Some classic Chinese cartoon characters (卡通人物) could support (助力) the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Sounds interesting, right? In a short video, we can see that some of China’s most popular cartoon characters, such as the Monkey King. Nezha, the Snow Child and the Hulu Brothers play all kinds of winter sports.

Lovely Snow Child flies down a hill on his skis (滑雪板), and catches the eyes of other cartoon characters. Nezha skates on an icy river with Ao Bing, a son of the East Sea Dragon King. The Hulu Brothers make up an ice hockey(冰球) team and are ready to take part in the game.

They are the most classic cartoon characters made by Shanghai Animation Film Studio (美术电影制片厂). The most important character, the Monkey King, comes from Uproar in Heaven (《大闹天宫》). It was filmed between 1961 and 1964. In June 1983, it was shown in Paris for one month.

“These amazing characters take me back to my childhood days! This is the road that Chinese cartoons should follow,” someone says on the Internet.

2 . It’s good for kids to ride their bikes to school. But there are often too many cars on the road. It’s not safe enough for them.

In Barcelona (巴塞罗那), Spain, people have a good way to let their kids ride safely to school. The program is called “bicibús” or bike bus. Most kids ride their bikes, but others use skates.

Every Friday morning, hundreds of kids ride their bikes to school together at 8 o’clock. The police ride their bikes in the front, back or on the sides of the kids, too. Many parents also ride with them. They don’t ride in bike ways or on sidewalks, the bicibús takes over the whole (整个的) street, With music playing and bikes’ bells (铃声) ringing, the bicibús is like a fun party. The bicibús goes to several schools. When students reach their school, they leave the bus and park their bikes.

The ride first begins with five families. Later more and more kids and parents join in it. “It’s great!” Boix says. “If a 5-year-old kid rides a bike to school, it means everyone else can. Then there will be a better city to live in.

4 .

	Can eating too much carrots make your skin(皮肤)yellow? The answer is yes. Carrots are rich in beta-carotene(B-胡萝卜素). It is good for your eyes. But eating too much of it can make your skin yellow. Don’t worry. This is not bad for your body. The color will go away after a few days. It is best to eat one carrot or just half of a carrot a day.
	Why do we blink(眨眼)? You blink your eyes to clean them. Blinking also keeps your eyes wet. Your eyes don’t feel good when they are dry(干燥的). Blinking keeps your eyes safe. You blink when you see bright lights. Most people blink 15 to 20 times a minute.
	Why do leaves turn yellow in fall? It gets cold during fall. There is less rain and sunshine. Trees can’t get enough energy(精力)to grow. To deal with this, they lose leaves to save energy. Don’t worry, some small buds(叶蕾)grow on the trees. You can’t see them now. When spring comes, new leaves will grow.

How has technology changed our lives for the better? TIME will tell you! The magazine has picked its 100 best inventions of 2021. Here we present you some of the most creative examples.

The Learning Passport

Many schools have closed their doors since the COVID-19 pandemic (新冠疫情) broke out. Home school has been difficult for some students because of slow internet service. To make matters worse, some students don’t even have an internet connection at home. The Learning Passport has a solution. The project offers browser-or-app-based (基于浏览器或手机应用的) classes. These classes do not require a consistent (持续的) internet connection. Instead, students download their lessons when there is internet connection. They can then complete the lessons later, offline.

Blue Jeans Go Green

Jeans are a fashion favorite. Every year more than 4. 5 billion pairs are sold around the world. But the production of jeans is harmful to the environment. To color them, factories use synthetic indigo dye (合成靛青染料). During the process, the chemicals in the dye cause water to become polluted. Bio-technology company Huue has created bacteria (细菌) that can turn natural sugars into indigo dye—without having any negative environmental impacts.

Battery Swapping for EVs

Electric-vehicles(EV) are popular these days. However, they still face a major problem: They can take several hours to charge (充电). This is inconvenient for many drivers. One answer to this problem lies in battery-swapping (电池替换). When an EV pulls into one of these battery-swapping stations, its depleted (耗尽的) battery is removed, and a full charged one replaces it. American company Ample has designed a universal battery. It works with all types of EVs.

10 . Let’s be honest: People aren’t always great drivers. They get tired and make mistakes. Most people agree that safe and dependable driverless cars will be put into use in a few years.

Here’s what I think will happen next: The earliest use of driverless cars will be owned by companies like Uber or Lyft. They will be rapidly accepted because they can save time for people, lower the cost and be faster than human driving.

The benefits of driverless cars are so clear in many ways: They will be healthy, time-saving, carrying more passengers and having low consumption (消耗). But I think the biggest impact will be on our physical environment. I think the physical environment hasn’t changed that much these years, though the way we work and communicate has changed greatly thanks to the technology. Sure, buildings have more glass and cars have changed a lot, but if you compare two photos from 50 years ago and today, it’s often hard to find much difference in the environment, except a few clothing choices and smartphones.

With the use of driverless cars, certain things will become old-fashioned, such as parking lots (停车场), road signs and traffic lights. Then more bedrooms, playrooms and exercise rooms will be built. Saying goodbye to these things will cut the cost of housing and improve our life.