Should WeChat shut down the features “likes”?

For the past few years, WeChat has got us interested in the feature “likes”. It’s the way we have decided how many people think our journeys are fun and recognize our new items are cool. What happens when it is gone? Researchers are doing a survey to figure out whether the feature “likes” should be shut down.

【推荐2】A 15-year-old student who invented a flashlight getting power from the holder’s body heat is going home today from California with a big prize and a chance to do further research.

Ann Makosinski was the only Canadian among the four winners at Google’s international science competition. Thousands of young scientists from around the world took part in the competition.

Winning the science and technology competition was “a surprise”. Ann said, “I think it will have a great influence on my future.”

Ann thanked her family for encouraging her interest in science and said that her first toy was a box of transistors (晶体管).

Ann’s prize includes $25,000 and a “once in a-lifetime experience” from Google for her Hollow Flashlight, which has no moving parts or batteries.

The idea for the invention came from seeing unwanted batteries and her friend’s experience. When Ann visited a friend in the Philippines, she saw her friend couldn’t study when it became dark because there was no electricity or light. She saw the need for a flashlight that has no batteries—Hollow Flashlight.

In her project, Ann wrote “I made two flashlights that do not use any batteries or harmful materials. They do not create any noise and will always work. The flashlight needs at least a 5℃ temperature difference between the holder’s body and the environment around to produce light.”

A video of Ann explaining how she created the flashlight has been watched more than 1.4 million times on the Internet.

Though Ann was successful, she has not made a decision about her career path. Ann hopes that she can find a way to join her love of film and science together.

The four winners were chosen from 15 final competitors from eight countries. The competition attracted thousands of students in 120 countries.

【推荐1】It’s Sunday morning. My parents, my uncle, my sisters and I are all at home. My father is sitting near the window. What’s he doing? He’s reading a newspaper. He likes reading newspapers very much. My mother is watering the flowers in the small garden. There are some beautiful flowers in the garden. Some are red, others are yellow. They look nice. My uncle is my mother’s brother. He is a worker. What’s he doing now? He’s watching TV. He’s a basketball fan. And he is good at playing basketball. Now he is watching NBA on TV. Where are my twin sisters? Oh, look! Lily is over there. She is listening to the radio. She likes pop music very much. Lucy is in her room. She has a computer in her bedroom. She is surfing the Internet(上网). What am I doing? I am doing my homework.

【推荐3】Amy’s apartment building is in the center (中心) of town. Amy is very happy there because the building is in a very convenient(方便的)place. Across from the building, there’s a bank, a post office and a restaurant. Next to the building, there’s a drug store and a launderette (洗衣店). Around the corner (角落) from the building, there are two supermarkets.

There’s a lot of noise near Amy’s apartment building because there are a lot of cars on the street, and there are a lot of people on the sidewalks (人行道) all day and all night. However, Amy isn’t very upset (不安) about the noise in her neighborhood (附近). Her building is in the center of town. It’s a very busy place, but it’s a convenient place to live.

【推荐1】My family had a four-day trip to Yunnan during the Spring Festival. It was great that we enjoyed different views there.

Are you curious of looking up at the stars and wondering if there’s intelligent life out there? So is Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST, 500米口径球面射电望远镜), China’s mega-science (大科学) project and the world’s largest single-dish radio telescope.

On April 28, FAST, nicknamed “China’s Eye of Heaven”, embarked on its search for extraterrestrial intelligence (ET, 外星生物).

As the news went viral (走红) on social networking sites, someone commented saying: “Do not answer! Do not answer! Do not Answer!”

It seems that The Three-Body Problem (《三体》), a science fiction novel by Chinese author Liu Cixin, has influenced minds so deeply that people are worried about the possibility of the Earth being invaded (入侵) by an advanced extraterrestrial civilization.

That worry is, at least for now, unnecessary. Of the 1,800 planets that have been discovered, less than 20 are capable of supporting life, and the nearest among them, Gliese 581, is 20.4 light-years away.

According to Robin Hanson’s Great Filter theory, there is less than a one in a million chance of any extraterrestrial life form evolving (进化) into higher intelligence or a civilization. And since their distance from China could even be millions or billions of light-years away, if they travel at the speed of light, it would take them at least millions of years to reach us.

