【推荐1】Big data (数据) is a lot of sets of information that are put together so they can be used by a computer program. The computer program looks for different kinds of answers or patterns in the data.     1    , such as information that comes from schools, social media sites, companies, and governments. One set of data can have people's names and addresses. Another set can have what they like, where they go to school, and how much time they spend on the computer.

    2    . The government uses it to understand how many people travel on buses or trains.   This information is then used to make bus or train systems better. Some schools use big data to understand which children may need extra help in class. The teacher can then give certain students more help or support so those students can succeed in school. Companies use big data, too.     3    . For example, one company uses weather data to see when people eat the most ice cream.

Big data can be used for good reasons. Some hospitals use big data to predict if a baby who is born too early will get sick. The hospital can then take extra steps to take care of that baby so he or she does not get sick. Big data can also be used for bad reasons.     4    , even if they have not done anything wrong.

How can big data be used for good and bad things? It is because the computer programs used to look at big data and understand it are written by people. People think a certain way. Because they think a certain way, they build a model of those ideas.     5    . Sometimes, these ideas are helpful for people or businesses. Other times, bad ideas can cause problems for certain groups of people.

【推荐2】When you sleep, can you know that you are dreaming? If yes, then you are having a lucid dream (清醒梦). This is hard for most people to do. Only some people are able to do this. Now scientists have found ways to help more people to have lucid dreams, Live Science reported.

Denholm Aspy, from the University of Adelaide in Australia, found that certain skills (技巧) are key to helping people have lucid dreams.

First, people train themselves to figure out (搞清) whether they are dreaming or not. People can practice a skill for this in real life. For example, someone may look at a clock, look away, and then look back. The time should stay the same. Then, they might dream about this skill while sleeping. But in their dreams, the time on the clock may change very quickly. So people know they are dreaming.

Another skill is to wake up after five hours of sleep. Then, stay awake for a while. During this time, repeat (重复) the words, “The next time I’m dreaming, I will remember that I’m dreaming.” Then, go to bed again to enter rapid eye movement (REM，快速眼球运动) sleep. In REM sleep, people are more likely to be aware of their dreams.

Scientists found that those who used these skills had a 17 percent success rate for having lucid dreams. This was far higher than if they did nothing.

In a lucid dream, people might study a hobby and then become better at that hobby in real life, according to Aspy. If you might learn to play the piano in a lucid dream, you might play the piano better in real life!

【推荐3】April 22nd every year marks the beginning of Earth Day, started in the year 1970, it is now celebrated in more than 190 countries each year. Every year, the event is celebrated under a different theme. The theme for 2022 is “Invest（投资）In Our Planet”.

However, Earth Day is not just an event to be celebrated on one specific day. It is primarily a reminder for all to do our rightful duty every day to save our planet. Below, we have made a list of four things you can do to celebrate Earth Day （apart from planting trees）.

Leave your cars at home. Cars, being the greatest source of air pollution, can be left at home this weekend. Ride a bike or walk if your workplace is not that far away from your home.

Be a little dirty. We don’t mean it “that” way. We simply mean to say, don’t take a bath. A day or two without a bath won’t harm you, but it will certainly do a lot of good for our planet. A daily shower isn’t a matter of health; it’s a matter of comfort.

Volunteer yourself. This is one of the best things you can do. It will do you good too. Join other like-minded individuals in a common task, such as planting trees, cleaning a park or simply coming up with ways you can protect mother Earth.

Green-up your home. This is one of the most common things that people do, that is, turn off your lights. However, this is not something you should do just for a day and for only an hour. Turn off all power electricity points whenever they are not in use.

You know what the best way to celebrate Earth Day is? Extend（扩展）your celebrations. That’s right! Do something every day that will improve your surroundings（周围环境）to make the planet a better place to live in. Always remember that every step, every action counts.

【推荐1】The weekend is usually a time of rest. But today’s Chinese students can’t rest during the weekends. According to a survey, 24% of the middle school students in Beijing have classes at the weekend. Over 40% of the Grade 9 students have less than eight hours’ sleep each night. Ji Ping, a middle school student in Guangzhou, has to get up at 6:30 a.m. on Saturdays. Then she has a whole day of classes. On Sundays she goes to extra (额外的) classes for maths and English. But she doesn’t complain (抱怨). She says that all her classmates work hard on Sundays.

Liu Yang is from Dalian. As a Grade 8 student, his weekends are less busy. But he always spends Saturdays in school. On Sundays, after finishing homework, he plays basketball. He feels happy because he still has time to do the things he likes.

A few students are lucky. Yang Qing, a Grade 9 student from Zibo, Shandong, is one of them. At weekends, she usually gets up at 8:00. Then she spends some time doing her homework. After that she is free to go shopping or watch TV. “Don’t push (逼迫) yourself too much. Learning well at school is easy,” she says. And she is a top student in her class.

【推荐2】Micro blogs like Weibo are nothing new for the young Chinese．A newspaper in Chengdu did a survey last month．It found that 90percent of junior high school students use micro blogs．

They give students an outlet （出口） for emotion．"I use micro blogs to record my life．I let everyone‘see'my feelings and complaints （抱怨），"said Liu Fangyue，14，from Xiamen No.1Middle School．They have fun with classmates even after school．"I would send a message

to praise someone who came first in the exam，"said Liu．

Teachers also join in the fun．"When I sit down to talk to my students，they may not tell me their real thoughts，"said Lu Dongping at Nanning No.2Middle School．"But on micro blogs，they are more relaxed．They even make fun of me．"

You would be wrong if you think micro blogs are all about fun．Zhong Yun from Xiamen Haicang Experimental School sees it as a tool （工具） to learn English．The 13-year-old girl follows foreign stars such as Avril Lavigne and Justin Bieber．

"In order to understand their English posts，I have to check the dictionary and learn many new words，"said Zhong．

"Micro blogs widen students'perspectives （观点），but there are rules to follow，"said Shi Zhongying，a professor from Beijing Normal University．He shares some of them with micro bloggers．

"Manage your time，and don't let micro﹣blogging affect your studies and health，"said Shi．"Don't give out your name，family address or phone number on micro blogs．You should also respect （尊重） truth and other people's privacy （隐私）．"

【推荐3】Weekday mornings are very busy for the U. S. middle school students. When your school doesn’t have a bus, and you live too far away to walk, you need a carpool (拼车). A carpool is a group of people sharing the responsibility (责任) of driving to school in the morning. There are usually four or five kids in a carpool and their parents take turns to drive the kids in their cars.

Someone’s car smells like wet dogs. Some kids get to eat desserts for breakfast and some parents shout so much that all you try to do is to stay quiet and go unnoticed. When your mum or dad drives the carpool, your classmates get a close-up look at how strange your parents can be. It might be your first sociological (社会学的) study and your first time to work with others.

Teamwork is really important in the carpool because nobody wants to make anyone else late. It’s a great lesson in responsibility. Imagine sitting in the car outside of a classmate’s house, watching the clock and counting the seconds. Then you start to understand how your carpool friends might feel when you are still inside the house at 7: 48. You really begin to learn all your real life lessons just moments before the start of school—in the carpool.