【推荐1】Shashiyu was once a poor village in Hebei Province, but now it has changed into a rich and livable place.

In the 1940s, villagers in Shashiyu had little food and few clothes, but they had a strong wish for a better life. Zhang Guishun, encouraged his villagers to do their best to pull themselves out of poverty, “In the ancient Chinese story, why can’t we? Nobody was born to be poor?” Hearing his words, the villagers decided to make a difference.

Led by the Communist Party of China (中国共产党), the villagers carried water and soil to their village from faraway places to improve their land. From 1966 to 1971 ,they reclaimed(开垦) lots of land and greatly improved their life.

However, the village encountered a new problem two decades later as the environment became heavily polluted by chemical plants (化工厂) and mine refineries (冶炼厂), and villagers started grape cultivation, which soon became a main industry in Shashiyu.

In 2009, the city-level government invested over 1 million yuan (＄152.723) to change the village’s exhibition hall into a museum in memory of development efforts made by earlier generations. After 10 years, the village was called “National Forest Village”.

Zhang said that the village started a yearly tourism festival in 2015 to attract travelers to pick grapes. “The grapes could be sold at a better price once Shashiyu becomes famous through this festival. Our villagers can then live even better lives,” he said.

【推荐2】In December 2022, people in Shenzhen found that water ran more slowly from their taps. The government said the city was facing its most serious water shortage ever.

Some other cities in the southern part of China, like Chengdu and Guangzhou, are also becoming “thirsty”. Compared with northern areas, southern areas have more rain and are close to more rivers and lakes. So why are they still short on water?

In big cities like Shenzhen and Guangzhou, populations are growing fast. As a result, people and factories need more and more water. Each person in Shenzhen has less than 200 cubic meters of wat each year. It’s 1/12 of the country’s average(平均水平). According to the United Nations, it is “absolute water shortage” when the number is below 500 cubic meters.

Climate change is making the water problem worse. For example, most cities in Guangdong depend on the Dongjiang River as their main source of water. In 2022, the river was reported to be drying, Because of climate change, there’s also less snow in the mountains of Tibet. The snow has long be the source of water for many areas in China. Those mountains might provide less water in the future.

There are other reasons for water shortages. For example, water pollution makes it harder to clean drinking water. Factories and farms don’t use water reasonably. Some cities have enough rain but don’t have big lakes or reservoirs(水库)to store water. The water just goes into the sea.

【推荐3】My sister Allie and I have been trying to get people to stop dropping cigarette butts (烟头) for seven years.

One day, we were walking in our hometown and saw hundreds of cigarette butts on the ground.     1     They   made the town look so ugly that we decided to start a group to make people stop dropping butts. We called it “No Butts about It”.

At first, we drew pictures with “The Earth Is Not Your Ashtray (烟灰缸)” written on them. We put the pictures around our hometown—in parks, by beaches, and along roads.

We wanted to make people understand that dropping butts does harm to the environment. Most smokers don’t think that dropping butts harms the earth.     2    

Later, we wrote to companies and asked them for money to help us. We used the money to buy ashtrays to give smoker.

We wanted smokers to carry the ashtrays with them so they didn’t have to drop butts. At the moment, we are trying to get cigarette companies to put an ashtray in each pack of cigarettes.     3    

Many people he started to join our group since it began.     4     And there are even groups in England, Australia and India!

Many newspapers have written about my sister and I over the last seven years. And we have won many prizes for our good work.     5     We just want to make the earth a better and cleaner place for animals, plants and people.One day it will be.

【推荐1】Artificial intelligence (AD)(人工智能) is the ability of a computer program or a machine. The computer or the machine with AI can think and learn. It is also a field of study that tries to make computers “smart”. John McCarthy, a scientist, came up with (提出) the name “artificial intelligence” over 60 years ago. Many things such as learning and problem solving can be done by computers, though not in the same way as people do.

An unusual goal of Al research is to create special computer programs. They can learn, solve problems, and think logically(逻辑地). At present, Al can successfully understand human speech, recognize (识别) human faces, operate self-driving cars and compete in some game systems like playing Chess. However, some people consider (认为) AI a danger to humans if it develops too quickly. A famous British scientist also was not for this kind of technology.

Math is the basic language of AL. If students are good at math, they will be more likely to become successful AI designers (设计者)in the future. We need not only bright students but also average (普通的) students. As for (对于) average students, if they get enough math skills, they can also become successful AI designers. Besides, a good knowledge of computer science is also necessary for AI designing.

Scientists hope to create creative (有创造力的) and emotional (有情感的) Al. The AI can possibly understand human feelings or create art. Many ways and tools have been tried to discover this wide and exciting field.

【推荐2】More than two thousand years ago, in 360 B.C., the Greek writer, Plato, described a beautiful city. He said that it was lost somewhere under the ocean. He called this city Atlantis, This was the start of the legend(传说) of Atlantis.

Plato said that the people of Atlantis had been rich and happy. There were amazing palaces and ports in the city. The houses had fountains with hot and cold water, and the walls were covered with silver and gold. Outside the city, farmers grew food for all the people. It was sad to think that no one would go there again.