However, that does not mean FAST’s job is meaningless. As mankind’s most sensitive (敏感的) radio telescope, FAST can best collect signals from the universe. Researchers can distinguish even a 4 Hz difference in the signals received, meaning it can best distinguish between manmade and ET-made signals. Even the signals from a non-ET civilization are useful, because they might contain some hidden information leading to the discovery of new stars or planets.

With FAST joining the cause, mankind can browse (搜索) the universe more deeply than ever before and increase knowledge about the universe. And whatever it achieves is the best evidence of China’s advanced technology in astronomy (天文学) and the study of the universe.

【推荐1】①Choosing seating in the classroom can have an influence on a students performance (表现), a study suggests.

②Researchers from Sheffield Hallam University in the UK did a survey on students' seating positions in a classroom. Here are the results.

③The more prepared and hard-working students sit in front rows. They almost always score higher on exams. Perhaps, the front row is the perfect position for students who have trouble concentrating (集中注意力). Also, sitting closer to the front of the classroom does have an influence on the student-teacher relationship, which is connected with greater performance.. According to a study in2018, the Grade Point Average (平均成绩) decreased (下降) by 0.1 point for every row further back students sit.

④Still, some students prefer the middle rows. Dr. Robert Wallace, a member of the National Education Association, thinks of choosing to sit in the middle of the classroom as one of the worst decisions a student can make. "In a classroom, a teacher's eyes often go to the front and the back of the classroom. They don't look at the centre of the classroom very often or with the same amount of attention" said Dr. Robert Wallace.

⑤If neither the front nor the middle is suitable for a student, there can only be one way out: the back. The back row would have the lowest value. That's where students are more likely (有可能的) to chat, play video games or do some other things. However, things are not always what they seem. There are also some good students who work hard in the back row.

【推荐2】Most people want to be happy, but few know how to find happiness. Money and success alone cannot bring lasting happiness. Aristotle, a Greek thinker, said “Happiness depends on ourselves," In other words, we make our own happiness. Here are a few suggestions to help you be happier.

The first secret of happiness is to enjoy the simple things in life. Too often, we spend so much time thinking about the future—for example, getting into college or getting a good job—that we fail to enjoy the present. You should enjoy life's simple pleasures, such as reading a good book, listening to your favorite music, or spending time with close friends. People who have several close friends often live happier and healthier lives.

Another secret to live a happy life is to be active, and have hobbies where you forget your problems and time. Many people experience this—dancing, or playing a sport, such as swimming. You can forget about your problems, and only think about the activity.

Finally, many people find happiness in helping others. Studies show that people feel good when they spend their time helping others. If you want to feel happier, do good things for someone. You can help a friend with his or her studies, go shopping to buy food for an elder person, or simply help out around the house by washing the dishes.

All in all, happiness is very important in our daily lives. If you take the advice above, it will be easier for you to keep happy.

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【推荐3】Think back to a time in your life when you tried something new.

When I was a teenager, I volunteered (志愿) to pass out water at a local race. I was so excited to see all the different runners who passed by and quickly took a cup of water. Some ran past, some walked past.

I saw so many types of people doing it. I thought maybe I could do it, too! The next year I decided to run for the race, but I had little running practice.

I just wanted to finish. On the day of the race, it was terribly hot. After running for about 5 miles, I was thinking, “I must be crazy. Why did I do this? What was I thinking?” And at one moment, I said to myself, “I am never doing this again!”

That first 10 km race was quite an experience. I jogged (慢跑), I walked, I jogged and walked. At times, I didn't know if I could finish.

Near the end, a 70-year-old man ran past me, very fast, and I felt a little embarrassed (尴尬的) that I was more than 50 years younger than he and I couldn't even keep up with him. But then I realized something. He was running his race and I was running mine. How often in life do we compare ourselves to others when we really shouldn't? I decided that I would not give up on running races, and that one day I would be one of those 70-year-old men who were still running.

As I crossed the finishing line, I was proud of myself. I didn't regret (后悔) having such an experience.