimage (朝圣) sites in Southeastern Asia. Angkor Wat is the best preserved example of Khmer architecture in Cambodia and is so grand in design that some rank it among the Seven Wonders of the World. It appears on the Cambodian national flag, a very rare example of a flag including an image of a building.

【推荐3】The Elementary Science Fair Planning Guide

The most helpful, scientific, kid-friendly science Fair project planner known to kids.

Shows how something works in the real world, but doesn’t really test anything.

Examples of display or collection projects can be: “The Solar System,” “Types of Dinosaurs,” “My Coin Collection.”

Examples of models might be: “How a Tornado Forms” or “How an Electric Motor Works”.

Lots of information is given, but it also has a project that shows testing being done and the gathering of data.

Examples of experiments can be: “The Effects of Detergent（洗衣粉）on the Growth of Plants” or “Which Paper Towel is more Absorbent”.

Even though you can learn a lot from building a model or display, we recommend that you do an experiment! Why? Well, they are fun, they are more interesting and most of all, they take you through the SCIENTIFIC METHOD, which is the way real scientists investigate in real science labs. Besides that, the scientific method is what the judges are looking for!