For two thousand years, everybody thought that Atlantis was just a fantastic story. They thought that Plato had invented it. But then in 1882 an American called Ignatius Donnelly wrote a book about Atlantis. He believed that there really was a beautiful lost city under the ocean. Thousands of people read his book and wanted to find the lost city.

A lot of people believed that Atlantis was on an island in Greece called Santorini used to be much bigger than it is today. About 3,500 years ago, huge volcano(火山) erupted(爆发) and most of the island sank under the ocean. Some people say it was in Spain. Asia or even in England. People have been looking for the lost city for more than a hundred years, but nobody has ever found it.

【推荐1】I am an apple. You can find me growing in many places in the world. I am like my cousins, pears and bananas. I am more round than a pear, and bananas are longer than me. I am delicious, so people all over the world like to eat me. I cost very little money and I help make people healthy. I play an important role in people's daily life. There is a saying in English: An apple a day keeps the doctor away. Don't you think I am great?

【推荐2】When talking about inventors, who do you first think of? Forget Thomas Edison. Meet the teenage inventors at the 24th Jiangsu Adolescents Science & Technology Innovation Contest (青少年科技创新大赛).

Wang Xingyu, 14, from Kunshan No.2 Middle School, invented “a safe line” in the zebra crossing（斑马线）. Wang often sees people running through the red light. So he thought of an idea.

“I put a spray tube (喷管) in the zebra crossing. When the light changes to red and someone crosses, it sprays water. If the light is green, it will not work,” said Wang.

But does it waste water? “There's a water channel (管道) on the ground, so the water will be collected and used again,” he said.

Zong Hangchen, 15, from Nantong Special Education Middle School, also got his invention idea from daily experience.

Zong's eyes can only feel a little light. When he walks on the sidewalk for the blind, he often comes across obstacles. Once he even hurt his nose.

To help himself and the blind, Zong made something that has radar (雷达) and a loudspeaker. Users tie radar on their knees and wear the loudspeaker around their necks. When they meet obstacles, the radar will see them and the loudspeaker will make a sound to tell the users.

Chen Huijuan, an official from Jiangsu Association for Science and Technology, was surprised at these inventions. “Though some ideas are simple, the creations are very good,” he said. “Get inspiration (灵感) from small things in life and you can be an inventor too.”

【推荐3】Teeth are very important for our health. They will be our lifelong friends. So we should learn to protect them at a very young age. Here are some tips：

First，we should eat right.

◆Don't eat too much candy or drink too much cola，or our teeth will go bad easily.

◆Have more cheese，milk and yogurt to make teeth strong.

◆Eat more vegetables and fruits to help clean teeth.

Second, we should keep these numbers in mind.

◆2/Day   Brush your teeth at least twice a day: in the morning and before bedtime.

◆2～3Minutes   Brush for at least two to three minutes every time.

◆3 Months   Get a new toothbrush every three months.

◆6 Months   Go to the dentist every six months for a check-up.

【推荐1】Diana was born in a rich family on July 1st, 1961. On July 29, 1981, Diana married Prince Charles. Later she gave birth to Prince William and Prince Harry.

Dianna enjoyed taking part in international Charities(国际的慈善机构) One day in July 1991, she went to a hospital to see AIDS patients with Barbara Bush, the wife of the president of the United States at the time. Princess Diana talked with an AIDS patient who was unable to stand up. She even hugged(拥抱) him and encouraged him to fight against the illness(疾病).The patient was very grateful and said, "AIDS patients do need warm hugs. " Of course, she made it. Unfortunately, she died in August 1997. British Prime Minister, Tony Blair said in his speech that Diana was the People's Princess.

After her death, people set up a fund(基金)to remember Diana and help those who need help in the UK and around the world.

【推荐2】Every student knows the importance of taking notes in class. But the skill of note-taking isn’t only used in school. Adults need to take notes in meetings. So here are some tips to help you develop this skill.

◆Begin with the date and the topic of the class. This may seem clear, but it’s easy to forget. It will help you keep your notes organized.

◆Focus on the most important points. Trying to write down everything the speaker says will only let you down. Instead, listen for the key ideas the person wants to show.

◆If the speaker uses a PowerPoint, you may not need to copy the slides. Ask if the PowerPoint will be available afterward. If so, you can focus on writing the things the speaker says instead. Or you can take a picture with a phone. Also, the PowerPoint or a document with notes may be available before the class or meeting. If so, print it out so you can write notes on it.

◆Think about whether you want to take notes by hand or with a computer. Writing notes by hand has been shown to help you remember things better. But with a computer, notes are easier to organize. Perhaps the best strategy(策略) uses both ways. Write notes by hand first, and then type them up to go over what you’ve learned.

◆Choose different note-taking strategies. If you’re a visual learner, try drawing a chart or picture. Another strategy is to write a description of the main facts or points with examples.

Note-taking is a practical skill, so it’s important to practice doing it well.