1     Microsoft created an app that can describe a photo. Huawei made an app that uses sounds to tell users if people they are talking to look happy, sad or angry. Now, Google is testing an app that will allow blind people to run alone.

At a Google event in 2019, a blind runner, Thomas Panek, asked a group of experts whether they could create something to help blind people run on their own without a guide dog or human assistant.

Panek, CEO of Guiding Eyes for the Blind, had always loved running. But he started losing his eyesight when he was 8, and by his early 20s he was blind. Later in life, he started running with other people or a guide dog to help him.     2    

The Google team soon created Project Guideline. The Guideline app uses a smartphone camera to recognize a line painted on the ground.     3     The sounds get louder in either the left or the right ear the further the person moves away from the line.

    4     “For the first time in my life, I didn’t feel like a blind man. I felt free,” Panek said. In November, 2020, Panek successfully ran 5 kilometers around New York City’s Central Park using the app.

Panek hopes the app Project Guideline can help more people like him.     5    

Chinese relic in the British Museum goes on a homecoming journey

Brought out on Aug 30, a three-episode web series (网剧) called Escape From the British Museum《逃出大英博物馆》has become p    1     online with its touching and creative story.

The series follows the j    2     back home of a Chinese jade teapot (玉茶壶) that has come to life. She runs away from the British Museum and comes across a Chinese journalist (记者) named Zhang Yong’an who helps the artifact (文物) r    3     to China.

The web series is c    4     by Chinese vloggers Jianbing Guozai and Xiatian Meimei. The two hopes to draw people’s attention to Chinese artifacts that are kept a    5    . To get ready for the TV show, the two s    6     making their own videos for three months and went to the UK to learn about the story of the Chinese jade teapot.

Many people have been touched by the lines in the series, such as “My family, I have been lost for a long time,” and “As long as I’m with my family, I’m safe”. Also, the face of the “jade teapot” is dirty, and she is s    7     at how big the journalist’s house is because her own place, a crowded cabinet (陈列柜), is too small. Viewers say this s    8     that the British Museum doesn’t take good care of the artifacts.

In mid-August, it was reported that t    9     of artifacts from the British Museum were “missing, stolen or damaged (损坏的)”. This has caused a heated d    10     on social media in China, calling for the return of Chinese artifacts.

Did you know that almost 8 million tons of plastic enter our oceans every year? There are many factors that contribute to this pollution, including microfibers.     1     In addition, microfibers can also be found in human waste. Studies show that we are constantly exposed to microplastic through our food, our water, and even the air we breathe.

Microfibers are tiny synthetic fibers that are created from small bits of plastic. They make up materials such as polyester, rayon, nylon, and acrylic and are the most common type of microplastic found in the environment.

    2     Swedish manufacturers produced a variety of these materials, making it one of the most popular in Europe. By the early 2000s, items made of microfiber became popular worldwide. The material was — and still is — cheap, highly durable (耐用的), and water-resistant. Because of these features, it is used for a variety of reasons, such as cleaning, homeware, clothes, and accessories.

Unluckily, when these synthetic items are washed, they release microfibers. Washing one load of synthetic clothes can release millions of fibers. Although wastewater treatment factories catch most of these fibers, some pass through because of their small size, entering our waterways and polluting the environment. They are also difficult to collect and clean,     3    

How Can We Help?

Fortunately, prevention starts right at home! Research has concluded that there are many ways to reduce the spread of microfibers. Some include the following:

●    4    

● Air-drying clothes also saves energy and reduces water consumption   

● Avoiding half-loads of laundry       

● Using a front-loading washing machine

It’s a common misunderstanding that wearing cotton instead of synthetic material is environmentally friendly. Researchers claim that cotton clothes often release (释放) chemicals, which is another cause of harm to the environment. Ultimately, scientists theorize that developing better materials is the best solution.

    5     they do not completely get rid of (清除) the ones already in the environment. Luckily, companies in the apparel industry as well as NGOs and researchers are actively trying to develop technology to clean our oceans and the environment. For now, we all can take small steps to do our part in restoring our beautiful planet.