【推荐1】The kiwi (鹬鸵) lives only in New Zealand. It is a very strange bird because it can’t fly. The kiwi is the same size as a chicken. It has no wings or a tail. It doesn’t have any feathers (羽毛) like other birds. It has hair on its body. Its mouth is very long. It has two feet and each foot has four toes (脚趾).

A kiwi likes to have a lot of trees around it. It sleeps during the day because the sunlight hurts its eyes. It can smell things with its nose. It is the only bird in the world that can smell things. The kiwi’s eggs are very big. There are only a few kiwis in New Zealand now. People may never see them again. The government says that people can’t kill kiwis. New Zealanders want their kiwis to live.

There is a picture of a kiwi on New Zealand money. People from New Zealand are sometimes called kiwis.

【推荐3】What makes people happier, money or having happy friends? Researchers from Harvard University have found the answer to this question in a study.

The study found that people who have happy friends have a greater chance of being happy. And if the happy friends are closer to you, you will be happier. For example, a person’s happiness rises by 20% if a happy friend lives within 1.5 kilometers. Having a happy neighbor makes the chance of being happy higher by 34%. The effects of friends’ happiness last for up to a year.

The researchers found that happiness is really contagious. Sadness also spreads among friends, but not as much as happiness. The study shows that having an extra (额外的) five thousand dollars increases a person’s chances of becoming happier by about 2%. But the effect of a friend’s happiness could in fact be greater than that.

The study also shows that people are happier when having happy friends than having good colleagues (同事).

【推荐1】In traditional Chinese performing arts, there are many classic roles, like sheng, dan, jing, mo and chou. Most people usually pay little attention to chou. However, it is a very important part in traditional Chinese operas. The reason is that it joins beauty and ugliness（丑陋）together perfectly. In the past, the chou performer was the first one to get dressed and have his make-up done.

Usually here are two kinds of chou on the stage（舞台）: wen chou and wu chou. Wen chou often has a white dot painted on his nose and takes the roles of fisherman, boatman, servant and so on. The other kind is wu chou. Wu chou performers often wear tight clothing（紧身衣）and move quickly. They are good at martial arts（武术）and can jump several meters high. They usually express themselves in loud voices and play humorous roles, for example, kind thieves （小偷）.

Chou performers often make people laugh by their spoken parts and body language, instead of singing skills. Whether they look ugly or beautiful, whether the roles they play are officials or thieves on the stage, chou roles are all humorous characters in funny faces. They use the roles of chou to bring out the good qualities（品质）in people. Maybe it is the charm（魅力）of traditional Chinese operas.

Next time, when you are enjoying a traditional Chinese opera, you can probably understand the different beauty behind it.

【推荐2】In nature, you may see many insects (昆虫) and animals of different colors. Have you ever wondered why?

Locusts (蝗虫) are super delicious food for birds, but it is not always an easy job for birds to catch them. It is neither because locusts are good jumpers or runners nor because they are smarter than their enemies (敌人). The reason is that the colors of locusts change with the colors of crops (庄稼). When crops are young, locusts look green. But when autumn comes, locusts change to the yellow and brown color as crops do.

Brown bears, tigers and other animals move quietly through forests. They can’t be seen easily by their enemies. This is because they have colors similar to the trees. For the same reason, polar bears that live on a land of snow and ice are white. Butterflies and bees living among the flowers are colorful like flowers. Soil insects are mostly dark-colored and they live under the soil in a dark and wet environment. However, insects with colors different from plants can easily be found and eaten by others. So in order to live,theyhave to hide themselves in the daytime and come out only at night.

Have you ever noticed some even stranger acts (行为) ? The ink fish in the sea can send out some very black ink when it faces danger. As the ink spreads over, its enemies will find themselves suddenly in a dark world. At the same time the inkfish swims away at once. That is how it keeps itself safe though it is not strong at all.

【推荐3】No one can change the weather. But if we read the signs around us correctly, we can tell how the weather will be. This way of telling what the weather will be like on the following day or two is called weather forecasting. For many centuries and in all countries, people have studied the weather and tried to make weather forecasting. Rings around the sun are a sign of coming rain. Many people feel in their bones the coming of wet weather—they feel joints (关节). Some birds fly high if fine weather is coming, but they fly near the ground if rainy or stormy weather is on the way. It is probably because of the insects which they are hunting that they fly low. If you see a rainbow during rainy weather, this is a sign that the weather will become clear and fine. Such rainbows come in the evening. If the stars twinkle (闪烁), then fine weather will continue. If a fog appears in the morning just above a river, then the day will be warm. If the sunset is mostly red in colour, rainy weather will probably come. Most of the above sayings have been made by the people who have used their eyes and brains to make weather forecasting.

【推荐3】1. Carrots are grown all over the world. They are easy to plant and easy to harvest. They have a good taste.

2. When people think about carrots, they usually think they are a kind of long, thin, orange-coloured vegetables. In fact, carrots are in many different sizes and shapes.

3. Carrots should be grown in a field that does not have water for a long time. The earth also should not be too hard. To prepare your carrot garden, dig up the earth and turn it over (翻土).

4. Weather, soil condition (土壤状况), and time affect (影响) the taste of carrots. Warm days and cool nights are the best time to grow great delicious carrots.

5. The best way to decide if a carrot is ready to be harvested is by its colour. Usually, the brighter the colour is the better the taste is.

6. Most people do not know that carrots can be grown during the winter months. If the winter is not cold enough to freeze the ground, you can grow carrots the same way as you do during the summer months.

7. Carrots are prepared and eaten in many different ways. They are cut into thin pieces and cooked with other vegetables or meat. Or, they are washed, and eaten just as they come out of the ground.