【推荐1】A lot of earthquakes happen in the world every year. Why do earthquakes happen? Scientists tell us the outside of the earth is made of a number of different plates(板块). The plates move very slowly. Sometimes they stop and don’t move for a long time. When some of the earth’s plates move suddenly, an earthquake happens.

Many earthquakes happen under the sea. Sometimes they happen near mountains. In fact, earthquakes may happen anywhere on the earth. During an earthquake, the shakings make rocks rise suddenly and even break open. Houses fall. People are killed or hurt. Sometimes whole villages or cities are destroyed.

Can we do something to keep ourselves safe from earthquakes? Scientists have studied earthquakes and made maps that show “earthquake belts”. In the areas in these belts, it’s possible for earthquakes to happen. In these areas we can make houses strong enough to stand against earthquakes.

In the future, scientists will be able to predict(预言) exactly when and where an earthquake will happen. They can tell us what to do and how to do it as well.

【推荐2】Earthquakes happen very often in Tokyo, but Tokyo is not an unlucky city. Many special parks have been built in Tokyo to keep people safe during earthquakes. These parks look nothing different from the other parks, but when earthquakes happen, they become life-saving places.

Many useful things in those special parks can meet people’s basic needs.

For example, it is usually hard for people to get water after earthquakes. In the special parks, people can get drinking water from the water pump(泵). If people need to use toilets(厕所), they can choose special toilets that can be used without water. Also, the helicopter(直升机) can land on squares or baseball fields and bring food or other things to people. What’s more, if people need to cook in the parks, some special benches can become cooking things.

However, those useful things are not enough for people to face earthquakes. The most important part lies in training people. The parks, together with fire stations and the police, will train with local people at the usual time. This will let people think and move faster during real earthquakes and let them protect themselves better.

So, what can we do to protect ourselves from getting hurt in earthquakes? First, we need to check our furniture and make sure they won’t fall down easily. Second, when an earthquake happens, we need to stay under tables or desks and protect our head. Third, we can keep our door open and wear comfortable shoes during small earthquakes in order to get out safely.

【推荐3】Jason and his father were going to the grocery store by car to pick up some apples. It had been an unusual day. The sky was dark but there were few clouds. As they drove up the street, there started to be a rumbling (隆隆的) sound heard across the around.

Jason’s father immediately realized that a tornado (龙卷风) was coming. He stopped the car and told Jason to get out immediately. Jason and his father got out of the car and made their way to the closest building. By this time the wind was blowing harder, and it was hard to see or hear. Debris was falling all over the place. Jason couldn’t see his dad anymore. He also realized that he wasn’t getting to the building fast enough. He was afraid he would be picked up by the wind and thrown into the air.

As he made his way towards the building, he noticed a field to his right. He could see an irrigation ditch (灌溉渠). In a panic, he scrambled (爬) to the ditch and lay flat on the ground. More debris and objects flew overhead. His heart was beating hard, and he was nervous. He had never been in a tornado before.

After a while, the winds died down and the loud roaring sound was gone. Jason slowly lifted his head and nervously looked around. ▲ Jason could hardly recognize the building in front of him because of all the damage.

He stood up with shaky legs and walked to the building. Once there, he pushed the door open and went inside. It was a public building owned by the city. It was empty, but Jason could hear noises further inside. He walked into the large room and saw his dad. He ran across the room and gave him a big hug.

“Jason! How are you? I’ve been worried sick about you!” said his father. “I couldn’t find you anywhere!”

Jason breathed a sigh of a relief(松了一口气) and sat down. He did have a story to tell!

【推荐1】On December 3rd, 2017, a program by CCTV called National Treasure was shown to people all over the country. It became popular with both the old and the young as soon as it came out.

The show took 27 pieces of cultural relics (文物) from nine museums across the country, such as the Palace Museum, Shanghai Museum, Shanxi History Museum and so on. The show expected to bring life to the national treasure. They invited 27 actors and another 27 common people to tell “the old and new life stories” of the relics. The actor acted in a short play about the history of each relic. The other person told his or her own story in relation to the relic.

More and more people are interested not only in the relics themselves, but also in enjoying the stories behind those relics. There are a lot of jokes online about the show. They also help the show by bringing the museums and relics closer to the people.

Why did the show become so successful? “By telling stories and inviting famous stars, it has turned the old culture into interesting stories. It’s a really creative program,” said Yin Hongru, a teacher from Tsinghua University.

“The social value (社会价值) of the show is more important than anything else,” said Yu Lei from the program. “We just want more people to go to the museums and take a look at the country’s most fantastic treasures.”

【推荐2】Sometimes it can feel as though eating a healthy diet, getting enough exercise and finding the time to enjoy yourself is impossible. But learning to live a healthier lifestyle is easy when you change one small thing at a time. Follow Rosalind Ryan’s advice and you’ll soon be full of ideas.

Eat beet(甜菜) more.

It sounds strange, but doctors say drinking 500 ml of beetroot juice could reduce blood pressure after just one hour. So drink up the pink juice.

Think outside the box.

In our life we will spend 17 years of our lives on the sofa, and we will spend seven years watching TV. Next time you hear yourself say, “I haven’t got time to go to the gym.” Don’t find this excuse but doing something healthy instead.

Embrace (拥抱) good health.

Giving your partner a hug(拥抱)doesn’t just warm the heart, it can protect it too. A study by a university found that hugging your friend for 20 seconds could lower blood pressure, and make us happy.

Reduce salt intake.

We eat around 9.5 g of salt a day, but the government wants us to cut this to no more than 6 g, as high level of salt can push up your blood pressure.

【推荐3】After work, you go back home, open an app, place your order, and wait for your food to be delivered (投递) to your home. This is how many young people eat in China these days. According to the latest report from the China Internet Network Information Center. 421 million Chinese people use online food delivery services. That’s just half of the total number of Internet users in China.

Which group of people is ordering food online the most? For sure, it is mainly young people. A recent report by Meituan, a food delivery service, showed that 86.3% of the service’s users are between 20 and 34 years old. These people are the main force driving the development of the food delivery industry.

Small families depend largely on food delivery services, Chinese families have changed in size over the past ten years. In 2002, only 7.7% of families have only one person. But this number increased to 15.6% in 2017. Two-person families rose from 18.4% in 2002 to 27.2% in 2017. For small families, cooking always takes a lot of time and energy, so ordering food online has become more popular.

The improvement of China’s food delivery services has also made more customers interested. According to Meituan’s report, the average (平均) time it takes to make a food delivery dropped from 38 minutes in 2016 to 29 minutes in 2020. Many delivery apps are also offering more services, delivering products such as fruit, vegetables, medicine and even flowers. As their services continue to improve, it’s certain that the food delivery industry will keep growing in the future.